#and then dorcas would come and kill the fly for him

[childsaturn]

Barty crouch Jr is a little stick man,,, he has no muscle and physically couldn't hurt a fly

[exhaustedcatte]

Quidditch

“Is that Lupin?” Mary squinted against the morning fog into the distance.

The only way Lily knew that it was, in fact, Remus was the angle at which her neck was tilted back and the bundle of red wool that was wobbling towards the stands.

“Remus!” Lily waved him over.

He was blinking blearily, holding on to Peter by the shoulder, and still struggling to open his eyes. “Morning Lily,” he said to the air above her shoulder.

Peter deposited Remus by the girls before scrambling down to give Sirius his forgotten hair-tie. “Be right back, Moony! Padfoot can’t have his pre-game superstition faulted.”

Mary giggled and thumped Remus into the seat beside her. “Aw, Lupin! I don’t think I’ve ever seen you at a morning game till now! I know you love your sleep.”

Which, yes. Remus was often the last one to arrive for breakfast. He would stumble in, still sleep dizzy, and scarf down a plate that was meticulously arranged with his favourite foods by one of his boys. It was a bit endearing.

“Gryffindor hasn’t had a morning match in ages,” Remus pointed out.

Lily couldn’t help but ask, “So you, who doesn’t mind shaving off a few minutes of class for sleep, woke up early for bloody Quidditch?!”

“James and Sirius are playing,” he shrugged simply, looking a bit more awake now that he’d gotten a lungful of fresh winter air. “I always come to watch them play.”

Mary and Lily stared at him with twin looks of surprise.

Here was Remus John Lupin, infamous for arriving last to breakfast and sometimes nodding off in class because he had, according to Potter, bouts of insomnia. Here he was, at the Quidditch pitch when the sun was yet to show, simply because his friends were playing.

“You’re so sweet,” Mary cooed. “Ditching sleep for Quidditch! A lesser man could never. Would never!”

Remus huffed a laugh.

They tracked Peter giving Sirius the hair-tie and then fixing James’s glasses on his nose. “The superstition,” Remus explained as the three of them did a small group huddle. “We were trying to be supportive for their first tryouts years ago by fixing them up and they decided that that was why they got in.”

“That is absolutely adorable,” Dorcas declared from where she’d walked up beside Remus. “What’s your role in all this?”

Remus, curiously, blushed scarlet. Not just because of the wind nipping his face. “I’ve never done this outside—we usually handle their nerves and superstitions in our dorm.”

“Well,” Lily said, eyeing the two figures flying towards their stands despite the shouts of protest from Hooch and the Gryffindor Quidditch captain. “Looks like you’ve no choice but to follow through Remus.”

“It’s for Gryffindor,” Dorcas implored. “I don’t care how embarrassing it is, but you’ve got to! They need to be in form. If you are what it takes, then damn me Lupin, I’ll have your head if we lose!”

Remus sighed resignedly as the boys got closer.

For the first time, James wasn’t even looking at her when he flew over. His glasses were still askew but he was smiling with such contagious excitement that Lily found herself wishing he’d turn the smile on her and then instantly felt weird about wanting that. (Oh, but the red and gold against his skin was just too much.)

“Right then, Moony mine,” James leaned forward to Remus, smiling lasciviously. “Go on.”

Remus rolled his eyes and pushed James’s unruly hair back, “One day I will kill you both.” But then, Remus held James’s face by his temples and planted a kiss to his exposed forehead.

There were sharp wolf whistles and jeers sounding from around them like fireworks.

“Make me proud, as always. Off you trot, Potter,” Remus smiled. Sirius snorted elegantly from behind James. An inside joke, then.

“I don’t trot!” James muttered balefully as he nosedived to the grass to appease his captain.

Lily looked on as he jumped off the broom impressively right before landing and his exaggerated hand movements took over the conversation. She assumed he was arguing that they needed the Lupin Kiss for their own benefit.

Sirius hovered for a moment before swooping in to take James’s spot, looking entirely too unruffled even in the biting cold. As much as she could pretend to loathe Sirius, Lily had to admit that the boy was somewhat of a talent. And not to mention the absolutely ridiculous beauty on him.

Mary shared the sentiment, it seemed. “You’ll be breaking so many hearts right now, Black,” Mary noted with a smirk. “What they would kill to be Lupin.”

Lily looked around her and was unsurprised to find girls from all over the pitch, watching this spectacle. Disdain and jealousy crackling like live wire in the air.

“I’m perfectly happy as I am. I’d kill to be me if I were them,” Sirius said haughtily, throwing his short braid back.

Before any of the girls could comment on that statement, Remus shook his head and pulled a sour-faced Sirius by his jaw, Lily felt her face heat up at that action, leaned over the railing and pressed a kiss to the furrow between his brows, which smoothed out into Sirius’ perfectly porcelain face, tinged a healthy pink, when Remus pulled away.

“Good luck, Black. Make it worth my losing sleep.”

“You got it, Moonshine,” Sirius winked, eyes sparkling, previous woes forgotten, and looking much brighter now. He took off to the team, where they were all lined up to begin.

There was a pregnant silence for a few long seconds.

“And here I thought you plan the wreckage of the school in that dorm, but you’re all just kissing each other goodnight, huh?”

“It’s not mutually exclusive, Meadowes,” Remus smirked. “Besides, I think these two just enjoy being kissed.”

“By you!” Mary stressed with a laugh. “I doubt anyone else would work for them… well, besides Lily for Potter, I suppose.”

Lily flushed despite herself, a recurring theme today. Maybe she wasn’t so averse to that idea, after all.

None of them said anything about her lack of input for Sirius. It could be seen from miles away even through the thickest clag, this lingering thing between them.

(She hoped they’d figure it out soon, she had a few galleons riding on them.)

[star-named-riddle]

Day 16 - Worship

Lord Voldemort stretched on his bed, enjoying the perks of the late morning he had decided to have.

His brain had reeled for a good part of the night, turning over the memories of his last successful attack.

Dorcas Meadows was no more. It had taken time, and skill, but he had finally quelled the witch. One by one, he would destroy the Order. Dorcas had been a fine dueler, and he considered it a waste that she had to be killed, but she would not turn her cloak.

Bellatrix stirred next to him, still deep asleep.

He had taken her with him, trusting her to handle whoever else might be hiding with Dorcas. She had not failed him, killing two other wizards while he battled with his target. She had cast the Dark Mark high on the night sky, and followed him to his chambers.

He had claimed her body rashly, quick to find satisfaction in her. He had left her wanting, he knew that much, hungry that the both of them had been for one another. The days were of open warfare now, and neither was allowed much rest, let alone time to be together outside of a battlefield.

His Bella, his rotten creature, thrived amidst the war, dancing through battles, killing without remorse, and extracting every single piece of information from her victims at his command. She forewent sleep, and food, and even him in order to better serve his cause.

He let his mind wander, searching for her sleeping one. It was harder to breach like this, her carefully built defenses unable to move aside in his presence as they would were she awake. Still, he probed it, looking for a way into her dreams.

He never found it. Suddenly alert, Bellatrix’s mind shook him off with an ease he had to admire. By his side, his most faithful woke up, gasping for air, sitting up on the bed without any regard for her nakedness.

Her mind was like a hound on prey. Searching for what had disturbed her, looking for the intruder with every intention to maim, to kill. And all of her fury melted away into nothing as she found him.

“My Lord,” she said, her voice made deeper by the sleep that lingered on it. “I didn’t know it was you.”

Lord Voldemort chuckled, moving one lazy hand to lay on her thigh.

“Steady now, Bella, I didn’t mean to wake you like that.”

In fact, he had every intention of infiltrating her dream and rouse her in a much more… pleasurable way for the both of them.

“Good morning, my Lord,” she said, restarting their day.

She moved to lay back down, next to him, one leg thrown across his, one arm wrapping around his waist, and her mouth kissing a path up his chest and neck.

Her request was a silent one. It was bold, she knew, but she had earned the right to be bold around him.

Her lips made their way up to his cheek, then his temple, not daring to claim his mouth. He turned it to her, granting her permission, and she took her prize. She kissed him, long and deep, her hands coming to cradle his head, as his grabbed her waist and pulled her atop of him.

Bellatrix moved down his neck again, kissing, always kissing, her hands flying across his body, caressing him everywhere.

It was the closest thing to worship he had ever experienced, the way Bellatrix moved on his body.

Nothing before her had been so enlightening of the notion. Not the priest at the orphanage, not the matrons that despaired in order to teach him prayers to a god he did not believe in, not the glory of finding himself alone at Hogwarts in the middle of the night. Neither the quiet of the library nor the echo of his steps in the Great Hall had ever instructed him on worshiping quite like Bella had done.

She prayed with touch, and breath, and the warmth of her skin. And he alone was her god.

Bellatrix slithered down his body, turning her eyes up to his from his bellybutton, and smiled. A wicked, giddy thing, that made her intentions clear.

He would not have it. He did not crave her mouth on him there this morning.

He sat up in bed, holding her face up with one hand while the other dragged down her back. She arched beneath his touch, the runes on her back picking up on his magic. He held her face close to his, and when he let go she did not move. His palms settled on her hips, his fingers digging into her skin, and she mewled from the contact.

He kissed her, then dragged her up to sit squarely on his hips. She gasped, removing her mouth from his. Her hands moved to tug at the sheet between them, and he enjoyed her short lived frustration at their incomplete contact.

She lifted herself off him, and nearly ripped the sheet as she pulled it first, then tossed it to the floor. Her hips moved of their own volition, building friction between them.

He had left her wanting, and she had woken up starving.

Also to be uploaded onto AO3 later tonight

[prongsfootandco]

Ship: James/Sirius Rating: T Summary: After days of searching for James, Sirius was at the end of his tether. The mission was supposed to be simple - just a stakeout, no engagement, and yet James had never returned to Godric’s Hollow.

CW: Hurt no comfort. Lots of Angst. Mind the tags please!

-

After days of searching for James, Sirius was at the end of his tether. The mission was supposed to be simple - just a stakeout, no engagement, and yet James had never returned to Godric’s Hollow. Matters were made worse when Dorcas, his partner for the mission, turned up dead two days after James was supposed to come home. Her body was still and peaceful, not a mark on her except a tattoo of a snake burned into her palm. 

Voldemort. 

Sirius was only grateful that she’d had a quick and painless death. She’d been a good friend to him, especially after James’ wedding to Lily. As cute as young Harry was, Sirius could barely stand to be around him, the reminder that Sirius hadn’t been enough. Harry had James’ face with Lily’s eyes, a perfect blend of the two. So, Sirius had spent a lot of time recently with Dorcas, drinking his sorrows away and trying to mend his broken heart. 

And then James had gone missing. 

All those feelings that Sirius had been trying to banish came back with a vengeance, and he swore he’d never stop until James was safe and sound. His heart turned out to be stronger than his body. He was exhausted. Sleep meant harrowing nightmares, and food tasted like dust in his mouth. Everyone kept telling him that he’d be no use to James in his current state, but Sirius couldn’t stop. He’d rather kill himself trying to find James than give up. 

Thankfully, it didn’t come to that. Just as Sirius was trying to shake off the exhaustion and prepare to go back out searching, a silvery phoenix burst into the room, flying around Sirius’ head before landing on his shoulder. 

“We’ve found him,” Dumbledore’s voice spoke from the patronus. “St. Mungos.”

The air was knocked from Sirius’ lungs and he fell to the ground, sobbing dryly as he tried to catch his breath. His fingers clawed against the floorboards, scratching until his nails broke and blood streaked against the wood. 

“He- he’s alive…” Sirius gasped, unable to stand as his head began to spin. “J-James.”

After seeing Dorcas’ body and lifeless eyes, Sirius had started to come to terms that it would be James’ body he’d be recovering rather than the love of his life. He’d been prepared for it. And he’d been ready to take down as many Death Eaters as he could before they killed him too. There was even a letter stashed away in a drawer, written in scarlet ink, the words ‘ Regulus A Black’ scrawled across the envelope. 

But James was alive. 

“Oh Merlin, thank you!” Sirius cried, running his bloodied fingers through his hair. “James, my James… I’m coming!”

The journey to St. Mungo’s was a blur. Sirius barely remembered leaving his flat, and by the time he arrived at the hospital he was in such a state that the healers thought he was there to check himself in. It took Dumbledore arriving to stop them from making a fuss. Sirius crashed through the door to James’ room, falling to his side, more dry sobs wracking through his body. 

Over the years, James had been stuck in the hospital wing more times than Sirius could count, between quidditch, full moons and pranks gone wrong, there was always some way that James’ ended up getting hurt. But Sirius had only seen James this still and pale once before. It was a memory he’d rather forget. Snivellus had thought it would be clever to test a new spell out on James, and the curse had left James bleeding out in the middle of the corridor. It had been a miracle he’d survived at all. 

Sirius shuddered, gripping hold of James’ hand, pressing his forehead against it. James was never meant to be this quiet. He was fire and music and dancing. He was laughter and light and love. The silence was killing Sirius. The broken man on the bed wasn’t his James. It was just some shell that looked like him. 

Before he could say a word to the man he loved so much, the door opened again and in came Lily Ev- Potter. Sirius met her emerald eyes and saw his own heartache reflected back at him. It was clear that she hadn’t been getting much sleep either, not to mention she had a baby to look after on top of everything else. As Harry’s godfather, and James’ best friend, Sirius knew that he should have been there for her, but he hadn’t. It was too much, too painful. 

“Oh my god, James!” Lily cried, rushing to James’ other side. 

A worse person would have knocked Sirius out of the way, but Lily was kind, and she had never blamed Sirius for falling in love with her husband. They both knew that he had always been Sirius’ first. 

Not that that mattered now. James belonged with Lily and his son. There was no space for Sirius in his life anymore, not in the way he wanted. So he wiped his eyes and cleared his throat, hauling himself to his feet. 

“I’m- I’m going to the canteen, Lils, did you want anything?”

“Coffee, please. Thanks, Sirius,” she answered without taking her eyes off her sleeping husband. 

It was a shame the canteen didn’t serve firewhiskey. Coffee just wasn’t strong enough. There were no queues, and Sirius decided to treat himself to a slice of chocolate cake whilst he was in the canteen. If he had to deal with Lily and James being sickeningly in love with each other, then he was allowed some cake. Really it was James’ fault for going missing in the first place. 

Sirius sighed, licking some frosting from off his finger. At least James was safe now, and hopefully he would be able to tell them all how he managed to escape from Voldemort’s clutches, especially in his state. Dumbledore had only managed to tell Sirius that they’d found James in a park not too far from Sirius’ flat, so he’d obviously gotten free before collapsing from his injuries.  Taking a deep breath, Sirius re-entered the room, levitating two coffee cups with his wand and carrying his cake in his other hand. 

“You’re back!” Lily greeted warmly, eying up the two cups. “Which one’s mine?”

“Either. They’re both black.”

She smiled weakly. “Just like you.”

Any other time Sirius would have laughed at the joke, even coming from Lily, but he couldn’t, not with James lying so close to death. Instead, he just flopped down in the chair in the corner of the room, sniffing at his cake whilst Lily picked out one of the coffees. He knew he should ask how she was and about Harry, but the words wouldn’t form, so he carried on just brooding silently until -

“Si-” James’ broken voice whispered hoarsely from the bed. 

Sirius was by his side in a heartbeat, his coffee cup clattering to the floor. The chocolate cake was all but forgotten. Nothing mattered except James. His eyes were still shut and magic weaved around him in a bubble, keeping him alive when he couldn’t eat or drink himself, but there had been no mistaking the sound of Sirius’ name on his lips. 

“I’m here, Jamie,” Sirius told him, tears springing to his eyes. “I’m here.”

“Sirius.”

It was the most beautiful sound that Sirius had ever heard. 

“Yes, I’m here. You’re safe now.” Or at least as safe as one could be when in the middle of a war and actively fighting against Lord Voldemort. 

“James?” Lily’s voice startled Sirius. Despite her sitting so close to him, Sirius had forgotten that she was even in the room as soon as James had spoken.

Glancing up at her, Sirius couldn’t help but feel awful. The heartbreak was clear in her eyes. Yes, James and Sirius had always been close, a real package deal, but James had been the one to chase Lily. He’d flirted to the point of harassment when they were at school, never taking no for an answer. Looking back on it, James had been terrible to her, and she deserved so much better, but eventually even Lily Evans had fallen for the Potter charm. She was his husband, the person that he’d been in love with since they were eleven. 

And yet it was Sirius’ name that he called when he was waking up.

“Si?” James asked again as he finally opened his eyes, seemingly oblivious of his wife as she stood by his side. 

Sirius decided to take pity on Lily, smiling sadly up at her. He took hold of James’ hand, squeezing tightly. “Yeah, Prongs. Lils is here too.”

James’ brow furrowed, his hazel eyes glazed over and unfocused. “Lils?”

“Yes! That’s me, I'm here, darling.” Lily took James’ other hand in hers, bringing it to her lips. “Harry is still at home. He misses you, my love.”

“Harry?” James repeated. 

“Harry James Potter,” Sirius reminded him gently. “Your son.”

It was as if James was under a confundus charm, but that wasn’t entirely surprising. No one knew what had happened to him when he was missing. There was a good chance that he’d been obliviated, losing all memories of his family. 

“Oh,” James muttered. “Yes. Harry.”

“Do- do you remember Harry, darling?” Lily asked, her voice shaking. She looked sickly pale, as if she would rather be anywhere else in the world than in the room with her husband. 

“Yeah. Yeah I remember. Sirius?”

Smugness bloomed in Sirius’ chest. It was selfish and possibly cruel of him, but he’d missed having James’ undivided attention. He hadn’t had that in years, and even then James had still mooned over Lily, but now it was like she didn’t even exist. It was bloody brilliant. 

Perhaps that’s why he didn’t notice that something was wrong - too blinded by his love for James. 

“Yeah, mate. Still here. You can’t get rid of me that easily,” Sirius chuckled, barely resisting the urge to lean in and press his lips to James’ forehead, sweeping the shock of messy curls from his eyes. 

“I- can I stay with you?” James asked quietly, peering up at Sirius and squinting without his glasses. “I- I don’t want Harry to see me like this.”

Scoffing, Sirius shook his head. “You need to stay in the hospital, Jamie. We need to make sure you’re okay.” 

It had always been like this. Whenever James had a quidditch accident or a prank had backfired, landing him in the hospital wing, he’d always tried to escape before Madame Pomfrey gave him the all clear. It had driven Sirius mad at the time, and it was frustrating him now. Didn’t James know how much Sirius needed him to be okay? How much it hurt to see him so broken?

“I’m fine, Pads,” James grumbled even though he clearly wasn’t fine. 

The healer’s magic was still monitoring him and making sure they would be alerted whenever he needed more potions or charms. From what they could tell, James had lost a lot of blood, and there were signs of the Cruciatus curse being used on him. And yet, James was acting as if he’d just fallen off of his broom, a sprained ankle or something of that ilk. 

“Do you even remember what happened to you?” Sirius asked, his thumb idly stroking the back of James’ hand. 

“Not a clue, but it’s nothing a cup of tea and some TLC from my best mate won’t solve!” James cried gleefully, the cocky grin on his face ruined by the cuts and ghostly tone of his skin.

“Then why don’t you want to come home… with me?” Lily’s voice was shaking, her hands clenched in her lap. “To Harry.”

“Because he’s lying, Lils. He’s a mess.” 

“That’s not it!” James insisted. “I- I just miss Sirius, just a couple of nights, Lilypad, I promise.”

In the end, it was the healer that ended the argument. Under no circumstances was James to leave St. Mungos, not until he was given the all clear. Sirius and Lily took turns staying with him. He slept a lot, but when he was awake, he was nearly always asking for Sirius, much to Lily’s displeasure. By the time James was allowed to leave, she didn’t even protest when he said he was going with Sirius. 

Whatever had happened to James when he’d been missing, it seemed as if he’d had some sort of epiphany about his feelings for Sirius, or perhaps he really did just miss him. Sirius would be the first to admit that he’d been avoiding James more and more ever since Harry had been born. The wedding had been difficult, but Harry was just such obvious evidence of Lily and James’ relationship, far more so than the small gold wedding band. Even the pictures weren’t too bad, most of the ones on display were from dates, or pictures of James with Sirius and their friends. It was easy to pretend that Lily and James’ photos were simply platonic. 

If James had been close to death, maybe he realised that he didn’t want to spend so much time apart from his best friend, and this newfound clinginess was a way to force Sirius to get over himself. 

And he had a good point. Was Sirius really going to avoid James forever just because his feelings got hurt?

Hopefully Lily would understand. If not, then Sirius would-

What would he do?

The selfish part of him wanted to do nothing. With Lily out of the way, he could finally take what he’d always wanted. He could love James in the way he so desperately longed for. But that was his Black blood talking. Sirius knew he could be better than that, and the last thing he wanted was James resenting him, blaming him for the breakdown of his marriage. 

That was a problem for another time. For now, he got to enjoy James’ presence in his home once again. Sirius helped James with his trunk, levitating it up the flight of stairs, as he unlocked the door. The moment James stepped over the threshold, it was as if everything made sense again. When he’d moved out with Lily, Sirius hadn’t known what to do with himself. He’d not been able to sell the flat, too many memories of him and James together, drinking firewhiskey far too late at night, dancing in the living room, reading the Daily Prophet together over breakfast. James had carved out a space for himself in Sirius’ life, and then he’d gone and gotten married to someone else. 

But he was back. 

Sirius couldn’t be more thrilled. 

“The healers said to take it easy, so how about I make us some lasagna for dinner? Is that still your favourite?” Sirius asked as James shuffled into the flat behind him. 

“Yeah, of course.” 

Sirius grinned. It was as if James had never left! He pulled his best friend into a tight hug, mindful of the bruises that still lingered over James’ torso. “I’m glad you’re back, Jamie.”

“Yeah,” James agreed, burying his face into Sirius’ neck just like he used to do when they were back at Hogwarts. “Me too, Si.”

The first two days passed without any trouble. They slipped right back into their old routine with ease, and Sirius had almost forgotten the agony of those few days when he’d thought James was dead. 

But on the third day all hell broke loose. 

Sirius had been idly cleaning the house from his arm chair, a book in one hand as he charmed the duster along the stacks of records in the corner of the room, when James suddenly drew his wand. His face was blank as he pointed it at Sirius, no life in his usually sparkling hazel eyes. Sirius knew instantly something was wrong and he jumped to his feet. 

“Protego!” he yelled, and not a moment too soon. 

“Avada Kedavra!” James yelled, green light flashing from the tip of his wand. 

Sirius was thrown back as his shield broke under the curse. He landed hard against the wall. His head cracked back and he winced. Pain shot down his spine, but there wasn’t time to think. He dodged as another killing curse was thrown his way. The living glowed emerald green as curse after curse shot from James’ wand. 

“James!” Sirius yelled from his hiding place behind the sofa. “Jamie, you have to fight it!”

“It’s all your fault!” James yelled back. “I never wanted this. My whole life was planned out. Go to Hogwarts, marry the prettiest girl in our year, become a professional quidditch player, and then retire to become an Auror!”

“How the bloody hell is any of that my fault, James? Shit!”

Another curse narrowly avoided his head. James was a ferocious dueller, besting even the most skilled of Death Eaters, and without the dark magic they used. At school the only person that had ever been able to beat James at duelling was Sirius, but it had been nothing like this. James wasn’t holding back now, and he had no qualms about using the killing curse, in fact that was all he was using. Even Voldemort’s followers liked to use some variety of spells. They liked to play with their victims before destroying them. 

James was fighting to kill, and only to kill. 

“Because you made me fall in love with you,” James hissed, grimacing as if the words left a bad taste in his mouth. 

The room fell deathly quiet. That didn’t make sense. James wasn’t in love with him? He couldn’t be. Sirius’ heart was pounding in his chest and he felt like the life was being sucked from his body - a dementor’s kiss. 

James was in love with him??

“Avada Kedavra,” James whispered, standing completely still other than the flick of his wrist. 

The ice in his voice was too much to bear. It had been easier when he’d been screaming the words, and Sirius barely managed to dodge the spell in time, his body moving on its own accord. 

“Jamie, please, ” he begged, falling to his knees and gazing up at his best friend. “I can’t hurt you.”

The laugh that escaped his lips was haunting, bitter. A sound that Sirius would never forget. 

“You already have.” 

“But- but-” Sirius couldn’t form the words and he screamed, tugging at his hair as he spun on his heels. When he turned back around, James’ wand was at his throat, fire blazing in his eyes. “But I’m in love with you…” Sirius whispered weakly.

He closed his eyes, ready for the killing curse, not wanting to see the flash of green. James’ face would be the last thing he would ever see. That was how he wanted it. There wasn’t anything else in the world that mattered more to Sirius Black than James Potter. Despite whatever curse had stolen his best friend from him, he could at least die knowing that James had always loved him. 

But the curse never came. 

James Potter fell to the ground, gasping for breath. Sirius’ eyes snapped open to see James sobbing, cradling his head in his hands. He looked like death itself, his skin pale and his hands shaking at his wand clattered to the floor. 

“I’m so sorry, Sirius. I- I couldn’t. Voldemort- he… I-”

Sirius’ arms were around James in a heartbeat. “It’s okay. You’re okay now.”

“He- he wanted me to kill Lily,” James admitted through a sea of tears. “The Imperius curse. I- I had to kill the person I loved the most.”

Sirius blinked, his brain not quite processing James’ words. They didn’t make sense. Even with James’ forced confession of love. Sirius had assumed that it was all part of whatever spell had been controlling James, no matter how much it had hurt to hear, but if what James was saying was true… he really was in love with Sirius?

“You were never meant to find out. I’m so sorry,” James pleaded, reaching out to grab Sirius’ hands. 

“You love me?” Sirius asked dumbly, needing to hear the words confirmed. 

“More than anything, but it doesn’t matter.”

“What do you mean it doesn’t matter?!” Sirius tore his hands away from James, stumbling backwards as he stood up. “Of course it bloody matters, mate. ”

“I’m staying with Lily. She’s my wife, and we have Harry. I have a family, a duty. I can’t leave them, not for you,” James told him, not daring to meet Sirius’ eyes. 

And just like that, Sirius felt his entire world fall apart. “Not- not-” 

Rage tore through him, and he turned around. After everything they’d been through, how in Merlin’s name could James say that. If James could leave Lily for anyone then it should have been Sirius. Hell, he never should have married her if he didn’t love her.

Except James had already told Sirius why they couldn’t be together. James’ life plan involved marrying a girl, and a girl Sirius was not. James had never had a problem with Sirius being gay, but apparently he didn’t hold himself to the same standards. 

“Fine,” Sirius muttered. “Get out, Potter. Get out and have a good life with the woman you don’t really love. I’m sure she’ll be thrilled to be shot of me.” 

“Sirius, wait!”

“Please. Just go.” 

Not two seconds later, Sirius heard the front door click shut as James Potter walked out of his life for the last time.

[sadsycamoretree]

wolfstar but jurassic world au where sirius trains the velociraptor’s and remus is one of the scientists or something and like remus explains how the science team is working on genetically enhancing one of the dinosaurs(creating the indominos rex or whatever its called) and sirius is like uhh what the hell did you put in it

and then like it escapes when sirius’ best friend james comes to visit and in the chaos he meets lily who is like one of the top scientist and james is like yooo you made this ??? and shes like and THEY[the rich people who own the company] TOLD ME TOO and james is like Disappointed

also james would obvi be some sort of famous rugby player and people keep recognizing him

omg and then like when it first escapes it likes releases all the flying dinos right so sirius and remus somehow get like trapped in a lab with a pterodactyl and remus like punches it and then it gets mad and scary and it bites remus and injures him but then Sirius like pushes a bunch of shelves on it and it dies/goes unconscious and they escape the lab and then yknow… go on to figure out all the fuckery goin on

OMG AND ALSO LIKE SIDE SHIP DORLENE WHERE MARLENE COMES WITH JAMES TO VISIT SIRIUS BUT SOMEHOW ENDS UP MEETING DORCAS WHOS LIKE A CEO AND INVESTED IN JURASSIC WORLD AND MARLENE IS LIKE wow your so gorgeous and successful and smart why would you invest in this place thats trying to kill us AND DORCAS IS LIKE i could pay someone to have you killed AND MARLENE IS LIKE yeah you already did dumbass we’re being hunted by a giant velociraptor mutant

[e-of-west-glendia]

Line Without A Hook

So I said in an earlier post that when I hear songs my brain thinks in movie montages?? And that I figured out how to make it into words...kinda. Welp! This is it. 

Would highly recommend listening to the song (same as the title) while reading :))

Background: Sometime in the near past, James got asked out and he said yes. (Because I have this headcanon that after James and Lily became friends James tried to move on and not ruin their friendship wile Lily fell in love with him). And now they’re having their usual study session. 

Present

Accidental hand brush 

She was only reaching for more parchment 

I don’t really give a damn about the way you touch me when we’re alone

Lily is in the library 

She’s walking to a shelf, replacing books she took down earlier  

She bumps into something— or rather someone bumps into her 

It’s James 

Her books fall to the floor

James helps her pick them up, muttering apologies 

His hand brushes her arm...it lingers too long and before she can say something about it

It’s gone 

You can hold my hand If no one's home

They’re laughing about something 

Nudge with a shoulder 

Smiles like the sun but eyes like cracked glass 

Someone turns away 

Do you like it when I'm away?

James laying on the grounds, talking to Sirius and Remus 

Lily watching from a common room window

Small smile as she watches

If I went and hurt my body baby, would you love me the same?

Random girl walks by and says hi to James 

Something settles 

A cold feeling on warm day

I can feel all my bones coming back

And I'm craving motion

They’re in class 

They’d been put in pairs for group work

They disagree on an answer to something 

A teacher comes by 

Says Lily is correct

The triumphant smile she gives James could light up a city block 

Mama never really learns how to live by herself

It’s a weekend 

Everyone is hanging out in the common room

James and Lily volunteered to get food/snacks for everyone 

It's a curse

And it's growing

Some type of food ends up on Lily’s hands 

James laughs 

Lily just boops him on the nose with it 

Something along the lines of “there, now we’re the same”

You're a pond and I'm an ocean

After a quidditch match 

The usual common room party 

Lily stands in the doorway watching everyone cheering for the team 

Her smile is something soft...like nostalgia but without the memory to associate with it

James looks for her 

A flash of red hair disappears around the corner 

Oh, all my emotions

It’s in that archway thing...where Draco got turned into a ferret? 

James waves at Lily 

Feel like explosions when you are around

Lily waves back and smiles 

And I've found a way to kill the sounds, oh

Girl from earlier smiles at James and says hi 

James smiles back

Lily’s smile dies and she leaves 

She’s gone next time James turns to her 

Oh, baby, I am a wreck when I'm without you

This is just the Hogsmeade weekend James goes on the date 

Lily is with Marlene and Dorcas 

She’s talking to them 

James and the girl walk by 

He’s laughing. 

She’s made him laugh. 

Lily can’t stop watching 

(Present)

I need you here to stay 

It’s the common room

James is looking at where her hand brushed against his

I broke all my bones that day I found you

Lily is taking a walk to clear her head, it’s early morning 

The pitch is on her route 

Crying at the lake

She sees James practicing 

She stops to watch 

Was it something I said to make you feel like you're a burden?

 It’s breakfast, everyone is in the great hall

Lily is watching James 

Oh, and if I could take it all back

He’s talking 

He’s the center of attention 

I swear that I would pull you from the tide

But it no longer seems like she’s the center of his 

Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa

James is talking to Sirius 

I said no (I said no), I said no (I said no)

They see Lily tutoring some third years 

James is watching her 

Sirius raises an eyebrow at him

Listen close, it's a no

James just shakes his head and walks away 

A moment later Lily looks up

It’s the feeling that someone’s watching you when you aren’t looking 

But no one is there 

The wind is a-pounding on my back

James is flying 

It’s a quidditch match 

And I found hope in a heart attack

James is looking around at the stands 

He sees Lily, she’s watching him

She sends him a smile 

A rouge bludger finds its way near James 

Oh at last, it is past

He’s hit by it 

Now I've got it, and you can't have it

There’s concern in Lily’s eyes before he’s surrounded by team mates, and can no longer see her 

Baby, I am a wreck when I'm without you

It’s time for them to do their rounds as Head Boy and Girl 

James is late 

I need you here to stay

He’s running through the common room to get outside 

I broke all my bones that day I found you

He makes it outside 

Lily is waiting 

He didn’t expect her to wait 

Crying at the lake

She smiles at his surprise 

“Alright Potter?”

Was it something I said to make you feel like you're a burden, oh

Lily is sitting on the grounds 

James is walking by 

He stops to say hello 

And if I could take it all back

She looks like she’s going to say something 

Someone appears behind him, nudges his shoulder 

It’s the girl 

He turns to say hi

I swear that I would pull you from the tide

When he looks back to Lily she’s already halfway across the grounds 

Walking away 

Darling, when I'm fast asleep

It’s the library again

And Lily’s collecting her books 

Trying to place one on a high shelf 

I've seen this person watching me

James reaches it for her 

Saying, "Is it worth it? Is it worth it? Tell me, is it worth it?"

 He smiles at her 

One of those soft James Potter smiles 

Where his eyes crinkle in the corners a bit 

He runs his fingers through his hair 

God she hates it when he does that 

“I should get going.” 

“Yeah...yeah…”

He starts to leave. 

She wants to say something 

Anything 

“James?”

He turns

“Yes?” 

Oh

“See you in class”

He smiles and walks away

Guess there is something, and there is nothing

James is walking down an empty corridor 

Footsteps echoing in the silent halls 

He hears something— no, someone 

It’s Lily 

There is nothing in between

She’s jogging to catch up with him

He slows down 

They’re talking 

And in my eyes, there is a tiny dancer

She pauses mid sentence 

“What?”

“Nothing it’s just— there’s something on your glasses…”

“Oh?”

She nods and then gestures, “Can I?”

“Can you…? Oh! Yeah sure.”

Watching over me, he's singing

She has to stand on her toes to reach them 

Pulling them off gently 

She was right, there’s something on them. A speck of dust 

He didn’t even notice 

She wipes them off, looking up at him 

"She's a, she's a lady, and I am just a boy"

He can barely see but he doesn’t need to...he’s already memorized her

The green eyes shadowed by a curtain of red hair 

The smattering of freckles across her nose 

She’s staring back at him...her gaze seems searching but he couldn’t tell you what she was looking for 

His glasses are placed back on his face with a soft “There”

He's singing, "She's a, she's a lady,

He wants to say something 

Anything 

“Lils?

“Yes?”

and I am just a line without a hook"

“We better hurry...they’re waiting for us”

And they continue down the corridor 

Baby, I am a wreck when I'm without you

Lily is watching James practice, it’s the same memory as earlier 

It’s right after the Quidditch injury with the bludger

I need you here to stay

He flies down

He looks exhausted 

I broke all my bones that day I found you

He rubs his shoulder with a wince, it still hurts 

She’s going to go to him, to see if she can help 

Crying at the lake

The girl appears, she was there the whole time 

She looks concerned, and James gives her a reassuring smile 

Was it something I said to make you feel like you're a burden, oh

She’s talking to him, and he seems more at ease

Less pained…

He’s giving her one of those rare, soft smiles 

Lily rarely seems him smile at people like that 

At least not to people who aren’t— who aren’t her

And if I could take it all back

I swear that I

She leaves, deciding on a different path for her walk 

Casting a last glance back at James and the girl 

They’re happy 

He’s happy 

would pull you from the tide

That’s all she needs

Present 

James has just registered the brush against his hand

He gives her a curious look 

“Alright Evans?”

She shrugs, “Accident.”

He nods and smiles a bit 

Then he goes back to his work 

And the common room is silent once more

[enbysiriusblack]

By your side

Angel came down from heaven yesterday

"Marlene?" Dorcas said, staring at their girlfriend in shock.

She stayed with me just long enough to rescue me

The visions of Marlene came and went, Dorcas would see her in the street, at the kitchen table, the corner of their eye.

And she told me a story yesterday

Sometimes she'd smile. And repeat words Dorcas had remembered from before.

About the sweet love between the moon and the deep blue sea

Sometimes she's frown. And spout words that plagued Dorcas' thoughts.

And then she spread her wings high over me

It was a comfort. And gave Dorcas the push to get out of bed. To leave home and do something.

She said she's gonna come back tomorrow

To take revenge.

And I said "Fly on my sweet angel

Dorcas set out. Capturing, sometimes killing, death eaters.

Fly on through the sky

For Marlene.

Fly on my sweet angel

They were responsible for her death. And now they had to pay.

Tomorrow I'm gonna be by your side"

And then Dorcas would join her.

Sure enough this morning came on to me

Dorcas managed to find Voldemort easily.

Silver wings silhouetted against the child's sunrise

They snuck in, death eaters crowding the place, and made their way to him.

And my angel she said unto me

They saw Marlene as they walked. Sometimes she looked terrified.

"Today is the day for you to rise

Sometimes excited. Eager.

Take my hand, you're gonna be my man

Dorcas carried on walking, fuelled by the visions of their dead lover.

You're gonna rise"

Their body froze, unable to move as they were caught by a herd of death eaters. Sent to Voldemort.

And then she took me high over yonder

He pointed his wand at them, in calm fury at the person responsible for the loss of men.

And I said "Fly on my sweet angel

Dorcas smiled and closed their eyes.

Fly on through the sky

They saw Marlene's face. Dancing in the sun.

Fly on my sweet angel

She was waiting for them.

Forever I will be by your side"

[corinnesamuels]

Guarding the Gates, Chapter 10: A Question of Legacy

Cover art by the amazing @the-dream-team!

“I’m surprised you came.” Regulus says as he turns back to observe the ducks. 

“I am too.” Sirius replies. “Though, if you could get on with it, I do have things to do today.” Sirius hates how easily his voice slips back into the cadence his family had beaten into him growing up but sounding like a detached aristocrat was usually the best course of action for conversations like these. 

Regulus hums lightly. “Carrying out Dumbledore’s bidding, I presume?”

Sirius rolls his eyes in exasperation. “What is it you called me here for? It isn’t to kill me because we both know you don’t have the stomach for that. Did your master want to send a message, then?”

Regulus gives an incredulous laugh as he turns to face his brother fully. “You think you’re important enough to receive a message from the Dark Lord?”

“Surely, I’ve taken down enough of his followers to have caught his attention by now.” Sirius makes a show of idly scanning the crossword.

“Enough for him to wonder why you’re turning your back on the people of our birth and the legacy of our house, perhaps.” Regulus brushes an invisible piece of lint from his sleeve. “But no, I’m here on my own accord.”

“And the purpose is?”

“My purpose is to discover why you always insist on playing for the losing side.” Regulus says. It surprises Sirius to realize how well he still knows his brother. He recognized the slight hitch in his voice. Others may have thought Regulus was taunting him, but it isn’t a taunt in his voice. It’s concern.

“Don’t tell me you’re worried about me? Mother and father will be apoplectic when they find out.” 

“Yes, because you have shunned everything they wanted for you!” Regulus grips the back of the bench tightly before dropping his head in frustration.

“What they wanted for me? Pureblood fanaticism, inbreeding, and a penchant for dark magic? I’ll pass on that if you don’t mind.” Sirius tucks his newspaper into his jacket pocket and begins to stand. “Well, if that’s all—”

“Legacy, Sirius.” Regulus cuts in through bared teeth. “Does that mean nothing to you?”

“What in our legacy do we have to be proud of, Regulus?” Sirius barks out. “The only things worth mentioning are things our parents despise. I only learned those things  because  they despised them.”

“Our parents wanted so much for you.” Regulus shakes his head in exasperation. “The named you after the brightest star in the night sky—”

“Here we go again with this bollocks—”

“They placed their hopes for our family’s legacy on you. And you have treated it with scorn since the very beginning.” Regulus says. “And spending all of your time with Potter has only made it worse.”

“I treated it with scorn because that’s what any decent person would have done, Regulus. I’d tell you to try it sometime, but you love taking up the mantle I left behind, don’t you?” Sirius says it sarcastically, but something clicks in his mind as soon as the words leave his mouth. He whips his head back to Regulus. “You don’t.” 

“I don’t know what you are talking about.” Regulus says dismissively, but Sirius knows better.

“Mummy and Daddy’s expectations are weighing on you more than you’d care to admit.” Sirius says as he walks closer to his brother. “Their hopes and dreams suddenly feel like burdens to you, too, don’t they?”

Regulus doesn’t answer. He just stares across the park as a means of avoiding eye contact with Sirius. Sirius takes a deep breath and takes another step closer.

“You don’t have to fight for him just because they tell you to.” he says. 

“What, you want me to come to the losing side? You want me to believe that your friends will welcome a Death Eater into the ranks?” Regulus shakes his head and laughs in disbelief.

“Who said we’re losing?”

“The people that keep deciding the terms of the fighting.”

The two brothers stared at each other defiantly, though neither of them knew quite why. It was a posture they had adopted once Sirius had moved out at 16, one that made little sense then and made even less now.

“It seems as if we disagree on who is losing.” Sirius says before giving Regulus a questioning glance. “Is that the only reason you joined them, then? Self-preservation and our parents’ expectations?”

“I couldn’t care less about power, Sirius.” Regulus waves a hand dismissively at the thought. “What else is there besides self-preservation and our family’s legacy?”

“Deciding to do the right thing.”

“The concepts of right and wrong always were so black and white with you. Until the day you found yourself in the grey area.”

Sirius clenches his fist and just barely refrains from punching Regulus, though he desperately wants to. “We have a chance to make sure our family’s legacy includes being on the right side of this.” He says through gritted teeth before sighing and running a hand roughly over his mouth. “Look, Reg, come with me to Dumbledore. He can keep you protected, and you can see what life is like when you aren’t being forced into things you know are bollocks. You don’t have to keep doing our parents’ bidding.”

“You’re willing to die behind this…this folly?” Regulus asks quietly. 

“Yes.” Sirius says simply. For a moment, he thinks he may have won Regulus over. But then he sees his brother’s eyes glaze over into the aloof unbotheredness that was the Black family’s emotional default—when they weren’t deranged and sadistic like Bellatrix or Walburga. 

They stand there for a while in silence before Regulus takes a step backward.

“Be careful, Brother.” Regulus says. Sirius shakes his head and begins to stalk away when Regulus calls out to him. “I’m surprised you haven’t changed your last name to ‘Potter’ considering how much you’ve taken to acting like them.”

Sirius stops to turn to Regulus once more and laughs in spite of himself. “And miss out on the opportunity to piss off Mother and Father by dragging the family name through the mud? Never.”

   The War was becoming more tense by the day. There were more Death Eater attacks of muggle villages, more disappearances, more suspicions of Ministry officials being under the Imperius Curse. The Order of the Phoenix was often tired, and there had been several close calls, but their resolve remained. 

Despite the dark cloud hovering over the wizarding world, or maybe because of it, many young couples were cutting their engagements short, choosing to get married quickly because they saw every day just how short life could be. People the Marauders, Lily, Dorcas, Marlene, and Mary knew from school joined in the fray. Henry MacMillan and Aurora Gade married just two months after getting engaged. Penelope Parkin and Ian Abbot married after just two months of dating. So it wasn’t much of a surprise when Alice and Frank announced after an Order meeting that they would be doing the same. They’d held hands while making the announcement, exchanging looks that were equal parts adoring, frightened, and resolved. It was new for many of the Order to see them like that. It was no secret that the two had been dating, and in the rare instances when they all gathered to let down their collective hair, the couple looked as smitten and loving any other young couple looked. But in Order meetings, they were fighters, Aurors on a secret mission flying below the Ministry’s radar. To see them this way was a rare glimpse of their private selves, the ones they reserved only for each other.

When Dorcas made a statement about it being swoon-worthy a little too casually, Lily knew her friend was refraining from letting her eyes drift over to Remus Lupin. Lily couldn’t really say for sure, though, because she had been too busy trying not to let hers drift over to the man standing next to him. Lily was happy for Frank and Alice, and she loved that they had found love in each other in ways that worked for them. A part of her wishes she felt that it was something she could have for herself, but how could she risk that now? As a muggle-born? As a member of a resistance group operating outside the confines of the law? As someone who had seen how love can be used to break people in ways that still haunt her nightmares?

Read the rest at ao3!

Start from the beginning

[justtryingtodiffusethetension]

my perfect world is where james and lily never suspected remus (bc why would they) and regulus fled from the dark lord and sirius got to finally protect regulus like he’d always wanted to. and regulus tells the order about the horcruxes and they one by one begin to destroy them. and sure, voldemort comes knocking on halloween night, but the order is ready for them, and they take him down.

and james and lily and remus and sirius raise harry. and he’s not the boy who lived. he’s the son of the people who lived

and james teaches harry to fly. and when harry makes the quidditch team first year, james and lily go to every gryffindor match.

and james and sirius bring harry to the quidditch world cup no matter where it is

james loves ginny. lily loves hermione. the twins ADORE them all

and remus is appointing DADA professor by headmistress minerva mcgonagell in 1983. and harry counts down the days till he gets to be uncle moony’s student

and the students love james and lily. everyone talks to them and fights to sit with them at quidditch matches

and harry even loves his uncle regulus. who was, of course, terrified to be a part of the family. but who, like everyone else, could only maintain a cold demeanor for so long in the presence of james potter

and peter pettigrew is forgiven, eventually. he didn’t get a chance to kill marlene. it’s discovered that he was manipulated by dumbledore. they are all pawns really. james visits peter every sunday in azkaban. lily starts going in 1984. sirius in 1987. remus in 1992. marlene and mary and dorcas in 1996.

and there’s never a second war. and frank and alice weren’t lost to the first one. neither were gideon and fabian prewett. those twins invest immediately in the second generation’s twins business plan.

and everyone is happy. and safe. and the worst thing to hit the halls of hogwarts is puberty, as it should be

that’s my perfect world

[with-love-anu]

The One

Pairing: Sirius Black x Reader

Summary: You set up Sirius with someone for the ball but end up falling for him instead.

Warnings: Nothing I could find! It’s pinning and fluff.

Word Count: 1,688

(Y/n) and Sirius were sitting in front of the fireplace, basking in its warmth. Others, being exhausted had left long ago. (Y/n) laid her head on Sirius’s chest, talking to him softly. The conversation went from homework to pranks to professors before finally landing on the upcoming ball.

“Wait! What do you mean no-one?” (Y/n) asked sitting up.

“I mean I am taking no one to the ball” Sirius shrugged.

“But, why?” she questioned. He, of all people wouldn’t bring a date?

“Well, I want to take someone I actually like.”

“Okay… and the problem is…” she prompted.

Sirius sighed. He looked straight ahead into the fireplace. (Y/n) didn’t want to push him. So, they stayed quiet for a while.

“I-“ he hesitated. (Y/n) looked at him waiting for him to continue.

“Everyone I’ve been with until now has been… well attracted to just my looks. I mean I know people like the way I look or am but…” he paused taking a deep breath. “The thing is they don’t like me. They like the idea of me. No-one, believe me no-one likes me for me. I saw James going with Lily, Dorcas and Marlene and I just… I am not jealous, I am happy for them, but I. I can’t have that. I don’t want to go with someone because of the way they think I look. Because why else anyone else want me?”

Sirius did not quite meet his friend’s eyes. He felt as if he didn’t deserve it, as if he wasn’t worthy of love like that. It was unlike him being vulnerable, but it was (Y/n). He always let his guard down around her.

“Heyyy, you know that’s not true!” she said softly. She did not know what caused the boy to think like that. He was after all one of the best people she knew. When he still didn’t seem to want to look at her she got an idea.

“You know what? I’ll help you find someone like that.” She said excitedly.

Sirius rolled his eyes and scoffed.

“Yeah, right.”

“Come on, you’ll never know if you don’t try!” she nudged him.

“And how the hell would you go about this?” Sirius asked as if she said something ridiculous.

“I know you Sirius. I’ll help you find that amazing person.”

“Fine. Let us see how you do it!” he said sarcastically but anyone could see the hope glimmer in his eyes.

“Fine.”

***

(Y/n) and Sirius were sitting at the very back of the history of magic class, talking in whispers.

“What about Selene?” (Y/n) asked. Sirius grimaced.

“I played a prank on her a while back making fireflies fly around her head, but didn’t know she was allergic to them. Pretty sure she wouldn’t do so look at me.”

(Y/n) snorted out laughing.

“It’s not funny!” he whisper-yelled.

“It very much is.” The girl said trying to hold back her giggles.

“Okay… Okay… what about Lee?” (Y/n) suggested after controlling herself.

“Quidditch rival, so a hard no.” Sirius said thoughtfully.

“Don’t you think, you know, it would make up for some tension.” She said air-quoting tension and winking at him. Sirius rolled his eyes.

The two of them remained silent for a while.

“Sirius what do you want in a person?” (Y/n) asked quietly looking at him. She thought she knew but he had always surprised her, so she had to ask.

“I don’t know. Is there something I am supposed to? What do you?”

“Well you must think of something when you think of love. Like I want someone I am comfortable with. I want them to hold my hand through my ups and downs. Listen to me rant.”

Sirius waited for (Y/n) to continue but she didn’t.

“That’s it? You don’t want dates and flowers and you know the gestures?” Sirius frowned.

“No. I want the person and his love.” (Y/n) shrugged. “What’s the use of doing all those things if there is no real connection between you? I mean sure those things are nice and all, but I don’t want a perfect relationship. I want butterflies in my stomach when I look at them.”

“Butterflies?” he laughed.

(Y/n) smacked his shoulder lightly. She was sure he wasn’t going to drop it very soon.

***

(Y/n) pushed Sirius forward.

“Go!!!” she said widening her eyes.

“Are you sure? She seems a bit eccentric.” Sirius asked. (Y/n) sighed, rubbing her forehead.

“No. She is a lot like you. Just give her a chance.” She said. Emilia was a very sweet and charming Hufflepuff. Sirius would love her. Sirius huffed and finally moved to talk to her.

(Y/n) sat afar watching them. They seemed to get along. (Y/n) could see Sirius smile, not smirk, and she knew she was right. Then why was she so sad? She felt odd looking at them together. She couldn’t sit still. She tapped her foot, trying to concentrate on her book, but she couldn’t. All she could think about was Sirius and Emilia.

Sirius came back smiling. Somehow, for the first time she wasn’t as happy seeing it.

“So, how did it go?” she asked nonchalantly.

“Amazing, she is really nice. I can’t believe I never knew her. I-“

“Yeah, yeah I get it.” She huffed. Suddenly, she didn’t want to hear about the amazing Emilia anymore.

***

It took (Y/n) a week. A whole week to realize that she had fallen for Sirius. Someone, whom she herself set up with the girl she now didn’t like at all. It was painful, seeing Sirius so happy with Emilia. All she wanted to do now was somehow rip them apart. They went on study dates together, looking like the cutest couple and all (Y/n) could feel was her stomach twisting up in knots. Every time Sirius mentioned Emilia’s name, it felt like a knife through her heart. But, she couldn’t do anything, she couldn’t take away the happiness Sirius felt after such a long time.

“What’s wrong?” Sirius asked her.

“Umm… nothing? Why?”

“You look sad.” He asked concerned. (Y/n) forced a smile.

“I’m not” she said lightly.

“So, did you find the one?” he said smacking his shoulders into yours.

“The one?” you giggled.

“Well the imperfect person whom you’ll be happy; with him doing the most ordinary of things.” Sirius said making you laugh.

“Well, you think I am not asking for much but I am. I am asking to be the couple who you would see beside a shop walking hand in hand, happy and in love. I don’t want a hero, I don’t want an adventure but that doesn’t mean I am not asking for big things. I am asking for love in its most raw form. I want something which even though ordinary but is beautiful. Isn’t that the most people get?”

Sirius then looked at (Y/n) as if she was the ocean and he wanted to drown. She wished for such a simple yet priceless thing. She wasn’t like others whom he had been with. His heart surged. She looked so angelic sitting in the sunlight like that. And all of the sudden he wanted to be the one (Y/n) got those things from. All of a sudden, Emilia seemed like another one of his flings. Sirius gulped. Was he falling for his friend?

***

As days passed, it became more and more difficult for Sirius and (Y/n) to contain their realizations. The Yule ball was nearing and (Y/n) found herself dreading it. She did not want to see Sirius and Emilia together. It broke her enough to see them everyday; but in the ball dancing in each others arms? That would kill her.

“Sirius did you ask anyone yet?” Remus asked prompting him towards (Y/n). Sirius sighed. He did not know what to do. The person he actually loved didn’t love him back. It killed him. It really did. He had told all about it to James and Remus and they had constantly told him that (Y/n) felt the same way but there was no way he could ever believe that.

“No.” he answered. (Y/n) looked at Sirius.

“Why?” she asked.

“I don’t want to go with Emilia.”

“Why? What happened?” she asked as a sudden weight seemed to lift off her shoulders.

“I don’t like her that way. We are friends sure, but there’s nothing more” Sirius said sadly, if only the one he did like could see it.

(Y/n) tried hard not to smile widely. The thing that was crushing her inside had suddenly disappeared. Sirius did not miss how her face lit up. Were his friends true after all?

“Yeah. I met Lee. And I think we sort of connected.” Sirius smirked as he watched (Y/n)’s face fall.

“Oh.” She said. “Listen I need to go. I’ll see you later.” She said getting up.

Sirius grabbed her hand stopping her.

“Jealous much?” he said feeling his heart thump wildly. He smiled as he saw (Y/n)’s face go through a variety of emotions. He felt things becoming merrier around him every passing moment.

“Pftttt… Nooooo” she said unsure.

“(Y/n), look at me” he demanded.

(Y/n) felt heat crawl up her neck and face as she refused to meet his eyes.

“Look at me.”

She looked up to see Sirius looking at her softly.

“(Y/n)” he breathed. “I was kidding about Lee. I don’t like him”

“You were?”

“I… I like you. I wanted to see if you were jealous. And looking at you like that just made it worth it.“

(Y/n) smacked him. 

“You idiot. You made me feel like shit and you do stupid things like this.” She said as she slapped his chest lightly, overcome by emotions. Sirius grabbed her hands and pulled her towards him and kissed her. As they both pulled away breathless and light they smiled.

“I want to be everything you want. I want to love you forever, I want to-“ (Y/n) placed her hand over Sirius stopping him.

“Just hold me close and never let go.” She whispered. And that was how Sirius felt he found the one for him.

A/N: This was written for the very lovely @im-a-writer-right for her 2K celebration! Let me know what you think!

[averylilyevans]

it’s your life

i found this old post of mine recently and decided to give it a little update! i was so young when i wrote it, so i had some new ideas to freshen it up. naturally i did this instead of doing my organic post-lab. here it is! 

first year is full of frustration and unfamiliarity and a twinge of homesickness. it’s being sorted into a different house than sev, being top of your year, being the one person potter seems to seek out most. it’s befriending marlene and dorcas and mary, staying up late at night while they tell you about all the wizarding world has to offer. it’s discovering quidditch (which you hate) and celestina warbeck (whom you love). it’s trying every candy that marlene’s older brother brings back from honeydukes and accidentally walking through the bloody baron.

second year is sending a tickling charm potter’s way after he calls sev “snevillus.” it’s your first detention directly after, too, and definitely worth it. it’s figuring out remus’ secret and not telling a soul - not even him for the longest - but you don’t care (how could you?) because it’s Remus we’re talking about. it’s helping mary with charms and dorcas with girls and marlene with waking up in the morning. it’s learning (and being awful at) wizards’ chess and turning your beetle into a button first try. it’s sev staring at you from the slytherin’s table and still being in awe of the great hall’s twinkling sky and always taking two helpings of treacle tart.

third year is hogsmeade and arithmancy and divination and potter asking you out for the first time (you not-so-politely decline). it’s spending the majority of october with your legs dangling in the great lake, your friends giggling next to you. it’s studying with sev in the library and trying not to notice the guilty look in his eye. it’s petunia writing to you even less than before because of some normal whale of a man named vernon. it’s sharing a butterbeer with sirius black in hogsmeade because you’ve lost your friends and really, they’ll be right back, but he insists and is actually quite funny and you think you’ve rather misjudged him. it’s going to the kitchens one night with remus, because it’s been a long day and the house elves always have hot chocolate.

fourth year is slug club parties and sneaking off with benji fawcett because parties aren’t your thing and sirius couldn’t make this one. it’s waking up the next morning to marlene telling you she’d run into potter and he was looking rather dejected (you ignore the guilt in your stomach; it’s only there a moment). it’s sitting with dorcas and mary at quidditch matches, watching potter soar through the air like a bird. it’s finally having the nerve to quit divination because crystal balls and prophecies are complete rubbish anyway. it’s thinking sev has been hanging out too much with mulciber and avery and malfoy but getting excuse after excuse in response. it’s trying your first sip of alcohol with dorcas and marlene at christmas, the burn in your throat masking your worry for sev.

fifth year is when all hell really breaks loose. it’s sev asking too many questions about remus and potter being more arrogant than ever before (that sodding snitch) and being so stressed because o.w.l.s are coming up and you have to show your worth. it’s threatening potter for threatening sev by the lake and that word - the one that haunts your brain and creeps into your nightmares. it’s knowing potter didn’t deserve what you said, because your sev is too far gone and in his place is a boy who doesn’t understand what he’s doing (you hope, you pray; the alternative is too much to bear). it’s not taking points away from the marauders even though you’re a prefect, and maybe you’re abusing your power but you can’t bring yourself to care. it’s drinking firewhiskey with marlene in empty classrooms and passing your exams with flying colors. it’s more “i hate you, potter”s and “back at you, evans”s than ever before, but the bite just isn’t there. it’s partnering with peter in potions because he’s absolutely dreadful and you get the sense he feels a little less than compared to his talented friends. it’s your dad getting sick and your world falling apart and sirius and that prank and why why why?

sixth year is regaining control and desperately trying to cling onto normalcy. it’s spending more time with mary and dorcas and marlene. it’s ignoring sev every time he comes around the corner trying to get your attention because you just can’t make excuses for him anymore. it’s going to potter’s house over break after sirius says he’s run away, and the three of you drinking and laughing until the sun comes up. it’s deciding maybe there’s worse things in life than arrogant boys with good intentions. it’s hours and hours of homework and studying because you’re taking more n.e.w.t.-level subjects than anyone knew existed. it’s knowing petunia won’t write you back but sending chocolates on her birthday just in case. it’s discovering the marauders’ secret - why they’re moony, wormtail, padfoot, and prongs - and laughing uncontrollably because they’re just so bloody brilliant. it’s brewing potions for fun and enjoying life instead of just existing. it’s eating breakfast with your friends and the marauders and ignoring the feeling in your stomach when james passes you the juice you like without asking. it’s learning to apparate and mary splinching herself and spending the rest of the evening with marlene and dorcas in the hospital wing. it’s a war brewing outside the castle walls; and when mcgonagall asks if you know what you’d like to do after hogwarts, she sees the fire in your emerald eyes and knows.

seventh year is being head girl and wishing severus hadn’t gone down that road and getting upset when your friends ask you if you like james (why does he have to look so bloody perfect all the time). it’s parties that last until midnight and tutoring scared first years and sneaking into honeydukes with james to get remus chocolates after a full moon. it’s singing at the top of your lungs with marlene and swimming in the great lake with mary. it’s thinking your chance with james is gone because he’s moved on and sirius giving you a look that says are you a bloody idiot? it’s dorcas holding you as you cry because another muggle family has been killed and you don’t know how much more you can take. it’s running out onto the pitch after gryffindor wins the cup and kissing james full on the mouth in front of the whole school because his lips look soft and he’s beautiful and courageous and kind and he feels like home and why have you fought this for so long? it’s ignoring the hurt look in severus’ eye as you make your way back to the castle, james’ strong arm wrapped around your shoulders. it’s flinching when petunia says she’d never make a freak like you her bridesmaid but bringing james to the wedding just to drive her mad. it’s being scared to leave hogwarts because after all these years it’s home, and you can’t imagine a day when your nights won’t end with your friends’ laughter by the fire.

graduating isn’t like coming up for fresh air. it isn’t a week before dumbledore is owling, asking if you lot would like to join the order of the phoenix. you train for only two weeks, learning curses you shouldn’t need to know even exist. now life is missions and green light whizzing by your head. it’s the three days when sirius went missing and james couldn’t sleep or eat and you finally found him inside an abandoned building chained to the wall. it’s dorcas being murdered by voldemort himself and remus going to live with the werewolves and marlene’s entire family being gone before you have time to mourn the others and everyone around you is dying. it’s seeing severus on the battlefield for the first time and not hesitating for a moment before sending a curse his way. it’s james looking over at you as he shields you both from a bright red light and says “marry me, evans.” it’s responding “are you mad? of course i will” like you aren’t literally in the middle of a bloody war. it’s going home and kissing him like your life depends on it, and you think to yourself that maybe it does. it’s the empty spots beside mary where dorcas and marlene should be and sirius’ best man speech moving you to tears. it’s coming face to face with voldemort twice and surviving. it’s finding out you’re pregnant and telling sirius first because you’re not even twenty yet and james is out on a mission and what are we supposed to do now? it’s remus and sirius never leaving your perfect little house in godric’s hallow, insisting on being together as much as possible. it’s secretly wondering what’s going on with peter, because he hasn’t come ‘round much and you’re worried but the boys dismiss your fears. it’s wanting to make a difference - for yourself and your husband and your friends - because this world isn’t one worth living in.

going into hiding is like giving up on everything you’ve fought for. it’s harry being born and wishing your mum was there, but james has never been so proud and the look on sirius’ face when you ask him to be the godfather makes everything worth it. it’s sitting on the couch, stroking the cat that wandered into your backyard. it’s listening to james talk to harry, telling him about all the mischief the marauders got into at school. it’s wishing you could go back to those days for a while. it’s feeling like the walls are caving in on you and wondering how this happened and sobbing into james’ chest. it’s him eyeing his cloak, and you knowing he wants to take it out more than anything. it’s wishing you had kept taking divination, because it’s not rubbish - it’s ruining your family. it’s switching your secret keeper to peter at the last minute, because sirius is too obvious and he means too much and if he got hurt for you, you don’t really know what you’d do (and you know james would never forgive himself). it’s regretting not listening to your gut when the front door bursts open. it’s knowing exactly what is going to happen when james yells at you to take harry and run. it’s not having enough time to tell him how much you love him, but you look into his hazel eyes and he knows, he knows; he’s always known. it’s hearing the love of your life hit the floor and trying to protect the baby that looks so much like him behind you. it’s standing tall and strong like you always have as you place harry in his crib, the footsteps closing in. it’s being confused as to why he’s asking you to stand aside but refusing anyway. it’s thinking of sirius and remus and mary and peter as the green light reaches you.

[untamedmeadowes]

APRIL 1982: ONCE BURNED...

Facing Voldemort head-on had affected more than just Dorcas’s physical well-being; those injuries, while brutal, had eventually healed. The damage done to her beloved Diagon Alley left a deeper scar on her heart; that was her home she’d had to watch burn, the one place in the world that was supposed to always be safe. But then the Death Eaters had come; then Voldemort had come. She’d fought, and that should have been enough -- but the Dark Lord had batted her away like some kind of fly.

Like something that hardly mattered.

Dorcas refused to be dismissed. She threw herself into her dueling lessons with Branwen and Severus with the same enthusiasm as ever, but twice as much focus. The flighty, chattering, irrepressibly cheerful girl wasn’t gone -- but she was subsumed. This Dorcas was every bit as devoted to the cause of the Order of the Phoenix as she had been that day last October when she had accidentally immolated herself while attempting to bring the hopeful flame of the Order’s existence to the world...but now she understood that a few sparks weren’t enough to make a difference. She couldn’t just scrawl the letters of her pain in the air and think that would somehow change the world.

If she wanted anything to change, she had to set the sky on fire.

APRIL 1982: SPREADING WINGS

On the homefront, things had changed for Dorcas as well: she moved-out of the little flat over Flourish & Blotts where she had grown-up and moved in to a new one with her friend BENJY FENWICK. It had been his idea, to grant them both a bit more independence -- and thus make it easier for them to attend to Order matters without having to constantly explains their absences to their respective parents -- but after the battle in Diagon Alley, the move became even more important to her.

She had exposed herself, if not necessarily as a member of the Order of the Phoenix, then as a definitive enemy of the Dark Lord. There was no proof to tie her to the Order (she could just as easily have charged down Voldemort as an angry shopkeeper defending her home as as a member of the vigilante organization; that claim was what kept the Ministry of Magic from prying afterwards) but she knew it didn’t matter: whether she was known or suspected to be a Phoenix or not, she was marked. The DEATH EATERS would be watching her...which meant moving out of her parents’ home was the best way to keep them safe. 

If someone in a silver mask wanted to come and try to kill her for having the audacity to throw a hex at their precious Dark Lord, so be it; Dorcas would face them down unafraid. But coming home to find her parents’ dead bodies on the floor was something else entirely, and the attack on Diagon Alley had brought home to Dorcas for the first time the very real possibility that she might be courting danger for more than just herself.

Dorcas wasn’t the only one spreading her wings, of course...but since Benjy knew how well (or more accurately, not well) she got along with MADDY WARREN, he kept quiet about his burgeoning reconciliation with his former friend. If Dorcas ever suspected her new roommate of being less than forthcoming on certain subjects, it was easily ignored. He was her friend, after all. That meant he told her everything...just like she did him...

APRIL 1982: KINDLING FLAMES

There were two bright notes -- of disparate type -- that alleviated spring’s darkness:

EMMA VANITY, her best friend since the day that Dorcas discovered the other witch crying in a Hogwarts loo, was now her girlfriend. Dorcas was over-the-moon-elated, and not just for her own happiness: a side-effect of their romance was that Emma had finally had-it-out with her family for (Dorcas hoped) good, and she had shucked-off their shackles to stand strong and proud and free of the Vanitys. Dorcas couldn’t have been prouder...or happier.

MARY MACDONALD, who in Dorcas’s eyes was quickly becoming the most (only) useful member of the Inner Circle, had recruited Dorcas to assist in pushing the Order to take a more active role in the war. The fallout from the attack on Diagon Alley had derailed some aspects of their scheme -- the Order was too busy to listen to petitions like that, and there were hopes they might finally be starting to take some action anyway...but not enough, and not fast enough, for Mary and Dorcas. So they acted on their own.

Successfully dragging Emlen Lowe in to face the music for his murder of Florean Fortescue (unofficially, at least; handing him over to the Order wouldn’t lead to Azkaban but it was something) alongside once-and-future-ally FRANK LONGBOTTOM wasn’t actually connected to her off-the-books activities with Mary, but it fell into the same category for Dorcas. It was all action, all devoted to the cause of ending -- and winning -- the war. So what if it was illegal? The Order was illegal! So what if the Order didn’t know about it? Mary knew about it, and she was in the Inner Circle! So what if she hardly told her friends about most of it? She was just keeping them safe.

So what if it left blood on her hands? This was war. And they couldn’t afford to lose.

[ashes-and-ashes]

Quidditch Matches

eg a Professional Quidditch au

~

Sirius never gets sick of the roar of the crowd.

He feels it; the screaming, the yelling, feels the energy coursing deep in his bones. It’s infectious, the thousands of people filling the stands, the air so cold it hurt his lungs. He breathes in deeply until his lungs hurt, flexing his fingers at his side.

When he hears his name - Black, Sirius! he steps onto the court, broomstick slung carelessly over his shoulders. The crowd goes wild - he’s always known how to do this, the cocky smile and the raised eyebrows, head tilted just so. A lifetime lived in the harsh gleam of the cameras and Sirius knows he can’t let the mask drop just for a second. He gives the crowd a two-fingered salute - they scream their approval and Sirius laughs as he goes to join the rest of his teammates.

“Done posing?” James asks. His hair is even more ruffled then usual - Sirius smirks to himself as he remembers James’ locker room rant, pacing up and down the rows of benches as he tugged at his hair. Lily stands next to him, her helmet tucked underneath her arm, hair a fiery red against the dark blue of their robes; she shoots Sirius a fierce grin.

“Who knows? Maybe he’ll retire from Qudditch one day. Become a porn star.”

“Tried that,” Sirius counters, ducking under Benny’s outstretched arm and slinging his hand around Dorcas to join in the huddle. “Didn’t work. See, the lenses weren’t big enough to capture my - “

James clears his throat. “Look guys. It’s the deciding match. Whoever wins this makes it to finals.”

“Semis,” Lily corrects.

James rolls his eyes. “I have good news and bad news. Which one?”

“Good,” Sirius says, and the others murmur their assent. James nods.

“Good news is that Mulciber is out. Turns out Peter hit him a little bit harder then he intended to.”

Peter shrugs, his beaters bat slung casually over one shoulder. “Bruised?”

“Broken,” James replies, and Peter’s eyes widen. “He’s done. He won’t be in for another season at least.”

Benjy snorts. “That’s probably good. I was this close to killing him after what he did to Caddy in playoffs. That body check was illegal.”

Caradoc rolls his eyes. “Shut up, Fenwick.”

“Oh, make me Dearborn - “

“Bad news,” James says, speaking over them, “Is that they have a new player. Looks pretty good from what I can see. He’s a seeker.”

Sirius feels all eyes turn towards him. He shrugs - Sirius was the best in the league for a reason, with a perfect history of catches. “Is he any good?”

“Guess you’ll find out.”

Sirius smirks. “Don’t think so.”

“Careful,” Lily says. “Don’t want to get cocky.”

Sirius gives her a mock bow. The sound of horns startle them all out of their bickering - their heads all snap up, watching the doors at the opposite end of the court. Schooling his face into a neutral expression, Sirius watches the familiar parade of their rivals.

The names drone in his head - they had practically memorized the order by now. It had started ages ago, when they had managed to beat them 280 - 300 at their first ever finals and the rivalry still was going strong five years later.

Longbottom, Frank! Bones, Edgar! Fortescue, Alice!

Sirius smiles to himself - Alice and Lily had a known rivalry as the two best Keepers in the league. He stifles a laugh as Lily clenches her jaw, eyes burning.

McKinnon, Marlene!

Beside him, Dorcas lets out a long sigh. “If she wasn’t on the other team I might have thought about banging her.”

Sirius shrugs. McKinnon was a Chaser, notorious for her perfect aim. “I can see it,” he says, and Dorcas shoves him.

He nods as the announcer calls out Prewett, Fabian and Prewett, Gideon - the twins were legendary, arguably the best beaters in the league. Sirius watches Peter and Dorcas size them up, bats at their side.

He glances up at the magical whiteboard, the names magically erasing from the surface, and Sirius finds himself holding his breath -

Lupin, Remus!

He can’t stop himself. Sirius leans forward, interested to see who his new opponent is when Lupin steps through the door and Sirius’ heart stopped dead.

He’s not some inexperienced schoolboy - Sirius has seen plenty of beautiful people, cold elegance and haughty arrogance. He’s grown up with them all his life, black lace and pearls, the glint of gold in earlobes and at throats, rings and bracelets and pins.

So he doesn’t know why his heart stutters, why his breath hitches when his eyes fall on Remus Lupin. He was different - all long limbs and curly hair, his hands tucked over his broom. There was something different about him, a keen sort of awareness that filled his body - Sirius suddenly knew with sinking certainty that this Remus Lupin would be a nightmare on the court.

There’s no time to ponder this though - Sirius realizes with a jolt that everyone had already gotten into their starting positions. He swallows hard, casually slings his broom around his arm and saunters over to check Remus.

Remus’ eyes narrow slightly as Sirius comes closer. He’s leaning against his broom; Sirius can see the silver letters imprinted on the wood, R. Lupin. He grins, all teeth, savage ferocity in his eyes.

“So you’re the new Seeker.”

Remus raises an eyebrow. His eyes are gold, true gold, sunlight on amber and streaks of bronze and Sirius wonders if he could ever paint them. “No,” Remus says, his voice smooth and even. “I actually just polish everyone’s brooms.”

“Oh really?” Sirius smirks. “How do they like their brooms polished?”

Remus shoots him a flashing smile, one that let Sirius see past the calm exterior and into the raging fire at his core. “Extremely well,” he replies, then turns to watch James and Fabian Prewett shake hands. Sirius follows his gaze, shaking his head - Remus Lupin was obviously a Class-A Asshole.

He tunes out the post-game speech - his head is pounding, adrenaline filling his body. He barely even waits for the starting whistle - at the first tweet he’s off, the lights in his eyes and the air around him.

He’s always loved flying, ever since he was a kid, used to weave his toy brooms around trees and through rocks, ducking down so low he could brush the ground. He remembers falling off his broom once, snapping his wrist - he tried out for the team in a cast.

His broom turns smoothly in his hand; Sirius grins as he yanks it up, executing a perfect hairpin turn above Remus’ head. Remus levels an unimpressed look at him.

“You going to play the game like that?” he calls - Sirus’ hair is a wind-tangled mess, all curls and knots.

“Mind your own business, Princess!” Sirius yells back. He does take a minute though to scrape his hair up into a bun - the crowd behind him goes wild. Remus just rolls his eyes, settling into position, golden eyes scanning the pitch.

When the second whistle blows he’s off - the Snitch is a blur of gold against the clashes already happening below him, near-invisible against the frenzy of balls and bodies. Sirius laughs, dripping down to weave in between the broomsticks, eyes roaming the field for any hint of gold.

He glances up just in time to seen Lily casually intercept a ball, tossing it to James as he swooped by. Alice bats his shot away without blinking an eye - Frank Longbottom pulls into a long swoop to reach it before James did -

“Crap!” Frank hisses; Peter had aimed a Bludger at his head. He had to spin to avoid it, giving James plenty of time to reach the Quaffle; he passes it to Benjy who managed to slip it into the hoop behind Alice.

The crowd roars - Sirius’ heart swells with triumph as he spits the magical whiteboard blur, a huge 10 appearing. He can hear Benjy’s whoop from across the pitch - Sirius smiles. “Let’s Go!” he screams.

“Losing focus, Black?” Sirus whips around - Remus is hovering a few feet away from him, tone mocking. Sirius replies back easily, the humor in his voice not quite masking the venom.

“Just trying to give your team the chance to win,” he replies. “You know. Cause they need it.”

Remus gives him a small shrug and God, if he wasn’t such an asshole, if his eyes weren’t so bright and his body so lean -

“Heads!” Dorcas shrieks - Sirius barely manages to swerve to the right before she’s bashing it, sending it careening towards McKinnon. She’s aimed it perfectly - the ball smacks right into the Quaffle, narrowly missing McKinnon’s fingers.

“You fucker!” McKinnon shouts, already diving for the ball. Dorcas blows her a kiss.

“Stop flirting with the Seeker,” she tells him, and then she’s plunging back into the fray below. Sirius looses a long sigh, pulling his broom down into a steep dive - the Snitch was right by James’ ankle -

There’s a blur of purple in front of him - Sirius just barely manages to hold on as Remus crashes into him, sending him careening away from the center. He swears, fingers digging into the wood so hard that he feels his nails bend, pressing back into the skin.

“Asshole,” he mutters. Remus ignores him, swooping into an inpossibly sharp dive. Sirius shakesthe dizziness, follows him -

The only warning he gets is the soft whoosh of the ball; Sirius flattens himself to his broomstick as the Bludger flies inches away from his head. He spins, dragging his gaze up to see Gideon Prewett’s grinning face, his bat dangling in one hand.

“Sorry Black!” he calls and then Sirius is accelerating forward, towards Remus who was swooping for something and the crowd was going wild -

Sirius grit his teeth, out on an extra burst of speed and body-checked Lupin away from the Snitch. He lunges for it but it’s too far away - he sees it disappear into the mass of bodies. There’s another scream from the crowd - he looks up at the board.

70 - 80. They were losing - only by 10 points but losing all the same. Remus shoves him, hard enough to send him spinning and crashing against the walls of the stadium.

“Fuck off.”

“Make me.”

“I’ll punch your teeth out. Will that help?”

“I was going to say you could gag me but - “

Remus rolls his eyes. They’re circling each other, high above the scuffle for the Quaffle down below. He studies Sirius for a moment then gives him a fleeting grin - full of light and electricity and that forever-stubborn determination that Sirius had. “You could stay out of my way.”

“You need a telescope? Maybe you’ll actually see he Snitch then.”

“You need some safety charms? Maybe you’ll actually learn how to fly.”

Sirius shoves him again; Remus just laughs as he lets himself be pushed backwards. “Better step up the trash talk. You sure aren’t good at it.”

Sirius rolls his eyes, diving down into a deep dive. He can hear his teammates down below - James’ frantic orders, Lily’s calm responses, Benjy’s insults and Caradoc’s booming laugh. He can hear Peter and Dorcas too, the voices of his family and teammates and best friends in the world and he knows he can’t let them down.

McKinnon swoops over him, blonde hair shining under the harsh lights. She intercepts the Quaffle with a grin, winking at him before tossing it up. Sirius can tell from the roar that she must have scored. He grits his teeth - he can’t see Remus through all the bodies, and he has no idea where the Snitch is -

He spots it just as Remus does - right in the middle of the court. Sirius leans forwards, urging his broom to go faster, to out face Remus -

His hands are almost around it when Remus knocks him away. Sirius grits his teeth and shoots forwards, pinning Remus against the wall, his broom blocking Remus’ broom and his face too close to Remus’. “Let - go - “

“Give me then damn Snitch,” Remus hisses - Sirius again can’t stop noticing his eyes. “Bastard.”

“You - “ Sirius breaks off - he spots the Snitch at the exact same time that Remus does. They both reach for it, so fast he doesn’t know -

An ear-splitting siren fills the room, making Sirius jump with shock. His pounds as he scans the room, the scoreboard - both sides were at 130, which meant that...

“Hey,” he says. His voice sounds hoarse, rough and raw from yelling. “Who - “

He looks down. A wave of disappointment runs through him - “Shit!”

“How did this - “ Remus begins, then falls silent.

The two of them stare at their interclasped hands, palms pressed together. In the center lay the Snitch, caught in the middle by the both of them, wings still fluttering slightly.

“Fuck,” Remus says. “It’s a tie.”

[lifblogs]

Banned Together Bingo 2020 | Feminism

Title: The Would Be Queen Fandom: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Pairing: N/A Word Count: 1364 Summary: Sabrina fights alongside her friends, family, and coven to stop the oppression of the Dark Lord’s rule. WARNINGS: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Major Character Death

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“You can’t have my throne! It belongs to me!” the Dark Lord yelled at Sabrina, voice layered with darkness and millennia of existence. His eyes seared a bright red, staring straight into her soul. 

Sabrina, bloodied from the demons she’d killed, stood her ground, standing before the throne of Hell. Her friends were there, her coven. Prudence stood ready with a sword should Sabrina’s attack fail. An hour before that sword had been used to sever Father Blackwood into a million pieces. The Weird Sisters had been saved, and now they stood strong beside her aunties, beside Lilith. Their magics acted as a barrier, a shield, keeping the Dark Lord from attacking any of them, or from escaping. They wished to help, but Sabrina had claimed this was her fight.

It was.

This was the man who had created her to use her, who had led her to him her entire life, who would see her oppressed and kneeling at his feet. He would have her do everything he wanted, and she was supposed to give of herself to him, to marry him. No. This ended today. The oppression of witches would be over.

“You should’ve thought of that before you treated me and other witches like scum,” she spat.

The two of them circled each other. Lucifer’s voice was tight, strained, as if he were frustrated by talking to a small child who did not understand, “I didn’t treat you like scum, Sabrina. I simply treated you as you deserved to be treated.”

“Oh, so we’re just you’re stepping stones?”

The Dark Lord threw his hands out, clearly trying to attack in a way that would catch her by surprise. A great heat fled from his hands, whirls of a Hellish storm. Sabrina yelled an incantation just in time, the magick deflecting. Where it rebounded against her shield, it turned into fire and fizzled away. He attacked again, and Sabrina recognized his hand motions even before he started speaking.

He was going to try and break her bones.

She prepared the counter-curse, and then when it came at her, the spell didn’t just stay free of her—a small section of its power shot back at him.

Now it was Sabrina’s turn. She didn’t even think, just knew words flew from her mouth, and she ignited her power into something that took over her entire body.

They stopped, breathing heavy.

“Sabrina, we can help!” Zelda cried.

“You’ve done enough, Aunt Zee!” Sabrina yelled back. “Like I said, this is my fight.”

She shot white fire towards the Dark Lord. He dodged it, and it burned and cracked the throne. A large fissure opened up right down the middle of it.

The Dark Lord, her father, screamed, and their energies met in the middle, their magicks fighting against each other.

Sabrina was losing. Her power was being pushed back and it was weakening. It felt as if her very bones were being heated with a branding iron. She screamed, her voice fierce. But, she couldn’t hold. Her magick was torn through, and she was shot backwards, banging into a pillar. Stone crunched beneath her skull,

Not knowing who she was anymore, only knowing pain, Sabrina fell to the stone floor, blood pouring out of the injury in her head. Her body twitched.

The Dark Lord tried to approach her, and Lilith yelled, “Oh no, you don’t!”

She joined the fight, she and the Dark Lord firing spells and curses and bursts of energy at each other almost as quickly as he and Sabrina had. Cuts opened up on her with each little bit of magick that hit her.

The Weird Sisters had run to Sabrina, and each put a hand on her head, fingers wet and sticky with her blood.

Together, they saved her, they healed her brain, her skull.

Perhaps Sabrina could still come back from death, but there was no time.

The fight was now.

Sabrina, healed, rose up to her feet, holding the hands of Dorcas and Prudence. Agatha held her waist.

“Thank you,” she murmured.

“Do you want that sword now?” Prudence asked, clearly worried, but giving her a smile as dark and seductive as ever.

Sabrina was panting, covered in sweat, and grime, and she looked over at her father. Perhaps she did need help. And why not? Why not let the witches who had been harmed by his rule stand side by side with her?

“Prudence, Agatha, Dorcas, I want you to target him from behind and the sides. Be careful. Stay out of the way of spells. Aunties!” she cried. “Weaken him. Pummel him and don’t stop! And Roz?”

“Yeah?” her friend asked, stepping up, nervous as magick fired through the air around them and destroyed the throne room.

“Prudence has a sword for you.”

Grinning, Prudence tossed the sword to Roz, and the women in Sabrina’s life, all powerful and beautiful in their own right, joined the fight.

“Your rule will no longer harm witches!” Sabrina cried, taking Lilith’s place before him. He was quivering with rage. A beastly, inhuman roar left his mouth.

They attacked, and seeing an opening, Harvey, and Nick, even Melvin, Theo, and Robin jumped in to help.

The oppression would end. Witches and warlocks, men and women, and beings of all sexes and genders would be equal under a new rule. Sabrina would see that carried out and lived.

A spell was thrown at her that broke her arm, and she screamed. But adrenaline having a hold of her, she unthinkingly threw out her other arm and yelled, filling her voice with all her might.

Power radiated from her in a violent blast. Her friends were pushed back, the force of it buffeting them, and having dust and debris fly outwards from the radius of the spell’s power. Lucifer held it, snarling.

With a fierce scream, the scream of a woman who had been pushed down under the rule of a man all her life, her magick became blinding. It stabbed into her father as pure light, light that he would never know, light that she had created with the love of those around her. It pierced him right through the chest.

Night-blue blood began to seep out, and then it poured.

The Dark Lord fell to his knees upon the dais steps, blood leaking out of his nose, his ears, his mouth. Even his eyes.

“S-Sabrina,” he choked out. “Don’t. We can…” He gagged and spat blood, he fell over,  holding a weakened and bloodied hand to his chest. “We can—rule—together.”

His chest was ripping open, blood spurting, and still it came out of his orifices.

Sabrina looked down at him, looked down at her father who had created a world in which witches were less, and she smiled.

“I don’t think so.”

He reached out for her with trembling fingers, his face going pale, light burning through his body that was being torn apart.

“Sabrina.”

He died in a great burst of light, everyone having to shield their eyes. His insides which were turning to ash rained down on them.

Sabrina staggered, the pain in her arm increasing tenfold, and other pains making themselves known in her body.

The Weird Sisters and her aunties raced to her and held her up.

“What will you do now… Queen Sabrina?”

Retreating into the shadows of the room was Lilith, the light of the fires shining off of the tears in her eyes. Sabrina reached out her good hand to her, but Lilith refused to come forth.

“I think I’ll denounce my right as queen and give it to a woman more deserving.”

That was when tears rolled down Lilith’s cheeks, and she came forward and grasped Sabrina’s hand.

“You would truly do this, Sabrina?”

“We’re equals, aren’t we? And you’ve gone through more than me. You’ve waited so long for this. It’s yours.”

Sabrina cradled her arm to herself, and then she knelt. Everyone followed suit in reverential silence, even the boys.

“Hail Lilith,” they began to chant.

“I promise I will not fail you. I will rule with equality.”

Sabrina looked up, tears in her eyes, and smiled.

[caoscompanion]

Episode Summary:  Sabrina Spellman is about to turn 16, however, on her birthday she must fully embrace her witch half through a dark baptism, where she will pledge loyalty to the Dark Lord. But Sabrina is torn, as she must choose between her friends and her family. Sabrina spends the days leading up to her birthday finding answers to her questions about the ritual. Meanwhile, Sabrina's mortal teacher Mary Wardwell is killed, with Lilith taking her place. She seeks to bring Sabrina over to the Dark Lord's side. Sabrina must also deal with three sister witches known as the Weird Sisters, who look down on her for being a "half-breed".

First Appearances: Sabrina Spellman, Rosalind Walker, Harvey Kinkle, Susie Putnam, Mary Wardwell, Lilith, Zelda Spellman, Hilda Spellman, Ambrose Spellman, Principal Hawthorne, Assistant Principal Glover (mentioned only), Mrs Meeks, Prudence Night, Agatha Night, Dorcas Night, Faustus Blackwood

Music: Bad Moon Rising - CCR, Be My Baby - The Ronettes, I Put a Spell on You - Sylvia Black, Hurdy Gurdy Man - Donovan, Atomic - Blondie

Pop Culture: The film Sabrina, Roz, Harvey and Susie are watching is The Night of the Living Dead (1968)

Deaths: Mary Wardwell; killed by Lilith, via scissors telekinetically thrust into her neck, she bleeds to death in her own cottage. Conner Kemplar; stabbed to death, suspected to be at the hands of Witch Hunters. 

Baxter High Antics: Susie is bulled by Billy Marlin and his friends, but the Principal offers no help to the situation, suggesting Susie find another school. Ros and Sabrina form W.I.C.C.A (women’s inter-sectional cultural and creative association) to help battle the bullying and support all women in the school.

Witch Insults: Succubitches

Vocab: Factotum; Lilith refers to Stolas as her faithful factotum. Factotum is an employee who does all kinds of work. Gordian Knot: Lilith refers to Sabrina’s debate as a Gordian Knot. It is a metaphor used to describe a particularly difficult knot. It comes from the legend that Gordius, king of Gordium, tied an intricate knot and prophesied that whoever untied it would become the ruler of Asia. It was cut through with a sword by Alexander the Great.

Random Facts: Vines cover the inside of the walls of the Spellman house as you go up to the attic, which is Ambrose’s room. Despite the 60s aesthetic and implied timeline, Ambrose is show to have a laptop.

Spellman History: The spellmans have been witches for generations and generations. Every Spellman has been a witch. Edward Spellman, Hilda and Zelda’s brother, was almost excommunicated for marrying Sabrina’s mortal Mother, Diana. Ambrose Spellman has been under house arrest for 75 years. Sabrina was born in the grove in Greendale Woods on October 31st.

Edward and Diana: Edward was nearly excommunicated for marrying a mortal. Many despise him for it, including Lilith and the Weird Sisters. Hilda and Zelda say Edward and Diana were flying to Italy for Edward to give a lecture at the Vatican

Familars: Stolas, a raven; belongs to Lilith. Vinegar Tom, a dog (deceased); belongs to Zelda. Spiders; belong to Hilda has spiders. Salem, a black cat; belongs to Sabrina

True Faces: We see Lilith’s original face, the one from the Garden. We also hear her demonic voice which she puts on when talking in anger about Edward Spellman.  This is the first and only time we hear Salem’s voice. It is also the first and only time we see his true form, which is a feline-esque goblin.

Times: Midnight is a Witching Hour. A Blood Moon occurs once every 66 years and happens on Sabrina’s birthday this year. Sabrina is born on October 31st. Mary Wardwell is murdered on Monday 27th October.

Sabrina the Teenage Witch References; Sabrina turns on music with a point of her finger, and we hear a ‘sparkling’ magic sound, which was the way all magic worked in the original show. Hilda and Zelda are doing jigsaw puzzles together, with Hilda shoving the wrong pieces together with impatience, something that happened several times on the 90s show.

Relationships: Ambrose is the nephew of  Zelda and Hilda, but we do not confirm who his parents are. Sabrina is related to the Aunts via their brother, Edward. Harvey and Sabrina, who are boyfriend and girlfriend, say they love each for the first time. Their best friends are Ros and Susie. Ms Wardwell is declared to be Sabrina’s favourite teacher. Susie is bulled by jocks led by Billy Marlin. Prudence, Agatha and Dorcas are three students known as the Weird Sisters, they are known bullies.

Omens: A black bat smashes through Sabrina’s window and breaks it’s wing, and she kills it by smashing it with a book. It’s stated that a bat coming in through a window could be considered a bad omen.

Reading Materials: Greendale Gazette (read by Zelda), Demonicon (mentioned by Sabrina), Familiar Registry (Council catalogue)

[allhalloweve]

Chapter 4: The Wildland

Chapter 4 of Axe and Sword is up! Read it here on AO3!

If Lily ever saw that fucking wizard again, she was going to kill him. “How’re you doing, Dorcas?” she shouted over the roar of quaking trees and the rumble of the earth.

“I’ve been better!” Dorcas clung tighter to her branch as the trunk groaned beneath her; with each lurching roll, the arrows in her quiver came closer to spilling out.

“James?”

James’ hand slipped on the flat bark and he scrambled to wrap both arms around the tree. “Ask me again when this stops!”

“If we make it out of here, you and I are going to have a discussion about insulting magic lands.” Lily’s heart leaped as the wood beneath her hands gave a threatening creak and she silently cursed her decision to follow a gang of idiots halfway across the world. Maybe if she had just minded her own business and stayed home, she wouldn’t be in this situation.

A strange rustling noise grew steadily louder and she craned her neck to look further into the jungle, where the canopy swayed in the earthquake. “I think something’s coming!” Dorcas warned.

“I’d rather face shaking ground than being eaten alive,” James said as be began to slide down his perch.

“Agreed,” Lily and Dorcas chorused. Alright, Lils, step-by-step. Imagine you’re at home. Trees in Bailey were easy to climb—their gnarled knots and sturdy branches were ideal for long afternoons spent climbing toward the sky with little fear of falling. These trees, on the other hand, had sand-smoothed bark and made her hands itch when she touched them for some unknown reason.

She made it halfway down before her foot missed a spot and her palms, covered in fear sweat, skidded into open air. The cracked ground was hard as stone when she smacked down and her breath disappeared in a single huff, making her vision turn black for a moment. “Lily!” A blurry form appeared moments later, and two warm hands dragged her into a sitting position. “Are you hurt?”

“Dorcas,” she wheezed as soon as the first wisps of air entered her lungs. “Fine. ‘m okay.”

“Good. Come on!” Lily stumbled upright and kept a tight hold on Dorcas’ wrist as the three of them sprinted deeper into the forest, away from the sunbaked wasteland they had first been dropped in. It was, unsurprisingly, quite difficult to run when the earth made a point of trying to turn itself inside out every few seconds; Lily was sure her shoulders would be bruised from bumping into anything within three feet of her.

The rustling turned into screeching and they poured on speed, but they weren’t fast enough to outrun the things coming in behind them. Lily had heard stories of the monsters of the Wildland: massive boars with metal tusks, sand worms the size of rivers, and flesh-eating deer were some of the frequent characters in fairy tales. She had never believed them before.

Dorcas let go of her hand and spun around, nocking an arrow and firing into the trees in record time. There was an earsplitting scream and a huge bird dropped from the tangle of vines, its razor-sharp beak open wide enough that Lily could see the tiny teeth inside. “We can’t outrun them! James, give me a hand!”

James was already in motion and a second bird fell moments later with a red-feathered arrow embedded in its neck. Lily drew her axe—the wave of rippling vines overhead became interspersed with feathers in a rainbow of colors and she was deafened by a cacophony of shrieking bird calls.

The first dive-bomber was met with a shorter, blue-fletched arrow and Dorcas turned her attention from shooting into the group to picking them off one by one as they appeared. “We can’t do this forever,” James yelled. “Sooner or later, we’ll run out of arrows, and I don’t know where we’ll get new ones.”

And, miraculously, the ground stilled. The monsters flew back into the canopy and disappeared with a soft ­shush of leaves. The only trace of their existence were five dead birds sprawled around the glade. “James, what did you do?” Lily asked cautiously, keeping her axe ready just in case.

“I don’t know.”

“It’s really quiet,” Dorcas said. “I don’t like it.”

“Do we…keep walking?”

“Hang on a second.” James lowered his bow and crept toward the corpse of a falcon-like creature, reaching out on hand to grasp his arrow by the hilt. With a sharp tug, it came free, and the bird disintegrated into a patch of… “Is that moss?”

“What the fuck?” Lily murmured. “That’s not normal.”

“These are gryphons,” Dorcas said as she followed James’ lead and collected her arrows. “I’ve seen them flying above the border once or twice, but they never came close enough to be an issue and they never travel in packs.”

“So the Wildland is out to get us?” Lily rolled her eyes. “I wonder whose fault that is.”

James sighed deeply. “Look, it was a simple observation and I wasn’t exactly expecting the whole place to take offense.”

“It’s magic! That’s what magic places do!”

“How would you know?”

“How would you?”

“Will both of you give it a rest?” Dorcas interrupted in exasperation. “At least now we know what to expect. We should get started on looking for the weapon if we want to have any hope of catching up to the others.”

“Dumbledore gave us a map, right?” Lily set the rucksack down and loosened the drawstring. Carefully, she poured the contents out onto the ground and began sifting through. “Looks like we have…an empty waterskin, a doll, a square of fabric, and a broken compass. Oh, here it is.”

Honestly, the other items in the bag should have prepared Lily for disappointment. “What?” James asked as her face fell.

“There’s no names or anything, just lines.” She laid it out for all of them to see and weighed down the corners with the other useless objects.

“I’m going to kill that wizard,” Dorcas muttered as she squinted at the map. “Which way is north?”

“No clue.”

James ran a hand through his hair. “Y’know, I thought forgetting a map was bad, but this…”

“So we have a useless map for a monster-infested place none of us have actually been to, and the fate of the world rests on our ability to find a single cryptic spot. That’s not difficult at all,” Dorcas said sarcastically. “Didn’t Dumbledore mention a compass?”

“He said Riddle’s weakness was in the compass rose,” Lily recalled.

“Is there something hidden in the one he gave us?” Without waiting for an answer, Dorcas grabbed the dented bronze compass from the pile of junk and began feeling along the edges. “There aren’t any latches or seams. Do we have to crack it open?”

James shrugged and grabbed one of his arrows. “Can’t get more broken than it already is.”

“No!” Lily snatched the compass away from them. “We’re not just going to shatter it! It has to have some sort of purpose.”

“Does it though?”

“A wizard gave it to us, right? That means it’s either helpful or cursed and I’m not ready to die from some sort of booby trap you two set off by prying it apart with an arrowhead.” Lily opened the top and watched the needle spin. “I think we should try and follow it.”

“If it’s cursed, we’ll be walking straight into a trap,” James pointed out.

“I think we have worse things to worry about than traps,” Dorcas said. “There are a lot of stories about what lives in here and I’m not keen on getting killed by any of those. Let’s find some water and a safe place to plan before we make any big decisions.”

They set off deeper into the forest, keeping the edge of the woods in sight in case the gryphons came back. Lily’s knees ached from running through an earthquake and she hoped a shelter showed itself soon. The sun was astonishingly bright even through the trees and it was difficult to tell how much time had passed with the glare; Lily’s best guess was that it had been two hours since they left Dumbledore’s house, but her knowledge of magic was limited to the events of the past twenty-four hours.

More than once, she caught herself looking over her shoulder for the other four members of their party. It was especially strange seeing James without Sirius, and she realized a few minutes into their journey that she had never actually seen James without his living shadow.

During one such time, he caught her eye. “What?”

“Sorry.” She shook her head. “It’s just weird seeing you without Sirius.”

James’ face fell. “Oh, Yeah.”

“What’s the story with that, anyway?”

“What story?”

“He told me he came to live with you when he was sixteen, but most people don’t get adopted by royalty on a whim. He got all weird when I asked where he lived before.”

“Then he probably doesn’t want you to know,” James said, sounding strangely annoyed.

“He doesn’t like talking about it.” Dorcas shared an uneasy glance with James and indignation sparked in Lily’s chest.

“Oh, so you know what happened, too?” When they both stayed quiet, her frustration grew. “I get that I’m not some high-born royal but that doesn’t mean you can just ignore me.”

“This has nothing to do with your status.” James stopped in his tracks. “For your information, I’m not royalty.”

“You’re a prince!”

“No, I’m not! My dad is an elected official for the mainland because the last one’s kid didn’t want to continue,” he snapped. “And I don’t plan on following in his footsteps.”

Next to Lily, Dorcas’ eyes widened, and James looked like he regretted his words. “What?”

“I thought you knew.”

“No,” she said, clearly upset. “James, I thought you wanted that.”

“I’m missing something,” Lily said, holding up her hands for a time-out. “What’s happening? You can’t just give up a monarchy, can you?”

“Like I said, the Eastern Coast doesn’t have a monarchy,” James sighed. “Each of the islands, including the mainland, elects a representative when the previous one steps down and their heir decides not to take their place. My dad was elected the year before I was born and I…I don’t want to do that.”

Dorcas frowned. “Did one of the others say something to you? Hang on, have you even told your parents yet?”

James shook his head. “You guys are my best friends; this has nothing to do with you. And no, not yet.”

“How long have you been thinking about this?” He was quiet. “James.”

“A couple years.”

From the look on Dorcas’ face, he may as well have smacked her between the eyes. “But you—at the councils—does Sirius know?”

Lily didn’t think it was possible, but James’ shoulders shrank in further. “I was planning on telling him after we got home. My parents would be so disappointed in me if they knew.”

Dorcas’ anger softened. “No, they wouldn’t.”

“They’ve been preparing me my whole life and I’m throwing it away.”

“What’s your plan?” Lily asked at last.

James’ eyes flickered over to her and his face flushed. “My granddad builds and sails ships for all the islands. I want to work with him.”

“That doesn’t sound like throwing your life away to me. You’d be really, really good at that,” Dorcas said. “James, your parents are good people. They’ll love you no matter what and I’m sure once you explain, they’ll understand.”

“Maybe,” he muttered. “After what happened to Sirius—”

“Your parents are not Sirius’ parents.” Dorcas’ voice was firm. “You know that.”

“What’s the deal with Sirius’ parents?” Right back where we started, Lily thought.

James hesitated for a moment, then started walking again. “Sirius used to be part of a super wealthy and ambitious family that wanted him to continue their bid for power. They were involved in some really nasty stuff, a lot of corruption and such, and he told them he wanted to no part in it. They disowned him within a week and shipped him off to the Eastern Coast.”

“It was a huge deal among the upper-class families,” Dorcas added, her face stormy. “People called it the scandal of the century.”

“It happened at a big party, too.” James frowned. “He still won’t tell me the whole story.”

“Shit.” Lily didn’t know how to respond to that. “I don’t think he believed me when I told him he was a good person. That explains why.”

“I swear he’s vainer than a cockatiel sometimes, but his mother took it upon herself to make sure his self-esteem scrapes the floor. Horrible woman.”

“If I ever meet her, I’ll kick her in the kneecaps for him,” Lily said, earning herself a bark of laughter from James.

“I’d pay to see that,” Dorcas snorted. “I met her once when I was a kid, and once was enough.”

“What’s her name?” Lily asked.

James bit his lip. “Walburga Black.”

Lily’s stomach dropped to her feet.

--

Lily was still thinking about their conversation as they set up camp in an abandoned cave lit by dim crystals that dripped condensation onto the ground. Walburga and Orion Black were notorious for exploiting workers and getting away with it due to their wealth; Lily had heard traders and woodcutters cursing their names in taverns more times than she could count.

But Sirius? Protective, reckless Sirius who made a point of cheering up the group whenever they needed it? It was hard to believe he was raised in a family like that. I suppose that’s the point, she thought as she spread her cloak over the damp moss and laid down. He’s not like then and they hate him for it.

Sixteen years old. When Lily was sixteen, her father taught her to use the largest saw he owned; at the same age, possibly the same time, Sirius had been thrown out of his family and sent across the continent. I still had a fucking bedtime, she realized just as she was about to doze off. The urge to hit Walburga Black with a chair increased.

Needless to say, Lily didn’t sleep well that night. She kept watch until sunrise, when James and Dorcas woke up and they agreed to follow the compass’ needle on the off-chance Dumbledore was actually trying to help them in his secretive way.

“I miss them,” James said out of the blue around a mouthful of ham, cheese, and bread when they stopped by an unnaturally large tree for lunch. “I miss them a lot.”

“Me, too,” Lily admitted. It was silly, but the sandwiches made her heart ache with homesickness. “The sooner we find the mysterious weakness, the sooner we can get back.”

“You know we’re friends when you don’t even have to clarify who you’re talking about,” Dorcas smiled weakly. The conversation dulled after that until they began walking again. “So, Lily, tell us about Bailey.”

“What about it?”

Dorcas shrugged. “Anything. The rest of us have known each other for years, but I don’t know much about you yet, beyond the fact that you can crush us all at board games.”

Lily laughed. “Well, it’s a pretty small place. I think you can see most of the town out the window of my mum and dad’s house.”

“You said your dad’s a merchant, right?” James asked, walking backwards to face them.

“A woodsman,” she corrected. “He travels to discuss lumber prices, though, which was why I was in Silvalith. He was supposed to go, but the mill called him in for extra shifts.” A sudden thought struck her and she slowed down. “If he had gone, he’d probably be dead right now. Huh.”

“Are you alright?” Concern laced James’ voice. “Lily?”

“What? Oh, yeah, I’m—I’m okay. It’s just weird to think about.”

“What do you do for fun?” Dorcas quickly changed the subject. “When you’re not on life-or-death quests with a bunch of strangers, of course.”

“I don’t think any of you count as strangers anymore,” she said with a smile. “I climbed trees a lot when I was little and went on long walks. The woods are so different for each season and in winter, the snow is perfect for playing in. All the neighborhood kids used to get together and build forts for snowball fights.”

“I wish we got snow,” James mused.

“Frystmark is hoarding it,” Dorcas joked. “We should get Remus to ship some to us in the winter.”

“You don’t get snow?” Lily supposed she should have known that, but it seemed impossible. Winter was for hot cider, snowmen, and fuzzy socks, not sunshine.

“No,” Dorcas said. “There’s a running joke that Hisanon is where the sun goes when it’s nighttime in other places. We take it from you all since you don’t appreciate it, but that means we don’t have real seasons.”

“We have seasons back home.” James tilted his head slightly as he thought. “No snow, but there’s a lot of wind and rain off the water. Springtime is the best.”

“I love autumn,” Lily said. “It’s strange not being home to see the leaves change this year.”

“Hopefully we’ll be home before winter sets in,” Dorcas said. She paused for a moment. “I forget what day it is, actually.”

“Oh, fuck, Sirius and I were just talking about this.” James scrunched his nose up and counted softly under his breath, frowned, and counted again. “It’s been seven days since the attack.”

“What?”

“I call bullshit,” Lily said immediately. “No way.”

“We spent one night in Hemgard, one in the next town, two with your mum, one with Dumbledore, and one in that cave.” James held up his fingers. “Six nights, seven days.”

“It feels like a month,” Dorcas said. Lily nodded in agreement. “Too much has happened in too little time. We need to keep it to one disaster per day, alright?”

In the distance—but not nearly far enough away in Lily’s opinion—something boomed. “You had to jinx it,” James sighed. “Trees again?”

“Gryphons, probably.”

“Let’s run first and discuss later,” Lily suggested, keeping her eyes steadily in the direction the noise had come from. It sounded like heavy footsteps and she really didn’t want to know what kind of creature was big enough to do that. “Go!”

They took off at a sprint, keeping in a close group with their weapons at the ready. She could hear the galloping footsteps growing closer; it was almost as if a herd of deer were all running at the exact same time. It’s the flesh-eating deer, her terrified brain supplied. All the stories are true.

“Holy fuck!” James yelped as he looked over his shoulder. Lily glanced backward and saw a bristly hilltop charging through the underbrush at full speed—no, not a hill. A boar.

“Don’t climb the trees!” she shouted. “We can’t outrun it, but it’ll knock down anything we can climb!”

“Those aren’t normal tusks!” Dorcas’ voice cracked with fear. “Is that metal?”

“Let’s not find out!”

“If we can’t outrun it and we definitely can’t beat it in a fight, what the hell are we supposed to do?” James nearly tripped over a large root and Lily’s heart stuttered in her throat. She couldn’t bear to lose any of them, and not just because of the promise she made Sirius. All six of those wild, chaotic, wonderful people were her friends now, and she would keep them safe if it was the last thing she did.

Come on, come on, there has to be something we can use, she thought desperately as she scanned the jungle. Her chest and legs burned from running and she could hear the others panting heavily. Finally, she saw it. “Over there!”

“What?” Dorcas shrieked.

“Would you rather get gored?”

“We’ll die either way!”

“It’s less of a guarantee here, now jump!” Rather than waiting for an answer, Lily shoved her axe into its place, grabbed her hand, and vaulted over the edge of the ravine.

Things got a little hazy after that. The initial drop was short, maybe four feet, before they hit a claylike outcropping that cracked beneath their combined weight and sent them skidding down a steep slope of pebbles, dust, and prickly plants. She lost her hold on Dorcas, but she could hear two different voices alternating between panicked yelling and grunts of pain when they hit a rough patch. The slope came to a sudden end and Lily braced herself for the fall—she hit the rushing water below with a splash, and then everything went dark.

Being underwater was a strange experience. It was quiet, save for the low rumble of the source waterfall that sent her tumbling through the current like a smooth stone. Her senses were completely overwhelmed—her ears popped, her vision was murky, and the only thing she felt was cold. The tightness in her chest snapped her out of her shock and she struggled to the surface, breaking through with a gasp.

“James! Dorcas!” she called frantically. Lily had waded in ponds and the lazy stream by her house, but she wasn’t the strongest swimmer. To be honest, she had not thought there would be water at the base of the hill.

James surfaced with a spluttering cough, saw her, looked around, then immediately ducked under the water again. She bobbed further down the river and hoped with everything in her heart that her half-baked plan hadn’t accidentally killed two of her friends.

There was a splash behind her and she turned as quickly as she could, only to see James and Dorcas struggling against the current. “Head for the bank!” James yelled, leaning back and kicking his feet. He was holding Dorcas tight to his chest; she looked terrified. “Lily, hurry!”

Lily paddled as hard as she could until she reached a tangle of grass and used it to haul herself out of the river, where she collapsed on her stomach. James splayed on his back on the dry earth and tried to catch his breath while Dorcas coughed up water. “I can’t swim,” she managed, glaring at Lily.

“Sorry. Didn’t think there would be water.”

James’ head lolled to the side and he squinted at her. “You jumped over a cliff not knowing what was below it?”

“In my defense, there was a fucking huge boar with metal tusks chasing us down.”

Dorcas’ coughing turned into giggles, then full-blown laughter; Lily and James followed suit until they were all slightly hysterical with joy and relief. “We just did that,” she gasped. “Let’s never do it again, alright?”

“Deal,” Lily and James said in unison.

“Our stuff must be soaked,” Lily groaned, peeling the bag off her back. She knelt and emptied the contents of the rucksack onto the grass, only to see they were completely dry. “Or…not.”

“Woah.” James scooted closer. “You were underwater, right?”

In lieu of an answer, Lily gestured at her soaked clothing and dripping hair. “Well, he is a wizard,” Dorcas said. “Making a waterproof bag would not be the craziest thing he did.”

“That’s true. Where do we go from here?”

Lily spread the map out again, using river rocks to hold the edges down. “This doesn’t make any more sense than it did yesterday.”

“Hang on.” Dorcas bent over the map and traced the thick lines, then looked around them. “Yes, it does. Does this look familiar to you?”

Lily looked at where she was pointing, then glanced around the clearing. The wobbly shape on the map was the exact same as the waterfall in the distance. “Oh.”

“Which means this…” Dorcas traced down the squiggle and tapped the page. “Is about where we are.”

“So where are we supposed to go?”

“Wait. Wait, wait, wait.” James poked Dorcas on the shoulder. “It’s ‘in the compass rose’, right? Four corners. Four countries.”

Dorcas’ eyes widened. “You don’t think…”

Lily scanned the map until she saw an intersection. “That’s where the borders meet, isn’t it?”

“The Middle Kingdom.” James touched one section, then moved clockwise. “Marajis. The Wildland. Silvalith. Four countries that meet at one point.”

“That’s where we need to go,” Lily breathed. “I’m so glad you two are on my team.”

“It’s not far, come on!” James and Dorcas helped her stuff Dumbledore’s items back in the rucksack and they hurried away from the river; Lily could already feel the sun’s heat drying her clothes as they hiked through the tangled plants.

The landscape grew more and more desolate as they drew closer to their destination. The earth, which had been mossy in their cave and drier than a desert outside of the forest, was the same color and texture as slate. The twisting plants were blacker than charcoal and just as brittle—it even smelled dusty. Dead. Leeched of all life. If a shadow had a scent, this was it.

The ground dipped as they neared the center; everything around it had been blasted smooth and shiny by some enormous force, and in the middle of the shallow pit laid a rusty dagger. It didn’t look special, and if Lily didn’t know better she would have dismissed it as a useless relic. “There it is,” she said, pointing to the blade.

James picked his way around broken stones and thorny plants. “Will it fit in the bag?”

“I don’t think you should touch it with your bare hands,” Dorcas said. “Your track record with magic things so far has not been great.”

“It was one comment,” James grumbled, though he did refrain from grabbing the dagger. “That doesn’t count as a track record.”

“Still.” Dorcas stepped behind Lily and reached into the bag, then emerged with the piece of fabric. “This should work.”

Carefully, James reached down with the cloth and wrapped King Riddle’s weakness up.

As soon as the dagger left its place, the ground began to shake and a mighty roar grew around them. “Really?” James yelled as he clambered back up to them and shoved the package in Lily’s bag. “Not this again.”

“We should aim for Hisanon!” Dorcas shouted over the howling. “We’ll find help there and it's safer than the Middle Kingdom!”

Neither Lily nor James was particularly inclined to argue, so they followed Dorcas’ lead, stumbling over debris and the gale force winds. The forest teemed with life, but they didn’t stay to find out what it was and instead crashed through the underbrush until they emerged in a stretch of land similar to the desert they had arrived in.

“That way!” It was too loud to hear Dorcas’ words, but her mouthed message was clear as she pointed toward a long line of grass a few hundred feet away. The tumult grew as they ran; Lily was sure something was following them out of the trees and she focused her attention on the pounding of her feet against the ground instead. Do not look back.

As soon as they tumbled into the grass, the air turned fresh and the trembling ground stilled. Lily took a deep breath of the sweet breeze; she had not realized how stale the air of the Wildland was until it was gone. James whistled lowly next to her when he looked back from where they had come. Above the treetops, gryphons flapped and screamed, and the whole place looked like it was rioting against an unseen enemy.

“I’m glad we got out of there,” he muttered.

Just as Lily was about to agree, the bag grew unbearably hot against her back. She untangled its straps and practically threw it to the ground; it rattled and glowed for a moment, then went quiet. She poked it carefully with her toe. When nothing happened, she untied the drawstring and let the contents spill out.

The dagger steamed as she peeled the covering away and all three of them gasped. The rusted, corroded metal was shiny and pure silver now, revealing an intricate snake with perfect emerald eyes curled up along the hilt and a scale pattern decorating the base of the blade. “It’s pretty, but I still don’t want to touch it,” she said, folding the cloth over it once more.

“Turn around and put your hands up!” a stern voice commanded behind them. Lily whirled around and snatched the bag up for protection as three sturdy horses came trotting toward them. Their riders wore leather armor and had their bows trained on their group. “Dorcas?”

The lead rider removed her helmet and dismounted, slinging her bow over her back. “Hestia!” Dorcas ran forward to nearly tackle her in a hug.

“I thought you were dead,” Hestia said, pulling away to search her for injuries. “The news of the attack on Varghal came in two days ago and we’ve been patrolling the borders ever since. What happened?”

“Silval soldiers and mercenaries raided the city in the middle of the night. They kidnapped the royals and the rest of us barely got away with our lives.” The horses nickered and danced nervously.

“Is Marlene alright?” Hestia asked.

Dorcas paused. “I hope so. We had to split up two days ago.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“She’ll be alright. Is there a place we can talk about this is private?”

Hestia nodded and looked back to Lily and James. “Can either of you ride a horse?” At their nervous expressions, she nodded toward two of her companions. “You can ride with Alice and Emmeline, and Dorcas will ride with me. You should get comfortable; it’s a bit of a trek.”

--

Technically, Lily had been less comfortable before, but horseback riding was getting high up on her list. Emmeline was a talented rider and knew everything about the history of the western lands of Marajis while Alice was chatty the whole way about nothing in particular. It was hilarious seeing James wrap his arms around the waist of a girl who was at least six inches shorter than him while he tried not to slip off the saddle.

“Where are you from?” Emmeline asked as the sun began to set. The high grasses turned a million shades of copper and rose; not for the first time, Lily wished she was an artist so she could remember it forever.

“The Middle Kingdom, up north in a town called Bailey. You?”

Emmeline pointed to a distant shadow of buildings. “That’s my hometown, Fansen.”

“Vance?”

“Fan-sen,” Emmeline repeated. “The ‘n’ is soft.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s okay, a lot of people get it wrong the first time. What are you doing so far away?”

“It’s…kind of a long story. Are you one of Dorcas’ friends?” Up ahead, Dorcas and Hestia were talking in low voices.

“The four of us learned to ride together,” Emmeline explained with a fond look on her face. “Hestia became captain of the border guard a year ago and specifically requested that Alice and I be on her team. Dorcas was a little busy, as you can imagine.”

“I bet,” Lily laughed. “It must be nice to work with your friends all the time.”

She nodded. “I wouldn’t have it any other way. We miss Dorcas, though.” There was a moment of hesitation before her muscular shoulders sank. “We were so worried about her.”

“We were lucky,” Lily said. If she closed her eyes and concentrated, she could still smell the acrid smoke of the wall in flames, still hear the screams and the howling of wolves. “Really, really lucky.”

“Is it true? Varghal was burned? The rumors are vague at best and—”

“Yeah.” A lump rose unbidden to her throat as she remembered the beautiful frozen lake and the mountain fortress with its people who welcomed them with open arms. “It was the middle of the night, there was no warning. They lit the gate on fire and killed anyone they came across. Remus—he’s the prince who helped us escape—he went back and said there was nothing left.”

Emmeline swore under her breath. “I’m going to assume you three were in the Wildland for a reason, but I’m not going to ask why. I’ll help you find whatever you need.”

“Thank you.”

A sharp whistle pattern drew both their attention and Lily’s jaw dropped. Ahead, a magnificent city rose against darkening sky, lit by a thousand torches that made it glow like a miniature star. “Welcome to Hisanon,” Emmeline said, sounding rather smug. “Capital of Marajis.”

Lily and James were a little wobbly once they dismounted the horses, but Dorcas was steady on her feet and nearly bouncing with joy to be home. Lily could relate—entering Bailey after the chaos of the previous days had been the best feeling in the world. “Hestia and I are going to talk for a while, but I think you two should get some sleep,” she said as they stopped outside a large building.

“You need to rest, too,” Lily protested. “We can do it as a group in the morning.”

Dorcas gave her a gentle punch on the arm. “Princess, remember? I have a lot to get done, but I promise I’ll sleep. We’re safe here, don’t worry.”

“Sleep well, Dorcas, and good luck.” James exhaled slowly as she walked away arm-in-arm with Hestia. “And then there were two.”

“And then there were two,” Lily echoed.

“I really hate splitting up.”

“Same.”

Alice appeared from the stables with Emmeline behind her. “We have some rooms for you to stay in,” she said with a bright smile. “And food.”

Lily had never followed someone faster and probably never would again. The guest rooms were cozy and cool against the rippling heat of the prairie outside and she reveled in the change; now that her clothes were dry, it was easier for her to overheat. Emmeline and Alice kindly refrained from asking them any more questions until they were done shoving bread and meat into their mouths—Lily would never be a picky eater again, holy fuck—and pointed them toward the washroom when they were done.

Rivers were nice and did an amazing job of getting into every nook and cranny, but there was no feeling like scrubbing down in clean, fresh water that wasn’t full of silt. Lily stayed in the tub until the water was cold enough to make her shiver before rebraiding her hair and slipping into loose pajamas with an intricate pattern.

“Where’s James?” she asked when she entered the room again and found Emmeline snacking on some of the dates.

“His room is next door,” she said casually, then did a double take. “It’s okay, you’re safe here. The doors aren’t locked, so you can go wherever.” Lily managed a half-smile and settled back into the cushions. Emmeline’s face softened. “You really aren’t comfortable apart, are you?”

“I haven’t slept alone in over a week,” she confessed, a little embarrassed. “In almost every place we’ve stayed, we’ve been attacked or forced to split up. I’m already worried about the others.”

“Who else was with you?”

“Marlene, her friend Peter, James’ best friend Sirius, and Remus, the prince of Frystmark. They’re somewhere in the Middle Kingdom right now, I think.”

“Dorcas has mentioned Remus before. They’ve been friends for ages.”

Something in Emmeline’s tone prickled at the back of Lily’s neck. “You don’t like him?”

“Never met him.”

A realization dawned on Lily. “You like Dorcas.”

“No,” Emmeline said far too quickly. “She’s engaged.”

“To Marlene, not Remus.”

“I know,” she snapped. “She’s one of my best friends, after all.” Some of the defensiveness melted away. “I’m one of her bridesmaids.”

“I’m sorry.”

Emmeline shrugged. “I’d rather be there as a friend than not at all, you know? The worst part is, Marlene is awesome and they love each other so much. I’m happy for her, but…”

Lily let her trail off before reaching over and gently squeezing her arm. “Hey. You’re an amazing woman and anyone would be lucky to have you.”

“You’ve known me for five hours.”

“And in that time you’ve carried me on your horse back to your city, told me about your hometown, and let me take my first real bath in about three days. Don’t sell yourself short.”

“Thanks, Lily.” Emmeline looked up from her hands to meet Lily’s eyes. “I meant what I said earlier. If there’s anything you need for your quest, I’ll help you get it. Sorry, I should probably let you sleep now.”

“See you tomorrow?”

“You bet.”

Lily smiled and Emmeline headed back into the hallway, leaving one torch burning happily in the holder by the door. The sheets were soft as Lily slipped into the bed, but she stared at the ceiling for an indeterminate amount of time as the sound of the city outside slowly died down. She tried closing her eyes, counting sheep, and about a million different sleeping positions before giving up and padding into the hall.

She knocked on the door to the right of her own as quietly as she could, just in case. It swung open a few moments later; James looked exhausted and wide awake at the same time. “Hey.”

“Hey. Can I come in?” He held the door open further in answer and they sat next to each other at the foot of his bed. “You stopped flirting with me.”

“What?”

“Before we got to Dumbledore’s you were insufferable,” she teased. “But since then, you’ve been awfully normal about it.”

James snorted and flopped onto his back. “You seemed uncomfortable. You’re awesome and strong and funny, and I’d rather be your friend than chase you away by being some gross guy.”

“You’re not gross.” The bed bounced as she stretched out as well. “Awkward, yes. A little over the top, definitely. Mildly annoying at times, but never gross.”

“Thanks?”

“You’re welcome.” A few beats of silence hung between them. “I’m sorry about Sirius.”

James exhaled and his nose whistled a bit—Lily was glad the shadows hid her smile. “I’m more worried about him than anything. It’s my job to protect him.”

“I’m a hundred percent sure he thinks it’s the other way around.”

“That’s just who he is. Sirius finds someone he cares about and goes all in, and it’s gotten him bruised more than once. It’s just…he’s never left me before and I’ve never left him, either. Six years and the only time we’re apart is the councils.”

“Why did he come this year?”

There was a light laugh next to her. “My parents thought he’d keep me in line.” Lily chuckled at the idea and soon they were both muffling their laughter into their hands. “Even though that was doomed to fail, I’m glad he was there.”

“Same here.” Lily bit her lip. “Can I stay here tonight? It feels weird being alone now.”

“Absolutely. I can sleep on the floor if you want?”

“Please don’t, I’d feel bad.”

“Alright.” They both curled up under the covers and for about ten seconds, the only sound was their breathing. “Night, Lils.”

“Night, James.”

--

When Lily awoke, a cool breeze from the window ruffled her hair and the sounds of a bustling city filled the air. James was on the other side of the bed, his arms and legs spread at strange angles in contrast to her own tight ball. She stretched her legs out, relishing in the pop of her back and the heavenly mattress.

“James.” She poked him on the shoulder. “James, wake up.” When he didn’t budge, she shook him lightly. “James.”

He snorted and batted her hand away. “Five more minutes.”

Lily rolled her eyes as she climbed out of the bed and wandered back to her own room. There was no harm in letting him sleep, but they would have to leave at some point today if they wanted to have half a chance of catching up to the rest of the group. Emmeline knocked on her door a few minutes after she had finished washing her face with a neat pile of clothes in her arms.

“They’re clean,” she said as she handed them over. The rough green and brown fabric of Lily’s vest and pants had never been so vibrant, and she saw that someone had stitched the torn edges of her sleeves with a careful hand.

“Thank you.” As silly as it might be, Lily was grateful to have a small piece of home with her in such a new place. She had never been so far from Bailey before. “James is still asleep, sorry.”

Emmeline shrugged. “I can dump some cold water on him if he’s not up in twenty. Dorcas is in the dining hall if you wanted to meet up.”

By the time Lily was done getting dressed, James was awake and rustling around in the room next door. “I’m heading to the dining hall to see Dorcas, d’you want to come with me?”

“One second!” There a thump and a muffled curse and James appeared in the doorway a moment later with his hair sticking up at all angles. “Alright, let’s go.”

The dining hall was not hard to find—a long line of people stood outside the door and Lily and James only made it through because Alice recognized them. At the end of an intricately-carved table, Dorcas was up to her elbows in paperwork. “Morning,” Lily said as she took a seat next to her. “Did you sleep?”

“I did.”

“How long?”

Dorcas glanced up at her and cracked a smile. She looked worried, but rested. “Well enough. Hestia made me go to bed just after ten and I slept until eight, which was nice.”

“Excellent.”

“I was thinking we’d leave around eleven?” Dorcas suggested as she turned back to her work. “That way I can get a bit done here while you two pack our stuff. Emmeline and Alice can help you find good horses.”

James, who had taken the seat on her other side, went ashen. “We’re riding horses again?”

“Unless you’d like to spend eight or nine days walking, yes. Don’t worry, you’ll pick it up easily enough.” Dorcas shuffled through a sheaf of requests and sighed. “I’ll meet you in the stable at ten-fifty, okay?”

“See you then.”

It was surprisingly easy to find horses for Lily and James to ride, even though as they had no prior experience whatsoever. The horses of Hisanon were well-trained and absolutely beautiful—Emmeline shone with pride as she talked about their incredible stamina and speed. “If I had to wager a guess, I’d say you’ll be near Bailey in three days with these horses,” she said, absently stroking a mare’s black-and-white nose as it nuzzled her for treats.

Riding was the real challenge; she nearly fell off several times despite the sturdy saddles and Alice’s close instructions. In the two hours they had to prepare, she learned more than she would ever have dreamed of about proper techniques and how to hold her seat. Her thighs and lower back ached when she finally dismounted to help James load their supplies.

“Good choices,” Dorcas said as she entered the stable and made a beeline for a golden horse at the end of the stable. She murmured to it softly for a moment and it whinnied softly back, nosing at her face and hands for more pats. It followed her out of the stall without any lead and Lily marveled at the ease that settled into Dorcas’ whole posture. “Ready to go?”

“Are you?”

“I’ll be back,” she said, casting a glance over the city outside. “At the end of this, we’ll all go back home and things will be better.”

As they set out northwards at a steady walk, Lily found herself believing that more and more.