#don't even get me started on the ao3 tag for Lily being “Lily Evans Potter”

[starchaserdreams]

Whispers of Lilies: A Jily Short Story

I wrote a 2,500 word Jily Hanahaki fanfic. If you're wondering if this is out of my norm, yes it is. But the story was calling to me and I couldn't resist writing it. Hanahaki absolutely screams Jily to me.

An excerpt:

"Lily there they are again," Mary whispered in the hallway between the Charms and Potions classroom on a Tuesday.

"Look I see more!" Marlene cried out late on a Friday night as she, Mary, and Lily all returned to the Gryffindor common room.

"There's more blood on these than the last ones," Lily said slowly on a Wednesday morning as she took in the mess in the greenhouse.

It had started a few weeks earlier: flower petals throughout the castle. Lily had never seen anything like it before, but she knew the old witch's tale: when unrequited love became too much, it began to consume the lover's very being. Flowers would grow in the lungs, causing the lover to cough up bloody flowers. The realm of magic was called Hanahaki, and it was incurable. Whoever was suffering was deeply in love with someone who didn't love them back, and their body was slowly succumbing to their mental anguish over it.

"There's so much blood," Marlene agreed. A week ago, it was just a trickle. Whoever it is must be getting sicker.

Lily nodded, a sinking feeling in her stomach. Because these weren't just any flowers, they were lilies. And everyone who understood Hanahaki magic knew that that very likely meant that the person was in love with Lily herself.

"It's got to be James Potter, right?" Mary asked. Even as she spoke, there was regret in her tone.

"James Potter's love is not pure," Lily scoffed. She knew enough about James' childish nature to know that him calling out to her across the grass was just for his entertainment. Him staring at her across the lunch table was for attention. When he picked up her books and offered to carry them, it was to play act as a hero.

James Potter was no sincere lover.

It's on AO3 here!

[jamesunderwater]

20 Qᴜᴇꜱᴛɪᴏɴꜱ ꜰᴏʀ ꜰɪᴄ ᴡʀɪᴛᴇʀꜱ

Thanks for tagging me!! @gracelesslady23 @annabtg @kay-elle-cee this was very sweet to get to do.

Ao3 Username: itsjamespotter

1. How many works do you have on A03?

31, wow! How wild, that feels like a lot.

2. What’s your total Ao3 word count?

162k!

3. What fandoms do you write for?

HP

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

Show and Tell (3k, wolfstar smut)

Dead To Me (91k, wip lily evans angst)

Tall Dark and Glasses (3k, jily fluff)

"you have no idea how long i've been wanting to do that" (1k, prongsfoot smut)

Bring Your Kid to Work Day(s never end when your godfather is Sirius Black) (2k, good godfather sirius black fluff)

5. Do you respond to comments?

I try to, or at least have the goal to, but admittedly I'm very bad at it. (not to use it as an excuse but my adhd is fully to blame.) I plan to go back and catch up on all of them soon & have a dream of being much better about it, though. I do intentionally make sure I eventually respond to the ones for my WIPs, at least.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

well, since dead to me hasn't ended yet (kidding kidding kidding kidding!!!) lmao I really thought I was gonna have a hard time finding a fic with an unhappy ending but I evidently forgot who I am. I dunno how to choose between: 1. i don't even know where you end and i begin (500 words, canon prongsfoot....you get it) 2. Promises to Keep (1k words, dorlene with canon ending....you get it)

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Okay listen, do I technically have a fic that mentions living happily ever after in the last line? Yes. Am I choosing that fic? No. I'm choosing Happy Holidays, You Filthy Potters, because 1. smut, 2. sassy young Harry, and best of all, 3. sassy good godfather sirius black 😉

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I've gotten a couple of comments about Lily in Dead To Me but I've decided it's not my problem if people don't have critical analysis skills 💀

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I do! I write smut for a number of different ships and plan on doing others! Uhhh, what kind? the fact that I don't really know what that means probably means it's pretty vanilla 😆 there's a lot of going down on people 🤐

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

Haha, no, but if I did I'd probably do PJO/HP

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to my knowledge. that would be so heartbreaking.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No, but that's SO cool that people offer to do that for some fics!!!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

I have!! @charmsandtealeaves and I co-wrote a fic for a jilychallenge last year, before we were even friends! It was my first time co-writing a fic, which was very cool and different, but also didn't feel that foreign to me -- I think because I've spent a lot more years doing para RP than I have writing fics. It was fun to kind of riff off another writer in a different way. I would definitely do it again!

14. What’s your all time favorite ship?

Okay, this is kind of tough because I only recently got into Prongsfoot, and they are the definition of soulmates... But because I ultimately see Sirius as more of an ace/aro character, Jily wins the place of favorite ship in my heart. <3

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

Well, I really only have two WIPs posted on AO3: Dead To Me and Just This Once, and I have all of DTM outlined and plan to finish it by fall. Just This Once might be a while, but I also have a plan for it and would like to finish it at some point... But I guess there's a chance I won't finish it -- I do have a lot of other multi-chaps I am going to be starting soon.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Hm. I like to think I'm good at getting into the minds of my characters, really thinking through their motivations and emotions and then expressing those to the reader. I also think I'm fairly good at dialogue. I really like writing banter so I hope others think I'm good at it, haha. And based on what I've been told, my smut isn't half bad 😆

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Oh, definitely writing descriptions of any kind. I never remember to describe the scene and when I do, I think it feels clunky. I'm not great at writing in a more direct way, either; I struggle to express a character's emotions without getting a bit flowery with it. Just generally, I think my writing could be tighter, you know? I'm sure I'll realize other things I need to work on as I write more long fics, too.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

Ah, haven't done it yet, so don't have any thoughts to share.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

HP -- Jily on the Neopets forums... never 4get <3

20. Favourite fic you’ve written?

If we're talking finished works, I'd have to say Tall Dark and Glasses, which I wrote for the masquerade event for Jilytober last year. To me, that fic has a certain je ne sais quois that is hard to replicate. But unfinished? Dead To Me, hands down, and once it's finished it will be very hard to ever top it. It's imperfect and there are a lot of edits I'd make if I were to go back through and polish it up, but it's the first multi chap fic I've ever written, and beyond just feeling immensely proud of that, the story itself and how I'm writing it is one of the most heartfelt and meaningful things I'll ever write in my life.

these were such a pleasure to respond to, thanks again for the tags! <3 I'm tagging: @goldenbi @abihastastybeans & @nodirectionhome-ao3

[charmsandtealeaves]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Thank you for the tags @theresthesnitch & @annabtg. I'm finally sitting at my laptop so I can do this (and have given up with the formatting being all over the shop).

How many works do you have on AO3? 72 total, but 31 are currently hidden away in a private collection and can't be seen.

2. What's your total A03 words count?

According to the stats page 308,146 3. What fandoms do you write for?

Just HP 4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos? A.) Brown Boots & Breakfast Bagels Rated M, jily AU. Complete Multichapter. Lily’s love life was a tragedy of epic proportions and she had no brilliant strategy. But a chance encounter ends in a one night stand that blows her mind and leaves her wanting more. There’s just one problem… she doesn’t even know his name.

B.) One More Sleep (currently hidden) Rated G, Sirius raising harry oneshot. Three year old Harry Potter is very eager to stay awake and catch Santa Claus delivering him presents.

C.) Call Me By Name Rated E, Jily AU. WIP Multichapter. After a not-so-great breakup with a not-so-great boyfriend, Lily comes to the conclusion that if you want something done right you have to do it yourself. Whether mechanically, hydraulically, or auditorily? She WILL find the key to that currently unreachable pleasure.

D.) Evans Guide To Quidditch (and seducing James Potter) Rated M, Hogwarts Jily, oneshot. It had all started out innocently enough, a small wager between housemates on the outcome of the Arrows Vs Catapults game over the weekend. Lily hadn't intended to let slip she knew more about quidditch than she was letting on. Or to set up a fantasy quidditch league with James, but well... what's the harm?

E.) Stripped Back To Basics Rated M, Jily AU, oneshot collab with @athenasparrow In which Petunia probably regrets telling Lily to "put herself out there." Or: A Jily "Naked Attraction" AU (YES NAKED ATTRACTION IS A REAL SHOW!!!)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? I used to respond to some comments, but these days I try to respond to everyone who comments even if it's just an emoji as a like "hi yes thank you for your comment I see you I just don't know what to say!"

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angtiest ending? I don't know if I've ever written an angst ending... nothing springs to mind anyway. 7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? I think most of my fics end up with happy endings or at the very least open hopeful endings.

8. Do you get hate on fics? I wouldn't call it hate... but I did once get a couple of people debating in my comment section that Lily couldn't be friends with Sirius before dating James because it would be "taking away from jily's relationship"

9. Do you write smut. If so what kind? I don't really understand the second half of the question, but yes I do write smut.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written? Nope

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? I don't know if stolen is the right term, but there was a period years ago where some on my one-shots kept being posted on Instagram. Sometimes with credit, others not. 12. Have you ever had a fic translated? Not that I'm aware of.

13. Have you ever cowritten a fic before? Yes! and I would love to do it again. I did Stripped Back to Basics with @athenasparrow and june jilychallenge Ice Breaker with @jamesunderwater

14. What's your all-time favourite ship? This will surprise no one, jily. 15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will? Previously I would have said the fic I started over a decade ago... but I am actively trying to finish it and it is one of my publishing WIPs (we're gonna ignore the fact it's in desperate need of an update). It is currently publishing under a new name tho: Wake Me Up (When September Ends)

16. What are your writing strengths? I manage to sprinkle a little humour into most of my fics.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? Sticking to an update schedule... even though I always start with the best of intentions.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic? I don't think I've ever done it but I can barely English to be fair. I don't mind it in other peoples fics.

19. First fandom you wrote for? HP

20. Favourite fic you've ever written? I answered this as Stripped Back To Basics yesterday... I'm struggling to like my writing at the moment. But I enjoyed this first ever collaborative project and now Athena is a much beloved friend. tagging (and apologising if you've already been tagged): @merlins-sequined-hotpants, @uncertainwallflower, @practicecourts, @abihastastybeans

[thejilyship]

Is it a tad too soon and far too greedy to ask if/when there may be a Part III? 🤍

Alright y'all, I'm gonna go ahead and put this on ao3 so I don't have to keep linking back to old tumblr posts. I'll do it this time, but any more than two tumblr links is too many. Also if I post it on ao3, I won't have to tag all of you lol Tagging: @steadygalaxyychild @little-mee @moonpuup @flyingpalomita @jinahshedidntly @maybedancanwrite @constancezin @tragicromanceftus @sunshine-marauders @victoria8719 @sami210-blog @uchihako @magic-girl-in-a-muggle-world @earth-to-japha @the-dream-team @charmingwillow @mlw10 @decaffeinated-donut And if I missed anyone I apologize <3 Thank you all for being so lovely!

Part One | Part Two

AO3

“Black and MacDonald,” McGonagall called out. “Jones and Meadows, Bones and Prewett, and lastly, Potter and Evans. Your assignment is due next week so get started on it as soon as you can.”

Lily had her lips pressed together before McGonagall was done talking, but when she saw the back of James’ head start to turn toward her, she forced a smile onto her face. Everything between her and James was forced as of late. It was forced and hard and it sucked. It sucked a lot. She hadn’t wanted to lose her friend, but it was impossible for her to pretend that she hadn’t.

“Mary!” Sirius called back to Lily’s tablemate, “You good with doing this one for us?”

Mary rolled her eyes as McGonagall chastised Sirius and Lily held her breath as she watched James walk toward her, his hand in his hair. James arrived at their desk and rapped his knuckles against the surface. “Looks like you and I are partners, Evans.”

“Yeah,” Lily nodded. “Library after dinner?”

“Sounds like a plan.” He nodded. He pushed his glasses up his nose and then nodded a second time before he walked back to his desk without saying anything more. Lily’s chest tightened as it did so often around James now.

Lily let her chin drop to her chest and then sat up straight. “I’m gonna see if I can switch partners.” She said to Mary and then stood. Mary grabbed her arm.

“Are you sure?”

“He can hardly even look at me, Mary.” Lily huffed. “Working out rounds with him last Sunday was like torture.” They had sat in near silence the entire time and then James offered to finish it up by himself, which Lily couldn’t let him do, but then they were sitting in silence knowing that James had tried to escape. Lily had already worked out most of next week’s schedule so that they wouldn’t have to put themselves through that again.

“Alright. He’s gonna know that you asked though.”

“I’m only asking before he does.” Lily nearly rolled her eyes and then started toward the front of the room. The rest of the class started filing out of the classroom and McGonagall waved her wand at the board, erasing the days notes.

“Ms. Evans,” She smiled as Lily approached her. “Did you have a question about today’s lesson?”

“No, I have a question about the assignment.”

“Of course,” McGonagall nodded, waving her wand at the stack of scrolls on her desk, sending them flying neatly toward her office. “And what is your question?”

Lily tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and looked over her shoulder. “Is there anyway that I could switch partners?”

McGonagall’s smile disappeared and her brow narrowed. “You best have a compelling reason to ask.”

“Yes, professor, I just think I could work better with someone else.”

“You and Potter are the Head students, you would together quite frequently.”

“Yes.” Lily nodded.

“Has Potter done something recently-“

“No, this isn’t about James.” Lily interrupted. “I mean it is, but it’s not. He’s great and pulls his weight and all that, I just…” She quite suddenly felt the urge to cry, because now that she was trying to justify this to McGonagall it sounded like she was being daft and overly sensitive. She should be able to do an assignment with James and not make a big deal out of it.

“Lily,” McGonagall spoke more softly.

“Oh, it’s so stupid,” Lily shook her head and clenched her fist at her side. She looked over her shoulder, but the classroom was empty now. “I shouldn’t have bothered you with this. It’s fine.”

“You already bothered me with it, might as well get out with it, dear.” She raised her brows and looked at Lily over the tops of her glasses.

Lily tilted her head. “I fancy him.” She said, defeated and tired and still feeling ridiculous. She couldn’t look at McGonagall as she said it. “He’s got a girlfriend. He found out that I fancy him and can hardly look me in the eyes anymore and he’s still got a girlfriend.” She shrugged a shoulder and unclenched her hand only to ball it back up. “I didn’t tell him how I felt because I didn’t want to lose my friend, but I lost him anyway.” She finally looked at McGonagall. “And, more importantly, I think I’ll do better on the assignment if I have a different partner.”

McGonagall was quiet for a moment and then she nodded her head. “You and MacDonald can be partners. Black and Potter will be happy with that switch.”

“Thank you so much, professor!” Lily bounced on the balls of her feet, but even though she was getting what she had asked for, it didn’t feel like a win. It wasn’t really what she wanted. She wanted to shake James until he could smile while in the same room as her again. His smile was her favorite- that wasn’t a train of thought she needed to follow.

“Yes, of course.” She leaned over and opened the top drawer on her desk, pulling out a dark purple tin. She pulled the top off and held it out to Lily. “Have a biscuit.”

Lily, never one to turn down a biscuit, reached out for one.

“The two of you will have to work through this eventually.” She said, her tone softer than Lily was used to hearing it.

“I know.” Lily nodded. “I think a little bit of space will help.”

It wasn’t what she wanted, but she couldn’t pretend that James was still her friend. Not like he used to be anyway. If she wanted to salvage any part of her relationship with him, things were going to have to change, and if that meant that she had to see him less, than that’s what she would do.

“I’ll make sure our head duties aren’t affected.”

“Very good, Ms. Evans.”