#new poetry??? yep finally

[dimsilver]

Photograph

I ask him once about that coat he always wears -

holes and patches, faded elbows, dirt and grass stains

Dwarfing his thin shoulders, even in the summer heat.

He straightens, smiles a little, scrunches freckled nose.

“It’s Dad’s,” he says, “or was - before.” He stares too hard

At the cracked tiles beneath our feet. I do not ask

him to go on - I know too well the lump that rose

And choked him then, the love and grief too intermixed

To separate, the feeling that the world is just

An instrument untuned, and played quite badly, cast

Aside without a thought for little boys in coats.

But as these heavy feelings strike my heart, he smiles

Again, and squares his skinny shoulders, standing tall.

“Mom says I’ll grow into it soon. She says I look

Just like him.” Reaching then into his coat, he shows

The photo to me - laughing freckled face, the same

Tan coat, the same blue eyes. I study it. He laughs.

“Don’t I look like him now?” he asks, and in his eyes

I see the grief is mixed with pride, and courage grows.

The boy has learned his lesson better than I have -

I hear the sour notes. He hears the song that rings

Right through them, dissonance becoming harmony.

“You do,” I say. He nods. Away the photo goes.

[jjsmaybank20]

Bitchy is my Type Pt. 2

Leighton Murray x Fem!Reader

Summary: Reader is a motorcycle riding, tattoos, badass type. What happens when there is a new volunteer at the Women’s Center who is just her type, but instead of getting along, they become enemies? But what if those hateful feelings turn out to be something more? Or Enemies to friends to lovers.

Warnings: Language

Word Count: 1.2k

Pt. 1 Pt. 2

navigation  the sex lives of college girls masterlist

---

There are many very unique people during poetry night. "Happy Father's Day. "Dad, "thanks for always protecting me from spiders, "from nightmares, from feeling respected as a woman." You snap with everyone else.

"My nipples are my own. But will they ever truly be free?" You hold back a laugh at the motion the girl makes while saying this. 

"Oh, beautiful, disgracious skies. For amber waves of pain!" Everyone around you snaps aggressively in agreement. You hear Leighton call out, “Yeah.” Then you hear Alicia berate her. “Leighton, stop filming people without their consent.”

You can practically feel her eye roll. “Yes, Warden.” When you turn around you see Leighton drinking another glass of wine. “Are you seriously getting drunk at an event that you're working because you were caught getting drunk?”

She stops to think about it for a second, before nodding her head. “Yep.” Alicia groans. “Ridiculous.” You are about to yell at her, until someone comes in front of the group and you remember that there are other people still there. 

The girl states, “I figure, if it's okay with you, I'll sing a few songs tonight. This first one is about a woman who deserves more love than she gets. Mother Nature. 

The meadows so cloverly 

Awakening my ovaries 

Awakening my ovaries” 

Leighton bursts out laughing and quickly runs outside. You follow her, making a mental note to apologize to the girl singing for the interruption. “Leighton, what the actual fuck? That's it. I'm not signing off on any of your hours tonight.”

She stops laughing instantly and whips around to face you. “What? Wait, you can't do that. I deserve double hours for sitting through this shit.” You look at her with an astonished look on your face. “Why? All you did was drink wine. And eat very noisy snacks!”

“But I was here.” Leighton whines. You shoot her a glare. “I don't care. You know, you just wasted three hours of your own life. Zero down. 100 to go.”

--- 

The next morning, you make your way into Sips. When you see Canaan, you go right over to him.

“Hey, man! Where have you been?” You ask him. Normally, you two hang out almost every day. You guys had known each other since the 4th grade, and you were inseparable. Practically brother and sister. “So sorry dude. I was going to text you. Econ has been crushing me and I asked for some shifts off so I could study for the finals.”

You nod in understanding. When you see Kimberly come in, you call for her to come over. 

“Dude! How the fuck do you put up with Leighton? She is the most entitled person I have ever met, and that's saying something. I have dated a lot of snobby people, but she takes the cake by far.” Kimberly gives me a look before saying, “Look. Yes, Leighton is a lot, and yes, she can be very entitled, but she is super sweet once you get to know her.” 

You shoot her an unbelieving look before you hear Lila call for you. “Y/N! Bring those big, strong, lesbian muscles over here to lift these boxes for me! I just got my nails done.”

You roll your eyes before walking over towards her. “I told you not to call them that. Just call them my muscles please.” Lila smirks at you before saying, “If I was gay, I would hook up with you just for the abs.” You snort before lifting up the five boxes she wanted you to move. “YAS! LESBIAN MUSCLES!”

---

Later that day, you were cleaning up the Women’s Center with Leighton. While you were actually cleaning, she was sitting and looking at her phone. Suddenly she says, “Look, I know you're in charge or whatever, but I really think it would benefit you to take things a little less seriously.”

You grunt out, “Oh, it would, huh?” while trying to put away a folding table. Leighton puts her phone down dramatically on the chair she is sitting on. “Yeah, okay. Like, if you didn't notice the song that girl sang was beyond terrible, then I am genuinely kind of worried about you.”

Before you can stop yourself, you let out a laugh. “Of course, I knew it was terrible. If she was good, she wouldn't be playing at the Women's Center!” Leighton gives you a “no duh” look before exclaiming, “Uh, yes. I agree!”

You pause what you're doing and turn towards the blond girl. “Okay, look. Some of these people are really fucking annoying. Doesn’t mean I say it to their face. Instead, I smile and cheer them on, and then mock them privately. Maybe give that a shot.”

Leighton sighs and throws her head back. “All right. All right, I will try to be less of a, um– Oh, God. What did you call it?” At the same time you both say, “A dumb, cis bitch.” You chuckle, finding the nickname you had come up with hilarious. Leighton nods with a strained look on her face. “Right. That’s the one.”

You just shrug and go back to trying to force a folding table to fold. “It’s true, you sounded like one. You know, it might be hard to stop. Just wait till it’s October, when Ginger starts her shit about her coven.” Leighton freezes for a second before violently asking, “What the fuck is a coven?”

The light laugh that you let out is enough to make the aggressive look on Leighton’s face melt almost instantly. You don’t notice, and you go back to your work as if nothing had happened.

---

Once you finish up, you offer to give Leighton a ride to her dorm on your motorcycle. She accepts hesitantly, but you assure her that it is completely safe. When you hop on, she pauses and looks at the bike worriedly.

You let out a sigh and say, “Come on, Leighton. I haven’t got all day.” When she finally moves forward and sits down behind you, you reach for her arms so that you can wrap them around your waist. She quickly pulls them back, snapping, “What the hell are you doing?!” 

You put your hands up in defense, quickly snapping back, “Calm down! Jesus. If you don’t want to fall off, you have to wrap your arms around me. Otherwise, we can’t go anywhere.” You can practically feel Leighton roll her eyes behind you before slowly worming her arms back around you. 

You try to ignore the feeling that you got when she did this, and you start on your way towards her dorm. She slowly but surely gets more comfortable and ends up putting her chin on your shoulder so that she can see where you are going. 

When you finally get to her dorm, Leighton hops off. She goes to walk towards her building before freezing and turning around. She calls out to you and quickly asks, “Hey, um. What did you mean last night? When you said me being straight hasn’t stopped you before?”

You freeze for a second, not expecting that question. When you finally snap out of it, you recompose yourself. You shoot her a smirk and casually say, “Well. I have a theory that everyone is at least a little fruity. I’ve hooked up with and dated quite a few women who thought they were straight. So, hasn’t stopped me before.”

You give her one last smile before speeding off towards your apartment. The question threw you off, but then you realized why she asked it. This was going to be fun.

---

Join my taglist!

[vermutandherring]

No spoilers

It's funny that despite all my love for the game, I didn't have any inspiration to write a review. Because how can you put into words the feelings it causes? Yes, the gameplay is like an endless dance that flows and twists the player into its vortex. Yes, every second in this game is melodious like a song, cutscenes are apt like rhymes in poetry, and the outcome suffered in the battle with the last boss gives a feeling of exaltation. And although each work is a matter of taste and everyone sees something different in the game, it seems that the audience has finally matured to understand the genius of Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance.

It's a bit unfortunate that the game is mostly recognized by memes, which makes its perception superficial and not serious. On the other hand, a meme can only be understood with full context, which requires playing through the game. The context, in turn, gives a deeper understanding of the work. And therefore, even such popularity can attract new fans of the series. I also think that the example of this game shows how much the game industry has in common with high culture, not mass culture. Most games acquire their meaning over time, rather than gaining popularity as a phenomenon of consumer culture, quickly fading into obscurity. So in this review I will try to explain why MGRR will remain a classic for generations of gamers to come.

I'm happy that Metal Gear Rising was my first MG game. It does not require extensive knowledge of the history of the franchise. Therefore, discovering the character of Raiden and the meaningful content of the game, you want to get to know this universe more closely to understand its essence.

There is a perception that MGRR is not Hideo Kojima's canonical Metal Gear, so you won't be able to touch his genius in this game. In fact, it is not quite so. Although at some point the project was given to PlatinumGames, its initial idea and main character remained in the spirit of the good old Metal Gears, which is felt if not in the combat system, then certainly in the ideas, narratives and used means of artistic expression inherent to Kojima. In the game we have some elements of stealth, expressive cutscenes with unexpected angles, the philosophical basis of the plot and, of course, the codec - Kojima's greatest invention in video games, in his own opinion. It is interesting to observe how his principles continue their life in subsequent projects, changing and adapting to the needs of the time and the content of the games. Yoji Shinkawa, an integral part of the tandem, also contributed to the creation of the game. So if you look at it from a certain angle, MGRR is pretty much canonical Metal Gear.

Yep. I spent 20 mins of my life to find Kojima and Shinkawa in credits. They both are present.

One of the key features of MGRR, inherent in the MG series in general, is its ability to combine very different and, at first glance, absurd things. The game constantly balances between philosophy and satire, cringe and seriousness, kitsch and incredible aesthetics. This feeling is very similar to the first experience of getting to know anime. To a person out of context, individual episodes of anime can seem strange and wild, and a single series can make the entire industry seem like low-level geek culture. In short, this cultural phenomenon is shrouded in a lot of prejudices and stereotypes, which is caused by a different cultural context than yours (unless you are Japanese).

MGRR feels very Japanese, even though the setting of the game (like all the games in the series) has nothing to do with Japan. The very first mission resembles a traditional Japanese engraving, on an endless sheet of which heroes from ancient myths confront each other. I love finding parallels between games and art forms. Vampyr similar to a theater play, L.A. Noire is to the detective film, and Mafia is to the noir novel. And although I have repeatedly emphasized that Kojima brought video games closer to cinema through MG, I want to go deeper in the search for aesthetic parallels in Rising. This game resembles a mythological epic with its inherent trope about the hero's journey, the endless fight against evil and, of course, the worldview of a particular people, its philosophy.

In many mythologies, events take place in 'eternal' space and stretch endlessly in time. A dark force always appears to destroy the world, a light force always accepts its challenge. After all, the world is maintained thanks to their balance, the delicate balance of yin and yang, which should not be disturbed in any way. That is why evil exists. And that's why good always wins it. In general, most games with a plot, having a certain literary basis, use this pattern. But in MGRR, this principle seems to be embodied literally, only the actors are changed: robots and cyborgs take the place of deities and spirits. Powerful forces converge in a predestined battle, but we know its outcome in advance. Therefore, the most interesting part of this whole action remains the confrontation process itself. What is heard on earth when the titans are fighting in the sky? What does the Dragon say when he meets the Tiger?

Doan (Yamada Yorikiyo), Japanese. Tiger and Dragon, ink on paper, around 1560. The Minneapolis Institute of Art. Source: https://www.roningallery.com/artists/Kuniyoshi

'RULES OF NATURE'

The rules of nature are one of the key elements of the game. The problem of the main character's struggle with the natural state of things and their phenomena is embodied in many details and in the mythological background in particular. In primitive beliefs, people of all cultures addressed the forces of nature that they could not directly change, but that they could influence and interact with. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why Raiden fights not with abstract thieves, but with destructive, unpredictable and dangerous natural phenomena. In the game, we have a group of Winds of Destruction - cold-blooded mercenaries who do dirty work. In the system of Japanese beliefs, in particular Shinto, spirits-deities called kami have a clearly defined good/bad characteristic. At the same time, they also have an opposite side to it. Therefore, people can interact with kami in different ways depending on their needs. Before his battles with the Winds, Raiden has moments of revelation with each of them, through which he discovers new truths. These conversations also show that if you judge the state of affairs from the point of view of the criminals themselves, their views also have a grain of rationality. They have come to choose their craft in a certain way, have their own beliefs and principles, and therefore it is difficult to call them unequivocally bad. Raiden himself is more like the Winds than he would like.

One of the most magical and, at the same time, one of the most dangerous and destructive forces of nature is embodied in the image of Raiden. In Japanese mythology, Raijin is the god of lightning. A variant of Raiden-sama's name can literally be translated as Mr. Lightening Bolt. But the most interesting thing is not that. According to the tradition of Japanese Buddhism, Raijin and his brother, the wind god Fujin, were originally evil demons who fought bitterly with the Buddha. As a result of the battle between the Buddha's heavenly army and the demons, Fujin and Raijin were captured, repented and now serve good as Buddha's guardian deities. To say how brilliantly accurate this tribute is - is to say nothing. Like Raijin, in the MG series, Jack went from a punishing dark force to a protective light force. At the same time, he does not depart from his original nature of destroyer and killer, but only directs energy in the right direction.

Folding screen depicting Raijin (left) and Fūjin (right). Tawaraya Sōtatsu, 17 century. Raiden-sama usually depicted as white demon, which also resonates with one of Jack's names - White Devil.

One could say that such a similarity between the fates of Raijin and Jack was only a coincidence. After all, this is where Joseph Campbell's theory of the monomyth, laid out in his 1949 book The Hero with a Thousand Faces, takes place. Campbell, researching the myths, fairy tales and legends of the peoples of the world, came to the conclusion that most of these stories rely on a common plot structure, which he called the monomyth. Since the modern literary tradition is drawn from the oldest literary forms, it still retains the most common and established models, albeit in modified forms. And therefore, the similarity of the paths of heroes in myths or literary works is only a consequence of an established tradition.

But Metal Gear wouldn't be Metal Gear if it weren't for its attention to details. As we know, in myths, things are rarely clear-cut. Raijin often fights with his brother Fujin. He is also depicted in the company of Raiju, a thunder beast or thunder demon that also acts as his animal totem, usually appearing in the form of a dog or wolf. Does this remind you of anyone? Another minor but interesting detail is that Raijin has a son, Raitaro, who is another deity of thunder.

Although Raiju is a companion of Raijin, it can act independently. During thunderstorms, Raiju descend from the sky, accompanying lightning to strike at trees and houses, causing disasters. Thus, Raiju attacks were also believed to be a form of divine punishment: those whose homes were struck by lightning were “suffering the wrath of the Raiju”.

The dystopian environment of MGRR tries to imitate the natural state of things and imitate nature itself not only at the expense of the mythological core. There are more direct allusions embedded directly in the design of robots and cyborgs. The most obvious is the already mentioned Blade Wolf, in which the prototype of the dog is easily guessed. Amphibians and insects, dinosaurs and birds, ungulates and predators inhabit the unexplored hostile spaces of MGRR. It is noteworthy that some of the mechs in the game are present in the MG series not for the first time. Even in previous games, you could find numerous modifications of Metal Gear RAY, Gekko or canine-like robots. The entire MG series in one way or another introduces allusions to the animal world into the design of the characters. On the one hand, this is a fairly obvious design approach. On the other hand, it adds more depth to the game's lore. The concept of human imitation of nature is a red thread through all Metal Gear, opening a kind of philosophical questions, and also conveys the idea of "naturalness" of those changes taking place in the alternate reality of the game.

Animal traits are evident in robots' behavior and appearance, such as design elements, mannerisms, sounds, etc. It would seem that this is enough to give the player information about what they are dealing with. But the designers give a deeper explanation of how these mechanisms work. They are endowed not only with the features of living beings. They have a similar 'body structure' and even blood likeness. From a practical point of view, most of these details do not make any sense.

From the perspective of game design, this is one of those elements that works on a subconscious level with the player's imagination. Blazing his way through enemy valleys, Raiden destroys more than just robots. They bleed, suffer and make shrill sounds like living animals. They seem to embody the next, albeit artificially created by man, stage of evolution. They are only a part of the usual state of things, where "wind blows, rain falls, and the strong prey upon the weak". Obviously Raiden is a predator in this story. Kill or be killed. At the same time, he is a victim. A victim of his own beliefs and memes, obeying them, he tries to change the natural order, to destroy long-established truths for the sake of the highest good. But, as we found out, good and evil will always exist side by side. Because as one little-known philosopher once said,

About memes, honor and war in the next part of the review~

Credits:

Japanese Tiger and Dragon. Minneapolis Institute of Art

2. RAIJU: The Thunder Beast Yokai

3. Gekko. Metal Gear Wiki

4. Raijin. Wikipedia

[milfglupshitto]

started reading the king in yellow, this post will serve as a record of my thoughts in their original progression.

The Repairer of Reputations:

NEW JERSEY MENTION!!!

rest below the cut I just wanted the world to see that this was my actual first thought

keep having to remind myself that this was written about a possible future not a fake past

finally getting into the story part side note I kind of hate my edition’s footnotes so far

guy who’s read infinite jest voice wow this is sort of like what happened in infinite jest

some of the prose choices here are incredible. like “my cane shivered to splinters” that’s so good

knew we were doing unreliable narrator stuff here but oh shit

oh goddamn. is anyone else seeing this shit

The Mask:

the excerpt at the beginning was in the show I’m almost certain of it (it’s been 16 months I won’t bet my life on it but I’m pretty sure)

this one fucked like hell excited to maybe get more pieces of the story later

In the Court of the Dragon:

“he was a slender man, and his face was as white as his coat was black” robbie my boy you are a prophet

liked this one a lot also. right amount of length and deliberation, great ending

The Yellow Sign:

this one is fun so far I wonder if this is where the name tess is from

seeing the phrase “what’s up” in a book from 1895 is jarring

fuck Macy’s really is that old isn’t it

strong characterization of the narrator, the voice is so clear I can almost hear it

the reading scene. sickening. sick sick sick

The Demoiselle D’ys:

put the phrase ‘“Like a woman,” I said stupidly” on my grave

why are we only translating some of the French

ok not sure how that one connects but excited to find out soon

The Prophets’ Paradise:

not sure what to make of this part yet. loved the repetition it seemed fairly modern to me. think I need to read this guy’s poetry now

The Streets of the Four Winds:

yep also confused by this one but clearly cats have been a genre staple since the beginning

The Street of the First Shell:

why is this section so difficult to parse I hate French people

I’ve never really read war fiction before but those scenes were poignant. holy shit this guy’s good

The Street of Our Lady of the Fields:

I’m gonna be honest I’m so fucking lost right now why are we still in france

where the fuck are we going!!!!

love a good train though

Rue Barrée:

IM BACK IN THE FUCKING BUILDING (FRANCE) AGAIN

ok with that done I can see why he made bank with romantic fiction later on in life

[mysteryshoptls]

SR Rook Hunt Apprentice Chef Personal Story: Part 1

"Master Chef"

Part 1 (Part 2)

[Cafeteria – Judging Venue]

Master Chef ― Rook Version ～Let's Make Sweet Potato Tart 1～

Rook: It is finally time to begin our practical application. I've been highly anticipating this moment.

Cater: You look like you're in a super good mood, Rook-kun～ I thought a majority of students here took this class 'cause they had no other choice.

Rook: Any new challenge I can face warms my heart. I feel as though I could recite an impromptu poem at any moment.

Chef Ghost: Haha… How about we make some food instead of poetry. Let's go, Rook-kun.

Rook: Oui, monsieur.

Rook: Then, Cater-kun, I will see you later. A very good luck to the both of us.

Cater: Yeah. Work hard, Rook-kun～♪

[Kitchen]

Chef Ghost: You've had a smile on your face for some time now, Rook-kun. Did something good happen?

Rook: Quite. I've not had much familiarity with working in a kitchen. So every single thing here is new and refreshing for me.

Rook: My heart leaps for joy, as if I've found myself in a new land of adventure!

Chef Ghost: A new land of adventure, huh. Then I guess it's my duty to guide you, as someone who is very knowledgeable about kitchens.

Rook: Oh, how wonderfully reliable you are! Merci, Chef.

Rook: But all things considered… You say we are working with sweet potato? What an intriguing kind of tart.

Rook: It's quite the unique concoction to use a potato as filling. Will this be a savory tart meant more for meals instead of a sweet dessert?

Chef Ghost: Nope, not at all. This will be a sweet tart. How about first, you try some of these potatoes we just finished boiling.

Rook: Oh là là, this potato has such a dark yellow hue! And it's quite moist. This is my first time trying this.

Rook: When was the last time I've eaten a potato without using salt or butter? I'll deeply enjoy savoring the flavor… [chew, chew]…

Rook: ….........TRÈS BIEN!!

Rook: I'm surprised. I never knew there were potatoes this sweet that wouldn't need any seasonings! I can't get enough of this flaky texture.

Chef Ghost: This is a potato that is widely cultivated in the eastern countries.

Chef Ghost: We'll make a tart with this as filling. Don't you think it'll make a delicious treat?

Rook: Marvelous… There's certain to be still more delicacies that I have yet to learn about!

Rook: Fufu, I didn't expect to discover something new so quickly from the start… My excitement continues to grow.

Chef Ghost: It fills me with joy to teach you when you say such things. Alright, let's get to making the filling.

Chef Ghost: From what you've said so far, am I right in understanding that you haven't had much experience with cooking?

Rook: Yes. I've done some simple outdoor cooking, but it's only ever been small tasks like cutting ingredients or roasting them over a fire.

Chef Ghost: Wow! So you like to go camping. It's pretty fun to eat outdoors, isn't it?

Rook: I am so pleased you can relate, Chef! I can never tire of that peculiar brand of tension no matter how many times I experience it.

Chef Ghost: Mmm… I'm not sure if I understand what you mean about the tension, but… Well, I guess everyone enjoys things differently.

Chef Ghost: Well, anyway, if you don't have much experience, I probably should explain the cookware to you. Do you know what this is?

Rook: This is a potato masher! In a stage play I watched before, there was a scene in which one was used quite forcefully by a chef.

Chef Ghost: Oh good, so you knew what this was. Then, I'll have you mash the peeled potatoes with this.

Rook: Please leave it to me. I've nothing but confidence in this type of task.

Rook: The golden yellow potatoes, combined with the sugar, eggs, fresh cream, and butter makes for a beautiful harmony!

Rook: How does my filling look, Chef?

Chef Ghost: Yep, it looks like it's mixed very thoroughly. So, next, we'll add some brandy and vanilla extract to give it a nice aroma.

Rook: The filling's aroma has gotten far richer now. This smell is surely increasing my appetite.

Chef Ghost: Now I'll have you fill the pâte sucrée with your delicious looking filling. Make sure not to put overflow it.

Rook: Oui! I want to make sure this tart looks beautiful, as well as tasty, after all. I'll make sure to completely fill the tart with this filling, leaving no gaps.

Chef Ghost: You seem happy, Rook-kun.

Rook: Why, yes… Fufufu. How utterly fortuitous this kitchen is!

Chef Ghost: Hm?

Rook: The tart is inching closer to perfection with each passing moment. The joy of creating something as delicious as this lifts my heart!

Chef Ghost: It really is a great feeling to watch you learn, especially with how enthusiastic you are, Rook-kun. Your excitement is contagious.

Rook: Oh là là, it is wonderful how easily joy can spread to another. Cooking is so wonderful!

Part 1 (Part 2)

Requested by @starshiningsirius.

[liviavanrouge]

Cheshire Birthday Boy Vignette(Early Release)

Aura: Hey, Cheshire, happy birthday!

Cheshire: .....th-thank you...

Aura: What's the matter?

Cheshire: This is the first time I'm spending a true birthday, I just feel so happy

Aura: *Giggles* That's good!

Cheshire: Since coming here, it feels as if everyone truly feels like my family, I've made some new friends and It feels great to be around such people..

Cheshire: Being able to celebrate with you all, it makes me overly relieved. This freedom I feel right now, it's....amazing

Cheshire: So, I'm thankful for you all..

Aura: How sweet..

Aura: How did you usually celebrate your birthdays?

Cheshire: I celebrated it with some other kids until a fire incident happened since then I've celebrated alone or not at all. I would sing happy birthday songs to myself and pretend I'm eating a cake...

Cheshire: I wasn't sad though, just a little numb that's it but I was genuinely happy when I was gifted a doll by one of my creators it was a little bat doll but I broke it accidentally

Cheshire: I was given a bat plush by Livia after I told her I enjoyed bats

Aura: How do you feel about celebrating with others?

Cheshire: It feels good, being around people who like me and are willing to give me gifts or tell me happy birthday makes my heart sing!

Cheshire: I got a few nice gifts from the others, Ruggie also gave me some of his donuts!

Cheshire: *Chuckles, flicking his tail* I've gotten a makeover from Vil too~

Aura: *Laughs, smiling* Sounds fun, you seemed to have finally found your home!

Cheshire: Yeah! Oh! I especially enjoy Rook's poetry!

Aura: How cute~

Cheshire: I'm known for being cute you know, hehehe~

~~~~~

--Part 2--

Aura: What do you tend to do in your free time?

Cheshire: Oh, I work on my reading and writing!

Cheshire: I never learned how to do anything back in the lab but I started learning stuff after I came here it was so exciting!

Cheshire: I learned how to write at first and then I learned how to read!

Cheshire: After that, I do math and science with the help of Trein and Crewel, they're strict with me but I can tell they genuinely care about me you know!

Aura: That's good that you're learning!

Cheshire: I know right, it's really exciting when Iearning something new about our home!

Cheshire: Did you know during the Jaguar mutiny war, a human named Arian died to protect his husband to be!?

Cheshire: It was such a sad story, I wish the general and his human could've gotten married

Cheshire: The general looked a lot like Lilia too!

Aura: Lilia from Diasomnia?

Cheshire: Mhm, mhm! Except he had longer hair and seemed more serious! Sounds crazy right?

Aura: It kinda does...

Cheshire: *Chuckles* Told ya!

Cheshire: It's interesting though, what if it really was him but let's not dwell on that any longer~

Aura: Do you have a favorite subject to learn?

Cheshire: Hm, not yet, I hope I'm able to find one soon though..

Cheshire: They're all fun but they're also really hard, took me a good while to be able to learn any of that stuff

Cheshire: But never give up as Livia says! Keep working hard and you shall reach your goal!!

Cheshire: So this kitty boy is never gonna give up!

~~~~~

--Part 3--

Aura: Who's gift left a big impact on you?

Cheshire: Hmmm.....

Cheshire: *Grins cheekily* EPEL!

Aura: Epel?

Cheshire: Me and Epel played lots of tricks on each other! Pranks upon pranks upon pranks!

Cheshire: It was a fun filled time before I had to be pulled away for this interview! Hehehe, I managed to get the last prank in, hahaha!

Cheshire: I dumped a bucket of glitter on him and took off before he could get back at me hehehe

Aura: Sounds like you two had quite some fun!

Cheshire: Yeah it was so much fun!

Cheshire: I learned about pranks from Livia, Floyd and Haru, they all taught me and gave me ideas for each one

Cheshire: I made an enemy out of Leona though but it was so very worth it you get what I'm saying~

Aura: *Giggles* Leona was a victim?

Cheshire: Yep! Leona got his tail dipped into ice cold water and it startled him awake, he knocked over the bucket of feathers and water and it landed on him~

Cheshire: *Laughs* He looked like a big old chicken

Aura: *Giggles* Oh, poor Leona!

Cheshire: *Nods* Yeah!

~~~~~

Aura: It's the end of our interview, I hope it wasn't too boring for you

Cheshire: Not at all! I'm really happy! Thanks for coming to wish me happy birthday~

~~~~~

----SSR Groovy----

Cheshire: *Sits between Silver and Sebek, Malleus standing behind him with Lilia, a wide smile on his face as Livia handed him a blanket with bat patterns. His eyes sparkling*

@anxious-twisted-vampire @yukii0nna @writing-heiress @zexal-club @marrondrawsalot @abyssthing198 @teddymochi

[firespirited]

Movie reviews: Tau (2018) and I am Mother (2019)

It's disappointing when people make beautiful films, hire brilliant actors then write their sentient AI with big logic flaws.

Now in Tau, this works because we know the tech guy over hyped his product, admits it's flawed and built Tau with severe limitations to his ability to self improve. The problem is that Tau's willingness to break with his programming doesn't quite follow a natural flow or consistent arc but unlocks at convenient plot times. It's the type of logical leap you can ignore because we've been told he's temperamental. Not sure why a music fan would want to know the dates and nationalities of composers when history and culture are still alien concepts though. Switching to poetry, now that made sense.

Overall: Fun, kept up the tension, didn't ogle the main character in a way that ever made it slimy despite her using her charms at times. The design is superb.

In I am Mother: (fun, sleek, well played but too big a logic hole for me to ignore) ending spoiled ahead:

"Personality stability" eugenics is still eugenics and a crap foundation to a new humanity. It takes a village and Skynet would know that if she'd studied any anthopology and sociology. Instead she's left a lone 18 year old with some Kant, a trolley problem selecting for self sacrifice and massive trauma to be the new Eve. Oh and she leaves her to raise a newborn with no one to talk to and no backup for the every three hour feeds and diaper changes. yep very logic, very studied, obviously written by a hands-off dad.

I mean I'm not ruling out a dystopia where a tech bro company who thought the humanities were useless slapped the label "sentient" on this biased, uncurious, non self correcting software and thought it was good enough to give it the directive to safeguard humanity - that's the only way this film's internal logic can work.

Still, I love a small cast drama and the three actresses deliver beautifully with what they've got. Worth the watch just to see the talent.

As for Maika Monroe in Tau: on the surface, it looks like she gets typecast but she brings a whole different character to each "final girl", they're brave in different ways and for different reasons.

Hopefully I'll get round to reviewing the fantastic Watcher and Significant Other where she also stars later this week. I found that double feature so elating, I wasn't sure I could be objective, now that i've seen a little more "mid"-ish films, it's a bit clearer what elevates those two (spoilers: it's about that real life perspective).

[blamemma]

all the books i read in august 😁

urmmm first off, a great reading month numerically for me especially considering august is my biggest work month but a lot of back and forth on trains helped but also just reading some excellent books!!

at swim two boys by jamie o'neill - 5* ; yep new all time favourite. straight into the top 5 books i have ever read. it's really hard to capture the beauty of this novel when its so wrapped up in such grim experiences and harsh longing. o'neill crafts this perfect dance that keeps u turning page after page and what was a 600 slow-paced historical novel about two boys falling in love breezed by.

the snakehead by patrick radden keefe - 4* ; u can tell this is keefe's first novel, but it's still good, it still does what keefe is good at, centering one key character and building outwards from there, but it lacked some of the refinement and bite that keefe's other books excel in having

the selfless act of breathing by jj bola - 2* ; this wasn't necessarily bad, it was just too much. dialogue was poor, metaphors plentiful, and a story that really could have packed a punch got lost in trying desperately to be something profound and encapsulating. i think if bola's editor had cut out half the crap and asked bola simplify his artistry this could have been a really great novel. this feels like a counter-productive thing to say but too much time was spent waxing lyrical about events or things that just didn't need to have time spent on them. i would definitely check out bola's poetry because you can 100% see the skill he has in this novel.

penance by eliza clark - 4* ; ahhhhh this really itched that true-crime-hater spot in me. this really laid bare the dirtiness of it all, but also did what clark does best, and shows you the grimness of people and the world. i really loved what she did with form here and the way we moved through the story was well-paced, each reveal coming slowly, the puzzle finally forming together. there's no redeeming qualities in anyone, but that's the point, and clark delivers once again.

briefly, a delicious life by nell stevens - 3.5 maybe 4* ; picked this one up by accident when i was meaning to purchase a certain hunger by chelsea summers (the uk covers are v similar ok!) but actually really enjoyed this one. a weird sapphic ghost love story focused on george sands and frederic chopin, and a ghost called blanca. i loved blanca's narrative voice and how we play around in that weird limbo state between life and death and what it means to be alive and what it means to be dead. this was clever. i enjoyed it. the ending just............yeah it didn't do it for me which was a shame.....i think if maybe stevens had spent more time building chopin and sands relationship, then maybe it would have just hit that lil bit harder!!

[lawchan89]

Favorite S2 Scenes / Moments: Rayllum Appreciation Rewatch Week Day 4

The grief/consolation embrace in 2x03: Smoke and Mirrors

Arguably Callum’s lowest moment (so far anyway), the gambit of emotions swirling around his heart upon learning of his stepfather’s death becomes too much for him to bear alone. But he doesn’t turn to Claudia, the one who told the truth and broke the awful news to him. He turns to Rayla. Because after trying and failing to tell his own brother about their father, he now understands her position and their mutual bond continues to grow despite their clash before. And Rayla, even though she was on the mission to kill their stepfather, has grown to care for this boy so much that her heart overflows with empathy for his anguish in this moment, and can’t help but hold him when he finally breaks down.

“Yep. I draw when I’m upset.” — 2x07: Fire and Fury

Oh this moment is so special to me: It’s the moment I knew Rayllum was going to be canon in the show. Everything about it is pitch perfect: Callum admits he’s upset and sketching, it immediately shows us he’s drawing Rayla, he grits his teeth in desperation, the pencil lead splits, he throws the sketchbook down— just cinematic poetry in like twenty seconds. I seriously cannot get enough of this scene, it makes me smile every time I think about it. And everything leading up to it; the fact that he can’t even stand the thought of losing Rayla, outnumbered against several guards, Soren and Claudia, so much so that he despairs while sketching her, it’s just brilliant visual storytelling. And leads beautifully into…

“She doesn’t have to. I’m right here.” — 2x07: Fire and Fury

This episode is a feast! Look at Callum showing up like a big damn hero to save his girl. Literally risking his own life for hers by casting dark magic, not even sparing a thought in the moment for what it could do to him. He’s known this girl for less than two weeks and trusts and cares for her unconditionally. And he decided from that moment forward that he would do anything to protect her— even if it meant causing harm to himself.

[the-doomed-witch]

Ok, after some "post-reading-smut time alone"... now I can properly answer you with my fangirling attitude 🤭

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH - FINALLY!!!

Thank YOU for that. So damn good... SO FUCKING DAMN GOOOOOD. Tell me there is a part 2. Pretty please, tell me.. come on.. she is so dreamy to be a stand alone kind of thing.....

First: I cannot unsee Olsen in a air-hostess uniform... is burned in my mind.

Second: Holy mama...mommy/daddy play is just so.. 👌

Third: yes to oral in the crew seat, yep, yep.. totally worth the googling "where do they seat on an airplane" mishap...

Uuuh, I liked to know I have requests freedom! Don't give me too much opening, I will use it 🤭. Oh, I have so many... let me get my best one forward and I will send you later.. (claps excitedly)

About reading my fics... uhm.. hard pass. 😂 I am joking. I will get off anon and DM you one of this days - you are so nice to talk to 😊. I am writing one for Lizzie. But is far from over.

GOOGLE CAN BE SO DAMN STUPID! Like.. just ANSWER ME! Sometimes I feel like it is mansplaning me.. 😅

No new dehli? Really? Where I would stay is so very nice! My cousin lived there for... like... 10 years? Maybe is because it was a very fancy place 🤣. His photos are extraordinary! But thanks for the advice ;) I will definitely consider it when I am ready to board on a 24hour wanda-less flight 😂

Oh, I am sorry. I shouldn't have anticipated your suffering :x... I had nightmares about balance sheets not matching for years.. hahaha. I can TOTALLY see you doing 34 pages of ledgers by hand. That was a very weird phase in life for me :x.

Well, my biology is more into human anatomy and physiologic, buuut mitochondria being a gift from your mother ... who gots from you grandma, and after grandma.. and so on..is so poetic. Hahaha my geek feminist side showing...

Ok, NOW I AM INTERESTED. We need to exchange smuts indications one of this days.... 😗

My god, exactly!! And I thought I was in a very dark path when I got to know slight smut.. then I stumbled on midnightcrimson and Wanda a few weeks ago? Is safe to say my soul if on the line to take the lift down to hell. 🤣

(Arrrgh, how can I add a freaking image here?? I got a Lizzie doing yoga one!! 😒)

. .

JUBGBKDDJHJKGB 😭😭😭 i’m so so glad that you liked it anon! 🖤🖤 i’m not sure if i’ll have a part two, but i am planning a small drabble in continuation about the strap-on 🫣 still, not very sure because one thing abt me is i suck at series or multiple parts of a story 🥲

olsen in an air hostess uniform yes. yes exactly. you seriously get me. that’s what i had in my mind the whole time 🤤 sitting in the crew cabin and eating out wanda? COUNT ME IN!

also!!!!! i’ll be eagerly waiting for your request <333 & enthusiastically waiting to read your fics!! 🖤

google a mansplainer? YOU ARE SO REAL FOR THIS. like my dudes don’t try to explain me shit #GenderfluidBossing (because girlbossing sounds very gender dysphoric to me hehe)

delhi has deteriorated a LOT over the time, the air quality index has risen to a very disturbing amount… if you plan on coming here then i suggest you to do a bit of a research, because it’s seriously dangerous. nothing is more dangerous than a flight with wanda tho. iykwim

34 pages is an understatement 😭🥲 the last time i wrote an accounts exam, i used up 70+ pages in three hours! queue this genre of taylor swift lyrics:

human anatomy is my only strong topic in the entirety of biology. reminds me of the time i scored 50/50 in science in 7th grade 💀😭🤣 yeah no i’ll never forget that, it was the smartest in science i could ever be! but scientific poetry can consume my heart. the thing is, i love learning about science but for academic purposes is a no.

a geek feminist? you’re like a billion times more iconic to me. i am a geek feminist too. but more of in a way where they should allow people who menstruate to have considerate holidays and exam timings. having cramps while writing a stupid ass 20 mark test should be banned fr😐

the moment i started reading smut i only confirmed my place in hell. i haven’t spared myself. funny part is, i cannot even stop thinking about it 😩 sometimes when i cannot sleep i keep thinking abt smut …should i be concerned?

if you have a pinterest link to the image, you can link it to the text :)

(again, i’m so sorry, i geniunely forgot to answer the ask!)

[darkshrimpemotions]

i don't want to be rude or sound classist or some other form of assholishness but you can literally see the people who are too young to have ever had a non - summer gig job in their life on the internet everytime actors/networks relationships are discussed and it's not specific to the spn fandom

Yeah like. Okay I don't know a TON about the ins and outs of television specifically but I know enough about gig work to know that it's NOT as autonomous as people who've never done it like to think it is.

I also think there's this idea that because actors generally have a high net worth that they can do whatever they want. And while that might be true to an extent for like, an A-list celebrity with hundreds of millions of dollars to their name (though ask ScarJo about the limits of that), it's not necessarily true for a television actor.

And like. Yes. Jensen Ackles makes more money than I will ever see in my life, but he doesn't make remotely enough to justify skipping offered jobs when he's essentially a very well-paid gig worker who no longer has a steady guaranteed year-to-year paycheck coming, and that's assuming there's nothing in his contract with Warner Brothers to prevent him from saying no.

Even if there isn't, office politics don't disappear just because you don't work in a literal office. If anything, I imagine they're stickier than ever for a gig worker in an industry where everybody knows each other and everybody talks to the press on a regular basis.

Not to mention one of the key people involved is well known for a) being unable to keep his mouth shut on social media and b) having a fanbase that thinks death threats, stalking, doxxing, and organizing targeted smear campaigns to get actors fired are perfectly acceptable reactions to anything they feel threatens or mildly inconveniences their fave.

Can you imagine a scenario where Jensen turns down another offer to participate on Walker flat and J*red doesn't take it personally and make a stink about it on social media? Especially after the very public temper tantrum he threw over not being in the know about the prequel which then necessitated the hasty PR crap to make it seem like they're still Bestest Brothers? Because I can't.

It's entirely possible that Jensen jumped eagerly at the chance to direct an episode of Walker and just couldn't wait to work with J*red again.

But given the fact he's already turned J*red down at least twice with regards to Walker, that J*red has not been involved (or informed earlier than the general public) of any of his other projects, and that he moved several states away for apparently no reason despite lifelong personal and active business ties to Texas, to me it seems far more likely that it was just easier to appease J*red by directing an episode than deal with the fallout of refusing.

EDIT: To be clear, none of this is meant to justify participation in/profiting from racist propaganda. This is strictly about the "Jensen was forced/Jensen was eager to do it" argument. At the end of the day regardless of the truth, to quote Taylor Swift, he should've said no.

[emf005]

Picture Perfect Chapter 1

Hey guys! Sorry I haven't posted in a while, I've been working on a few different fics and also finals are coming up, so that' kicking my butt! Anyhow, I hope you guys enjoy this one, its a two-part series!

Warnings: Bullying, a bit of swearing, Draco being adorable. James being a ass hat. Mentions of death. Pretty much it I think. Let me know if I missed anything!

James Sirius Potter x Malfoy!reader

Summary: James Potter isn't one to be a bully, unless its to a certian Malfoy. But, what happens when his little sister starts dance classes and her teacher is the one and only Y/N Malfoy?

“Mommy! Come on!” A six year old Lily Luna Potter called, waiting for her mom, dad, and brothers at the doors of the dance studio. James ran up to his little sister and picked her up. “Jamie!” She giggled.

“What? Too old to be spun around? Is that what happens when you turn six?” he teased. She giggled.

“No.” James sat her down and looked up at the building, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

“This it?” He asked Harry and Ginny. Albus came up and stood besides his brother, looking at the large dance studio. Lily had been begging to go to dance classes since she was three. Lily and Harry had assumed it was a phase and never acted on it. But every year since that's all Lily asked for her birthday. 

“Yep,” Harry said looking up at the studio. It was a magical incorporated studio, said one of his coworkers who had sent his daughter there. Apparently a lot of magical students went for the summer. But it also had muggle students attending, so both magical and muggle money was accepted. “Ready to see what its like inside?” Harry asked, leaning down to his daughter’s level. She nodded and ran to the door throwing it open and running inside. James and Albus on her heels. James had his muggle camera strapped over his body in case his sister did anything or wanted a picture of anything. 

He had taken an interest in muggle photos back in his first year of Hogwarts when he found some stuck underneath his mattress that were old and faded. And, ironically, it was of his name sake. James Sirius, Remus, and Lily. There were a few with Peter in them, but he just ignored the man who got his grandparents killed. 

It had obviously been his grandmother’s camera that had taken them, since she was the only muggle born, but ever since then he had begged his parents for a vintage camera. Albus had taken up poetry, strangely. And James used to tease him about it until he actually read it. Now, apparently, it was Lily’s turn to get an art to pursue. 

“Hello,” a woman smiled from behind the desk. “What can I help you with?”

“We would like to sign our daughter up for classes,” Ginny answered, pulling her daughter off the desk. The woman smiled and looked down at Lily.

“Of course. A whole year or half?”

“Whole until she’s eleven,” Harry answered. The woman nodded. 

“Very good.” She leaned down towards Lily. “Would you like to look around? I’m sure one of our teachers would be pleased to show you around.” LIly nodded. 

“Yes please!” 

“See you, Margret!” You called, sliding your dance back higher up your shoulder and making sure your shirt was covering your whole body. 

“See you, Y/N!” She called back and you walked out of the back room. You had just finished four hours of vigorous dance training. You didn;t mind though. You loved to dance. You were headed to the back which was the fastest way home without apperating, which you weren’t legally supposed to do yet. But what's the harm in getting ahead of the game?

“Y/N!” You turned to see Miss Rosen calling you to the front. You smiled and walked up to her, braiding your Y/H/C hair as you went. It had been up in a bun for hours, but you didn;t want it to get in the way. 

“Hi, Miss. Rosen! Whats up?”

“We have a new student and I would like you to show her around.” You smiled. New students were your facvorite, although you did like working with the older ones as well. 

“Of course!” ou stepped into the lobby to see a little red haired girl looking up at you with bright green eyes, freckles decorating her face. You smiled. “Hi,” you bent down to her level. “I’m-”

“Malfoy?” 

Oh no. 

You looked up to see James Potter. The one person in the entire school who despised you. 

“James? What are you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same thing,” he spat. You sighed. Sadly, James Potter hated your guts, but you loved his. Everything about him. You couldn’t help it! But how could he ever love a Malfoy. Or even give you a chance. 

“Well, I dance here. And teach.” You glanced down to LIly and back at him and his parents. Harry and Ginny Potter. “I’m assuming this is your sister.”

“Y/N?” You looked over to see Albus walking in the door. You smiled and waved. Albus was a natural at potions, but not so much at transfigurations. You had been tutoring since his first year. He had slowly grown to like you, which you were grateful for. It also helped that he was friends with your half brother, Scorpius. 

"Hey, Albus!" You looked up at Harry and Ginny quickly tabdung and sticking out your hand. "Hello, sir, ma'am. I'm Y/N Malfoy. I mean, you probally already got that from your son's calling me by both," you laughed awkwardly. "Is it alright if I took your daughter round and showed her the studio? You can come as well if you'd like." You said polightly. You knew there was still tension between your families, still a lot of hate on the Malfoy name. You and scorpius had been trying to figure that out it, slowly, over the years. You were now in your fith year and Scorpius in his third. 

"Of course," they shook your hand and you could tell they were hesitant. Still, didn't blame them. "You two can go ahead on your own."

"Great! Wanna come back wit-"

"Can I come?" You looked up from Lily to see James standing there with his arms crossed. You noticed he had his camera across the side of his body, which wasn't unusual to see. "Can I go back with her to check it out. I want to make sure my sister has the best school she can," he narrowed his eyes at you, making you swallow. Why did he have to hate you? 

"Thats alright with me, just take off your shoes, the both of you." They nodded and took off their shoes, then the three of you headed back. You showed her the diffrent dance rooms introduced her to some teachers and some of your friends at the studio. 

"Hi! I'm Margret!" Your red haired friend introduced. She was one of the best in your studio. Also one of the kindest. If she was a which she would be a Hufflepuff you had decided long ago. "I see your going to be taught byY/N. She's one of the best in the studio. Don't worry, you'll see," she said excitedly to the little girl.  You rolled your eyes at your friend.

"Ok, yeah. Thanks for the encouragement, Margret." She bumped your shoulder and laughed before eyeing James. 

"Are you going to be joining too?" She asked, batting her eyelashes. Oh, did you mention she was a complete flirt? But, sadly, so was James. 

"No, but if you dance here I might just consider it," he winked, causing her to giggle and you and Lilly to gag. 

"Alright, Margret, she's already signed up, no need to flirt with her brother." She smiled sweetly at James. 

"Y/N/N, that wasn't the reason I was flirting," you nearly gaged again. 

"Disgusting. Alright. Theres one more studio I want you to see. It's the largest one in here," Lily grabbed your hand and you lead the two into the large. It was a studio as big as a stage with the wooden floors and folding mirrors that would some out or appear to be an audience. There was a balcony up top for parents and younger ones to whatch, which they always did often, pressing themselves up against the railing to watch the older girls dance. 

"Wow," she gasped when you lead her in. You flipped a switch and the mirrors folded to appear as if there were any audience and the lights hanged to resemble ones of a stage, even the heat was the same, she gasped again. You smiled at her reaction. It would never get old watching younger girls get excited over the first time they walked in. That's one of the reasons you had a camera in the corners. You would often go back and watch your first tape when you felt distraught. It reminded you why you got j to dancing in the first place. 

"I'm still not convinced. You haven't shown us if this studio teaches well enough for my sister to join," James scoffed. Lily's mouth fell open, halting at her. Brother and warning him to shut up and not ruin this for her. You just smiled. 

"Well, what would convince you?" You asked, no malece in your voice. I mean, you were talking to James Sirius Potter, could you even have malece in your voice?

He looked you up and downs nd smirked. 

"You dance." You raisrd your eyebrows.

"Pardon?" You squealed out.it was a known fact you didn't dance in front of audiences. Ever. Your father and half brother had tried to convince you, but you wouldn't budge. Your stage fright was to sever. And now you had your crush, yelling you to dance for him and his little sister to see if your good enough. Lily looked up at you with wide eyes. 

"Would you?" You swallowed and bit down on your lip. You sighed. 

"Fine. Fine. Here," you pulled your phone out of your back pocket, they were issued to all the girls for music and communication with muggle friends. Lily looked at the device curiously and James jus raised his eyebrows. 

"You have one of those?"

"How else am I supposed to have the music, record my various dances to study, and play the music out side of the studio and the ballroom in my home?"

"You have a ballroom in your house?" You shrugged. 

"Part time. Half the summer we live at Malfoy manor and the other half we stay at the cottage, which me and dad prefer but…"you shrugged as if saying it is what it is. You scanned your music until you reached the song you were looking for. "Could you hit play when I say so, please?" Lily nodded and grabbed the phone. You dropped you that and started to take off your shit. 

"What in the hell do you think your doing!" He yelled and covered your eyes. You crinkled your brow at him before it clicked. A coy grin spread on your face. 

"Something bothering you, Potter?" You teased and you slid off your pants as well, leaving you in your leotard and a pair of pink tights. His eyes were still covered and Lilly was stifling giggles. You tied a black ballet skirt around your waist and leaned on the bar. "For Merlin's sake, Potter! Do you really think I'd strip nude in front of you?" You laughed. He brought his hands away from his face and recomposed himself seeing as you were still covered,. It  matter how scandalous the outfit was. 

"N-no," he stuttered, still not looking. At you. He knew as soon as he did he would start to blush and he would not give you that satisfaction. You set yourself up and took a breath removing them from the world like you had to do in class. 

"Lily? Can you play it please?" Your voice came out shaky. The music began to play and you settled yourself before starting the routine you knew by heart. You had to make sure not to focus on the other two persons in the room. Yas soon as you took notice of them you knew your stage fright would over all of your senses and you would become a stuttering limp noodle incapable of doing anything. You were very careful with who you danced around. Your father watched you on a regular basis because 'he paid for lessons and for ficks sake he was goin to watch it'. You always laughed at him and then let him see. But your half brother and step mother never saw a lick of anything. Well, that's a lie, Scorpius' had walked in on you ounce, but you had caught him and broke your ankle. He had felt so terrible that he couldn't meet your eyes for weeks. 

You finished the dance with grace and let the last of the music settle in your bones before coming out of your finishing position and, shyly, face the two of them. You wrapped your hands around your body and ran back to your jeans and t-shirt. You quickly changed. 

"So, worthy of your sister?" James closed his mouth, still in shock something so beautiful could come out of a Malfoy. How a Malfoy could actually look beautiful. He snapped himself out of it quickly enough though and nodded. 

"I suppose it'll do. But if I hear one complaint I will march down here and demand a new teacher," he sneered. You smiled and slung your bag on your shoulder again, taking a drink of your water and ready to pass out. 

"Well, I'm glad you approve. How about you, Lily? Do you want to dance here?" She nodded vigorously and smiled. You couldn't help but reciprocate her smile. She was too cute.

You walked the two back out of the maze of studios and offices and back to the lobby where her parents were waiting. Ginny was looking at leotards and tights with a pained expression, like she didn't know what she was doing. 

"We're back!" You said. Lily ran from your grip and latched onto her mother's leg. 

"Is miss.Malfoy going to be my teacher? Please say yes! Please please pleeeeeease!" You chuckled and leaned against the doorway.

"I'm sure if you ask nicely," Ginny responded looking at her daughter lovingly and making you jealous. You had never had a loving mother look at you like that. You had a father who looked at you like that, but it was just different. 

"Miss. Malfoy, will you please teach me?" She begged. You smiled. 

"I think that can be arranged, Lily. And please, call me Y/N. I'm no one special enough to earn that much of a title," you laughed. She beamed and launched herself at you, hugging you tightly. You hugged her back and sent her to her mother and father again. Ginny walked over to you. 

"You wouldn't happen to know anything about… Apparel or anything would you?" You smiled at her. 

"I know a bit. What are you having trouble with? " Well, I'm not sure on what to buy or how much or hair or… any of it really," she shrugged guilty. "Quidditch I can do. Ballet?" She shook her head. You smiled. 

"You'll get the hang of it. You should have seen my dad when I started," you laughed. 

"Telling stories about me, sweet heart?" You looked up and saw you father step in. You ran over and hugged him. 

" No." You grinned cheekily. 

"Uhu." He poked your nose. “What did I tell you about lying when you can;t do it.” You laughed and pushed him out the door. 

“I’ll be out in a second. I just have somethings to finish.” He smiled and patted your head before walking out. “Sorry about that.” you walked back over to Ginny “As I was saying, you’ll get the hang of it eventually. But anything you need I’m here.” She smiled gratefully while Harry was eyeing you strangely. He had never seen Draco act like that. Not at school, not at work, not the few occasions he had seen him out of work. It was strange. 

“Harry!” Harry snapped out of his mind as Ginny yelled at him. “Stop staring at the poor girl! Unless you want to do this,” she offered and handed him a leotard. He backed up with his hands up. 

“No, definitely not.” You chuckled. “Sorry, I didn’t realize I was staring at you,” you brushed him off quickly. 

“It's no problem, sir. I get the death glare from parents a lot. Any how, what days work best for you? I am here everyday.”

“Wednesdays?” Harry just shrugged. 

“Why did I even bring you?” She sighed. 

“It's no problem, just send an owl here or just come down personally whenever you figure out the best day or times. Like I said, I’m here everyday from opening till closing.”

“And sometimes longer,” Miss Rosen scoffed. You sent her a smile. 

“You’d miss me if I weren’t here so much.” She grumbled something and collected her papers, heading to the back. 

“Lock up when you're done. You still have your key?”

“Yup, have a good night, Miss Rosen!”

“Uhu,” she called over her shoulder. You walked to the desk and started collecting some papers to start a file for Lily and for the Potters to fill out. 

“Are we here after hours?” Ginny asked. You looked up at her. 

“Not really. I mean, technically, yes. But I’m here after hours so much that I have a key and often lock up.”

“They gave you a key?” James scoffed. You faltered for a moment before putting the smile back on your face.

“It beats having someone stay with me here till ten.” You handed Ginny a few papers. “If you could fill these out and just give them back whenever you decide on a day and time. Its just a few questions and health information. Also, her first day, if she would just come in leggings in a t-shirt or a tank top that would be lovely. We’ll get her measured for a leotard and tights then, we’ll also get her shoe sizes in order.” Ginny took the papers. 

“Thank you, Y/N. We’ll be back when we get these filled out.” You smiled and started to sort things in order on the desk which had turned into a complete mess. They started to file out. 

“Oh! Mrs.Potter!”

“Yes?” She turned back around and you bit your lip. 

“I know your family and my dad don’t exactly get along but… if you see my dad out there, could you tell him to just go along without me? It's a mess in here and it’ll bother me all night unless I clean it up.” She smiled. 

“Of course, dear.” She smiled and they disappeared. You let your smile drop slightly and you quickly cleaned up the desk before triple checking all the rooms to make sure they were clean enough for the night. 

The Potters stepped out of the dance studio to see Draco leaning against the building. He stood up when he heard the door, expecting his daughter, but only saw the Potter’s. He leaned back against the building. 

“Malfoy?” He looked at Ginny. He hadn't expected to be addressed. “Your daughter said to go on without her. She’d be a few minutes.” Draco just chuckled and continued to lean against the building. 

“Wasn’t expecting her to walk out with you. She’s always late. I swear she’s here more than her actual house. Thank you for the heads up, though.” Harry eyed Draco suspiciously. 

“Did you just thank us?”

“I did, Potter. I wouldn;t get used to it though,” James scoffed and Ginny shot him a scolding look. Draco eyed James and raised his eyebrows. “I suspect your James?”

“I suspect your Draco,” James drawled. Draco rolled his eyes. 

“Looks like he has just as good of comebacks as his father was,” Harry went to say something but Ginny squeezed his arm telling him to keep his mouth shut for the sake of not proving the man right. Draco nodded to Albus who waved awkwardly. “I’ll be going to see if my daughter needs any help inside. Thank you for telling me my daughter's message.” he turned and walked into the building. Ginny watched the door for a moment. 

“How did he end up with a daughter as nice as she was?” She mumbled. 

“He didn’t,” James muttered. They all started to walk away. 

“What do you mean?” Albus asked. “She and Scorpius are two fo the nicest people in both our years. Just because you don’t like who her father is doesn’t mean she’s rude.”

“And how do you know how nice she is?” James shot back. 

“She tutors me in transfigurations. She had some of the highest grades in your year, ya know.”

“She told you that?”

“No, professor Mcgonagall did when she suggested I ask her for help.” Albus shrugged.

You walked out to the front again with your arms full to see your dad leaning on the door. You frowned. 

“Why are you still here? I’m going to be here for a while.” He smiled. 

“Think I’d leave you to suffer this work all by yourself?” You smiled gratefully.

“Isn’t Astoria waiting at home?” You asked, putting some of the flies away. 

“She’s not the most important girl in my life,” he kissed your head and put a file on the top shelf. You smiled at hearing that. 

Astoria Greengrass. Your step-mother. You were happy she made your dad happy. You wouldn't have asked for anything better for him. But, she hated you. She preferred her own child and would make that perfectly clear when you were anywhere near her. 

Knowing that your father still cared about you made you smile and feel welcomed in your home. Well, the manor wasn't your home. You had never felt at home there. It was too large for you, though the ballroom was extraordinary. You preferred the smaller house, which was still particularly a large place. But it wasn’t as large as the mansion, it also never felt dreary like the mansion. Both you and your father preferred the “smaller” place, while Astoria preferred the mansion. Scorpius was indifferent to the whole ordeal. He could make himself comfortable on a bed of spikes, you often joked with him. Normally earning a dry sarcastic laugh from him. 

“How was class today?” Draco asked, breaking the comfortable silence as you handed him a few more files to put on the shelves that you couldn’t reach.

“It was good. I got my grand jete a bit higher today,” you said excitedly, though you knew this was all forgien to him. 

“That's great!” You smiled. 

“Still have no idea what I’m talking about do you?”

“Not a clue, but you seem excited about it.” You smiled wider. “That Potter kid wasn't giving you crap was he?”

“Lily?”

“The other one.”

“Albus?”

“No the other other one.”

“James?”

“That's the one. Seems like a piece of work, that one.” You chuckled and blushed lightly. Yeah, a piece of work indeed.

“No, he’s just protective. Wants the best for his siblings and such,” you shrugged. Draco scoffed. “What?”

“I was a prick like that. That's not the only thing going through his mind.”

“Dad,” you warned. 

“What? I’m just saying. The other two seemed fine. He was an egotistical control freak who, let me guess, has a new girl on his arm every other week. Wait, and let me guess, it gets better, right? He also bullies the less fortunate.”

“You almost described what you were like as a kid.”

“That's because I know what they look like. And that kid was me, just different.” You rolled your eyes, your mind wandering back to the school year and the various jabs he made at you… the less fortunate…

It had been a few weeks since you had taken Lily on as a student. Since she was new to dance you had suggested twice a week and found that Lily was a very capable dancer. She caught on quickly and was very confident in her movements, though you could tell she got stressed when she wasn't able to get something right. 

“That was excellent, Lily!” You praised. She smiled brightly at your praise. How about we move to the large room if you’d like, maybe even get your mother and father to watch,” you suggested. Her face lit up. “I’ll go get them. If there's someone dancing just stand on the side like usual, alright?” She nodded and practically pranced off to the large room.

You smiled at her and quickly walked to the waiting area. Her lesson was nearly over and Harry and or Ginny were normally there already. Your smile dropped when you noticed James leaning on the wall looking down at his camera.

“Hey, Potter,” You smiled. He looked up and his gaze made your heart go mad. “Your parents here?”

“No. They sent me to pick up Lily. Is she done?”

“We were going to run her routine in the large studio. Would you like to watch? She’s very proud of it.” 

“Sure.”

“Follow me.” you walked him back to a door. “Just go up these steps and you’ll be on the balcony. I’ll send her up to you when she’s finished.” You left him to go up the stairs and to the balcony. 

The large room was emptying out from the previous class when you entered. You had class right after you taught Lily so there was a few minutes break in between. 

“Ready?” She nodded and ran out to the middle of the room. “I’ll jump in if you get stuck, ok? Just keep going if you forget a step.” She nodded and set herself up. You pressed play on the music and her music started. You watched her from the sidelines, making mental notes on what to work on with her next lesson. You jumped in on the new part and helped her through it, which she seemed grateful for. 

The music ended and you smiled. 

“That was great, Lily! Keep practising and I’ll see you next week. Your brother is up on the balcony if you want to go meet him. You remember how to get up there?” She nodded. 

“Yep! Thank you, Y/N!” She hugged you and ran up to meet her brother as your friends started to walk in. You joined them in center to begin to stretch for class. 

James was waiting for Lily when she came running up the stairs. He put his camera away and picked her up. 

“That was beautiful! I got a few pictures of you doing it as well,” She smiled brightly. 

“Can we watch, Y/N dance?” She asked. “She has class right now and I wanna see what the older girls do.” James forced a smile, hating the idea of being in the same room as you longer than he had to, but agreed for his sister’s sake. He carried her to the edge as they watched you and a group of girls warm up. You were talking to Margaret as you stretched. You had taken your shirt off so you were in a backless red leotard; he was slightly surprised that the leotard wasn’t green.

“Hey isn’t that the girl you're teaching and her adorable brother?” You looked away from your curly hair friend to see James and Lily watching the class. You waved and Lily waved back as James just glared at you. You slowly brought your hand back down and turned back to Margaret. “What was that about?”

“He hates me,” you shrugged. 

“Why?”

“We go to the same school.” Her eyes widened. 

“Wait, that's the kid who bullies you?”

“I wouldn’t say bully.”

“I would. Want me to beat him up?” You laughed. 

“Maggy!”

“What? I will.” You rolled your eyes and slipped into your split. 

“No. I don’t want to lose his sister as a student. She is very talented, and a joy to teach.” Margaret frowned. 

“Well, whenever you want me to beat him up I’ll be all over it.” You laughed and your teacher began class. 

You notice James pull Lily out half way through, which you didn’t blame him for. Class was about three hours, and that wasn’t even the end of your day. Lily looked upset, but let him carry her out without a fuss. Margaret nudged you and nodded up towards the balcony.

“What?” You whispered, pirouetting a few times. 

“They left.”

“She’s probably exhausted. She danced for a vigorous hour with me.”

“Or maybe he likes you and couldn’t stop his heart from beating at the sight of you,” She hummed. You glared at her. 

She and Scropius were the only two who knew of your crush on James. And now you were regretting telling her. 

“Or maybe he couldn;t stand the sight of me anymore because he hates my guts.” You whispered back. She rolled her eyes. 

“Probably hard,” she muttered. You smacked her shoulder and stifled laughs. 

“Margaret!” She smiled at seeing you laugh. You had looked so off when you noticed them. Your stage fright getting the better of you. Now that they were gone you seemed more at ease. 

“Y/N!” You looked at the teacher. 

“Yes ma’am?”

“Class has ended.” You smiled. 

“Sorry ma’am. Would it be a problem if I stayed here for a bit longer?”

“By a bit longer do you mean ten tonight?” You chuckled. 

“Is that your hint that my day is over and to get out?” you asked with a grin. She rolled her eyes. 

“Well, my day is over. Good evening, Miss. Malfoy.”

“Good evening.” You went to the player and set up your music. You had some routines you wanted to run, as well as throw some tricks. 

James was tearing his already messy room apart, mumbling how he could not believe he lost something or other. 

“Jamie?” Lily asked coming in. “What’s wrong?”

“I think I left the cap to my camera at the studio,” He sighed and flopped down on the bed with a huff. 

“Y/N might not have left yet. She normally stays after closing.” James scoffed. 

“Like I want to be in there alone with her.”

“Wouldn;t surprise me,” Albus smirked from the doorway. 

“Go away, Albus.”

“You like her, admit it.”

“Why would I like a stuck up Malfoy?”

“Maybe because she isn’t stuck up?” Albus offered. “Come on, James. You know that better than anyone.” James scoffed and stood. 

“I need my lid, so I suppose it's worth a shot. Tell mum and Dad I’ll be back later.” He slung his camera over his body and grabbed his jacket heading out of the room, grumbling angrily.

He walked slowly down to his sister’s studio, semi praying that it was closed and he wouldn’t have to see you. He even stopped and took pictures of random things on his way. But, alas, it was not to be. 

When he got to the studio he pulled on the door which opened with ease. 

Maybe he wouldn’t see you?

Wrong. 

He walked up to the balcony and immediately heard someone on the floor. Being the curious person he was he peaked over to see you in front of a mat, pressed up against the wall on your toes. You ran and flipped in the air, landing on your behind. He cringed, but you got out of it with another trick. Had you meant to do that?

“Are you going to just watch me all day or are you going to at least say something?” You called up to him, prepping for another trick. He scowled and leaned over the railing. You glanced at him, sending him a small smile before running again and doing a front aerial, landing it perfectly. Though, you went over everything you could've done better in your head. 

“I was just looking for my camera lid,” he grumbled down at you. 

“Is that why you were studying me do a suicide?” You asked. His eyes widened. 

“A wh-what?” You chuckled. 

“Don’t think I didn’t see you cringe. I have excellent eyesight. The trick when I-oof-” you pushed off the ground into a roundoff back handspring. You landed it and rolled your shoulders, turning to him. “Landed on my butt. Its called a suicide. And the trick afterwards is a valdez,” you informed him. He just glared at you. You nodded awkwardly. “Nice talk. Oh, and your camera lid is on the desk out front.”

“How’d you-”

“I make sure no one left anything around the studio. If they do I leave it on the deck. You just happened to label it. J.S.P. Kind of hard not to know who that is.”

“Oh.”

You stood backwards against the mat and did four back handsprings, grimacing when you came up from the last one. You really needed a rest day. But a rest day would mean not coming into the studio. And you weren’t going to stay home with Astoria. 

Walking back to the other end of the mat nearly every bone in your body cracked or creaked in some way, making james cringe. You smiled up at him. 

“Not a fan of cracking bone?” You chuckled. 

“There was just so much. Is that normal?” You smiled to yourself. 

“Yeah. For me at least. I’m not naturally flexible so I crack a lot and I have to stretch every day in order not to get back to point A.” You stood against the wall and ran into your Front Handspring, immediately going into your back handspring. 

“Will Lily be able to,” he waved his hand at you. “Do this?” You chuckled and sat down on the mat, needing to stretch for a moment. 

“She’s very flexible. Her split is already down and her straddle is close. I could work with her during her lessons with acrobats. It's best to get them started young when they're growing. It gets harder when you're a teenager. So, if she works hard, yes. She could do this.” It was quiet for a few minutes as you stretched. “Your sister is very talented like her brother’s. You should be proud.” You smiled at him, standing and doing a backbend, sitting in it for a moment before coming back up, groaning as you did.

“I am. She works very hard at it.”

“Well, like you saw today, she’s moving quickly. By the time we go back to Hogwarts she should be ready to join a group class.”

“Is that good?” You smiled. 

“Yes. Group classes are fun and though they don;t cover as much as a private lesson does they’re just as challenging.”

“Really?” You chuckled at his confusion. This family knew nothing about ballet or dance at all. 

“Yeah I should know. I take at least four a week.”

“Four a week, really?”

“Yep. I teach on all of those days, plus one where I don’t have a lesson. And I have two days off. But, I’m still here working on technique.” You shrugged. 

“So you practically live here,” he joked. 

“Yeah. This is more of a home than Malfoy Manor ever has been.”

“Why, don’t love your parents?” he scoffed. 

“My dad I adore. We’re surprisingly close. Me and uh, Astoria, have a… forced relationship.” He raised his eyebrows in shock at you using her first name. 

“Must be honest, from the stories I've heard about the Malfoys, I wouldn't expect him to be a good parent,” James scoffed. You smiled sadly.

“Yeah, a lot of people wouldn’t. But I wouldn’t ask for a different one, as cheesy as that sounds.” You backed up against the wall and sprang off into a roundoff back tuck landing on your head. “Ah!” You sat up and rubbed your neck and head. That was going to be sore tomorrow. “Dammit!” You swore, smacking the mat. You stood up and walked back over to the end of the mat, getting ready to do it again. 

“Are you alright?” You glanced at James, yoru vision swimming for a moment before focusing on him. You blinked a few times to clear the spots from vision. 

“Yeah. Not the first time I’ve landed on my face,” you chuckled. You felt a tear slip down your face and wiped it away quickly. 

“You're crying.”

“Thank you captain obvious,” you joked, laughing. “It just hurts a bit,” you snifled and willed the rest of the tears away, rubbing your face and neck. It was definitely going to bruise. “Yet again, not the first time. Gotta fall a couple times before you stick the landing." You got ready on the wall to push off again, but your vision fell to the side and you knew you weren't going to be able to tumble any more. 

Dad’s gonna be pissed that he has to fix my head again.

You quickly rolled up the mats and looked at James who was studying. You smiled. 

“Did you eat yet? I’m positively starved and I know a good pizza joint down the road.”

“Why would I want to join you?” he sneered.

Moment of being civil over. 

You shrugged.                              

“Just thought I’d offer. My treat if you decide to join.” You looked around the room making sure everything was in place and clean. 

You nodded and left the room, shutting off the lights. You checked the other rooms and grabbed your bag, changing into jeans and a black crop top with your jean jacket. You walked out and grabbed your key from your bag. You saw James bouncing awkwardly on his feet. You smiled at him.

“Change your mind?”

“You did say you were paying,” he defended. “And I am not one to pass up free food.” You laughed and double checked everything. You grabbed your notebooks from the counter and shoved them in your bag.

“Well, let's go then. The pizza place is about a block away.”

“Don’t you need to get home?” He asked.

“Worried about me, Potter?” You asked teasingly as you locked up the studio. He scoffed. 

“Just asking.”

“My dad’s used to me coming home late. Though he might have to fix my head tonight,” you laughed and touched your forehead.

“It hurts?” You shrugged. 

“I mean, I did land on it with full force. I didn’t jump high enough or use nearly as much power,” you chastised yourself. “It was doomed from the beginning.” 

“Yet you're walking straight?”

“You were walking straight after you took that bludger to the head last year,” you chuckled. He rolled his eyes.

“That's because you Slytherin’s play dirty.” You laughed. 

“I can’t control the bludgers! I’m not even a beater!” You defended yourself. 

You opened the door to the pizza place and a fresh whiff of oregano cheese and dough filled your senses. You sighed. 

“Donte!” You yelled. A teenager walked from the back with crossed arms. 

“Y/N! What do you think I am? Your personal pizza maker?” You laughed and batted your eyes at your muggle friend. 

“Maybe.” 

“Your usual?” You nodded. 

“Yeah, but my friend here has never been.” Donte looked at James.

“Well, take a look at the menu. I’ll tell Dominique to start making your order.”

“It's appreciated!”

“Uhu,” he called back, already headed to the back. 

“Come here often, then?” James asked. You smiled. 

“Is it that obvious?” You walked with him to the counter where they had a menu above the counter for ordering. 

“What's good here?”

“What isn’t,” you laughed. “What kind of food do you like? They have pizza fries, garlic knots, pizza, pizza bread. Everything, realy.”

“What is it you get?”

“Garlic knots and a half of a calzone normally. I think that's what they’re cooking up back there. To be honest though I never know. They surprise me some days.”

“Who knew a Malfoy would be friends with muggles,” he sounded surprised. You hummed, holding back a snarky response. 

“Did you decide? I’m Sure the little dancer over here wasn’t much help.” You rolled your eyes at his nickname. 

“She really wasn’t. What do you suggest?”

“Well, if you like pizzas we sell smalls that are about six pieces. Great for taking home. Our garlic knots are pretty well known, but she’s already getting those, so I assume you’d just share with her.”

“Why would you assume that?” You asked, offended.

“Aren;t you two, ya know, a couple?” You laughed and so did James. The only difference was you cheeks flushed, wishing you were. 

“No,” You answered. “He hates my guts. I just happen to teach his sister. And then he came back to the studio because he forgot something.” Dante’s confused look dropped into one of murder. 

“Oh. So you're the one who’s picking on her,” he crossed his arms. 

“Donte!”

“Want me to beat him up?”

“How are you and Margaret not an item yet? She offered the same thing, and no. Just-Just order him the same as me but with pizza fries.” you huffed and turned to a both near the corner. James followed you, glancing over his shoulder at Donte who was still glaring at the two of you. 

“What was that about?” He scowled at you. You kept your eyes on Donte’s back, ignoring James. 

“I’d be careful when he brings the food over. He’s not opposed to spitting in people’s food,” you warned before fiddling with your napkin and waited for your food. You weren’t joking. You were starving. You hadn’t had time for an actual breakfast or to pack a lunch that day. You only had an apple before you left the house and a granola bar for lunch and you couldn’t wait to get some actual food in your body.

“So are you ever going to answer me?” James asked after a moment. You looked up. 

“What?”

“About your… friend?... Threatening to beat me up. Like he could touch me.” You laughed. 

“Donte is the most bad ass kid in this town. I bet he could beat you in a fight.”

“That was cold, Malfoy. Saying a muggle could beat me up.” 

“Oh? Would you cast a few spells on him so you’d get the upper hand?”

“Possibly.” You rolled your eyes.

“Because that sounds fair.”

“Since when do Slytherins care about being fair?” You mouth parted, but you had no words. Yet again, civil and then your back to reality. You slumped in your seat. Donte came over and glared at James as he gave you your food. “Thanks, Donny. I haven’t eaten all day,” you sighed, smelling the spices and ingredients better now that they were even closer to your nose. 

Your friend pointed to you threateningly. 

“You better start eating.” You laughed. 

“I missed my alarm!” You laughed. 

“And you had to get to the studio before your first lesson because?”

“Because I needed out of the house.”

“Mansion,” he coughed. You threw a fry at him. 

“Get back to work, Ankenson!” You laughed at him. 

“Of course, Miss. Malfoy,” he sarcastically bowed and left to continue working. You rolled your eyes and pulled apart one of your garlic knots. James watched the scene before grabbing a fry and eating it. 

“What?” You asked when you caught him studying you. He shook his head. 

“Does he know about the wizarding world?” 

“Yeah. I honestly should've obliviated him but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. He found out my first year after I got home from school." You frowned and shoved the bread in your mouth remembering your first year. All the kids up to no good wanted to make nice and be your friend. Thinking you were the stereotypical Malfoy. You had no friends that year and got picked on by James like there was no tomorrow. 

“Ya know, you still never answered my question. Why did he want to beat me up?” You shoved a garlic knot in your mouth. 

“Becuas woo wick end e,” you mumbled. 

“Come again.”

“He found out I was getting.. Uh… picked on.. I guess,” you shook your head and shoved another piece of the knot in your mouth. 

“You can handle yourself though.” You looked away. 

“Yeah. He’s just over protective.” 

And for a good reason. You liked to think yourself strong, but you knew you weren’t. You could hold it together in the moment, but would completely collapse when you were alone. That's actually how you two met. 

You had gotten into another fight with Astoria when you were eight and had been packed and leaving the mansion. Scorpius was crying in the parlor because you were leaving and your father was still at work, so there was no one to talk the situation down. 

You had made it to the back of the pizza shop before completely collapsing and succumbing to sobs when a nine year old in jeans and t-shirt was walking by and saw you crying. He had taken you home after calming you down. He may have been a punk, but he was still kind. He had taken you back home and father was beyond furious at both you and Astoria. Mostly Astoria, though. You had just scared the crap out of him because he actually thought you would have gone through with it, and losing his kid was his worst fear. You and Donte had been friends ever since. 

The two of you finished in near silence. The only time one of you spoke was to see if the other could have fries or a Garlic knot. You had ended up paying, like you said you would. 

“I’ll pay you back in wizard money,” James said, his hands in his pockets as you two stepped out. 

“Nonsense! I told you I would pay. Besides, I'm pretty sure he gave me a discount.”

“How do you even have muggle money?”

“I work at the studio, so I get paid in both since I teach magical and non-magical kids.” You explained, hopping onto the curb and balancing like you always did. 

“Huh, weird. You’d think you didn;t even need to get paid.” You looked at him. 

“WHats that supposed to mean?”

“Well your family’s rich.”

“So is yours,” you countered. 

“Well, we don’t act like it,” he snapped back. 

“Oh? So just because I don’t dress down all the time and we throw a few parties with stuffy know it all pure blooded Slytherins that makes us act like it?”

“Yeah, actually. It does!”

“Fascinating, Potter. Your way of thinking is quite dizzying. A poor, simple minded Slytherin like myself is having a hard time keeping up. Should I bow down to the Gryffindor prince now?”

“Like you don't expect everyone to do the same,” He scoffed. 

“I don’t! You do understand that I hate the way people view me, right? I hate that my last name and all the little things that come with it! Having people look at me like I’m some monster! That I’m supposed to act like Slytherin’s princess!”

“Well aren’t you? You're from a family full of murders and monsters. Doesn't that automatically make you one to? A monster? A murderer?” You froze at the word murderer. Tears welled in your eyes and you turned away from the boy.

“Before you go around picking on people, James,” your voice cracked as you tried to keep your emotions in check, but obviously failing. “Try and get to know them first, they might just surprise you.” You bolted down the sidewalk and did not stop until you got home. Or, rather, to the manor. 

Tears were running down your face at this point and you were sobbing, the words murderer and monster ringing in your head. You slammed the door shut and pressed your body up against it, putting your hand over your mouth to quiet the sobs. But your father had heard you arrive and stepped out of the parlor, expecting a happy daughter who had just got back from dancing. This was not what he got. 

His smile fell when he saw you and quickly ushered you into the parlor where he had come from. You completely broke down and he just held you, worried about what happened. He rubbed your back until your sobs had quieted. He then sat you down on the couch. 

“What happened? What's wrong?” You shook your head, looking down at your hands. “Hey, sweet heart, what happened?” You sniffled and wiped the tears from your eyes.

“Dad, am-am I a monster? Because-because of mom?” he stared at you for a moment and shook his head. 

“Of course not, that wasn’t your fault. There were multiple compil-”

“But it was because of me,” you said sadly. “Because she had me. I killed mom,” you couldn’t look at him. James was right. Wherever your last name was, death happened. You had caused it last time. It was your fault that your mother died. Your real mother. 

“Look at me, Y/N,” he pulled your face up to meet his. “You did not kill your mother. Whatever put this thought in your head, get it out right now. Do you understand me?” You nodded and sniffled. “Where did this come from?” 

“It's-its just a thought, I've been entertaining for a while,” you mumbled. It wasn;t a complete lie.

“Possibly, but who brought this up?”

“He didn’t mean to, I don’t think.”

“Who?” He knew it couldn't have been Donte. He’d met him a few times and, though he was a rebel and got into fights every other day, he seemed to take care of his daughter and he was grateful for that.

“James,” you mumbled. He almost didn’t catch it, but he wanted to be sure before he went around throwing accusations. 

“Could you say that one more time?”

“J-James. But please don’t do anything!I don't want there to be more problems!”

“More?” He raised an eyebrow and you flinched back. 

Oops. 

Your father may or may not have known that you had been getting picked on at school. You didn’t want him to do anything rash, like you knew he was going to do now. 

“I-I mean any. Because there would have to be problems to begin with for there to be more. But-but there aren’t any problems. Ever. Nope. None.” you faked a yawn and looked up at the mantel’s clock. “Would you look at the time? I’m beat! I-I’ll see you tomorrow, Dad. And please don't say anything. To any one. Ever.” You rushed out of the room, hoping he wouldn’t say anything. 

But as Draco watched you scurry out of the room, he knew he had to. He didn't even know you were getting picked on. And by a Potter! How many times had a Potter made you cry and he was unaware there was even a problem? No way was this going to slide by him. Not happening. 

“Potter!” Draco called and jogged over to Harry who turned and looked at him suspiciously. 

“Yes, Malfoy? Can I help you with something?” Draco hesitated. 

“Can I talk to you in private?” Harry gave him a look but complied. They walked into an empty office. 

“What do you want?”

“I want to talk about your son and my daughter.” Harry furrowed his eyebrows. 

“I don’t understand.”

“Your son said a few… choice words that made my daughter upset the other night and apparently it has been going on for a while.”

“Like what?”

“I’m not sure exactly, but she came home in tears last night asking if she were a monster because of a…” He cleared his throat. “An accident that happened when she was born.” Harry understood immediately. He had known about Draco’s first marriage and how that ended. “I then asked why she was thinking this and she asked me not to say anything, but I care for her… a lot.” Harry nodded. 

“I’ll talk to James. I’m sorry she had to go through that. You as well.” Draco nodded and cleared his throat again. 

“Yes, um, thank you.” Draco walked past Harry and out of the conference room. Harry thought about how the tables had turned. But it still wasn’t right. No matter what happened in their childhood. 

“James! Can I talk to you for a second?” Harry called to his son who was playing with Lily in the yard as if nothing had happened yesterday. He had spent the night convincing himself that she had deserved it. That Malfoys and Slytherin’s like that didn’t have emotions. It cleared his conscience and took away his guilt.

“Yeah, dad!” He dropped Lily and ran into the house. Harry took him to the empty dining room, not wanting to rope Ginny into this. “Whats up.”

“Did you say anything that might’ve upset Y/N Malfoy yesterday?” James’ mouth dropped. 

“The snitch!”

“So you did?”

“She deserved it,” he grumbled. “I can’t believe she snitched to her father,” he scoffed. 

“She didn’t.” James looked up, confused. “Apparently she came home in tears the other night because of whatever you told her. What did you say exactly.”

“Uh-” James rubbed the back of his head. “Just that all Slytherin’s like her never had good intentions and uh- that her family was full of murderous monsters?” Harry stared at his son. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. 

“James, do you know about her at home life?”

“She lives in a grand old manor with a huge ballroom, and her parents.”

“Parent. Astoria isn’t Y/N’s real mother.”

“Ok? That sucks but-”

“Her mother died from complications of childbirth.” Harry clarified. James stopped. He hadn’t known you had an actual mother. Albus walked in and read the uncomfortable air. 

“What did I just walk in on?”

“Just talking about the way James treats a few of his classmates.”

“You told him you bully Y/N? Thank Merlin!” Harry’s eyebrows shot up and he glanced at his son who was glaring at his other son. “Oh. That wasn’t the conversation, was it? I’m just going to leave now.” He ran out of the room before James could grab him. Harry crossed his arms. 

“So you're also a bully?”

“She’s a bi-jerk. Thinks she’s better than the rest of us.” Lily came prancing in the room with Ginny, who was holding a bag. 

“Hi, Harry. Hi James.” She kissed the two on the cheeks and Lily jumped on the counter. 

“Daddy! You should come next time! Y/N taught me a new turn and asked if I had an interest in par-su-ing acrobatics!”

“Pursuing,"he corrected her with a smile "I thought you didn't have a lesson today sweetie.”

“I had to run to a few places and Lily didn't want to go. We stopped at the studio to pick up a few things and Y/N asked if she would rather take an extra lesson. So while I ran boring errands, she got a free dance lesson.”

Harry eyed James. 

“Jerk? Really? She sounds horrid. Have you even ever had a conversation with her?” James grumbled a no. Ginny looked between the two. 

“What happened?”

“James made her cry the other day.” Ginny raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms at her son. 

“Did he now?” Lily frowned at her brother. 

“Thats rude. Especially since she took you to a pizza place yesterday.”

“How’d you know about that.” Lily handed him his camera lid. 

“You forgot this again. She also told me to ask you to forgive her for whatever she said wrong. She seemed upset today,” Lily frowned.

“See! She’s using my family against me. Manipulative! She told her dad in, obviously fake, tears and told him to complain to you about a miniscule fight!”

“A minuscule fight where you called her entire family murderous monsters. And she told Draco not to say anything.”

“You called the Malfoys murderous monsters?” Ginny asked, looking at her son, half proud half disappointed.

“I-I didn’t think she’d cry about it! She never does!” Albus walked in, deciding it was a good time to stop eavesdropping. 

“Actually she does. Every time. Same spot by the lake. She’s fine until she’s alone. Scorpius and I saw her sobbing one day.” James’ mouth went dry. He had made you sob everytime he picked on you? How did you still have tears? “What did she even do to you?" Albus asked, actually curious. He remembered James complaining about you since the first summer after Hogwarts, though he had never given a reason why. 

Ginny and Harry gave him a disappointed look. 

“Yeah, I know. I’m sorry! I didn’t know!” James yelled in defense. 

“And that makes it better?” Ginny asked, disappointed in her son. 

“No,” he mumbled. “I’ll apologize.”

“You better bet your-”

“Ginny.” Ginny took a breath.

“Yes you will. Tomorrow. Go to bed.” James rolled his eyes and walked up to his room without complaint. 

James woke up late that day, dreading his task. Not only did he have to apologize to a Malfoy, but he had the strange feeling of guilt. Were you as terrible as he thought? He had only talked to you once before he found out you were a Malfoy. On the train. He had been utterly lost and you had wandered into his compartment asking if he wanted to share your bag of sweets, which was quite large. It was literally a duffle bag filled to the brim with all sorts of candies. 

“Mind if I join you?” An eleven year old you asked. He looked up from his wand to see you standing awkwardly at the door. Butterflies beat in his stomach. 

“Uh-yeah, sure!” he smiled. You smiled and slid into his compartment. You settled in front of him and sat the bag on your lap. You looked out the doors and back at him, motioning for him to come towards you. He leaned forward in his seat. And you smirked, making him nervous.

“Wanna see my stash?” He eyed you suspiciously. Before he could say no, you opened your bag to reveal it filled top to bottom and everywhere in between with chocolate. His mouth dropped open at the sight of it all. There was so much. 

“Wow. Where did you get all this?” You laughed and dug in it, pulling out a chocolate frog. 

“I have my ways. Want some?” 

“Can I?”

“Wouldn’t have offered if you couldn’t!” You slid the bag from your shoulder and sat it on the floor in between you so you could both eat it at your pleasure. You two talked the entire train ride. The butterflies in both of your stomachs were going insane. 

You were careful not to reveal your last name to him. Maybe if he got to know you first he wouldn’t hate you, like you assumed most people would when they heard your last name. But then you heard him say his last name.

“By the way, I’m James Potter,” he smiled. Your heart sank. The stories of your family history goes back centuries of Potters and Malfoys hating each other. Your father and his. Lucius and James. It went back even further than that. You smiled through the panic. 

“Y/N. So you like quidditch?” You had quickly changed the subject, not wanting him to ask more. Luckily, he didn;t seem to notice and he adored quidditch, just like you. But then it all just went wrong at the sorting Ceremony. 

He stared at his ceiling for a minute. Those same damn feelings rising in his chest when he thought about you. Not about how you were a stuck up Malfoy, but how you were an eleven year old girl on the Hogwarts express asking to share some candy with him and talk about his family and anything quidditch. 

“I’m just a jerk,” he mumbled to himself.”

“A big dumb jerk, yes,” Albus said from the doorway. He sat up and stared daggers at his brother. 

“What did I say about coming into my room?”

“And what did I say about you liking her?” He sneered at his younger brother.

“I don’t like her.”

“Lies.” Albus walked into his room. “You better get down to the studio soon. They close in about three hours. And don’t screw up. Just because her dad was a jerk to ours doesn;t mean she’s rude.”

“Yeah, thanks for the second lecture. Now get out of my room.” Albus held up his hands and walked out leaving James to get ready. He threw on a pair of jeans and a shirt, still half asleep and the other half of his thoughts were on you. “Merlin, I’m a mess,” he muttered as he slid his camera over his shoulder and headed downstairs. Harry was sitting at the dining room table with Ginny. “Morning.” He grumbled out and went into the kitchen to grab a drink before heading out. 

“It's afternoon!” Harry called into him. 

“So I see!” He chugged a water and looked towards the cupboard that had the chocolate stash. Without a second though he grabbed a small fabric drawstring bag from the shelf and filled it with chocolate. “I’m going down to apologize,” he muttered. Harry nodded in approval and James left the house, quickly making his way down the sidewalk and to the dance studio before closing hours.

He stepped into the building and walked past a bunch of girls who he knew were staring at him. He walked to the front desk and smiled at the woman working. 

“Hello, can I help you?”

“Yes, I’m looking for Y/N Malfoy. I have some business I would like to discuss with her.”

“She is currently teaching the new ones, but you can wait up in the balcony for her. I’ll send someone back to tell her you want to speak to her before she goes back to work on her other dances. She didn't look well today, probably landed on her head again and didn’t get it checked out,” she sighed. James swallowed. Had he made you so upset yesterday that you hadn’t gotten your dad to look at your head?

Why did he care this much? Maybe it was because since he found out that you had cried about it, he realized you weren't heartless like he had tried to convince himself. That you were actually kind and that he had wasted five years picking on you instead of talking to you. 

He sighed and walked up the stairs to the nearly empty sitting section. He went to his spot by the railing and looked over. You were helping itty bitty ones, looked around three and four. You cheered for them, teased them, and held them. He noticed how gentle you were with them. He frowned deeper. 

Merlin, I’m an ignorant jerk. 

You were helping Abby with her plie when Margaret walked in. You looked up at her and waved with a smile, but she didn't have the same expression on her face.

“What's wrong? Why are you still here?”

“I was heading out when Miss. Rosier stopped me. Apparently someone,” she glanced up in the balcony, “is here to see you." You followed her gaze to James. “Claims to have some business.” Your entire body tensed. Your heartbeat picked up and you looked down. “I can stay. This is the last class today so it would just be us thr-”

“It's fine, Maggy. Go home. Your mum must be ready to kill you for not being there already. She has four little ones to juggle,” you chuckled and went back to helping the little girl. 

“Are you sure?”

“I’ll be fine. Thank you, though.” Your friend eyed James before nodding and leaving. You swallowed. You weren’t emotionally prepared for this. 

Class finished up too quickly and the girls left the studio to go home and to their families. You stayed in the large studio and James stayed where he was up top. 

“Might as well come down here, Potter. No matter how much you think I’m not going to cast a curse on you.” James walked down and into the studio, you noticed he had his shoes in his hands and was grateful for that. It was one of your biggest pet peeves. “What was your business with me?” You asked, turning around to meet his gaze. 

“I wanted to say I was sorry. For what I said the other day.” You shook your head. 

“I know my father went to yours. You probably think me a snitch along with a murderous monster.” He swallowed at your words. He hadn’t exactly meant what he said.  

“I don’t think you any of that.”

“Then why did you say it?” He stayed silent. He couldn’t answer that question. You sighed and sat on the floor. 

“I’m also sorry for the way I’ve been treating you since first year. Since I found you were a Malfoy and all.” You smiled sadly. 

“Yeah, well, there was a reason I didn’t tell you my first name on the train. Especially after you told me your last name.” He sat down in front of you. 

“I-I shouldn’t have judged you based off of your last name. I know better. I knew better.”

“It's fine, really.”

“But it's really not.” He sighed. “I mean, my brother is friends with your brother and I don’t go picking on him. It's not fair and I really am sorry. I’m not just saying that. And I also didn’t know about your… your mom,” you swallowed. 

“It was a long time ago.”

“But you blame yourself and I didn’t help. You're not a murderer, and neither is your entire family. I really am sorry about that. And for the loss of her.” You looked him in his eyes and only saw sincerity. You smiled. 

“Thank you, James. It actually means a lot to me.” He smiled and handed you the bag of chocolate he had brought. “Whats this?”

“This is my stash. Wanna see?” He whispered. You smiled and he opened it up to reveal chocolate. You laughed and smiled brightly. Sadness was still laced throughout it, but it was happier. 

“You remembered our first meeting?”

“Considering I thought you were going to ask me to do drugs with you, yes.” Your eyes widened. 

“That is not what you thought! Did I really look like a drug dealer?” He smirked. 

“No. I just figured that's what the bag was about when you said it the way you did.” You laughed and looked at the bag. 

“Can I?”

“I brought it for you, a peace offering. Maybe to try and start again?” You smiled and took out two chocolate frogs, handing him one. 

“Hi, I’m Y/N. Want to share my chocolate?” He smiled and took the frog from you. 

“I’d love to.”

“Don’t you dare eat on this floor though!” He laughed and put the frog in his pocket. 

“I wouldn't dream of it.”

“No, he’s just protective. Wants the best for his siblings and such,” you shrugged. Draco scoffed. “What?”

“I was a prick like that. That's not the only thing going through his mind.”

“Dad,” you warned. 

“What? I’m just saying. The other two seemed fine. He was an egotistical control freak who, let me guess, has a new girl on his arm every other week. Wait, and let me guess, it gets better, right? He also bullies the less fortunate.”

“You almost described what you were like as a kid.”

“That's because I know what they look like. And that kid was me, just different.” You rolled your eyes, your mind wandering back to the school year and the various jabs he made at you… the less fortunate…

It had been a few weeks since you had taken Lily on as a student. Since she was new to dance you had suggested twice a week and found that Lily was a very capable dancer. She caught on quickly and was very confident in her movements, though you could tell she got stressed when she wasn't able to get something right. 

“That was excellent, Lily!” You praised. She smiled brightly at your praise. How about we move to the large room if you’d like, maybe even get your mother and father to watch,” you suggested. Her face lit up. “I’ll go get them. If there's someone dancing just stand on the side like usual, alright?” She nodded and practically pranced off to the large room.

You smiled at her and quickly walked to the waiting area. Her lesson was nearly over and Harry and or Ginny were normally there already. Your smile dropped when you noticed James leaning on the wall looking down at his camera.

“Hey, Potter,” You smiled. He looked up and his gaze made your heart go mad. “Your parents here?”

“No. They sent me to pick up Lily. Is she done?”

“We were going to run her routine in the large studio. Would you like to watch? She’s very proud of it.” 

“Sure.”

“Follow me.” you walked him back to a door. “Just go up these steps and you’ll be on the balcony. I’ll send her up to you when she’s finished.” You left him to go up the stairs and to the balcony. 

The large room was emptying out from the previous class when you entered. You had class right after you taught Lily so there was a few minutes break in between. 

“Ready?” She nodded and ran out to the middle of the room. “I’ll jump in if you get stuck, ok? Just keep going if you forget a step.” She nodded and set herself up. You pressed play on the music and her music started. You watched her from the sidelines, making mental notes on what to work on with her next lesson. You jumped in on the new part and helped her through it, which she seemed grateful for. 

The music ended and you smiled. 

“That was great, Lily! Keep practising and I’ll see you next week. Your brother is up on the balcony if you want to go meet him. You remember how to get up there?” She nodded. 

“Yep! Thank you, Y/N!” She hugged you and ran up to meet her brother as your friends started to walk in. You joined them in center to begin to stretch for class. 

James was waiting for Lily when she came running up the stairs. He put his camera away and picked her up. 

“That was beautiful! I got a few pictures of you doing it as well,” She smiled brightly. 

“Can we watch, Y/N dance?” She asked. “She has class right now and I wanna see what the older girls do.” James forced a smile, hating the idea of being in the same room as you longer than he had to, but agreed for his sister’s sake. He carried her to the edge as they watched you and a group of girls warm up. You were talking to Margaret as you stretched. You had taken your shirt off so you were in a backless red leotard; he was slightly surprised that the leotard wasn’t green.

“Hey isn’t that the girl you're teaching and her adorable brother?” You looked away from your curly hair friend to see James and Lily watching the class. You waved and Lily waved back as James just glared at you. You slowly brought your hand back down and turned back to Margaret. “What was that about?”

“He hates me,” you shrugged. 

“Why?”

“We go to the same school.” Her eyes widened. 

“Wait, that's the kid who bullies you?”

“I wouldn’t say bully.”

“I would. Want me to beat him up?” You laughed. 

“Maggy!”

“What? I will.” You rolled your eyes and slipped into your split. 

“No. I don’t want to lose his sister as a student. She is very talented, and a joy to teach.” Margaret frowned. 

“Well, whenever you want me to beat him up I’ll be all over it.” You laughed and your teacher began class. 

You notice James pull Lily out half way through, which you didn’t blame him for. Class was about three hours, and that wasn’t even the end of your day. Lily looked upset, but let him carry her out without a fuss. Margaret nudged you and nodded up towards the balcony.

“What?” You whispered, pirouetting a few times. 

“They left.”

“She’s probably exhausted. She danced for a vigorous hour with me.”

“Or maybe he likes you and couldn’t stop his heart from beating at the sight of you,” She hummed. You glared at her. 

She and Scropius were the only two who knew of your crush on James. And now you were regretting telling her. 

“Or maybe he couldn;t stand the sight of me anymore because he hates my guts.” You whispered back. She rolled her eyes. 

“Probably hard,” she muttered. You smacked her shoulder and stifled laughs. 

“Margaret!” She smiled at seeing you laugh. You had looked so off when you noticed them. Your stage fright getting the better of you. Now that they were gone you seemed more at ease. 

“Y/N!” You looked at the teacher. 

“Yes ma’am?”

“Class has ended.” You smiled. 

“Sorry ma’am. Would it be a problem if I stayed here for a bit longer?”

“By a bit longer do you mean ten tonight?” You chuckled. 

“Is that your hint that my day is over and to get out?” you asked with a grin. She rolled her eyes. 

“Well, my day is over. Good evening, Miss. Malfoy.”

“Good evening.” You went to the player and set up your music. You had some routines you wanted to run, as well as throw some tricks. 

James was tearing his already messy room apart, mumbling how he could not believe he lost something or other. 

“Jamie?” Lily asked coming in. “What’s wrong?”

“I think I left the cap to my camera at the studio,” He sighed and flopped down on the bed with a huff. 

“Y/N might not have left yet. She normally stays after closing.” James scoffed. 

“Like I want to be in there alone with her.”

“Wouldn;t surprise me,” Albus smirked from the doorway. 

“Go away, Albus.”

“You like her, admit it.”

“Why would I like a stuck up Malfoy?”

“Maybe because she isn’t stuck up?” Albus offered. “Come on, James. You know that better than anyone.” James scoffed and stood. 

“I need my lid, so I suppose it's worth a shot. Tell mum and Dad I’ll be back later.” He slung his camera over his body and grabbed his jacket heading out of the room, grumbling angrily.

He walked slowly down to his sister’s studio, semi praying that it was closed and he wouldn’t have to see you. He even stopped and took pictures of random things on his way. But, alas, it was not to be. 

When he got to the studio he pulled on the door which opened with ease. 

Maybe he wouldn’t see you?

Wrong. 

He walked up to the balcony and immediately heard someone on the floor. Being the curious person he was he peaked over to see you in front of a mat, pressed up against the wall on your toes. You ran and flipped in the air, landing on your behind. He cringed, but you got out of it with another trick. Had you meant to do that?

“Are you going to just watch me all day or are you going to at least say something?” You called up to him, prepping for another trick. He scowled and leaned over the railing. You glanced at him, sending him a small smile before running again and doing a front aerial, landing it perfectly. Though, you went over everything you could've done better in your head. 

“I was just looking for my camera lid,” he grumbled down at you. 

“Is that why you were studying me do a suicide?” You asked. His eyes widened. 

“A wh-what?” You chuckled. 

“Don’t think I didn’t see you cringe. I have excellent eyesight. The trick when I-oof-” you pushed off the ground into a roundoff back handspring. You landed it and rolled your shoulders, turning to him. “Landed on my butt. Its called a suicide. And the trick afterwards is a valdez,” you informed him. He just glared at you. You nodded awkwardly. “Nice talk. Oh, and your camera lid is on the desk out front.”

“How’d you-”

“I make sure no one left anything around the studio. If they do I leave it on the deck. You just happened to label it. J.S.P. Kind of hard not to know who that is.”

“Oh.”

You stood backwards against the mat and did four back handsprings, grimacing when you came up from the last one. You really needed a rest day. But a rest day would mean not coming into the studio. And you weren’t going to stay home with Astoria. 

Walking back to the other end of the mat nearly every bone in your body cracked or creaked in some way, making james cringe. You smiled up at him. 

“Not a fan of cracking bone?” You chuckled. 

“There was just so much. Is that normal?” You smiled to yourself. 

“Yeah. For me at least. I’m not naturally flexible so I crack a lot and I have to stretch every day in order not to get back to point A.” You stood against the wall and ran into your Front Handspring, immediately going into your back handspring. 

“Will Lily be able to,” he waved his hand at you. “Do this?” You chuckled and sat down on the mat, needing to stretch for a moment. 

“She’s very flexible. Her split is already down and her straddle is close. I could work with her during her lessons with acrobats. It's best to get them started young when they're growing. It gets harder when you're a teenager. So, if she works hard, yes. She could do this.” It was quiet for a few minutes as you stretched. “Your sister is very talented like her brother’s. You should be proud.” You smiled at him, standing and doing a backbend, sitting in it for a moment before coming back up, groaning as you did.

“I am. She works very hard at it.”

“Well, like you saw today, she’s moving quickly. By the time we go back to Hogwarts she should be ready to join a group class.”

“Is that good?” You smiled. 

“Yes. Group classes are fun and though they don;t cover as much as a private lesson does they’re just as challenging.”

“Really?” You chuckled at his confusion. This family knew nothing about ballet or dance at all. 

“Yeah I should know. I take at least four a week.”

“Four a week, really?”

“Yep. I teach on all of those days, plus one where I don’t have a lesson. And I have two days off. But, I’m still here working on technique.” You shrugged. 

“So you practically live here,” he joked. 

“Yeah. This is more of a home than Malfoy Manor ever has been.”

“Why, don’t love your parents?” he scoffed. 

“My dad I adore. We’re surprisingly close. Me and uh, Astoria, have a… forced relationship.” He raised his eyebrows in shock at you using her first name. 

“Must be honest, from the stories I've heard about the Malfoys, I wouldn't expect him to be a good parent,” James scoffed. You smiled sadly.

“Yeah, a lot of people wouldn’t. But I wouldn’t ask for a different one, as cheesy as that sounds.” You backed up against the wall and sprang off into a roundoff back tuck landing on your head. “Ah!” You sat up and rubbed your neck and head. That was going to be sore tomorrow. “Dammit!” You swore, smacking the mat. You stood up and walked back over to the end of the mat, getting ready to do it again. 

“Are you alright?” You glanced at James, yoru vision swimming for a moment before focusing on him. You blinked a few times to clear the spots from vision. 

“Yeah. Not the first time I’ve landed on my face,” you chuckled. You felt a tear slip down your face and wiped it away quickly. 

“You're crying.”

“Thank you captain obvious,” you joked, laughing. “It just hurts a bit,” you snifled and willed the rest of the tears away, rubbing your face and neck. It was definitely going to bruise. “Yet again, not the first time. Gotta fall a couple times before you stick the landing." You got ready on the wall to push off again, but your vision fell to the side and you knew you weren't going to be able to tumble any more. 

Dad’s gonna be pissed that he has to fix my head again.

You quickly rolled up the mats and looked at James who was studying. You smiled. 

“Did you eat yet? I’m positively starved and I know a good pizza joint down the road.”

“Why would I want to join you?” he sneered.

Moment of being civil over. 

You shrugged.                              

“Just thought I’d offer. My treat if you decide to join.” You looked around the room making sure everything was in place and clean. 

You nodded and left the room, shutting off the lights. You checked the other rooms and grabbed your bag, changing into jeans and a black crop top with your jean jacket. You walked out and grabbed your key from your bag. You saw James bouncing awkwardly on his feet. You smiled at him.

“Change your mind?”

“You did say you were paying,” he defended. “And I am not one to pass up free food.” You laughed and double checked everything. You grabbed your notebooks from the counter and shoved them in your bag.

“Well, let's go then. The pizza place is about a block away.”

“Don’t you need to get home?” He asked.

“Worried about me, Potter?” You asked teasingly as you locked up the studio. He scoffed. 

“Just asking.”

“My dad’s used to me coming home late. Though he might have to fix my head tonight,” you laughed and touched your forehead.

“It hurts?” You shrugged. 

“I mean, I did land on it with full force. I didn’t jump high enough or use nearly as much power,” you chastised yourself. “It was doomed from the beginning.” 

“Yet you're walking straight?”

“You were walking straight after you took that bludger to the head last year,” you chuckled. He rolled his eyes.

“That's because you Slytherin’s play dirty.” You laughed. 

“I can’t control the bludgers! I’m not even a beater!” You defended yourself. 

You opened the door to the pizza place and a fresh whiff of oregano cheese and dough filled your senses. You sighed. 

“Donte!” You yelled. A teenager walked from the back with crossed arms. 

“Y/N! What do you think I am? Your personal pizza maker?” You laughed and batted your eyes at your muggle friend. 

“Maybe.” 

“Your usual?” You nodded. 

“Yeah, but my friend here has never been.” Donte looked at James.

“Well, take a look at the menu. I’ll tell Dominique to start making your order.”

“It's appreciated!”

“Uhu,” he called back, already headed to the back. 

“Come here often, then?” James asked. You smiled. 

“Is it that obvious?” You walked with him to the counter where they had a menu above the counter for ordering. 

“What's good here?”

“What isn’t,” you laughed. “What kind of food do you like? They have pizza fries, garlic knots, pizza, pizza bread. Everything, realy.”

“What is it you get?”

“Garlic knots and a half of a calzone normally. I think that's what they’re cooking up back there. To be honest though I never know. They surprise me some days.”

“Who knew a Malfoy would be friends with muggles,” he sounded surprised. You hummed, holding back a snarky response. 

“Did you decide? I’m Sure the little dancer over here wasn’t much help.” You rolled your eyes at his nickname. 

“She really wasn’t. What do you suggest?”

“Well, if you like pizzas we sell smalls that are about six pieces. Great for taking home. Our garlic knots are pretty well known, but she’s already getting those, so I assume you’d just share with her.”

“Why would you assume that?” You asked, offended.

“Aren;t you two, ya know, a couple?” You laughed and so did James. The only difference was you cheeks flushed, wishing you were. 

“No,” You answered. “He hates my guts. I just happen to teach his sister. And then he came back to the studio because he forgot something.” Dante’s confused look dropped into one of murder. 

“Oh. So you're the one who’s picking on her,” he crossed his arms. 

“Donte!”

“Want me to beat him up?”

“How are you and Margaret not an item yet? She offered the same thing, and no. Just-Just order him the same as me but with pizza fries.” you huffed and turned to a both near the corner. James followed you, glancing over his shoulder at Donte who was still glaring at the two of you. 

“What was that about?” He scowled at you. You kept your eyes on Donte’s back, ignoring James. 

“I’d be careful when he brings the food over. He’s not opposed to spitting in people’s food,” you warned before fiddling with your napkin and waited for your food. You weren’t joking. You were starving. You hadn’t had time for an actual breakfast or to pack a lunch that day. You only had an apple before you left the house and a granola bar for lunch and you couldn’t wait to get some actual food in your body.

“So are you ever going to answer me?” James asked after a moment. You looked up. 

“What?”

“About your… friend?... Threatening to beat me up. Like he could touch me.” You laughed. 

“Donte is the most bad ass kid in this town. I bet he could beat you in a fight.”

“That was cold, Malfoy. Saying a muggle could beat me up.” 

“Oh? Would you cast a few spells on him so you’d get the upper hand?”

“Possibly.” You rolled your eyes.

“Because that sounds fair.”

“Since when do Slytherins care about being fair?” You mouth parted, but you had no words. Yet again, civil and then your back to reality. You slumped in your seat. Donte came over and glared at James as he gave you your food. “Thanks, Donny. I haven’t eaten all day,” you sighed, smelling the spices and ingredients better now that they were even closer to your nose. 

Your friend pointed to you threateningly. 

“You better start eating.” You laughed. 

“I missed my alarm!” You laughed. 

“And you had to get to the studio before your first lesson because?”

“Because I needed out of the house.”

“Mansion,” he coughed. You threw a fry at him. 

“Get back to work, Ankenson!” You laughed at him. 

“Of course, Miss. Malfoy,” he sarcastically bowed and left to continue working. You rolled your eyes and pulled apart one of your garlic knots. James watched the scene before grabbing a fry and eating it. 

“What?” You asked when you caught him studying you. He shook his head. 

“Does he know about the wizarding world?” 

“Yeah. I honestly should've obliviated him but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. He found out my first year after I got home from school." You frowned and shoved the bread in your mouth remembering your first year. All the kids up to no good wanted to make nice and be your friend. Thinking you were the stereotypical Malfoy. You had no friends that year and got picked on by James like there was no tomorrow. 

“Ya know, you still never answered my question. Why did he want to beat me up?” You shoved a garlic knot in your mouth. 

“Becuas woo wick end e,” you mumbled. 

“Come again.”

“He found out I was getting.. Uh… picked on.. I guess,” you shook your head and shoved another piece of the knot in your mouth. 

“You can handle yourself though.” You looked away. 

“Yeah. He’s just over protective.” 

And for a good reason. You liked to think yourself strong, but you knew you weren’t. You could hold it together in the moment, but would completely collapse when you were alone. That's actually how you two met. 

You had gotten into another fight with Astoria when you were eight and had been packed and leaving the mansion. Scorpius was crying in the parlor because you were leaving and your father was still at work, so there was no one to talk the situation down. 

You had made it to the back of the pizza shop before completely collapsing and succumbing to sobs when a nine year old in jeans and t-shirt was walking by and saw you crying. He had taken you home after calming you down. He may have been a punk, but he was still kind. He had taken you back home and father was beyond furious at both you and Astoria. Mostly Astoria, though. You had just scared the crap out of him because he actually thought you would have gone through with it, and losing his kid was his worst fear. You and Donte had been friends ever since. 

The two of you finished in near silence. The only time one of you spoke was to see if the other could have fries or a Garlic knot. You had ended up paying, like you said you would. 

“I’ll pay you back in wizard money,” James said, his hands in his pockets as you two stepped out. 

“Nonsense! I told you I would pay. Besides, I'm pretty sure he gave me a discount.”

“How do you even have muggle money?”

“I work at the studio, so I get paid in both since I teach magical and non-magical kids.” You explained, hopping onto the curb and balancing like you always did. 

“Huh, weird. You’d think you didn;t even need to get paid.” You looked at him. 

“WHats that supposed to mean?”

“Well your family’s rich.”

“So is yours,” you countered. 

“Well, we don’t act like it,” he snapped back. 

“Oh? So just because I don’t dress down all the time and we throw a few parties with stuffy know it all pure blooded Slytherins that makes us act like it?”

“Yeah, actually. It does!”

“Fascinating, Potter. Your way of thinking is quite dizzying. A poor, simple minded Slytherin like myself is having a hard time keeping up. Should I bow down to the Gryffindor prince now?”

“Like you don't expect everyone to do the same,” He scoffed. 

“I don’t! You do understand that I hate the way people view me, right? I hate that my last name and all the little things that come with it! Having people look at me like I’m some monster! That I’m supposed to act like Slytherin’s princess!”

“Well aren’t you? You're from a family full of murders and monsters. Doesn't that automatically make you one to? A monster? A murderer?” You froze at the word murderer. Tears welled in your eyes and you turned away from the boy.

“Before you go around picking on people, James,” your voice cracked as you tried to keep your emotions in check, but obviously failing. “Try and get to know them first, they might just surprise you.” You bolted down the sidewalk and did not stop until you got home. Or, rather, to the manor. 

Tears were running down your face at this point and you were sobbing, the words murderer and monster ringing in your head. You slammed the door shut and pressed your body up against it, putting your hand over your mouth to quiet the sobs. But your father had heard you arrive and stepped out of the parlor, expecting a happy daughter who had just got back from dancing. This was not what he got. 

His smile fell when he saw you and quickly ushered you into the parlor where he had come from. You completely broke down and he just held you, worried about what happened. He rubbed your back until your sobs had quieted. He then sat you down on the couch. 

“What happened? What's wrong?” You shook your head, looking down at your hands. “Hey, sweet heart, what happened?” You sniffled and wiped the tears from your eyes.

“Dad, am-am I a monster? Because-because of mom?” he stared at you for a moment and shook his head. 

“Of course not, that wasn’t your fault. There were multiple compil-”

“But it was because of me,” you said sadly. “Because she had me. I killed mom,” you couldn’t look at him. James was right. Wherever your last name was, death happened. You had caused it last time. It was your fault that your mother died. Your real mother. 

“Look at me, Y/N,” he pulled your face up to meet his. “You did not kill your mother. Whatever put this thought in your head, get it out right now. Do you understand me?” You nodded and sniffled. “Where did this come from?” 

“It's-its just a thought, I've been entertaining for a while,” you mumbled. It wasn;t a complete lie.

“Possibly, but who brought this up?”

“He didn’t mean to, I don’t think.”

“Who?” He knew it couldn't have been Donte. He’d met him a few times and, though he was a rebel and got into fights every other day, he seemed to take care of his daughter and he was grateful for that.

“James,” you mumbled. He almost didn’t catch it, but he wanted to be sure before he went around throwing accusations. 

“Could you say that one more time?”

“J-James. But please don’t do anything!I don't want there to be more problems!”

“More?” He raised an eyebrow and you flinched back. 

Oops. 

Your father may or may not have known that you had been getting picked on at school. You didn’t want him to do anything rash, like you knew he was going to do now. 

“I-I mean any. Because there would have to be problems to begin with for there to be more. But-but there aren’t any problems. Ever. Nope. None.” you faked a yawn and looked up at the mantel’s clock. “Would you look at the time? I’m beat! I-I’ll see you tomorrow, Dad. And please don't say anything. To any one. Ever.” You rushed out of the room, hoping he wouldn’t say anything. 

But as Draco watched you scurry out of the room, he knew he had to. He didn't even know you were getting picked on. And by a Potter! How many times had a Potter made you cry and he was unaware there was even a problem? No way was this going to slide by him. Not happening. 

“Potter!” Draco called and jogged over to Harry who turned and looked at him suspiciously. 

“Yes, Malfoy? Can I help you with something?” Draco hesitated. 

“Can I talk to you in private?” Harry gave him a look but complied. They walked into an empty office. 

“What do you want?”

“I want to talk about your son and my daughter.” Harry furrowed his eyebrows. 

“I don’t understand.”

“Your son said a few… choice words that made my daughter upset the other night and apparently it has been going on for a while.”

“Like what?”

“I’m not sure exactly, but she came home in tears last night asking if she were a monster because of a…” He cleared his throat. “An accident that happened when she was born.” Harry understood immediately. He had known about Draco’s first marriage and how that ended. “I then asked why she was thinking this and she asked me not to say anything, but I care for her… a lot.” Harry nodded. 

“I’ll talk to James. I’m sorry she had to go through that. You as well.” Draco nodded and cleared his throat again. 

“Yes, um, thank you.” Draco walked past Harry and out of the conference room. Harry thought about how the tables had turned. But it still wasn’t right. No matter what happened in their childhood. 

“James! Can I talk to you for a second?” Harry called to his son who was playing with Lily in the yard as if nothing had happened yesterday. He had spent the night convincing himself that she had deserved it. That Malfoys and Slytherin’s like that didn’t have emotions. It cleared his conscience and took away his guilt.

“Yeah, dad!” He dropped Lily and ran into the house. Harry took him to the empty dining room, not wanting to rope Ginny into this. “Whats up.”

“Did you say anything that might’ve upset Y/N Malfoy yesterday?” James’ mouth dropped. 

“The snitch!”

“So you did?”

“She deserved it,” he grumbled. “I can’t believe she snitched to her father,” he scoffed. 

“She didn’t.” James looked up, confused. “Apparently she came home in tears the other night because of whatever you told her. What did you say exactly.”

“Uh-” James rubbed the back of his head. “Just that all Slytherin’s like her never had good intentions and uh- that her family was full of murderous monsters?” Harry stared at his son. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. 

“James, do you know about her at home life?”

“She lives in a grand old manor with a huge ballroom, and her parents.”

“Parent. Astoria isn’t Y/N’s real mother.”

“Ok? That sucks but-”

“Her mother died from complications of childbirth.” Harry clarified. James stopped. He hadn’t known you had an actual mother. Albus walked in and read the uncomfortable air. 

“What did I just walk in on?”

“Just talking about the way James treats a few of his classmates.”

“You told him you bully Y/N? Thank Merlin!” Harry’s eyebrows shot up and he glanced at his son who was glaring at his other son. “Oh. That wasn’t the conversation, was it? I’m just going to leave now.” He ran out of the room before James could grab him. Harry crossed his arms. 

“So you're also a bully?”

“She’s a bi-jerk. Thinks she’s better than the rest of us.” Lily came prancing in the room with Ginny, who was holding a bag. 

“Hi, Harry. Hi James.” She kissed the two on the cheeks and Lily jumped on the counter. 

“Daddy! You should come next time! Y/N taught me a new turn and asked if I had an interest in par-su-ing acrobatics!”

“Pursuing,"he corrected her with a smile "I thought you didn't have a lesson today sweetie.”

“I had to run to a few places and Lily didn't want to go. We stopped at the studio to pick up a few things and Y/N asked if she would rather take an extra lesson. So while I ran boring errands, she got a free dance lesson.”

Harry eyed James. 

“Jerk? Really? She sounds horrid. Have you even ever had a conversation with her?” James grumbled a no. Ginny looked between the two. 

“What happened?”

“James made her cry the other day.” Ginny raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms at her son. 

“Did he now?” Lily frowned at her brother. 

“Thats rude. Especially since she took you to a pizza place yesterday.”

“How’d you know about that.” Lily handed him his camera lid. 

“You forgot this again. She also told me to ask you to forgive her for whatever she said wrong. She seemed upset today,” Lily frowned.

“See! She’s using my family against me. Manipulative! She told her dad in, obviously fake, tears and told him to complain to you about a miniscule fight!”

“A minuscule fight where you called her entire family murderous monsters. And she told Draco not to say anything.”

“You called the Malfoys murderous monsters?” Ginny asked, looking at her son, half proud half disappointed.

“I-I didn’t think she’d cry about it! She never does!” Albus walked in, deciding it was a good time to stop eavesdropping. 

“Actually she does. Every time. Same spot by the lake. She’s fine until she’s alone. Scorpius and I saw her sobbing one day.” James’ mouth went dry. He had made you sob everytime he picked on you? How did you still have tears? “What did she even do to you?" Albus asked, actually curious. He remembered James complaining about you since the first summer after Hogwarts, though he had never given a reason why. 

Ginny and Harry gave him a disappointed look. 

“Yeah, I know. I’m sorry! I didn’t know!” James yelled in defense. 

“And that makes it better?” Ginny asked, disappointed in her son. 

“No,” he mumbled. “I’ll apologize.”

“You better bet your-”

“Ginny.” Ginny took a breath.

“Yes you will. Tomorrow. Go to bed.” James rolled his eyes and walked up to his room without complaint. 

James woke up late that day, dreading his task. Not only did he have to apologize to a Malfoy, but he had the strange feeling of guilt. Were you as terrible as he thought? He had only talked to you once before he found out you were a Malfoy. On the train. He had been utterly lost and you had wandered into his compartment asking if he wanted to share your bag of sweets, which was quite large. It was literally a duffle bag filled to the brim with all sorts of candies. 

“Mind if I join you?” An eleven year old you asked. He looked up from his wand to see you standing awkwardly at the door. Butterflies beat in his stomach. 

“Uh-yeah, sure!” he smiled. You smiled and slid into his compartment. You settled in front of him and sat the bag on your lap. You looked out the doors and back at him, motioning for him to come towards you. He leaned forward in his seat. And you smirked, making him nervous.

“Wanna see my stash?” He eyed you suspiciously. Before he could say no, you opened your bag to reveal it filled top to bottom and everywhere in between with chocolate. His mouth dropped open at the sight of it all. There was so much. 

“Wow. Where did you get all this?” You laughed and dug in it, pulling out a chocolate frog. 

“I have my ways. Want some?” 

“Can I?”

“Wouldn’t have offered if you couldn’t!” You slid the bag from your shoulder and sat it on the floor in between you so you could both eat it at your pleasure. You two talked the entire train ride. The butterflies in both of your stomachs were going insane. 

You were careful not to reveal your last name to him. Maybe if he got to know you first he wouldn’t hate you, like you assumed most people would when they heard your last name. But then you heard him say his last name.

“By the way, I’m James Potter,” he smiled. Your heart sank. The stories of your family history goes back centuries of Potters and Malfoys hating each other. Your father and his. Lucius and James. It went back even further than that. You smiled through the panic. 

“Y/N. So you like quidditch?” You had quickly changed the subject, not wanting him to ask more. Luckily, he didn;t seem to notice and he adored quidditch, just like you. But then it all just went wrong at the sorting Ceremony. 

He stared at his ceiling for a minute. Those same damn feelings rising in his chest when he thought about you. Not about how you were a stuck up Malfoy, but how you were an eleven year old girl on the Hogwarts express asking to share some candy with him and talk about his family and anything quidditch. 

“I’m just a jerk,” he mumbled to himself.”

“A big dumb jerk, yes,” Albus said from the doorway. He sat up and stared daggers at his brother. 

“What did I say about coming into my room?”

“And what did I say about you liking her?” He sneered at his younger brother.

“I don’t like her.”

“Lies.” Albus walked into his room. “You better get down to the studio soon. They close in about three hours. And don’t screw up. Just because her dad was a jerk to ours doesn;t mean she’s rude.”

“Yeah, thanks for the second lecture. Now get out of my room.” Albus held up his hands and walked out leaving James to get ready. He threw on a pair of jeans and a shirt, still half asleep and the other half of his thoughts were on you. “Merlin, I’m a mess,” he muttered as he slid his camera over his shoulder and headed downstairs. Harry was sitting at the dining room table with Ginny. “Morning.” He grumbled out and went into the kitchen to grab a drink before heading out. 

“It's afternoon!” Harry called into him. 

“So I see!” He chugged a water and looked towards the cupboard that had the chocolate stash. Without a second though he grabbed a small fabric drawstring bag from the shelf and filled it with chocolate. “I’m going down to apologize,” he muttered. Harry nodded in approval and James left the house, quickly making his way down the sidewalk and to the dance studio before closing hours.

He stepped into the building and walked past a bunch of girls who he knew were staring at him. He walked to the front desk and smiled at the woman working. 

“Hello, can I help you?”

“Yes, I’m looking for Y/N Malfoy. I have some business I would like to discuss with her.”

“She is currently teaching the new ones, but you can wait up in the balcony for her. I’ll send someone back to tell her you want to speak to her before she goes back to work on her other dances. She didn't look well today, probably landed on her head again and didn’t get it checked out,” she sighed. James swallowed. Had he made you so upset yesterday that you hadn’t gotten your dad to look at your head?

Why did he care this much? Maybe it was because since he found out that you had cried about it, he realized you weren't heartless like he had tried to convince himself. That you were actually kind and that he had wasted five years picking on you instead of talking to you. 

He sighed and walked up the stairs to the nearly empty sitting section. He went to his spot by the railing and looked over. You were helping itty bitty ones, looked around three and four. You cheered for them, teased them, and held them. He noticed how gentle you were with them. He frowned deeper. 

Merlin, I’m an ignorant jerk. 

You were helping Abby with her plie when Margaret walked in. You looked up at her and waved with a smile, but she didn't have the same expression on her face.

“What's wrong? Why are you still here?”

“I was heading out when Miss. Rosier stopped me. Apparently someone,” she glanced up in the balcony, “is here to see you." You followed her gaze to James. “Claims to have some business.” Your entire body tensed. Your heartbeat picked up and you looked down. “I can stay. This is the last class today so it would just be us thr-”

“It's fine, Maggy. Go home. Your mum must be ready to kill you for not being there already. She has four little ones to juggle,” you chuckled and went back to helping the little girl. 

“Are you sure?”

“I’ll be fine. Thank you, though.” Your friend eyed James before nodding and leaving. You swallowed. You weren’t emotionally prepared for this. 

Class finished up too quickly and the girls left the studio to go home and to their families. You stayed in the large studio and James stayed where he was up top. 

“Might as well come down here, Potter. No matter how much you think I’m not going to cast a curse on you.” James walked down and into the studio, you noticed he had his shoes in his hands and was grateful for that. It was one of your biggest pet peeves. “What was your business with me?” You asked, turning around to meet his gaze. 

“I wanted to say I was sorry. For what I said the other day.” You shook your head. 

“I know my father went to yours. You probably think me a snitch along with a murderous monster.” He swallowed at your words. He hadn’t exactly meant what he said.  

“I don’t think you any of that.”

“Then why did you say it?” He stayed silent. He couldn’t answer that question. You sighed and sat on the floor. 

“I’m also sorry for the way I’ve been treating you since first year. Since I found you were a Malfoy and all.” You smiled sadly. 

“Yeah, well, there was a reason I didn’t tell you my first name on the train. Especially after you told me your last name.” He sat down in front of you. 

“I-I shouldn’t have judged you based off of your last name. I know better. I knew better.”

“It's fine, really.”

“But it's really not.” He sighed. “I mean, my brother is friends with your brother and I don’t go picking on him. It's not fair and I really am sorry. I’m not just saying that. And I also didn’t know about your… your mom,” you swallowed. 

“It was a long time ago.”

“But you blame yourself and I didn’t help. You're not a murderer, and neither is your entire family. I really am sorry about that. And for the loss of her.” You looked him in his eyes and only saw sincerity. You smiled. 

“Thank you, James. It actually means a lot to me.” He smiled and handed you the bag of chocolate he had brought. “Whats this?”

“This is my stash. Wanna see?” He whispered. You smiled and he opened it up to reveal chocolate. You laughed and smiled brightly. Sadness was still laced throughout it, but it was happier. 

“You remembered our first meeting?”

“Considering I thought you were going to ask me to do drugs with you, yes.” Your eyes widened. 

“That is not what you thought! Did I really look like a drug dealer?” He smirked. 

“No. I just figured that's what the bag was about when you said it the way you did.” You laughed and looked at the bag. 

“Can I?”

“I brought it for you, a peace offering. Maybe to try and start again?” You smiled and took out two chocolate frogs, handing him one. 

“Hi, I’m Y/N. Want to share my chocolate?” He smiled and took the frog from you. 

“I’d love to.”

“Don’t you dare eat on this floor though!” He laughed and put the frog in his pocket. 

“I wouldn't dream of it.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`~~~~~~~~

Let me know what you guy thinkin the comments I hope you liked it and stay tuned for chapter 2 next week!

[kiwixlime]

Enjoy Your Flight

A is for Airport

You work at the only Cinnabon in town, which happens to be located in the airport. Having a steady schedule, you see familiar faces on a weekly basis. But one face in particular always makes your day.

Pairing: Joel Miller x Female Reader

Another morning, another shift at the airport. Well, at the Cinnabon at the airport, which is basically just a destination itself. You’re pretty sure some customers who come in every morning just stop by for cinnamon rolls on their way to work. Not that you blame them. It’s kind of ridiculous how the only delicious shop in the area is tucked away in a corner of the international airport. But anyway…

You don’t hate your job. Most of your co-workers are your friends, and you’ve come to know the regulars, the business folk who travel every week, and a lot of them are pleasant. Probably because you provide the cinnamon treats and hot coffee they need to function properly. It’s still a decent job until you can finally decide what you want to do with your life.

As if.

But you’re fresh out of college, need some experience, and you literally live ten minutes from the airport. Things could be worse.

“Hey, chickadee!” That peppy voice belongs to your friend and fellow cashier, Amelia. She always works with you Friday mornings, and her presence adds a little excitement to your day. You like Amelia, she’s witty and unique, and you both have a blast people watching and making up backstories for all these strangers.

“Hey, sweets,” you chirp back, scooting across the counter to offer up some space. She leans next to you, peering around the corner. It’s still early, but the airport is busy enough. She’s already looking for your first target. “Huh,” you mutter, leaning in closer and sniffing her hair. “New shampoo?”

“Yep,” she says and tosses her tresses back. “It’s bubblegum scented. Can you believe that shit?” She laughs and you nod. No wonder the scent was so familiar. “Of course, I bought that shit.”

“You’re a sucker for anything that smells like your childhood,” you comment, sweeping your eyes across the people hurrying to their gates. “Oh, that guy,” you nod in the direction of a man who is dressed in leather from head to toe, pink mohawk, carrying a guitar on his back with sunglasses on in the middle of the airport and a spike coming from his chin.

“Mmm,” Amelia hums, carefully assessing the rockstar wannabe. “Yeah,” she nods, coming to a conclusion. “Okay, so aside from like, being my future husband, he’s currently looking for a band, one that understands his creativity and his eclectic sound. His last band kicked him out for being too “radical” as he would say. He tells girls he reads poetry and writes his own songs about taking down the man and rebelling against authority, but he’s never even gotten a parking ticket. Totally a fraud, totally hot.”

“God, you’re so right,” you say as you both watch Amelia’s future husband stroll past your little stand.

“You know I’m good at this - oh,” she falters and harshly pokes your side. “Look, it’s your hottie,” she whispers, not-so-subtly pointing to the man walking around the general news shop, picking through packages of gum and snacks.

You gasp and smack her hand down, pushing her away as if that will keep her silent. “Amelia, stop,” you warn as a slight buzz trickles from your fingers to your toes. The “hottie”, as Amelia elegantly stated seconds ago, is one of your regular customers. And yes, he is hot, painfully hot, but his name is actually Joel. He is a contractor who has been flying to Atlanta for the past few weeks, working on some project involving multiple buildings.

And yes, you know that because he’s told you. Because he’s a regular. And because he’s just really friendly.

“You two would make a bangin’ couple,” Amelia blurts, her brain-to-mouth filter on the fritz, pretending to organize the straws in their container. Her eyes are still on Joel, studying him like a portrait. “His face, those hands, your body, your voice… You’d be unstoppable.”

“Amelia,” you roll your eyes, though there’s a tugging deep within you that makes you smile at her admission. “He’s like 10 years older than me. He could be married. He could have kids!”

Amelia snorts at your qualms. “If he’s married, he’s definitely a shitty husband and terrible human,” she expresses with confidence. “One, he doesn’t wear a ring on that slender finger. And two, married men shouldn’t flirt like that with hot little cashiers.” She says the last part, looking at you with a smirk.

“He…” You pause, holding back an exasperated mumble as you try to find your words. “He does not flirt with me" is the best you can come up with, lying to yourself and your friend.

“Yeah, well,” she laughs, shaking her head. She knows you are in denial but has the decency not to call you out on it. “He doesn’t call me sweetheart," she murmurs, looking you up and down with a smirk, "or stare at my tits.”

You scoff and try to ignore what nonsense she's conveying. Joel does not do that… You sigh and look over, seeing that he’s left the general store with a bottle of water and a magazine and is currently strolling over to your little sugary oasis. “Hey, hey!” You warn Amelia with a snap of your fingers.

She peeks up at your antics and rolls her eyes teasingly. “Loverboy, right on time to order a Caramel PecanBon, coffee, and an image of you in that tight ass shirt to lock away for his spank bank later.” Your friend taunts, and you bite your tongue to hold in a comment. As much as you would love to argue, Joel is in fact heading your way with a smile already on his perfect face.

You can’t help but match it. No matter what you and Amelia joke about, Joel really is attractive, and he’s charming and easygoing. And okay, you’d totally jump his bones if he asked, but now you’ve convinced yourself he’s married and has a family. And you wonder if Amelia is right. Maybe he is a terrible husband?

“Good morning, Joel!” You say with your typical customer service voice. Even though with him, you’re always upbeat and chatty. And as he relaxes against the countertop, your pesky thoughts on him being married are put on hold.

His lips twitch into a handsome grin, and you have to stop yourself from audibly sighing in delight. Everything this man does makes you swoon, and you swear you could get lost in those warm hazel eyes. His muscles pop out from underneath a dark, navy shirt, and the pulsing veins on his arms somehow make you weak. Are you drooling? God, get yourself together.

“Good morning, sweetheart,” Joel replies in his silky smooth voice that makes the hair on your arms stand up. Your insides giggle like a schoolgirl, but you manage to stay professional. He then looks over at your friend and nods politely. “Amelia.”

She waves her hand and flicks her eyes to you, wiggling her eyebrows as if to say, “I told you so.” Okay, so he has a cute little nickname he uses. You’re sure he uses it on a lot of girls, except for Amelia. But she’s not a sweetheart. She’s sour, mouthy, and has hair that smells like bubblegum.

“Your usual?” You ask politely, and he nods, licking his lips as he eyes you over, handing you his card. Your fingers brush as you take it, courtesy of Joel who lets his hand linger a tiny bit longer on yours. It’s like he can’t help himself, dropping his gaze down to your chest for a hot second. Behind you, you hear Amelia giggle, and you groan. “Sorry about her,” you say, handing Joel his receipt.

He chuckles, brushing off Amelia's unpredictable behavior. He's used to her by now. She has always been a bit of a spitfire. “So, Joel,” Amelia traipses up to the counter, leaning over it, intentionally pushing her breasts together. “How’s work?” She asks, loud, curious, and desperate to know any secrets. It's for your benefit, she tells you.

“It’s fine,” Joel answers a little awkwardly, keeping steady eye contact with her. He's not even tempted by her low cut top, and you have to bite your lip. It appears he's passed Amelia's test. “Two more weeks or so and then I’m done. Can finally stay home and relax.” He says happily.

“Oh,” you chirp with interest. “That’s so exciting! I’m sure traveling gets exhausting. Well, that and working," you giggle.

Joel smirks at your sincerity. You sure are a cute one. Sure, he likes sweets and coffee, but he'd never visit a Cinnabon this much if it weren't for you. “Definitely,” he nods in agreement, tapping his fingers against the counter. He's thankful there's no line forming behind him. He wants to savor as much time as he can with you before he has to leave for his flight. “The job is fun, and the money pays well, but I’ll be happy to sleep in.”

“And I’m sure your family is thrilled,” Amelia chimes in, sliding Joel’s coffee over to him.

You bite the inside of your cheek, waiting for an answer. Leave it to Amelia to ask the tough questions. Although, you suppose it's not really that big of a question. Unless... He is married, and you're just the cute cashier he ogles when he leaves on business.

“Oh, no,” Joel scoffs, taking a sip of the hot drink, and relishing in the caffeine this early in the morning. “I mean, not really. The only family I've got is my brother," he admits, and for some reason, that tugs on your heartstrings. "Oh, and my sister-in-law,” he adds, an embarrassed expression painting his features.

You and Amelia exchange glances, a shit-eating grin on her face. Now that you know a bit more about Joel's personal life, you feel all toasty inside. You turn to grab his cinnamon roll, packaging it with a flush on your face. So, not married, no kids. Suddenly, Amelia’s words are hitting you hard. Is it extra hot in the airport today, or is it just Joel?

“Here you go,” you say a little too fast, shoving the box into Joel’s large hands. “Have a good flight!” You mutter and Amelia holds back a laugh, covering her mouth with the back of her hand.

“Thanks, sweetheart,” Joel winks, eyeing you over one last time. For his spank bank, you can hear Amelia say. He walks away towards his gate, leaving you completely flustered with your hand on your chest.

You let out a shaky breath, fanning yourself, and Amelia throws an arm around you. She kisses the side of your head and laughs. “Baby, he’s so into you,” she states.

Maybe she is right. Maybe Joel is into you. And that does not help your situation at all. In fact, you end up daydreaming most of the day with all of your fantasies revolving around one gorgeous man.

--*--

The week after, you find yourself on a late shift after a mix-up with your regular schedule. This time, you are paired with Liza, a woman a few years older than you. But still friendly enough and chatty. She's worked here longer than you have, and she's the person you always go to if you're having trouble with customers or other employees. You consider her a friend. But she's not as much fun to hang out with, not as elaborate as Amelia, not as creative when you people watch.

So the day drags on. You have dealt with your fair share of rough customers, Liza at your side to cheer you up when one becomes a bit hostile and another too flirty. You're thankful for her presence, but you cannot wait to clock out and go the fuck home.

You smell like cinnamon and coffee, and it’s not an offensive smell, but you’re over it. You're in a rotten mood. There is literally nothing on this Earth that could make your shitty day better.

“Oh, wow,” you hear Liza comment and lift your head off the counter to find the source of her enjoyment. Your eyes widen when you see Joel walking from the gates, phone to his ear. Your heart skips a beat, and you lean into Liza for support. “He’s that attractive customer, isn’t he?” She asks you.

“Uh,” you clear your throat. “Yeah, that’s him.” Okay, maybe there is one thing that can make your day better. A happy little sigh blows out of your nostrils as you watch him speaking animatedly on the phone. You wonder who is on the receiving end if it's a girl or his brother. Maybe he met someone in Atlanta. Maybe he's a taken man now. The thought makes your heart sink, and you look down at the old cinnamon rolls.

“I wonder if he’s single,” Liza ponders as if reading your mind. You almost speak in return, wondering the same thing. But you don't. And it's a good thing because Liza's next words make you shiver with nerves. “Oh, shit, he’s coming over.”

“What?” You whip your head up fast enough to leave you dizzy. Your eyes blink into focus just in time to see Joel saunter up the counter, his phone now removed from his ear. He gives you a bright smile that leaves hearts in your eyes.

“Evening, sweetheart,” he says to you in that intoxicating deep voice you love. His words cause Liza's eyes to widen, and she looks over at you, almost outraged that Joel would speak to you that way. But you don't know if that's protection or jealousy.

“Good evening, Joel,” you answer quietly, smiling back at him, hoping you come off just as captivating as he is.

“Uhm, hi,” Liza chimes in, making her presence known. Joel gives her a brief nod before turning his attention back on you. You think by his actions that maybe he's missed you. That thought makes your insides do a little dance. Liza, on the other hand, frowns, displeased with Joel's total lack of interest in her.

“How have you been?” You ask him, genuinely interested in hearing about his life. If you remember correctly, he should be done with his job by now. That means he'll be in town, for good, hopefully. Maybe you'll find the courage to make a move. Unlikely, you feel safest behind the Cinnabon counter. You can't imagine seeing him outside of the airport.

“I’m finally done,” Joel answers, confirming your thoughts. “The buildings turned out great. God, the architecture of the place is beautiful. I even managed to capture some photos on my phone. You've gotta see 'em." He rambles on, and it's quite cute how enthusiastic he is over his work. "But as fun as it was, I don’t think I’ll ever take a job with this much travel again.”

“Oh, what do you do?” Liza interrupts, smiling flirtatiously. She has basically pushed you to the side to have Joel's full attention. So then, it wasn't protection earlier. It was jealousy. Liza is jealous of you.

You fight an eye roll, but Joel humors your co-worker. Yes, that's what she is right now. A friend would not act this way, right? “I’m a contractor," Joel tells her. "Been flying to Atlanta for the past month.”

“Oh,” Liza beams, gently tapping Joel's shoulder with the palm of her hand. “That sounds exciting!”

“Yeah,” he grins, flicking his dreamy eyes over to you. “I wouldn’t have survived this month if it weren’t for this one right here,” he winks at you, knowing exactly what he's doing. “She’s been supplying me with coffee and cinnamon rolls and a gorgeous smile every trip.”

“Hm,” Liza hums while you let Joel's compliment settle. Fuck, you want to leap over this counter and kiss him. How can one person be so damn desirable? You understand Liza's sudden fascination with him. It's how you felt the first time you met him. It's how you still feel. “Well," Liza breaks the tension with another unneeded comment. "She is such a wonderful kid,” she jokes, poking your cheek, emphasizing the word “kid.”

Joel hears her sharp tone but chooses to ignore her, keeping his focus on you - the only person he cares about right now. He knows he’s in his thirties, and you’re only in your twenties. It's something he's asked before when he first got to know you. He wasn't going to entertain a teenager, but you're not. You're a young woman. And sure, the age thing freaked him out at first. But you are both respectful, responsible adults. Joel would never do or say anything to make you uncomfortable. Each flirtation - though they do get more and more suggestive as time passes - is tasteful enough to not scare you away. At least, he assumes by all your blushing and giggles.

You sense Liza is not thrilled with Joel’s little confession, but you are. You love hearing that you've been the highlight of his travels. You are - were - the person who kept him sane. He admits that he looks forward to seeing you the same way you do with him.

“Are you almost done here?” Joel asks, ignoring Liza’s little gasp as soon as the question leaves his lips. For a moment, you don't think you heard him correctly. But there's a genuine smile on his face, and he looks hopeful. And you feel like you're floating.

You nod your head slowly, glancing up at the clock. “Yeah, about a half-hour left," you answer him, fighting the urge to twirl your hair around your finger and bite your lip like some flirty teenage girl.

Joel accepts your answer, getting bolder and leaning over the countertop. He skims around to make sure no one is waiting for a last-minute treat before settling in, resting his face in his hands. "Are you hungry?" He asks and your stomach does a little flip.

Liza cuts in before you can answer. Once again, sharing unsolicited advice. And here you thought she was your friend, someone who cared about you. “Oh, sweetie,” she taps your shoulder playfully, treating you like a kid, which she clearly sees you as. “You’ve been eating Churro Swirls all day, no way you’re hungry.” Her laughter is loud, fake, and obnoxious. You think if she's trying to make you feel bad about yourself, it's working.

A knot forms in your stomach, and you close your eyes in humiliation. She is so out to sabotage you. Over a guy, really? Does she actually think she has a chance with Joel? No, as Amelia says, he’s into you. And he's proven that by literally asking you out.

“Oh,” you force a laugh, deciding you're not going to let your pal get you down. “Liza’s right. I’m not hungry,” you sigh, pouting a little when you see Joel’s ravishing smile falter. However, your tune quickly changes. “I could go for a drink, though.”

“Ugh,” Liza scoffs, listening in on your conversation. Clearly, she's over the two of you. Her brazen attempts at seduction were weak, and now she's left to clean off the counters in annoyance. You have to admit that your feelings are a little hurt. She's supposed to be a companion. Earlier she was so kind with you.

“Perfect,” Joel says smoothly, ignoring your co-worker's little outburst. At this point, you think you both miss Amelia. “My sister-in-law works at this bar downtown. I’d love to buy you a drink.” He says, confidently, that smile returning to his face.

His eyes sparkle with something intense, and you find yourself nodding along. He is so hot you would probably agree to anything he asks you right now. Anything at all.

“Sweetie,” Liza speaks up, unable to hold her tongue. “You should probably go home, get some rest. I love ya, kiddo, but you smell like stale coffee and sugar.” Her face reads concerned, but you know she doesn't actually care about your well-being right now.

“Oh?” You ask with a scoff, incredibly insulted by her behavior. Is she always like this with attractive men? Maybe you should try to embarrass her. “If you feel that way, perhaps you should get a drink with Joel,” you offer, smirking a little when Joel cringes.

Liza giggles and looks over to the man you're both fawning over. He awkwardly meets her gaze, gnawing on his bottom lip. “You know,” he says, looking back at you. “I bet you smell great. Besides, it’s Friday, you deserve to have fun. And if you happen to get tired and need some relaxation, I have a really nice apartment," he suggests as his eyes roam over your form.

“Well,” Liza sneers in disgust and walks into the back to be away from you.

“So?” Joel asks you, a bit more bashful this time. He’s starting to think he’s been too forward, brash. Originally, he wanted to ask you to dinner, but then Liza opened her mouth, and he couldn’t stop himself from toying with her. He’d really love to take you out, though. Even if it’s just for a drink. And okay, maybe that comment about his apartment was totally uncalled for, but if you’re up for it… “Can I buy you a drink?”

“Such a gentleman,” you whisper, finding your confidence. Amelia would be so proud of you right now. “Maybe I’ll buy you a drink.”

“Sweetheart, you are magnificent,” Joel chuckles and looks down at his feet, a little too flustered to meet your gaze.

“Wait for me?” You ask, glancing at the clock.

“I have been, and I will continue to,” he teases, and you bite your lip, heading into the back to wrap up your shift so you can leave with the most attractive man at the airport.

Masterlist

[obeymeluv]

Signs they Love You

Back for my 1 post a week to prove school hasn’t totally killed me! When I get a semester break, I’ll post more often. In the mean time, feel free to leave me chats or PMs for stuff you want to see! :) Something nice and sappy for an okay Saturday

These turned out really long so I only did Lucifer, Mammon, Levi, and Satan. I have to get back to studying :/. Maybe I’ll have part 2 next week?

Lucifer

You wouldn’t be able to notice it because his pride wouldn’t allow you to. One of the brothers (or, to Lucifer’s extreme mortification, Lord Diavolo) would have to tell you

He’s not sure if it’s just the appreciation of you not being as totally chaotic as his brothers or genuine human naivete that has somehow worn off on him, but he loves you

Will be outed by sappy, soft stares that last 2 seconds too long.

Asmo and Satan are the first to notice and he LOATHES that

If he’s tasked with waking you up that morning, his knock will be firm but his voice will be gentle. Almost persuasive or commiserating

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by school workload, he may have a private conference with the teacher and grant you a minor extension. Will you know it was him? No. Is he happy to see you brighten up and refill with hope just a bit? Definitely. Is it worth the teasing from Lord Diavolo? ...Sure.

If he responds to texts in the wee hours of the morning when he’s still pouring over paperwork, he likes you.

Anyone who knows him can see how his eyes soften when someone else talks about you. There’s a fond slowness to his actions, how he glides his hand imperceptibly over his chest as if to feel where that emotion is coming from. Boy is whipped.

Should Lord Diavolo invite him out for a meeting, he will bring you back something small. Something he thought you’d like. Beel is upset. Levi yells “SIMP!” from the second floor and prepares for Armageddon.

Actually reminds you about assignments if you’re not already up on it yourself. Your success is his joy.

Is very keen on if/when you burn the candle too long and has a sixth sense for bad sleeping habits. Will put you on a stricter schedule for your own health

It may take almost all of the brothers to do it (or just help from Diavolo) but if he gets drunk on Demonus you’re getting a whole BOOK about why he likes you. He almost charms your memory away but everyone practically dog-piles on him not to because he needs to deal with his feelings.

You’re the only one he won’t chase out of his study when he’s doing paperwork. He’ll even set up a little fire if you like the fireplace.

How he confesses: tries to take you on a fancy date to Ristorante Six. Does not know that Lord Diavolo and Barbatos know about this (damn time-travelling butler!) and basically crash the date just to encourage him. Just long enough to encourage him.

Kind of an, “So you chose this idea, Lucifer? Admirable! I’m sure your date will be amazing! Enjoy your evening!” as Diavolo walks back to his table.

Does Lucifer deny it? Look and see how red his face is. If you’re really not sure, ask Diavolo. He will gladly yell, “I cannot lie!” across the restaurant.

Mammon

For all his talk, when he really, really decides he likes you, he doesn’t know what to say.

He can console himself with how obvious it is and how you made the best choice, but he has to show it! What to do?

Mammon’s kind of confused about it because he doesn’t really change how he behaves. You didn’t catch on already?! C’mon, human!

What, does he have to spell it out for you? Do an interview with Majolish?

His first tactic is to just be around you. Be subtle, and maybe cuddle a bit more than usual. Things to show he’s kittenish and at your mercy. Comfortable with you.

You don’t seem to be getting the hint so he throws the net a little wider by trying to find things you like or that you’ve been talking about. They mysteriously show up at your door.

It sends the others on a gossip train about who your admire could be and when they list off everyone BUT him, he wants to slam his head on the table.

Feeling tired? Coffee! Backpack heavy? Silly human, the BEST man can help you with that, OBVIOUSLY! Mammon jumps at the chance to do any little thing for you because he cares. His actions always speak louder than words.

Feeling kind of defeated and embarrassed, Mammon will go talk to the flock of crows that meander around the House of Lamentation’s yard when he really needs them.

For the next few days you’re accosted in the nicest way, birds chirping at you and dropping off various shiny things

You collect them, finally showing them to Mammon and he’s embarrassed that his representative animal has taken to courting you on his behalf.

He calls them to him, embarrassed and ready to rant or fall into the ground never to be seen again, when they start talking. Repeating all the things he’s practiced saying.

“Hey baby,”, “Hey human,” “Love you!”, “Silly! Silly!”, “Dummy, no, dummy!”, “My human.”

It’s broken and confusing, six or seven bird children cawing in your face and bobbing, but you get it.  

Levi

Levi’s not the best at expressing himself but it counts, right? As much as he hates to admit he’s some kind of shy tsundere, you know what that is, right? He doesn’t have to say it?

Yes. Yes he does. His brothers are getting too chummy with you and you don’t understand his signals. Time for Plan B.

If you get invited to stand in line for a midnight release, he hopes you take it. Then it’s just you two hanging out in line? What’s this? He brought snacks? Totally not for the two of you BUT you an have some if you’re hungry. It’s whatever

When he’s not doing boss raids and playing with online friends, he’ll ask if you want to play something with him. A Player 1 needs a Player 2, you know?

I headcanon that Levi knows how to play some unusual instruments like the kalimba or a real ocarina. I could see him making you a song on one of those. Or just playing it because you inspire him. He’s very good with a harp and will play it when he’s in the mood.

Boy also likes to draw and paint. Especially loves watercolors. Would it be weird if he gave you a painting of you as a mermaid? Just you and the ocean. Beautiful.

Was there a really cute plush or knickknack you liked? Levi has his ways, regardless of how rare or limited edition it is. It will be yours. 

He has a hard time understanding a passing comment of interest versus a genuine want because he genuinely wants everything he’s interested in, so if you hear a whisper about him almost securing something, stop and look it up. Make sure it’s not super expensive!!

Probably outed by Belphegor, who feels like Levi’s broadcasting all of his stress, frustration, and hope through his dreams. (”His dreams are weird. Just different ways of asking them out, and if he messes up it restarts like a simulation. My brain hurts.” he says to Beel)

 You’re allowed to come into his super-restricted bedroom haven when everything’s too much. It’s very exclusive since the Mammon incident. Be happy.

Might go swimming in his big tank and pick a seashell or rock to make a necklace out of. He hopes you like it.

If he’s not outed by Belphie, some of his online friends made a game demo they wanted him to try. They specified it was two player so he asked you to join in. While he’s in the middle of bragging about how he knows people, knows developers, he totally misses the dating-sim like dialogue and the big reveal.

Doesn’t really kick in until he realize the characters look like you two. You’re busy saying ‘Yes’ to “Do you like me?” as Levi absolutely threatens to rip them apart six ways to Sunday. Almost in full demon mode, too.

Everything falls out of his brain and quiets in his throat when he realizes the characters are kissing and ‘THEY SAID YES!’ flashes on the screen.

“Y-You like me?”

“Yep.”

It was that easy all along. Levi thinks he’s going to faint.  

Satan

Becomes aware of it pretty quick but ignores it for a looong time

Is it rude or foolish of him to assume you would also like him back?

Run away into books. A solid plan. If you don’t think about it, it’s not an issue

Oh, but it is an issue when you fall asleep after a mutual day of reading, forced in by bad weather. He finds his heart fluttering in a painful squeeze as he quietly whispers all the things he dare not say when you’re awake

It’s nervous poetry, and it’s beautiful

Satan tries to get himself back on track, to focus on reading, and he gets frustrated when he’s stuck on the same page almost an hour later

When you’re on the brain he just can’t do anything else

How does one show their affection? He’s swimming in books for a new reason now, as voracious as ever

He brews you a pot of Melancholy Coffee and is a bit disappointed you don’t know the meaning behind the bitterness. Wants to break the pot when Lucifer jokes about how it tastes exceptionally bitter to him as well.

Okay, so coffee didn’t work. What else do people do when they show their affections?

Asmo suggests a ‘not a date’ date and Satan sighs inside. Sounds like a lot of work and effort. It’s not that you’re not worth it, but he has a feeling that everyone will know and look at him the whole time.

Tries anyways. You guys go to a beautiful nature conservatory and take a tour of the plants and some indigenous animals

You’re starting to realize it now, he can tell. Satan tries to answer your question without saying it while you’re at school. You walk together, he offers to carry some of your books, and always requests that he be your project partner

Nearly there. If there was a single defining moment for him, he’d want it to be classic. He shows up at your door with a rose and asks you to go on a moonlit walk.

Mammon’s poking fun about how cheesy and cliche it is, Asmo’s gearing up to shut Mammon’s stupid mouth, and Satan just whisks you out the door with an aggravated sigh.

No matter what side of the house you’re on, Asmo throws up the biggest, gaudiest handmade sign that’s like ‘CUTEST COUPLE! 10/10!’

[chosenimagines]

Gifts (Dr Spencer Reid)

Universe: Criminal Minds Summary: Spencer recieving a gift Used Prompts: (7) What is this? (A friend chose it for me XD)

Warnings: None I can see

Language: English Request: yes/no Requests [Open]

A/N: Requests list are currently only uploaded on my Wattpad-account! This one shot/imagine can be found as well on my wattpad^^

🖊️    🖊️    🖊️   🖊️

____________________________________________

“Hey brainiac!”, I warbled and high spirited slammed the door of the apartment shut. I flinched when the snick of glasses echoed through the living room. That obviously had been too much of a good thing! But the little moment of shock couldn’t kill my joy. This day was way too wonderful to be stopped by some vanities. Besides nothing broke! So, there was no reason to be sad instead of happy. Spencer sticked his head out the door. “What are you doing already doing here?”, he wanted to know. 

The glasses which I loved seeing on him were enthroned on the back of his nose. In my opinion he was looking just way too cute with them! But he didn’t wear his glasses on a daily basis. Either he was working, or I interrupted his reading. Immediately my bad conscious came forward which darkened the bright sunshine in my soul. “I am sorry!”, I said in advance. Frowning brows, head slightly tilted to right and forehead wrinkled. Spencer seemed to not understand why I apologized. “Didn’t I disturb your working or reading?”, I asked. I had pushed my lower lip slightly forward. I absolutely hated it when I pulled Spencer away from his passions! The glow in his eyes was just too precious. Besides that, he barely took some time out which he would need. Spencer’s brain worked day and night without any breaks. No matter if he was at work or had free time he worked for the safety of the world, for the health of his mother or just to grow his knowledge. His brilliant mind didn’t even take a one minute-break. He didn’t want it anyway and I wanted to give him the space he needed to do what he wanted to. Sometimes I was getting the feeling that Spencer rarely did what he wanted to do. Possibly caused by his job. Spencer’s hand movement which was directed towards his face pulled me out of my thoughts. “What do you think you are doing?” As quick as possible I crossed the living room. Spencer paused in the middle of the movement. “I’m going to take off my glasses.”, he explained to me visibly confused. But I put my fingers over his hand and took it off of his glasses. “Don’t take them off!”, I asked him to. Of course, not without any ulterior motives. On one hand they looked way too good on him and I loved it when Spencer wore them. On the other hand I would need them after he knew the reason for my extraordinary good mood. My boyfriend’s hazel eyes followed the movement of our hands down. Then Spencer discovered the gift bad in my right hand. “What is this?” I rolled my eyes. But my lips were graced with a big smirk. A stupid question for a person who was defined as a smart mind. “A gift, genius”, I explained. The sarcastic tone within my voice was clear to hear. Now Spencer was the one rolling his eyes. “I can see this myself!”, Spencer replied. I snorted amused. I was in a good mood again! “But I want to know what is inside and why am I getting a present in the first place?”, my favourite agent of all time wanted to know. “Can’t I get my boyfriend a gift?”, I answered the question with a question. That drew a sigh out of Spencer’s mouth. He knew that this talk was going to be unrewarding. He just knew me too well! I pulled up my arm excitedly and wiggled the bag infront of his eyes. Grabbed by curiosity Spencer took the bag and finally opened it up. Spencer was curious and my nature wasn’t very patient what was the reason why I was glad about not having Spencer’s job. It would cost me many nerves! Pumped I watched him while opening the present. Frowning he pulled the gifts out. “Two books.”, he observed. His excitement wasn’t particularly big. But I nodded enthusiastic. “Yep!”, I answered. Then I took both books from him. “This” I held up one book. “is my favourite book! I read it 30 times for sure. And this” I help up the second book. “is my favourite book of poetry which is filled with poets of our time! I wrote comments, marked some things and even scribbled inside of the books. But don’t worry I used a pencil. If you don’t like it, you can erase it! I always hated it when somebody has written into books. But I saw it on Pinterest as a gift idea and I wanted to try it out. I didn’t know if you’d like it! So, I decided to use a pencil to give you-” His soft lips cut me off. After he pulled away from me Spencer smiled lovingly at me. “I already love it! Thank very much.” Out of shame I didn’t look him in the eyes when I tuck my hair behind my ear. “I don’t believe you, but it is very nice that you pretend to like it.” Spencer softly petted my head. “But I am saying the truth!”, Spencer argued. I shook my head. I was aware that it wasn’t a customized gift for Spencer. But I have thought about it! I hoped that he would learn to love it in the future. Nevertheless, I knew that Spencer didn’t like it at first. “I know you only read classics, nonfiction and so on! You aren’t a fan of the type of fiction I read. But I am giving you a Y/A-Romance novel for a good reason!”, I added for consideration. “At least I hope so.” I swallowed hard before I continued. “On a logical level I can’t compete with your intellect, your creativity and your thinking! My beloved genres take you in to a new world and they will help you primarily to switch of your brilliant mind for a moment. Besides the poems are sweet and cute and I want them to be a reminder for you of me when you are on a case.” Spencer gave my forehead a kiss giggling. “Do you want to” Spencer to sneak a peek on the book cover. “read Everything, Everything with me?” I beamed at Spencer. The joy Spencer caused inside of me was simply overwhelming. How could you not love this man? I was convinced that it was impossible! “Are you going to read to me?”, I asked hopefully. His voice was my favourite sound in the entire world. Spencer smirked at me. “If you want that.”, he answered. “I AM GOING TO GET YOU COFFEE, MYSELF HOT CHOCOLATE AND I AM GETTING MY BLANKET AND YOUR PILLOW!”, I screamed. I stumbled forward while I ran through his apartment. He burst out laughing and followed me.

[matthewfairchildfanclub]

TSC except it's incorrect quotes and it's part 2 and it's really fucking long sorry.

Cordelia: I like your top.

James, wearing a very bright shirt: Thank-

Matthew: Thanks dude, I like you to.

_

Anna: Gender is a game and I have the cheat codes.

_

Clary, at Starbucks: Can I get a venti caramel macchiato with, uh... seven shots of espresso.

Simon, behind her: Jesus Christ, Clary, just do cocaine.

_

James: If you were to die, what would be your last words?

Matthew: Finally.

James: No-

_

Izzy, on the phone with Magnus: Is it okay if I bring my weird roommate?

Simon: Would you please stop calling me that.

_

Clary: You sure you're sober enough to drive?

Jace: Yeah, I didn't drink anything.

Clary: Okay, go get the car.

Alec: [running after Jace]

Clary: It's okay, he's sober!

Alec: HE DOESN'T KNOW HOW TO DRIVE!

_

Will: Jem, you have beautiful eyes.

Jem: You too.

Tessa: ...

Tessa: Did I miss something?

Will: I'm straight, I just like his eyes.

Tessa: You're gay for his eyes.

Will: Exactly!

Will: Wait, no

_

Lucie, walking out in a new outfit: How do I look?

Matthew: Holy shit, that's the ugliest thing I've ever seen.

Lucie: Excuse you?!

Matthew: No, not you, the thing sitting beside you.

Alastair: Fuck you.

_

Magnus: You sure know a lot about the law.

Julian: I do a lot of borderline illegal shit.

_

Cordelia: Lucie! Don't let go!

Lucie, dangling from the side of the cliff: WHY THE FUCK WOULD I LET GO?!

_

Kit: I think I forgot to sleep because I was looking at memes.

Dru: If you ever wonder why you have no friends, just remember that sentence.

_

Christopher: Oh, tiddlywinks.

Matthew: JUST SAY FUCK

_

Will: Swear words are banned in this house, if you say one you'll be grounded.

Matthew: Heck.

Will: You're on thin fucking ice, kid.

_

Jace: You may not know this, Alec, but I'm a flawed person.

Alec: I do know that.

_

Dru: [reading the exorcist]

Dru: [laughs]

_

Matthew: I know you can be "underwhelmed" and you can be "overwhelmed" but...

Matthew: Can you ever just be whelmed?

James: ...

Christopher: I think you can in Bulgaria!

_

James: I think I'm in love with Cordelia.

Grace: Congratulations! You're officially the last one to know.

_

Tessa: James, what are you doing here? Weren't you making spaghetti tacos with Mattew, Christopher, and Thomas?

James: Well, I was.

Tessa: ... was?

James: Well, I- it was just getting hot downstairs because of the fire.

Tessa: THE WHAT?!

(Downstairs the kitchen is completely on fire)

Christoper, looking around while Matthew and Thomas try to put the fire out with olive oil: Oh, this isn't good.

_

Jace: Please shut up.

Simon: Well, since you asked nicely, no.

_

Will: No pain, no gain!

Matthew: But I'm in constant pain and I've lost everything-

_

Matthew: If you'll excuse me, I must attend to my evening affairs.

James: You mean drinking wine and eating gummy bears until you pass out on a chaise?

Cordelia: Or reading Layla and Majnun and crying in the bath because they didn't deserve it?

Lucie: Or shouting your own poetry from your balcony?

Matthew: All three, in that order.

_

Will: What have I told you about comparing Tatiana to the devil?

Lucie: ... that it's offensive to the devil?

_

Jamie: These people are my friends!

Jamie: I've known them for twelve hours!

_

Clary: What are we gonna do?

Simon: Don't worry, you're so small they probably won't see you.

Clary: Simon, is this really the time to be making short jokes?

Simon: Clary, it's never not the time, because just like you, life is short.

_

Matthew, drunk: Always strive to eat the stars.

Lucie, half asleep: Aren't they too hot?

Matthew: Blow on them first, idiot.

_

Cashier: Would you like your check?

Ty: If someone is being murdered right now it would be my alibi, but if someone gets murdered in the store they could pin it on me.

Cashier: Sir?

Ty: I want to speak to a lawyer.

_

Magnus: If you had to choose between Jace and all the money I have in my pocket, which would you choose.

Alec: Depends. How much money are we talking about?

Jace: Alec????

Magnus: Eleven cents.

Alec: Sold.

Jace: ALEC?!!??!?!

_

Alastair: Cursing is for those who have a limited vocabulary.

Matthew: You are an audacious, ideologically unsound, captious, presumptuous, motherfucker.

_

Clary: Hey, uh, maybe we need Simon's help with this one?

Jace: I would literally rather die.

_

Cristina: Name a way to be nice to people.

Kieran: Don't stab them.

Cristina: ...

Cristina: Setting the bar a little low but I'll allow it.

_

Tessa: Where have you been?

Will: Emotional hell.

_

Kit: I made you all of you into Sims, look.

Jace: Where are you?

Kit: I'm in the grave in the backyard.

Jace:

Clary:

Jace: Put me there to.

Clary: Oh my god-

_

Emma: I have the sharpest memory, name one time I forgot something.

Zara: You forgot me in a Walmart parking lot, like, three weeks ago.

Emma: I did that on purpose, try again.

_

Matthew: Will, did you know "thot" means "thoughtful person."

Will: Really? I did not know this modern slang.

(later)

Will: Thank you for helping me with the stables, Tessa, you're such a thot.

Tessa, wheezing: I'm a WHAT?

_

Julian: [choking]

Kit: I'm trying to call 911 but the 9 button isn't working!

Dru: Just flip your phone upside down and use the 6.

Julian, stopping his choking for a second: What the fu-

_

Emma, getting in the front seat: Alright, is everyone ready to go?

The Blackthorns: Yep!

Emma: Okay, let's go.

(looks into the mirror to see Zara running after the van)

Emma: [whispers to herself] Goodbye you little shit.

_

Cordelia: What the hell is going on??

Matthew: Oh, great, you heard my cry for help.

Cordelia: You mean your girly scream?

Matthew: I MEAN MY CRY FOR HELP

_

James: The risk I took was calculated.

James: But holy shit am I bad at math.

_

Izzy and Magnus: [getting arrested at a protest]

Cop: Fake ID's, fake credit card. Got anything on you that's real?

Izzy: My tits.

Magnus: My ass.

_

[in a group chat]

Dru: Adding "lmao" does not hide your pain.

Kit: Yeah it does lmao.

_

Matthew: Excuse me, who made James the boss of the group.

Christopher: You did.

Thomas: You said, "James should be the boss".

Lucie: And then you said, "lets vote," and it was unanimous.

Cordelia: And then you made him a plaque that says, "Boss Of Us".

Anna: And put little sparkles all over it.

Matthew: ... All valid points.

_

Matthew: And once again, James and Matthew save the day.

Lucie: You didn't do anything.

Thomas: It was all James.

Matthew: We're a package deal. Everyone knows that.

_

Jem: I am not "too nice"!

Will: Jem, you apologized-

Jem: I have manners!

Will: -to the waiter who spilled soup on your lap.

_

Kit: You wanna see how hardcore I am?

Kit: [punches a wall]

Kit: Take me to the hospital.

_

Julian: People ask me how I handle the rest of my family so easily.

Julian: The truth is, I don't.

Julian: I have no control over them.

Julian: I walked into the house today and Mark shot me in the neck with a nerf gun.

_

(At a New Years Eve party)

Alec, to the TMI gang: I would like to make a toast!

Alec, raising his glass: I cannot believe we have gone through another twelve months of absolute fuckery.

Alec: Cheers!