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wwweasleystan · 3 years

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Bravery, Courage, and a Little bit of Stupidity

Summary: It’s finally time for the Quidditch House Cup match and it’s Gryffindor vs. Slytherin. Tensions are high, but what happens when Gryffindor’s star seeker and captain gets hurt playing a prank just a day before the game? Who will take your brother, James’, place?

Pairings: James potter x sister!reader(platonic, obvi), Sirius Black x reader

Warnings: None? I think

Had this idea in my head for awhile, hope you all enjoy! Don’t forget to like, repost, or comment! I love hearing all of your feedback :)

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“Absolutely not. There is not a snowball’s chance in hell that I will be doing that for you, Jamie.” you spoke while glaring your brother down. He looked like a hurt puppy, with his arm in a sling and that pouty look on his face. But was he crazy? Sure, you played quidditch in the backyard with him and Siri in the summer but this was different. This was the Quidditch House Cup for Merlin’s sake! Against Slytherin, no less! It was no secret they played dirty. He should have known not to go and get himself injured playing that stupid prank. Trying to turn the moving staircases into a slip n’ slide, what did he think was gonna happen? It seemed however, that your brother was not willing to take no for an answer.

“Cmon’ y/n/n. Your much better than you think you are! I promise it will be easy. All you have to do is catch the snitch and I already told the beaters to keep an extra eye on any bludgers heading your way. Plus, Sirius will be up there with you! It will be fun, I promise. Pleaseee” your brother whined while quite literally getting on his knees. You rolled your eyes and tugged him back up.

“Why me, though? I’ve only ever played with you and Sirius. What makes you think I have what it takes to perform during literally the biggest game of the year?” You questioned, because honestly, why would he want you to do it? Maybe you were good, but you're certain you didn’t match up to Slytherin’s seeker, Lucius Malfoy. You’re brother just smirked.

“Because, my dear sister” he began, while throwing his arm over your shoulder and beginning to lead you towards the common room, “We come from a family of seekers. Certainly it runs in your blood. I've seen it first hand in the backyard. Also, you’re a Gryffindor, and not just any Gryffindor. The bravest, most courageous Gryffindor I know. And maybe just a little dash of stupidity.” You shoved his shoulder at that, but he continued.

“Let’s face it, I’ve seen you do some pretty crazy shit for a dare. Remember that time you jumped off the Astronomy tower on a dare, and had to Accio your broom? Or that time you went and tried to go hand to hand with a hippogriff just because Sirius said you wouldn’t. Or that time Lily dared you to go skinny-dipping in the Black Lake. I’m certain you can handle a little quidditch match. I trust you, there's no one else I’d rather have fill my position.” You had to admit. Your brother was very persuasive when he wanted to be. You stopped him just outside the Fat Lady’s Portrait.

“Alright, you got me. I’ll do it, but James? Let’s just keep it between us for now. I think we should surprise our fellow house tomorrow, yeah?” You smirked and rose your brow.

“Sis, I like the way you think” James smiled, and you both said your goodnights heading up your respective stairs to your dorms. You had to get a good nights sleep now for sure if you were ever going to pull this off tomorrow. “Godric, help me” you whispered before falling asleep.

~~~

The next morning, your stomach was in knots. Why in Merlin’s name did you agree to such a stupid idea? You hated Malfoy, of course and any chance to see his face when he lost would surely be worth it, especially in competition for the House Cup. But what if you got knocked out of the sky before that ever happened? You sat in the Great Hall with your brother and his friends, trying to mask your nervousness by sipping your tea.

“You ready, sis? You’re gonna kill it today, I swear.” James was grinning like a madman, but at least one of you was confident. “Don’t worry, love. I’ll be up there with you. Maybe I’ll score enough goals that you won’t even have to worry about the snitch” Sirius spoke as he wrapped his arm around your shoulder tugging you closer and placing a kiss on your head.

“Ever the humble one, aren’t you?” you chuckled while placing a kiss on his cheek. “I’m ready as I’ll ever be, I guess. I just don’t want to let you all down. I know how important this game is to you.” you said as you glanced around at the group. Remus smiled at you “That could never happen, y/n. You’re the best Potter we’ve got” he responded to which James shoved him with an “Oi, watch it mate!” You finished eating breakfast and headed down to the pitch to get ready for the match.

“Alright, y/n. You’ve got this. You’re friends believe in you. You’re brother believes in you. There’s absolutely nothing to worry about. Just catch the little gold ball and watch the Slytherins cry, easy.” You mumbled to yourself off to the side of the dressing tent. Walking back over to the team, you heard James giving the end of his pep talk, standing in his uniform but without the pads on. Those along with a spare uniform were now on you, almost looking comical with how oversized they were. He turned to you and cocked his head, a silent way of asking if you were ready to go to which you swiftly nodded back.

The team as well as you, James, and Sirius made your way to the pitch, passing the Slytherin team along the way. Malfoy’s face curled as he spotted the team, but he had yet to see you as you were stood behind the trees known as your brother and boyfriend. “Gonna try and catch the snitch one handed, Potter? Or would you like to just give Slytherin the Cup now? It’s no matter, we’d beat you either way.” Malfoy spat as both teams squared off, yet you were still hidden.

“No actually, Malfoy. I don’t have the pleasure of kicking your ass today. That honor goes to my sister” He retorted whilst pulling you to stand in front of him and Sirius, who place an arm around your shoulder.

“A girl? You’re actually having your little sister take your place. That’s just pathetic, even for you” Lucius said as he rolled his eyes. “Though she will be nice eye candy to look at while I catch the snitch, I must say. Maybe when I win I'll take you on a date in my dorm room.” He continued while looking you over. Sirius went to take a step towards him, but your grip on the back of his jersey kept him in place.

“I’d watch your mouth Malfoy before I put my fist though it” Sirius gritted out. “And don’t worry about me Malfoy, I think you should just keep your eyes on actually catching the snitch since that seems so difficult for you” you quickly snapped back.

You began to lead Sirius away with the rest of the team, but you spotted you brother taking a step towards the blonde rat. “Listen to me very carefully. I don’t care who you are. I know you idiots play dirty, but I’m not going to say anything as long as you keep away from my sister. She gets hurt and not only am I coming after you, but I’ll get you kicked out of quidditch for the rest of our time here at Hogwarts” your brother threatened, standing over Malfoy and you realized then that he was almost a head taller. For his part, Malfoy had the courage to stand tall though you could see the fear in his eyes. With that, your brother left his fellow captain to join his own team and give you one last hug before stepping towards the subs bench. “Remember, y/n. Bravery, courage, and a little bit of stupidity, yeah?” James said with a smile, to which you returned. With that, you took off to the sky.

The game had been going on for almost an hour, and neither you nor Malfoy had caught sight of the snitch. Sirius was scoring goals like crazy, which you knew would just inflate his already big ego. However, the game was still close, and you knew it would take capturing the snitch to win. As the game dragged on, the more dirty it was being played. Throwing elbows and shoving was so common it had stopped being a penalty, much to the chagrin of Sirius and the other chasers. Not to mention, Malfoy continued to throw taunts your way in an attempt to get under your skin. Fortunately, you were quite thick-skinned and simply brushed his comments off, even the particularly nasty ones. That did not stop them from pissing off your boyfriend, who threatened that the next time he heard anything said about you he was knocking Malfoy off his broom, quidditch be damned.

The beaters were doing their best to keep the bludgers away from you as your brother requested, but you called them off. “Go help Sirius and the others! I’ve got this!” you shouted over the wind. Quickly, they nodded and took off towards the chasers who were being hounded by bludgers at this point.

You glanced around the field, first spotting Malfoy circling in the air above you, clearly looking for the snitch, and then the other players below you, still engaged in a rough game.You looked down to your left to see your brother nervously tugging his hand through his hair. You knew you couldn’t fail him, not when he trusted you. Finally, you spotted it. Right behind Slytherin’s keeper was a little golden ball, and by Godric you were going to get it. You dove towards the snitch, and Lucius who had finally seemed to catch on to where you were heading took off behind you.

It was a tight race as the snitch darted back up in the sky. You and Lucius were neck and neck as he roughly bumped into you and tried to knock you off course, but you pushed through. Thankfully, a beater was able to knock a bludger his way and he was forced to pull back to save his own skin and go the other way to catch the snitch from the other side. You smirked and pushed your broom faster, certain you were going to catch the snitch. What you didn’t see was one of Slytherin’s chasers jinxing a bludger to go rogue and come after you.

You were so focused on catching the snitch that you barely heard your brother shouting for you to look out. You looked to your side and saw the bludger speeding towards you, but you also realized how close you were to the snitch. As you climbed even higher in the sky with the bludger after you, you knew you had to figure out a way to distract it and go after something else instead of you. You, y/n potter, were about to do something brave, courageous, and maybe a little bit stupid.

You shouted down to your boyfriend, who was at most ten or twelve meters below you. “Hey love, catch!”, Sirius just looked at you with a wide-eyed confused look, but you smirked knowing he would soon figure out what you wanted. You leaned low on your broom, forcing it faster, then reeled back and leaped from your broom.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion. Your arm extended as you glided through the air, just beginning to graze the snitch.You heard your broom smash into pieces as the bludger crashed into it. The entire crowd seemed to hold their breath You heard both your brother and your boyfriend shout your name, Sirius quickly turning to fly towards you. None of it mattered though, because your hand closed shut around the snitch. You had won. Smiling, you closed your eyes. even if you ended up in the hospital wing for a month, you would be happy. You beat Slytherin, and won the House Cup for Gryffindor.

You clenched your eyes shut as you began to rapidly fall towards the Earth below, and it was only now you realized just how far up your quest for the snitch had taken you. Perhaps this wasn’t your most well though out plan. Just as you were beginning to think that you actually were going to spend a month in the hospital wing, you felt the air leave your lungs in a woosh as you were scooped up into someone’s arms. You slowly opened up your eyes to stare into that of your boyfriends, who was looking at you incredulously.

“Are you crazy, woman? What if I wasn't there in time. Merlin you could’ve died!” Sirius was rather dramatic when he wanted to be. “Yes, but I knew you’d catch me, love” you winked as you pecked his cheek.”Always. You’re lucky I love you.” He responded. You help up the snitch for the entirety of Hogwarts to see as Sirius flew you around the pitch in a victory lap. Gryffindor students began to flood the field below. He slowly flew you both to where your team was gathered with McGonagall and Dumbledore.

You climbed off the broom only to be swept in a large bear hug by your brother. “You’re amazing. I love you. You’re crazy. I have the best sister ever.” your brother repeated while twirling you around. Giggling, you placed your hands on his shoulders and stepped back. “I think this is for you” you smirked, while holding up the snitch. Closing your hand, your brother replied, “Nah, you keep that one. You earned it.” Before you could reply, someone cleared their throat. You both turned to see McGonagall and Dumbledore, holding up the prized object, the House Cup.

“I do believe it is the responsibility of the Captains to accept the Cup for their team, yes?” McGonagall spoke with her eyebrows raised. Your head snapped to look up at your brother, who was smiling back at you. “Captains?” you questioned. “Yeah, but don’t let it get to your head. It was just for this game” he joked back. Chuckling you both stepped up as Dumbledore raised his hands to silence the crowd. “Boys and girls, your attention, please. It is my honor to present this years’ House Cup to house Gryffindor. For exceptional bravery and courage on the pitch, it is my pleasure to hand over the Cup to this years captains, y/n and James Potter.” he announced as the crowd erupted in cheers. Both you and your brother thanked the headmaster before grabbing each side of the cup and hoisting it above your heads.

As your teammates gathered around and you took turns holding and hoisting the cup, you came to stand between your brother and boyfriend, who swept you up into the biggest congratulations kiss you had ever received. As you watched your team celebrate around you, James caught your attention. “What ever gave you the idea to leap off your broom like that? My heart nearly stopped as I thought about the endless howlers mum would have sent me after you landed yourself in the hospital wing on my account.”

Laughing, you stood on your toes to wrap your arms around both their shoulders, beginning to lead them back towards the castle where you knew Remus and Peter had already set in motion the biggest party of sixth year to celebrate your win. “It was because of you actually, James. I just remembered your words. Bravery, courage, and a little bit of stupidity”

#marauders imagine #harry potter imagine #harry potter x reader #sirius black x reader #james potter x reader

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ghostlywritten · 3 years

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If Only I Had Stayed In The Shadows - Chapter Ten

James Potter x OC

Words: 4,8k

Prologue Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine

The break passed and life in Hogwarts continued in blissful peace for the next few months. At least for us students. Outside of the walls and grounds of Hogwarts, the situation was getting darker and darker each day. People went missing or were declared as dead, causing chills down our spines whenever the list grew longer with each newspaper.

I sighed, folding a piece of parchment that contained a letter from my parents about their well being. They were alright but had to take a lot of extra hours, giving how more and more muggleborn or halfblood wizards and witches were registered every day and night with the worst injuries at their hospital. Some - if not many - did not make it by the end of the next dawn. A hand snatched the letter from my hand and I glanced over at the messy-haired boy next to me as he unfolded it again. "Ever heard of privacy?" I asked and his eyes widenend in mock-astonishment, "No, what's that?"

His good mood evaporated slightly though after he skimmed the letter and an usually solemn expression graced his features instead. "Things are really getting worse everyday, aren't they?" he asked quietly, catching Sirius' attention from his other side.

"What's getting worse everyday?" he questioned, joining our conversation. Remus, Peter, Lily and Marlene looked up from their sheets as well. We were gathered together in the Common Room, sitting at one table to 'study'. Some would think it odd since we never usually mingled together, especially with Lily's open hatred towards James and everything the Marauders stood for. But ever since he and I got together, everyone consequently spent more time together as a group, surprisingly getting along...most of the time.

"A lot of people are dying or getting injured," James replied, handing me back my letter.

"Mom says, the hospital is being run down. They won't be able to carry so many patients for long," I added, feeling uneasy, "Apparently the healthcare system is close to collapsing."

"That's bad," Marlene commented, worry creasing her forehead, "What's going to happen if this goes on?" Everyone shrugged, glancing at each other helplessly as no one had an answer.

"The Ministry will figure it out eventually," Remus tried to reassure us all, straightening up in optimism.

"Right, they always do," Lily agreed, causing Sirius to scoff quietly. She gave him a challenging look, raising her eyebrow. "You've got anything to say, Black?"

"There is a lot I could say that would certainly not please you, Evans," Sirius quipped.

"Anyways," James cut in before a bicker session could begin between them, "We shouldn't turn our hair grey because of this. We are young! And still have more than a year left in the safest place in the country."

I nodded in agreement, leaning into him as he threw his arm around me. Lily silently flickered her deep green eyes between us.

"But what happens after we graduate?" Peter spoke up with an almost quivering voice as he still looked worried.

"Let our future selfs worry about that," Sirius dismissed.

"We should still have a plan though," Lily pointed out and I allowed a frown on my face after she finally ripped her intense gaze off. She had been doing that a lot lately, staring at our interactions longer than deemed normal. What was her issue? "You know, the teachers are planning to start sessions for career advice with each of us. Having no plan probably won't look good."

"Oh, I already know what I'm going to do," Sirius shot back immediately, smirking confidently, "Auror sounds pretty enticing, especially during this time, doesn't it?"

"Same," James said and I resisted the urge to raise my eyebrows at his confidence, "That or Quidditch," he added as an afterthought.

"I don't know," Marlene mused, "Auror does have a nice ring to it but I always thought I would do something with Potions...," Stunned silence and a collective jaw drop followed. The brown-haired beauty burst out in laughter at our disbelieved looks, shaking her head, "Just joking. You should see your faces."

I rolled my eyes at her. "You really got us there for a second, Marls," Remus chuckled.

The evening passed and even though I would have liked to say we did a lot of studying...we didn't. "Well, Remus and I gotta go," Lily sighed, getting up, "We're patrolling tonight."

"Uh, sounds fun," Marlene commented sarcastically and the red head shot her a look.

"Right, on it!" Remus got up as well, readying himself, "Boys, don't pull any pranks tonight. It will make me look bad."

"But Moony, now is the best time! With you on patrol, we won't get any punishment!" Sirius stated indignantly.

"That's exactly what I mean with making me look bad," Remus remarked with a sigh, "I'm a prefect, mate. Help me out by not doing anything."

The black-haired boy seemed to contemplate his options before giving in with a pout, "Fine, but you owe me."

"Good boy," Remus said, patting his head like a dog, "I'll see you guys later...ladies, have a good night."

"Night, Remus!"

"So, if no pranks are allowed...how about we get a midnight snack from the kitchen and head to the Astronomy Tower?" James suggested and I gave him an offended look even though my heart fluttered at his romantic suggestion. "I am second to your pranks? Really?"

"Of course you are!" Sirius snickered.

"Of course you are not!" James contradicted and it was his best mate's turn to give him an affronted look. "Really, Prongs? You're giving me up for a lass so easily?"

"...Pretty much, yes," James shrugged, causing me to snort.

Sirius pouted. "Can I at least tag along?"

"Me too?" Peter added himself.

"Sorry mates, this time is only for me and my love," James declined, pulling me closer as we got up and kissing my temple. I blushed slightly at his open affection. Ever since New Year's Eve we had become closer and practically glued to each other. I couldn't believe my luck at this point, wondering how I had managed to capture the attention of this charismatic and sweet boy when I was a rather boring girl with a boring life. Yet, here we were, officially together for about four months in and going strong.

After grabbing a few snacks from the kitchen, we headed up to the highest tower in the school. I sat down at the ledge, leaning against the barrier with my arms and resting my chin on them as I breathed in the fresh night air. James settled down next to me, quietly handing me a sandwich I bit into immediately whilst we enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere and presence of the other. The view was magnificent, moonlight reflecting from the slight waves of the black sea and I imagined the Giant Squid breaking the surface with its tentacles from time to time.

"What are you thinking about?" James eventually asked softly and I glanced over. His cheek rested on his crossed arms, eyes locked on my face. I blushed slightly at his gaze, looking back out at the landscape. A tinge of happiness rose in me as I thought how life was for me at the moment. Despite my parents throwing fits because of my career choices, I had a great boyfriend, who supported me in everything. And as cliché as it sounded, he made me feel safe during the dangerous times of war raging just outside of the Hogwarts grounds. Is that what love makes you feel-? My thoughts came to a screeching halt at the l-word before it started racing uncontrollably fast. Love? Did I love him?

"Cec?" James poked my arm, breaking me out of my reverie and I twitched slightly in surprise, "Are you spacing out on me?"

"N-no, I was just...," my eyes flickered around for an escape, "..daydreaming," I ended lamely, pressing my mouth against my underarm.

"Okay?" James raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing me, "Are you cold? You are twitching like a weirdo."

"Jeez, thanks," I said sarcastically, though immediately blushed when he scooted closer, throwing an arm around me. "It's alright, weirdo," he said with a grin, "I'll be your knight in shining amor once again and keep you warm."

"And once again, I gotta remind you of a little magic trick called Heating Charm," I replied with the same grin, warmth spreading through me at his cute gesture. James was full of cute gestures, it was a miracle no one knew that. Maybe, because he had never been able to show this side of him before. I bit my lip, shyly acknowledging the increase of my heartbeat at his proximity, the realisation of my feelings suddenly becoming clear.

I had fallen for that idiot.

Days had passed and I was mulling over how to tell James about my feelings. Should I tell him at all? Should I wait for him to say it first? Did he feel the same anyway?

There was only one person to ask for love advice. Someone, who had helped me before.

"Marlene, should I tell him?" I asked.

"Absolutely not," the beautiful Gryffindor answered immediately with her eyes wide.

"Why not?"

"The boy has to say it first. That's the rule."

I made a face. "Is that really? Or are you just making it up?"

Marlene sighed, grabbing my shoulders. "Dearest Cec. We girls easily fall in love. And we figure it out quite easily, too. A boy usually needs a while longer and if the girl were to approach him with her feelings, he would immediately feel swamped and make a beeline for the next exit. Until he is not sure of his own feelings, I wouldn't tell him."

I frowned slightly, "That's a bit biased, don't you think? I'm sure not all boys would try to run away."

"Oh believe me, they will," Marlene stated almost darkly. Something told me, she was talking from experience but I was not enough of a Gryffindor to dig deeper. She noticed my gaze though and immediately let go of my shoulders, leaning back in nonchalance. "I mean, you can risk it and tell him or you can wait. Personally, I believe waiting is the best. It doesn't hurt now, does it?"

I pondered over her words whilst wandering the halls in search of the one boy, who kept running through my mind. Sure, it wouldn't hurt to wait for him to say it first, but the question was how long would he need to realise it? Could I perhaps quicken it up by just telling him first, making him notice his own feelings faster? Or would it just pressure him to say it, too even if he doesn't mean it? That thought filled me with horror and I swiftly decided to keep my mouth shut.

Though, when I rounded the corner to the courtyard and saw him standing in all his bespectacled, nut brown messy haired glory I couldn't help but suddenly hear my heartbeat loud and clearly, drumming in my ears in a pace it would usually go after a sprint or a run up of blasted staircases. I couldn't help but stop short in my movements to savour the sight of his smile for a second, the same smile he would direct at his mates and me, all the people he loved (perhaps he did actually love me, too), his teeth shining in the sunlight that would occasionally peak through between the many clouds and I decided to tell him my feelings then and there, head slightly dizzy from the once again quick change of mind. But before I took a step forward, my eyes flickered away from him at the reflection of the sun on shiny red hair, rippled in perfect waves and slightly blinding. And then they flickered towards a pair of glistening, emerald green eyes that were smiling at the exact same boy I wanted to talk and spill my feelings to.

I swiftly stepped back in the shadows, wincing at my own behaviour. Why was I spying on them? They were doing nothing but talking, laughing at each other...something I had never seen Lily do with James before. Ever. Wishing I could hear what they were saying I looked back at James, feeling my chest warm at the sight of his smile but almost burn at the realisation who it was directed to. All the people he loved...

'No,' I shook my head, 'We've talked about this before we got together. He made it clear that he lost interest in her...after pining after her for years.' She clearly never reciprocated his feelings, so their not-lovestory was over when he moved on. But what if she did reciprocate his feelings? I thought back on all the times I caught her staring at us. Could it be that she had been feeling something for him all along and was just hiding it? Or didn't realise it until now?

Marlene's lessons on keeping a boy interested crossed my mind. Would trying hard to get work on girls, too? After all, James had been chasing her for years and suddenly stopped paying attention to her. He was even in a relationship. But would that spark an interest in Lily? Certainly not. She wasn't the type to chase after someone, who was taken, not to mention one, who had been annoying her for years. No, she was just befriending him now that he wasn't pining after her, seeing as they were in the same friendship circles. We were all spending more time together, the girls and the Marauders. And as Marlene, Alice and I were starting to get along more with the boys, so was Lily. It was bound to happen that we all grew closer. If anything, it was a good thing.

I relaxed a bit at that conclusion, smiling slightly as they laughed quite loudly at something James said. Back then, when I was obsessing more over other people's relationships (since I had none of my own), I always thought they would get along really well if James hadn't been chasing her in his boisterous and overly-done way. Him, with his wild and goofy nature that would dare her to many adventures, and her, who would be able to tame him and not take it too far, keeping him on the ground.

+A perfect friendship.

A perfect relationship.

My smile faded and I turned around. Despite myself, I didn't dare to reveal my feelings to the boy on that day.

Neither did I on the following days that turned to weeks until we reached the end of the spring and the world slowly turned warmer in the first days of the summer with a turn from April to May. Everything was as normal as it could get when you were friends with the Marauders. Classes were the same, Quidditch practices were the same, we had won the last game against Ravenclaw and were now on first place to win the Cup as long as Slytherin lost against Hufflepuff (which was quite unlikely, but nobody tell James). The Marauders pulled their usual pranks, although they were more tamed than in their previous years and less directed at us girls. James and I were still going to strong...yet none of us had said the l-word even though we had been together for almost eight months by now. And although Marlene kept reassuring me that it was normal for boys to take longer in their admittance for love, all the romantic books that I'd read throughout my teenage years stated otherwise. We should have long since reached that stage to proclaim our love for each other, shouldn't we? Hell, James proclaimed his love for Lily everyday for years ever since he saw her and they weren't even together. It shouldn't be hard for him to realise whether he loved me or not.

This fueled my insecurities more each day that passed without a confession, which caused me to keep my mouth shut about my own feelings, too. Instead I found myself frequently catching James and Lily alone, deep in conversation, whenever I was looking for him after he went missing on all of us. Either at the library, where I had never seen him go as often as now and on his own will, too, or outside at the courtyard or on the Hogwarts grounds with her sitting in the shade of a tree and him dangling from a branch above her, grinning down at her as she laughed whenever his glasses slipped askew from his upside down position. It was practically a picture ripped from the pages of a romance novel. And the burning feeling in my chest would continue.

"Lily and James are getting along pretty well, aren't they?" I commented off-handedly one day. Marlene, Alice and I were sat in the library together, studying for the upcoming exams with Lily having gone to fetch more books. Alice tensed up slightly, her eyes flashing from me to her book whilst Marlene looked up, shrugging nonchalantly. "Guess so. Now that he is not annoying her anymore."

"Right. Good thing," I said, nodding along to her words. Needless to say it was relieving to see that she had the same thoughts as me about this. An expert like her would have caught on if there was something more to their sudden closeness, right? Nonetheless I looked over at Alice, who suddenly seemed very busy with scribbling something down on her parchment. Alice, who out of the three of us was the closest to Lily and who would likely know exactly what was going on. "What do you think, Alice?" I asked her bluntly as she didn't seem to want to join the conversation on her own.

Startled, she looked up and I gave her a tight-lipped smile as I awaited her answer. "Eh, yes. They seem to get along better than before. At least, Lily is not yelling her head off anymore every time she sees him," she replied, laughing albeit nervously. Just then, the aforementioned girl headed back towards our table with four books stacked in her arms. I gnawed on my lip, wondering how to ease the constriction in my chest that had been my constant companion for a while now with the ongoing uncertainty.

"Hey Lily, are you dating someone?" I asked her as she sat down. Her books promptly landed on the table with a bang as she had slackened her grip on them in surprise. I cringed slightly at the glare thrown at us from Madam Pince and Lily mouthed a silent 'sorry' at her.

"What? Why do you ask?" she coughed slightly, glancing at the other girls, who had looked up in interest now.

I shrugged. "Just wondering. You are pretty and someone ought to have to courage to ask you out, now that James is not holding anyone back from it," I laughed slightly at the end, hoping to dissolve the suddenly awkward atmosphere that appeared at my statement.

"She's right, Lils," Marlene thankfully butted in, blissfully unaware, "You are the only single among us and you've been for a while. It's time to get some!" Lily went beet red, reaching over to smack her on the arm as we all snickered slightly. "Jesus, Marlene. That's so inappropiate!"

"What? It's true! You are the only single among us. And someone is bound to have asked you out lately! Right?" the brown-haired beauty pressed on and I had never been more grateful for her noisiness than now.

Lily grumbled under her breath, hesitating slightly before she gave in, "Maybe. Some Ravenclaw perhaps." Our eyes widened and Marlene squealed as quietly as she could. "I'm not interested though!" she quickly added at our excited looks, deflating my relief, "Now drop it. We are here to study." And with that, she successfully ended the topic.

Later at night I met up with James at the Astronomy Tower, our usual spot when we wanted to hang out after curfew. "Hey, how was your day?" he greeted me warmly as I sat down next to him at the edge of the tower, resting my arms against the railing. A cool breezed rushed throughout the tower and James quickly scooted closer to wrap his arms around me before I even started to shiver and I smiled at his sweet gesture.

"Quite well. Studied a lot. And you?"

"Quite well. Pranked a lot," he mimicked, grinning when I laughed slightly. "Which poor soul did you harrass this time?" I asked, resting the side of my head against my arms as I listened attentively to him recounting each prank with great detail, his arm leaving me once in a while to emphasize something but never failing to come back around me. "Sounds like you had a lot of fun today...," I remarked when he ended and he nodded with a beaming grin, "...and when did you study?" His beam deflated into a pout, causing my shoulders to shake in silent laughter.

"I don't need to study," he grumbled nudging me. "Sure, you don't." I nudged him back, slipping to the side and almost under the railing when he nudged me slightly harder. He quickly grabbed me by the arm and pulled me back towards him. "Sorry about that," he apologised embarrassed and I giggled slightly, resting against him. "Don't worry, I don't mind this at all," I replied, snuggling my head against his chest. He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me tightly towards him. "Mhmm, I'm sure you don't," he chuckled into my hair, his lips grazing slightly against my earlobe and causing me to shiver. I could feel his smile as he deliberatly brushed against my ear again and I squirmed slightly, burying my red face in his chest. "Why so shy all of a sudden?" he teased and I stifled a gasp as he playfully nibbed at my ear. "I'm not shy," I protested, voice muffled. "Is that so?" He tried to back away but I tightened my arms around his waist, firmly keeping my face planted against his chest. "Yes!"

He laughed lightly, promptly dropping on his back and pulling me on top of him. I adjusted my position, placing a leg on each side of his hips and resting my ear on his chest, listening to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. "I could stay like this for a long while," James commented with a blissful sigh as he wrapped his robes around me for warmth. I raised my head to shoot him a smile and he grinned back at me softly. Craning my neck I placed a kiss against his jaw, unable to resist the urge. He quickly pulled me further up, rising up slightly to capture my mouth with his and my eyes fluttered shut as he held the back of my head, his fingers grasping my hair. I fisted his shirt, a swarm of butterflies causing a wreckage in my stomach as he molded his lips against mine, his tongue peeking out to run across my lower lip when a sudden noise erupted somewhere close.

I pulled away quickly. "Did you hear that?" I asked breathlessly as I looked up.

"Hear you moan for me?" James tugged me back down by the neck. "Not yet," he whispered huskily against my mouth. My eyes widened in surprise, heart pounding against my ribcage at his words. He nipped at my lip with his teeth playfully before fully placing his lips against mine again until I almost forgot what had interrupted us in the first place. But the fear of getting caught outside of curfew broke me out of my daze once more. "Seriously, James," I whispered breathlessly, looking up to squint at the doorway, "I think someone's down there. They might come up." James groaned, tugging at my shirt. "No ones down there."

"And what was that noise? What if we get caught?" I asked, sitting up.

"Probably gonna get detenti- uff," he hissed and I glanced down at him to see him holding his breath. "What's wrong...?" I questioned when I realised I had sat up directly on his groin.

Oh.

"Oh, Cec," he breathed out as his eyes darkened, "You really shouldn't have done that." He shot up, crashing his lips against mine before I could get another word out, his hand coming up to entangle in my hair as his other arm wound tightly around my waist, pulling me flush against him. A small moan escaped me when his sudden movement caused his hips to grind against mine as I sat securely between his torso and his slightly raised knees. "There is my moan," he smirked against my lips and I could have sworn my heart stopped at this devilish sight. Breathing out shakily, I took his face between my hands, seeing his eyes soften slightly before I tilted my head to deepen the kiss, unable to restrain myself in any way. He reciprocated eagerly, his hand fisting in my hair as our tongues clashed together. I moved slightly against him, a flash of excitement coursing through me when I heard his breath hitch. "Fuck, Cec," he groaned in my mouth and my eyes almost rolled back in pleasure at the mere sound. He reached down to grasp my thigh tightly, pulling me closer and I gasped against his mouth. His thumb stroke softly over my skin, smiling at the goosebumps erupting everywhere. He let his hand travel up until he reached the end of my skirt. "Can I?" he asked without detaching his lips once and I nodded, resisting the urge to moan when he dug his fingers in the exposed flesh under my skirt. "James," I breathed out as I broke away for air, feeling him shiver. His mouth trailed down to my neck, nibbling on it as I tangled my hand in his hair, his own letting go of my waist and reaching up to undo the buttons of my shirt-

"James and Cec sitting in a tree," an all to familiar voice reached our ears and my eyes snapped open. "K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" James halted his movements, burying his face in my neck with a groan.

"First comes love!" Sirius sang joyfully as he appeared by the doorway, a piece of parchment in one hand and his wind lit up at the tip in the other. "Then comes marr-holy shit!" His eyes widened slightly at our disheveled figures but his smirk came back as soon as it had disappeared. "My my, first come the babies it seems with you two!"

"Fucking hell, Sirius!" James cursed, turning around to glare at his best mate.

"Hi Prongs!" Sirius greeted innocently, waving his parchment.

"Worst timing ever, mate!" I buried my face in my hand in embarrassment, wondering if our compromising position would go unnoticed if I pretended that it wasn't compromising.

"Sorry Prongsie, your babymaking has to wait. We've got a little something going on tonight," Sirius said, not sounding sorry at all as he nodded outside. I peeked a glance between my fingers to see James' eyes widen under his slightly askew glasses. Glancing over my shoulder I caught sight of the full moon, partially obscured by a few clouds.

"Right, give us a minute please," James requested and Sirius disappeared down the stairs again. His hazel eyes appeared startingly lighter under the shine of the full moon as he grasped my hips softly with both hands. "I've got to go," he said quietly and the atmosphere seemed suddenly serene in contrast to a minute ago.

"That's okay," I replied as quietly, adjusting his glasses once again and he smiled that sweet smile, that one damn sweet smile only reserved for his loved ones and my mouth opened before I could stop myself, "James, I l-"

"Prongs! Hurry up already!" Sirius cut me off from down the stairs. James huffed, rolling his eyes at his mate.

"I'm sorry. I really gotta go," he said and I nodded quickly, scrambling to get up and off him. He adjusted his clothes before stepping closer, giving me a sweet kiss. "Good night, love," he said softly as he fastened up the buttons he had undone on my shirt, "I will see you tomorrow?"

"Definitely. Good night."

Unbeknownst to him, to Sirius and to me, Sirius had just saved me from committing the biggest mistake tonight. Twice.

Chapter Eleven

#James Potter #james potter x reader #james potter imagine #james potter x oc #james potter fanfiction #harry potter imagine #marauders imagine #harry potter fanfiction #marauders fanfiction #marauders era #Marauders #sirius black imagine #Sirius Black #Remus Lupin #Lily Evans #marlene mckinnon #marauders fic #Harry Potter

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fruitcoops · 4 years

Note

This technically isn’t a tik tok trend, but I can totally see Sirius putting up a compilation of clips of loops playing hockey, both on the arena, and in his private rink!! Maybe as a surprise, or an anniversary of some sort, or maybe simply because he loves him so much. I know this is very vague... sorry!! I love your writing, and hope you have a lovely rest of your day/night!!

This ask is awesome and not super vague at all! It’s a different format than usual, but I hope you enjoy it all the same. Have a great day! Credit for Coops/ Sweater Weather goes to @lumosinlove!

Number One: Fastest Player on the Team

Two hockey players in gold and red tensed at a starting line, then took off in a flash when the whistle blew; within moments, the player on the left pulled ahead and zipped past the camera in a blur. He reached the finish line a full two seconds before his opponent and took his helmet off—Remus’ hair was damp with sweat, but his wicked smile as Finn collapsed dramatically on the ice showed no sign of exhaustion. “Hell yeah, baby!” someone shouted behind the phone.

Number Two: Freckles

A slideshow of pictures started to play: Remus grinning at the camera, Remus stretched out on a beach towel, Remus fast asleep in an old Wisconsin sweatshirt with his face squished against a pillow. Most of the photos must have been taken in the summertime, because dark speckles cascaded across his cheeks, chest, and arms.

Number Three: Bookworm

A still frame from their first Tiktok showed Remus holding an empty spoon and reading his book with a deep frown, then transitioned into a new video.

“Honey, did you walk the dog?” Sirius’ voice asked out of view. There was a murmured response. “Re?”

“In here.”

In the living room, Remus was sitting sideways in an armchair, hunched over a paperback like a gargoyle. “How long have you been there?”

“Shhh, I’m reading.”

“I love you.”

“Love you, too.”

Number Four: Smart as Hell (Also a Nerd)

“—but it’s impossible,” Remus was saying to Pots, gesturing wildly. “That’s not how space works!”

“Are you an astronaut?” Pots countered.

“I don’t have to be an astronaut to know fire doesn’t ignite in a vacuum, James! If blasters existed—and they won’t until scientists figure out either cold fusion or miniature nuclear power, but that’s a different discussion—if blasters existed, and if one X-Wing shot an Empire ship in a weak spot, the Empire ship wouldn’t explode. Fires might start inside, but as soon as it was exposed to outer space all the oxygen would dissipate and it would just break apart, or maybe implode.”

“You two realize you’re debating the physics of a movie called Star Wars, right?” Lily asked drily.

“Yes,” the two men said in unison.

Number Five: Best Dog Parent

Another photo compilation began, this time of Remus and Hattie. In the first one, he was cradling her like a baby while she slobbered on his chin; in the second, he was standing knee-deep in a small lake and calling to her. The final picture was one of Sirius’ favorites: Hattie was splayed on the living room floor in a ray of sunshine, passed out cold, while Remus curled protectively around her side as he slept.

Number Six: Closet Romantic

“Hey, baby?” Remus asked as he walked into the kitchen, where Sirius was eating a sandwich and scrolling through Twitter.

“Mhmm?”

“Are you French?”

“Well, kind of—”

“Because Eiffel for you.”

A vivid blush crept up Sirius’ neck and he set his sandwich down, dropping his face into the crook of his elbow. “Oh my god. Oh my god.”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Sirius laughed without looking up. “Nobody believes me when I say you’re sappy.”

“I know,” Remus said, sounding rather smug about it.

Number Seven: Not a Morning Person

“Sweetheart, it’s time to wake up,” Sirius said gently behind the camera. His hand and forearm appeared as he shook Remus’ shoulder.

“Time is it?” Remus barely moved; outside, it was still dark.

“Uh, five thirty,” Sirius said around his smile.

“Fuck off.”

“Remus!”

“If this is for a prank, you’re sleeping on the couch,” he grumbled, turning over and pulling the covers back up around his shoulders.

“You don’t want to go on a hike with me?”

“Ask again at eight or take the dog with you. Your choice.”

Number Eight: The Laugh

A series of short clips played, each of Remus laughing. Some had Sirius in them, and each time the quick down-up of laughter happened, a dopey smile spread across his face.

Number Nine: You’re Competitive...

Remus sped down the ice at breakneck speed and slammed into an opposing player, stealing the puck away and turning hard to pass it to Sirius. His eyes flashed as the camera zoomed in and the commentators went wild.

The next video showed him at practice, clicking the puck through cones so fast it became a blur of black until it flew into the goal at the end of the drill. “Beat that, Talker,” he called as Thomas Walker skated into the starting position. Talker mumbled something under his breath and Remus smirked.

The final clip was from the gym, where he and Logan were locked in a competition. “Put more weight on,” Logan panted to Leo, rising from yet another squat with a wince. “I can’t lose to the fuckin’ PT.”

“You can and you will,” Remus shot back as he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand and began a new set of squats. “Try me, Tremzy.”

Number Nine Point Five: …And a Willing Participant in Pointless Competitions

“Hey, how fast do you think we can ride these carts down the aisle?” Pots asked. Lily’s phone camera was clear enough to capture the look he, Sirius, and Remus shared.

Sirius grabbed another shopping cart. “There’s only one way to find out.”

“We’ll race to the strip of black tiles there at the end,” Remus said, sending Lily a quick grin. “Winner gets to ride in the basket for the rest of the trip.”

Number Ten: You Chose Me

Only one picture faded in this time. Sirius was beaming at the camera while Remus kissed his cheek, both still sweaty from practice and glowing like they had been lit up from the inside. On Sirius’ left hand, a simple gold-and-silver ring wrapped around his finger.

New words appeared on the screen in the same script as the numbering and titles. There are a million more things I could add to this list—your sarcasm, your singing, your mischief, your big heart—because I love everything about you, and I can’t wait until we’re married. Happy anniversary, mon loup!

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hpdabbles · 4 years

Note

Hello, I just found your blog and wanted to let you know that I absolutely adore your writing! Honestly, I've spent the past few hours just scrolling and reading and honestly it was time well spent!!

I absolutely adored your fae!Harry story (I think it was called 'what's in a name') and the time travel one where Harry takes after Lily, if you were thinking of writing a part 2 for either I'd absolutely read them! 😊💞

(But also absolutely no pressure or anything like that, you write what makes you happy! 💗)

Hello! Thank you so much for your sweet words! I’m really glad you like those two they are some of my favorites. Sure I’ll write ya a part 2! This is for the time travel one where Harry takes after his mom more, I’m dubbing it “From Your Mother’s Side”. Enjoy!

James kept a closer eye on Harry as they “lead” him back to the Gryffindor’s tower after the welcoming feast. He found it rather interesting that this pretty redhead seems to know his way around the castle, and entered the Gryffindor common room like it was second nature.

He didn’t once falter in his steps, sure where he was and where he was going all the way up to the fifth year dorm. It was rather fascinating for someone who claimed to never been to Hogwarts.

Sirius and Remus were glad to show him about anyway but he was sure the two picked up on the same thing after allowing Harry to go and unpack not once leading the boy. The Mauraders are six years now and unfortunately for his two mates that means Harry will not be rooming with them.

Harry will have two roommates- the year following the marauders was a sad year for the house of Gryffindor- who are eager to take over the tour.

As a group they all relocated in their dorm, ignoring their other roommate Simon Minsky who did his best to stay as far away from their pranks as he could and piled on James’ bed. Peter charmed the curtains shut, Remus fluffed up the pillows to lean on, Sirius stretched out and took more space than he needed to and James provided the sweets.

Once James was sure everyone had either a sugar quill, chocolate frog, or Carmel caldron he spoke “So the new transfer....anyone thinks he’s a little off?”

“Very off,” Peter said around his quill.

“If by off you mean he looks like every wet dream come to life then yes” Sirius sighs fanning himself. “I’ll love to take that boy on my motorbike.”

“Sirius please your embarrassing yourself” Remus cut in without any real bite so James didn’t have to yell at him for it. “Yes he is pretty but even you know that something about the way he walks and talks is strange. Moon after him once we figure out-”

“Funny you should say moon, Moony” Sirius wags his eyebrows which prompted Remus to pick up a pillow and hit him in the face with. The dark hair boy laughs as he nearly falls off the bed but his strong grip on James keeps him right on the edge.

“Getting back to the point,” Peter says rolling his eyes which makes James crack a smile. “I don’t think he’s up to anything dangerous, the bloke doesn’t look like he could hurt a fly. If anything he looks rather delicate.”

“So does my Lilypad” James counters. “And we all know Lily Evans could kill us and then go paint her nails with our blood.”

“Looks can be deceiving. Take my cousin Bellatrix, for example, she seems like a proper lady to the public but I’m telling she suffers the worst case of Black Madness the likes which haven’t been seen in the last few generations” Sirius adds, shifting his body closer to the others. “He also didn’t seem like the cowering type. Humble and more reserve yeah, but not cowering.”

James nodded his head at that. “I think he is hiding something. Did anyone notice just...how much he seemed to recognize us? Or the way he reacted to being introduced to Longbottom?”

The seventh-year perfect stopped them earlier when they first entered the common room to greet and welcome Harry but the fifth year hadn’t reacted much to him until he learned Longbottom’s name.

For a moment Harry looked like he choked on his spit in shock and James bet his left shoe it wasn’t because Frank Longbottom was unfairly naturally built like a brick house.

“Maybe we can test him,” Remus suggests, making the others turn to their strategist with interest as the werewolf was the one usually behind the most successful pranks. The half-blood smiles at them innocently. “What if we give him a false sense of security with us, slowly condition him into revealing what he is hiding? We could also keep an eye on him with the map and see where he goes.”

“Why would we need to do that?”

“Because he’s sneaking out of his room,” Remus says pointing down at the Maurder’s map where Harry Hedwing’s foots steps were in fact moving away from the tower. The other blink surprise the werewolf activated the map so quickly without them the wiser but lean in to see where Harry is going.

They watch him make a full circle around the castle somehow barely dodging the patrolling perfectly until he seems to tried and goes towards the headmasters’ office. There he wanders around the room, pacing a few times stopping every few steps and James thinks he may be talking to the portraits if he is mentally recalling the room correctly.

Bizarrely, Harry then makes his way to the ground floor girl's bathroom the one Moaning Myrtle haunts and simply, disappears.

“What? Where did he go!?” Sirius gasps jumping up as the others also jerk in surprise. This never happen before, their map never lied and it always knew where anyone in Hogwarts was. No one had just disappeared from the parchment.

“M-maybe he did apparition?” Peter suggests.

“On Hogwarts ground?” Remus counters, climbing to his feet. “The wards wouldn’t allow it.”

“Well what do you think happened?” Sirius snaps also getting up. The werewolf gives him a sour look but they all know the Black tends to snap at anyone close by when nervous so he lets it go after throwing his hands in the air.

“Did..did he die?” James whispers because it’s the only explanation he can think of.

The other three twist to stare at him in horror, none of them liking the suggestion but none of them able to deny the high positivity. Peter hugs himself, Sirius goes pasty white and Remus’ already tense face tightens even more. They sit around not know what to say or do. Eventually, after who knows how long, James takes the initiative.

“We have to go get his body.” He holds up his hand to stop whatever the others are going to say while biting his lip. “Look, we can’t send a professor ahead of us without basically admitting we know where his body even though we didn’t see it and not make us look like murders. We have to give up the map to prove we didn’t do him in and you all know most of the charms in that parchment are illegal. We can’t have anyone from the government get a close eye on us, not with Moony. Leaving the bloke there until some unlucky girl finds the corpse is not right either. We have to go.”

Peter starts to shakes and Remus has to push his head between his knees to get his breathing back to normal. After much debate, it’s decided that James and Sirius would go to the bathroom to set up a prank and would “stumble” across the body.

Then they would come racing back to wake Remus so the perfect could alert the professors. Peter had been fed a sleeping draught since he couldn’t handle lying about such a thing and he needed an alibi should the professors come question him.

The two set out with paint balloons and heavy hearts, the map tucked safely in Sirius' pocket while they moved at a steady pace underneath the invisibility cloak. As they walked not one dared to say a thing, even though they desperately wish the silence was gone.

The darkness of the castle, with it’s sleeping portraits made the trip that much more eerie.

James half wanted to tell Sirius to go back because he knew his best friend wasn’t really in love with Harry Hedwig but that didn’t mean he didn’t feel something for the teenager they met earlier that night. Another selfish scared part of him didn’t want to be alone open the bathroom door.

James hated that part of himself.

They stopped in front of the door, removing the cloak to carefully roll up, and stood there for a few minutes. As if through, deep down they didn’t want to push open the wood and come face to face with the reality that waited for them.

Eventually, James sigh stepping forward and reaches for the knob-

Only to jerk back when the door moves on its own, Harry Hedwig’s startled green eyes boring into his, very much alive and very much covered in some kind of dark liquid, carrying something wrapped in his school robes.

“Oh! You surprised me!” The boy says, his red hair falling around in a wind blow mess. He looks like he just came out of a losing side of a fight, face bruised and gashes on his knees where the trousers have been ripped.

“What brings you out this late at night?” Harry asks casually acting like this was a common everyday encounter and not one of the strangest nights of James’ life.

“What brings us-what about you! What are you doing? Why are you covered in-is that blood!?” Sirius blurts and true enough the dark liquid James had noticed is in fact blood. He feels sick.

“I had stuff to do,” Harry says shrugging not looking like the delicate flower that he did at his sorting “That stuff put up a fight.”

“What?”

Harry studies them closely and James feels like he should take out his wand in order to defend himself but then he remembers he left it at the tower. He always had the bad habit of forgetting his wand, his mother once warn him it could one day kill him but James never thought she would be right.

Hopefully, Sirius wasn’t as forgetful because, with the map on them, their friends would never know what happen to the two if they do not make it out of this alive.

“Any of you good at skinning a snake?” Harry jerks a thumb over his shoulder. “You have a nasty pest in your pipes.”

James takes a chance to look over his shoulder and faints when he sees the giant basilisk head that is laying in a pool of blood with its body half leaning out of a giant hole leading from the sinks.

A second thump is heard later as Sirius like the loyal friend he is follows suit.

The next morning everyone is talking about Harry Hedwig not only finding the Chamber of Secrets, slaying the Slytherin monster with the help of the Gryffindor Sword but also being strong enough to carry both his new housemates to the school healer.

He’s only been on Hogwart grounds for a grand total of twelve hours before everyone knows how utterly insane the transfer student really is, pretty or not.

#Hpdabbles #Harry Potter #Time travel #Red Hair Harry #James Pov #From Your Mother's side #Part 2 #Harry is not messing around #James is the mom friend #Misunderstandings #peacebull

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writingmyselfout · 3 years

Text

Because I Could Not Stop for Death - Chapter Three

Language: English

Rating: Teen+

Pairing: Hermione Granger/Harry Potter

Tags: AU - Canon Divergence, Reptilia28′s Don’t Fear the Reaper Challenge, Manipulative Dumbledore, Black Hermione Granger, Slight Ron Weasley Bashing

Prologue 1 2

Chapter 3: Here We Are, No One Else

Summary: School shopping.

SNAPE and McGonagall wait until they are outside, standing a short ways from the steps of Gringotts but still clearly visible for anyone coming out of the doors to discuss their recent discovery.

“Severus, if memory serves, the Potters were wealthy, were they not?” McGonagall questions, looking around for a moment as she clasps her hands behind her back.

“Yes.” Snapes tone is bitter as he agrees. “Quite.”

McGonagall nods her head. “As I thought. So James Potter was likely the sole heir, and would have in turn left everything to Harry. I cannot imagine he, and especially not Lily Evans -- bright girl that she was--would have been so careless as to not leave a will in case of their demise. Not with how things were back then.”

“Highly unlikely.” Snape’s arms are crossed, eyes on the bank’s doors. “Perhaps Albus Dumbledore was who they chose, because of You-Know-Who.” Despite his words, it does not sound like the Potions Master himself believes that to be the case.

“Could be,” McGonagall concedes. “But considering how close knit James’ group of friends were, however, I find it hard to believe though. Only one of them might have been viable in the end, but considering he was the most responsible of the lot, I can’t say I’m not confused that Remus Lupin was not named as a guardian for Harry in case the worst came to pass.”

She pauses, seeming to consider her next words before continuing, voice a little lower. “I am concerned with Albus’s decision to not only leave Harry with Lily’s sister and her family in light of what we saw, but to not once check up on the boy in nearly ten years. At the very least, the boy has been neglected, and at worse-” She looks over at Snape, expression grim. “I shudder to think.

“Not to speak ill of the headmaster, but I must question his motive for leaving the child alone in that situation for as long as he has.”

“He, perhaps, was simply more optimistic about what awaited Harry in Petunia’s care,” Snape offers diplomatically. “Regardless, while he is the boy’s guardian in the wizarding world, he will have the ultimate say in various things, including access to the Potters’ will and whoever else may have been named guardian.”

“At least not until guardianship passes to Harry’s Head of House.” McGonagall considers. “I could speak with Albus about the will, but with the term due to begin soon, it may be better to simply wait for that guardianship to transfer over.”

Snape is quiet for a moment, before he points out, “If he is in Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw, Flitwick and Sprout will leave Harry’s guardianship in the headmaster’s hands.” It’s hard to tell whether he thinks that’s for the best or not, his tone even.

“I think if concerns were raised regarding the boy’s upbringing, both Filius or Pomona would take a more active role than that,” McGonagall argues. “Considering both James and Lily were Gryffindor, however, I suspect I’ll have another lion.”

“It would be in his own best interest,” Snape states flatly. “I don’t imagine he would be all that welcomed among the Slytherin fold.”

He does not need to elaborate for her, and McGonagall says nothing, knowing that among her students, many are the offspring of parents who had remained neutral or openly sided with the dark wizard Harry is famed for bringing down. Many of those students, unfortunately, belong mostly to Slytherin. Although she tries to treat her students fairly, and most of all to separate them from whatever deeds their families may be responsible for, she can’t deny that it may be in Harry’s best interest and safety to be in any other House.

Before their conversation can continue, they see the hulking figured of Hagrid coming out of Gringotts, with the more diminutive Harry only visible when the groundskeeper stands aside to hold the door open for the boy. The deputy headmistress lifts a hand to draw their attention.

“That was amazing!” Harry gushes, eyes bright. “It was like riding a rollercoaster!”

“A Muggle ride,” Snape explains at McGonagall’s raised eyebrow and glance.

“Infernal carts,” Hagrid grumbles under his breath. “Harry’s got more ‘an enough teh get his school supplies. I’m off fer a pick-me-up in the Leaky Cauldron.”

He starts to walk away from them, but stops at McGonagall’s stern, “Hagrid.”

“Yes, professor?”

“While I can’t say for certain, I do have my suspicions as to what it was that Albus had you come pick up,” she lectures. “It would be best for you to take it back to Hogwarts promptly, don’t you agree?”

“Well, yes, but.” Hagrid shifts from one foot to the other like a schoolboy who’s been scolded, and Harry tries to stifle a grin at the sight. The big man looks back the way they came in, towards the pub at the end of the road. “It’s just one drink.”

McGonagall sighs. “Fine, but I shall accompany you until you leave. For my own peace of mind,” she declares. She looks over at Snape and Harry. “Harry, for your uniform requirements you’ll need to go over there to Madam Malkin’s Robes for All Occasions. Just let her know you’re starting at Hogwarts; she knows what you’ll need and get you measured.”

“I assume you can handle that without supervision,” Snape adds. “I will get your books at Flourish and Blotts in the meantime to save time. I will get you after.”

With that plan in place, Harry goes off to the shop he’d been directed to, a coin pouch full of more money than he’s ever had access to bouncing in a pocket. Hagrid had given him a brief rundown of the coins, and he thinks he’s got it squared away, but he’s not too worried about being overcharged. The professors had felt confident he could manage on his own for a bit, and they surely wouldn’t have if they thought he might be overcharged or cheated.

Still, he’s nervous as he enters the shop, whose front room has some seats, but is mostly floor to ceiling bolts of fabric, with a few ready-made robes apparently for, as the shop sign declares, all occasions. Some mannequins are spread throughout, floating in the air and rotating softly to best display the styles. He stops a few steps in, hoping that the ringing of the shop bell will bring someone over as he’s not sure where to go.

Some curtains hanging between two tall shelves of fabric are suddenly pulled aside and a smiling, squat woman dressed entirely in mauve--from the witch’s hat on her head to the bit of shoe visible just under her matching robes--comes out.

“Another for Hogwarts?” she asks. At Harry’s quiet nod, she waves him over. “Come on, then. I’m Madam Malkin. I’ve another student back here as well.”

Harry walks over and she leads him into the backroom of the shop. Sure enough, there’s a boy being directed to stand up on a footstool. His blonde hair is almost white and the eyes that look over at Harry as he comes over to stand on the stool next to him are light grey. Harry feels like he has seen him somewhere before, although he can’t possibly say where, and thinks it may be down to the same feeling that had come over him when he first saw his Hogwarts letter. That déjà vu feeling is becoming so familiar now, and has worked out so well for him thus far, that he doesn’t think to question it.

“Hi,” Harry says, not waiting for the boy to greet him first. “Are you starting at Hogwarts too?” Harry belatedly realizes it might seem like a stupid question. He’s not sure if there even are other magic schools in the country. Surely in other countries, right?

“Hello. I am.” The boy confirms in a drawl. “Mother is next door getting books while my father is over on Knockturn. She wants us to look at wands after, but I think I’ll drag them off to look at racing brooms. I don’t see why first years can’t have their own.”

“Is it just first years who can’t?” Harry asks, interrupting. He’s stunned at the idea of actually riding a broom, like in cartoon depictions of witches, and almost launches into more questions about it but refrains, thinking he doesn’t want to yet reveal just how completely clueless he is about all things magical. This kid clearly has magical parents and has grown up with it like it’s just a normal thing.

“Yes, just first years.” The boy confirms.

Around them, the witch in mauve and another has each rolled out a measuring tape that, with a wave of their wands, begins to measure each boy. Harry tries not to stare, fascinated, partly because he’s instructed to hold still. While the tapes measure them, the bell at the front rings and one woman goes to the front while the other moves to the other side of the room to start rifling through a line of black robes.

When they’ve moved away, the blonde boy leans over to Harry and adds conspiratorially, “If I can get Father to buy me a new broom, I may try to smuggle it in.”

“Do you think they have spells for that?” Harry asks. If there’s a rule, surely they have a way to enforce it?

“Hm, I hadn’t thought of that,” the boy admits. “Maybe.” He seems to take a better look at Harry, then holds a hand out to him. “My name’s Draco Malfoy, by the way. I’m sure you’ve heard of my family.”

The name he’s given brings the same feeling seeing the boy had, accompanied by a certainty that he should try to be friends with this boy. Taking the hand, he admits, “Not really, sorry. I’m Harry Potter.”

Draco’s eyes widen, but they’re both distracted by a squeak of surprise behind them. They turn to look, and the second woman is bent over, picking up the robes she dropped. She stares at Harry, eyes comically wide, before she scurries towards the front room.

“Are you really?” Draco asks, head tilted as he takes Harry in from head to toe. The bored quality of his voice is gone, curiosity taking its place.

“Uh, yeah,” Harry admits. “I, uh, forget that people know me.”

Draco raises an eyebrow at that, but whatever he might have to say is kept quiet as the two women come bustling back into the room.

“Harry Potter! I thought I might be seeing you this year,” the mauve witch exclaims delightedly. “Are the rumors true? Do you have a scar from You-Know-Who?”

Harry blinks at the question before simply lifting his bangs, his scar clearly visible on his forehead. The three others in the room all lean in at least slightly to get a better look, but Draco is the first to straighten, feigning disinterest.

“Wow,” Madam Malkin breathes. Uncomfortable at how long he’s being stared at, Harry lets his bangs fall back to cover the scar, and the older woman’s eyes drop to his. She smiles at him. “Well, we have to make sure you are very well dressed for your school debut, don’t we? We’ll finish up these measurements and be sure to get these to you in an hour or so, okay?”

Harry nods and looks over at Draco, trying to think of something to talk about with the other boy. He’s momentarily at a complete loss as to what he could possibly talk about, then remembers the questions he’d asked Snape while they walked. “Uh, so what House are you hoping to get into?”

“Slytherin,” Draco announces immediately, explaining, “All our family have been.”

“Oh, that’s Professor Snape’s House.” Harry’s pleased to be able to display some knowledge about the school.

“You know him?” Draco asks.

Harry nods. “Oh, yes, he’s actually next door getting my books right now too,” he admits. “I’m here with him and Professor McGonagall. He said both my parents were in Gryffindor, so I guess that might be where I end up.”

“Slytherin and Gryffindor are rival Houses,” Draco says in response.

Before Harry can reply, Madam Malkin declares she’s finished. When Harry asks how much for his robes, she waves him off, declaring it’s on the house. “Least I can do for the Boy Who Lived,” she tells him proudly.

Harry feels his face get hot with embarrassment, and he’s not sure how if he should insist he pays or if it would be rude to refuse. He’s saved from responding by them finishing with Draco, and attention being diverted to him instead as they tell him to tell his mother that his items should also be finished within the next hour or so. It makes him relax some knowing that the other boy isn’t going to have to wait longer, although he’s still uncomfortable with the obviously special treatment.

The two head outside, and Harry picks up the conversation where they left it. “Even if we end up in different Houses, we can still be friends, right?”

It’s the most forward he’s ever been with someone his own age. He’s never really had a friend, his classmates always opting to steer clear when it becomes obvious that he’s Dudley’s favorite target for bullying. He can’t say he blames them, understanding not wanting to be bullied, but he wishes at least one of them had been brave enough to be his friend anyway. He hopes now things will change, and he’s willing to make the effort to make new friends.

Draco himself seems taken aback by the question, and he looks at Harry for a moment, before shrugging. “I guess so.” He doesn’t sound very convincing, but he’s not refusing outright, so Harry takes it as a win. “Mother is probably still in the bookstore,” he says, pointing at the store next door.

“Professor Snape too,” Harry agrees. “Should we go find them?”

Draco agrees, and the two boys make their way into the store. They’re forced to navigate between stacks of books and a number of other customers to search the store. When they find themselves next to some stairs leading up to the second story, Harry goes up three steps then stops suddenly, causing Draco to run into him. He laughs before pointing Snape out, who he just spotted, and they backtrack to make their way towards the front of the store.

“Professor Snape!” Harry calls when he’s close enough to think the man will hear him over the din of the crowd.

Snape looks over, spotting the boy’s waving arms in the crowd. “Mr. Potter, just in time to pay for your books.”

“Sure thing!” Harry readily agrees, excited to be able to pay for his own things for once. “Oh, Draco, this is Professor Snape. Professor, this is Draco-”

“Ah, yes, Lucius and Narcissa’s son.” Snape recognizes the boy immediately, his resemblance to his father striking. He’s surprised the two are together, though, and notes that his parents aren’t around. “Where are your parents?”

“Father had an errand on Knockturn,” Draco immediately supplies, his tone respectful. “Mother is in here.” He looks out over the crowded store, and adds, “Somewhere.”

Snape nods, assuming the boys met in Madam Malkin’s. He directs the store employee to wrap Harry’s purchases before turning to the boys. “The two of you wait outside. I will locate her and let her know you’re outside.”

He waits for Harry’s books to be wrapped before he shrinks them down and hands them over to Harry to hold onto. Snape shoos them outside and then turns to go search for Narcissa Malfoy. He locates her fairly quickly, her slim figure and long blonde hair--only a shade or so darker than her son’s--familiar enough to him that he can recognize her quickly.

“Narcissa.” He waits until he’s only a step or so away from her and the woman she is speaking with to say her name.

Blue eyes look over and, raising an eyebrow, she says, “Why, Severus Snape. I can’t say I expected to see you today.”

“I am assisting with a student,” he explains simply, not elaborating further. “Your son was looking for you; I advised him to wait out front.”

“So you’ve met my Draco.” She smiles fondly. She bids her companion goodbye before motioning for a house elf behind her carrying a stack of books to follow her. “Thank you for letting me know. He’s certain to be in your House this year, so I do hope you’ll do me the favor of keeping a close eye on him. You know boys that age are prone to getting into trouble.”

“It goes without saying,” Snape agrees readily. “You know I could do no less for you and Lucius.”

Outside, Harry and Draco move away from the bookstore’s door to avoid getting in the way of customers entering or exiting. Harry decides to admit to Draco he doesn’t know much about brooms and ask him about it, which gets the other boy going into detail on what makes a good racing broom versus what makes a good Quidditch broom. When Harry asks what Quidditch is, Draco is stunned speechless for half a second, before he launches into an explanation of what the game is and the rules. He’s just starting to get into why his favorite team (the Wimbourne Wasps) are the best when McGonagall comes over.

“Harry, where is Professor Snape?” she asks as she comes by, looking the two boys over. “And who might this be?”

“This is Draco Malfoy, we met in the robes store,” Harry replies. “Draco, this is Professor McGonagall, she’s the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts.” Draco greets her, and Harry answers the other question she asked. “Snape was looking for Draco’s mum in the bookstore ‘cause it’s busy.”

“Unsurprising, considering the time of year.” She looks over at the store briefly before looking back at Harry. “Hagrid is getting you a birthday present.”

“It’s your birthday?” Draco asks. Harry nods, blushing at the idea of someone very deliberately buying him a gift. First the clothes, and now something from the groundskeeper.

“He doesn’t have to,” Harry mutters, embarrassed.

McGonagall smiles at his reaction. “No, but he would like to, so it’s only polite to accept.” Snape and Mrs. Malfoy emerge from the bookstore and McGonagall lets the boys know.

“If it’s your birthday, we should get cake,” Draco announces matter of factly.

Without waiting for a response from Harry, he goes over to meet his mother and Snape, pointing briefly back at Harry where he stands with McGonagall. There’s a brief discussion in which Snape nods, and then he and Draco come back over to where Harry is watching them.

“Mr. Malfoy will be joining us for lunch,” Snape informs them, “while Mrs. Malfoy finishes his school shopping.”

The two professors and their charges make their way to one of the many cafes located in Diagon Alley. They were seated immediately despite their being decently busy, and it soon became clear Draco was the reason when the manager on duty came to greet him and ask after his parents. He seemed to sit up a little taller speaking to the man, telling him importantly that his friend Harry Potter was celebrating his birthday today and they were hoping to have a small celebratory lunch.

As it had earlier in the day, it causes a flurry of activity, and they very clearly become the center of attention. Word spreads through the other patrons, who crane their necks to try and get a clear view, seemingly being kept from coming over by the staff. Harry is both embarrassed and amused, as his self-proclaimed new friend Draco is clearly enjoying the havoc his words have wrought. Snape grumbles under his breath, but Harry doesn’t catch it, though he does see Professor McGonagall, stifling a smile, leaning over to speak to him in a low voice the boys across from them can’t quite catch. Not that Draco seems to be paying them any real mind.

Soon, neither is Harry. He’s too fascinated by the servers taking orders while simultaneously serving water or setting drinks from a tray down, a floating notepad and quill by their heads writing down everything being said. Trays heavily laden with food are also brought out with magic, followed closely by a server with a wand out, whose occasional flick of the wrist directs the tray to gently move to avoid other servers, patrons, and even other floating trays. Their own server makes a show of having their food fly off the tray, making elaborate turns in the air before landing softly in front of each of them, with nary a crumb falling off the plate.

He doesn’t think he could be more impressed, until they come out with a cake for him. He doesn’t recall even seeing cake as an option on the dessert menu, so clearly they’ve either had it made or brought over specially for him. Instead of candles, little magic flames dance around the edge of the cake until it’s set down on the table. Soon after, the servers break out into a birthday song that the other patrons soon join in on and Harry’s red face doesn’t distract from the smile he’s unable to keep off his face. When they’re done singing, the little dancing flames rearrange in the air to say ‘Happy Birthday!’ and he’s directed to blow them out like he normally would.

It’s hands down the best birthday he’s ever had.

After lunch, Hagrid finds them and gifts Harry with a snowy white owl of his own which, he’s told, he can use to communicate with others in the wizarding world. He and Draco agree to write before the blonde goes off with Snape to meet back up with his mother. Harry in turn goes with McGonagall to continue getting the rest of his school supplies, with Hagrid tagging along.

They go for his wand, and he’s glad to have the stern professor with him, unnerved when the old wandmaker Ollivander informs him that his wand is the brother to the one that gave him his scar. McGonagall dismisses the information, thanks Ollivander for his assistance, and outside promptly tells Harry that regardless of whether that information is true or not, he’s not to put any weight into the information. A wand, after all, is an extension of its wizard. Whether the things done with it are good or bad lies solely with the wielder. Then she marches him off to get the rest of his things and pick up his robes. Snape joins them when they reach the Apothecary, doing his own shopping. When Harry picks up a “Student’s First Potion Kit” marketed for new students, Snape scoffs loudly, takes it out of his hand, and promptly marches him over to where the fresh ingredients are, explaining that so long as he can afford fresher ingredients, they would always serve him better than any cheap kits or bundles.

Soon, it’s time for him to go home again. He’s sure both professors are more than ready to call it a day, but Harry still finds himself wishing he could somehow prevent it from ending. His things are all put away inside his newly bought trunk, with the exception of his owl, who sits serenely in her cage. They leave through the Leaky Cauldron, Hagrid bidding Harry a good summer before heading for the bar before they make it out the door.

It’s like emerging from a dream, Harry thinks, looking around at normal, non-magical people going about their day. No one is in robes, holding wands, or making things float or change colors or anything.

McGonagall holds her wand out, and the Knight Bus returns once more. “I’m afraid we shall have to send you back on your own, Mr. Potter.” She directs her next comment to the conductor, an older gentleman than the one from earlier in the day. “Please see that my student gets to 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey, if you please. Could you assist with his trunk? Thank you.

“Now.” She turns back to Harry, reaching into her pocket for something. “One last thing. This is your ticket for the Hogwarts Express. It will leave promptly at eleven o’clock on September first, so please be sure you are on time with that ticket. The platform is hidden from Muggles. Go to the barrier betweens platforms nine and ten, and there you’ll walk through the barrier to reach platform nine and three-quarters.”

Harry nods his head in understanding, slipping the envelope into his back pocket. They remind him his new owl can reach them if necessary, so he’s to write immediately if there is any trouble with the Dursleys when he gets home, though McGonagall states she’s confident that they will behave themselves from here on out. Reluctantly, he climbs into the Knight Bus, sitting at a window seat where he can see the professors one last time. He manages to wave before they are suddenly gone, and the bus lurches forward with a BANG!

Story Notes:

Chapter title is from the song "We Are Going To Be Friends" by The White Stripes. Heh.

#Because I Could Not Stop for Death fic #BICNSFD #Harmony fanfic #HP fanfic #Harry Potter

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akiameokami · 3 years

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Look at him, looking so smug as that curly-haired reject has her legs strewn across his lap. Potter. It just isn’t right for someone of his status to be with someone like her. He is a pureblood, she is muggle-born, and to make matters worse she has an eyebrow ring! Her poise certainly isn’t a redeeming quality either. I cannot see a single element that makes her good enough for him, expect perhaps that she is smart enough to put Raven Claw’s brightest to shame. If it wasn’t for her lack of professionalism and personal upkeep I am sure she would be in Raven Claw and not Gryffindor. She has changed him so much since they started dating. Potter used to be such a prince, but even since they got together he has been hanging out with anyone, even the problematic Weasleys. I can’t believe his parents let him do that, do they not care about how it will effect their status? Father always reminds me to be cautious of my social relations because they will effect him greatly. He would simply die if he saw me with someone adorned in chains such as Hermione chooses. The brazed crème a top the shit soufflé is that Harry Potter got a tongue ring! His parent’s certainly know nothing of this, but for the first time ever, I think I may not make Father privy to this. Potter and I have been associates every since primary school, and the tongue ring is a secret to all but his inner most circle. Except somehow Ronald and Hermione have become the bulk of that circle since we entered Hogwarts. To think that first semester we picked out matching Slytherin class rings together, and he somehow became a Gryffindor like them. Maybe classes do divide people too definitively? Or maybe he is changing as a person.. He always did have an affinity for the muggle world and other oddities, I just never thought he’d choose them over me.

“Hi Har- Er, Potter, and company”, I say awkwardly as I approach their group. They all go quiet as they look at me, the only green clad robe amongst a sea of red. I feel as if this griffons pride may swallow me whole. They seem to be waiting for Harry to respond before they pounce, he really has gone from a Prince to a King.

“Draco!” Harry exclaims as he moves Hermione's legs off and stands to greet me. I go for a slight wave but he pulls me into a hug. I can feel the daggers from his entourage. “I haven’t seen you around school in a while, what has Snape been forcing you into this time?” He asked, staring only at me. I’d appreciate the opportunity to get lost in his viper green eyes, but I can’t hold his stair. He knows my distaste for Snape, but he doesn’t know why. It’s a story for another time, but he’d already know it if he’d never stopped talking to me.

“Oh, no, Snape is no longer tutoring me. Instead of academic pursuits, I’ve decided to try out for the quidditch team. Seems they have taken a fancy to my flying skills!” it hurts to not tell him to truth, to see him go from someone who I could tell anything to, to having to smile through the biggest heart break I’ve ever had. When I mention quidditch he gets very excited, and his posse eases up a bit. It is not uncommon for groups of different classes to enthuse over quidditch together, it is one of the few social glues we have. “What a coincidence! I will be joining the quidditch team as a legacy next season!” he says very boisterously, “I know they are expecting a lot because of my father, but I think they will be pleasantly surprised. I did always win when we would race, right?” He says with a slap to my shoulder. To others this would look like a casual challenge, but for me that slight touch meant so much more. It brought back summers spent struggling to learn how to fly out behind the greenhouse. The time he carried me back to Mother after I was able to be the first to get off the ground and flew too high.

“You’re right, you used to be much better than me. Who knows if it’s changed, maybe you could have a practice race with me and give me some pointers if I lose?”. This audacious bastard would never turn down a challenge, and despite knowing I will likely lose, it means we’d finally have a chance to spend some time together so I’m willing to “take the L” as his muggle friends would say.

“Harry, that’d be awesome to watch!”, “Yea Harry darling, you should host a little Gryffindor versus Slytherin flying practice before the season starts!’ Ron and Hermione cheer him on from the background. The other Gryffindor's start to chime in on how they would love to see a friendly match and see how skilled the new flyers are. “Well Draco, what do you say? I’m game to leave all you snakes in the dust, but only if you think Slytherin has enough flyers to make it worth the effort”, he chuckles as he says it, but he squeezes my shoulder with a bit of aggression behind it. He didn’t want it to be a spectacle, but I’m not going to clean up his messes if he wont be my friend anymore.

“Sure Harry, I think I can pull together some wizards and witches that will make it worth your precious time.” I flatly announce as I start to walk away. I make myself keep stepping forward, and I can hear their snickers behind me. I walk straight away from him, no not quite, I walk straight to Snape's office. I wonder if he knows the pain he puts me through? Being compared to the Potter-Prince growing up, Father pushing me to be better than him, Harry having the audacity to be such an amazing man, friend, and first. Yet he also has the power to be the person to put me through more pain by not being in my life, driving me to focus on my studies, to get Severus to be my tutor, to use Severus as a coping method to get over him. Do you know what you’ve done to me Harry?

~~~Imagine a world where Harry didn’t grow up with the Dursley’s, where Voldermort wasn’t a thing, where Lily and James didn’t die. Would Draco and Harry have been friends? Would they have been more? Harry and Draco are 17, nearing graduation and independence, but that also means they are climaxing from their teenage angst and heartbreak. Will they get closure?

I approach Severus’s office, emotions flooding me. After Harry and I got accepted to Hogwarts and he started drifting away, I found myself lost. At first, I believed his excuses for why he bailed on our plans, and then I blamed myself thinking I made him mad, and then I realized he just didn’t like me anymore. The self blaming was the hardest to get over, but Severus helped with that. I chose to focus on my studies, I had to find something productive to do so that Father would be proud of me again. He got very angry when I messed up the connection with the Potters. I decided instead to try and be very academically accomplished, so I needed a good tutor. Father and Mother were both very familiar with Severus Snape and knew him as an intelligent man and an excellent wizard despite being only 6 years older than me. They arranged for him to be my tutor, and he lived much closer to the school than we did, which meant I would study at his house and in the summers I stay with him. Since he is also a teacher at Hogwarts we don’t ever interact politely as school, because frankly our relationship is unconventional. to the public. I don’t love him, he doesn’t love me, but we both have been burned by the Potters more than once and despite all our pain, we still love them. Don’t get me wrong, Rus is very good to me, and we have had some very sentimental memories, but I can never mean as much to him as Lily I don’t think. That and I am not willingly to fall in love.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK* - “Come in.” I walk in and instantly Rus’s face goes from stone cold to slightly softer. “Draco, I assume you came to speak about your last test scores?” He arches an eyebrow and nods at the door indicating I should close it.

“Oh come on Rus, I know we have an arrangement to not interact extra here but I..” I close the door and try not to meet his eyes. I know what I am feeling, and its stupid! I can’t explain it though. He closes the door while reaching over me. With his other arm he pulls into a hug.

“Use your words Draco.” He kisses the top of my head while whispering softly. I bury my face in his shirt. How do I tell him that I am hurting because the person who means the most to me, acknowledged me, and it left me feeling hollow? “Is it about Mr. Potter? I saw you speaking in the courtyard. That was dangerous.” I let out a shaky sigh. This is why we are together, because we share the same pain.

“Yea..” I mutter, “We are going to have a little race between Slytherin House and Gryffindor to see who the faster upcoming flyers will be.” Even saying it sounds absolutely ridiculous! It’s a bloody pissing contest! Yet nothing has been able to break me out of this numbness until now. Rus braces the small of my back as we lean against his office door. I look up to see him with a small smile, “I understand. I think this will be for the best. Whether it is closer you get, or simply a win. I be here if it goes wrong”. He is so consistent. Just as expected, after saying something so sweet that I could almost develop feelings, he leans down and begins a gentle kiss. He pulls my waist into him, spreading my legs with his knee. I kiss him back while running my fingers through his hair. I reach down for his belt, trying to undo it. He stops my hand and pulls back, “Now Mr. Malfoy, we are on school grounds.” He says with his stern, teacher voice. He the leans in and whispers, “You can show my what that Malfoy mouth is good for later”. I feel my dick jump a little bit, giving me a semi. This is how I cope. Feelings cannot negate the power of something physical, and Severus Snape needs to forget about the Potters just as much as I do. We were a match made in Hell.

“Draco....” I hear Harry’s voice calling my name, but it sounds distorted, almost as if I’m underwater. “Draco!” it comes through clearly this time, but it isn’t Harry, It’s Blaise yelling at me to rouse me from my sleep. I had returned to the dorms embarrassingly late, but I had the forethought to lay out my quidditch gear ahead of time so I wouldn’t be scrambling in the morning. “Draco, wake the fuck up! We’re gonna be late to the race!” Blaise is still yelling but I can hear him heading for the door. Late? What did he mean late? I roll over and check the time, he was right, I had about five minutes to go from bed to the quidditch field. Fuck.

“I almost thought you chickened out Draco!” Harry taunts as I approach the quidditch field, running as fast as I can with all my gear on. I was able to gather three other Slytherins that wanted to race, and who were marginally decent. Sadly Harry seemed to have a whole team that wanted to test us. I glance at Blaise, Crabbe and Goyle and they do not seem to be exuding confidence. I got them into this so the least I can do is be the one who people blame. “What? Run away from you Potter? I could never”, I say a little too seriously while making eye contact. I catch the slightest frown from Harry, but it fades as quickly as it appeared. “Well then, lets get this over with. It sounded fun, but looking at your little group, it just feels like bullying.” He rejoins his group at the start line. The course was to make one large loop around campus while going through specified markers, such as looping through the womping willow and its thrashing limbs, and past Hagrids hut. It is just the school campus, but that doesn’t make it not dangerous. That is why I wore my protective gear, but as I glance around I see that most everyone else was casually dressed with the exception of Longbottom. He looked as if he was wrapped in bubble wrap. I don’t want to be associated with the likes of him so I discard my protective layer. I return my attention to the other end of the field where Hermione stands with the flare, and off it goes. I must’ve been disassociating during the count down. I feel the wind of the others taking off before I see the bristles of their brooms when they speed past me. Shit. I take off as fast as I can, but I am not too concerned about the starting line. Anyone can get up, its staying there that’s the problem.

The first obstacle is the peaks of the school, where we stand the danger of Mr. Fletcher seeing us and everyone getting in trouble. This obstacle is more about stealth than speed, you could speed right through the peaks, but you would certain alarm everyone inside the castle. The trick to making it without being seen is to pay attention and roof hop, taking a break to wait out anyone who may see you. I can see ahead of me where two Gryffindor flyers drop altitude instantly, nearly getting caught. I swerve away from that tower and loop around the other way, hopping off the roof after checking the next peak. When I emerge from the other side of the peaks I see Harry far ahead, Ronald right behind him, and Blaise on their tail. either no one else made it through, or they are behind me, because no one would be ahead of Harry. We approach Hagrids hut and drop down low for the loop, I see Blaise take the turn too tightly and have to drop to the ground to prevent himself from going tip over tail. Ronald falls behind me as he flew too close to the hippogriff and got the tail of his broom snipped out. The race is between Harry and I as we approach the womping willow. It is especially crabby today it seems, or perhaps that was just because I was actually flying closer too it and not away from it the way I would have preferred. As we near the willow I am close enough that I could grab the bristles on Harry’s broom if I wanted to. I follow his maneuvers dodging the willows grasps. There is no denying that when it comes to agility Harry has an edge on me. There is no doubt that James took the time to train him personally. Despite all his preparation I see Harry narrowly avoid getting swept by a branch, which meant I had no time to avoid the branch at all. The willow makes contact with my broom and sends me plummeting to the ground. I’d rather jump and break something, that be strangled by a tree. The impact knocks the breath out of me, and the pain floods my body. My vision goes black and once again I feel like I am in bed, floating into nothingness.

“Draco?!?!” I hear Harry’s voice calling out to me, but I don’t respond. Blaise wont fool me again. He just wants me to wake up from my peaceful nothingness. Then the pain hits me and I remember what happened. I open my eyes to see a sweaty and shirtless Harry tying my arm in a makeshift sling. “Draco.. please say something..” He mutters as he struggles with the knot.

“Ouch you bloody bastard, that fucking hurts!” I squeak as he tightens it too much. Despite my pain I see a look of relief cloud his face. “Other than your arm, what hurts? I can’t tell if anything else is broken. I already have Ron and Blaise going to get a teacher. I am so sorry Draco, it wasn’t suppose to happen like this!” Harry is running his sentences together as he is frantically searching me over for any other damages. Everything hurts, but what I feel the most is the throbbing in my chest. Did I really have to almost die for him to say my name in such a caring way? I don’t want to be here, it hurts to see him like this knowing it is just me that is feeling this way. “Professor Snape!” Harry yells as Severus approaches with Ron and Blaise right behind him. I see Rus reach for his wand and the next thing I know Harry is swept away from me by an unseen force, flown at least three yards away. “Harry Potter! What have you done now?!” Severus yells, abnormally angry. He turns his attention toward me, worry lines streaking his face. He looks me over and his face softens. A wave of his wand and I feel a million times better. He leans down next to me and whispers, “You’ll be okay Draco, I’ll take care of this”. He turns his attention to Harry, “While I transport this young man who could very well be crippled, I’d recommend you contact your parents before I get the chance. Let them know I expect to be seeing them soon.” Severus knows better than to touch me, so he makes me float using Hermione's favorite spell. He must have cast a different spell as well, because the last thing I see is Harry’s terrified face as Severus brings me back toward the castle.

I wake up to a sudden jolt of pain coming from, well, everywhere. The most prominent pain is coming from my right arm. I sit up to exam the damage, but to my surprise I see none other than Hermione Granger sitting next to my bed in the infirmary, reading of course. Without a word she raises her hand and indicated the number 1, probably to suggest “one minute”. I wait for her to finish her page.

“I know about you and Harry.” She announces bluntly as she closes her book carefully. She is smart, but she can’t possibly be that smart. “Well, yes, I assume you would know about how he got me clobbered by a tree. You were there.” I try and dismiss her suspicious words. She does not buy a word of it. “No, you twit, I know about you two’s past, and I am willing to bet that your annoying behavior is because you still have feelings for him.” She states it so matter o’ factly that I am left speechless. She rolls her eyes and gets up to leave, “Well, I sure hope that is the case. Him and I broke up you see. After I found out the only reason he wanted to be with me is because I am smart enough to brew a Polyjuice potion of you so he can fuck it, I decided maybe I should be with someone who was actually attracted to me.” She walks away without giving me a chance to argue, or well, say anything at all really. He does what? She runs into someone at the door and I hear them exchange words, and to my surprise the next person to walk in is Harry Fucking Potter. He stands awkwardly at the end of my bed for what feels like an eternity before asking, “how are you feeling?”. Despite his concern, he wont make eye contact with me. He doesn’t even seem like he wants to be here. I sink back into the bed and roll away from him. “You can go, I am fine. I bet your friends are lost without you.” I bite my tongue at the end, knowing that isn’t how I feel. I feel the bed shift as he sits down on the edge.

“Draco.. I don’t want to go. I feel terrible about what happened, and I Hermione just told me that you know about.. me, or us, or however you want to say it, and what I am trying to say is, “ He takes a deep breath, “Draco I am so sorry. I know your father doesn’t want me around you, but it hurts to see you like this, and it hurts to not be with you.”. His voice got weak as he finished his sentence. His hand grabbed my leg and squeezed it. It’d been forever since I had felt his warmth.

I can’t.

I can’t. I can’t. I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’tIcantIcantICANTICANTICANTICANT!

Why? Why does he have to do this? Why does he have to hurt me like this? What does this all mean? Does he think that because he said sorry I can just roll over and pretend the last two years never happened?! HE LEFT ME! He hurt me! He got me hurt! When I lost him, I lost the love for myself as well. How can he say those things to someone who is just a shell?

I start breathing desperately, my heart racing and my head flooding with these thoughts. I can’t control it, I can’t stop it, and I can’t move. I want to reach out to him, to grab his hand, to push him away, I don’t know!

“Mr. Potter, now would be a good time for you to leave.” Severus’s calming voice announces over the hallway in the infirmary. I hear his footsteps swiften towards us. “Proffessor Snape I was only-” Harry starts, but gets interrupted by a stern and almost hissing whisper, “No, Mr. Potter. Mr. Malfoy’s parents are heading this way, I strongly recommend you make it as if you were never here. Do you understand?”. That very much so sounded like a threat. “Of course, I’m sorry... Please take care of him!”. Harry runs down the hallway and I hear the door slam before Severus addresses me. He kneels beside the bed to be face to face with me. “Draco, I’m so sorry. Deep breaths”. He says gently as he wipes away tears that I didn’t know I had. “Don’t worry about your parents. I will tell them now is a bad time. We will all reconvene at my house this evening once you recover from the healing spell. You can ask them about what Mr. Potter said if you must, I will protect you. Always.” He gently kisses my forehead and leaves silently, leaving me to suffer, as always.

It's painfully awkward sitting at dinner with my parents and Severus. He was able to fix my arm, but it left me what could only be described as the largest hangover one has ever suffered. To top it off, since I was okay physically, my father was going to make sure I wasn't okay emotionally or mentally. He'd done nothing but berate me for causing a scene. I zone out of his rants and stare down at where Severus is squeezing my knee. He is trying to be supportive, but all I can notice is a strange tattoo on his arm that wasn't there before.

"Severus, what is this?" I ask as I drag my fingers over the snake that's wrapped around a skull. It graces his forearm so delicately, it really adds to his aesthetic. My father looks appalled at my blatant change of topic, and Severus looks panicked. He tries to cover it with his sleeve, but father stops him. "Severus Snape, is that the reaction to my spell?" Father stairs him down.

"Yes, my lord. I've no excuses for my behaviour. I will only say that never once have I sought to harm Draco. I've had his best interests in mind, always." Severus hangs his head as he finishes his sentence, knowing what he has just admitted.

"Draco, that mark - or something definitive, will appear on anyone you've had relations with." Father waves his hand towards Severus's arm as he struggles to remain calm. Mother chokes down a sob. "I had my suspicions about the Potter child, but I suppose this confirms that you are exactly the deviant whore I assumed you to be." I- wait, Harry? He knew about us? If he did something like this, something permanent to someone who worshipped him, then what did he do to Harry?

"Father! Tell me, is Harry's scar because of this?!". I grab Severus's hand and squeeze it, needing all the support from him that I can get in this challenging moment. Bever had I spoken againt father, but this was going too far!

"Of course. Are you really that daft to think he spontaneously manifested such an atrocious mark? Honestly Draco, to think you've tainted a wizard of such nobilty, and to include Severus on your path of destruction. I am ashamed to call you my son." Lucious stands to leave, grabbing Narcissa by the arm and dragging her with him. I never thought it would come to this, I knew father could be nasty, but I never believed he would be this way towards me. Everything I did was to make him look to, to do the Malfoy name proud. Yet he can't even let me love who I want to love? I want to chase after him but Severus weighs me down in my chair. "Don't Draco, let him cool off before you try anything. It wont end well if you pursue him now.".

The next day at school I can't help but stair at Harry's scar in every shared class. Severus explained how the curse worked, he explained that the mark would burn and feel as if it were festering when the host was around me. He explained that the reason Harry grew distant was because of my father and James Potter deciding to seperate us by any means necessary. Severus only learned about this after he began tutoring me and learned of my heart break. I still couldn't bring myself to speak to him. I don't know whether I feel betrayed, or heart broken. I don't know where I will go when the weekend comes, because I can't go home, or to Severus's, and I can't stay here. The library seems like the only logical option to kill a little bit of time at before finding a place to spend the night.

"Draco?" Before I even look, I know it is Harry who has joined me in the endless rows of books. "Draco.. I am so sorry. I hope you're okay. I hope Luscious didn't.. do anything, to you. Like he used to-" "STOP" I can't take this anymore! "Did you know? About the curse, about our fathers, and what he would do? This whole time were you just hiding from my reality?!" He is standing right here in front of me but as I yell at him I only stare at the scar on his forehead, knowing it must be throbbing.

"I knew.. after it appeared, they explained it to me. They said it was what you wanted, and that this would help us distance ourselves." He steps closer to me, reaching out for me. "But I knew it couldn't have been true. I figured it out after you started getting so familiar with Professor Snape. I tried asking my father about it and he told me the truth, but I thought you'd moved on so I didn't want you to have to choose.", he grabs my hand and holds it close to his chest. "But I'm done waiting. I don't think you've moved on, I just think you're too afraid to be yourself. So stop me if this isn't what you want." The last words are practically a whisper as his lips close in on mine. It'd been so long since I'd felt his touch, let alone his kiss. He starts out soft and sweet, lingering to feel the softness of my lips. When I don't fight his kiss, he gets more aggressive, his tongue parting my lips and finding mine. He grabs the back of my head and laces his fingers through my hair, cushioning the impact of him pushing my into the bookshelf. "Draco~" he mutters my name as he leans into me. I can feel his hard on pressing against me. "Fuck Draco", he lips press against my neck as he kisses me intensely, trying to leave a mark. "I've never stopped wanting you", he bites me gently, "I never let you get taken from me again".

#Harry Potter #drarry #Draco Malfoy #draco x harry #severus snape #severus x draco #lgbtq #hay #gay #romance #who does it end with?#It was meant to be Drarry #but I dont know anymore #Severus may be 6 years older #But he is a hell of a lot nicer #always

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twoidiotwriters1 · 5 years

Text

Pure Blood 8 (Sirius Black x F!Oc)

A/N: I’m not crying, you are.

Words: 2,384

Warnings: Tears, and broken hearts

Series’ Masterlist

Chapter 7 // Chapter 9

Chapter 8: Lost girl

“Persephone? Are you all right? ”Regulus asks“ What does the letter say?”

My hands shake and I drop the letter on the table. I look up and meet Reg.

"I ... I don't ... this ..." everything around me becomes blurred for a few seconds. I don't understand anything, this can't be happening to me, not now.

"You have to be kidding!" My trance is interrupted by a scream. Reg flips in place and I also look in that direction, among the other tables.

Sirius stands up and I can see he has a paper in his hand.

No no no! His face is completely red. James tries to calm him down without success. Both argue and their entire table focuses on them.

My heart is racing, it wants to run away from my chest, my whole body trembles but I'm not sure if it's because of anger, fear, anguish, maybe it's all combined.

Suddenly I feel the look of the older Black, his body seems to relax a little and returns to his normal color, but his hands are still in fists. He makes a movement with his head towards the door and leaves the great dining room. I don't think twice and also get up to leave, but Regulus's hand stops me.

"Persephone, talk to me, please," He pleads. My sight goes from the door to him several times.

“Later, I will tell you everything, I promise,” I don’t let him answer and let go of his grip.

I almost run out of the great dining room and stop in the hall, looking for Sirius. It doesn't take long for him to come to my side and take my wrist. He pulls me and we both run through the halls until we reach an empty hall.

"What the fuck does this mean?" He says raising the letter the moment he closes the door behind him. I think I left mine on the table. "Why did your parents send me this?"

"Your parents also sent me one, I have no idea," I say in a shaky voice. He growls.

"Union? What the fuck? ”Asks out of his mind. I shake my head walking to the back of the room. I hold my hands as if that could help.

“Marriage," I whisper turning towards him. "They want us to get married when we leave Hogwarts"

"That won't happen," He says mockingly.

“Black, they have done it before. Your parents, their marriage was arranged ”

"And look how that worked"

“My parents also did it, we have no alternative,” If it doesn't happen, I would be dead. I am not exaggerating. Sirius brings his hands to his hair to dishevel it.

"Of course there is an alternative, I don’t intend to get married,” He walks from one side to another like a caged animal, "Isn't it enough to control everything else?" He stops. "No, I refuse, after Hogwarts I will be of an adult, I will leave that house. I won’t marry, specially someone like you. My life would be ruined”

I frown at the last thing he said. I shake my head, it's not time for this. Then he finally looks at me and lets out a wry laugh.

“We have no alternative? Of course, it would be better for you to get married, right? ”

"What is that supposed to mean?" I shift awkwardly in my place.

“Oh, come on, Singh. We get married and money will no longer be a problem, your status will remain intact, lineage and all that nonsense. And you take the jackpot,” He says pointing to himself. Anger now replaces any other emotion in my body.

"Do you think I agree with all this?"

"Surely it was your idea" I approach until I reach a few inches from his face.

“Listen to me, Black. I don't care if your selfish brain can't see beyond your butt, but I can assure you I'm not happy with this news. Why would I want to be with someone as narcissistic, self-centered and idiotic as you? Not in a million years will I be your wife and I doubt anyone would want to be.” I clench my teeth with every word.

Sirius looks at me nervous, apparently he didn’t expect that reaction, I don’t his throat and takes a step back, we are still close.

Why Sirius Black? Of all the people in the world, why him?

Get married? I'm only fifteen years old, I hadn't even thought about it. I am not ready and I will not be ready when I leave school, I simply cannot and less with the person who has hurt me and I am sure that will do it again. I don’t want an unhappy marriage. I don't want one, do I?

Finally, my eyes tear up and I surround my body with my arms.

"We must do something to avoid it," Sirius says in a whisper.

"What?" I observe, "Everything will get worse if I refuse,” I say without thinking, he looks at me confused.

"What do you mean?" I shake my head.

"Forget it,” He seems to realize something.

“I heard something happened at home during the holidays,” He says… shy?

"It's none of your business" He nods uncomfortably.

"Does it have to do with the discussion you had with Juno?"

I can't believe what I'm hearing.

“What do you care, Black? Since when you have so much interest in me? ”

"I don't care, I'm not interested in your life, don't think you’re so important," Sirius snorts like an idiot.

"Then why do you ask?" Before I could answer, the door opens.

"Can I know what are you doing in a room alone?" I roll my eyes at the boy's voice.

“Great," says Sirius also annoyed. “It’s none of your business, Snivellus”

"I guess the normal reaction to seeing the womanizer of the school with the Slytherin princess in a room alone is to ask what happens... especially if she is crying,” Sirius turns to see me surprised and I touch my cheek, I hadn’t realized that the tears had come out. I clean my face in a hurry.

“Nothing happened, Snape. Forget that you saw us and go on with your life, ”I say, fixing my clothes and raising my chin.

"Oh, but this can benefit me," he says maliciously.

"You won't say anything," Sirius says, grabbing him by the shirt. "If you don't want me to break your teeth."

"Stop it, leave it," To my surprise, Sirius obeys. “If he says something, I don't care, nobody will believe him. It's not important"

"There are rumors, Singh," he replies, adjusting his shirt, angry.

“It's just that, Snape. Rumors.” I say and walk to the door, I hit my shoulder with Severus's and leave the room.

After a few minutes walking, I stop at a pillar, I lean on it and breathe.

It feels like I’ve held my breath all this time, my chest hurts just like my head. I want all this to be a nightmare, I want to wake up.

________________________________

"What did you tell your friends to get away with it?" I ask Remus as soon as he gets to my side. Luckily the boy is punctual.

"I told them I would go to the library," he says smiling.

"So late?" He shrugs.

"As soon as I said library his brains turned off, it was easy,” I chuckle.

"Well, where are we going?"

Remus just turns and tells me to follow him. I obey and all the way we don’t talk, we’re careful not to be discovered by Filch and his cat until we reached the seventh floor. The boy stops in front of a wall.

“Remus? It has to be something more private ”

"Close your eyes"

"What?"

“Trust me, Persephone. Close your eyes,” I release a sigh and close them. “Now think about what you need.

"This is absurd," I complain.

"Come on, remember the contract," he insists. "Think about the place you need, imagine what we need to start our classes.”

And I do, I imagine a large room, with shelves and bookcases, armchairs, cushions and a fireplace. Comfort.

"Now open them,” I step back as soon as I see that the smooth wall is replaced by a huge door.

"But- What?" I look at Remus and he smiles.

“Magic," He mocks, opens the door and enters. I laugh and follow him, as I enter I see everything I had imagined and close the door behind me. “Great! It looks like Gryffindor’s common room…”

I bite my lip remembering the time Sirius helped me into his common room in the first year.

“Yes," Is the only thing I can say. After observing everything, we both settled on a carpet in front of the fireplace next to some cushions.

"Well, first, do you have any specific questions?" I frown and look toward the fireplace thinking.

"I know, does being the son of Muggles affect intelligence?" I look at him, now he giggles. "What?"

"Oh, it's for real," he says trying not to laugh again. I feel a stab in my stomach and the shame grows in me.

"It is," I say seriously. And he stops laughing. “All my questions will be serious, Lupin. You don't have to make fun of me.”

Now he is ashamed and blushes.

"You're right, I'm sorry,” He clears his throat. "It has nothing to do with intelligence, Persephone" I nod. "Actually, it has to do with the person, sometimes parents or family members do influence, but it can also happen with people of pure blood"

“Okay…” What else? I thought this would be easier. He notices my conflict.

"Tell me something that bothers your parents, about Muggles.”

“Well, they think they’re inferior, useless, and idiots. We shouldn't get together with them, it's like… as if they had a contagious disease,” He frowns. I sigh, "Once ..." I’m nervous, but he seems calm, "Once, Lily... Lily Evans touched my hand, it was in third year and I went mad,”

I put a hand on my face, what a fool I was.

“Or when she took Ernest Duncan from me and I treated her very badly, I must confess that I convinced him that, being Muggle's daughter, she was going to spread a disease…”

Remus is surprised, but again he smiles.

"She hated Ernest, the boy just wanted to bother James.”

"What? Really?” He laughs nodding and I can't help laughing too. "I'm an idiot. And he didn't kiss well, he was a fool,” Now we laugh harder.

The questions continue, I tell him a little about my family and he answers without hesitation.

Apparently, muggles only see magic as fictional, they have it in books or on... television? Quite strange. We had no order of questions or subject, they were coming out how they occurred to me.

"Can I ask you a question?" He says as I relax leaning on the cushions.

“Sure"

"What happened to you and Sirius at lunch?" I knew he would ask that.

I sigh in defeat.

"I guess it has to do with this," I say as I settle into my place. “…Our parents sent us a letter saying that they already fixed our engagement.”

"Engagement?" He asks insecure.

“Wedding. They want us to get married as soon as we leave Hogwarts,” I feel chills. It’s different when someone else knows.

"It has to be a joke,” His eyes seem bigger.

“That’s what Black said, but no. It is not a joke"

“But how can they do that? They don't even want Sirius, they have no right to control that”

"They have it, he's still a minor and I guess it's the last hope for Sirius to continue with the Black lineage"

"Why do you sound so calm?" Again the lump in the throat.

"I'm not. I already discussed this with him and it was not pretty. I can't do anything, my hands are tied," I say with a broken voice.

"Surely you can do something, you are too young, even in two years, aren’t you supposed to choose who to marry?" I smile.

"Apparently not,” This time I let the tears fall. "You know? I hadn’t thought of that. Getting married. As a girl yes, but just the idea of getting married, everything was nice and exciting,” I let out a sad smile, “but now it terrifies me. I thought that upon leaving school, I would be free, maybe just a year in which I could do what I wanted… I'm afraid of being unhappy and still being a puppet to my father.” I sob.

I feel like Remus approaching, then he surrounds me with his arms and I put my head on his chest and cry.

I cry for the damage that my parents have done to me, of Ares ‘screams, the fight with Jenna, for my friendship with Regulus, for Sirius' words, marriage. I cry like a lost girl.

“I feel trapped, Remus. I feel like I'm about to explode. I’m going to get hurt.”

"I'll help you, Percy," I slowly break apart and look straight into his brown eyes. That nickname was only used by Sirius. "You can change if you ask for help"

"I don't want someone else to get hurt," My lower lip trembles.

"It won’t be easy, but we’ll try" I nod and lean on his chest. He jeeps hugging me in his arms until I calm down.

At that moment Remus Lupin could see the Slytherin princess breaking into a thousand pieces. He knew how the girl felt, or at least he could understand what it’s like to feel afraid and lost. He’d been like this all his life, he didn't want to hurt anyone, but he was afraid to say what really happened to him. Each full moon was a concern that exceeded his mental health.

But everything improved when his three best friends helped, he couldn’t believe he’d learned to tolerate his life. He could never stop being grateful to them.

Therefore, he is now sure that he will help Persephone Singh. Because she doesn't have James Potter, Peter Pettigrew, and lost Sirius Black. That will change, because she’ll have Remus Lupin.

“I'll help you," He whispered against my hair.

Taglist:

@treestarrrrrrrr @siriuslysirius1107 @thagreenmoonblack @madmaiden2890 @bloodorangemoonlight @ren-ela @avipshamitra

#pure blood #hp fanfic #sirius black #sirius black x reader #james potter #remus lupin #twoidiots writing

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kxshacklebolt · 4 years

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♜ Kingsley Shacklebolt || Biography

Name: Kingsley Shacklebolt Gender & Pronouns: male, he&him Age: 27 Birthday: October 7 Former House: Gryffindor Blood Status: Pureblood

Wand: beech, unicorn hair, 12 and ¾ inches, pliable Boggart: a set of tombstones bearing the name of his siblings Patronus: Lion Occupation: Auror, Candidate for Minister of Magic

Defining Moments:

As a child, Kingsley held the world in his hands. As the oldest, he held himself to a higher standard - the example of the house - so to speak. His family had always been tight knit; family dinners on Sundays with the grandparents, family game nights on Saturday, and showing up for every achievement, big or small. Despite being pureblood children, he and his siblings attended muggle primary school in their early years. Involved in futbol and rugby, his family comes to every game, and Kingsley learns that family is unconditional love and support. By seven years old, he knows that family is everything, and that honor and duty come before all else.

Eleven years old and he goes to Hogwarts with his head held high and his aspirations even higher. He fits into his house like a glove, but Kingsley goes out of his way to make friends all across the board. He’s never been one to only surround himself with people like him. Instead, he branches out and makes connections of all kinds. By the next year he joined the Quidditch team - his muggle sports knowledge helping him greatly. Soon after he became a part of the dueling club and debate team. Kingsley had a reputation early on in his Hogwarts career; intelligent, inclusive, and a natural born leader.

At seventeen, Kingsley’s world gets turned upside down. Two weeks into their first semester the news comes that their family home has been attacked. His parents had been vocal in their disagreements and plights with the Death Eaters. They had sent their children to muggle primary school, participated in muggle culture, and taught their children to accept muggle born students with equal measure as they would pureblood ones. In the end, it was their unfailing morals that got them killed. With both of his parents murdered in the attack, Kingsley felt the weight of the world on his shoulders. Becoming the guardian of his three younger siblings was never in his plans, but Kingsley wouldn’t have given them up for anything.

By twenty six he knew that it was time for a career shift. Having worked his way up the ranks of the auror department, he knew he needed to help in a different way. When Alastor stepped down, Kingsley had prepared for the Order to crumble, what he hadn’t prepared for was Lily Evans to step up. She had come to him with an idea that he couldn’t say no to: “You should be the Order candidate that runs for Minister”. The two worked hard together - one leading on the battlefield while the other led in policies. All his diplomatic skills, all his passions, all his transparencies, made him the perfect choice. With the death of the Minister came Kingsley’s campaign. The last thing he wants is for the organization that killed his family to be ruling the wizarding world. Kingsley will do whatever it takes to stop that from happening.

Twenty six and his best friend suffers loss in the same way that Kingsley once had, only more completely, and Kingsley prepares for the Order to crumble under the weight of Alastor’s grief. Never in his mind did he consider the possibility that he could lead – he’s got his hands full providing for his three younger siblings and trying to do his job as it is. He’s surprised but relieved when Lily steps up to the plate, and is the first to back her, often acting as if he was her second-in-command. She’s the one who gives him the confidence to believe that he could do good as a Minister, and with her leadership to bolster and sustain him, Kingsley steps forward, ready to take his place in order to make a safer world for the people he loves.

Twenty seven and another terrible blow strikes at the heart of the Order – James Potter, a man Kingsley had grown up with and respected, is dead at the hands of one of their own. Kingsley is shaken at just how easily the Death Eaters can continue to strike at them, but even more determined to defeat them. He longs to draw his wand on a battlefield, but he knows that right now his place is in politics, and he dives headfirst into the race for Minister with a fervor that surprises those closest to him. He will not let those who have taken so many dear to them rule their world, and his conviction and determination (bolstered by Lily’s, who is not defeated) are contagious to an Order that needs its leaders to rally and fight.

Memorable Traits:

Authentic – Kingsley has never been one to put on airs or pretend to be anything more than exactly what he is. He’s a down to earth and simple man, but the way he carries himself without any fanfare is something that draws people in.

Subtle – Kingsley has never felt the need to get his point across by badgering others. He’s direct, but able to be so in a way that is delicate and precise enough that others often walk away with their minds changed, but thinking that it was their own doing instead of his.

Perspicacious – Kingsley was born an old soul; wise beyond his years, he offers an insight and wisdom to others (especially those in the Order) that is invaluable. He has a way of understanding things that is a great gift.

Transparent – Kingsley doesn’t hide who he is or what he thinks. With him, you always know what you’re getting. He doesn’t speak his mind unless it’s fully made up, and he does so with such conviction and confidence in his own beliefs that it almost always makes people stop and listen.

Inclusive – Kingsley operates in relationships in such a way that everyone feels like they are his best friend. He doesn’t operate by favorites, and listens to the lowliest members of the Order just as earnestly as he listens to the leaders. His way of welcoming and including people makes them feel at ease in his presence.

Persistent – When Kingsley is certain about a course of action or belief, he doesn’t give up when other circumstances or people get in the way. He doesn’t badger people with his opinions, but even when he does let things go, it’s only to bring them up at a more opportune time.

#{{ biography }}

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lovetorn · 5 years

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Time Jumper [AU] – Part 5

- Part 5; Black Lake

In which Y/N goes back in time, using the infamous time-turner, on a mission to change the fate of James and Lily Potter. In the midst of this, she catches the eye of a certain Marauder.

Young!Remus Lupin X Reader

Word Count: 1.4k

A/N: omg I’m so sorry I haven’t updated in like 6 months! I’m in my last year of school and have uni next year so this series had to go on hold for a while. I hope you enjoy this chapter as I would love to start writing it again.

Warnings: swearing????

Please do not copy or steal my series in any way. I do not own any of the characters, but I did create the idea of my series. I would appreciate if you didn’t copy and paste this elsewhere. Thanks!

Series Masterlist

Ignoring Remus Lupin was probably the hardest thing to do. Everywhere she went, Y/N heard his laugh or saw his smile. He was happy without her.

Y/N had only known the Marauders for three months, but it had honestly been the most exciting and overwhelming experience she had ever had. She had become closer to Sirius and James during this time, Peter was quite closed off, so it was harder for her to get close to him, not that she would. Traitor. Remus left the room or broke away from the group when she was with them, she won’t admit it, but it hurt. It hurt her a lot. But that was an understatement. She lay awake some nights, gasping for air as her lungs closed and her eyes stung. Her throat burning from screaming into the darkness of the Forbidden Forest. Not about Remus, but about Harry and Hermione and her parents. She wished she could go back home, but she already was. She wondered what was going on back in her time. Was everyone okay? Did they still remember her?

Walking through the halls towards Potions, Y/N was stopped by a familiar towering figure. Sirius had grabbed her shoulders, a large grin spread across his cheeks. Y/N gave him a questioning look before he started whispering.

“Black Lake, after Potions” it was more of a demand rather than a question, “and bring your swimsuit” and with that, he was off, heading towards the southern end of the castle. Y/N smiled, shaking her head as she continued to Potions, wishing for time to pass faster.

Racing out of Potions, Y/N sped towards her dorm room, throwing her belongings on her bed before removing her robes and grabbing her swimsuit. The girl skipped towards one of the large Oak trees that resided next to the lake. She eyed her friends under the tree and raced towards them. Quickly but silently, Y/N jumped and wrapped her legs around the waist of a certain inky-haired boy whose back was turned towards her. He grunted as he suddenly caught her.

“Well hello to you too” He chuckled as Y/N waved to her other friends. Lily, James, Peter, Remus. Her eyes moved around the group until they landed on the last person sitting down. Melissa Ackley. Over exaggeratedly rolling her eyes, Y/N hopped down from Sirius’ back. Dusting off her skirt, Y/N sat comfortably next to Lily, who passed her a bread roll. Thanking her friend, Y/N glanced over at Remus and gave him a small wave. So much for ignoring him. Her heart sunk when he didn’t return it and turned towards the blonde girl next to him. Sirius glared at the lanky boy, shaking his head before plopping down next to Y/N. The group chatted amongst themselves for a while. Y/N watched the couple across from her as Sirius and Lily engaged in a conversation about Herbology. Remus looked uncomfortable and awkward and Y/N couldn’t help bursting out in a fit of giggles. Melissa stopped her talking to Remus and slowly turned her head, a look of disgust evident on her face. Sirius and Lily both looked at Y/N like she had 3 heads and James and Peter laughed with her. Remus blushed deeply as he knew exactly why Y/N was acting the way she was. Gasping for air, Y/N had bent over, holding her stomach as her body shook with laughter. Sirius eyed Remus and Melissa suspiciously before he realised what one of his best friends was laughing at. He then snorted loudly, pointing at the two as his laughter escaped. Y/N and Sirius had triggered Lily to start giggling slightly as well, the five of them erupting in glee. Remus and Melissa looking at the group in confusion, Melissa a bit more irritated than Remus. He couldn’t help but feel left out of the jokes and fun his friends were engaged in. Melissa rolled her cat-like eyes before snatching Remus’ hand and pulling them both up. James was the first to calm down and open his eyes, realising the couple was leaving.

“Hey, hey, now, where are you going?” He shouted at the couple that has amassed a few metres since they got up.

“Away from you immature children!” Melissa yelled back, tugging Remus along.

“Oh, come on! Come back!” Lily exclaimed. The two stopped abruptly, Melissa had her arms crossed as Remus stood next to her like a lost puppy. Y/N’s eyes swam with sympathy for the boy, getting to her feet and making her way towards him.

“It’s just a bit of fun Melissa, no need to get your knickers in a twist” Y/N gleamed as she took Remus’ hand. He looked at her stunned with his leaf green eyes as they made their way back to the tree, the girl trailing behind slowly.

The group had finally gotten into their swimming attire and made their way towards the lake. The group stood on the edge of the water, everyone complaining about the temperature.

“Don’t be pussies” Y/N had scolded before dipping her toe in the water and immediately retracting it.

“Who’s the pussy now?” Sirius snickered as he ran towards the water full speed before diving in, splashing everyone.

“Prick” The girl mumbled as she followed in suit. Y/N rose to the top of the water with Sirius as the two looked at the rest of the group on the shore. One by one, each member slowly made their way into the lake. Y/N looked over at Sirius, his silver eyes telling her to go over to the lanky boy. She only raised an arched eyebrow before slyly swimming over. The closer she got, the more Y/N realised how imperfectly perfect Remus John Lupin really was. The way his delicate, ivory skin shone in the sunlight, highlighting the rosy scars that covered his face and torso. The way his unkempt, tawny brown hair stuck to his forehead after he rose from the water. The way his whole body shook when he laughed. She would pay to see him laugh, even smile again. All of this because of one girl. Melissa Ackley had taken away his happiness and his overall beaming personality. The bitch. Y/N swam over to the two who were muttering to each other.

“Hey guys” Y/N smiled, making it as believable as possible. Melissa squinted her sharp eyes, giving Y/N a closed-lipped smirk, “Hi”.

Y/N’s eyes skimmed over Remus, hoping for some sort of greeting, but instead, he turned away and faced Melissa. Y/N only scoffed and made her way back over to Sirius and the rest of the group that accompanied him. A soft tear made its way down Y/N’s velvety cheek as she approached them. Sirius suggested that it was best if they got out of the water, so they did. The group was fuming, Lily especially, nobody messes with her friends. Lily was about to yell something at the couple when Peter, surprising, took over.

“You know she likes you, you prick!” He shouted, the group looking over in disbelief. Tears stung Y/N’s eyes in embarrassment as she grabbed her uniform and ran across the grass, back to the school. Sirius hit Peter’s arm in an attempt to scold him before running after Y/N, not realising the conversation that had arisen between Remus and Melissa.

“So, you’re going to pick her? Over me? How thick can you get?” The compact girl yelled, making her way towards the shore. Everyone rolled their eyes when she approached them, her giving them the cold shoulder. Remus returned to shore slowly. His eyes hooded and his body cowering before his friends. Lily only shook her head, grasping her belongings as she pursued towards the castle, James trailing behind her. Peter and Remus remained on the grass under the tree, the two remained in silence.

“How do you know?” Remus’ voice was quiet, almost impossible to hear if Peter wasn’t listening already.

“It’s obvious mate, and I know you feel the same about her”

Remus exhaled deeply as he nodded.

“What did Melissa say to you?” Peter’s dull eyes met Remus’.

“She told me if I dated Y/N then she would tell everyone about our secrets” He covered his face as Peter glared at him.

“You seriously told that bitch about you being a werewolf and us being Animagus’” Peter couldn’t believe it. Remus nodded solemnly, tears threatening to escape his eyes. Peter gave him a look of disappointment as he got up from his spot on the grass and headed back to the school. Remus wiped away the tear that had fallen and threw his fist against the large oak tree, causing it to crack and tremble.

Part 6?

TAGLIST (let me know if you would like to be tagged in future parts!) (BOLD = unable to tag)

@elsie2018 @mikariell95 @in-diepop @savcks @siriuspadfoot14 @princessvulpecula13 @imaginedreamwrite @cosettewinchester @thecurlyhairedwinchester @thequeenoflatinos @pappu-cant-dance @lilaccoveredteapot @socialfake @evyiione @katiesalmondxo @jasmiw @paracii @popcrone818 @thebookwormfairy @puppycat714 @strangenerdsstuff @lupintales @moarfandomtrash @lexi-laz @courtofbookss @sunshineinbooks @weasley--girl @ya-girl123 @th3maraud3rsmap @xxsophie-raabxx @2o-done @xacora

#remus lupin x reader #remus lupin #young remus lupin #remus lupin imagines #young remus #remus x reader #Marauders #marauders era #marauders imagines #marauders x reader #Harry Potter #harry potter imagines #Sirius Black #young remus imagine #young remus x reader

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lgbtqhp · 5 years

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Scorpius and Arthur are everyone's favorite gays, yep, gay as hell, and popular as well

Astoria and Ginny liked to set up play dates between these two, so by the time they got to Hogwarts age, they were already best friends (Dominique, Rose, Roxanne, Lorcan, and Lysander were also present during some of these playdates)

But, first, their childhood: They loved making forts & watching TV (which had recently been incorporated into the wizarding world), they loved Astoria's grilled cheese & tomato soup but hated Ginny's spaghetti and hot dogs, and they loved racing around on their miniature broomsticks

Anyways, they sat together on the train, equipped with Astoria's brownies and Molly's homemade sanwiches ("My dad said when he was a first year, your father bought the whole cart," Scorpius said; "Weird. I wonder why he would do that," Arthur said)

When they got to Hogwarts, they swore to each other that they would be in the same house. Thankfully, the sorting hat decided it was about time that a Malfoy and a Potter room together. They were both sorted into Slytherin :) (So did Dominique and Lorcan)

The first night, Scorpius got homesick for his mom and Arthur offered to cuddle with him to help him sleep. It wasn't anything that they hadn't done before. Although waking up the next day to find one of Lorcan's elaborate booby traps all around and Dominique taking pictures of them ("for her memory book") was definitely something they hadn't done before.

During their first year, they joined forces with Dominique and Lorcan to become the next generation of marauders. They loved pranking their siblings/cousins/friends and soon became the most popular kids in their year. But they didn't really care about their popularity. They just loved being together. But the greatest thing about their group was that none of them ever got caught. Well, not by teachers at least.

Second year, they became beaters on the Quidditch team, because they knew each other's every move. And if after every game, Arthur tackled Scprpius into a hug, well, then, that was just a nice bonus.

For their winter break, Scorpius joins Arthur and his family on a trip to New York and falls in love with the Dear Evan Hansen musical + soundtrack. Which led to him loving all types of muggle books and musicals, including but not limited to: Heathers: The Musical, Legally Blonde (musical), Simon vs. the Homosapiens Agenda & Leah On the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli, What If It's Us by Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera, The Gentlemen's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee, etc.

Arthur loved listening to Scorpius rant about whatever new obsession he had. He would just sit there and listen for hours and hours, never getting distracted by anything else. Because after Scorpius would finish, he knew that he would be able to rant about how beautiful he thought the creatures that swam through the Slytherin aquarium were and how he wished more people appreciated them.

Also in second year, Dominique decided that they should all become animagi. They started right after they got back from Winter Break and ended right before Winter Break in Third Year. Arthur was a black dog (Zeppelin), Scorpius was a ferret (Kit), Dominique was a white cat (Duchess), and Lorcan was a goat (Drove).

Third Year, Arthur went on a trip with Scorpius's family over Winter Break (it was only fair, after all) and they spent the two weeks in the Carribean, going from one island to the next. They spent most of their days tanning on the beach, but also went on "adventures" like hiking in Puerto Rico and swimming in Mosquito Bay, night diving in Aruba and Bonaire and Curacao, taking historic tours through Santa Domingo, swimming with wild pigs in the Bahamas, and tricking their way into clubs in Jamaica, surfing in Haiti, etc.

But at the end of every night, they collapsed into bed with each other, and if Scorpius curled up against Arthur a little too much for boys their age, then it didn't matter (this is totally when Scorpius's crush on Arthur really began showing)

But they came back to terrible news. Lorcan had gotten sick, too sick, over break. He had been sick for a little bit before break, but no one had worried about it. At first, it was just a fever and chills, common symptoms of the cold. Over the break, he had begun getting tired all the time and food didn't appeal to him at all. Just after New Years, he was taken to a muggle hospital and it was declared that he had Hodgkin's Lymphoma, a type of cancer that begins in the lymphatic system. He was immediately pulled out of school, and Dominique and Lysander didn't return for nearly a month. It was devastating to everyone, including Scorpius and Arthur, who felt like they only had each other now.

The second semester of third year was mostly spent worrying over Lorcan. Scorpius had thought about telling Arthur about his crush many times, but it never seemed right. Something much bigger was going on, and he didn't want it to seem like he was selfish or anything. And then things got even worse. Scorpius's mother was pregnant again, and his father (and the doctors) weren't sure if she, or the baby, would survive.

Arthur spent the majority of the next summer at Scorpius's house, trying to take care of Scorpius as Scorpius took care of his mother. He slowly began to realize that he was, in fact, in love with his best friend, but he could deal with it after they were sure everything would be okay. Because everything would be okay. Maybe. Hopefully.

When they went back to school, despite Scorpius's protests, Scorpius began to have even more trouble sleeping. He had nightmares so bad sometimes that he refused to sleep. Arthur would offer to lay with him or steal some sleeping draughts from the potions lab, but Scorpius would always refuse because "It's my problem, not yours Art"

So with Dominique always worrying about Lorcan (he still wasn't back in school) and Scorpius always worrying about his mom, Arthur sort of lost himself. Not that he blames them for ignoring him, he would never do that... but they were his closest friends and he doesn't know how to help them.

By the time winter break came, Scorpius was out of his wits with worry. He couldn't sleep, his arms were scratched up from anxiety ticks, and he couldn't focus on anything for more than 2 minutes. Arthur couldn't bear to part with him at the station, but Scorpius did not want him coming home with him. Not this year.

Less than an hour after Astoria's death, the Potters got the news. Teddy, James, and Lily were upset, as they had all been babysat by the Malfoys when they were younger. Harry and Ginny were upset, as they had gotten closer with Draco and Astoria over the years. But Arthur was a wreck. He had to get to Scorpius, he had to, he had to, he had to... He couldn't stop crying.

Arthur refused to go back to school when break was over, so while his parents were dropping off James and Lily at the station, he stayed at home with Teddy. When he heard the knock at the door at ten past eleven, he wasn't sure what to think. Nobody from the neighborhood they lived in really talked to them. Muggle mail rarely came, unless one of the kids had ordered something off a muggle website. He heard Teddy open the door, he heard Teddy's voice speaking and another voice replying. A voice that was barely audible, yet still distinctly the voice of his best friend.

He heard the light footsteps on the stairs, and the click of his door opening, and he rolled over from where he was laying face down in his bed. Scorpius was standing there. With a baby in his arms. Arthur, of course, had heard that Astoria's baby had survived, but he also knew that there were many health problems. She was deaf for one. And would probably have breathing problems for the rest of her life.

"Her name's Indus. She just got released from Mungos. Dad's somewhere, I don't know where. But he's not home. He left us with (Great) Aunt Andromeda. She's downstairs, I didn't just leave without telling her." Scorpius kept on talking and talking until finally Arthur said, "Scor. You don't have to explain anything."

And Scorpius wanted to just collapse onto the bed. He wanted to hug his best friend for being so supportive. He wanted to kiss him too. But he had Indus in his arms and refused to let her go. If he let her go, she could die, and it would be all his fault.

Harry and Ginny come home and are definitely surprised, but they don't show it. Ginny coaxes Scorpius to let go of Indus ("You can't protect her when you're this tired. I promise to take care of her. I promise."). Harry heads out to search for Draco (whom he found and immediately brought back, so that he could warm up in front of the fire and eat for the first time in days). Teddy offers his room to Draco ("I can take Jamie's. He doesn't need it right now anyways."). Andromeda writes her sister, who is teaching at Hogwarts and wasn't able to get out of her duties, and then goes to the kitchen and cooks for group. Scorpius and Arthur are sleeping in the same bed for the first time in months, and despite everything that's happened, neither one of them has a nightmare.

After the funeral, Scorpius and Arthur go back to school, and to make sure the nightmares don't come back, they start sleeping in Arthur's bed every night.

And one night, many weeks later, Scorpius woke up around 2 AM, having just had a dream about Arthur. He couldn't think of anything else and he couldn't go back to sleep. So, he nudged his best friend awake ("Art. Artie. Arthur. Wake up," Scorpius whispered.) and Arthur freaks out ("Did you have a nightmare? Are you okay?", Arthur whispered back in a state of panicked drowsiness.) and Scorpius blushes and shakes his head ("No. I just had a dream. About you," Scorpius replied, a blush spreading across his cheeks.)

And Arthur sees his chance ("I like you, Scor. And I know that it could be awkward, because we're best friends and we could ruin everything but I really want to try this and - " and then Scorpius cuts him off and days "I like you too Art". And Arthur is super happy, but also super tired ("Talk about this tomorrow?", "Yeah") and they go back to sleep, cuddling a bit closer now

The next day, they wake up and they're both so happy and they don't want to get out of the bed, but they're also not talking. Finally, Scorpius rolls over in bed and looks at Arthur, whose eyes are already wide open, and says "Boyfriends?" and Arthur laughs at the lack of effort putting into the asking out, but it's okay, because he doesn't really like big gestures anyways (but Scorpius does). Anyways, he says yes, of course. And they finally kiss and end up skipping breakfast.

They go on dates whenever a Hogsmeade weekend comes around, and by the time they leave for spring break, they're pretty set in their relationship except now they have to be apart for an entire week and they do NOT like that.

To be continued...

#scorpius malfoy #arthur rubeus potter #scarthur

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torestoreamends · 5 years

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Mine to Make: Chapter 20

One year later, what will Albus and Scorpius have made of their future?

Beta’d by @abradystrix.

N.B. This fic is now complete both here on AO3. I hope you’ve enjoyed the ride!

Read it on AO3

XX Epilogue

When Albus wakes up he feels gloriously warm and well-rested. His limbs are heavy, but the good sort of heavy that says they’ve done a lot of work and now they’re recovering. His head has the faintest niggle, but that’s to be expected given how loud last night was and how much champagne he drank at the after party. All in all, he feels excellent.

It takes him a few seconds to become aware that the bed is empty next to him. That’s not really surprising either, though. Judging by the sunshine streaming in through the curtains that they forgot to close on their way to bed last night, it’s nearly midday. Scorpius will have been up for hours.

Albus rolls out of bed, rubbing his eyes. He pulls on the first t-shirt that comes to hand from his bag, a fiery orange league one, and wriggles into a pair of jeans, then he runs a hand through his hair and sets off down the three flights of stairs from his old attic bedroom where they’re staying while they’re at his parents’ house.

The kitchen is in chaos, the way it normally is here. Harry is rushing around trying to sort out the first dinner preparations, and he already looks stressed. Ginny is the centre of calm in the room, doing yesterday’s washing up and offering Harry soothing words. James is sitting at the table heckling, and Lily is cross-legged in the middle of the floor, playing with the cat.

They all look up when Albus comes in, and Ginny is the first one to get to him, her hands still covered in soap suds. She beams and wraps him up in a tight hug.

“The Prophet is raving about yesterday’s meet. You’ve done so well.” She kisses him on the cheek before releasing him. “Your interview’s in the paper too.”

“Be careful when you read it,” James advises. “There might be some drool on the photos – Scorpius was a big fan. Having said that, there’s a photo in here for you, too. They’ve finally announced his promotion. Who’d have ever thought that my useless little brother would end up as half of the wizarding world’s favourite power couple?” He sighs but comes bouncing over to slap Albus on the back. Albus winces and ducks away from him.

“Thanks, James,” he groans, rubbing his back. He sits down on the floor next to Lily and leans against her side when she squeezes his shoulders.

“It’s a really good interview,” she murmurs. “You’ve done really well. And everything they’re saying about the race is true too. I don’t think I’ve had so much fun in my life before.”

Albus wrinkles his nose. “It can’t have been better than breaking into a pyramid.”

“It can,” Lily assures him. “Anyway, that’s work. Which automatically makes it about thirty percent more dull.”

Albus grins and pokes her in the arm. “Liar.”

“Fine. Maybe only twenty percent more dull.”

Albus laughs, scratches the cat under the chin, then gets up and goes to find a copy of the paper. There are two on the table, and when he turns one of them to the back page his dad comes and reads over his shoulder.

“Haven’t you already read this?” He asks, glancing up at Harry.

“A couple of times,” Harry says with a smile. “Do you mind if I read it again?”

“No. But I think you’re ridiculous.”

“I’m ridiculously proud of you.”

Albus rolls his eyes but a glowing smile spreads across his face as he reads the report from last night – the first meet of their new league. He’s not sure what his favourite bit of it is. He likes the opening, which describes the crackling energy in the air at the Harpies’ stadium before the start of the racing. He remembers the roar of the crowd so clearly, carrying through the warm, clear summer air. He’d stood in the mouth of the tunnel to the pitch and looked up into the packed stands and a shiver had run through him. It was one of those rare moments when he’d realised how special a night it was right then, and he’d been able to capture every second of it to remember back later.

There’s a bit in the report about the brutal carnage of the mass start race, and it makes him smile because last night’s race was nothing on how they used to be. It did look fierce though, from the ground. Fierce and spectacular, just the way it was supposed to be.

The rest of the report is mostly dedicated to the outcomes of the racing. The writer praises the quality of the competitors, and Albus feels flushed with pride as he reads the names of all the people who he knows, the ones who’ve been working so hard to make the meet successful and exciting. There are a couple of newcomers to the league who Albus never raced against but who he’s certain would have had a chance of beating him, and there are all the names of his old friends and competitors too. And amongst it all is the undeniable fact that he was the one who started all this, helped pull it together, and make it work. He can’t help but feel that’s far more exciting than winning any race or meet for himself.

“Are you glad now that I persuaded you we could do this without breaking the law?” Albus asks, glancing up at his dad.

Harry grins at him. “It’s almost enough to make me glad you broke the law in the first place so you could find out that you wanted to do this. But don’t tell anyone that or I’ll lose my job.” He ruffles Albus’s hair and Albus ducks away from him, brushes his hair back into place, and starts flipping back through the paper to find his interview.

Harry squeezes his shoulder and goes back to his frenzied cooking, but Albus can feel his dad’s eyes on him the whole time, and whenever he glances in Harry’s direction he sees that his dad is grinning broadly, all his stress long gone.

The interview is just before the sports section, and Albus doesn’t bother to look at the text – he still remembers what he said – but he looks at the photos. They’ve come out well. In most of them he looks put together and at least vaguely like he knows what he’s doing. The best one is the biggest. A huge photo of him wearing his old racing clothes, the jacket slung over his shoulder so his tattooed arms are on full display, with the scars visible underneath. He’s got his flying goggles round his neck, his hair is wind-ruffled, and he’s looking off into the distance like he hasn’t even noticed that the camera is there. Even he has to admit that he looks alright.

“That’s Scorpius’s favourite one,” James says, sneaking up behind Albus and resting his hands on his shoulders. “That’s why he’s gone for a walk – to cool off.“

Albus shrugs his brother off. “Where’s the one of him that I’m meant to be falling in love with?”

James grins and starts riffling forward through the pages. “It’s right... here.” He stops and makes a ta-da motion at the paper.

The photo of Scorpius is accompanied by a headline and article, and Albus looks at those first, knowing that once he starts looking at the picture he won’t be able to stop.

Malfoy promoted again

One of the Ministry’s most talented young Unspeakables has earned his second promotion in under a year. Scorpius Malfoy, 25, took his first position at the Department of Mysteries last November, after his prominent role in the foiling of a plot to murder Harry Potter and ultimately assume control of wizarding Britain. Malfoy has also been credited for finding Harry Potter’s youngest son, Albus, who had been missing and presumed dead for several years.

His promotion coincides with a restructuring of divisions within the Department of Mysteries, and Malfoy will be responsible for the management of the Temporal Research Division, reporting to the newly appointed Head of Research...

Albus scans further down the article but it just goes on to talk more about the restructuring, which isn’t all that interesting. Instead he turns to the far more important matter of the picture that goes with the article, which might be his favourite photo of Scorpius ever.

He’s leaving work, coming out via the phone boxes. There are a couple of books hugged to his chest, and he’s still wearing his swirling Ministry robes, so he looks important and grown up. His hair is a bit messy, and there are faint shadows under his eyes, but there’s a big grin lighting up his face. Even though his head is down, and he’s clearly thinking about something, whatever it is is making him radiantly happy. He looks like exactly what he is – a ridiculous nerd who loves his job and his life. It sums him up perfectly, and now Albus wants nothing more than to find him and kiss him, because he’s so hopelessly in love with this man.

“Is Scorpius out in the garden?” He asks the world at large.

James smirks. “Told you you’d like the photo.”

“I think so,” Ginny says, ignoring James and looking across at Albus. “He might have gone for a wander across the fields, but he should be getting back now. I told him brunch would be ready at one, and Draco will be here soon too.”

“Great,” Albus says, getting to his feet. “Thanks, Mum. I’m going to find him.”

“Don’t be too long,” Harry calls as Albus races for the back door.

“Don’t have too much fun,” James adds, and Lily smacks him on the leg. Albus hears him whining about it as he heads across the patio and out towards the road.

It doesn’t take him long to find Scorpius. In fact, Albus almost falls over him as he skirts round the broom shed. Scorpius is sitting with his back to the closed doors, gazing out across the countryside, and Albus doesn’t see him until the last second. He grabs hold of Scorpius’s shoulder hard to stop himself collapsing into his lap, and when he does fall, he manages to land in a heap on the ground next to Scorpius rather than on top of him.

“Hello,” Scorpius says, rubbing his shoulder and looking at Albus in surprise and confusion. “Nice of you to drop in. Where did you come from?”

“The house.” Albus tries to arrange his limbs in some sort of sensible way, like he’d meant to sit down next to Scorpius. “You’re on the floor. I was expecting to find you walking.”

“No, I was sitting. Are you okay? You didn’t hurt yourself when you fell, did you?”

Albus shakes his head. “No, I’m fine. And I didn’t fall, I sat, in a very dignified way.”

Scorpius nods, slow and mocking. “Very dignified. Very deliberate. You’ve never been more graceful.”

Albus nudges him. “Shut up. I had a lot of champagne last night. I’m doing well.”

Scorpius grins. “Don’t forget about the Firewhisky too. I saw that.”

Albus drops his head onto Scorpius’s shoulder with a groan. “You weren’t meant to see that. Now I’m going to get a lecture about how I’m not meant to be drinking.”

Scorpius wraps an arm round him. “No, you’re not. But it was your big night and they’re your sponsors. It would have been bad business to say no. And you’re very cute when you’re drunk.” He ruffles Albus’s hair. “You get affectionate, and your cheeks go all pink.”

“No,” Albus moans, hiding his face.

“Yes,” Scorpius laughs and kisses him on the temple.

“I hate you,” Albus says, squirming away. “You’re so mean.”

“If I tell you how brilliant you are and how much I loved your interview in the Prophet this morning will that endear me to you in any way?” Scorpius asks, taking hold of his hand.

Albus lifts his head. “It might. James mentioned that you liked the photos.”

Scorpius nods, eyes glittering in the summer sun. “I liked the photos.”

Albus smiles and squeezes his hand. “I liked your photo too. A lot.”

“That one of you with the jacket,” Scorpius says, fanning himself with his free hand.

“Were you thinking about work while you were smiling to yourself like that?” Albus asks, grinning at him.

Scorpius shakes his head. “I’m pretty sure I was thinking about you, actually.”

“Oh,” Albus says, mouth opening a little in surprise. He looks at Scorpius and Scorpius looks back at him, then they move as one.

Albus threads his fingers into Scorpius’s hair and Scorpius wraps an arm round his waist to pull him closer as their mouths meet in a hungry kiss. Albus squeezes his eyes shut and sucks on Scorpius’s lower lip, enjoying the way Scorpius’s breath hitches and his grip tightens on Albus’s t-shirt.

“Have I mentioned this morning that I love you?” Scorpius asks, pulling back to rest his forehead against Albus’s. “And that I’m very proud of you?”

Albus grins at him. “You have now. And have I mentioned that you’re a beautiful nerd and I feel so lucky to have you?”

Scorpius trails a finger over his jaw. “I’m always delighted to be your beautiful nerd.”

“Come here,” Albus breathes, and drags him in for another searing kiss.

It’s easy to get lost in their own little world, surrounded by the peace of the summer afternoon. There’s birdsong in the orchard, the scent of Ginny’s sweet peas fills the air, a gentle breeze ruffles the hedgerows, and Albus and Scorpius are entirely alone together. Or at least they think they are.

They’re so oblivious to what’s going on around them that they don’t realise they’re no longer alone until someone clears their throat close by. They spring apart instantly and look up to see Draco standing looking down at them, an expression of faint amusement on his face. Instantly Albus’s cheeks burn, and Scorpius flushes bright pink as he leaps to his feet.

“H-hi, Dad. I didn’t realise you’d arrived already.”

“I got here early,” Draco says, smirking. “Harry told me you’d gone for a walk together.”

Albus gets up too, smoothing his t-shirt out. “Scorpius did. Go for a walk, that is. I went looking for him, and then I found him, and... He wasn’t walking anymore.”

“No, I can see that. Would you like me to go away and come back in a few minutes?”

Albus bites his tongue so he doesn’t answer an immediate yes. Scorpius swallows and glances at Albus.

“I, um... I’m not sure that would help. It might make it worse. Anyway, we’re done now. We’re fine. And you’re here!” He smiles at his dad and throws himself into a warm, solid hug. “I missed you.”

Draco hugs him back. “I missed you too. The papers inform me that you’re both doing well. And I’m glad they keep me updated because it sounds like you two have been too busy to write letters.” He releases Scorpius and comes across to hug Albus too.

“I wrote to you last week,” Scorpius says indignantly. “Which was two days ago.”

Draco smiles. “I’m just teasing.” He lets go of Albus and looks between the two of them. “Did you enjoy last night?”

“It was stressful,” Albus says, glancing at Scorpius. “Just to start with. Then it was fun.”

Scorpius beams back at him. “It was the best night ever.”

Albus thinks about the crowd leaving the stadium at the end and filtering out towards the Apparition points scattered around Holyhead, the atmosphere bubbling with laughter and happy chatter, a good proportion of them wearing the new league merchandise and planning how they were going to get to the next meet.

“It was pretty perfect,” he admits quietly.

Draco gives him a very serious nod. “I’m glad. You deserve it. You’ve been working so hard.”

“Now we just have to make sure the rest of the meets go as well.”

“But first,” Draco says, “you get to have a day off and celebrate. Speaking of which, I think your dad has brunch ready.”

His dad hasn’t just made brunch, he’s laid on a feast. There are stacks of blueberry pancakes, the most glorious Eggs Royale, plenty of crispy bacon and sausages, and a heap of homemade toast and jam that Scorpius finishes before Albus has had chance to decide if he’ll have any room left for it. There’s also Prosecco that Albus can only assume was provided by Draco, because he’s the only person in the room who would have suggested having bubbles with brunch.

By the time they’re done eating, Albus understands why his dad was looking so stressed before. What he doesn’t understand is how they’re supposed to manage the second feast that’s already being prepared for dinner. He’s not sure he’s even been so full in his life.

They spend the early part of the afternoon lazing around in the living room. Lily thrashes James at Wizard’s Chess, and the cat climbs all over Draco, who seems both alarmed and pleased by the sudden show of affection. Albus sits with his head on Scorpius’s shoulder and naps until James loudly announces that instead of playing Quidditch – because he’s a good brother and doesn’t want to leave Albus out – they’re going to go for a walk before dinner. Albus rubs his eyes and resists pointing out that the sort of walk James probably has planned will leave him too tired to do anything for days. Thankfully, Ginny intervenes on his behalf, and they all agree to a gentle stroll across the fields while the dinner finishes cooking.

It’s a noisy, energetic party that sets out from the house. James and Lily are behaving no differently to how they did during the walks Albus remembers going on as a child – chasing and laughing. Harry and Ginny follow along behind, holding hands and chatting to Draco who’s walking with them. Albus and Scorpius bring up the rear, arms linked, Albus leaning against Scorpius’s side.

The sun is blazing down on the tranquil countryside, and there’s a bright blue sky overhead. A couple of gnomes chase each other through the crops, and Albus can’t stop smiling. The last couple of days have been perfect in a way he hasn’t felt for almost as long as he can remember. It’s like all the disparate pieces of his life are falling into place. The league is working out, his family are all here and happy, and things are going just as well for Scorpius as for him. It’s almost a year since Scorpius came back into his life, and it’s taken time, but he finally feels truly content. This isn’t how he’d have ever imagined life being, but now it’s here he’s delighted with it. There’s just one last thing he needs to do before he can settle in and enjoy what promises to be the best summer of his life.

“You’re looking very happy,” Scorpius says, nudging him gently in the arm.

“Am I?” Albus asks, grinning up at him.

Scorpius nods. “You look especially cute when you’re all smiley.” He touches Albus’s cheek. “You’ve got a dimple. I like it.”

“You’re a dimple,” Albus retorts, elbowing him.

Scorpius’s smile spreads wider across his face. “Is that really the best you can do?”

Albus looks at him, trying to think of a snappy comeback, then he nods. “Your face is too handsome to insult.”

Scorpius’s eyes shine with delight, and he wraps his arms round Albus and squashes him in a hug. “You. Are adorable.”

Albus pretends to grumble and squirm, but he ends up planting a kiss on Scorpius, and by the time they surface the others have got far enough ahead that they’re out of sight.

“Anyway,” Scorpius says, as they set off to try and catch up. “You didn’t tell me what you were smiling about. I know when you’re happy about something. Were you thinking about yesterday?”

Albus shakes his head and swings his and Scorpius’s hands between them. “No, I was thinking about you.”

Scorpius squeezes his hand. “Were you.”

Albus nods. “I was. I was thinking about how the only thing left to do before my life is completely perfect is to ask you to marry me.”

Scorpius pauses in his stride and looks at Albus. “And is that something that’s likely to happen soon?”

Albus gives what he hopes is a non-committal shrug. “It might be...”

Scorpius’s grip on his hand tightens. “Because you already know what my answer will be. In fact I don’t see why we don’t just skip all the formalities and declare ourselves-“

Albus kisses him to shut him up. When he pulls away he takes both of Scorpius’s hands. “No skipping anything. This is the only thing in my life that I’ve ever not done spontaneously on an impulse. Let me do it right.”

Scorpius bounces on the balls of his feet and beams at him. “You’ve got a plan? You’ve really been thinking about this? Albus! What are you up to?”

Albus shakes his head and lifts a hand so he can press a finger to Scorpius’s lips. “I’m not saying anything. Wait and see.”

“But I’m terrible at surprises,” Scorpius says against Albus’s finger.

Albus sighs. “I know. But it’s not like you’ll have to wait long.”

Scorpius lights up. “I won’t?”

“If I told you it wouldn’t be a surprise, would it?”

“But-“

“No buts. And I’m not talking about this any more until after dinner.”

Scorpius’s eyes go wide. “After dinner?” He makes a sound so high-pitched that Albus can barely hear it and starts waving his hands around like he doesn’t know what to do with them. It’s like he’s fourteen again and Albus has just announced that his birthday present will be a lifetime supply of Jelly Slugs. He looks ridiculous, and Albus is so hopelessly in love with him that he catches hold of Scorpius’s flailing hands and kisses him again.

“Breathe,” he advises when they part. “You do want to live until after dinner, don’t you?”

Scorpius nods very fast.

“Then I would say that breathing is essential.”

Scorpius nods again and gulps in a breath. “Okay. I can do that. I can definitely-“ He beams at Albus, and his smile is so bright that it makes the summer sunshine seem dull in comparison.

“You’re perfect,” Albus tells him, giving him a little nudge.

“You’re going to ask me to marry you,” Scorpius replies, nudging him back.

“Maybe,” Albus says, nudging him again. “It’s a surprise.”

“It’s a surprise,” Scorpius agrees, skipping a step as they set off walking again. “I don’t know that anything’s happening.”

“It’s just a normal day,” Albus says soothingly, already struggling to keep up with a now very bouncy Scorpius.

“Completely normal. Totally normal. The most normal day ever.” Scorpius drops his hand and dances off ahead.

“Can it be a totally normal, slow day?” Albus asks.

“Oh.” Scorpius deflates ever so slightly, but when he comes back to Albus’s side he beams at him and gently links arms with him, seeming quite happy to trot along at the sedate pace Albus is setting. “Is this okay for a normal, slow day?” He asks after a few dozen steps.

Albus squeezes his arm and nods. “Perfect. Thank you.”

“It’s easier to breathe when we’re going slower too,” Scorpius admits, and Albus ducks his head to hide a smile.

“That’s good then. Breathing is good.”

“Breathing is to be encouraged.”

“I like you better when you’re not suffocating.”

“Do you think?” Scorpius asks.

“Yes,” Albus says. “Yes I do.”

They make it back to the house in one piece. Scorpius has stopped bouncing and hyperventilating, but he’s still beaming. His smile is so wide that Draco frowns at Albus when they walk into the kitchen. Draco is the only person who knows what Albus has planned, because Albus had to talk to him about it partly to ask for permission but mostly to ask for advice. Albus half rolls his eyes and gives a little shake of his head to indicate that Scorpius is just being ridiculous, and Draco smiles and rolls his eyes back.

The walk they went on wasn’t that long, but it’s left Albus feeling more unsteady and tired than he wants to admit to anyone, so he sits in his spot at the table to wait for dinner to be served, while everyone else apart from Harry goes next door for a game of Exploding Snap. Normally he’d help his dad with the cooking, but today he just wants to sit quietly. It doesn’t work though, because as he sits there, panic creeps up on him.

He starts to feel nervous for the first time. Up until now he’s been completely confident in his plan, and until last night he hadn’t had time to doubt himself, but being faced with the prospect of actually putting the plan into action is an entirely different thing. It’s stupid, because Scorpius is bathed in the sort of radiant glow of joy that he normally reserves for his birthday, Christmas, and particularly special date nights. It’s quite clear what his answer is going to be. But that‘s not stopping the swarm of Doxies that are buzzing around in the pit of Albus’s stomach.

What if he doesn’t live up to Scorpius’s expectations? What if he comes over all tongue tied and can’t get the question out? What if he falls going down the steps to the garden and at best makes an idiot of himself and at worst ruins everything by having to go to hospital? What if getting engaged somehow ruins their relationship, and they both regret it forever? A thousand different scenarios chase each other round and round inside Albus’s head, and apparently it’s really obvious that something’s wrong.

“Are you feeling alright, Albus?” Harry asks, glancing up from his cooking. “You look a bit pale.”

Albus hoists a smile onto his face. “I’m fine. Just a bit tired, I think.”

Harry frowns, not looking entirely convinced, but he doesn’t push it. “Alright. Let me know if you need anything.”

Albus nods. “Thanks, Dad.” He clenches his fists on his knees under the table and tries to stay put, but worry is tightening his chest and at the same time he feels shaky and tired. He wants nothing more than to be alone now, possibly to sleep for a while, so he gets to his feet and leaves the room, aware of his dad’s eyes on him.

He finds Scorpius and picks his way across the room to him. Scorpius beams when he approaches and reaches a hand out to him.

“Are you going to play? James is cheating. We need to gang up on him.”

“I’m not cheating,” James says indignantly, although his ears go red, a sure sign that he’s definitely cheating.

Albus takes Scorpius’s hand and squeezes it. “No, I’m going to go upstairs for a bit before dinner.”

Scorpius shifts onto his knees. “Are you okay? I can come if you want.”

Albus shakes his head. “No, that’s okay. I’m fine, I promise.”

“Do you want me to come and get you when dinner’s ready?”

Albus manages a small, unsteady smile. “That would be great, thanks.” He lifts Scorpius’s hand so he can kiss it, and when he lifts his head he realises that Scorpius’s smile has faded completely, so he leans in closer and strokes Scorpius’s hair.

“Don’t worry about me,” he murmurs. “Please. I love seeing you happy. It’s nearly dinner, which means it’s also nearly after dinner.” He flashes Scorpius a hopeful smile and it works. The joy rekindles on Scorpius’s face, and he leans his head into Albus’s hand.

“Alright. I’ll call you when dinner’s ready.”

“Thanks.” Albus bends down to drop a kiss into Scorpius’s hair, which leaves him feeling more than a bit dizzy, then he flees up the stairs to his room.

When he gets there he sinks onto the bed and curls up on his side, holding his churning stomach. He’s only realising now just how exhausted he is. After two days in a row on the go his limbs are heavy and stiff, and he feels lightheaded. He doesn’t have the energy to be worrying about proposing as well. Maybe this was a stupid idea. He’s pushed himself too far and now he’s paying the price.

He squeezes his eyes shut and digs his fingers into his hair, covering his face with his arms. He’s aware that he’s drifting, somewhere on the edge of sleep, with time passing in fits and starts, of seconds that feel like hours and minutes that feel like no time at all. The nausea from his churning stomach washes over him, and he struggles to fight it down. This isn’t a time when he can be ill. He won’t let it happen. All his family are downstairs, this is meant to be a good day, and for all his worries he really wants to propose to Scorpius.

The world fades away, and he must doze for a bit, because when there’s a soft knock on his door he jumps awake, a rush of adrenaline surging through him. It leaves him breathless and shaking.

“C-come in,” he calls, sitting up and trying to steady himself, one hand pressed to his chest.

He expects Scorpius to be the one to come into the room, but it’s not. His dad stands on the threshold, looking uncertain but concerned.

“Hi,” he says. “I... I wanted to check to make sure you were alright, but you don’t-“ He gestures to the room. “Do you mind if I come in?”

Albus turns his back on his dad but shakes his head anyway. “No, it’s okay.”

The floorboards creak and then the bed sinks as Harry sits down. “You’re not feeling very well,” his dad murmurs, and there’s something about it being a statement rather than a question that makes Albus not want to deny the truth.

“Not really,” he whispers back. Admitting when he needs help is something that he’s still struggling with, and he’s proud of himself for saying it.

“What’s wrong?” His dad asks, inching closer to him round the side of the bed, until he can reach out to put a hand on his shoulder.

Albus shakes his head. “I’m... I’m really tired. I want to sleep, but I... I can’t let Scorpius down.”

Harry pauses, and Albus can feel him considering the right words. “Albus... Scorpius wouldn’t be disappointed in you for looking after yourself. I think he’d be pleased.”

Albus gulps in a breath and lifts his head to look at his dad. “I know, but... I-I told him I was going to propose to him after dinner, and I want to... I really really want to.”

Harry blinks. “You’re planning to ask him to marry you?”

Albus rubs his chest and lies back down on the bed, but he twists his body round so he can still look at his dad. “Yes. I am.”

For a moment Harry’s expression is pure surprise, but then he starts to smile, and there’s a warm, glowing pride that comes shining out of him. He reaches out to rub Albus’s shoulder and ruffle his hair. “That’s brilliant news.”

“I know. And I have to do it. I want to do it. But...” He clenches his fists in frustration and buries his face in his blankets. “I need it to be right and it won’t be right when I feel like this. It won’t be how I want it to be.”

“Maybe you don’t have to do it today.” Harry’s fingers brush lightly through Albus’s hair, making him shiver. “Maybe it can wait. Scorpius isn’t going anywhere. He’ll understand.”

“I think...” Albus murmurs into the blankets. “I think that- that Delphi would have been delighted to know that something she did to me... stopped me asking Scorpius to marry me when I wanted to.”

“Perhaps she would,” Harry says. “But I also think that looking after yourself and making sure that things are right for you isn’t an admission of defeat. I’d say it’s more of a victory, actually.”

“Doesn’t feel like a victory,” Albus mutters. “It feels like she’s winning all the time.” He wriggles away up the bed and pulls the pillow over his head. It plunges him into warm darkness, and he can faintly smell Scorpius’s shampoo on the fabric of the pillow case.

He sighs and thinks about Scorpius’s bright smile, and about teasing him earlier in the sun drenched field. It’s moments like that which remind him he’s so in love with Scorpius it hurts. It makes his heart ache in the best possible way, like there’s too much love inside to be contained. All he wants to do is try and express that feeling in any way he can. He wants to keep reminding Scorpius that he’s here forever, that he’s really committed to this, to the two of them; that he believes in them. That’s why this has to be perfect: because the best time to tell Scorpius how he feels is when he’s proposing. If he can’t find the words then, how will he ever?

“I just want you to know,” Harry says softly, rubbing a hand down Albus’s back, “that you’re free. She’s not you. She’s not your illness either, even if it feels like she is. Your life isn’t a war, Albus, either against her or yourself. You can and should choose to do whatever you want. And for what it’s worth, I don’t think Scorpius wants perfect speeches or grand gestures. He wants you. And maybe that means waiting until tomorrow to get engaged, or maybe it means him coming up here so you can talk to him now, but whatever it is I’m pretty sure he’ll be delighted with it.”

Albus lies there with his eyes closed and lets his dad rub his back for a few moments longer, then he takes the pillow off his head and blinks blearily at the room. “Remember when I used to think you were wrong about everything?” He asks, inching onto his knees and trying to brush his hair into some sort of order with his fingers.

“I don’t think I would have dared come up here to talk to you,” Harry says. “I’d have sent your mum.”

“Probably sensible,” Albus says, twisting round to sit with his back against the pillows. “If you’d tried, I would have yelled at you.”

“But you’re not going to yell at me today.”

Albus smiles and shakes his head. “Not today. For one thing I don’t have the energy, and for another... I think you’re right. About Scorpius. And about Delphi... I guess if anyone knows what it’s like to have someone looming over them it’s you.”

“You can’t escape the past,” Harry says. “But that doesn’t mean you should let it hang over you. The past is the past. The future is yours to make.”

Albus gives a dry little laugh and looks down at his knees. “She used to say that. It’s annoyingly good advice.” He runs a hand over his face, closes his eyes, and draws in a few long, slow breaths. His body still feels sluggish and heavy, but his head has stopped spinning and he doesn’t feel sick anymore. Some of his nerves have calmed down. From the kitchen he can smell the delicious scent of dinner wafting up to him, and his stomach rumbles.

“Can I come down for dinner and see how I get on?” He asks, looking up at his dad.

Harry frowns at him. “You don’t have to ask permission to eat.”

Albus shakes his head. “Right. Sorry. Old habits... I’ll come down and have some food, and then after that...” He leans across and opens the top drawer of his bedside cabinet. There’s a little box in there, a bit bigger than a ring box, with his engagement gift inside. He tucks it into his pocket and flashes his dad a smile. “Just in case.” Then he closes the drawer and gets to his feet.

He sways on the spot, and his dad gets up and catches hold of his arm.

“Do you need help?”

Albus thinks about the three steep flights of stairs down from the attic and nods. “I think so, today.”

“We’ll take it slow,” Harry says, and they set off carefully on the long journey downstairs.

It’s loud and hot in the kitchen, even with all the windows and the back door open. James is telling terrible jokes, fuelled by a couple of glasses of Draco’s finest wine, and Lily and Draco are both laughing at him, which is only encouraging him. Harry and Ginny are trying to hide amused smiles while they chat together about something that Albus can’t hear. Scorpius is occasionally contributing to the joke telling, but mostly he’s telling Albus about something work-related that he probably isn’t meant to be talking about, but he sounds too excited to contain himself. Albus is listening while he picks at his green beans and Yorkshire pudding. He doesn’t have much appetite and his head has started hurting again, but his dad’s food is so delicious that it’s worth at least trying to eat it.

With the heat and the noise, he feels far from perfect, but when Scorpius is beside him talking and smiling he doesn’t really care anymore. That pressure of affection is building up inside him, and he can feel the box in his pocket digging into his leg. This might not go the way he wants it to, it might even go spectacularly badly, but he’s going to try it.

Once all the plates are empty, Ginny gets to her feet and starts clearing the table, and Albus’s nerves spike inside him.

“Let’s have a break before dessert,” Harry says, leaning back in his seat. “I’m too full to move now.” The rest of the table makes noises of approval, and Albus glances at Scorpius.

“I think I’m going to get some fresh air. Do you want to come?”

Scorpius’s expression goes from an unrestrained grin to something nervous and sharp, but his eyes don’t lose their shine for a second. “Okay.” He gets up and offers Albus his arm. Albus is grateful to take it, and he leans against Scorpius’s side as they go out into the twilit garden.

It’s so much cooler out here. A gentle breeze sweeps over them, and Albus closes his eyes and inhales. It’s quieter too, the silence broken only by late night bird song and the rustle of the leaves in the orchard.

“Can we sit?” Albus asks, gesturing to the steps that lead down onto the lawn.

“Of course.” Scorpius helps Albus sit on the top step, then plops down next to him and wraps an arm round his waist. “How are you feeling?”

Albus rests his head on Scorpius’s shoulder. “Less than ideal, but I’ll live.”

Scorpius kisses him on the forehead. “Let’s have an early night tonight.”

Albus nods. “I’m not going to object to that.”

They lapse into silence, and Albus enjoys the feeling of Scorpius breathing against him. It would be so easy to drift off to sleep right here on this peaceful evening, but he can’t sleep yet.

He lifts his head and turns to Scorpius. “You know I want to ask you something. And I’m sorry it’s not going to be perfect, but... I hope it’ll be okay anyway.”

Scorpius sits up very straight and clasps his hands in his lap. Albus notices that his grip is so tight that his fingertips have gone white.

“Are you nervous too?” He asks, glancing at Scorpius’s hands.

Scorpius looks down and laughs, tucking his hands into his pockets instead. “My incredible boyfriend is about to propose to me. Yes I’m nervous. And excited. And... a lot of things. I’m a lot right now. This is a lot. I- I’m rambling. Sorry. Go on.”

Albus smiles. “You’re really cute when you ramble.”

Scorpius goes pink. “I’m glad it’s working in my favour.”

“Everything works in your favour.” Albus puts his hand in his pocket and closes it round the handle of his wand. He twists the handle between his fingers, then sighs and lets it go. “I was going to cast stars in the trees and make everything look beautiful,” he says. “But I think if I did that now I’d just pass out. Or set the orchard on fire.”

Scorpius shakes his head. “I don’t need stars. It’s okay. You’re enough.”

“My dad said you’d think that,” Albus says, ducking his head. “I still think you deserve stars though. You deserve everything. You deserve the world. I wish I could give it to you.”

“You’re the world to me,” Scorpius murmurs, reaching out to take Albus’s hand.

Albus grins. “That’s really soppy.“

Scorpius grins back. “I know. It’s your fault.”

“Alright.” Albus squeezes Scorpius’s hand. “Hold the soppiness for a second while I do this.”

“You mean this isn’t going to be the soppiest bit yet?” Scorpius asks.

“It might be.” Albus lifts their linked hands to Scorpius’s mouth and they both press a finger to his lips. “Now sshh.”

Scorpius nods silently and sits and smiles at Albus. It’s at that point that Albus realises he didn’t need to cast stars in the trees. The sun is sinking behind the orchard, and the real stars are coming out overhead. The light from the house is bathing the garden in a golden glow, and Scorpius’s eyes are shining as bright as the silver moon overhead. It’s perfect just like this. Everything is perfect when Scorpius is part of it.

“A year ago,” Albus says, and his voice catches in his throat so he coughs and tries again. “A year ago I was trying to hide from myself. I was unhappy, I was lonely, I didn’t think I could have any of the things I wanted. And then you walked through the gates of the Training Ground, and it was like the first piece fell into place in my life.

“We went and got coffee, and we talked, and I had no idea how I’d ever managed to walk away from you. My life is exponentially better with you in it. You bring me sunshine, and stars, and magic, and... you make me believe that I can have a future; that I deserve a future.”

He swallows and looks down at his hands. “That day a year ago, you connected me back to the life I was missing, and I know now that I could have it all without you, that I’m wanted here and that there’s a life for me here. But the truth is that I want to share this life with you.” He glances up at Scorpius. “When I look at my family I want you to be there too. When I come home I want to be coming home to you. When I’m having a bad day I want to have the hope that you’ll be there to help. And when I’m having a good day I want to share it with you. I hope that you know – I know that you know – that I’m staying forever, but I want the whole world to know that. I want you and them to know how much I love you, and I want to stand up and promise that I’ll never leave you, that I’ll love you no matter what, and that my heart will belong to you forever.”

He pauses, and Scorpius seems frozen, gazing at him with sparkling silver eyes, mouth slightly open like he’s lost for words, then he looks down and rummages in his pocket for the box.

“This isn’t a ring, I’m sorry. I-I asked your dad how I was supposed to do this, and he said that when he and your mum got engaged they went and got their rings together, and I thought it was a nice idea, so I-I thought-“ He shakes his head. “Anyway. This is a gift for you, because I love you, and I-I just want to ask...” He exhales a shaky stream of air then breathes in again through his nose and squares his shoulders as he looks right at Scorpius. “Will you marry me?”

Scorpius covers his face with his hand, and for an alarmingly long time he doesn’t say anything. Then he drops his hand and reaches for Albus, pulling him in for a tight hug, and Albus can feel him shaking. It’s difficult to tell if he’s crying or just overwhelmed, and Albus doesn’t know how to ask, so he just holds onto Scorpius and messes with his hair and kisses his cheek until finally Scorpius pulls back and looks at him.

There are tears on his face, but he’s smiling, and he cups Albus’s chin with hands. “Yes,” he whispers, and his voice breaks. His smile widens like the sun emerging from behind clouds. “Yes of course I’ll marry you. Come here.” And then they kiss, and Albus is pretty sure the only reason he’s not crying too is because he’s so tired. Now the nervous energy is wearing off his hands are shaking and he feels exhausted right to the core. All he wants is to curl up by Scorpius’s side and sleep.

“What were you saying about this not being perfect?” Scorpius asks when they part, and he’s wrapped an arm round Albus and Albus has his head resting on his shoulder again.

Albus shrugs. “I don’t know. I didn’t want you to be disappointed.”

Scorpius squeezes his shoulders. “I’m not disappointed. I could never be disappointed with you. Can I open this?” He points to the box that Albus is still holding loosely in his hand.

Albus nods and sits up a bit. “Yes, go on.”

Scorpius takes the box and opens the lid to reveal the pair of tiny silver cufflinks inside. They’re set with stones that look like rubies, but Scorpius frowns down at them then glances at him.

“Those aren’t jewels. What is it?”

“It’s Fiendfyre,” Albus says. “Crystallised Fiendfyre. You can sort of freeze it. It kills it, so it’s safe, but it looks really cool. And... look closer.”

Scorpius takes one of the cufflinks out of the box and inspects it. “There’s a bird on it.”

“An albatross,” Albus says with a smile. “Like your Patronus.”

Scorpius grins and looks at him. “Have I mentioned today that you’re perfect?”

“I’m not sure,” Albus says happily. “Maybe you should say it again just to make sure.”

Scorpius puts the cuff links safely back in the box, then leans over and kiss him. “You’re perfect, and I love you. And you want to know the best bit? You’re my fiancé.”

Albus blinks at him. “I... I am. I hadn’t thought of that. I’m your fiancé. And you’re mine.” Happiness wells up inside him and his grin is so wide it hurts his cheeks. “We’re going to get married.”

“Yes,” Scorpius says. “Yes we are.”

“I heard something about marriage,” Draco says behind them, and they both jump and look round to see him walking across the patio holding a bottle of champagne. “We were wondering if we’re allowed to come out and join you now?”

Albus looks at Scorpius and nods. “I think so.”

Draco smiles and calls back to the house. “They don’t mind us coming outside.” He draws his wand and conjures up some chairs on the lawn, then looks back at the pair of them. “Is it good news?”

“It might be,” Scorpius says brightly. “Does everyone know this is happening?”

Draco shakes his head. “Not yet.” He sets the champagne down on the ground as the rest of the family comes out of the house and joins them in the garden, Lily sitting on the steps just below them, James hopping up onto the wall, and the adults taking the chairs.

“We thought it was too nice an evening to stay inside,” Ginny says. “I hope you two don’t mind us invading.”

“No, it’s fine.” Albus waits until everyone is sitting down, then he squeezes Scorpius’s hand. “It’s good timing actually. We’ve got some news for you.” He looks at Scorpius and gives him a nod.

Scorpius doesn’t look at the others when he speaks. He keeps his eyes on Albus and beams at him. “We have. Albus and I are engaged.”

There’s very little surprise at the announcement, but there’s lots of joy. Harry comes over and gives Scorpius a tight hug. Draco nods and smiles at Albus as he starts summoning delicate crystal champagne flutes from thin air. Ginny crushes them both in her arms and kisses Scorpius on the cheek. Lily high fives Albus and tells Scorpius to look after him. Even James manages to resist making puking noises, instead ruffling Albus’s hair and telling Scorpius that ‘it’s going to be nice to have a sensible brother for the first time ever’.

The garden feels very bright and cosy. Draco’s champagne tastes like starlight and joy. Albus is happy to curl up next to Scorpius and drift contentedly in and out of consciousness, surrounded by the buzz of his family’s chatter.

A year ago he wouldn’t have dared to dream about a night like this, but now it’s his reality. He’s home. He’s got everyone he loves with him. He’s engaged to Scorpius and they’re building a life together. None of that means that things are perfect, there’s still pain that will never go away and healing is going to be a lifelong process, but he’s no longer alone. He’s safe, he’s happy, and he’s facing life with both feet on the ground.

At one point he drifts awake to feel Scorpius press a gentle kiss to his shoulder where he has a scar in the vague shape of a pair of feathered wings, and he remembers what his dad said earlier. He’s free. The future is his to make. And here he is, making it his way, with the people he loves by his side, just the way he’s always wanted to.

THE END

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leta-the-strange · 6 years

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A far too long, fever-induced Unpopular Opinion, likely first of many, (keeping in mind that is it an opinion and not expressed at all in mean spirit): The casting/character ages in Fantastic Beasts.

Again, this is likely a wildly unpopular opinion because I’ve never come across anyone who has even touched slightly on the subject, but it is an, admittedly minor, detail that got me thinking a little. Again, in the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t matter a great deal and I’m sure I’m still going to enjoy the series either way but it’s just a personal opinion I’ve had nonetheless.

I do understand the organic nature of film and the flexibility you need to allow. Sometimes the character will be pitched or imagined as a certain age, but it doesn’t translate into film well (think LOTR or GOT, etc) or the casting directors like an actor who is obviously much younger or older so much that it trumps the desired age bracket. And most times, it is purposely done that way especially in teen-based movies and tv shows (90210, Smallville, Gossip Girl, PLL, etc, etc) which lead to wildly inaccurate expectations of what teenagers look and act like (in my high school experience anyway). Sometimes for legal and professional reasons, its more convenient to have adult actors portray younger characters.

Often pre-imagined characters evolve and change to fit the actor that is set to portray them whether it be gender, race, age, hair colour, eye colour, relationships, characterisation, etc. Sometimes this is celebrated, goes unnoticed or is a disappointment.

I suppose what I’m trying to say is that I understand that it comes down to a matter of priorities.

Neville, Petunia and Dudley were all blondes in the books. Did it really matter that the actors weren’t (and didn’t dye their hair for the role?) IMO, nah not really. I know a lot of people still can’t forgive the ‘you have your mothers eyes’ issue. I can. Partially. Personally, I didn’t mind Harry’s signature “green as a fresh pickled toad” eyes being blue in the film because Daniel Radcliffe couldn’t wear the contacts. Only auditioning actors with green eyes, the rarest eye colour on the planet, would exclude a lot of talented actors and potentially perfect Harry’s. I don’t believe green eyes were essential to Harry’s character (but I can’t speak for everyone), I think there were more important qualities. Geraldine Somerville, who played the older Lily Potter, also had blue eyes. But then, after making a huge deal over Harry having his mothers’ eyes, they cast young Lily, with whom they do close up, full face scenes of, with big brown eyes. I’m not saying she didn’t do an excellent job – she did wonderfully. I suppose it was just a strange decision in the eyes (pun not intended) of a lot of fans that the casting of a two or so minute role precluded what seemed to be such an integral theme that had been woven through each book and movie so frequently. This is just an example of the questionable, dare I say for lack of a better word ‘lazy’, ‘just imagine for the sake of the plot that he/she…’ attitude that I get from HP/FB at times.

Getting back on the topic of age, one thing I did have a problem with in HP was James and Lily’s age. I don’t think I’m entirely alone in this. 21 seemed old when I was a wee one reading Harry Potter for the first time. It was only when I got older that I realised how young they were and how it added quite fundamentally to the tragedy of their short life and death. It was heartbreaking either way, don’t get me wrong, but seeing (an actual 21-year-old actor portraying) a 21-year-old young mother slain in the first flashback in Philosophers Stone would have been truly shocking. It would also add to the tragic aftermaths of Sirius and Remus too. However, I did later realise that this was probably due to having to match Alan Rickman’s casting as Snape, and later, Gary Oldman and David Thewlis (which I think were all fantastic in their roles). So, they sacrificed the canonical age of James and Lily for the casting of Snape and the Marauders (possibly). Whether this was something the fans agree or not, they prioritised what was most important, in their eyes, to the film. But then, after all of that, for some reason they keep James and Lily’s age of death as 21 on their gravestone??? Therefore, casting two barely-speaking roles to a 43 and 34-year-old who they expect the film going audience to believe are 21??? I assumed that when they did the full casting and knew that Alan Rickman, Gary Oldman and David Thewlis would look far too old for their long-deceased classmate counterparts they would just make the characters older in the films but now I think they wanted to keep film Snape, Remus and Sirius in their early to mid (and eventually late, by the end of the books) thirties and didn’t want it to look painfully obvious. I think a lot of films and tv shows do this to try and pull off the age differences. A 27-year-old actor portraying a ‘high school student’ can often pull it off until you stick them next to a real life 15-year-old. I like to believe it’s that or something other than lazy writing but I can’t know for sure.

This brings us to my current thoughts about Fantastic Beasts which has some of the most wildly strange actor vs character casting age I’ve seen in some time. As a quick refresher (or if you don’t know…) here are the actors ages vs what their characters age is (if I’m not mistaken)...

Eddie Redmayne - 36 / Newt Scamander – 29

Zoë Kravitz – 29 / Leta Lestrange - 29 (probably given that she was in the same year as Newt)

Ezra Miller – 26 / Credence Barebone - 18 (from an interview but still unconfirmed from filmmakers)

Katherine Waterston – 38 / Porpentina Goldstein - 25

Alison Sudol – 33 / Queenie Goldstein – early 20’s/hopefully not late teens (she’s younger than her 25-year-old sister so 24 at the absolute most but I’d say younger given the dynamic). I haven’t found a confirmed age anywhere.

Dan Fogler – 42 / Jacob Kowalski – 26

Callum Turner – 28 / Theseus Scamander – 37

Try and keep in mind that there is no mean spirit intended in my opinion on this. My opinion on the acting ability of each of these people isn’t necessarily relevant to this particular discussion though I do commend actors who can convincingly pull off different ages though I certainly can’t fault actors who can’t as there is only so much you can do sometimes. This is purely about what is most important – character or actor – and the relevance of it.

Eddie Redmayne, in my opinion, seems to have features that allow him quite an amount of leeway in terms of age. He starred in the mini series based off one of my favourite books, Pillars of the Earth (definitely an underrated series I heartily recommended) where he portrays his character as a teen all the way up to a man in his forties/fifties and, in my opinion, is quite believable. I think I have more trouble believing that Eddie Redmayne is 36 than I do believing Newt Scamander is 29/30 (as his birthday is in February, I’m assuming he is 30 during Crimes of Grindelwald) and even if that weren’t the case, I think a six-year difference at those ages can be neither here nor there with some people especially with the right clothes, mannerisms, etc...

Zoë Kravitz – hold on to your hats, a 29-year-old playing a 29-year-old. I haven’t done my in-depth research on the other actors not aforementioned, but I believe this may be the only occurrence of this happening in this film series.

Ezra Miller said that Credence was 18 in an interview. This is probably true, and I would’ve guessed around that age anyway. I think I double checked it on the characters wiki and it matched. As a side note, as a general rule I don’t tend to take the actors words as gospel truth until its confirmed by the writer or director. I feel like, in this film series, there are some actors that get maybe somewhat carried away and speculate rather a lot about their character and sometimes it isn’t entirely accurate. Of course, actors are usually allowed some creative control over their characters and often get little titbits about their past/future that help with their portrayal, but I have noticed some actors’ thoughts about their character don’t add up at all to what the filmmakers have also said and I know which side wins out. A lot of actors are shocked/surprised/disappointed/elated when they find out developments about their character - not even they always know what’s around the corner and sometimes what they think isn’t necessarily true. No matter how deserving, creative or insightful they are about their character, it doesn’t solely belong to them. I think a lot of fans forget this. They go on about ‘so and so said this’ and ‘so and so literally said…’ while blatantly disregarding anything J.K or the FB filmmakers say and again, I know which ones actually run the show. This has nothing to do with Ezra, to be honest, it’s just a quick observation I’ve noticed. I’m so off topic! Anyway, Credence I would’ve put as a late teen/20-year-old at most from his character and I think Ezra has one of those faces that, like many, can float around in the weird young adolescence stage that you can can’t quite pinpoint whether they’re late teens or mid-twenties (I’m in university and pretty much anyone between 18-27ish is indistinguishable to me). Either way he’d be carded at the uni bar. I think if I met a modern-day Credence Barebone I wouldn’t think twice if he told me he was 18.

Katherine Waterston is the one I am most anxious writing about and the one I’m sure a lot of people are cocked and ready to come after me about. She’s probably also one of my two biggest irks with the age issue. Just to get this out the way, I am not the biggest Tina fan (yet). At first, it was casual indifference. I didn’t (and don’t) hate her, I just didn’t really take to her in the first film (I already have hope that the new film may sway me). It really started as simply as that. I will write a separate post on all my thoughts revolving around this because there are many. All I will say is that if you don’t love Tina or ship Newtina based on the first film, it is a very cruel and vicious fandom to be part of. At least in my experience. But that’s a different issue. Let me say firstly that I think Katherine Waterston is very beautiful and I would be happy to look like that at 38 (obviously not the same as she is very Caucasian and I’m a nut-brown Maori, but you get my point). Obviously, I don’t know how the story will unravel and how important it is but was it absolutely necessary that Tina had to be 25? I think 30 would have been passable. Or even better, she could’ve been a little (or however much) older than Newt? Normalising relationships where the woman is older than the man is something I’m here for (my sister is two years older than her boyfriend – 19 and 21 – and it’s so controversial to people??? But I know lots of relationships in the reversal). That would’ve been my ideal scenario if they had Tina originally set for 25 but discovered they really loved Katherine Waterston and decided it would be inconsequential if they wrote Tina a bit older than originally planned. However, I do think it might be the other way around. Maybe it is important that Tina is 25. This might be one of the reasons why I haven’t yet meshed with this character or either of the Goldsteins for that matter. I do admit that I forget that they are in their early and mid-twenties. I do forget that Tina is (apparently) only 25. I honestly believe that I would have liked – or at least had a lot more understanding and sympathy – for Tina’s character had it been obvious she was so young. I will explain more thoroughly in the separate post I’ll eventually write that, had FB been a book before a movie, I would likely have really enjoyed book!Tina. Please understand this particular opinion isn’t about the actor. I’m just saying that I, personally, feel like it was easy to lose sight of the fact that this character is only 25 when the actor playing her is nearly forty years old. Please don’t twist this and interpret it to being me ‘coming after’ the actor. I don’t know why age is regarded as such an insult. It’s the most beautiful, natural thing. Katherine Waterston is 38. There’s nothing wrong with that. She’s healthy and pretty and could easily pass for younger if she so desired. But again, I think sometimes why I don’t find Tina endearing at all (yet) is because I see (not in terms of the actor, the character) a 38-year-old (or round about) woman acting like a 25-year-old. This might be even harder for me to combat in the next film as she is supposed to be quite younger than newcomers Theseus and Leta (ridiculously younger than Theseus) whose actors are both twenty-somethings joining Ezra as the babies of the cast. Don’t come at me about insulting her about her age. Carmen Ejogo is 45 and she cancelled everyone in FBWTFT. A lot of people grow more and more beautiful with age. Older doesn’t mean less beautiful so let’s put that to rest immediately.

Alison Sudol looks like a fucking earth angel and she was a great Queenie. I loved Queenie’s character. Did I love Queenie as a person? No. There is a difference – again, that ties in with what I’ll eventually write about my feelings about those two. I don’t know Queenie’s age, but she is younger than Tina so at the absolute most she would be 24 but I would wager given the big-little sister dynamic they seem to be following, there’s likely more than a year’s difference. I wouldn’t have thought Queenie was so young had I not known otherwise. There are some who find her character a little more annoying than cute, but I think if she were portrayed by someone who was in fact in their early twenties, she probably wouldn’t have come across as so naïve and a little airy. A lot of development occurs in your twenties and there is a tremendous amount of personal growth by the time you hit thirty. The same issue with Tina I suppose. You can forgive a lot of Queenie’s quirks when you remember how young she is but sometimes it’s easy to forget when physically she seems older. I will have to keep in mind how young and impressionable she is still while watching her actions in Crimes of Grindelwald because again, I think I forget sometimes.

I had no idea how old Jacob was, admittedly. I guessed anywhere between 32-40 (I assumed Jacob and Queenie had a bit of an age gap either way) but I was way off. Apparently, he’s 26. My head is in my hands at this point. I know Jacob’s been through a lot (and I’m not saying Dan Fogler isn’t a cutie!) but if some guy told me he was 26 and I arranged to meet him and Jacob Kowalski (again, based on first impressions. I love Jacob) walked in, I’m calling the fucking police. There is no way he is TWENTY-SIX. I love Jacob and Newts relationship, but I never saw Jacob as being the younger one. The fact that he is younger than Newt, Leta and Theseus (again! 11 years younger than Theseus!) when he looks like he could be their fucking uncle is unreal. I don’t really know why they made Jacob so ludicrously young when there was honestly, in this case, no need. I had to track down his age because it had zero (0) relevance to the film. Only thing I can think of is maybe to make his relationship with Queenie not come across as creepy? Who knows.

This one really hurts me. Theseus, my poor boy. The FB team really are just gonna swing around and do THAT. Callum Turner is, in my opinion, a great Theseus from what I’ve seen so far. From interviews, it looks like he adores Zoë and he has great chemistry with Eddie. They’ve also done well to find an actor with similar physical characteristics and mannerisms as Eddie Redmayne making him a very believable casting for Newt’s brother. Though later it was revealed that Theseus is supposed to be eight years older than Newt making Theseus 37/38 which I think was completely unexpected for most people. We knew from the first film that Newt was the youngest brother and even with Callum Turner only being 28, I thought with the right clothes and such they could make him look older – or at least old enough to look like he could pass as Newt’s older brother. But nearly forty? With the kind of trauma Theseus has been through not to mention the likely constant drama of his troublesome brother and fiancée (and his brothers’ new friends and extremely messed up future brother-in-law)? Does he exfoliate with the Philosopher’s Stone? Drop that skin case routine, Theseus. Again, I don’t know what the film is going to bring. Perhaps Theseus must be significantly older than Newt for plot related reasons. Maybe for the sake of the story, he had to be old enough to not attend school with Newt, or maybe their father died early on and Theseus had to grow up quickly to fill a father figure void (that could explain the complicated nature of their relationship) or it might be for any number of reasons. My only hope is that it is specifically relevant to his character and not an inconsequential detail that could easily have been adjusted when they cast such a young actor. It can be a risk having a cast of actors in their thirties and forties playing a cast of twenty-somethings convincingly, and I’ve mentioned why, but it can be pulled off though I think it’s a strange move casting an actual twenty-something year old, one of the youngest cast members, to play a character 10+ years older than some of the oldest cast members characters. I think, like with the Goldstein’s, I will have to be constantly reminding myself when understanding the character that Theseus is that much older than Newt and Leta and even more so than Tina, Queenie and Jacob.

Again, I’m not saying the actors haven’t done a good job with their respective roles, it’s just my 4am cough medicine powered thoughts on how they’ve made some interesting choices regarding what age they’ve kept the characters vs the actors real life ages and how it, for me at least, has affected the way I’ve interpreted the characters and would I feel any different about them had they made the characters similar ages to their actors or vice versa. I might be the only person who has thought about it and it’s not even a complaint on the cast itself (it’s a great collection of actors), it’s just an observation not at all eloquently put by a flu-riddled person.

#the crimes of grindelwald #fantastic beasts #newt scamander #jacob kowalski #queenie goldstein #tina goldstein #theseus scamander #leta lestrange #credence barebone #gonna pass out for 12 hours and probably wake up to a lot of people telling me to fuck off #fantastic fevers and how to alienate yourself from a whole ass fandom

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