snippet sunday
I got tagged in that WIP ask game by a couple of people today, but instead of playing along and letting you all choose what WIP you want to know more about, I’m just going to force one on you.
“Your uncle is Regulus Black?” Cedric whispers to Harry, sounding incredulous.
“Yeah, he’s Papa’s brother,” Harry whispers back.
“He’s the best Seeker Hogwarts ever had!” Cedric sounds awestruck.
“Uncle Reggie.” Harry leans forward and taps Regulus on the shoulder. Regulus turns around in his seat with an eyebrow raised at his nephew, and Harry says, “This is Cedric. He’s my best friend, and he’s going to Hogwarts next year, and he’s going to be the best Seeker ever!”
Sirius tenses as Regulus gives Cedric an appraising look, and Remus lays a hand on his knee. Regulus may be cool and aloof, but he’s never been cruel to a child, and he adores Harry.
“I see,” Regulus says finally. “In that case, I look forward to you beating my record.”
“Which one, sir?” Cedric practically squeaks, and Remus has to smother his laughter behind his hand.
“All of them.” And then Regulus winks--winks!--before turning around again.
The door to the top box opens, and everyone stands as the two Ministers of Magic step inside. One of the perks of top box seats is that each Minister spends some time speaking with every person inside before the match starts.
Until Kingsley Shacklebolt gets to Regulus, that is. Instead of shaking his hand and giving a perfunctory greeting, Kingsley kisses him gently and murmurs, “Hello, love.”
“You’re dating the Minister of Magic?” Sirius hisses.
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Winter Wonderland at The Lodge
words: 2.1k
warnings: none
tags: holiday fluff, werewolf girlfriend acts like a puppy
okay so I may have cheated and combined a few prompts, but I really liked the idea of having a small little holiday fic for them because I used to do it every year. The prompts are: snowball fight, kiss under the mistletoe, and cuddle in front of the fireplace requested by @adelaidedrubman @inafieldofdaisies @aceghosts @cassietrn thank you all so much, hope you don’t mind!
Nadya reveled in the wonderful sensation of snow beneath her boots. The sound was immensely satisfying, like all of the times she went out of her way to step on a fallen autumn leaf just to hear that one of a kind, delicate crunch, only now it was every step on the mountain trail. Not enough wolves or game had cleared the path of white powder, so the human trudged on through it with a beaming smile that not many understood in this particular weather.
The last time Nadya had been in the snow she was nearly too young to fully understand it. Blurred memories surfaced as a light flurry came down around her, the tiny snowflakes melting almost instantly once they landed on her shoulders. She recalled a lumpy clump of ice in her palm that she had attempted to mold into a snowball, but lacked any coordinated technique given that her hands were so tiny. She kept trying, but it annoyed her how fast her fingers went painfully numb until, eventually, she just gave up. A shiver accompanied the memory and Nadya adjusted her beanie and pulled her coat tighter over the layers she wore to keep the winter’s sharp bite at bay.
A soft rustle in the trees drew her attention. Nadya scanned the woods, but couldn’t see much in the dense white landscape. The trail didn’t go near any patrol routes, so she doubted it was a werewolf. Even if it was, they would give her a wide berth out of courtesy. Jayde made sure of that. Must be a deer or some other critter scavenging for scraps. She pulled her camera out of her bag and continued on.
Nadya didn’t keep track of all the photos she took, but she started to wonder if she would run out of all the film she received as an early Christmas gift. The magical winter forest was just too beautiful not to appreciate both in person and behind the lens of her camera. From the sugar dusted landscape to large paw prints along the trail, Nadya captured it all. She was so engrossed, in fact, that she almost hadn’t noticed the snap of a twig close by, soon followed by another several paces from the first.
Whatever it may be, it was moving fast.
This time she felt certain that something out there watched her. The feeling crept up her spine and caused a deeper shiver than the cold did. Nadya lowered her camera and searched the woods around her once again. Her instinct felt too strong to ignore and she did not appreciate being stalked.
“I can hear you,” she called out. “Do you need something?”
Silence overtook the forest.
Nadya backed away as she tried not to let unease settle too heavily in her gut. Perhaps it was only a deer. She couldn’t imagine any werewolf would dare toy with her like this.
The human was about to turn around and walk back up the trail towards the Lodge when her legs connected with something large and soft behind her. Nadya jumped back with a startled yelp. She flipped around to see a massive white wolf stood in her path, tail wagging and tongue lolling out in a wolfish grin. It had been her all along.
“Are you serious?” Nadya yelled, though laughter broke through her irritation.
Jayde sat on her haunches and looked far too pleased with herself. The stark white color of her fur blended seamlessly with their surroundings. She probably didn’t even need to try that hard to slink around unnoticed in this weather. Nadya never would have spotted her at a distance.
“You scared me, you know,” she complained and put her camera away.
Jayde let out a short bark and bowed playfully as if she were an energetic puppy and not a werewolf who could rip a grown man to shreds in seconds flat.
“That’s how you wanna do this, huh?” Nadya bent down and scooped up a handful of snow. Unlike her past self, her hands were bigger and much more deft now. She easily shaped a perfect sphere of snow. The wolf barked again and dodged in the blink of an eye, but Nadya had already launched the snowball in her direction and it impacted with a dull thud. With a triumphant laugh, she said “I might not be a softball lesbian, but I still have damn good aim!”
Jayde frolicked around her and Nadya scrambled to make another snowball. She feinted left, but Nadya anticipated the move. All of their training sessions taught her what to expect from Jayde, even in a play fight. This time, the clump of snow connected with her face and she shook it off with an indignant snort.
“I know all your tricks by now,” Nadya boasted and quickly sent another volley at her.
They went back and forth – the werewolf running in sporadic circles to avoid incoming attacks as the human used tree trunks as cover while she built her arsenal. Snow now caked the thick white fur of Jayde’s coat, making her look even fluffier than usual. She could pass as a polar bear, Nadya thought. She landed another hit and realized Jayde had enough of losing.
Nadya saw it coming. “Don’t do it!” she shouted, but had no power to stop her girlfriend’s retaliation.
Jayde leapt and her massive wolf body tackled the human into a pile of soft powder. Nadya’s startled cry became a giggle, which quickly turned into uncontrollable laughter as Jayde’s snout poked at all of her ticklish spots. She tried to wrestle her head away, but Jayde was relentless. Then Nadya wrapped her hands around her muzzle and firmly clamped it shut, causing an indignant growl to rumble in the wolf’s chest.
“What are you gonna do now?” she challenged.
Jayde tried to shake her grip loose, but Nadya held on tighter, forcing her to use one of her giant paws to pry the girl’s hands off. Nadya knew full well that Jayde needed to be gentle with her and she took full advantage of that, shrugging her claws away. Jayde knew it, too. After a frustrated huff out of her nose, another more intimidating growl vibrated throughout her whole body like a clap of thunder, but it had no effect on the human at all. Nadya simply cocked a brow and placed a quick kiss on the werewolf’s nose. That shut her up fast.
However, just when Nadya was about to claim victory, Jayde’s eyes twinkled mischievously and she plopped herself down right on top of her like a Great Dane who thinks it’s a lap dog. Nadya became completely pinned to the ground, sinking further into the pile of freezing snow that melted rapidly under their combined heat. She lay there groaning for a few moments before the weight became too much.
“Alright, alright. Truce?” she suggested in a strained voice.
Jayde nodded and stood up at the same time Nadya released her muzzle. The girl sat up and shook her head with an exasperated sigh, staring into the glowing amber eyes before her. There was an anticipated pause.
“Well, hello,” Nadya finally greeted with a giggle and held her arms out.
The white wolf immediately fell into her embrace, nuzzling against the human and knocking her beanie askew. Nadya ran her hands through her fur, enjoying the soft, insulated warmth of her wolf form. Jayde was definitely built for this kind of weather. It made Nadya want to curl up with her somewhere quiet in the pines with the smell of campfire smoke in the breeze, but the melted snow had started to soak into the layers of her clothes. She shivered again. This time her teeth chattered as she held the wolf closer for comfort. Jayde whined in concern.
“Yeah,” Nadya agreed and reluctantly pulled away to stand up. “Maybe we should head back. I think I need to rest by the fire.”
That idea brightened the wolf’s demeanor. Her jaws carefully snatched onto Nadya’s sleeve, pulling her in the direction of The Lodge. Nadya chuckled again and eagerly followed. Just in time, too, because the snow storm returned with a vengeance by the time they got back indoors.
They went to their room first so that Nadya could shed her wet clothes and Jayde to change back into her human form. For Jayde, the process barely took a minute, two if she hadn’t shifted in a while. To this day, it fascinated Nadya to see. The ease with which she flowed from one form to the other and back again. Her breaking bones seemed to bother her as little as cracking joints.
Nadya always loved to touch her after a shift – to lace their fingers together, hold her close, and feel the residual wild heat of the animal that still lingered just beneath the surface of her skin. If she looked closely, she could see shimmers of gold in the fibers of her midnight blue eyes. That’s what she loved the most. And Nadya knew how to draw the wolf back out whenever she wanted, too.
“Did you look up?” she asked, lingering halfway out of their room as they started towards The Den.
Jayde flashed a crooked grin. “Didn’t need to. I could smell mistletoe from down the hall.”
Almost as soon as Jayde left for patrol that morning, Nadya opened the package she had hidden in the closet and hung it right above the doorway. She knew if she didn’t act fast, Jayde in all her romantic tendencies would beat her to it. For once, Nadya wanted to jump the gun for their first real Christmas season together.
Without further hesitation, Nadya leaned in. Even the way Jayde kissed her felt more intense after a turn. Jayde’s lips were warm enough to chase away any chill. She grabbed onto the girl’s hips with retrained strength, but her fingers still dug desperately into her skin. Her passionate cadence had that underlying primal hunger, which compelled a human like Nadya to surrender to it, but she was well accustomed to the desire of a wolf and knew how to calm its restless spirit when needed. A gentle caress down the sides of Jayde’s neck drew out a low, inhuman sound similar to a growl, but not quite as harsh. A submissive sound, Nadya thought. It slowed the ardent push and pull into something more tender, dulling both of their minds in an utterly blissful stupor.
As they pulled away, Nadya smiled at the bright golden irises that stared back at her. In a blink, they faded.
“You did that on purpose,” Jayde said.
Nadya gazed at her not so innocently. “Will you make me cocoa?”
The blonde laughed and pulled her girlfriend along. “Anything for you.”
With a winter storm raging outside, The Den started to gain more wolves in search of leisure time. Some were at the bar, others at the pool tables, but Jayde and Nadya claimed their usual spot right in front of the fireplace. Flames crackled and popped as they danced against the blackened brick.
Nadya sat in between Jayde’s legs on an old leather couch, leaning back against her chest and happily sipping on a steaming cup of hot chocolate. Jayde always went above and beyond to make it gourmet style for her. Fancy chocolate, vanilla, cinnamon, homemade whipped cream, festive sprinkles. Most importantly, she made it with love. It put those cheap packets to shame and Nadya practically lived off of those every winter at her old apartment.
“How was patrol?” Nadya asked, placing her hand on Jayde’s knee and giving it a warm squeeze.
“Boring as hell,” she answered and nuzzled against the side of Nadya’s head in much the same way she had as a wolf earlier. “Until I found a no good human on the wrong side of the property line.”
“I hope you took care of that,” Nadya replied with mock-concern.
Jayde hummed into the curve of her human’s neck. “I’m afraid she’ll keep causing me trouble.”
The brunette scoffed. “Not nearly as much trouble as you give her.”
“Well, there’s a new year coming. Who knows what might happen?”
A warm, content grin came across Nadya’s face at the hope she heard in her girlfriend’s voice. Almost as if Jayde actually looked forward to another year. Perhaps she did. It certainly felt that way when her arms tightened around Nadya’s waist as they watched the fire together.
“As long as you stay with me, I think it’ll all work out, Jay.”
“I think so too, love,” she agreed softly.
tag list (ask to be added or removed!): @florbelles @marivenah @simonxriley @shegetsburned @voidika @kyber-infinitygems @v0idbuggy @eloquentmoon @statichvm @socially-awkward-skeleton @carlosoliveiraa @risingsh0t @unholymilf @thedeadthree @jackiesarch @gwynbleidd
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