#the theory of patronuses

[siriusblack-the-third]

Okay, lets talk about Patronuses.

To my understanding, a person's Patronus is either a physical representation of their character, or takes a form that is the animal version of somebody who is dear to that person or someone who that person looks up to.

Harry's Patronus is Prongs, a stag— his dead father's animagus form. His dead father, who everyone says Harry looks like (except his eyes. He's got Lily's eyes), who Harry looks up to, who Harry idolizes throughout the series. I think it's interesting to note that Harry doesn't have an animal that corresponds to his personality— the dursleys were never a place where he could nurture or grow his own identity, and Hogwarts was always riddled with too many dangers for him to have time to figure himself out. Up until the end of the war, he had no aim, no direction, no idea what his own personality was like. And so, his Patronus took the form of a stag, a tangible representation of his parents' sacrifice, of his physical likeness to his father, of his love and admiration for people he couldn't remember.

Snape (barf) had a Doe Patronus. His obsession with Lily was so strong that it became his personality. His obsession was the only reason that prompted him to betray Tom Riddle, the only thing that prompted him to make an oath to Lily that he would protect her child (bang up job he did of that, btw- just superb), and the only reason he made an effort to stay alive. If it had been the Longbottom family that was under attack, Snape would have gone down in history as one of the cruelest and most loyal Death Eaters of Riddle's army who did terrible, horrible things in the name of his "love".

Now to the main point of this little rant: James Potter, Lily Evans, and Sirius Black.

The Terf Extraordinaire has declared in Extracanon that James' Patronus was a stag, and Lily's patronus was a doe. Imo, that is complete bullshit. James Potter and Lily Evans are famously known for having started off on the wrong foot— he's an arrogant, bullying bastard and she is a sanctimonious, hot-tempered bitch (bear with me, please, I love both of them).

I can't believe Lily's Patronus being a doe— she had too much love in her heart for it to be a representation of her own personality. Even if it was that, it is entirely too inaccurate. Does are considered delicate, weak, innocent creatures. Lily in canon has too fiery a temper and too sharp a wit for her Patronus to be something so mundane— she hurries to rescue Snape in SWM with such rage, unafraid to go against the worst pranksters in the school. And if the angle that Rowling wanted was for it to be an indicative of her love for James, that her Patronus was a doe instead of stag was because Lily was a female, then that's utterly, completely stupid. Lily hated— no, Lily loathed James with her whole being for the first six years of their school. They canonically began dating some time in their 7th year, and even if Patronuses were taught only in the 7th year, Lily wouldn't have fallen in love with him so fast; he had been an utter dick thé previous years, and Lily is canonically too smart to let herself fall for someone who had changed so very recently. She gave him a chance in seventh year, but i believe that she fell in love with him much, much later. All of this just points to the fact that Lily's Patronus being a doe right off the bat is just.. weird. And something I can't imagine happening. If I was to give her a Patronus before she fell in love with James, it would be either a big cat or a dragon. And hey maybe her Patronus changed became a doe to match James when she married him, but then I don't like the connotations of a wife having to submit herself fully to her husband. So no. No Doe Patronus for Lily.

James Potter having a representation of himself as a Patronus is much more believable; he is confident, smart and self assured— traits we don't often see in teenagers. The thing is, though: James loved Sirius. Whether canon or au, platonic or romantic, they are always described as "never see one without the other", as soulmates, as two people who had a legendary friendship. His love for Sirius did not become his entire personality, but it was an integral part of his growth as a character and his story arc. They were best friends who liked each other's company so much that they literally made magic mirrors to talk during detentions. You cannot tell me that James' Patronus was a stag; his patronus was more likely to be Padfoot. He wasn't obsessed with Sirius like Snape was with Lily, he just had more love for Sirius in his heart than he had arrogance in his mind.

Vice versa for Sirius, who had Prongs as his own Patronus, because James was the one that saved him. James became his friend, irrespective of his last name. James took him in when he ran away from home. James was there for him, always, every time, every day of his life since he was eleven. James was his first friend. Sirius' Patronus was Prongs, and you can't convince me otherwise.

[greenerteacups]

Do you think a patronus and an animagus need to be, or are likely to be, the same animal for a person?

Likely, yes; necessary, no. We know that patronuses can take forms it's not possible to become as an animagus, because Tonks's patronus becomes a werewolf after falling in love with Lupin. (I guess we don't rightly know you can't choose a werewolf as your animagus form, but the idea feels janky, like it's not reeeeeally what the magic system was conceived to do.)

My general philosophy of Patronuses gets explored a lot in an upcoming chapter, but the TLDR is I think they're a token of something that makes you happy. Harry's is a stag because his connection to his father brings him joy; Tonks, a representation of Remus; Snape, a representation of Lily; etc. That's also why patronuses can change when you seek joy/meaning from new places. Nowhere in the books do we see the kind of "spirit animal" reading that crops up in personality quizzes about it. Yeah, sometimes the animals happen to fit their characters, but why do McGonagall and Umbridge — two very different characters — have the same patronus? Wouldn't it make more sense if they were just two dames who like cats?

In contrast, your animagus form is said (extracanonically, so Doesn't Count, if you ask me, but whatever) to be involuntary and based on your personality. (This is part of the reason I don't think you can use animagus abilities to become a werewolf, because what would that even mean about the person doing it?) The animagus is supposed to function as a "spirit animal" type of thing, because it's technically still you.

So if your patronus and animagus form happened to match, I'd read it as a good indication that the things bringing you joy are closely related to things you like about yourself. It would be an indication of strong self-esteem and satisfaction. James Potter being one such character, and someone who's established in canon to think pretty highly of himself. Minerva McGonagall is a god damn delight and she knows it. Interestingly, Lupin's patronus is a wolf, but not a werewolf, which could mean any number of things — for one, the word "Lupin" being a cognate for wolf in Latin means that his patronus could reference his family or parents, or just his own identity as a person outside of his lycanthropy.

[evesaintyves]

i wrote a hinny "micro"fic inspired by today's @hinnymicrofic prompt, august 5th - dementor. it is not really a microfic (not even close), sorry.

You can read it here on AO3 if you prefer.

warning for mild sexual content.

1999, october

 

Ginny's tried baking chocolate brownies and chocolate silk tarts; she's not great at it, everything she makes comes out looking like the surface of the moon, all hard and cratery, and none of it seems to cheer him up: he's still standing in the shower til the water's long gone cold; she comes home and he's sitting on the sofa in the dark like he didn't notice the sun went down. After a couple of weeks he asks her to stop.

 

"I'm stuffing chocolate in my face all day at work," he says. "Getting a bit sick of it, actually."

So she makes curries, and stir-fry, and a mushy attempt at her mother's lamb stew, but he pushes them all around on his plate until they're cold and scrapes them into the bin.

 

"Sorry," he says, and it's like a thump to the chest from a bludger.

 

He's been stationed at Azkaban. The Aurors have driven all the old guards away with a squadron of patronuses; Harry said they lit the rough sea so brightly that he could see the rotted hull of an old shipwreck on the rocks just under the water, for a moment, before they chased the dementors off into the sky. But the nasty things keep coming back, sometimes one and sometimes dozens, in sieges that last for days. It's delayed the workers fixing up the bars, modernising the plumbing, righting all the toppled-over headstones in the cemetery.

 

"Kingsley's got this theory," Harry explains, sitting on the edge of the sofa in a way that suggests he's going to get up any moment, "that all the—what happened there left a sort of residue, and they like it."

 

So Harry's been there, in the residue, sitting on his broomstick in battering wind and waves that crash with such force that their spray reaches up the highest tower and grabs at the parapets on the top. Casting his patronus over and over while dementors curl through the air around him like clouds of black smoke.

 

That's how she imagines it.

 

"So you're just thinking of me all day," she teases him, and he laughs without smiling, without touching her, and then gets up to oil his broomstick.

 

That night she gets into bed naked and still all damp from her shower, and he crawls on top of her right away, lips on the rim of her ear. Then tongue on her collarbone. She digs her fingers into the muscles of his back, closes her eyes, and imagines that she's taking all the dead things the dementors must dig up in him, sequestering them inside herself where they can't hurt him anymore.

 

But when it's over he's quiet again and keeps to his side of the bed.

 

"Do you still hear your mum and dad?" she whispers after she's caught her breath. 

 

His back is turned and she's not sure he's awake until he answers, "No. Not really anymore."

 

"What is it, then?"

 

He rolls over and looks at her with the blankets pulled up over his mouth and nose.

 

"A few different things," he says.

 

The next afternoon she tries to keep busy, but she keeps thinking about those eyes, colorless in the dark bedroom and full of something she doesn't quite understand. She's immediately embarrassed but she can't help herself: she conjures a patronus of her own and sends it to him, no message, just her nimble silver mare galloping toward him across the sea.

 

When he gets home, he tells her (with his hands in his pockets and his eyebrows squirming) that he'd rather she not do that again.

 

"It's just distracting," he mutters.

 

That night in their bed all his little kisses are like apologies on her skin—or so she imagines. They're soft and deliberate and he's quiet the whole time.

 

"If you met a dementor tonight," he asks her afterward, still catching his breath, "would you still hear Tom?"

 

"No," she says instantly, and squeezes her eyes shut. Fred's staring eyes show up in the dark, and so do Harry's skinny legs hanging over Hagrid's elbow, but she's not sure if it'd be either of those things.

 

When she opens her eyes he's still looking at her, waiting.

 

"It wasn't even that I heard him," she says. "It was that I felt…"

 

All of that desperate, humiliating love she'd had for him, her only friend, author of those kindnesses that had faithfully scrawled themselves across the pages whenever she needed them, who had understood things about her that she hadn't even known about herself, who had seen her silly little heart and told her that it was beautiful. All that had gushed from her and out into the train compartment and into the ink-black maw of the dementor and she'd been so terrified and so ashamed that it had still been inside her all this time.

 

She doesn't say that. Eventually he falls asleep.

 

All that week it rains, a miserable rain that isn't really trying, just drizzling off and on interminably, and she can't stop thinking of him out there in the middle of the sea. Grey above, grey below. Hunched on his broom, wand outstretched, wringing out drops of happiness from some memory of a summer day with her—maybe. The awful truth is that she just doesn't know what it's like out there.

 

"So," she blurts out, when he's just coming home and stripping off his uniform robes, "are you just going to slink around like a kicked kneazle and not talk to me?"

 

He's frozen with his robes pulled over his head. They muffle his voice.

 

"Talk about what?"

 

"About—" she realises she's raised her voice and brings it down. "—all this we've been going through."

 

He frees himself and takes a minute straightening his uniform over the coat hook. When he looks up at her, he seems genuinely baffled.

 

"Have we been going through something?"

 

She just walks off and turns on the shower. She doesn't even know what to say.

 

She goes to bed in pyjamas. He puts out the lamp with a mumbled goodnight. The house is empty when she wakes up, disoriented in the feeble light and the rain drumming, and she feels like she must have heard something, like someone's in the house. She slips her wand off the bedside table, silently, and sets her bare feet on the floor.

 

The Patronus walks right through the closed bedroom door.

 

It ducks its antlers under the ceiling fan, which surprises a chuckle out of her, and comes up to nuzzle its face against her temple. It can't touch her, she doesn't feel it, but all the hairs there prickle and stand up, electrified with its presence. She brings a hand to the side of its long face and strokes the air.

 

"Hi," she breathes.

[beyondtheclose]

Potter Gossip

written for the drarry discord drabble challenge january 2023, for the prompt “rumours”, wc 188. (ao3 link)

thank you to @crazybutgood for beta-ing this for me <3

When Pansy slid in beside him, devious smile in place, and proclaimed that she “learned the most interesting tidbit in DADA today,” Draco considered casting an ear blocking charm at himself. 

“I heard about Potter’s Patronus,” Draco groaned. “The student body is eternally fixated on Potter gossip.”

The first he heard of it was in the Slytherin common room, a sixth year laughing over Harry Potter’s Patronus changing from the mighty stag into a flobberworm. Then, while going to Potions, a group of first years were debating whether it was a lion or a dragon until they noticed him and scattered. Finch-Fletchley told him it was a wolf, delivered with a barely veiled threat to watch out, “because you never know what might happen if a wand slips—wolves are ferocious.”

Never mind that Patronuses can’t cause bodily harm. (That Harry wouldn’t hurt him). 

Hippogriff, beaver, horse—everyone had a theory. It was exhausting. Pansy could excuse him for not caring.

“Oh? You know his Patronus is also an Arctic fox?”

Draco whipped around to the Gryffindor table, only to find the man already looking at him. Was Harry blushing ? 

“Thought so,” Pansy said smugly. 

[findingtruenorth23]

Even More HL Headcanons

I’m back with Part 3! You can find Part 1 and Part 2 if you are curious!

Sebastian and Anne were born October 31, 1874. If anyone has met an October Scorpio, you know why I say this.

Ominis was born January 11, 1875. I relate to him very much as a January Capricorn, myself.

Ominis’ only happy memories were made with his Aunt Noctua, who never had children of her own, and treated him like a son.

Noctua Gaunt was a twin. They are fairly prevalent in the wizarding world, and we know she was most likely a sister. Having a “favorite” aunt implies you have more than one, after all.

Speaking of Noctua, that name was once a constellation. We all know which family was famous for naming their children after stars and constellations—the Blacks. I can go into great detail about why I think Ominis’ grandmother was from the Black family.

Ominis’ mother is a Malfoy. This would explain the hair and the eyes, and though the Malfoys aren’t specifically cited as interbreeding with cousins, a marriage between a Malfoy and a Gaunt would have been lucrative for both families. Once again, I could discuss this theory at length.

Sebastian and Anne’s mother was especially fond of Muggle literature, so he has an extensive library of both magical and Muggle works in the Sallow family home.

Both of their parents were fascinated with Muggles, in general. They always wanted to learn about all their culture and new inventions. Sadly, a gas lamp, a Muggle invention, they used in the cellar library ended up ending their lives through carbon monoxide poisoning (this is pretty much canon, but I wanted to fill in the blanks of why it may have happened).

Ominis’ Patronus is a bat - Bats have a keen sense of intuition and precision, finding a way to see by means of echolocation despite their poor eyesight. They are often misunderstood and even feared, but develop small social circles that value their honesty and empathy. They represent the perception of things that others cannot see.

Sebastian’s Patronus is a falcon - Falcons represent a troubled soul with a dark nature who has chosen to stay in the light. They tend to symbolize freedom, intuition, bravery, a keen eye for detail.

I don’t see either of the boys becoming Animagi, but Sebastian might consider it “for science” because he’s a nerd and loves the idea of being able to sneak around in animal form. Since the form you take and your Patronus tend to go hand in hand, I’d imagine a falcon would make sense but Patronuses can change so maybe not.

BONUS reference to Darkness and Light fics! Eleanor’s Patronus is a raven - Ravens are mysterious and intelligent birds and are representative of someone with quick wit and a fiery passion who prefer to keep to themselves. They symbolize insight, transformation, intelligence, and good fortune. It’s worth noting that ravens are most commonly associated with Slytherins and not Gryffindors like Eleanor.

[pickinglilahs]

My Boys Ch 6.9

AO3 link, Chapter 1 Ch 6; Ch 8; (2.2K)

Haze had just about sobbed themself out in Draco's arms when Hermione's patronus appeared. Both turned at the pale glow that appeared through the door.

The otter swam up and asked, "Draco, is Haze with you? Neither of you are here yet, and while I'd like to think the two of you are in a closet somewhere, I'm a bit worried. Send a patronus back either way." The glowing creature dissolved.

Haze leaned back to wipe their eyes and Draco pursed his lips.

Sniffling and completely ignoring the 'closet' comment, Haze looked up, silently asking for Draco to do it for them.

Draco's brow crunched helplessly, "I can't."

Haze frowned up at him, confused. After a beat, their expression softened in understanding. "I-I-I'll-I'll teach y- I'll teach you."

Draco arched a skeptical brow, shame buried beneath it. "I don't know if I can..."

Haze wiped their cheeks one last time before straightening. Their voice was a bit rough, but teaching was one of their strong suits, as were patronuses, "Of course, you can. Y-You know the theory, right?"

Draco nodded hesitantly, not at all believing Haze could actually teach him. But then, he had doubted Haze countless times and had always been surprised.

"Wonderful. The-The reason the charm is so difficult for people, I think, is-is-is-is-is because they either don't choose the right kind of memory, or-or they focus too much on the memory itself, and not the emotion. So, they don't let it fill them properly before trying to cast."

Draco nodded slowly again, trying to follow.

"Most textbooks will tell you that you need a happy memory to cast a patronus, but that isn't strictly true."

Draco frowned. "Huh?"

"Think of it this way, the patronus is an anti-dementor, yeah?" They waited for Draco to nod. "Dementors don't just take away happiness though. They take away hope, love, vitality, etcetera. And-And-And-And a patronus can be fueled by any of those emotions, they just have to be strong enough."

Draco's eyes lit with understanding. "The emotion just has to be positive."

"Exactly. The second, and arguably harder part, is letting the emotion fill you completely. Most people tell you to choose a memory because we attach emotions to them. It's easier to remember feeling something than to tell ourselves to feel it, especially in-in-in the face of danger. And it can't just fill your head or your chest. You have to feel it in your bones, head to foot. So, you have to choose something you've felt consume your whole being."

Haze closed their eyes, taking a deep breath in. As the air filled them, they imagined the electricity of Draco's touch moving to every cell in their body once more. On the exhale, they whispered the incantation.

Wand still in their pocket, the silver glow burst straight from Haze's chest to fly around the room. No longer a stag, the light settled into a phoenix and landed on the back of the chair beside them.

The bird dimmed as a sob built in Haze's throat but brightened again as Draco tightened his arms around them once more. Swallowing hard, Haze told the bird, "F-Find Hermione. We're fine, but-but-but-but I'm-I'm teaching Draco to cast a-a patronus." The bird cocked its head at them, then took off.

Draco wasn't sure what to say but felt the need to break the silence before Haze spiraled. "You didn't know it changed."

It wasn't a question, but Haze shook their head dazedly anyway. Weakly, "Haven't cast since-" Their throat closed off, unable to finish. They didn't need to, but Draco was surprised when they managed to continue. "The-The stag—m-my first- my first patronus—was my dad. He-He-He-He was a stag, a-an-an animagus. And-and-and-and-and his patronus was one too." Haze had thought they were all cried out, but another rolled down their cheek.

Draco pulled them in again and kissed their head. "It was your link to him. Made you feel like he was still a part of you."

Haze choked on a sob and nodded into his shoulder. He ran his hand through their hair.

"You wanted to be like him, to preserve his memory."

Haze nodded again. Heart simultaneously clenching and feeling lighter as Draco put words to their feelings.

"But you're not your father."

Haze pulled back suddenly to look at him, another sob wracking them as they frowned at Draco.

"You're you, Haze." Draco brought a hand up to their cheek, brushing away the tears. "Just because you're becoming yourself doesn't mean your father isn't still with you, isn't still a part of you. He always will be, whether your patronus reflects that or not."

Another sob broke loose, but, now, there was gratitude mixed with the grief. They threw their arms around Draco's neck, holding tight, trying to express everything they couldn't say.

Draco understood. He held them tight once more, kissing their head before resting his cheek on their hair, the hand from their cheek moving to tangle back in the locks.

As they sat, Draco's mind wandered to what emotion he could feel that would be strong enough.

Pain. But that wasn't positive.

Fear. Also not helpful.

Haze sniffled against him, and he wondered.

The blind rage that had filled him earlier.

The panic that had him knocking over his chair in the library to get to Haze's side.

The all-consuming need to hold Haze. To make sure no one ever hurt them again.

Draco let the feeling swell. He wasn't sure what to call it, but it was definitely strong. Focusing on the way it had blinded him earlier, how it had filled him in the library, how good it felt to be holding Haze now.

He moved the hand from Haze's hair to pull his wand from his pocket. Draco took a deep breath, just as Haze had done, letting it fill him. On the exhale, Draco said the words.

A blinding light burst from his wand, somewhere between shield and corporeal.

As suddenly as it came it vanished, the feeling leaving Draco just as swiftly. He frowned but looked to see Haze's brilliant smile turned up at him.

"I knew you could do it."

Draco's frown deepened. "But I didn't. And I couldn't hold it long at all."

Haze shook their head, exasperated. "Of course not. But do you think I did that well on my first try? That was incredible!"

Pride swelled in Draco's chest at the praise. Yet, "Why did the feeling leave so quickly? It slipped away like silk."

Haze tilted their head, considering. "Probably just need practice. It takes a lot of emotion to produce a patronus, and even more to sustain one."

Draco nodded, thinking back to the emotion, wanting to try again. Haze had other ideas. They wiped their face with their sleeve and climbed off of Draco's lap. They stepped back and held out a hand for Draco.

Draco ignored the hand and reached over to straighten their skirt, pulling it down a bit. Haze went to turn away as they felt the heat rising up their neck and cheeks, but Draco took their hand, kissing their cheek as he stood.

Haze walked off, trying to suppress the blush and dragging Draco behind them. "Come on. You need to show Hermione. She's going to be so jealous. Took her ages to get it down."

They collected their bags—which had been abandoned in the hall—and made their way to the library, hand-in-hand. Haze led Draco down the corridors and through the library, to the back table where they had taken to working on Draco's project. That had been their initial plan for the evening, but, clearly, they would have to work another time.

They found Hermione chewing on the end of a biro, obviously worried about Haze's new patronus and stressed about not knowing where the two of them had gone.

As soon as she saw them, Hermione leapt from her chair and barreled into Haze. She squeezed them tight, barely giving them time to hug her back before she was pulling away. Putting both hands on their cheeks, she took in their still-red eyes and contradicting smile.

"What happened?"

Haze's grin widened and they pulled away. Setting their stuff down and flopping into a chair, they looked to Draco. "Show her."

He balked. "N-Now? I-I don't think-"

"Show me what?" She looked between the two as she went back to her own seat.

Draco slowly came to sit as well, apprehension written in every line of his body.

Haze held a hand out for him to take as he sat, "Sit down and focus." They turned to Hermione, fingers lacing with Draco's under the table. "So, Draco got into a fight-"

"Hey!"

"-Defending me." Haze glared at Draco, obviously implying that he should be concentrating. Neither heard Hermione's gasp, she knew the terms of Draco's parole. "And I switched our wands when no one was looking. So, when I told McGonagall and Flitwick that I was the one who jinxed those idiots, 'my' wand was the one that regurgitated the spells."

"And McGonagall believed that?" Hermione was dumbfounded.

Haze snorted. "No. Course not. And the wimps on the floor said it was Draco too. But Draco cast two shield charms before any hexes, clearly showing that he didn't start the fight. And everyone agreed that he was defending me. So, she let him off with a warning."

Hermione's disbelief morphed into relief. "Wow. Lucky you showed up then."

Haze shrugged. "McGonagall's fair above all else. I'm sure she would have checked his recent spells before pursuing any action either way."

"Still, altercations of any kind are against his parole. To get off with a warning? That was all you Haze. She might be fair to everyone else, but you truly are her favorite."

Haze's grin was part sheepish, part pleased.

"So, what happened then? I waited as long as I could stand before I sent the patronus, but sorting that out couldn't have taken that long, did it?"

Haze pursed their lips, not quite sure how much they were willing to divulge. "Draco and I... talked... for a bit. I- um... I told him a-about, uh... About the-the Dursleys a-and-"

Hermione reached across the table for their hand. Letting them know she understood. Haze squeezed back, appreciatively.

"S-So-So th-then, when y-your patronus came I-I-I, uh, wasn't really..." She squeezed their hand again and they gave her a weak smile.

"And Draco couldn't send one for you, which is why it took so long for you to send one back." Haze nodded, grateful for how intuitive she always was. "And... Did you, uh... Did you know that it had...?"

Haze shook their head, throat feeling tight again, prickles building behind their eyes and down their nose. "B-But we, uh," they turned to look at Draco, who was already looking at them.

As their eyes met, Draco raised his wand and cast. The patronus still wasn't quite corporeal, but it lasted much longer than it had the last time.

Hermione gasped and Haze grinned.

After almost 15 seconds, the glow dimmed and went out. Draco frowned in frustration, but Haze squeezed his hand, beaming.

"And that's only the second time he's cast it!" Haze turned their brilliant smile on Hermione, whose shock was suddenly layered with envy.

"You're kidding."

Haze shook their head, grin turning teasing. "Careful, Mione, you've got competition."

She scoffed, trying to brush it off. "Draco has always been at the top of the grade with me. It's hardly a surprise he's done well with this; especially since he had you teaching him one-on-one."

Haze's smile turned bashful.

"Yeah, I should probably thank you for besting me all these years." Draco was looking at Hermione, a strange bitterness and... gratitude? laced through his tone. "Getting out-shown by a muggle-born in every subject made my father so proud."

Hermione paled. "Oh. I'm sor-"

Draco cut her off with a wave of his hand. Genuinely, "Really. Thank you. It may have been awful when we first started school but now... I think it made it easier to see that I would never be enough for him. Even if I had beaten you, he still would have found something."

Haze squeezed his hand and Draco squeezed back, shooting them a sad smile. He wasn’t sure what brought this sudden need to divulge about. Draco had never talked about his father—to anyone—but he felt Hermione, of all people, deserved an explanation. Needed to know how much he'd changed. Would understand. Even if he had already apologized to her at length, part of him felt he would never stop trying to make amends.

"I mean, I know that he did what he thought was best for me, but it wasn't for me. Not really. He was always more worried about the Malfoy name and making sure I wouldn't ruin our reputation."

Hermione reached a hand out to him. He took it, squeezing back gently.

"He deserves to rot in Azkaban for everything he's done. If they had given him anything less than a life sentence I-" Draco looked away, not really sure where that sentence was going.

Hermione squeezed his hand one last time before pulling back. She checked her watch and looked back to her homework. Sighing, "I think we should call it; dinner will be starting soon."

Haze and Draco nodded and waited for Hermione to gather her things. Then the trio set off down to the Great Hall.

So much change, in such short a time.

@bradley-95147-blog @shyshadows430

[monika-in-wonderland]

@bettinalevyisdetermined thank you for giving me a possibility to see 3 separate Dracula-related Tumblr things on your channel 😁

1. @thinksnake your post made me laugh so hard 😂

2. @biggest-gaudiest-patronuses - I love this post. @chaos-has-theories - your additions are great. 😁

3. These memes are so funny 🤣 Huge thanks for them to:

@origami-trust

@theorderofthetriad

@caspercryptid

@wickermallow

@afoxymulder

@kelssiel

@lorata

@vimbry

[endeavour12345fics]

The Aftermath, chapter 16

A few weeks passed, and Halloween came. Philip woke up earlier than his dorm mates, got ready for the day and made his way to the common room. It would be a normal day of classes, only with the traditional Halloween feast in the evening.

He had heard rumours that the sixth-year students would be learning the Patronus charm in Defense against the Dark Arts, and he was excited. He wondered if he would be able to produce a corporeal Patronus, as he knew only few wizards and witches were able to.

He went to the Great Hall, hoping to find it mostly empty. As much as he liked having his friends around, he preferred to eat around less people.

The Gryffindor table was empty except for him, but there were a few people sitting at the Hufflepuff table. He recognised Poppy, which was talking to a girl with long, wavy blonde hair. The girl’s accent intrigued him, because it was foreign, but he knew he had heard it before.

As he approached them to greet Poppy, he remembered where he had heard that accent. There was a small Portuguese community near where he’d lived in London, and these people had similar accents to the girl’s.

“Hi Philip!” Poppy greeted him with a smile. “This is Inês.”

“Hey.” Philip greeted back. “Where are you from?” he asked, just to confirm his theory.

“I’m Portuguese.” Inês smiled seeing Philip’s look. “There’s a Portuguese community in some parts of the United Kingdom, mostly London.”

“Ah yes, the oldest military alliance in the world, still existing in some way.” Philip said, smiling at her.

Poppy and Inês laughed. “See you in Defense against the Dark Arts?”

“I will be there.” He said, going back to his table.

After breakfast there was a free period, so Philip went to the library to finish a Herbology assignment on Snargaluff. This plant had pods that needed to be extracted, but also had thorny vines that tried to attack students if they were touched.

After an hour of researching and writing, it was time for class. Philip put his parchment and quill in his backpack, and left the books in an orderly pile, to be put away.

When he arrived at the Defense against the dark Arts classroom, most students were already there. He sat down next to Natty and took his textbook, parchment and quill out of his backpack, while Professor Hecat was going down the stairs from her office.

“Good morning, class. Today, as many of you have certainly anticipated, you will learn the Patronus charm. Despite being called a charm, it is part of the curriculum for being the only way to defend oneself against a Dementor.”

The professor continued her explanation of the charm, including the incantation and the way to cast it.

“Not everyone will be able to cast a Patronus, but that does not mean anything bad about yourselves.”

She clearly said “Expecto Patronum!” and a silvery eagle burst from the tip of her wand. It was not solid, more like mist or smoke, and it flew a few laps around the classroom before disappearing.

“Now, who wants to try? Remember, think of a powerful, happy memory, but one that brings you forward.”

Philip thought about a memory he could use. “Something that brings you forward” could also mean something from the past, that ended up affecting his future. He thought about Eleazar and Miriam, who had taken him in when he was younger. About the way Eleazar smiled when he showed him the adoption paper, and he hugged him tightly afterwards.

He knew he could do it. “Expecto Patronum!” he said confidently, feeling his wand almost vibrate in his hand. A four-legged shape shot up from its tip, and he saw it was a horse, more specifically a stalion.

Fitting, he thought. When he was younger, he was always around the horses pulling the carts at the market, and he used to give them the leftover apples and carrots after the long days of work unloading the same carts.

He watched as his classmates cast their own Patronuses, some of them surprised by the fact that they were able to cast corporeal ones.

When the class ended, it was time for lunch. The afternoon went by fast, and when Philip noticed, it was dinner time. He couldn’t wait for the feast. He loved the decorations, and the food seemed even better than usual.

Despite this, he felt some sadness. The previous Halloween, Eleazar and him had dressed up as pirates – including a little pirate hat for Snowball – and had their own Halloween celebration in the latter’s quarters.

Now Eleazar wasn’t there anymore, and Philip missed him. The feast was fun, but it wasn’t the same.

Later, while the other Gryffindors celebrated in the common room, he went to his dormitory. He laid in bed with a book, trying not to think about Eleazar or what had happened the previous year.

NOTE: Inês is @lufanahufflepuff's MC. I wanted to feature her because I was happy to see a Portuguese MC (as a Portuguese person myself), and Inês is very cool.

[aconitewolfsbane]

I posted 1,472 times in 2022

That's 187 more posts than 2021!

13 posts created (1%)

1,459 posts reblogged (99%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@akela-nakamura

@indiigocats

@worldheritagepostorganization

@biggest-gaudiest-patronuses

@moringmark

I tagged 1,196 of my posts in 2022

Only 19% of my posts had no tags

#lmto! - 393 posts

#fanart - 302 posts

#stevenuniverse - 243 posts

#video - 204 posts

#comic - 183 posts

#feelzcure - 183 posts

#pearl - 144 posts

#world heritage post - 100 posts

#truth - 96 posts

#theowlhouse - 85 posts

Longest Tag: 74 characters

#this is the only su slander post i'll reblog because its fucking hilarious

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Uhhhhhhh... ...

I’m... already following them?

"Hey, we see you like this user enough to follow them. Maybe you’ll also like this user?”

FYI, I’m one of those 45 notes.

Oh Tumblr. One day, your owners will learn how to program you.

1 note - Posted January 23, 2022

#4

The Owl House s3 theory

I was thinking about the ending of season 2, wondering how they were gonna get back to the Demon Realm with King’s blood or anything.

But then I realised...

Luz carved the palisman wood into an egg, because “I got to decide what my future looked like when I chose to be a witch, and I want them to have that option too. Until then, I'm willing to wait.”

However, when Luz was starting her palisman carving lesson, King asked “Are you going to carve me?”

I believe that because King put the idea into her mind as she was carving the palisman, at the beginning of season 3, possibly after a small timeskip, the egg will hatch into... a small titan, modelled after King.

King did hatch from an egg after all.

It won’t have anywhere near the level of power that King will grow to have, or even has now.

But the most important ability it will have will be the ability to open a portal between the realms.

Luz simply has to tap the palisman staff against any door, open it and step into the other realm.

This is the only way that I can see the kids being able to return to the Demon Realm in season 3.

2 notes - Posted July 3, 2022

#3

Crazy idea I’m unable to do anything with...

A business rating app, for employees.

A business has their name and address submitted with reviews from current and past employees.

Rate the business based on the wages, how you were treated whilst working there, the general work environment, ect. Also, a field to share personal horror stories of any petty firing practices or toxic work environments. And maybe a scale to display usual starting wage, hours you get paid for versus hours they expect you to work. Ratings are datestamped so you can compare older ratings to newer ones and see if they’ve gotten their shit together. And also to make sure you’re going with the most recent ratings. Maybe a filter to select only those from a certain time period so you can look at only those submitted within the past month, or whatever? With the score adjusted for that time period only.

Basically, a way for jobseekers to see if a particular place is good to work at, or if it should be avoided at all costs. Written by people who currently work there or have worked there.

A easy system to report any managers/bosses who learn the app exists and create an account to try and raise their score by giving 5 stars on everything. So if they get flagged 3 times by different users as a manager trying to protect the bottom line, their rating will be deleted so it won’t affect the true score, and their account deleted too. A similar thing for users who recognise that someone is trolling, leaving poor reviews to screw with people. 3 reports, deleted and removed.

Users have to check a box to say if they’re a current employee of the place or a past one. Past can maybe have a field to say how long ago they worked there, so people can see if it’s an older complaint compared to a possibly better later rating from later employees. They can also chose to say if they were fired or they quit.

Businesses will have to either fix the problems, or shut down because they can’t hire enough people to stay afloat. Corporate can see why a particular store isn’t doing well and send someone to fix the problem. Getting rid of a toxic manager, improving conditions, ect...

Someone trying to find a job and sees a place is hiring can check the app to see if it’s worth applying there, or if it’s actually a gate to the hell dimensions to be avoided.

Just, basically, a way for people to know how shitty a place is before they apply for a job, and to also compare experiences at different places.

Maybe called JobRate? JobScore? RateMyWork? RateThisPlace? I dunno, I’m bad at naming stuff... And I dunno if any of those names are already used for anything else. *shrug*

4 notes - Posted August 5, 2022

#2

Uhh... Okay, I guess...

Replaying Breath of the Wild, trying to beat my personal best time for a hundo.

I was going through Woodland collecting Koroks and heading towards the Tyhphlo Ruins, and I stopped to look at my bows and pick out a good one for the next challenge when I noticed something... weird.

All of my bows, including ones that I already had, had all become triple-shot ones.

I have no idea when or why this has happened. I only had two triple shots before, and now they all are. I think one I picked up after noticing this was also randomly a triple-shot.

They all look like regular single-shot bows, but looking at them with the cursor shows that they have the x3.

I can’t find anything about this online, as most are about how to clone existing multi-shot bows. Nothing about regular single shots suddenly becoming triple-shots...

I’m not complaining of course, this is awesome. But very confusing, cause I wasn’t doing anything kind of known glitch AFAIK, and this has just... happened. *shrug*

Has anybody else experienced this?

Will post video of my bow stash in a few days, once I'm done with the hundo, so you can have a look.

9 notes - Posted July 22, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

This is the most perfect thing I have ever seen.

105 notes - Posted March 29, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[mnalohomorapodcast]

Alohomora 'Episode 362 - PS/SS 13, Nicolas Flamel: Thestral Ballet' - is now available! https://alohomorapodcast.com/episode-362-ps-ss-13-nicolas-famel-thestral-ballet/

We have a lot to say about Thestrals in this discussion of Chapter 13 of Philosopher’s/Sorcerer’s Stone! Join hosts Alison, Rex, Sam and guest Melanie from the podcast Dialogue Alley as they discuss this rousing chapter.

On Episode 362 we discuss…

→ Madam Hooch uses her PTO → Spreadsheets at Hogwarts → What’s the point of a five minute game → No stakes in chess → Failed Polyjuice blood transfusions → Rex’s atomic number theory → Sam advocates murder to learn → Chocolate frog card Patronuses → More Quidditch than Famel

For more information about the podcast and to find out how to be on the show, check out our Be On The Show! page.

And as always, be sure to continue the discussion below!

[podcast_subscribe id=”7858″]

[onthemerits]

I'm really having a moment with patronus/animagus theory because we know patronuses can be magical creatures (dumbledore's phoenix) but can animagi turn into magical creatures? like if dumbledore became an animagus could he become a phoenix? on that note why DIDNT he become an animagus?

and if an animagus' patronus changes, does the animagus form also change??

one more essential question: can animagi reproduce with other animals? we already know that animagi default to wizard lifespans ("unusually long life for a common garden rat"), which suggests they have wizard dna even in animagus form and that the form is just an illusion/temporary transfiguration magic. but that doesn't track with the sense of the double heartbeat, which implies that you're allowing your body to be shared with the animal itself so that you have a "hidden body" inside of your regular body.

[that-one-random-npc]

Tumblr blogs conspiracy theories #1

@biggest-gaudiest-patronuses is actually a human and not a pink slime plant watering thing

Know this ones out there but hear me out:

How could they pass the I’m a human tests???? 🤭🤭🤔

[bobcat-pie]

Aight, time for a Gaud Theory

@biggest-gaudiest-patronuses​ is a xenophyophore. Aka, one of the largest single-celled (though multi-nucleic) organisms. Here’s the proof:

From the Abyss- xenophyophores live in the deepest parts of the ocean. Gaud knows too much about the terrible things down there, and rightly fears them. xenophyophores are fragile, so if one were cursed with sentience, they would likely have anxiety as well.

Slimy- Gaud is slimy. Xenophyophores secrete slime when they feed.

Hard to define, but definitely not normal- Xenophyophores have a history of switching between classification as foraminifera or sponges. The classification of it’s clades is.. murky. I am no biologist, but a fallible creature. And Gaud cannot be defined. They are Gaud. 

Color- Xenophyophores are not pink. Normally. They construct their exoskeletons, or “tests,” out of sediments, and show a light color. Gaud is pink, which would normally disqualify this theory. But white, mixed with red, is pink. And I have a feeling Gaud hasn’t been just a detrivore for a long, long time.

[falconemuses]

i KEEP forgetting my stats and i KEEP forgetting my login and there’s only SO MANY EMAIL ADDRESSES one person can have so i decided to take it ONE LAST TIME and save EVERYTHING THE FUCK in ONE file and TAG IT ON TUMBLR so that i can have easier reference

the sudden hp enthusiasm surge can be explained by me reading hpmor because there’s nothing good on youtube to watch while i eat right now and hpmor for whatever other criticisms you want to give it, has nice food scenes. i.....this is a thing, i have to have some kind of show/book going on while i’m eating, it helps the food taste better because i’m imagining the food in the book/show.

i’m satisfied with bear. i do like bears very much. that wand looks rather paler than i remembered my last one to be, but that could be just an art thing, with no correlation to the actual woods. gryffindor......jesus christ, it doesn’t feel right, not in the slightest, i’m never brave enough, not when it really matters; but i suppose by elimination the others fit even LESS well, so. i’m dumb as shit, lack ambition, and.....i have no idea what hufflepuff is supposed to stand for xDD PLEASE DON’T KILL ME i think it was hard work and community and friendship and trust, which....uh....yeah, not me. LOL. slytherin would’ve been nice though, if only for the underwater common room. i’d like to wake up to the giant squid swimming past my window. i do like the aesthetic of red and gold tho, so i guess that works out....

[madhattersdomain]

Albino animals are Patronuses let loose

[lazywonderlvnd]

been thinking a lot abt when harry says to ginny at the end of hbp that being with her has been like “something out of someone else’s life” and how weirdly soulful and romantic that is. so here’s some of that harry and draco being in love with him

can also be found on ao3

rating: pg-13 word count: ~1.7k pairing: harry/draco

Rain has drummed ceaselessly against the flimsy roof of their tent for the last two hours. Sometimes softly, sometimes with the sort of ferocity that suggests the world is ending. Harry likes the latter kind.

“It’s romantic,” he’d said, with a joint between his fingers.

It’s a one-person Muggle tent, comically small and Charmed not to leak. This Harry had agreed to only when the first apocalyptic crash of summer thunder rattled the ground and Draco threatened to leave if he felt even one drop of water.

Privately, however, he’s come to decide Harry was right, as he so often is in these matters. He isn’t romantic like Draco’s first boyfriend after Hogwarts, who’d taken him on expensive dates and brought him flowers at work, who’d whisked him away to Paris for his birthday and brought him breakfast in bed at weekends and any of a hundred other things which technically made him a terribly lovely and very romantic partner, just … not like Harry. Harry is not so much romantic in practice as he is an insufferable romantic by nature.

Harry likes rain and thunderstorms and cloudy days and foggy nights. He likes kissing Draco in the morning before they’ve brushed their teeth and he likes living in a small flat with a hundred plants and big windows that he always keeps open.

He likes sharing things. Clothes, food, thoughts, furniture. Secrets.

And he makes Draco sleep in Muggle tents in the middle of thunderstorms, gets stoned and says things like “I love you like I love the rain” right before fucking him.

Afterwards he stretches out on his back with his shirt off and sweat drying on his bony chest, arms behind his head, covered in all those stupid, mostly meaningless flash tattoos Draco secretly likes only for the fact that they’re bizarre little pictures on Harry’s skin that speak to his personality. His glasses lay next to their air mattress and his hair is in disarray. Off to the side is a Muggle radio playing soft guitar music and the smell of rain is pervasive and all-consuming. He can taste it every time he draws breath. 

Harry says, “Find us another joint,” and smirks when Draco glares but does it anyway, because he likes placing it carefully between Harry’s lips while Harry watches him with his unfathomable green eyes and then sparking it for him the Muggle way, using Harry’s charmingly crude lighter that has a peeling picture of a cartoon woman on the front with a large head, a very short red dress and a matching red garter around one exposed thigh. 

“Tell me something,” says Harry. He does this sometimes. At first it had taken Draco off guard, made him uncomfortable, being put on the spot like that. 

“What do you mean?” he’d asked, to which Harry had replied, “Just tell me something. Whatever you want.” And so Draco had told him about the properties of moonstone, because that was the first thing that popped into his head, and Harry laid there and listened like nothing in the world could have interested him more. The next time Draco explained his theory concerning Patronuses and Dark Marks and the time after that he told Harry about how he’d run away from home for a whole day the summer before second year.

In return Harry told him about his favourite music and anecdotes from nights out with his friends and how he’d been abused as a child and what it felt like to die. 

“Go on,” he prompts when Draco remains silent. He breathes smoke out through his nostrils and offers the joint to Draco, who declines. Rain beats rhythmically against the thin polyester surrounding them. The song on the radio changes. He recognises it as one of Harry’s favourites, by an American with a funny voice and two first names. 

“Hm,” Draco hums. He crosses his legs and his knee presses against Harry’s hip. Harry puts an absent-minded hand on his calf. “You first.”

Harry grins. “Alright,” he says, and after contemplating a minute, “have I ever told you about Valerie?”

“Who?”

“Right. So, Valerie was a girl I went to primary school with.” Perhaps because of Draco’s blank look, he then clarifies, “Muggle school, before Hogwarts. Anyway I had a crush on her in year five, but because of Dudley it was sort of, like, risky for anyone to be friends with me, you know, ‘cause he and his mates always beat me up and they’d do the same to anyone they thought was being chummy with me. And I was really awkward anyway, not like I could’ve talked to her even if I hadn’t been a pariah.” He hits the joint again and Draco frowns at him but says nothing, because Harry has made it clear he’s perfectly aware how sick and twisted his childhood was, and he doesn’t need Draco to tell him. “Kids at my school started ‘dating’ each other that year,” he says, holding the joint between his lips to make air quotes. “It wasn’t real, just hanging out at break and holding hands or whatever, you know how kids are. But Valerie was going out with one of Dudley’s mates.”

“Sounds like a bint with bad taste.”

“Nah,” says Harry, smirking. “I don’t think she really liked him.”

“A social-climbing bint with bad taste.”

“Will you shut it,” Harry laughs. The corners of his eyes crinkle endearingly and he squeezes Draco’s leg. “There was this one time they cornered me when she was there. I said something to Dudley — can’t remember what it was — but she laughed. I do remember really vividly the way her hands flew to her mouth, like she couldn’t believe she’d done it.”

“Must’ve been devastatingly witty,” Draco comments.

“You know me so well.”

“Mm.” He reaches forward and moves aside some hair hanging in front of Harry’s eyes. “Comedy king. Continue.”

“They had me cornered so I couldn’t just outrun them like I usually would have. Daniel, the kid she was dating, he got in a couple good punches before they were calling us back inside. Broke my glasses for the fifteenth time, I had to retape them. Later on that day, though, I passed her in the hallway and she smiled at me and told me she was sorry she didn’t do anything, and she hoped I was alright.” A nostalgic look passes over his face that inspires a paradox of feelings in Draco: absurd jealousy for Harry’s affections — even in memory — being directed towards anyone but him, and a great swell of tenderness. It seems incredible that somebody with so many horrors in their past can be so soft. “I used to think maybe things would be different in secondary because Dudley was going to a different school than me, but then obviously I went to Hogwarts, so.” He shrugs. 

“Did you ever see her again?” Draco asks. Outside the tent, there’s a low, threatening roll of thunder. “After you left primary, I mean?”

“Nope.” One last hit and then Harry’s stubbing it out in his little plastic ashtray. “Be interesting to see what she’s doing now, I s’pose.”

“No lingering one-that-got-away regrets?”

At this, Harry bursts into laughter. “I don’t think so, no. But I’ll let you know if something comes up.”

“You’re cute,” says Draco, grinning down at him. 

“Shut up.” Harry lifts his head off the pillow and Draco recognises the gesture, leaning down to kiss him. “Your turn.”

“Right. Let’s see.” He searches his head for something he’s not already divulged, which at this point isn’t much. Harry has gotten out of him in six months of dating more than his parents or any of his friends had done in almost thirty years. His mind jumps from one topic to another, playing word association until he thinks of his old house-elf, whom he now knows had died in Harry’s arms. “Dobby used to play hide-and-seek with me.”

Harry blinks at him. “What?”

“We played hide-and-seek,” Draco repeats, smiling. Dobby is a bit of a sore subject — he supposes he’ll always feel a little guilty for the way they treated him — so it’s one of only a few topics he still hasn’t broached. “When I was under ten or so. My parents were usually busy or just didn’t feel like entertaining me and so Dobby sort of took it upon himself. And I loved hide-and-seek, because the manor had so many good spots.”

“Yeah, I bet,” says Harry. “Sorry, I’m still processing this.” He throws an arm over his eyes, as if he’s trying to picture it, and starts laughing. “Fuck, that’s cute.”

“Shut up. He had me on, too. Started realising I got stroppy if it was too hard so he’d make it easier for me to find him.”

“Ah, Dobby.” Harry drops his arm back to the mattress and looks up at Draco. “Sounds like him. Thought he knew best about everything.”

“Maybe he did.”

Harry nods. “Yep. Maybe he did.”

“I love you, you know,” says Draco. Harry smiles at him. It still gives Draco butterflies.

“How much?”

“Twice as big as all the oceans on earth.”

“Nice,” Harry says, laughing again. “That’s a good one. I love you … bigger than all the biggest mountains put together.”

“Show-off,” says Draco. Harry tugs his arm and he acquiesces, leaning down once more for a kiss. All around them the rain is still beating against their Muggle tent. A new song plays, staticky and soothing, and with his eyes closed and Harry’s hand on his face he commits the moment to memory. 

If someone had asked him six months ago what romance meant, he would have cited his first real boyfriend. Paris and expensive dates and grand gestures.

“I want to know you better than I know myself,” Harry said to him once. “And I want you to know me better than I do.”

And Draco thinks now that maybe that’s what romance really is. Not in the gestures but in the blurring of lines and blending of souls.