#i know hermione needs a plot too and all

[claymoresword]

I Choose Her | Chp: 17

Hermione Granger x Slytherin Fem!Reader

Summary: You are the daughter of two known death eaters from one of the oldest and richest families in the wizarding world. Are you truly prepared to give up everything you know for Hermione Granger?

Pairing: Hermione x Reader

Wordcount: 3.9k

Warnings: plot heavy, a sprinkle of fluff , smut (?) , dark themes

Note: hi! sorry this one took so long i'm not even going to get into it, what's important is that it's finally here lol I'd say there's maybe 2 more chapters left of this story including the epilogue. i'm not too sure yet, but we are definitely nearing the end which is sort of bitter sweet.. but anyway, as always i hope you enjoy this one!

Taglist: @gvrsto @aweidlich @xxsekhmet @arielj @poppyflower-22 @scarleigh1989 @smut-religiously777 @cocoyeehaw @blackbirdv98 @arcturusseer @iamcapitalgbicorn8287 @lonewalker17 @karasonromanoff @httphayn @bigbadsofty07 @cherryflavoredcoke @dumpsapphic @idontwannabehereatm @js-a-writer @baylegend6 @puta1 @t-wylia @raven-ss @unexpected-character

“Here, this should do.” Hermione states in a hushed tone whilst dragging you behind a pillar to hide.

You stood behind her as she retrieved the cloak of invisibility from her bag, quickly draping it over the both of you.

Hermione pulls you even closer to remain as hidden as possible, so you instinctively wrap your arms around her torso.

You were allowed limited time to devise a plan as Snape summoned all students out of bed, all ordered to assemble in the Great Hall at once.

Harry made the impulsive decision to hide amongst the crowd of students so he may confront the Headmaster. The rest of you are forced to follow his lead, entirely improvising as you go.

Despite yourself, you do hope that Ron has managed to sneak out of the castle in time to fetch the other members of the Order. 

The Dark Lord and his followers are expected to march against Hogwarts any minute now, Harry needs all the help he can get.

-

Hogwarts always felt vaguely warm and comfortable to you, but now it is dense and inhospitable. You hardly recognised it anymore.

It is consistently hard to catch your breath, and you can't seem to ignore the uncomfortable chill running down your spine.

Hermione's presence being your only source of comfort, during a time that you otherwise found utterly debilitating. 

“Well, I don't know about you but this is quite nice. I really wouldn't mind staying like this with you, forever.” You attempt to lighten the mood as you further pressed your front against Hermione's back, earning a light chuckle in response.

“Honestly, I wouldn't mind either.” Hermione leans back slightly allowing you to place a quick kiss on her cheek before standing upright once more.

Your girlfriend keeps her eyes on the large group of students marching past, in anomalous unison. The sounds of their rhythmic footsteps echo through the halls. Not a single word is uttered amongst them. 

You can feel Hermione tense against your hold, as if she was trying to fight a similar feeling of deep and inescapable unease.

The final group of students enter through the doors, the large wooden panels shut with a large thud. 

Then, it is only silence, you can only hear the sound of your own breathing, the loud thumping of your raised heartbeat in your ears.

“Y/n..” Hermione's voice is a welcomed distraction from the unbearable quiet, it nearly makes you smile. 

“Yes, darling.” You respond, the other woman turns slightly so she may look at you as she speaks.

“I've been thinking..” Hermione starts. “It is no use that we find the other Hocruxes if we don't have the means to destroy it.”

Hermione's words make you pause. Truth be told, it hadn't even occurred to you until now. You had been so caught up in trying to locate the next object that you had entirely forgotten you no longer had the sword of Gryffindor in your possession.

“There's no chance we can take back the sword.. not now.” You think aloud, searching your mind for a solution. Hermione releases a groan at that, frustration and defeat. “I know.”

Then it occurs to you, a miraculous solution to your issue, or a shot in the dark, you were not yet certain.

“The Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets..” You trail off, now capturing Hermione's full attention. “What happened to it after Harry slayed it?” You ask, hoping your girlfriend will give you the answer you were looking for.

“Nothing, it's still there, left to decay in the Chamber.” Hermione replies, and a beat passes where nothing is said between you, but your girlfriend manages to catch up to your train of thought anyway.

“If we find a way to the chamber we can retrieve the Basilisk fang from the skeleton and destroy the Hocrux.” Your girlfriend voices the contents of your mind for you.

“With some luck.” You add.

Then, Hermione grins, a look of relief washes over her. Still underneath the cloak Hermione manages to turn around, she loops her arms around your neck, quickly guiding you in for a searing kiss, one that leaves your lips tingling even moments after she has pulled away. 

“You are brilliant.” Hermione utters, and this time it is your turn to smile.

“That's all you, my love.” You quip. Watching as Hermione makes a face in contentment before turning away from you once again.

Snape's voice can be faintly heard from where the two of you were standing, you tried to listen but Hermione's kiss ignited something within you. A sudden sense of serenity, now you are convinced that everything will turn out as you plan, as if you weren't currently in imminent danger.

As you held Hermione in your arms you allowed yourself to forget the threat of battle, if only for a few moments.

You can't hardly help the way your hand slips underneath her sweater, you feel her goosebumps forming underneath your touch as your palm grazes her bare stomach. 

This only works to urge you on as you carefully part her hair away from her neck, so you may plant gentle kisses against her warm flesh. Hermione's eyes flutter shut at the sensation, and you can hear her breath quickening. 

Although, you aren't allowed to carry on for long as she finally places her hand atop yours, removing it from underneath her top.

“Stop distracting me, I am trying to listen.” Hermione scolds, half-heartedly, her tone makes you smirk, a fire threatens to ignite, but you relent.

You could still only make out bits and pieces of what the Headmaster was saying, and nothing coherent. 

Soon deciding that you needed to get closer to the doors if you hoped to find out what was going on inside. You observed the lack of teachers roaming the halls, it appears you and Hermione were alone.

“Let's move closer.” You suggest, pulling the cloak off both of you so you may move freely.

“Alright.” Hermione agrees, clutching your hand as you advance forward together. 

Through the crack in the door, you are able to spot Snape, on the podium, addressing the students, the Carrows standing by either side of him.

“Punished in a matter consistent with the severity of their transgression.”

“Any person to have knowledge.. who fails to come forward, will be treated as equally guilty.”

You listened as the Headmaster continued hurling his veiled threats towards the group of blameless students. It makes your blood run cold and it appears Hermione felt as equally unsettled by Snape's words.

“Now then, If anyone here has any knowledge of Mr Potter's movements this evening. I invite them to step forward.. now.” Snape's words are met with complete silence, and your belly tightens with nauseating suspense.

The sound of sudden footsteps that echo from behind the two of you breaks the tantalizing quiet. It makes you whirl around in a panic, only for you to spot Ron next to his brother, Shacklebolt behind him and then the rest of the Order.

“What's going on?” Ron asks, looking between you and Hermione, and you merely hold your hand up to silence him as Hermione continues peeking through the crack.

The next thing that can be heard is a mass of gasps coming from the other side of the doors, students muttering amongst themselves. Before you can question it, the sound of Harry's voice validates your anxiety. 

You freeze, whereas Hermione merely steps forward, bracing her hand against the door, as if prepared to push it open, ready to come to Harry's defense.

“It seems, despite your exhaustive defensive strategies, you seem to have a bit of a security problem, Headmaster.” Harry's voice can be heard clearly as Hermione pushes the wooden doors open, you along with the rest of the Order follow her lead, now wands in hand, entering the hall as a group.

All eyes are now on you, more gasps in disbelief as you all stood behind Harry.

You then make the mistake of letting your eyes wander, it doesn't take long before you catch Pansy's gaze. Her stare, hardened and unforgiving enough to make you look away in an instant. You decide to focus your attention ahead.

Harry's harsh voice makes the walls in the hall vibrate.

“How dare you stand where he stood? Tell them how it happened that night, tell them how you look him in the eye, a man who trusted you and killed him.”

Harry continues to taunt the Headmaster, all he is granted with is silence, for a long moment, until Snape retrieves his wand.

He points it at Harry but before The Chosen One is allowed a chance to properly react, he is shoved out of the way, Professor McGonagall shielding him with her person.

It all happens quickly, the Professor flings spell after spell at the Headmaster, and everyone can merely observe with bated breaths as Snape deflected every blow.

The Headmaster lifts his wand to shield himself but this time the curse rebounds. As a result, the Carrows fall, unconscious.

Professor McGonagall steps closer but before she can attack once again, Snape is no longer upright as he quickly transfigures into a black mass, apparating out of the window behind him. The broken glass falls with a large crash.

A stunned silence before an eruption of cheers from the bystanders. Celebrating the Professor's triumph. 

Hermione glances at you with a similar look of relief, but the both of you recognize that it is fleeting.

Just as you expected, the moment of joy is over as quickly as it began. The mark on your arm, what was a dull ache turns into a searing pain, so sudden and paralyzing that it knocks you to the ground, still clutching your arm.

Hermione rushes to your side, but before she can attempt to question what was wrong Harry can also be seen collapsing onto the floor in front of you.

You catch a glimpse of Hermione's panicked expression, she turns to her best friend and then to you. Your girlfriend attempts to speak to you but you cannot hear her.

The pain in your arm has now spread, you shut your eyes tightly as you endured it. The hall grows dark once again, stagnant and cold. A spine chilling voice of the Dark Lord echoes through the air, easily distinguishable and unsettling. 

Soon there is a mass of screams coming from each corner of the room, students plugging their ears in terror.

Lord Voldermort aims to convey a message; a threat.

Hermione is holding you tightly against her own body, the pain in your arm is finally reduced to a dull ache once again.

“I know that many of you will want to fight, some of you may even think that to fight is wise, but this is folly.”

“Give me Harry Potter, do this and none shall be harmed. Give me Harry Potter, and I shall leave Hogwarts untouched. Give me Harry Potter and you will be rewarded.”

“You have one hour.”

The Dark Lord's attempt to entice has merely immobilized everyone for a prolonged moment.

You finally get back on your feet, Hermione does not let go of you still. “Are you alright?” She manages to find the words and you only nod in response.

As you glanced around the room, you realized that once again, all eyes are on Harry. This time the stares are hostile, some uncertain, others, plain terror.

Pansy's voice is first to break the tense stillness. “What are you waiting for? Someone grab him.” She points to The Chosen One.

Ginny is first to step in front of Harry, followed by Ron, Hermione, yourself and the rest of the Order follow suit.

As Pansy catches your stare again she scoffs, this time your hardened expression mirrors her own.

“Mr Filch, if you would, I would like you to please escort Ms Parkinson and the rest of Slytherin house from the hall.” Professor McGonagall orders the caretaker of the castle. 

The man emerges from the crowd, his tired long haired cat in his arms. “Where exactly will I be leading them to, Maam?” He asks.

“The dungeons would do.” The Professor quickly states. This makes Hermione reach down to hold your hand once again, you respond by intertwining your fingers.

There was more sudden applause from the students as they celebrated Mr Filch leading the other Slytherins out of the hall.

As expected, you notice Pansy walking towards you, and you make the hasty decision to turn away so you could hopefully avoid her. However, you don't get the chance to try as she gets close enough to grab your collar harshly, then you react on instinct, getting a tight hold on her wrist.

“Fucking traitor.” She hisses, the sudden nature of the interaction makes you wince.

You open your mouth to speak but Hermione quickly steps in. “Let go of her, or I swear you will be leaving this hall with no hands.” There is enough vitriol in her voice to make anyone cower, but Pansy was not yet done, in fact she barely acknowledges your girlfriend at all. 

“If I had known you were with your muggle pet this entire time..” Pansy trails off, she shakes her head slightly, repulsed.

“You're an embarrassment. I can hardly believe I ever considered you a friend.” Pansy retorts.

The same Pansy you have known since first year. You can't help the pang in your chest, her words manage to graze you.

She grants you a scowl before storming off, Blaise follows immediately after her, having listened to the entire interaction. He bumps his own shoulder against yours before slipping past, purposefully setting you off balance. 

You held your tongue, reminding yourself to remain calm.

When you turn to Hermione once more the look plastered on her face makes you ache. She recognizes your hurt, and she can't help but feel it too. “Y/n–” She starts but you quickly interject with a change of topic.

“I have half a mind to carve this thing out of me.” You quip, only partly joking. The dark mark now stifled by your sleeve.

Your joke doesn't translate, in fact it only urges Hermione to worry about you more. “You will do no such thing.” She warns with furrowed brows as she reaches up to fix the collar of your shirt, badly creased from Pansy's fury.

Hermione's own wrath yet to dissipate, you feel it in the way her hand trembles. 

You smile faintly at her in gratitude, in an endless sea of chaos, she is your helm.

As the rest of the students begin clearing the hall, Harry rushes past as well, urging Ron, y/n and Hermione to follow. “Come on.” He exclaims without looking back.

═══════════════════════════════════════════

Terror pollutes the air surrounding Hogwarts, contagious and unrelenting. It infects everyone, guiding and inspiring frantic behaviour. 

As all the Professors remain in the outer courtyard, securing the castle, students are left indoors to their own devices. Everyone is pushing, shoving. Coming and going. No one knows what to do, the only thing that's certain is that fear hangs over them a dark cloud enveloping all. 

“Harry, wait!” Hermione exclaims, trying to get her friend's attention but dark haired man barrels forward, Ron by his side.

Your finally manage to catch up to him, Hermione tugs on Harry's arm, forcefully urging him to look at her. 

“I've had an idea– well really it's Y/n's idea it's completely brilliant.” Hermione gestures towards you as she raises her voice slightly so she may be heard over the commotion.

Harry stares at you, inquisitive yet impatient so you decide speak quickly. “It doesn't matter if we find the Hocrux unless we can destroy it.” You say.

“You destroyed Tom Riddle's diary with the Basilisk fang, right?” You question rhetorically but Harry nods regardless.

“Well, Hermione and I think we know where we might find one.” You add vaguely, a precaution against prying ears.

“Okay, fine– but take this” Harry seems only half present in the conversation now, he is not even looking at you as he retrieves the Marauder's Map from his pocket.

You grab the bit of parchment, admittedly perplexed by his response. “That way you can find me when you get back.” Harry explains and you nod.

The Chosen One turns to continue up the stairs without looking back, Ron blindly trails after him, it seems asking Harry questions now will only slow them down.

“Where are you two going?” Hermione on the other hand cannot contain her curiosity.

“Ravenclaw Common Room. We've got to start somewhere.” He explains, practically shouting above the clamour.

As Ron and Harry dissapear into the crowd 

Hermione quickly intertwines your hand with her own, dragging you up the stairs in the opposite direction. “Come on, this way.”

–

The girl's lavatory remained vacant as you both made your way down the long winding slope, a pile of something soft breaks your harsh landing, in the darkness you are not able to make out what it might be.

The chamber was dark, every surface caked with dust, you can feel it in your lungs everytime you took a breath. No doubt the chambers has been left entirely untouched since the event all those years ago. 

Every step you took echoed towards the void, the faint noise of critters scampering on the walls was enough to unsettle you.

“Lumos.” Hermione says with her wand in hand, illuminating your path. It was only then you had the sense to do the same with your own.

═══════════════════════════════════════════

You finally get to the entrance but only to realize it is locked, intricate stone carvings of serpents mounted proudly on the door; a warning. 

You inspect it carefully, but there is no visible keyhole any clues of how to unlock it.

Hermione bravely places her hands upon it, a feeble attempt to pry the heavy door open, but it is no use.

She sighs, exasperated.

“Any ideas?” Hermione looks to you, desperate.

You remained silent as you deliberated, your first instinct was to enter with force, throw a curse large enough to hopefully break apart the stone door atleast enough for the both of you to fit through.

That plan does not come without it's risks, you set it aside for now.

You begin considering other solutions, and naturally your mind involuntarily turns to the events surrounding the chamber of secrets all those years ago, your second year at Hogwarts. 

The perpetual anxiety that plagued you, and every other student in the castle. Everyday, the Basilisk claimed a new victim and for several weeks, you were only allowed to wonder who it might choose next.

You distinctly recall the way Draco reacted to it all, how he insisted on learning parseltongue so he could gain control of the beast. Feeding into the widespread fear that Harry was the true heir of Slytherin. That he would target him next if he did not learn how to defend himself.

Countless nights where your best friend would stay up memorizing phrases in parseltongue, certain that he would then gain the ability to control the beast if it ever came after him.

Whether he was driven by jealousy or plain and simple fear is unclear, but Draco's relentless efforts, as a result, forcefully imprinted the unfamiliar dialect into your vocabulary. 

Although, time certainly did it's duty, and now you are only able to recall certain words. 

You wonder if it will perhaps still be enough to possibly unlock the door to the chamber.

“I have an idea, but it might not work.�� You reply, although entirely lacking confidence.

Hermione doesn't share your doubts, she nods assuredly eventhough she has no notion of what you intend to do. “Go on then.”

You speak the words ‘door’, ‘snake’, and ‘open’ in parseltongue. With your limited knowledge, you cannot hope to form a complete sentence, but luckily enough, the chamber unlocks. The heavy door opens, wide and eerily inviting.

Hermione stares at you wide-eyed in bewilderment. “How–” She tries but you only start forward towards the door.

“Long story– if we survive this I'll tell you all about it.” You quip as you made way for Hermione to step inside before you.

═══════════════════════════════════════════

As it seems your streak of luck has yet to wear off as you succeed in extracting the Basilisk fang. It was just as Hermione said, all flesh has rotted away, now what was left of the beast was only it's skeleton, set to fossilise with time.

The both of you stood unmoving, hovering over the Hufflepuff cup, readying yourselves for the next step. “You do it.” You extend your arm so Hermione may grab the fang but she quickly shakes her head in protest. 

“No, I can't.” She admits but your gaze doesn't falter, courteous and true, you grab her hand.

“Yes, you can.” You state, lightly forcing the fang into her grasp, and she remains hesitant but accepts it anyway.

“I'll be right here if anything happens.” You reassure with a gentle hand on her shoulder.

Hermione moves to crouch next to the cup and you do the same, holding it in place.

Your girlfriend glances at you a last time for reassurance and you can only nod. As Hermione lifts her arm with the Basilisk fang in hand, you hold your breath.

In an instant she brings her arm straight down, the tip of the sharp tooth proved sturdy enough to pierce through the ancient relic. The Hufflepuff Cup begins spinning uncontrollably, as if trying to escape the cause of its injury.

Then, the room awakens, the body of water once still on either sides of the pathway you stood suddenly rises in anger. 

The water continues to twist and shape itself into a horrifying sight, the same vision of Voldermort that tormented you when you destroyed the locket.

You grab Hermione's hand, pulling her away from danger, but the being follows you until there was nowhere else to run, you fish out your wand from your pocket but before you can attempt anything, water crashes down onto the both of you. 

You are soaked and breathless, but the room was asleep once more. It is over.

Another Horcrux is destroyed, and air sharply fills your lungs. “You did it.” You state with true relief and Hermione doesn't respond, not with words. 

In one large stride she is directly infront if you, her lips against yours. The kiss shocks your entire system. Open-mouthed, and aguished. Her hand is firmly against the nape of your neck, Hermione melts within your embrace and you react all the same. Before you can protest or question further, your girlfriend pulls away. 

You stare at her, dazed and almost in a trance, consumed in everything and all Hermione. You nearly fail to notice the fact that she was removing her shoes, and then her jacket.

“What are you doing?” You remain staring at her, now with a hint of amusement, but mainly awe.

“We might die today.” Hermione states plainly, the nature of her words do not match her tone.

You observed as she removed her top, now leaving her in only her jeans and bra. She approaches you again, her hands slipping underneath your shirt, warm touch against damp skin makes you shiver in anticipation.

Then you feel her soft lips against the shell of your ear, and soon your jaw. “When I take my last breath I want to remember what it feels like to be with you.. all of you.” Hermione utters, her hands already moving to undo your belt.

[pogueswrld]

*•.¸♡ make up sex ♡¸.•*

pairing: fred weasley x fem!plus-sized!reader

summary: Freddie talks too much, and his girlfriend is exhausting all the ways she knows to shut him up. Softly, of course.

warnings: smut🦢!1!1!1!1! there's plot and fluff, and everyone's of age ofc, although it is hinted that reader is still in Hogwarts, kinda sub!Fred top!reader, like he's whining and panting and begging and shit (bites lip) ANYWAY, dick riding hehe, no usage of y/n.

note: it is 2:59 pm on a Friday, let's see how fast I write this shit. note 0.2: Okay so it's 5:54 pm on the same day, I think I'm done. This isn't edited, but it took me 3 hours to write 😁

He was still talking. Why, in the name of Merlin, was he still talking?

Dating Fed Weasley is fun, there's no denying that, but Good Heavens isn't that a boy a handful. Both literary and figurative. He's got a wide imagination, a never-squelching desire for knowledge, and a big heart. That is a dangerous combination for a somewhat intelligent and never-quiet man.

She's a saint, his girlfriend, and Ginny made a point to always express that to her. "How do you put up with that all the time?" Gesturing to Fred, who was using his hands in elaborate motions as he went on his fourth rant of the morning on the same subject to George. She'd only shrug, lips engulfing another spoonful of whatever ice cream the girls were sharing. "In one ear and out the other darling."

Not to say that she hates it, or that it bothers her- quite the opposite actually. Fred's excited and hyper personality is what made him so interesting to her, it was what drew her to him in the first place. She enjoys listening to him rant, even about the most random things -he stopped her the other day and explained in great detail how penguins mate and how once the female accepts the male's proposing gestures, they're together for life- and she adores it.

Yes, it sure can be a bit much at times, but she wouldn't change it for the world. Imagine loving a man who was as boring and dry as his older brother, Percy? She would have to jump out of Ginny's bedroom window!

Today was her first day back in the Burrow from Hogwarts for summer break, and she was exhausted, to say the least. She was up from dawn, finishing up the last bits of her packing before leaving for the train station with Harry, Hermione, and Ron. And because she's a good friend, she made sure each of her friends made it to their transportation safely before she and Ron were picked up by Fred and George.

In the car, Ron opened the untameable can of worms by mentioning Bill who was staying over at the Burrow for the summer as well, taking a couple of months' worth of vacation away from the dragons and such. That was the spark Fred needed to blast off into a hundred rants one after the other.

He spoke about seeing Bill again, which is understandable, he hasn't been home in years. He spoke about the dragons, which led to his excited mention of his favorites and how he's going to ask Bill how it was training them. Then he turned to Quidditch training, and even though both him and George had left Hogwarts a year or so ago, the both of them still found time to play the game as a side hobby. After that was all done, George gave her and Ron and update on the shop, and Fred went on and on about all kinds of new candies and flavors and combinations they were working on to add to the store by the beginning of next year.

She was understandably tired by the time the Burrow came into view. And as much as she adores her boyfriend, she needed him to shut the fuck up for twenty minutes. But he's so sweet, and his eyes light up when talking, and he gets this beautiful energy surrounding him when he does it that she doesn't have the nerve to ask him to be silent for a bit. So she excuses herself and tries to bury her body under the covers of his bed.

But he finds her there, and he reports to her that dinner is ready, and that Bill is here, and that she looks so gorgeous on his bed, and that there's a strange animal in the backyard, and that Ginny tried to curse the bathroom when he went in to use it, and that he doesn't understand why she'd do that, and that George is out in the garage, and that-

She jolts up on his bed, her eyes twitching as she stares at him. He looks so beautiful, but he's talking too damn much. She cups his face, and he goes silent and stares at her with wide eyes.

"Wha'?" He mumbled, his lips squished together as she squeezed his cheeks.

"You talk too much, ya' know that?" She said, her thumb slightly caressing the apples of his cheeks.

He opens and closes his mouth like a fish out of water, and tilts his head ever so slightly. "Do' it bothe' yo'?"

She giggles breathlessly and lets go of his face before pressing her lips tightly against his. "Not all the time, but times like today..." She rests her forehead against his and sighs, "It can be a lot, and I need you to read the room and tone it down a little bit, d'ya think you can do that for me?"

He stares, something in his gaze changes, and he nods. "Of course, baby. Whateva' you want."

Great. Now she feels bad. She sighs and pushes past the blankets swallowing her to sit up on her knees. She wraps her arms around his shoulders and pulls him into a hug. "I love you, truly love you, and I don't mean to be mean to you, and you know I love it when you ramble, but I'm really overwhelmed today, darling. I'm sorry."

Fred wraps his arms around her waist in return, hugging her tightly. It's true that he can't always read the room, and now that he's no longer attending school he's got much more free time on his hands than he knows what to do with. It takes him a couple days to be able to read his girlfriend's body language like he used to once she's home from school, and he feels terrible that he was one of the reasons for making her feel so incredibly overwhelmed. He also feels slightly ashamed of his non-stop rambling all day.

He buried his face in the crook of her neck, mumbling something into her skin that made her shiver and giggle away from him. "Stop," she breathes in a giggle, "It tickles."

He chuckles, his hands squeezing at the skin of her waist as he stares at her dreamily. "I said, I'm sorry I made you feel overwhelmed, I promise to try and do better."

She grins at him, so brilliantly, that he can't help but lean down and capture her lips in a soaring kiss. "I love you." He mumbles against her lips, and she smiles while trying to kiss him back. "C'mon now, love, let's go have dinner."

Her eyes darken; her pupils widen, and she smiles that mischievous grin that he adores so much, and he groans while throwing his head back. He knows exactly what is on her mind.

"I have a better idea." She whispers, giggling as she throws herself into his lap and kisses him with such force that she's pushing him down on his bed. He yelps, his hands traveling to the bed and her waist, holding on to her for stability. Bubbling heat travels across his body through her kiss, and he sighs when her cold fingertips trace down his arms, sending goosebumps across his body.

Her kisses transfer from his lips to the sides of his mouth, his cheeks, down his jawline, until she's pampering open-mouthed kisses across his neck like stardust.

He sighs, his eyes closed and his head thrown back on the pillow. "Please," He breathed, a low whine undertoning his voice. She shivers above him, her teeth grazing his skin in a teasing bite.

She's always hated the effect his voice has on her.

"Please what, darling?"

He whines. It's low, for her ears only, it's a barely-there breath, but his mouth is right next to her ear and she hears him loud and clear. Her panties dampen almost immediately.

"Please touch me," He whispers. His hands gripped tightly to her thighs. He knows better than to roam her body without permission. She pulls back slightly, blinking up at him with a soft smile and long lashes. "But I am touching you, Freddie."

He knows this game. This cruel, cruel game she adores to play. He whines in pretentious of hating his role, but his hips buck, and his cock twitches underneath the fabrics of his boxers and trousers.

He slowly traces one of his hands from her thighs to her palm before letting her fingers rest on his aching cock. He guides her hands to gently rub him through his clothes and he lets out a breath when her fingers squeeze around him. "Touch me there." He gasps.

She entertains him, allowing him to set the pace and buck into her hold. He releases deep breaths and low whines, stuttering moans every time she tightens her grip around him. She can feel herself getting wetter by the second, how his eyes are shut desperately, his teeth bite down on his bottom lip, and her name is gasped out of his throat with every other movement. It makes her feel powerful, it makes her entire being vibrate.

"That's enough." She mumbles, pulling her hand out of his grasp and bathing in his complaining whines as she pulls off her shirt. He blinks up at her, watching her boobs bounce in the push-up bra she's wearing before she unhooks it and slides it off her shoulders. He blinks again and swallows whatever drool and saliva has gathered in his mouth, causing his Adam's apple to pop along with the action. She smiles at the sight and quickly bends down to leave a swift kiss on it.

"Take off your shirt." She commands him, and he does so without hesitation, throwing the garment somewhere on the floor of the room he shares with his twin brother. He watches her hands intensely as she teases him by running her thumb on the inside of her trouser's elastic, before slowly pulling the item down and off. He groans at the sight of his favorite panties on her; a partially lacey red thong that settles up between her butt cheeks. She always told him how uncomfortable it made her, but the look on his face when he saw it on her made every second she spent wearing it worth it.

"You're trying to kill me, love?" He groans, daring himself to take a dangerous leap and push his thumb against the damp cloth, pushing down on where he knows her clit hides. He glances up at her, watching the way her lips part and her mouth hangs open at his action.

"And what am I to tell George when he asks? Death by a red thong?"

He grins up at her, picking up the speed at which he's rubbing on her bud of nerves. "Only if you're the one wearing it."

She shudders, forcefully holding herself back from grinding against his thumb. Instead, she grips his wrist and pushes it away from her. She hooks two fingers on each side of his trousers and boxers before meeting his eyes, watching as he licks his lips and nods before pulling the clothing items down his hips and legs.

His cock bounces out from underneath the fabric happily, it smacks against his lower abdomen and she giggles at the sight of precum beads rolling down his slit. He whines, throwing his arm on his face to cover the embarrassing blush that matched his hair color. "Don't laugh at me, why're you so mean to me today?"

Her giggle grows louder, and she leans down to push his arm off his face. "I never intend on being mean to you, my darling, you just bring it out of me. I'm sorry." She mumbles as she meets his gaze, her hand cupping one side of his face and he leans towards her touch. "Don't hide from me, yeah?"

He nods.

"Good boy."

He whines, his eyes squeeze shut and his jaw drops when her fingers wrap around him again, but her thumb is collecting his precum before spreading it down his length before she works a steady rhythm going up and down. His whines slowly turn into moans. His noises were so heavenly that she could swear her wetness was flowing through the fabric of her thong and onto the skin of her thighs.

She sees his muscles contracting and she stops, removing her hand from him altogether. He opens his eyes, blinking up at her in confusion as a noise of complaint slips out of his throat. But he swallows it back up when he sees her push her thong to the side and spread her folds before sitting on his length, and she grinds back and forth on him without actually allowing him access to her.

He groans, throwing his head back. She's coating him in her juices and there's a delicious squelching noise coming from between them and it's driving him insane. He sucks air into his lungs through clenched teeth and shudders when she allows a single moan to slip through her parted lips.

Suddenly, he's engulfed in her warmth and he hisses. His hands grip tightly to her thighs, hips, and any plump skin he can find. He squeezes her, hissing, and pants until he's sheathed completely inside of her. "Slow down," He gasps, "Slow- slow down, slow down, slow down." His voice turns from low breaths to almost high-pitched whines, and she leans down and captures his lips in a silencing kiss.

"Need you to lay here and keep your pretty mouth shut, darling, can you do that? Can you stay quiet for me so your family doesn't hear us fucking?" He whines, hips bucking into her warm cunt causing his eyes to roll to the back of his head as he nods mindlessly. "Yes, yes, yes. I'll be quiet. Fuck- please, baby, please fuck me."

She giggles at his desperate whines, and slowly rocks her hips back and forth, just enough movement to send pleasure jolts but not enough to get them going. She was testing the waters, trying to see how loud he could get without giving him much of anything.

Fred was losing his mind, he could feel her walls clamp down on him every time she moved back, and he could feel himself nudging against her feel-good spot every time she moved forward. Her wetness made a mess out of both of them, making it easy to slide into her and pick up the pace.

He arched his back slightly, just enough to hint at her to go faster. Because she was starting to feel frustrated, she obliged. She switched from grinding down on him to bouncing, her knees and hips working overtime to not make a noise every time her ass cheeks met his thighs.

She's now moaning, leaning down to muffle her noises by his neck or breathe them directly into his ear. Fred's eyes roll to the back of his head every time, and his hands grab onto the fat of her hips to help her.

"I-" She gasps, pushing herself upwards, clamping down on him tightly before forcing deep thrusts with her movement. "I'm gonna cum." She whimpers, and her legs begin to shake and fail her. Fred let out a loud breath that turned into a whimper before pushing himself up and, with a tight hold of her hips, forced her up and down his cock.

"Wa- wanna feel you. Wanna feel you gush around me. Give it to me, please." He whines, his words muffled into her temple, his eyes closed as her walls flutter around him, her body shivering against him and her lips part in long whines. One of his hands sneaked in between them, and his thumb drew quick circles around her clit, just enough to electrify her over the edge.

She freezes up, squeezes down on him and Fred is gone. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her tightly down on him, the repeated squeeze of her walls stimulated him over the edge and they were shaking through their highs together. Her hands were buried in his hair, his hands holding onto her hips, while their lips interlocked in an overflowing kiss.

A few seconds later, their mouths parted as they gasped for air, holding onto one another as their highs dwindled. He traced random shapes on her bare back while she scratched at his scalp in a way she knew he loved.

He was the first to pull back, looking up at her with nothing but love and adoration. He tilts his head and grins, "Do you still want to go down for dinner?"

She laughs, heartily and loudly out of his arms and back onto the bed. "If you'll be going downstairs for a plate, get me one with you. There's no way I can look your mum in the eye after this."

[choccy-milky]

hey! They already asked you but I don't know if you forgot hehe, what are the mbti of Clora and Sebastian? 😸

OK, I FINALLY HAVE AN ANSWER!! took me a hot minute to figure out sebs, but after reading all the pages and comparing, i do think entp fits him the best. also i saw this picture on pinterest about a relationship between isfj and entp and its so true, esp the "do not listen to each other's advice, still get each other out of trouble" LMFAO. also the 'protecting isfj at all costs' 🥺🥺🥺im soft. (ALSO DONT COME AT ME I KNOW I SPELLED KNOWLEDGEABLE WRONG IM TOO LAZY TO FIX IT😭) OKAY!! and its been a while so i'll be using this ask to reply to a buncha others🙏🙏

my fanfic does follow the plot of the game, but with sebastian added to every sidequest/story mission. and then from around the third (niamh's) trial, it starts to branch more into (mostly all) original stuff!^^

yes actually LMAO, clora's lawley-slap wasn't even planned. but as i was writing it i started to get so offended on her behalf i was like GIRL, SLAP THIS BITCH🤬 so she did😇😇 id say its normal, yeah! even tho i stick to my outlines, a lot of what happens just kinda happens without my prior planning as i begin to write bahaha, especially dialogue scenes.

aw, im glad u like my blog so much and that it can help u even in the smallest of ways 😭thank u!!💖💖

BAHAHA AWW TYY IM GLAD U LIKE IT SO MUCH!! i saw u re-reading it recently on wattpad and ur comments always have me dying. also im just gonna address your other ask here in this one, but as u know seb has now met mr.clemons, and you 10000% nailed the dynamic between seb and clora's dad LMFAOO, they will absolutely bond over disagreeing with how careless she is and wanting to protect her/stressing over her LOOL. ty again for all ur messages, i love seeing how much u love my art/fic😭💖

OMG u are so right i need to draw this

also god idk....following the sebinis example, i guess they'd be...sebora?? reminds me of sephora LMAO. ive also had someone call them "alliteration shipping" which i think is so cute BAHAHA. HONESTLY PPL CAN JUST SAY WHATEVER THEY WANT, i aint picky.

oh god its been too long since ive read the books (tho i do really wanna re-read them esp in the winter) but my fav movie is half blood prince, just because i love all the ron/hermione moments and the highschool drama BAHAHA. what do u mean harry potter isnt a romcom??? ok and last but DEFS not least

THE UNHINGED ENERGY OF THIS ASK CRACKED ME UP SO MUCH WHEN U SENT IT BAHAHAH, couldnt even fit the whole thing in my screenshot. IM GLAD U LIKED/HATED THE CHAP, and also your pfp just makes everything you say funnier, i love it LMAOOO. ty🙏🙏

[emeritusemeritus]

Vulnera Sanentur [Weasley Twins x Reader]

Part 7

Part 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Title: Vulnera Sanentur

Pairing: Fred Weasley x Reader x George Weasley {established relationship}

Timeline: DH1&2- Initially set during the battle of the seven potters. Canon and certain plot points have been altered for the needs of the story.

Summary: The battle of the seven Potters throws your world into chaos when one of your boyfriend’s is cursed. As Snape’s ex-potions assistant and previous protégée, you recognise the inflicted curse immediately and demand answers from your mentor.

Warnings: Angst, mentions of war and Voldy, descriptions of injury and blood, descriptive smut, p in v sex, shower sex, tension. Outside sex. Semi public sex. None sexual nudity. Crying. Snape has a soft spot for reader. Arguments. Probably some cursing. Mentions of nightmares. Reader is part of the Order of the Phoenix. Mentions of death (Dumbledore). Mentions of Tonks’ pregnancy. On it got a angsty. So much angst I can’t tag it all. Not spellchecked nor beta read, we die like Madeye.

The return to Hogwarts.

Thank you to everyone who has reached out to be added to the Taglist, I have tried adding everyone but some blogs cannot be added? I will keep trying for you all 🖤

Apparating into Hogsmeade just outside the anti-apparition jinx perimeter was the only feasible way you could get close to the castle, but it was extremely dangerous, to say the least. There was a bounty upon all of your heads, none more than Harry who had been marked as undesirable number 1. Your plan was to sneak in through the Honeydukes cellar passageway, navigating Hogmeade in the dark just as you had the night George lost his ear to confront Snape. You wished you had the marauders map on your possession and had cursed yourself multiple times for not keeping it to hand, knowing that Grimmauld place was much too risky to return to now that Yaxley had discovered the location of the safe house after fleeing the ministry.

You had not anticipated the alarm that sounded out the second you all apparated into Hogmeade, the Caterwauling charm forcing you to run for cover the second your feet landed on the ground. Snatchers and death eaters were hot on your tails as you hid behind folded tables in the market, holding your breath and trying to control your shaking limbs. Snow covered the ground and you tried your hardest to hide your tracks but it was too late, all of you huddled together beneath a table as footsteps approached. Only when another alarm sounded off in the distance did the men relent and began running to investigate, assuming it to be Harry.

You stood quickly and beckoned the rest of your group to follow you, trying to slip through the jitty that ran between the Hog's Head and the side entrance to Honeydukes. Your heart sunk as you spotted a newly installed railing too late, cornering you and preventing you from escaping. You turned to Ron with a look of fear in your eyes, desperately trying to think up a backup plan as you tried to pull the secret passageways from your memory.

"Potter, in here!" A voice whispered from the side, urging you to run forward for cover.

A large portrait on the wall grabbed your attention immediately, a young girl with a clipped smile and distant eyes.

"You bloody fools, what were you thinking coming here?" The deep voice said, walking into the room. His likeness to your ex-headmaster was striking though not in the way that they were identical but almost as if they had the same kind eyes and long white hair and beards. "Have you any idea how dangerous it is?"

"You're Aberforth, Dumbledore's brother," Harry says, watching as the man briefly pauses mid-step before continuing on to peak out the shuttered windows, looking for any sign of suspicion with a vague noise of confirmation.

Aberforth kindly fetched some food and drink for you all though you don't launch for it as Ron and Hermione do, your stomach in knots about the next task.

"We need to get into the castle, tonight," Harry says with urgency, also not moving to reach for the food.

When Aberforth turns to him with a look of confusion and disgust, Harry presses, "Dumbledore gave us a job to do."

"Did he now?" Aberforth replies sneakily, pouring himself a drink. "Nice job? Easy?" He asks sarcastically, implying a conflict between them and previous knowledge of Albus' riddle like tasks. His face beamed with a sardonic smile that didn't reach his eyes, though he clearly found it an amusing situation.

"We've been hunting Horcruxes," Harry admits. Your gaze shoots your to him in surprise and alarm that he'd admitted it out loud to a man you barely knew. In truth, you had been more than hesitant about things since the incident with Bathilda, not to mention your multiple uses of Polyjuice Potion in the last few months alone. Quite frankly, you didn't trust anyone to be who they claimed to be.

"We think the last one's inside the castle, but we'll need your help getting in," Harry says. The tension on the room lingers as Aberforth places down his drink, eyeing Harry with suspicion, not astounded at the claim as you had anticipated him to act.

"That's not a job my brother's given you, it's a suicide mission. Do yourself a favor boy. Go home. Live a little longer."

"Dumbledore trusted me, to see this through," Harry counters, unfazed by Aberforth's harsh tone.

"What makes you think you can trust

him! What makes you think you can believe anything my brother told you! In all the time you knew him, did he ever mention my name? Did he ever mention hers?" Aberforth gestures to the painting of the young girl you'd spotted upon entering, her vacant expression never changing even as she's addressed.

"Why should he?" Harry begins to say, before Aberforth interjects.

"Keep secrets? You tell me." He goads.

"I trusted him."

"That's a boys answer," Aberforth dismisses. You cast a glance at Hermione as the two argue back and forth, keeping surprisingly cool under the tension. Ron, standing beside Hermione, looks less concerned as he continues to eat, shoving his mouth full of food as he watches the confrontation before him. "A boy who goes chasing Horcruxes on the word of a man who wouldn't even tell him

where to start. You're lying. Not just to me, which doesn't matter, but to yourself as well. That's what a fool does." Aberforth has taken a few steps towards Harry but he stands resolute. "You don't strike me as a fool, Harry Potter. So I'll ask you again. There must be a reason."

Harry remains resolute even as Aberforth moves ever closer to him, the tension lingeries thickly in the air as you await Harry's answer.

"I'm not interested in what happened between you and your brother, I don't care that you've given up. I trust the man I knew. We need to get into the castle tonight."

Ron's gaze flickers to you and you look upon eachother with an unreadable expression, both relating caution as you anticipate Aberforth's next move. Harry stands strong, not cowering under the dark gaze of your helper. After several seconds of intense, silent exchange, Aberforth shifts his gaze to the painting of the girl, his eyes softening as he glances at her, relenting.

The girl gives a nod, still holding her wistful smile and turns, waking off into the distance of the oil painting, her form getting increasingly smaller the further she walks.

"Where've you sent her?" Asks Harry, curiously watching the girl disappear from the frame.

"You'll see soon enough," Aberforth replies, a little cagey.

"That's Ariana, isn't it? Your sister. She's beautiful," you say, trying to pull Aberforth back on to your side, feeling like a disquiet was pulling at him and Harry that you didn't want to linger.

"She'll always be beautiful," Aberforth says, glancing at you briefly. You nod with a small smile, understanding his wistful tone.

"She died very young, didn't she," Hermione adds delicately, though Aberforth doesn't glance at her, nor reply for a few moments as Hermione's statement hangs in the air.

"My brother sacrificed many things, in his journey to find power, including Ariana. She was devoted to him -- he gave her everything, but time."

"Thank you Mr Dumbledore," you say quietly. He stares at you for a moment with an unreadable expression before nodding curtly and walking into the other room up the stone steps. You catch Ron's eyes who looks at you in question but you shoot him a harsh glare, telling him to back off. The four of you stand in awkward silence for a few moments, looking around the sparse room and waiting for your next instruction or sign.

"She's coming back! And she's got someone with her!" Hermione calls, scrutinising the painting as a very small figure emerges from the back of the canvas. The whole scene is slightly ominous as you wait for the image to become clear, a sense of dread filling you as you consider who would be with her. Had you been set up?

"Who's that with her?" Ron asks, moving to stand closer as you all fixate on the second figure, increasing in size as they move closer, seeing that the second person was limping. The second person moves behind the girl, concealed completely as the frame around the painting creaks open from the right side. You draw your wand, ready for whatever might be unleashed but frown as you see the opening to a dark and long tunnel, revealing exactly who was stepping closer. "Bloody hell!"

"Neville!" Harry says with a smile, thankful to see an old friend. "You look

"Like hell I reckon," Neville says, crouching down with his wand in his hand. His cardigan is marked and dirty, much like his face that holds scars and fresh cuts. "This is nothing. Seamus is worse. You'll see." He looks at you, then Hermione and then Ron, all with a smile as you greet eachother.

"Hey, Ab. We've got a couple more coming through," he says, turning to Aberforth and addressing him with a familiarity which tells you everything you need to know about the kind bar owner who had been exactly who he stated to be.

"I don't remember this being on the Marauder's Map," you say quietly with a tone of suspicion, looking at the walls of the damp and dark tunnel that surrounds you, completely unfamiliar to even you. Having George and Fred as best friends turned lovers ensured that you knew every secret passageway and hiding place in the castle, and this was one you had never found before.

"That's because it never existed till now. The seven secret passages were sealed off before the start of the year. This is the only way in or out now. The grounds are crawling with Death Eaters and Dementors," Neville explains, leading the way with his wand extended, exuding light to guide your path.

"How bad is it with Snape as Headmaster?" Hermione asks. Even in the semi-darkness you notice her gaze flicking to you at the mention of your old potion master and mentor.

"Hardly ever see him. It's the Carrows you have to watch out for."

"The Carrows?"

"Brother and sister. They're in charge of discipline. They like punishment, the Carrows," he says, pointing to the newest gash on his face.

"They did that to you? But why?" Hermione asks.

"Today's Dark Arts lesson had us practicing the Cruciatus Curse, on First Years. I refused. Hogwarts has changed."

You're amazed by the change in Neville, no longer seeing a scared boy but rather a confident man, no longer afraid to stand up for himself or the people around him. It's a bittersweet reverence you feel, conflicted by his words, knowing that this new regime must have forced him to change. You wondered about everyone else, how had they fared?

Just as you approach the end of the tunnel, a large door appears, blocking any further light. Neville turns to you all with a grin on his face, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. "Let's have a bit of fun, shall we?" He turns back to reach for the door and slowly begins pushing it open, moving forward to block you all with his body.

"Hey! Listen up, you lot! Brought you a surprise," he calls out, addressing what you assume to be other students.

"Not more of Aberforth's cooking, I hope. Be a surprise if we could digest it," you hear a voice call back, a voice you instantly recognise as Seamus.

Without replying, Neville steps to one side and reveals you all stood behind him, Harry first with Ron, then you and then Hermione in near single file within the small entrance to the tunnel.

"Blimey!" Seamus calls out, his face amongst a sea of others who all turn to the opening at Seamus' exclamation. The crowd erupts with cheers and hollars, your names called out as people begin to stand, clapping and smiling up at you all. You recognise many of the faces there, Luna, Cho, Dean, Lavender, Cormac, Padma and Parvati, Nigel and more. You look around hopefully to try and spot Ginny but you can't see her familiar face nor the familiar red hair you're so hopeful to see.

You descend down the ladder and are immediately met with a surge of hugs, backslaps and handshakes as the group of your fellow students embrace you, greeting each of you with an excitement you'd not anticipated.

"Get the word out to Remus and the others that Harry and the gang are back," Neville says quietly to Nigel, making you freeze in Padma's arms. You naturally assumed 'the others' meant Order members, would they all be joining you? Would you finally get to see Fred and George again? And if you did, would they even want to see you?

You faked a smile as more people greeted you but you felt as if you were on autopilot, your mind spiralling at the idea of seeing your loved one's again and their reaction. You tried to focus of Bill's words from before, his tone was positive and present tense, hopefully they did still want you. You watched from over the shoulder of a student you didn't recognise to see Nigel scrambling to work an old battered wizard wireless, navigating through the crackles of it warming up, speaking quickly and fighting to keep the large headphones on.

"River, DA calling. Do you read? We have a new weather report: Lightning has struck. I repeat, lightning has struck."

"Okay, okay! Stand down! Let's not kill them before You-Know-Who gets the chance!" Neville says, trying to calm the group who have taken to mainly swarming Harry. The sea of people parts and Ron, stood beside Harry, takes your hand, pulling you in towards him as he does the same to Hermione, keeping you all close together.

"Right then. What's the plan, Harry?" Neville says, crossing his arms as he looks expectantly at Harry.

Harry gazes out over the expectant faces in the room, noting the hollow eyes and broken bodies and the desperate, almost palpable desire for hope amongst the crowd. For a moment he seems lost, remaining mute as he is awed by the sacrifice his friends have made.

"Okay. There's something we need to find, something hidden here in the castle. It could help us defeat You-Know-Who," he says determinedly, though if not a little lost. You share a look with Hermione that looks hesitant and concerned, both of you worried to give the game away.

"What is it?" Neville asks.

"We don't know," Harry replies.

"Where is it?" Dean asks, still looking hopeful.

"Don't know that either."

There's a brief pause that lingers with awkwardness, the sea of hopeful faces falling a little as the anticlimactic information is relayed.

"I realize it's not much to go on," Harry says.

"That's nothing to go on," Seamus says a little defensively, rendering Harry speechless for the moment, faltering under the unexpected backlash.

You spot the Ravenclaw banner in the distance and place your hand on Harry's shoulder, stepping in for him as it seems that he's a little lost for words, trying to navigate what exactly he could and should tell them.

"We think it's something to do with Ravenclaw," you say, side stepping to move in line with Harry at the front. "The thing we're looking for, it would be small, easy to conceal. It'd most likely be valuable and sentimental to Ravenclaw herself," you say, looking around at the sea of people who have turned their attention to you. You fixate on the eagle symbol on the banner, trying to look at the Ravenclaw students in the room, knowing they would be the most likely to have some information.

Your words are met with near silence and lost faces, confusion upon some as they look around at each other clueless.

"Well, there's Rowena Ravenclaw's lost diadem," Luna says from near the back.

"Oh, bloody hell. Here we go," Ron mutters under his breath behind you and you deliver a swift concealed kick to his shin to shut him up.

"The lost diadem of Ravenclaw? Hasn't anyone ever heard of it? It's quite famous," Luna says looking around as people turn in her direction, not taking her seriously.

"Yes, but Luna, it's lost. For centuries now. There's not a person alive today who's seen it," Cho says delicately, not wanting to humiliate Luna in front of the crowd. The other Ravenclaw's nod in agreement.

"Excuse me. But would someone tell me what a bloody diadem is?" Ron says, stepping to the other side of you so he doesn't get kicked again.

"It's a kind of crown. You know, like a tiara," Cho says.

You look towards Hermione and raise your eyebrows, seeing the same understanding in her eyes. It was possible, more than possible.

Just then, there's a distinctive rumble of the door opening and you freeze for a moment before you spot Ginny walking quickly over to the assembled group. She freezes for a moment, staring at Harry before mumbling his name with a smile. Ron gives a wave and says hi, though she pays no notice, still intensely staring at Harry who is staring back just the same.

"Six months she hasn't seen me and it's like I'm Frankie First Year. I mean, I'm only her brother," Ron mumbles between you and Hermione and you can't help but smile at his childish grumbling.

"Got loads of those, though, doesn't she? There's only one Harry," Seamus says, turning to you with a smile and a little wiggle of his eyebrows, making your heart flutter and your stomach tie into knots, having momentarily forgotten about the impending reunion with your boyfriends.

"Shut up, Seamus," Ron says without any real conviction, only to be interrupted by Neville who turns to Ginny with a frown.

"What is it, Ginny?"

"Snape knows. He knows that Harry was spotted in Hogsmeade," she says, still frozen to the spot, looking alarmed. Her gaze breaks away only briefly as she looks to you, then Ron, then Hermione. She eventually runs forward and embraces Harry, then pulls you in, then Ron and then Hermione.

"We need to do something," Harry says, turning to your group.

"How long until the order gets here?" You hear Ron ask Neville, trying to make a plan, knowing it would be foolish to act before the order had assembled.

"Anytime now, they've all been called to arms," he replies, looking back towards you as you nod. Trying to ignore the knot in your stomach and the lump in your throat, you turn to Harry, his gazed fixed to the floor, seemingly trying to think of options.

"Harry we need to overthrow Snape," Hermione says, a dangerous look in her eye.

"But we have to catch him off guard," you say, agreeing with Hermione. "We have to wait for the Order to arrive, if it turns into a fight we need backup. Neville how many of the teachers are on his side?"

"Just the Carrow's I'd say, most others have either been threatened, left or stayed to protect the students," Neville says, moving to stand closer to you all, the intel for the plan.

"We surprise Snape, overthrow and outnumber them, then we search the castle whilst the Order sets up defences," you say, looking directly at Harry so that he'd listen to your reasoning, "once we start this, there's no turning back."

He nods almost immediately, his gaze turning to you as he works through the plan in his head.

"That could work," Ron says encouragingly, moving closer to place a hand on Harry's shoulder.

Suddenly a loud alarm rings out, a whirring sound reminiscent of an old war time air raid alarm. You flinch, as does your little group though the other students seem completely unfazed, each of them dispersing to grab their discarded school robes.

"What's happening?" Harry asks, looking around frantically.

"Snape's called an assembly," Ginny explains, quickly placing her outer robes around her. "We have 10 minutes to get to the Great Hall."

"Harry, what are you doing?" Hermione exclaims as Harry reaches for a robe, quickly placing the cloak around him. So much for your plan.

"You wait here for the Order, I'll sneak in with the crowd, he won't be expecting that," he says, fingers struggling with the ties of the cloak in his haste.

"Hermione it might be the best way," you say carefully, expecting the disbelieving look she gives you. "Snape doesn't know Harry's already in the castle, right Gin?" You ask, turning to Ginny.

"No, the castle would be locked down if he did," Ginny says, agreeing with you.

"I have some Polyjuice potion," you begin to say but Harry stops you.

"No, it has to be me," Harry says, and you nod in understanding, letting him go.

The students pour out, including Harry who is concealed between Ginny and another Gryffindor student you don't recognise, leaving you, Ron and Hermione alone to await the Order's arrival.

The sound of the students marching in formation is an ominous noise, the steady beat of the synchronised footsteps only illuminating the quickened pace of your pounding heart. You took a seat on one of the crates in the back corner of the room, your back to both walls, staring into your lap and wringing your hands as nerves overtake you. The Order, most importantly Fred and George, would be here any minute and you didn't even know where to begin with greeting them.

Would they still want you?

Would they be harsh and dismissive?

Were they mad at you for leaving?

Your stomach flipped with nerves and you tried to hold back the nauseous feeling that kept rising up, your entire being riddled with anxiety. The others seemed to sense your internal distress and left you alone, standing together and talking quietly in the other corner. You pulled out the lebetum from your pocket to keep you occupied and distracted, looking into the frosted glass as you tried thinking of happy memories to see the words form but you were too anxious and conflicted to get a clear thought in your mind, the words remaining hidden. You still weren't certain what the exact use for it was, though it had helped you to retrieve the sword of Gryffindor. Why was the doe significant? You were pretty sure that Dumbledore's patronus was a Phoenix, so surely it couldn't be Albus helping you beyond the grave. The only clue you had was Dobby's cryptic message delivered just before he died, 'my boss was right'. But Dobby was a free elf, Harry had ensured that after the chamber of secrets, planting the sock which freed him from the Malfoys.

Just as you huffed out a breath of disappointment and placed the lebetum back deep into your pocket, a deep rumbling noise broke through the quiet room, alerting you to an intruder. Holding out your wand you waited a few seconds for the figure to appear, visibly shrinking in relief when you noticed Kingsley's signature blue robes coming into view. He was followed close behind by Remus and then Neville. Arthur and Molly stepped in and then Bill and Fleur. It was like you were being tortured on purpose, having to wait and sift through the familiar members until you finally saw the two near identical beings you'd longer for all this time.

They all naturally congregated around Hermione and Ron, greeting them with warmth having seen them first as they entered, your position partially hidden in the back corner. Almost immediately, you see George and Fred looking around worriedly as you aren't with Ron and Hermione. George catches your eye line first and you immediately stood up on shaking legs, feeling breathless and frozen in place, unable to take even a single step out of overwhelming fear that you'd be rejected after all this time.

His face erupts with sheer relief as he nudges Fred hard with his elbow, alerting his twin to your presence. Both twins turned to face you and within one second of turning, they run off from the group and bolt over to you, each pulling at your frozen form as tears erupt, free flowing down your face. George takes hold of you first, muttering unintelligible words as he cradles you tightly. The movement hurts your tender shoulder but you couldn't care less whilst you sob into his chest in relief. Fred speaks too but you can't make it out, both of their voices mixing to form a symphony of background noise. Fred then pulls you into his arms and spins you around, holding all of your weight as you sob and laugh at the same time. He puts you down on the floor and kisses you hard, hands tangling in your hair, no part of you left untouched as George grabs hold of your spare hand, feeling you firmly between them.

"I'm so sorry."

"I'm so sorry baby, I never meant-."

"You're really here."

"I love you."

"I love you."

"Missed you so bloody much."

You all speak at the same time, still clutching onto each other desperately as if one of you would disappear at any moment. George stops speaking and pulls you into a kiss, all his emotions pouring into the kiss, his remorse and regret, longing and desperation from the last months all culminating within him.

"I'm so sorry, I never meant to push you away, I took it out on you and I will never forgive myself," George says with a hiccup, still holding you as he pulls away from the kiss, speaking quickly so that he can be the first one to talk. Your tears have slowed now and from what you can see, both of the twins have their own tear lines too.

"No I'm sorry, I never wanted to leave you, especially not after everything that happened."

"We understand sweetheart," Fred says, stepping back in after giving you and George a moment. He places his hands onto your waist and you stand between both men, exactly where you should always be.

You hear a cough from the corner of the room and turn to see Remus with his hand in front of his mouth, looking sheepish and a little embarrassed having to break up your reunion. You understand, knowing that business needed taking care of first. You walk back to the group and are greeted warmly by Molly who pulls you into a bone crushing hug, followed by Arthur. Fleur then pulls you in and Bill strides over to you, placing his arm much more gently around you, knowing the problem with your shoulder.

"Told you," he whispers in your ear and you smile, gently elbowing him playfully which makes him laugh, your boyfriends paying close attention to your interaction.

"So where do we begin?" Hermione asks, looking towards Kingsley for leadership. He explains his plan but stops when he realises he doesn't quite know why you've returned.

"We need time," you say, standing straight. "We have to search the castle for something and destroy it."

"Then time you'll have," Kingsley says with a nod, ushering you all forward as you walk in formation towards the great hall where Harry would be revealing himself. You're flanked by your boyfriends, neither of them letting you out of their sight nor more than an arms length away as you walk between them.

Kingsley and Remus cast matching stunning spells as soon as you all round the corner to the hall, taking out the two deatheaters who were guarding the entrance to the hall.

You wait in tense silence, trying to listen in to what you believe to be Snape's threatening monologue until you hear a chorus of gasps, alerting you that Harry had made his move. It was time to act.

Next

Taglist:

@missryerye @football1921 @rk-ceres @weasleywheezer @lotusloisstuff @c0comichi @xthatpottahfanx @aigowen @fandom-taylor @weasleyluver85 @mariamkhaled87 @jewelsrules @ledger-kaos @bucksdonkey @clara-carpenter-morgan @jinxxangel13 @darkrozesblog

[euphoric-dramione]

April Dramione fanfic wrap-up *with links*

Amor Vincit Omnia by Twin_Flame_Blues: a cute second-chance healing romance. i’m not usualully very much into these tropes, but i really enjoyed reading this. it was very long, considering that not that much was actually happening, but it was still easy to read and i always wanted to come back to it when i had to put it down.

Rosemary for Remembrance by rubber_soul02: a beatiful healing fic with a found family trope where draco is abit angsty but worthy of redepmtion and hermione is a bit darker because of her trauma that she cannot easily move on from.

Timeless by alexandra_emerson: i liked the idea of this fic, the complexity of time and relationships in that complex time, but the more it went on, the more it just became a bore. it was really repetitive too.

A Season For Setting Fires by mighbewriting: i feel like this fic was the perfect lenght - i didn’t get bored of it and it kept my attention throughout the whole story. i liked the idea very much, the writing was brilliant and the plot really hooked me. i feel like for a wartime fic it was a bit too sappy but i still really enjoyed it. the ending, i feel, was sort of the weakest poitn, otherwise i would’ve given this fic the highest grade.

Soft As It Began by rubber_soul02: i definitely did not read this fic because of the mystery aspect, but i loved that it was actually entertaining and i really wanted to find out what happened to harry. the chemistry between our ship was also really good.

Lumos & Lattes by magicalmolly: i liked this fic and was hooked on from the beginning, but i think it didn’t know what genre it wanted to be: a fluffy coffee shop au, a smutty fic, a healing and redemption fic, a dark murder fic, an angsty fic, a fluffy fic? by the end, i still don’t know. i don’t think the author is entirely sure either.

Love & Other Historical Accidents by PacificRimbaud: i wasn’t impressed by this. found it really dull and boring and repetitive. not that i’m a big fan of regency, but i thought i was a fan of time travel. maybe i’m not?

Break Her by BareWithMeHoney: dark and twisted, ust how i love it, alhtough very much out of character and many of the decisions h and d made really did not make sense. i also feel like thif fic explained more and showed little, but i still really enjoyed it.

Things We Say In The Dark by rubber_soul02: this was such a beautiful academic fic, although i wouldn’t say it was dark acdemia, but it definitely had academic vibes. i loved the characterization of draco and hermione, as well as their interactions and relationship. also, the side pairing of theo and harry hit me hard in the best way possible.

Ten out of Ten by morriganmercy: a fun marriage law smutty fic that i read in one sitting.

On The Nature Of Daylight by ikorous: i ate this fic up in 20 hours because i was obsessed with it. this type of smut and toxic draco was all i ever needed. although i have to admit this fic is not the best written and there are plot holes, but the plot just absolutely doesn’t matter here. this is the type of bad boy x good girl dynamic i’m talking about. the ending though, i have to say, was not very satisfactory, but i also don’t see any other way this could’ve ended.

Things We're All Too Young To Know by eevans: the first half of this fic was absolutely brilliant, but right after draco found out that hermione was preteding to be daphne, it seems like the whole ansgt and chemistry simply evaporated and i was left with nothing. overall, a quite fun fic, although i found the second hafl to be boring.

ONE-SHOTS:

Paris by Twin_Flame_Blues

A Bit of a Mess by slytherindiaries

Amortentia by LadyMidnight87

DNFs:

The Binding by Curly_Kay

Hot for Teacher by MotherofBulls

[arliedraws]

I find it many things weird in Harry Potter, in general the plot holes are everywhere and things when you think about them just don't make much sense, even in storytelling perspective, and consistency.

One thing that I find appalling is how Sirius didn't notice the scarring on Harry's hand, from Umbridges lines. It's established canonically they're lasting scars. Sirius already had to watch from the literal shadows how Harry was enrolled in that tournament, already fearing for his godsons life bc he suspected Voldemort was involved. How couldn't any responsible guardian, not notice Harry was physically abused, again, under Dumbledores nose, but away from Sirius direct influence to be able to do anything. Then on top of that, Snape is gonna to do the occlumensy lessons, and while Sirius knew that was necessary, I mean, he was outraged when he heared Snape stopped it, but ok, he let it all slide? If I were Sirius I would have pulled Harry out myself for that year, enough is enough. If Dumbledores presence didn't prevent Harry's suffering, in fact his choices add to Harry's real physical abuse (Dursleys, certain teachers). Sirius could educate Harry theoretical until Umbridge was gone. Harrry was save enough in Grimmauld during christmas and the summer so why not.

Its like those I mustn't tell lies scars only are there when needed and then forgotten during times of the plot supporting characters might have reacted to them, like Sirius or whomever. Sirius is a genius wizard but can't turn into an unassuming anonymous figure to go outside, like Hermione did to Ron's features with just her wand and spells in b7, negating need for polyjuice, it's his dog form or permanent housearrest (which leads to disintegration of his mind /character and then he dies)

At some point I'm really suspect this is character driven anymore and just JKs incompetence to consistently implement Sirius's character. Like you already said somewhere here, he is a miracle character. Too clever, too bright, too loyal to continue in the story JK wanted to tell like you said somewhere before. I have a feeling JK didn't know what to do with Sirius, denigrated him and his character and then killed him off. His best role at the end to fulfill is to reinforce Harry's suffering and loneliness it seems, while Sirius actually was the main hope of Harry in the heart of the series. So meaningless!

While I love character metas, I think JK is a meanspirited woman, I always had that notion bc she reacted in some ways, even before the whole modern eh, shenanigans. And that meanness, pettiness and inconclusive attitude reflect in hps worldbuilding.

I agree with several points here!

If Sirius had been in a better mental space, I agree that he would have noticed the scars from the blood quill. However, we could also interpret this as Sirius being exceptionally depressed. Now, I’m not defending JKR here, but one thing we do have to remember is that Sirius was a convicted murderer and Harry’s legal guardians were the Dursleys. Sirius literally has no say in what Harry does. Sirius is not a person with rights—in the eyes of the law, he is due to have his soul sucked out. Anytime Sirius makes a decision on Harry’s behalf, it’s a courtesy thing, not a legal guardian thing. Unfortunately. It’s gross to say, but legally, Molly has the same rights as Sirius to tell Harry what to do—which is, gross.

Also, sure, Sirius could go out of number 12 in disguise but he’s in hiding because he knows he can’t risk his own safety for Harry’s sake. Dumbledore has made it very clear that Sirius is not to leave, and frankly, by the way Harry believed he had to rescue Sirius, this was actually probably the right call. Sirius is the most important person to Harry (and likewise), and if Sirius were taken captive by either the Ministry or Voldemort, Harry would done something unwise (which…he did). I’m not arguing that this is how it should have gone down, but theoretically (if you ignore the importance of mental health and stability lol), this should have been the right call.

But the point is, Voldemort’s ability to manipulate people and destroy friendships is what killed Sirius. Voldemort manipulated Dumbledore who thought he was smarter than Voldemort; Dumbledore prioritized keeping Harry alive but sacrificed Sirius in the end. I do think JKR punishes Sirius for being smart and attractive (lol), calling him rash when he’s really…not, but I think it’s important to recognize that even the smartest, most caring people can make mistakes and overlook the pain of the people they love most.

I think Sirius is partially in denial about some of Harry’s struggles. As a man of action, Sirius’s inclination is to fix things, and when he cannot fix in the way he believes is necessary, he shuts down. He comes alive at the end of OotP when he is able to help in the way he wants—and then JKR kills him for it lol.

Anyway, just some thoughts. I don’t actually think Sirius was behaving out-of-character, but I think JKR was unmerciful in putting this fictional character into situations that brought out the worst in him because it served the plot. Just my two cents though!

[lupuslikethewolf]

marauders!au where the war never happened and they all got to go on and live happy lives :) its set years later, when Harry, Ron, Neville, Luna and Hermione are going into their first year.

I haven’t come up with an actual plot yet :/ but this is the setting, and they are all around their early-to-mid-thirties at this point. it's likely just domestic fluff and slice-of-life type shit, with Harry still getting into impossible amounts of fuckery whilst stressing at least 10 different adults (as he should tbh)

i can't decide whether this is set in the 90s or in the modern!era so i left it ambiguous

Barty Crouch Jr, now Professor Barty (just Barty, Crouch is my father), teaches DADA and his fiancé, Evan Rosier, is a Magizoologist who travels during the school year, comes back home for the holidays and weekends to spend with Barty, either on Hogwarts grounds or at their own home. Barty has a close friendship with McGonagall, who is Headmistress, and Poppy (who are married, but no one figured it out).

Dorcas and Marlene play International-Level Quidditch: Dorcas for England, and Marlene for Wales or Ireland (undecided). Everyone thinks they hate each other from the way they treat each other during games. They played for the Holyhead Harpies until they got recruited, and their wedding was basically the biggest, most dramatic and over-the-top graduation party Hogwarts had ever seen, hosted in the Potter Manor. everyone was hungover for days afterwards

Lily and Snape are best-friends-turned-rivals, who achieved a Mastery in Potions at the same time, and are both the youngest people to ever do so. Sev specialises in theoretical potions, and Lily specialises in experimental work, altering old potions and creating new ones. She commandeered the entire basement for her own potions lab, and Remus helps her research in his spare time.

Pandora started publishing with Xenophillius (the definition of gender-fuckery; no-one knows how they identify, not even Xeno), and they publish the most outlandish work they can, alongside Pandora’s books!! They also run Xeno's Quibbler and a couple other independent newspapers. They live out in the countryside w/ Luna. Barty & Evan are their only walking-distance neighbours, but they floo to their friends houses semi-regularly

MaryLily and StarChaser are co-parenting Harry, and being godparents/family friends of Draco, Blaise Zabini, Ron, Neville and Luna. When Harry is at pre-school, he makes friends with Hermione, and the four of them introduce Dr and Dr Granger to the magical world over the years, instead of the two month crash-course Hogwarts gives

Mary is an artist, and since she was raised half-blood, absolutely adores the technique and process of muggle painting, later enchanting it to move and learn and talk. She doesn't own anything that isn't stained with paint, bleach or hair dye. She is famous for her work, in Magical and Muggle circles, but is almost completely anonymous, and they only know what she looks like because of a group portrait she painted

Regulus is an independent researcher of old Pagan traditions and 'Muggle' magic, how different solstices and days (like All Hallows Eve) affect the Magical community, etc. He visits Barty at Hogwarts with Harry every few weeks, and later with Hermione as well, so they grew up learning about the secrets at Hogwarts, in the library, and with the teachers. Also friendly house rivalry, and the adults completely split on which houses they will go into at Hogwarts. Evan started a betting pool.

James and Sirius are the wizarding private investigators. They work everywhere, for everyone (no matter what. they don't need to charge more than what people can afford), and love it. James absolutely adores the 'Sherlock Holmes' vibes, but they are both Sherlock Holmes b/c they are simply too baddass not to be!

Remus opened a bookstore-cafe, and him and Sirius live in the flat above it. It’s really popular and became the place for students and young queer people. The bookstore stocks everything from really popular and really unknown books and authors of every genre. The regulars also notice all these really famous but really mysterious friends of Remus who come-and-go (artist!mary, author!pandora, athletes!dorlene, etc). And then, of course, is the “private” investigator boyfriend, who couldn’t be less subtle at anything if he tried.

Alice is still an Auror, and the Best of the Best, but she is so fucking fed up of the politics, DMLE, and Ministry in general. She is starting a revolution/reformation from the inside- and if that doesn’t work, quit her job and do the same thing from the outside! Frank ended up in law and becoming a Lawyer, and is glad he did, because it might be the only thing that will keep his partner out of jail if she decides to commit treason. They love Neville to bits, and would do anything for him!! They built a whole-ass greenhouse when he discovered his talent.

Peter Pettigrew works part-time with Remus at his place, but is currently training with Gringotts/other cursebreakers to become a professional cursebreaker! it is taking a long ass time with a lot of testing and work to put in, but Peter finds it interesting and it meant that he always has more stories to tell the kids when he sees them, which is a bonus because children are hard to entertain.

[hollowed-theory-hall]

Justice for Barty Crouch Jr: Part 1/2

(Part 2)

This is a bit of a weird theory, and I'll confess, some of the evidence is not all that conclusive. But I didn't see anyone mention anything about this anywhere else...

When I reread the books recently, I noticed I really liked Mad-Eye Moody in Goblet of Fire. Moody in the fourth book is actually one of my favorite characters, he makes the top 10. But then I reached Order of the Phoenix and realized (again) that I hate Moody's guts.

The only conclusion I could draw was that I really liked Barty Crouch Jr. because, Moody in book 4, wasn't really Moody. So, I went back to Goblet of Fire to try and find out who Barty is, how his behavior as Moody, differed from the real deal in the later books, and why I liked him when I didn't like the real Moody.

And let's just say, I came to some interesting conclusions...

This post ended up being pretty long, so I've divided it up into two. But my thesis is:

Barty was a Death eater, but he didn't torture the Longbottoms.

He didn't want Harry to be hurt during the Tornoment and actually cared about him.

And I can prove it!

Reasons for Doubt

When reviewing all the scenes of Barty Jr, it was made clear pretty quickly that Barty wasn't really trying to fool anyone. Actually, he seemed to be actively sabotaging himself.

“Maybe someone’s hoping Potter is going to die for it,” said Moody, with the merest trace of a growl. An extremely tense silence followed these words. Ludo Bagman, who was looking very anxious indeed, bounced nervously up and down on his feet and said, “Moody, old man ... what a thing to say!” “We all know Professor Moody considers the morning wasted if he hasn’t discovered six plots to murder him before lunchtime,” said Karkaroff loudly. “Apparently he is now teaching his students to fear assassination too. An odd quality in a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Dumbledore, but no doubt you had your reasons.”

(Goblet of Fire, page 279)

From the very beginning, Barty is outright telling everyone what happened. And exactly how:

“Because they hoodwinked a very powerful magical object!” said Moody. “It would have needed an exceptionally strong Confundus Charm to bamboozle that goblet into forgetting that only three schools compete in the tournament. ... I’m guessing they submitted Potter’s name under a fourth school, to make sure he was the only one in his category. ...” “You seem to have given this a great deal of thought, Moody,” said Karkaroff coldly, “and a very ingenious theory it is — though of course, I heard you recently got it into your head that one of your birthday presents contained a cunningly disguised basilisk egg, and smashed it to pieces before realizing it was a carriage clock. So you’ll understand if we don’t take you entirely seriously. ...”

(Goblet of Fire, pages 279-280)

He goes as far as to explain how he got Harry into the tournament. To the point even Karkaroff thinks it's strange Moody would bother putting so much thought into it. And he's right, it is super strange.

Barty shouldn't be explaining that to the people he is supposedly trying to deceive. It's so incredibly revealing and counterproductive. And it's not that Barty is stupid, he shows he is both intelligent and competent to a degree it's clear that if he really wanted to not be discovered he wouldn't be (he transfigured his father's corpse to a bone and buried it in the forest when he didn't wish to be found out, clearly, he can get away with murder when he wants to). So why all of this? Why try so hard to tell them exactly what's going on? Why is he showing his hand?

It won't be out of character for Moody to not mention all of it. He could not go into as much detail easily. But, he chooses to go into detail about the very method he used to get Harry chosen for the tournament. Like he's trying to get himself caught.

“So . . . whoever conjured the Dark Mark . . .” said Hermione slowly, “were they doing it to show support for the Death Eaters, or to scare them away?” “Your guess is as good as ours, Hermione,” said Mr. Weasley. “But I’ll tell you this . . . it was only the Death Eaters who ever knew how to conjure it. I’d be very surprised if the person who did it hadn’t been a Death Eater once, even if they’re not now. . . .

(Goblet of Fire, page 143)

This is an earlier note from Hermione, and I agree with her 100%. The goal of Barty when casting the Dark Mark isn't clear. We know he is a marked Death Eater, but so are Regulus and Snape. We know not all Death Eaters agreed with everything they did, and some of them had regrets. And it's kind of interesting this idea that Barty cast the Dark Mark to scare the attackers off was planted this early in the book.

“What — what are you doing?” said Professor McGonagall, her eyes following the bouncing ferret’s progress through the air. “Teaching,” said Moody. “Teach — Moody, is that a student?” shrieked Professor McGonagall, the books spilling out of her arms. “Yep,” said Moody.

(Goblet of Fire, page 206)

I wanted to add this scene just because of the "yep" as his response to McGonagall, but this entire conversation, actually is noteworthy. Why? Well, the mannerism.

Moody whom we meet in book 5 and onwards doesn't speak or act like this. The mannerisms and speech patterns we see in this conversation are 100% Barty Crouch Jr. And this isn't the only scene in which his own mannerisms peek through because he isn't putting much effort into his act.

Here are some examples of how Moody talks in book 5, for comparison:

“Well, congratulations,” said Moody, still glaring at Ron with his normal eye, “authority figures always attract trouble, but I suppose Dumbledore thinks you can withstand most major jinxes or he wouldn’t have appointed you. . . .”

(Order of the Pheonix, page 169)

“Yeah, well,” said Moody, “there’s something funny about the Potter kid, we all know that.” “Dumbledore seemed worried about Harry when I spoke to him this morning,” whispered Mrs. Weasley. “ ’Course he’s worried,” growled Moody. “The boy’s seeing things from inside You-Know-Who’s snake. . . . Obviously, Potter doesn’t realize what that means, but if You-Know-Who’s possessing him —”

(Order of the Pheonix, page 491)

He's more gruff, more blunt, more paranoid. He isn't as gentle with Harry and Ron as Barty was (I'll showcase some of these moments later). And he shows full faith in Dumbledore's decisions. Something, Barty doesn't do even when pretending to be Moody.

Some Background

I want to talk about Barty's trial and Azkaban sentence for a bit, along with his relationship with his father as it explains a lot about him as a character...

and a boy in his late teens, who looked nothing short of petrified. He was shivering, his straw-colored hair all over his face, his freckled skin milk-white. The wispy little witch beside Crouch began to rock backward and forward in her seat, whimpering into her handkerchief. Crouch stood up. He looked down upon the four in front of him, and there was pure hatred in his face. “You have been brought here before the Council of Magical Law,” he said clearly, “so that we may pass judgment on you, for a crime so heinous —” “Father,” said the boy with the straw-colored hair. “Father . . . please . . .” “— that we have rarely heard the like of it within this court,” said Crouch, speaking more loudly, drowning out his son’s voice. “We have heard the evidence against you. The four of you stand accused of capturing an Auror — Frank Longbottom — and subjecting him to the Cruciatus Curse, believing him to have knowledge of the present whereabouts of your exiled master, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named —” “Father, I didn’t!” shrieked the boy in chains below. “I didn’t, I swear it, Father, don’t send me back to the dementors —”

(Goblet of Fire, page 594)

Does this look like a hardened Death Eater who was happy to torture the Longbottoms and proud to serve his lord?

No, this is a terrified nineteen-year-old kid who was caught in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong people.

Barty continues and calls:

“Mother!” screamed the boy below, and the wispy little witch beside Crouch began to sob, rocking backward and forward. “Mother, stop him, Mother, I didn’t do it, it wasn’t me!”

...

“No! Mother, no! I didn’t do it, I didn’t do it, I didn’t know! Don’t send me there, don’t let him!”

(Goblet of Fire, page 595)

Barty calls this as Bellatrix and the Lestranges are completely calm, taking credit for torturing the Longbottoms. Shouting at Crouch Sr, that Voldemort would return. Barty isn't doing that, he isn't the fanatic Death Eaters, he's a scared boy:

But the boy was trying to fight off the dementors, even though Harry could see their cold, draining power starting to affect him. The crowd was jeering, some of them on their feet, as the woman swept out of the dungeon, and the boy continued to struggle. “I’m your son!” he screamed up at Crouch. “I’m your son!” “You are no son of mine!” bellowed Mr. Crouch, his eyes bulging suddenly. “I have no son!” The wispy witch beside him gave a great gasp and slumped in her seat. She had fainted. Crouch appeared not to have noticed. “Take them away!” Crouch roared at the dementors, spit flying from his mouth. “Take them away, and may they rot there!” “Father! Father, I wasn’t involved! No! No! Father, please!”

(Goblet of Fire, page 596)

Barty keeps swearing he wasn't involved and that he didn't do it. that it wasn't him. Compared to how calm the three Lestranges are — it's clear something's up.

I think Barty is telling the truth here. I think he really didn't torture the Longbottoms.

Barty was still acting as a scared boy, just like in his trial, even in front of only dementors and Death Eaters, when there was no need to act. He is described by Sirius when he arrived in Azkaban:

I saw the dementors bringing him in, watched them through the bars in my cell door. He can’t have been more than nineteen. They took him into a cell near mine. He was screaming for his mother by nightfall. He went quiet after a few days, though . . . they all went quiet in the end . . . except when they shrieked in their sleep. . . .

(Goblet of Fire, page 528)

Barty was young and scared and kept to the same behavior even with no audience to convince — which means it wasn't a lie. It wasn't an act. He really didn't do it.

Sirius talks a little bit about Braty's childhood, his relationship with Crouch Sr and the events leading up to his trial:

“Crouch’s own son was caught with a group of Death Eaters who’d managed to talk their way out of Azkaban. Apparently they were trying to find Voldemort and return him to power.”

...

“Nasty little shock for old Barty, I’d imagine. Should have spent a bit more time at home with his family, shouldn’t he? Ought to have left the office early once in a while . . . gotten to know his own son.” He began to wolf down large pieces of bread. “Was his son a Death Eater?” said Harry. “No idea,” said Sirius, still stuffing down bread. “I was in Azkaban myself when he was brought in. This is mostly stuff I’ve found out since I got out. The boy was definitely caught in the company of people I’d bet my life were Death Eaters — but he might have been in the wrong place at the wrong time, just like the house-elf.”

...

“...Crouch’s fatherly affection stretched just far enough to give his son a trial, and by all accounts, it wasn’t much more than an excuse for Crouch to show how much he hated the boy . . . then he sent him straight to Azkaban.”

(Goblet of Fire, page 528)

Barty, at the time of his trial and sentence, wasn't even for sure a Death Eater. He wasn't actually caught doing anything, he was caught with Death Eaters who escaped an Azkaban sentence, which means Death Eaters other than the Lestranges. This means he wasn't even caught on the scene of the Longbottoms torture, but somewhere else and unrelated. It proves even more that Barty was innocent regarding the torture of Frank and Alice.

We know he was a Death Eater because he could cast the Dark Mark. But, I think he wasn't involved in torturing the Longbottoms or anyone, for that matter. I don't think he had it in him before Azkaban and years of torment by his father.

The other thing of note is Crouch's treatment of his son. He was an absent father, caring more for his ministry position than his family. And we see later in GoF that Barty despises his father. I think he disliked him even before being kept under the imperious curse for years. I think that's what pushed Barty to become a Death Eater, it was something to spite his father. To create a distance between them.

His murder of his father during GoF is probably the only murder he wanted a part of. Actually, his father is the only person we know he killed. He didn't get the chance to kill the real Moody, and he never killed anyone else.

Once the boy [Barty Jr] had died, people started feeling a bit more sympathetic toward the son and started asking how a nice young lad from a good family had gone so badly astray. The conclusion was that his father never cared much for him

(Goblet of Fire, page 529)

More from Sirius that strengthens my former point. Barty joined the Death Eaters, in large to go against his father.

This vendetta against his father is the main reason I believe Barty chooses this plan to aid Voldemort. Well, there are some other reasons, but using the tournament is a good way for him to mess with his father's reputation. That same reputation that was more important to him than his own son.

As a Teacher and Mentor

A lot of fans like to say Remus Lupin was the best DADA teacher Harry had, I'd actually argue it was Moody (aka Barty). I'm saying that because Barty-as-Moody was the one who taught Harry many of the techniques and approaches he keeps going back to in the books.

The constant vigilance that saves him multiple times is from Barty, not the real Moody.

His resistance to the imperious curse.

When Harry quotes Moody in his head under certain situations for the advice he was given, it's not advice from the real Moody but from Barty:

He raised the cup to his lips and then, just as suddenly, lowered it. One of the horrible painted kittens behind Umbridge had great round blue eyes just like Mad-Eye Moody’s magical one, and it had just occurred to Harry what Mad-Eye would say if he ever heard that Harry had drunk anything offered by a known enemy

(Order of the Phoenix, page 630)

This above quote is based on Barty's advice in GoF, not the real Moody.

Barty made Harry think of becoming an auror. He was the one who convinced him he could become one:

“You ever thought of a career as an Auror, Potter?” “No,” said Harry, taken aback. “You want to consider it,” said Moody, nodding and looking at Harry thoughtfully. “Yes, indeed . . . and incidentally . . . I’m guessing you weren’t just taking that egg for a walk tonight?” “Er — no,” said Harry, grinning. “I’ve been working out the clue.” Moody winked at him, his magical eye going haywire again. “Nothing like a nighttime stroll to give you ideas, Potter. . . . See you in the morning. . . .”

(Goblet of Fire, pages 477-478)

Barty did more for Harry's self-esteem than any other teacher.

“Now, that’s more like it!” growled Moody’s voice, and suddenly, Harry felt the empty, echoing feeling in his head disappear. He remembered exactly what was happening, and the pain in his knees seemed to double. “Look at that, you lot ... Potter fought! He fought it, and he damn near beat it! We’ll try that again, Potter, and the rest of you, pay attention — watch his eyes, that’s where you see it — very good, Potter, very good indeed! They’ll have trouble controlling you!”

(Goblet of Fire, page 232)

In the above scene, Barty is delighted by Harry's resistance of the imperious. He is so proud and fond. I already mentioned and will continue showing how Barty did very little acting when he pretended to be Moody, as such, I don't think he's pretending here either. I think he actually is delighted.

And, I mean, think about it, why would a servant loyal to Voldemort teach Harry Potter how to resist the imperius? Why would he keep practicing with him throughout the year to make sure he was good at it? Why make sure Harry knows people would want to control him and he should make it hard for them?

The only conclusion I can come to is that he is trying to help Harry from a limited position. Why and How will be discussed later.

Neville was standing alone, halfway up the passage, staring at the stone wall opposite him with the same horrified, wide-eyed look he had worn when Moody had demonstrated the Cruciatus Curse. “Neville?” Hermione said gently. “Neville, what — ?” But an odd clunking noise sounded behind them, and they turned to see Professor Moody limping toward them. All four of them fell silent, watching him apprehensively, but when he spoke, it was in a much lower and gentler growl than they had yet heard. “It’s all right, sonny,” he said to Neville. “Why don’t you come up to my office? Come on . . . we can have a cup of tea. ...” Neville looked even more frightened at the prospect of tea with Moody. He neither moved nor spoke. Moody turned his magical eye upon Harry. “You all right, are you, Potter?” “Yes,” said Harry, almost defiantly. Moody’s blue eye quivered slightly in its socket as it surveyed Harry. Then he said, “You’ve got to know. It seems harsh, maybe, but you’ve got to know. No point pretending ... well ... come on, Longbottom, I’ve got some books that might interest you.”

(Goblet of Fire, page 219)

And he wasn't only the best DADA teacher for Harry, he was the best teacher for Neville too. He actually helped the son of the Longbottoms he was sent to Azkaban for torturing.

Just, he is the only adult attempting to build up Neville's confidence in himself and his abilities. He encourages Neville's love of Herbology and doesn't ridicule him like most other adults in Neville's life.

Also in the above quote, he clearly wants to tell Harry more. "but you’ve got to know", he says. He is trying to prepare Harry for what's to come. Why would he do that if he wants him dead?

As a Defender of Harry

To continue off Barty actually steps up to defend Harry a lot throughout the book. Even at times, he won't necessarily have to. I mean, the real Moody was never this protective of Harry. Sure, he kept him safe, but he didn't really care for Harry's feelings and self-esteem. Barty did.

“Yeah, that’s Harry Potter,” said a growling voice from behind them. Professor Karkaroff spun around. Mad-Eye Moody was standing there, leaning heavily on his staff, his magical eye glaring unblinkingly at the Durmstrang headmaster. The color drained from Karkaroff’s face as Harry watched. A terrible look of mingled fury and fear came over him

(Goblet of Fire, page 258)

He's scaring Karkaroff and the Durmstrang students away from Harry. The moment before this quote had the Durmstrang students and Karkaroff noticing Harry for the first time as they were leaving the Great Hall on the day they arrived at Hogwarts. They all freeze and stare at Harry, knowing his story and probably about to ask him questions, it's not like Karkaroff would've done anything in the Great Hall. But Moody (Barty) steps in to fend off Harry's discomfort! Hes not even in actual physical danger! Just discomfort!

Harry hesitated. He’d been afraid of this — but he hadn’t told Cedric, and he certainly wasn’t going to tell Moody, that Hagrid had broken the rules. “It’s all right,” said Moody, sitting down and stretching out his wooden leg with a groan. “Cheating’s a traditional part of the Tri-wizard Tournament and always has been.” “I didn’t cheat,” said Harry sharply. “It was — a sort of accident that I found out.” Moody grinned. “I wasn’t accusing you, laddie. I’ve been telling Dumbledore from the start, he can be as high-minded as he likes, but you can bet old Karkaroff and Maxime won’t be. They’ll have told their champions everything they can. They want to win. They want to beat Dumbledore. They’d like to prove he’s only human.”

(Goblet of Fire, pages 343-344)

Moody is glad Harry knows about the dragons, and that could be explained by wanting him to win so he could get to the graveyard (that plan had so many problems in it that I'll get to later) but that isn't the only thing he reveals here. He calls out Dumbledore and his attitude. He shows his dislike towards Dumbledore and his moral flexibility regarding cheating - two things the real Moody will never say. And he would definitely not phrase them like this. This whole conversation — that's all Barty.

Barty, who is actually encouraging Harry and belittling Dumbledore.

That sentence about proving Dumbledore's human, I think Barty shares that feeling. He agrees with the other headmasters on that. Even if he hates Karkaroff's guts.

Because he actually does hate all the Death Eaters that got away genuinely, but not for the same reasons as, let's say, Bellatrix. Bellatrix dislikes them for their lack of loyalty to their lord; Barty hates them out of envy.

Barty was sent to Azkaban for his mark even if he never tortured or killed anyone. And these other Death Eaters, ones he might know killed or tortured, got out scott-free. He was fought alongside them and still sent to the dementors instead of being let go. And he is bitter.

Also, important to remember, that a year in Azkaban and then twelve years under the Imperius curse didn't leave him unscathed. He is not mentally or emotionally well or anything close to it when we meet him in the books.

“Well, I’m not going to tell you,” said Moody gruffly. “I don’t show favoritism, me. I’m just going to give you some good, general advice. And the first bit is — play to your strengths.” “I haven’t got any,” said Harry, before he could stop himself. “Excuse me,” growled Moody, “you’ve got strengths if I say you’ve got them. Think now. What are you best at?”

(Goblet of Fire, page 344)

I love this scene. Like, this is the first ever time an adult with authority, a teacher, tells Harry how great he is. I talked about the fact Harry is clever and magically powerful but has really low self-esteem. And Barty actually argues with him. Bart (as Moody) makes him believe he could become something. That he has things he is good at.

One of this book's antagonists is the first person to tell Harry he has strengths. That's just all levels of messed up.

It shows Barty Crouch Jr actually does more for Harry's emotional well-being than any other professor he had. More than McGonagall, more than Lupin. Actually, the only adult who tries to help Harry with more care than Barty, is Sirius Black, Harry's godfather. It's just insane that Barty, a Death Eater, actually understood Harry and went out of his way to help with his insecurities and make him comfortable more than Molly Weasley did.

Now, let's talk about the Farret Incident because it's interesting too. both regarding his defense of Harry and his hatred of the Death Eaters that got away.

“I don’t think so!” roared Moody, pointing his wand at the ferret again — it flew ten feet into the air, fell with a smack to the floor, and then bounced upward once more. “I don’t like people who attack when their opponent’s back’s turned,” growled Moody as the ferret bounced higher and higher, squealing in pain. “Stinking, cowardly, scummy thing to do. ...”

(Goblet of Fire, page 205)

Barty steps in to defend Harry because he does it a lot. It's why I placed this moment in this section. One would expect someone who wants Harry to die to not mind if he was cursed a bit, it's not like Draco was about to kill him, but no, he defends him even when no one sees him there.

But specifically in this incident, I want to mention how personal he gets about this. Barty's disdain towards the Death Eaters that escaped Azkaban is very real and very dangerous to Draco. He's furious they didn't need to spend a year in hell on earth only to then be enslaved by a curse for 12 years by their father who kept them like a dirty secret in the basement.

As I mentioned above, I don't think Barty is mentally sound, but I think he genuinely cares about Harry and didn't torture the Longbottoms.

In the next post, I go through the final scene of Barty in the book, and explain the whole plan Barty had.

Part 2 >>

[mayyourshipsbewithyou]

I saw Cursed Child in London this summer without knowing what to expect (never read the script). I fucking loved it. I traveled to Munich, Paris, Euro Disney, Stratford-upon-Avon and London over the course of a month. I saw old friends and spent time with family. Cursed Child was hands-down the highlight of the whole trip. Certainly the thing that stuck with me the longest. Did the plot make sense? No. Did that subtract from my experience even a little bit? Absolutely not.

Harry Potter was never the reason I breathed like it was for some people. It wasn’t even my main fandom. But I grew up with it. I loved it. Deathly Hallows Part II came out the year I graduated high school. Afterwards, I moved on without much difficulty. Thought about it from time to time because nothing epitomized my childhood and growing up like Harry Potter. And then the opportunity arose to see Cursed Child and I took it. Insisted upon it to my family. One of the best things I ever did.

Because sometime in my 20s I realized I was gay. And as I now know, that’s something I have in common with Albus Potter. Harry Potter’s son, my childhood hero’s son, was gay. As far as me and my 65 year old father are concerned, Albus and Scorpius are as canon as Ron and Hermione. And that matters. It’s more than LGBT representation in Harry Potter. The fact that Harry’s own son is in love with Draco’s son matters so fucking much. It feels good thematically and it feels good for me personally. When it comes to that show, Delfini being Voldemort’s daughter doesn’t matter. A cliche time travel plot doesn’t matter. Voldemort/Bellatrix doesn’t matter. Albus and Scorpius matter. Their love story is the only thing that matters.

I’m sad that even post-covid audiences wanted more from them. Could they have kissed? Sure. Would i have wanted it? Of course, but they also didn’t need to. What I was already given was enough. More than enough. More than I ever thought to ask for or dare to hope for. I’m happy for Albus. So happy. Happy in a way that I wish I could be happy for myself. Not just for having a boyfriend but a best friend. I have been lonely in a way that Albus and Scorpius never had to be. And that makes me happy…and maybe a little bit sad.

Anyway, all this to say, I’ve spent the 5 weeks since I’ve been home losing myself in Scorbus fan fiction. I even wake up early so I can read before work. So if any of my fellow shippers have any recommendations, I would be very grateful.

(Yes, this long emotional post is just an elaborate way to ask for fic recs. Life’s too short for reading mediocre fan fiction. 😉)

[sitp-recs]

Hello! Could you please rec some soft eighth year fics? I recently read To be a bit of warmth (for you) and i really need some hurt/comfort fics like that, that don't have a lot of plot. Thank you for your time and help!

Hi there, sure! I think you will enjoy these, they’re my favourite 8th year comfort food:

Thermodynamic Equilibrium by DorthyAnn (T, 5k)

Harry's far too hot. Draco's always cold. And somehow against all odds, together they create a perfect equilibrium.

Good Company by Greenflares (T, 8k)

With Hermione and Ron always together, Harry's return to Hogwarts to complete his education isn't exactly fun. Somehow, it's his unlikely friendship with Malfoy that keeps him sane.

What Country, Friends, Is This? by khalulu (M, 8k)

When Harry and Draco are paired up for a nebulous “capstone project” in 8th year, Draco suggests they use it as an opportunity to take a free Grand Tour of Europe. Harry isn’t interested in being grand, and they soon veer off the beaten path. The journey to find what (and who) you really want can lead to unexpected places.

Said and Unsaid (or, The Value of Knowing When to Stop Talking) by bryoneybrynn (T, 15k)

When the Interrogator asked if he had anything to say on his own behalf, Draco shook his head, his lips pressed tight in a thin line. There was nothing to say that wouldn’t sound like an excuse.

Find The Balance by lauren3210 and Obliviate_Amores (M, 15k)

After Harry gives Draco his wand and goes back to using his own, they both start having trouble making them work. Finding out why is a lot simpler than fixing the problem.

Nice Things by aideomai (M, 22k)

The first thing that happened was Theodore Nott came back from France.

On Our Way by dynamic (E, 30k)

Draco is trying to spend the summer keeping his head down, but a repair project and a certain snowy owl have other plans for him.

All Things Go by iota (E, 33k)

Draco’s back at Hogwarts by court order. Harry’s back for no particular reason at all. Some things change, some stay the same. Neither expects to spend eighth-year living in close quarters, playing rugby (poorly), staying up late, sneaking around, and finally figuring it all out.

Like Lightning at Your Fingertips by potterwatch (T, 43k)

The problem with living with another insomniac is, eventually, they find out you’re one, too. When Harry and Draco return for their eighth year, they think they’ll see very little of each other. Then McGonagall assigns them to room together. And the castle starts breaking. And there’s that thing with Potter’s magic.

The Promise of Summer by Omi_Ohmy (M, 66k)

How was Harry supposed to know that coming back for eighth year would be so confusing? Everything is the same, and yet not the same. And nowhere is this more obvious than with Draco Malfoy. Harry finds himself once more watching and following Malfoy, trying to work him out. When they are drawn together to heal the castle, Harry doesn’t just find Malfoy - he also finds himself.

[pebblysand]

hello! you may find the entire playlist on spotify here. below is some more information on my song choices.

Castle by Eminem: very anticlimactic but i will only really be able to explain this one after the last chapter comes out. so, come back in a bit ^^.

Things We Lost In The Fire by Bastille: it's funny, i'm a massive bastille fan but it didn't really hit me how castles that song is until i went to see them live last summer. i remember being in the crowd and thinking to myself: god this is so on point. i think the lyric that gets me most is: the future's in our hands and we will never be the same again. there's such a dichotomy to that and it's so representative of what is happening in this chapter, which is harry and the trio sort of reconning with the concept of time and the post-war state of things and: now what? the excitement of: we survived and the future's in our hands, but also we'll never be the same again because we lost all these things (people) in the fire (war). i just find it very apt.

O Children by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds: firstly, i love that song, i thing it's beautiful and it just nails that post-war tone of the early chapters. the cleaners are coming one by one, they measure the room, they know the score, etc. secondly, this is obviously the harry& hermione song, which is a massive vibe and plot point of this chapter. i will defend the dance to my dying day, i think it's one of the most beautiful scenes in the whole film and those who don't like it because of the harmony vibes are wrong. that's it 😅.

UNHEALTHY by Anne-Marie: this is a more recent addition, but doesn't this song kind of have early harry/ginny vibes? i'll let you listen and be the judge.

Wonderwall by Oasis: harry mentions oasis in this chapter, so of course i had to add this. i have listened to this song so much in the past 20 years, i can't even tell if i like it or not. anyway, here's wonderwall 😅.

Pompeii by Bastille: ah. the infamous break down of everything. as i've already said, absolutely love bastille, and this one is a classic.

Shadow Preachers by Zella Day: i added this one more recently but i feel like it also had very strong early harry/ginny vibes. i also like that it sounds a bit similar-ish to pompeii in that sort of break down of everything vibe. there's a sort of desperation to that song that i feel really fits well.

Place de la République by Coeur de Pirate: firstly, if you think of coeur de pirate as comme des enfants and don't know anything else from her, i am begging you to open to your heart to her other songs/albums, she's incredible. secondly, i've always loved this song. it so well captures this sort of regretful break up situation where she is breaking up with someone because of distance and giving them one last chance to show up and they don't. i feel like it's very much a ginny song in chapter 3, this way she doesn't really want to break up with harry but has to. it's just 😫.

Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi: i've gone back and forth a lot on this song, whether to include it or not. it's almost Too Much. but, also, harry is a bit Too Much in this, so it just fits.

Achilles Come Down by Gang of Youths: this is... very literal, i don't think i need to explain. i will say, for a very long time, i didn't know where the french bits were from. it sounded like some sort of documentary about suicide, which i thought was odd, but it's actually a reading of the myth of sisyphus by albert camus. i've never read it because i've only ever read camus's fiction, but he is one of my favourite french authors, so i was happy to find that out. it works with the song incredibly well, obviously.

Hell or Highwater by Passenger: we're back with the break up songs. i love this one because it very much is about the confusion and the not knowing what caused the break up, which i think is very fitting for harry, here. i also just love the writing in this song, the way he uses the "hell or highwater" saying in a different way - it's a song i very much love, even outside of castles.

Six Degrees of Separation by The Script: idk, this song has such strong 2000s vibes, and it's so break-up-y dramatic - it just fits, you know? 😅.

Giants by Dermot Kennedy: this playlist supports irish artists! ✊🏻 jokes aside, i kind of see this song as having a bit of a double-meaning here. like, of course, it's hinny break up song and plays - again - to that lack of understanding (we used to be giants, when did we stop?) but i also see it as reflective of harry's broader state of mind. it's this post-war confusion of: we used to do these great, important things, and what is our purpose, now? obviously, this first arc is very much about finding a reason to live after the war, so i feel like this song works for both plotlines.

As It Was by Harry Styles: i'm not a massive harry styles fan so the first time i ever heard this song was when he was on tour and the 'LEAVE AMERICA' trend was all over tiktok. and, i don't know, the moment i heard the song as a whole i was like, 'fuck, this is such a castles song!' especially of that early, post-war, confused era of: 'harry what are you doing sitting at home on the floor, what kind of pills are you on?' it just had to be in this playlist.

Fear of Fear by Passenger: this song is just a mood. i feel like it could play over a montage of the weeks passing in chapter four, and harry just going to work, trying to sleep, and going running in the night.

Le vent nous portera by Noir Désir: there's two reasons why this song is here. firstly, i feel like it signifies healing and the passage of time, which works very well with this chapter. it's a gorgeous song and has this idea of the wind just blowing the hardships away, an "it'll be alright" motto that i love. but also, what my international audience might not know is that this song is highly controversial - bertrand cantat, the lead singer of the band, beat his girlfriend - french actress marie trintignant - to death in 2003. he was arrested, went to jail - if you are french, just know that i'm not going to get into the Debate of whether he should still played/be listened to, etc. we all have our opinions and whichever way you're leaning i'm not going to change yours but i just wanted to note that i wouldn't have put this song in the playlist for any other chapter. but with the added theme of DV in the case giulia and harry work on here, i felt it was fitting.

Brave by Sara Bareilles: this is obviously giulia's pep-talk song haha! harry, get out of your rut, and be brave. i love it.

You're Not Special, Babe by Orla Gartland: i love this song. and, again, it's very giulia. i feel like both of these last songs for this chapter have this vibe of her telling harry to just get off his arse and do something, which is what he needed at that point. quit moping around, quit blaming yourself, you're not that special. it's really the kick off, onto chapter five.

Insomnia by Ren: ah, ren. if you've been following the playlist for a while, you will have noticed that i had a major ren moment between the end of 2023 and the start of 2024 and added, like, fifteen millions of his songs to the playlist. i feel like castles generally has such a ren "vibe" to it, which is wild because i didn't find him until well into writing the story. this song has this incredible line: i used to use drinking as a way to stop thinking and my problems with drinking made me feel like i was sinking, so i dried up my drinking and then i couldn't sleep a wink, and now i'm thinking, now i'm thinking, now i'm thinking, now i'm thinking about nothing. fucking nothing. and everything and nothing - i hate not sleeping. this is so on point for this chapter, which has harry's insomnia stalking those post-war months, and i absolutely love it.

The Last Unicorn by Passenger: ah, the first mia song 😫. my child. this is so scarily on point.

J'écoute du Miles Davis by Navii: this is really one of the core, OG castles songs as far as i'm concerned. i remember listening to it on loop very early on, writing the early chapters. i love the chorus of 'Et le temps passe' (and time passes) - it's this factual statement that i feel is very castles. "Time just - passes."

The Way I Am by Eminem: i was so mad to find out i couldn't use this song in text because it came out in 2001. obviously, very related to the press, fame, etc. which are topical for this chapter.

Dominoes by Ren: i added this one fairly recently. it's one of those songs that isn't precisely topical to the chapter itself, but i really liked the riff of "we fall like dominoes, dominoes, falling". it echoes that thing harry says about how he's afraid to fold because if the "leader" falls, then everyone comes cascading down. i felt like there's an interconnection in that song that resonates, here. and also, i think the thing about public perception and body shaming is also somewhat related to the treatment of girls in harry's life in the press.

Read All About It, Part III by Emili Sandé: i thought most people would already know this song because it was featured so prominently in the 2012 London Olympics, but i suppose it still didn't make it to america, 'cause i've had quite a few comments from people saying the playlist was the first time they'd heard it. anyway, it's obviously about harry using his voice and finally talking to the press, and it's amazing :).

Babylon by Barns Courtney: the vibes of this song feel like the fall of a civilisation and "the walls are caving in, you're paying for your sins" and... yeah. idk, i see this as the theme song to the whole battle scene at the lace mill.

What He Wrote by Laura Marling: this was always Giulia's "song" in my head, i'm not even sure why. it's got nothing to do with her but just based on vibes. i listened to this on loop writing her death. and, also, the connection with Peaky Blinders, which heavily inspired the first act of castles.

Fourth of July by Sufjan Stevens: this is just... a beautiful song about death lol. how cheerful 😅.

All My Tears by Ane Brun: and... another one, lol. also, another connection to PB.

Jimmy by Moriarty: i only have two songs for this chapter, probably because it used to be paired with chapter six so i initially didn't think of it as an independent item. anyway, this is one of my favourite songs in the world, and it's recently come to my attention that it fit quite well in here, with this idea of "coming home" (to the burrow, in harry's case. i feel like it works well with the general mood of the chapter.

CORALINE by Måneskin: ah. coraline, coraline, di me la tua verita... this is the beginning of harry, and ginny, and the letters, really.

Zombie by The Cranberries: canonically, Mia is a fan and while two cranberries songs are mentioned in this chapter, i always felt like this one fit better. first, because it's about a civil war that, in many ways, resembled the wizarding war. second, because i've always sort of thought as amycus as a bit of a zombie. like, he's dead but he still plagues ginny (and later harry) with the things he's done and their ramifications.

Rather Die by Barns Courtney: obviously, i'm a massive fan of barns courtney and i've always felt this song is very ginny during the war. basically, 'i'd rather die than give in.'

Repeat After Me by KONGOS: this song is obviously about the absolutist christian faith and someone trying to escape it, but i think there's something so rhythmic about it. in my head, i could see it playing over a montage of the DA pulling off stunts, getting attacked, getting back up again, fighting again, losing again, etc. there's also the 'repeat after me' of indoctrination that could very much apply to the ministry's propaganda. i remember listening to this song so much as i was writing this chapter, just to remind myself of the relentless sort of pacing i wanted to achieve.

Dopamine by Barns Courtney: okay so. this is the song of this chapter. i know it feels like it's not really about this chapter (it's clearly about drug addiction) but you cannot possibly imagine the number of times i listened to it as i was writing. i don't know. i love everything about it. the loud rock and instrumentals, the production, the lyrics. if we end it all, at least you're by my side. we could never die. and this: it's always the same. see the drink couldn't wash out the taste of your name. i literally think it's one of my favourite songs ever, and one of my favourite sentences ever written. i think in my head it's a bit about ginny sinking, about amycus, about harry. about everything. i would say dopamine is probably one of the most important songs in this playlist. i am so attached to it.

Thirteen Thirtyfive by Dillon: and... the last song. i will say this: i have since learnt that this song is about a woman who has lost a child (either through miscarriage, abortion or death after birth, it's not clear) and is reminiscing about what her life could have been. that is... not how i initially interpreted it. you may listen and come to your own conclusions. if you interpret it like the above, maybe it fits with pansy's story. if you don't... well. you'd be thirteen, i'd be thirty-five, gone to find a place for us to hide. be together but alone, as the need for it has grown. make of that what you will.

Formidable by La Bronze (Stromae cover): god, do i love this song. and god do i love this cover almost more than the original. i love how she made it less sad and more angry with the more rock-like music, as well as the sound of arabic. it works So Fucking Well. the chorus of this song sort of says it: we were incredible.

The Kid I Used to Know by Arrested Youth: just one of those songs i used to listen to on loop while writing/planning that arc of castles. i do think of this time in this fic as the formal end of harry's childhood, when he finds out about ginny and realises that all their innocence has gone. so long to the kid i used to know.

Hold On by Ren: i feel like there's such a restlessness in this chapter that you also find in this song. this sort of endless torrent of stuff coming harry's way, and him trying to... get through it and hold on.

Blind Leading The Blind by Mumford & Sons: i had originally put this one in for chapter nine, but i actually think it's more of a chapter ten song. welcome to the trials, aka the epitome of the blind leading the blind.

Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High? by Arctic Monkeys: ah. were you also a teen in the early 2010s? welcome to the song. obviously - very harry & ginny in this chapter.

Falling Is Like This by Ani DiFranco: i've always adored this song ever since i discovered it referenced in another fic. it's where i got the idea of the car running off a cliff in last chapter - it's also very heavily referenced in this chapter. think of it like a transition song lol. just such a Mia mood. falling is like this.

Je suis un homme by Zazie: i was looking for a song this morning to operate the transition between falling is like this and the kids are all rebels, and i settled on this one. judge me all you want but i love zazie, and i think this works quite well with the beginning section of this chapter that is a little bit like the song: humans and their institutions going round in circles.

The Kids Are All Rebels by Lenii: i loooove lenii. she's irish (🇮🇪🥳) and this song is such a DA song. there's this dimension of youthful idealism hitting the brick wall of adulthood, and the things they see the government do which they're not happy with. the song itself was written about trump's covid policies, but it fits so well here too!

Anthem by YOKANA & Barns Courtney: i think this is self-explanatory. harry is starting to doubt his "no comment" strategy...

Statues by Alexandre Desplat: we're... starting a new war in courtrooms, aren't we? jokes aside, it's probably my favourite music from the films, very war-coded, it makes me want to rise up to battle, so.

Remember the Name by Fort Minor & Styles of Beyond: there's something about the relentless rhythm of this song that i just love for the end of this chapter. like: LET'S GOOO!

Legendary by Welshly Arms: i see this as the DA's song, too, you know? not just harry. they're all doing something legendary.

Till I Collapse by Eminem: this is one of my favourite eminem songs, and i think it fits really well with the beginning of this chapter. the onslaught of press coverage regarding harry's and the DA's actions, and their common desire to push through no matter what.

Instant Crush (feat. Julian Casablancas) by Daft Punk: i actually wanted to put da funk in this playlist (which is the song mentioned in the fic) but i chose not to subject you all to five minutes of lyric-less late-naughties techno music 🤣. i also feel like putting this right after Till I Collapse is a bit of an insult to eminem ("you don't know me, you're too old, let go - it's over, nobody listens to techno" 😅), which is a bit funny lol.

Teenage Culture by SKYLAR: it's funny, i listened to this song on loop the summer of 2023 but didn't really find an excuse to add the song to the castles playlist until it finally hit me now that it was per-fect for this chapter. i love skylar and i love this song, it's so tongue-in-cheek and yet lyrically incredibly clever. i think this is such a teenage anthem and fits so well for this chapter, both in the "partying" side of it, but also in a the-kids-are-all-rebels sort of way. i just absolutely love it.

Everyone's at It by Lily Allen: i've just realised this is the first lily allen song in this entire playlist which, if you know me and how much of a lily allen stan i am, is wild. i stole some of the lyrics of this song for the chapter; it's about the double-standards that exist in dealing with drug addiction, which ginny talks about a bit. it's a song that was very important in opening my young eyes on this topic, when i was a teenager. i feel like it also goes so well with the SKYLAR song, it's like the millenial-advocate-y song to SKYLAR's gen z, more apathetic/don't-care take.

all the good girls go to hell by Billie Eilish: i have a very strange relationship with Billie Eilish's music where i listen to her only for very specific occasions and moods, but i do love that song. and, idk, i kind of see it as a symptom of ginny's slight "descent" in this chapter, where under the surface, partying and sleeping around begins to be less "fun" than it used to be. there's something weirdly haunting about Billie Eilish's music (esp the first album, that i feel fits here).

Any Other World by Mika: i added this song to the playlist rather recently but if you are a the good wife fan, it will of course sound familiar. i think i was looking for a song to finish off this chapter and recently was lucky enough to see Mika play live in dublin, and thought it just fit. it's neither really a love song nor a political song, it's a third thing, and i think it's really symbolic of the conclusion you reach at the end of this chapter of "say goodbye to the world you live in". i think this chapter is really the point of no return, this sort of deep realisation that nothing will be the same anymore. it's also the halfway point of the fic (in terms of chapters), so i reckon it works.

Un peu d'espoir by Joyce Jonathan: i relistened to this song recently and i think it really suits the beginning of the chapter. there's a growing up vibe to it and, nostalgia, sadness and hope at the same time. i really see it playing in that time where harry reflects on the upcoming anniversary of the war and where he and ginny talk about the aftermath.

Dance Monkey by Tones and I (Stripped Back): okay. i know this is a bold choice but let me explain. basically: i was working on completing the playlist and was looking for a song for the end of the trials, draco's hearing and all the politics in this chapter. i looked up my top songs of 2022 (which is when this chapter was written) and found out i actually listened to this song quite a lot that year (the original version of it). and yes, this is a dance song, but when you look at the lyrics, there's a vibe of, like, the establishment and the wider world forcing you to do something you don't really want to do? like, sure, here, this is a woman who's being told, basically "why don't you dance/smile more" but i think this is also applicable to harry and his relationship with the press and the wizarding world in general. there is a dimension in it of "dance monkey! dance!" where he's just like - not feeling it. this is the chapter where he rebels, too, and actually doesn't stick to the script, and pushes the wizarding world to change, and we love that for him. i chose the stripped back version for the playlist, because i feel it just fits the mood more than the dance version of this song.

bad guy by Billie Eilish: ugh. do i need to explain? i mean, harry, come on. stop toying with two girls at the same time.

Bad Habits by Ed Sheeran: a bit the same as the above. my bad habits lead to you - you can't quite let ginny go, can't you?

Arcade by Duncan Laurence: if you were on tiktok in the golden age of dracotok, this song will need no introduction. i don't even think the lyrics fit but i now have such a strong association between draco malfoy and this song, it needed to be there in this chapter.

This Is What Makes Us Girls by Lana Del Rey: i feel like this is a lesser-known Lana song, but it's haunted me for years. i think there's a vibe of "for us girls, it's just the way wars are fought" in that song. and, with this chapter being the one where we find out about pansy, i couldn't not include it.

Mr. Sandman by SYML: okay, i cannot possibly explain this but i very strongly associate this song with the vibe of draco in prison, and that last scene. it's bizarrely haunting, and i think fits the mood perfectly.

[theonceandfuturequeenoftarts]

ooooooo what’s poor kids supper club????

Thank you for the ask, lovely anon!

I don't really remember plotting out "poor kids supper club," so odds are I did it in October, during the fever dream that was writing the Promptening. I think I meant for it to be one of the Promptening chapters, but it grew legs and horns and I just set it to the side.

Here's what that doc file contains (still mostly point-form notes):

Muggle AU; basing this on the Canadian university system, as that’s the one I have experience with  Harry sees that Ron is struggling to afford tuition, rent and meals, even with a part-time job and needs-based bursaries, wants to help him out but knows Ron will turn down any direct attempt at assistance (he has before).  Potter parents died in a house fire (James from part of the house falling on him, Lily of smoke inhalation from getting Harry and getting outside) and, due to mismanagement, the Dursleys took the insurance payout for the house - Still mistreated Harry (because they're trash like that) But Harry has some money that his parents set aside for his education, a portion of the insurance payout from his parents’ deaths available to him, and the rest – as well as his modest inheritance – will become available to him once he turns twenty-five, as well as a full-ride scholarship (probably for ⚽), so he’s comfortable. Not absurdly wealthy, but he can afford to be generous. He’s frugal due to his years of starving with the Dursleys – he doesn’t ever want to be at someone else’s financial mercy again. He also knows what it’s like to be the poor, hungry one and not have anyone else to rely on, and he doesn’t want anyone else to feel that way. His godfather also left him a big, totally-not-haunted fixer-upper house when he passed away, so Harry has a place to host these get-togethers – a giant kitchen and huge dining room.  So Harry posts a few signs around campus, especially near the financial aid office, offering dinner to anyone, no questions asked. They just have to give him a couple hours notice, and if they let him know at least a day ahead of time, they can make food requests.  So he drags Ron and Hermione over as often as possible to feed them, and sometimes they’re joined by another person or three, and it becomes something of a supper club. Draco shows up at some point because it’s popular/because Potter/to mock the poor people, and Harry says “really?” and Malfoy answers “You said no questions!” To which Harry shrugs and says “as long as you behave yourself, you can stay.” Tom becomes a fixture, because while he has scholarship money coming out his ears and a part-time job (because he’s not super challenged by the material and has enough time for it), he’s also trying to run with the rich kids, so any extra money he has goes towards better clothes and accoutrements.  - Plus, if some idiot’s going to be altruistic enough to feed him for free, he’s going to take advantage of that It becomes popular enough that Harry institutes a pay-what-you-can-if-you-can policy (looking at you, Malfoy) Turns into a whole thing, where people help each other out academically and they all do homework together, a support group during midterms and finals and when someone’s having a rough day, they have games nights and go on outings together, and there are groups within the group. If people need a place to stay, they can apply to have one of the rooms in Harry’s fuck-off house for free (as long as they help keep it clean) Harry basically becomes low-key financial aid for his peers, and they think he’s the coolest, and he has no idea.

Yet another meandering, slice-of-life Flaky fic in the making (•ᴗ•,, )

(I just want them all to be warm and happy and eat together and probably cuddle-puddle together. My needs are simple.)

If anyone wants me to actually flesh this out and write it, feel free to include suggestions of what you'd like to see in it, too!

[sunflowerabyss]

Charms of Fate: Chapter 15

Paring: Remus Lupin x Fem!Professor!Reader

Series Masterlist

Plot: Amidst the echoes of a bygone era, you return to Hogwarts years after parting ways with Hogwarts. What begins as a journey fueled by nostalgia transforms into an unexpected reunion with Remus Lupin, now a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. As the past intertwines with the present, the two former classmates navigate the complexities of grief, the resurgence of friendship, and the unwritten chapters of their shared history in this tale of rediscovery and the magic that binds them together.

Warnings: angst, fluff

_______________________________________________________

You, Hermione, and Harry raced to the tower where Sirius was after Buckbeak landed. Pulling out your wand, you yelled, "Bombarda!" and broke the door. The sound echoed through the tower, and the three of you rushed in, adrenaline pumping. As you entered the room, your eyes fell on the emaciated figure of Sirius, chained and weary, but a spark of hope ignited in his eyes at the sight of you.

Without hesitation, you approached him, wand at the ready. The chains binding Sirius clinked as you expertly cast the unlocking spell, setting him free. Quickly mounting the hippogriff, you all soared down to safety. The sound of Sirius' whoops and laughter filled the air, a joyous proclamation of freedom and vindication.

"I'll be forever grateful for this," Sirius said, "To all of you."

"I want to go with you," Harry replied.

"One day, perhaps," Sirius countered. "For some time, my life will be too unpredictable. And besides..." Sirius placed his hands on Harry's shoulder that reminded you of a father talking to his son, "you're meant to be here."

"But you're innocent," Harry frowned.

"And you know it," Sirius said, sitting Harry down on a bench and kneeling in front of him.

You jerked your head at Hermione, motioning to her to give the two brave men some space. You and her walked off a few feet away. You crossed your arms over your chest.

"I'm quite proud of you, Hermione," you state. Hermione furrowed her brows at you.

"Whatever for, Professor?" she asked.

You smiled down at her before answering, "You showed bravery and leadership that not many people here show all that often. Your quick thinking and intelligence are a big reason why we were so successful tonight." You let out a small laugh.

"If you want me to be honest, I think you were more of the adult than I was." You place a hand on her shoulder. "You might be the brightest witch of your age, but you are also kind, sharp-minded, and resilient. Tonight is a night I want you to look back on and be proud of yourself."

Hermione, one who always has words to say, is speechless as she pulls you into a tight hug, tears welling up in her eyes. She mumbles a small thank you against your dirty and torn sweater.

You see Harry and Sirius approaching you from the corner of your eye and you and Hermione step away from each other. Sirius walks up to you with a mischievous smile, a mix of playfulness and sincerity in his eyes. "You threatened me with a wand. Never thought I'd see the day."

You chuckled, "Well, Sirius, a bit of caution in uncertain times. But I always believed in your innocence. It just wasn't you."

"I understand. I would have done the same. Anything to protect James and Lily's boy."

Sirius pulled you into a warm embrace, his gratitude evident. "Take care of Moony for me, sweetheart. He deserves the happiness he's found with you."

"I will," you replied, hugging him tighter. "Don't be a stranger."

"Never," he said simply.

With those parting words, Sirius embraced you all once more. As he flew away on Buckbeak. The tender moment was ruined when the bell from the tower began to chime.

"We need to go," Hermione said promptly.

It was quite literally a race against the clock. The pounding of each of your footsteps against the stone of the castle filled your ears, almost as loud as the heart beating in your chest. Racing back to the infirmary, you bumped into Dumbledore closing the doors.

"Well?" he asked.

"We did it. It's fixed," Harry declared.

Dumbledore inquired, "What do you mean?" Walking down the stairs, he whistled. You scrunched your nose at the odd man that Albus was.

Just in time, you, Hermione, and Harry opened the doors to witness your past selves vanishing.

Confused, Ron questioned, "How did you get there? You were just here; I was talking to you. And now you're there?"

The three of you laughed, and you asked, "Harry, Hermione, what is he talking about?"

Hermione replied, "No idea, Professor."

"Yeah Ron, it's not like you can be two places at once," Harry added.

____________________________________________________

Harry walked into the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, making his way up the stairs to Remus' office. As he entered, he couldn't help but notice the sorry state Remus was in. Remus, catching Harry's stare, managed a weak smile.

"Believe me, I've looked worse," Remus remarked as he packed his belongings into boxes. Harry surveyed the office, noticing the numerous boxes and chests containing Remus' things. "You've been sacked," Harry observed.

Remus shook his head, tearing some papers in frustration. "No, I resigned actually."

"Resigned? Why?" Harry inquired.

"Well, it seems that somebody let slip the nature of my condition. This time tomorrow, the owls will start arriving, and parents will not want, um, someone like me teaching their children."

"But Dumbledore—"

"Dumbledore has already risked a lot on my behalf. Besides, people like me are… well, let's just say I'm used to it by now." Remus flicked his wand, closing his trunk with a sigh. "Why do you look so miserable, Harry?" he asked.

"Because none of it made any difference," Harry replied with a heavy heart.

"Didn't make any difference? Harry, it made all the difference in the world. You helped uncover the truth. You saved an innocent man from a terrible fate. It made a great deal of difference. I am proud, if anything." Remus handed the Marauder's Map back to Harry. "And since I'm no longer your teacher, I have no guilt giving this back to you."

Harry managed a small smile. "Have you told her?" he asked, his tone somber. "The truth? That you're leaving?"

Remus' eyes narrowed. "No, and it's for the best. I have done enough damage to her. It's best if she doesn't."

"She'll never forgive you."

"I would rather her hate me for leaving than her loving me and risk getting hurt again."

Your voice cut through the tension, firm and unwavering, "That's not for you to decide, Remus." Harry, sensing the need for privacy, bid a quiet farewell and left the room, leaving you and Remus alone.

The atmosphere was charged as you both locked eyes. Remus, ever perceptive, noticed the scars on your face that mirrored his own, and regret flickered across his eyes. The air between you two was heavy with unspoken words, the weight of years of longing and separation.

"This isn't some Romeo and Juliet story, Remus," you asserted, breaking the silence.

Remus, however, countered, "But isn't it? Two lovers, destined to be apart because of something bigger than both of them."

"I don't care that you're leaving," you confessed, frustration laced with emotion evident in your voice. "I care that you were never going to tell me. I spent years without you, and I don't want to spend a second more without you."

The scars on your face and the pain in your eyes mirrored his own struggles. He knew he couldn't protect you from every danger, but old habits died hard.

"I don't want to see you hurt because of me," Remus confessed, his eyes searching yours for understanding.

"This isn't about protecting me. It's about us," you emphasized, your frustration giving way to a plea. "I won't let you go without a fight."

As Remus continued to pack, you couldn't stand idly by. You reached out, gently grasping his arm to halt his movements. "I love you, and I won't let you walk away."

The room seemed to shrink with the intensity of your emotions. Remus, caught between the desire to protect and the longing for a shared future, felt the weight of your words.

The gravity of your words hung in the air, and Remus felt the weight of your honesty. In that moment, something shifted. He realized the depth of your feelings and the pain he had inadvertently caused. Remus took a step closer, his expression softening.

"I never wanted to hurt you," he admitted, remorse coloring his voice. "I was trying to protect you, but..." he trailed off. "I can't even do that."

"Then don't," you urged, your gaze unwavering. "Don't hurt both of us by leaving without giving us a chance."

Remus took a deep breath, torn between his fears and the love he felt for you. The room hung in suspense, the air thick with the unresolved tension between you.

You reached out, gently tracing the lines of his face with your fingers, mirroring the scars that told stories of both pain and strength. "You can't protect me from my own choices, Remus. I'm not asking you to shield me; I'm asking you to share the burden with me."

Remus nodded, understanding dawning in his eyes. "I don't want to leave you," he confessed, vulnerability in his gaze.

"And I don't want you to," you replied, determination in your voice.

In that moment, the barriers that held you apart for so long crumbled. Remus pulled you into his arms, and you held him tightly. The reconciliation was bittersweet, but it carried the promise of a new beginning.

"I love you," Remus whispered against your hair.

"I never stopped," you whispered back.

The resolution came with shared kisses, mending the wounds of the past and promising a future where the two of you would face challenges together. Love had weathered the storm, and now, it was time to embrace the calm.

[emeritusemeritus]

Vulnera Sanentur [Weasley Twins x Reader]

Part 12

Previous/ Next

Masterlist

Title: Vulnera Sanentur

Pairing: Fred Weasley x Reader x George Weasley {established relationship}

Timeline: DH1&2- Initially set during the battle of the seven potters. Canon and certain plot points have been altered for the needs of the story.

Summary: The battle of the seven Potters throws your world into chaos when one of your boyfriend’s is cursed. As Snape’s ex-potions assistant and previous protégée, you recognise the inflicted curse immediately and demand answers from your mentor.

Warnings: Angst, mentions of war and Voldy, descriptions of injury and blood, descriptive smut, p in v sex, shower sex, tension. Outside sex. Semi public sex. None sexual nudity. Crying. Snape has a soft spot for reader. Arguments. Probably some cursing. Mentions of nightmares. Reader is part of the Order of the Phoenix. Mentions of death (Dumbledore). Mentions of Tonks’ pregnancy. On it got a angsty. So much angst I can’t tag it all. Not spellchecked nor beta read, we die like Madeye.

We stan older brother Bill 🖤

"You should have seen her, she was bloody brilliant!" Fred says excitedly from beside you.

"Yeah took her down like it was nothing! 3 blasts and she was gone!" George adds with an identical excited look on his face, his fresh mug of tea nearly spilling out as he raises his hands in excitement as he speaks.

"You were very brilliant dear," Arthur says, leaning down to press a timid kiss to his wife's blushing cheeks. The family had just recounted the demise of Bellatrix Lestrange at the hands of the Weasley matriarch and you looked up at Molly with a proud smile, in awe of the lengths she'd go to to protect her family.

"But you four, can you tell us everything now?" Arthur says, looking between you, Harry, Ron and Hermione. You feel their eyes flicking between each other and you but you don't look to them, choosing instead to look towards Bill who is already looking at you supportively, as if anticipating your trepidation at telling your story. He never knew much, only that it was the snake that had caused your anguish and your injury but you could always tell that he knew it was more, just polite enough not to pry. He offers you a soft, encouraging smile that you mirror, turning towards the others who have already begun recounting the tale.

There's a few interruptions from Molly, especially when Ron tells her about how he left the three of you during Winter as she leans over and hits him across the arm but you are hardly listening, knowing all too well that the part about Godric's Hollow will come up soon enough.

"Does anyone want another drink?" Bill says suddenly, standing up and interrupting Hermione as she begins to explain the decision to go to visit Harry's parents graves. "Perhaps we should offer to help get everyone home, get the Floo network going," he says after a few murmuring replies to his original question. It's obvious to you what he's doing and you shoot him an appreciative look, seeing him subtly wink back at you in understanding.

Kingsley had managed to get the anti-apparition and disapparition jinxes temporarily removed from the school grounds so that people could disapparate to get home, freeing up the limited number of other transportation methods that were almost immediately used up to get the younger students back to their families.

"Good idea son," Arthur says, slapping his knees before standing up and gathering Percy, who'd made a full recovery, Bill, Fleur and Fred and George to help him. The twins looks apprehensive to leave you but you pushed them off with a smile.

"Go, you need to learn a thing or two to fix ours at home," you said, playful sarcasm dripping from your voice. The floo network was tricky back at the flat and only seemed to connect to various places on a whim, like the moving staircases in the school.

The word home tumbled naturally from your mouth and filled you with a warmth you hadn't felt in some time, daydreaming of your large, warm bed with two indentical figures beside you. A proper hot meal, filling and appetising, a hot shower and a long sleep, all of which were very overdue.

Molly went to grab another hot drink with Ginny and you looked at your little team beside you, noticing that there were varying levels of happiness amongst them. Ron looked jubilant at reuniting with his family, as he should, and sharing your stories, filling them in on everything he'd not been able to tell them all this time. Hermione looked tired but happy, again glad to be able to explain what had happened, reflecting herself as if she was narrating a memoir in her mind. Harry, quite frankly, looked frustrated. You sensed the same frustration in him that you felt within yourself.

You slid over to him on the bench, careful not to disturb or shock him but just to offer a quiet comfort as Ron and Hermione debated what kind of dragon you'd escaped on during the skirmish at Gringotts.

He smiled at you warmly as he noticed you sliding in closer beside him but his smile didn't meet his eyes, only further proving your point.

"You feel it too don't you? Just wanting to get away, for some peace and quiet?" You asked quietly, leaning in to him slightly.

"Love some," he says with a subtle nod, eyes fixed on the table in front of him. Ever since you'd returned it had been a constant stream of people congratulating you, the outpouring of thanks and affection, spending time with the bereaved and shaking hands, especially for Harry who had been the saviour of them all. It hadn't occurred to anyone that you had all not slept, hardly eaten or taken a calming breath since before you entered Hogsmeade what seemed like days ago.

"You have your cloak don't you?" You said quietly, eyes flickering up to his as you waited for confirmation. "I'll distract them."

He looks at you very briefly with an affectionate and appreciative glance and you smile, tiredly, before shouting over the table to get the attention of your friend, loud enough for the people around you to take notice.

"Luna!" You call out, pointing with your finger out of the cracked, glass window, "wasn't that a Blibbering Humdinger?!"

There's a breeze that drifts past you and a warm hand placed on your shoulder for just a moment and you smile to yourself as you no longer see Harry, the cloak covering his form entirely as he glides through the hall without interference, able to escape temporarily to get some peace, hoping that you'd soon get the same allowance.

The Weasley men returned a little while later after fixing the floo and you found yourself unwittingly dragged into a family wide argument about where everyone would be going. Molly had tried to convince everyone to go back to the Burrow, to stay at least for the night to rest and recuperate but you knew this was a guise, that it would never be just one night. You knew that she wanted her children around her, you could hardly blame her for that after everything you'd all been through but you just wanted to go home. It had been months since you'd last slept in your bed, just the three of you and you felt yourself getting less and less reasonable as the hope of what you wanted faded away, though you remained silent on the matter.

Fortunately, it appeared that Fred was also just as desperate to go home as you were, having lived at Muriel's for far too long under Order protection, something he was very vocal about despising. He managed to talk Molly around with the promise that you would all go to the Burrow tomorrow night, spending your first night back at home. You tuned out the conversation out moment that she began excitedly planning what she would make for dinner that night, looping through everyone's favourite meals and how she could incorporate them in.

You tried your hardest to not be rude or sulky but the longer you sat there, the more irritated you were getting, desperate to be alone again or at least with only a chosen few for company, beginning to feel overwhelmed by the large group.

You were painfully exhausted, both physically and mentally, feeling like the months of hiding and fighting, every horror you had seen and lived through was now taking its toll on you. Your shoulder hurt again, though thankfully not like before. It was tender and sore, like it was beginning to heal and finally knit together. You rolled your shoulder subtly, trying alleviate the ache and found yourself standing and walking over to the drinks table on autopilot, just for something to do, for a little headspace.

"Tough girl," Bill nods as he moves to stand beside you, filling up his own mug which you noticed was far from empty, your eyes squinting a little in suspicion. "Do you want it numbing?" He asks quietly, leaning in so that no one would hear, looking pointedly at your shoulder, having sensed your discomfort. You immediately want to say yes but hesitate, mortified to strip down to your shirt in front of everyone. You look up at him and he nods, understanding your conflict, before shooting you a wink.

"I'm borrowing y/n," Bill says towards the group, most notably the two twins who had begun immediately frowning, "I'll keep her safe," he teased before placing his arm on your good shoulder, "need her expertise, not be long."

He doesn't wait for anyone to reply and gives you a little nod of his head to lead you out from the great hall, guiding you down the corridor, past Filch who had begun sweeping with debris and dust on the floor.

"You need to teach me how to do that," you say with a smile, wrapping your arms around yourself as you fall in step with Bill, "even your mum never questions you." He chuckles with a little shake of his head, guiding you down the staircase with a gesture of his hands to allow you to go first.

"The trick is to be confident in what you're saying, especially with mum. Plus it helps to be the oldest, having so many younger siblings to look after meant that she trusted me more, didn't have the time to watch out for me too so," he says with a shrug.

"That must have been hard though," you say delicately, looking up as he pulls his long hair back away from his face. He shrugs again, his small smile still remaining.

"It's all I've ever known, mainly it was fine until the twins came along, then mum really couldn't split herself as much, if she didn't watch them for even a minute they'd create chaos," he says with a chuckle. You laugh, completely understanding his words as you twist around lower corridors.

"Still do," you joke.

"I don't know, you seem to keep them in line," he smirks and you smile back, appreciating his words. "You're good for them." He stops now and you stop along with him, entering through a door that he'd opened for you.

"They're good for me," you reply fondly, not doubting your statement for even a second.

When you look up, you realise that you're in a classroom just off the potions wing and a little pang of sadness hits you as you think of Severus. Bill shuts the door behind you and you look around at the unfamiliar classroom, never having been in this exact room before.

You take a seat at the larger desk and begin to slowly peel off your jacket, wincing again at the material drags over the newly sealed but tender gashes on your arm and the sore patch on your shoulder. He immediately steps over and grabs the collar of your jacket, helping you peel it away from yourself, over the curve of your shoulder.

You then peel back the collar of your ruined T-shirt, the blood that covered your body now hard and dark against the material as you expose your shoulder to him.

"It looks better," he says, pulling over a stool and sitting down beside you, looking at your wound as you pull down your bra strap that was in the way. "Looks like it's healed up a bit."

You don't reply, only nod as you look away, not wanting to see the mangled flesh. He pulls out his wand and begins tracing the scars, casting a numbing spell and healing enchantments across the flesh. It feels better almost immediately, the throbbing ache and tenderness drifting slowly away until you can no longer feel any pain. Your eyes close on their own accord in relief, only to open a moment later when you feel Bill's cold fingers reaching for your arm. "These are new."

"Snake," you say quietly, watching anxiously as his fingers ghost over the marks on your arm. He doesn't reply and instead moves his wand to to try and clear them using a healing spell, which doesn't do anything. You watch his face as his brows knit together, confusion evident on his face. "It's, the curse, that George had."

You nod, beginning to look away again as you gaze at your boots, feeling an emotion that hovered between sadness and shame.

"It won't heal, not completely," you say quietly, flicking your gaze back to the marks on your arm. "They'll always be there."

"I know the feeling," he says, still looking at your arm even as your eyes flick up to his face, a new wave of guilt tugging at you for your silly remark, momentarily forgetting about the scars that covered his face. "But you learn to live with it." His gaze meets yours and the moment is tender and meaningful as he gives you a tight lipped smile.

"I know what you're thinking, that Fred and George won't find you attractive anymore, that you're different now, changed for the worst. I had the exact same feelings with Fleur. Who would want someone so scarred and ugly?"

Truthfully, you had been thinking that in the back of your mind, but you hadn't let yourself really acknowledge those feelings, only forcing yourself to pull away and never let them see.

"But they'll surprise you and you'll surprise yourself. I never thought Fleur would stay with me after this, someone as beautiful as her should never be stuck with someone like me, disfigured or not. But everyday she surprises me by loving me more, by accepting the scars and proving to me that it's not just about looks, especially when I can't change anything. And you'll find that too, I have no doubt. Fred and George adore you. I never told you when you were with us, I wasn't entirely honest about how much they missed you, how badly they took you being away. They weren't the same, hardly joked and just sat staring into nothing most of the time, they even fell out with each other a few times, which I'd never known them to do."

You felt another, more intense wave of guilt hitting you until he spoke again.

"I'm not saying this to upset you, it's the last thing I want to do. But you need to know just how much they adore you. They'd have given anything to have you back, done anything, they tried so hard. So, a few scars are really nothing in the bigger picture. You're back together, that's all that matters. And overtime you'll see that too, learn to live with them. The external scars and the ones on the inside too."

You can't stop the tears that threaten to spill at his words, feeling both broken and put back together by his speech.

"You're so strong," he says, reaching out to place his hand on your good shoulder. "The things you've done, what you've seen and lived through, most people out there couldn't even fathom. But you're here and you made it, there's a reason I call you tough girl," he says with a smirk. "Everyone says it but if you ever need someone to talk to, for anything at all, you have me. It's not always easy to open up to the people we love but sometimes someone familiar but not too close feels more comfortable to open up to."

"Not too close," you say with a snort, feeling empowered and comforted by his words, "I'd say we're pretty close now." He chuckles and nods, taking his hand off your shoulder to slide his wand back into his pocket.

"You're family," he says with a shrug and a smirk, mirroring how he'd said it to you all that time ago in Shell Cottage, making you smile. "I know the memories of Shell Cottage aren't the happiest for you but you're welcome anytime, if you ever need space or an escape. Hopefully in the future we can replace those bad memories with good ones, memories where we are all together."

You're more than touched by his words, rendered speechless at his abundant and unwavering kindness as you try to find the words to thank him, knowing nothing would ever be good enough. There's a look shared between you and you hope understands completely what you're trying to say, hoping your eyes convey every ounce of gratitude he deserves. He nods his head gently, understanding, and smiles as if you'd thanked him a million times over.

"Is there anything else I can do?" He asks, gaze flicking down to your exposed shoulder but you shake your head, knowing he'd already done so much. "No zouwu scratches or thornback bites? And here I was thinking you were an expert beast slayer." You laugh and nudge him playfully, glad for the unlifting banter.

"Let's get back, you need be home and go rest." He stands up from the stool and replaces it under tbe desk he'd pulled it from, walking over to reach for the door.

"Bill, wait," you say, standing up from the chair, a sudden alarming thought making panic erupt in your previously relaxed mind. "Severus, his body, I can't leave him there."

Reasonably you know that your sentence probably made no sense to him as he didn't know what had happened but the sadness in your voice pulled at your own heartstrings, never mind his. He immediately nodded and reached out for your hand, signalling for your to take him with you.

You placed your hand in his and thought of the boathouse, the pair of you immediately surging through dimensions and space until you landed with a crack outside of the boathouse, overlooking the small shack that you were certain would haunt you forever.

"Stay here," Bill says, still keeping a hold of your hand as he squeezes, knowing that you wouldn't be able to look again at Snape's body. You pulled out your wand and reverse the concealment spells that you'd placed there, the shielding charm working to hide his body from anyone who may have wished him harm.

You had no idea what Bill did or how the ministry was organising collection of the deceased but you trusted Bill to do the right thing on your behalf. You looked out at the water of the lake, watching the slight movement of the tranquil water, a stark contrast to the billowing waves and roiling undercurrent that had been present during the last time you were here.

Bill walked out soon after with a tight lipped smile and a nod, reaching out his hand for you to take. You paused to look once more at the cracked glass windows still stained with blood before you placed your hand into his and disapparated.

"Right, I don't know about anyone else but I'd like to be getting off, darling what do you think?" Bill says as you walk back to your extended family in the hall, Bill turning to Fleur in the hope that she would agree. From there, everyone seems to follow his lead and you can't help but chuckle as he shoots you a wink, proving once again that he was right about the confidence thing.

"Ready to go home Angel?" George says, moving to stand in front of you, his left hand clutching your waist and pulling you slightly into him as his right hand comes up to pull back the hair from your face, his thumb tenderly stroking over your face. The very mention of home makes you feel a deep rooted excitement and you smile wearily as you nod, the anticipation of a hot shower and long sleep feeling well within your grasp now. You reach out for Fred who stands just behind George and pull him in, rest your head between their shoulders as their hands rest across your tired body, your entire being melting into their warm embrace.

"Right everyone, don't forget, tomorrow evening at 5pm, not a moment later!" Molly calls out after everyone has said their goodbyes, reminding you all of the promise you'd made. You wave goodbye again and walk out to a secluded part of the hall so that the three of you could disapparate together, your hands joined tightly.

With a smile at your loved ones beside you, you picture the spot just outside of the shop where you were able to apparate into and closed your eyes, feeling yourself stretched and pulled until your appeared looking up at the bright orange building.

Diagon Alley was decimated and deserted, most of the buildings falling into disarray, either abandoned in fear or destroyed by death eaters. Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes had been left virtually untouched, with only a singular broken window on the third floor where the confectionary was usually displayed though from the outside everything looked to be relatively unharmed. The bleak, dark street filled with empty or ransacked shops did seem to dim the brightness of the shop however, making it look much less vibrant and exciting as you remembered it.

"Princess?" You hear Fred say gently, pulling you out of your thoughts as you turn in his direction, seeing both of them watching you in concern. You gave them a small smile and moved forward to where George was casting the unlocking charms so that you could all enter and lock yourselves away back home.

Stepping back inside the shop was still impressive as ever, even without the lights and the effects playing in the windows, no music or vibrant chatter from the excited customers. The smell was the same comforting blend of cleanliness, whizzbang smoke and comforting vanilla, mixed with a hint of Fred and George, a perfect combination. The twins quickly surveyed the shop, checking that nothing was damaged or unaccounted for as you made your way up the stairs, feeling a slight hesitation in yourself.

You realised that for the first time in so long that you would be alone, just you, George and Fred. Could it ever be the same? Would they punish you or act different to you now after you'd left them? Would your life ever go back to normal after everything you'd faced without them?

All of your spiralling thoughts were silenced the moment you unlocked the door to the apartment with your wand, seeing and smelling the comforting things all around you of home. It wasn't the tidiest you'd ever seen it but you understood that they'd had to pack quickly and leave immediately to flee to the safe house, as you'd been told by Arthur.

"I'm sorry it's not," George begins to say from behind you but you stop him, interrupting without turning.

"It's perfect."

Taglist:

@missryerye

@football1921

@rk-ceres

@weasleywheezer

@lotusloisstuff

@c0comichi

@xthatpottahfanx

@aigowen

@fandom-taylor

@weasleyluver85

@mariamkhaled87

@jewelsrules

@ledger-kaos

@bucksdonkey

@clara-carpenter-morgan

@jinxxangel13

@darkrozesblog

@slytherin4536

@crookedwerewolfobject

@chipscanbeevil

@justromaaa

@rebeldotty88

[seriouslysam8]

A Little Ramble - Probably a Rant

I feel the need to say something for a very small percentage of people. Because most of my readers and reviewers are wonderful and I love them so much and I want to give you big, big, big hugs. You guys are amazing and you're the reason I can update consistently.

I get there are people upset with the way I write Hermione out of stories and how I cast her into the background. If you love Hermione, then my stories are not for you. She will never be a main character or even a side character. I will never write her POV. If that upsets you, there is an x in the corner. Utilize it.

I'll only talk about Brumous. This story is really a story about Harry and Sirius. It's about them finding the family they desperately needed for the past fourteen years. It's about Sirius learning to overcome his demons and step up as the godfather he was always supposed to be. It's about Harry learning to rely and accept help from others and learn what a family truly is. The main relationship, the main characters in this story are really Harry and Sirius.

This is not a story about Hermione. This isn't really even a story about Hinny or Remadora or Ron or anybody else. Yes, Hinny and Remadora are the main pairings in this story but Ginny and Remus are really the side POVs in this story. They do not always have a POV every chapter they do not drive the main plot forward, nor are they the center of it. That belongs to Harry and Sirius.

There is really no reason Hermione needs to be in the story. She holds no value, to be quite honest, as she doesn't have a purpose in this story like she does in the books. I'm not writing a character for the sake of writing them, especially when I dislike the character. I don't bash her, I don't make her look bad, I just push her into the background because she's not important to the storyline.

There are plenty of stories where Hermione is a main character, where she gets a POV, where she saves the day with her Mary Sue intellect. That's GREAT! I'm glad there's a bunch of stories people can read about what they like. But there also needs to be stories for people who don't want to read about her. THAT'S GREAT TOO.

The beauty of fandom is that we can find stories for whatever we want. Hinny, Remadora, Jily, Drarry, Wolfstar, Dramoine, Romione, Panville, the list goes on and on and on! There's so many stories that have a wide variety of main characters too! You want to read about Harry: yep, there's that! You want to read about Remus: oh, yeah, there's a bunch of those too. You want Hermione, Ginny, Ron, Neville, James, Lily, Sirius, whoever the fuck you want, YEP THERE ARE THOSE STORIES OUT THERE. HP is a massive fandom with so many talented authors and art and just people in general. You can legit find whatever you want to read. If you don't, you write it yourself!

You want to know what I want to read but couldn't really find so I started to write myself? A story where Sirius lives and he's like a dad to Harry. A story where Hinny had more time together before shit hit the fan. A story where Harry and Ron have an amazing bromance. A story where Harry dealt with his childhood trauma and started trusting adults around him to help him. Finally, a story where Hermione wasn't the focal point and always solving all the issues.

So, please, don't call me disrespectful for pushing Hermione in the background. Don't tell me I ignore Ginny's faults while highlighting Hermione's. Don't tell me that you're disappointed in my writing because Hermione isn't a focal point. Because at the end of the day, this is my story. This is what I want to write. I'm not pandering to what you want. Just because you're disappointed in me or whatever doesn't mean I'm going to change my entire story to make you happy. Because I won't. I don't care. I especially don't care if you're some anonymous person leaving a review since I'm just going to delete your review and move on. Yes, I do delete guest reviews that annoy me. Yes, I block people on Tumblr who want to hound me on my stance with Hermione. I do it because I can and I want to and that's my choice in order to make the fandom experience I want to have.

So, while you're annoyed with my representation of Hermione in MY stories, I'm equally annoyed with you when you can't just let me write MY STORIES the way I want to. I write for free. You want me to write Hermione in some great positive light, then fucking pay me. Otherwise, just leave me alone. Nobody is forcing you to read my stories.

At the end of the day, people can read and write what they want to. If you don't like my opinions on my Tumblr, block me. I'm fine with that. If you don't like the way I portray characters, don't read my stories. I'm okay with that. I found my little niche and I'm happy. I make it very clear what I like and don't like so you know exactly what to expect in stories from me. So, find your niche and the authors who write exactly what you like and be happy.

I am tired of people constantly trying to convince me Hermione is a great character (save your breath because you won't change my mind) or people being rude and telling me my opinion about her is wrong (it's not since we're all allowed to have opinions because they're OPINIONS and not FACTS) or people calling me a Hermione basher (I'm not bashing anyone in my stories - except maybe, maybe Snape a teeny tiny bit but he's a fucking cockwombling asshole and I will not apologize for that. I cannot stop from constantly portraying him in a negative light. Okay, I'm guilty of that.) I'm really tired of answering asks about Hermione or having to explain my reasoning on why I don't like her. I just don't, okay? There's nothing wrong with that. People can like whoever they want to. I shouldn't have to constantly justify my opinion.

I dislike Wolfstar because I don't think it makes sense with canon and I hate the fandom versions of their characters. I do not read Wolfstar stories, I do not follow Wolfstar blogs, I do not bother people who love Wolfstar. They can read and love whatever they like. Good for you! That's amazing. I'll never argue with you about Wolfstar. Because that's your opinion and what you like.

So, I guess what I'm saying is, you don't need to read my stories or follow my Tumblr or bother me if my stance on Hermione bothers you that much. In words of Elsa, let it go!

I've ranted enough but it's just been something that's bothering me for awhile and I'm tired of deleting reviews, asks, or blocking tumblrs.

Anyway, thank you for coming to my TED talk.

[drarryweasley]

HP Rec Fest - Part 1 (Days 1-16)

Boy, has it been a moment since I've gone through my fanfic bookmarks. Thankful that @hprecfest has given me a reason to do so and rediscover some old gems!

Anyways making this list made me realize that I'm a connoisseur of explicit content so most of these are smutty and I'll leave that up to you to decide whether that's good or bad

(These are almost exclusively post-war fics where everyone is an adult, unless otherwise stated!)

1. A favorite fic under 5k: If We Lie Like This by everythingokay

(Harry x Charlie Weasley, rated E, 4.1k)

Harry/Charlie is one of my absolute favorite ships of all time, and this is one of the sweetest pwps I've ever read of them, so you know this had to be my first rec.

2. A comfort fic: Lumos by birdsofshore

(Drarry, rated E, 41.5k)

This is one of my oldest bookmarks, and still one of the best. I love, love, love eighth year fics, in no small part because of this one. The summary really says it all:

"Harry never expected to spend eighth year listening to Draco Malfoy wanking."

3. A podfic

I've truly never listened to a podfic in my life, I just prefer reading I'm sorry

4. A fic with art: What Have You Been Hiding Under Those Robes, Professor Malfoy? by Booktopus

(Drarry, Rated E, 15k - art is NSFW!)

Finding art in my fics is such a rare, exciting surprise, especially because I rarely go looking for them. Now, a GIF? And a smutty gif at that? Of tattooed professor Draco? What. A. Find.

5. A non-AO3 fic: The Lust of Gryffindors by Fearful Porpentine

(Harmione + so many pairings/groupings, rated M, 381.5k, aged-up during canon)

Yeah, I'm pretty much exclusively an AO3 girlie, so I don't have many options for this one. Still, this is a standout as one of my favorite smutty extravaganzas.

6. An unreliable narrator fic: Touch by bixgirl1

(Drarry, Rated E, 45k)

I had this fic on my TBR for so long before I actually read it, and when I finally did, I was KICKING myself for waiting so long! I love touch-starved characters finally getting what they need (is it self-fulfilling? perhaps), and I never thought a sleep-deprived Harry could be so funny.

(I'm aware this is an unreliable narrator in the loosest sense of the word but I'm sticking with it because it NEEDS to be recced)

7. A canon-compliant fic: With the Edges Worn Down by MayatheBee

(Harry x Ron x Hermione, rated E, 13k)

By "canon-compliant," we mean "takes place so far in the future that canon can't disprove it," right?

If so, then here's my pick. After Ginny's death, Ron and Hermione decide to finally act on feelings that have been ignored for their entire friendship. It is so, so sweet and so, so hot.

8. A canon-divergence fic: Safe Word is Devil's Snare by ShayaLonnie

(Neville x Hermione, rated E, 97k)

Hot Neville Agenda? Hot Neville Agenda.

Neville is fast becoming one of my favorite characters in fic (both in reading and writing). I'm a sucker for him growing into his self-confidence after the war while still being the same loveable plant guy we know. And a forced marriage with hyper-competent Hermione? Get ready for the spice, y'all.

9. A rare pair fic: 93 Diagon Alley by Schmem_14

(Harry x George, rated M, 30k)

I'm quickly realizing that most of the fic I consume (outside of drarry) is rare pairs, but this is one of the best. Harry and George leaning on each other through their grief, and realizing what they need to get through said grief is, in fact, each other? Sign me up. I usually avoid stories that feature Fred's death as a significant plot point, but this is too well done to ignore.

10. A fest fic: Beware: Naked People Ahead by SonnenFlower

(Lots of pairings, rated M, 6.6k)

I’m recommending this fic not only because of the absolute hilarity of the premise, but because it is a part of one of the best fests I’ve ever come across — the Hermione’s Nook Naked Weasley Fest! This fic had me laughing the whole way through (and crying when I wasn’t.)

11. A dark fic: Whore by orphan_account

(Harry x Fred x George + noncon, etc, rated E, 141.6k, takes place during canon)

Listen, I don't read dark fics very often. They tend to crush my soul and spin me out. This is my "I want to hurt" fic — SO MIND THE TAGS.

12. A WIP you're following: New Blood by artemisgirl

(Pairings still evolving, rated M, currently 1.3 million words, takes place during canon)

As a general rule, I don't read many in-progress fics (this is a personal fault because I get too impatient and invested). But when I started this fic, it had over 1 million words and didn't seem to be stopping anytime soon, so I took the plunge. It features a Slytherin, overpowered, badass Hermione, deep fae/wix lore, and a unique twist on all our favorite characters!

13. A fic with over 100k words: Finding Sophrosyne by mlfoyskhione

(Drarry, rated T, 136.5k)

An eighth year fic where everyone in Hogwarts falls into an unwakeable sleep...except Draco and Harry. Absolutely delectable.

14. A favorite series: Harry Potter & Seven Years of Chaos by Severitus812

(Harry x Fred + Severitus, unrated, 1+ million words; takes place during canon)

When I started this fic, the first six parts were published and part of the seventh. I DEVOURED them in a week, and I still haven't gotten around to finishing it because I'm positive it's going to break my heart. Still, an absolute beast of a story that is so, so fun to experience!

15. The most recent fic you bookmarked: The Best Laid Plans by Drarrymadhatter

(Drarry, Draco x George, Harry x Fred, rated E, 6.6k)

Okay, I’ve bookmarked entirely too many fics since the start of this fest, so to avoid repeats, I’m recommending the last fic I bookmarked BEFORE then. Based on my url, it couldn’t be more perfect — Draco, George, Harry, AND Fred? Absolute perfection. Sexy, sexy perfection.

16. A fic that made you laugh: I WANNA SEE SOME ARSE by thefrancakes

(NottPott, rated E, 10.5k)

From the title of this fic through the end of it, I was laughing. And where I wasn’t, I was fanning myself because. Hot. Damn. I’d never shipped Harry and Theo Nott until reading this.

So many excellent fics here...and yet I'm even MORE excited about the next set of prompts! Until then!