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onelovewonderwoman · 3 years

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first class || charles xavier x reader

i’ve been on an x-men binge and fell into a hole of james mcavoy and charles xavier again, so here we are. i haven’t written fics in a long time, so i tried to again. i’m uncreative so like the title is just the first movie because of the fact that it’s set during that time. kind of like self insert cause there’s a few bits and pieces where there’s canonical plot and interactions, so disclaimer for that. anyways, hope you guys enjoy! ps also don’t have enough energy to find a fitting gif so maybe i’ll find one later maybe i won’t. we’ll see

words: 5.8k

warnings: not proofread (i spent three days on this so i don’t have the energy anymore haha), writing lacks emotional depth, drug use and mentions, intent of murder, thoughts of (murder, rape, suicide, etc.), poorly written two paragraphs about kissing, angst, we ignore moira and charles’ romance cause... duh, it’s x reader and it’s too difficult for me to work around it rn a haha

masterlist

The rooms were always the same. They were dark, illuminated only by the dimmest of lights emanating from the occasional lava lamp or fairy lights. Fairy - ironic word for such situations, such rooms. Filled so heavily with smoke it made it hard to breathe, let alone see. And the floors; the floors always felt different.

In hindsight, it was probably the one thing that had her realizing the rooms were never actually the same. Sure, they had the same smell, the same overcrowdedness and moving bodies, the same darkness, even the same taste, but the floors testified to the difference each room held.

Sometimes, when the world would freeze and all the people around her became nothing but a mesh of warm bodies, she could hear the floor creak under her feet with every step she took. There she was - the house right down the street from her.

Other times, the floors felt sticky under her shoes. She assumed it was tequila. There were always too many bottles around to count, surely there would be spills. Or, some poor guy could have pissed himself like that one time. When her shoes sounded like velcro as she walked across the floor, she was at the house all the way across town.

In any case, she felt the same ankle up. One of her favourite parts had to be the way the music always abused her ears - so high, it made her feel lightheaded. More so than she already had been both. Sex was not nearly regular enough for her to compare, but she knew what she would feel every time the music was loud enough to make her head buzz and throb with a vengeance was more erotic than anything anyone could ever do to her.

The place could change but the scene never really did. Down to the people - she knew this for sure. She knew every beating heart around her like they were her own. She never only felt it there, but in her head as well. Even as it buzzed, she felt it. Sometimes it tore at her skull as if trying to escape - ironic.

Now, why did the scene change one evening in 1962? She told herself it was fate, but it had merely been wishful thinking when she knew why. How did she know? She knew the man sitting next to her on the worn down couch, nearly entirely unconscious and reeking of weed and vodka, knew the girl across the house, the girl across the house knew the man next to her and that - so on and so forth - meant she knew all three of them, even though they didn’t know her. So, for two new men to walk into the house, their eyes focused - focused on her - changed the scene entirely.

Now, the music became nothing more than an assault on her ears; the lights became too bright at the same time as the dark became too dark; the air became heavier than usual; and she sobered up at the feeling of something - someone - in her head. Then, it all caved in. It was as overwhelming as it always was, but she was used to it enough to handle it for a little while, at least whilst remnants of her high remained. She couldn’t say the same for the shorter of the two men she saw keel over at the pressure.

He got over it pretty quick, from what she could tell. “Charles Xavier,” he introduced himself as, “This is my colleague, Erik Lensherr.”

A quick trip from the couch to the door had her standing on the lawn of the house of the night with the two men. Crickets could be heard fighting against the sound of the music blaring from the house as she swayed on her feet, making wet sounds in the grass from earlier rain. Charles stood not much taller than her, charm emanating from him and the way his piercing blue eyes seemed to smile despite his furrowed brows and mouth set in a straight line as he stared at her, waiting for a response with his hands tucked into his coat pockets. Erik stood taller, stoic and calculating.

“And?” She crossed her arms across her chest, both in discomfort and the fact that the chilly night air had begun to bite at her skin, her long sleeve doing nothing to help. “I should care why?”

If the incident earlier wasn’t enough, the way the both of them looked at her was enough for her to know why. “What’s your name?” Charles asked, having her notice then the English accent on his tongue.

The second she gave it to him, he smiled - almost sympathetically - at her and hummed, “You have an incredibly busy mind, Y/N.”

“And you have an incredibly nosy one, Charles.” That had Erik letting out a chuckle, one that felt like approval to her ears.

Never in a million years would she dare say yes to anything of the sort the two men proposed to her that night. A team of mutants; not necessarily that she thought it was absurd or a horrible idea - no. It made sense, not factoring in their current climate, to have a team of mutants fighting against the evils of the world. The horrible idea was to have her join. No, she wanted to tell them, “I don’t think it’s such a good idea.”

“That’s exactly what I’ve been thinking too,” Erik agreed with her, catching both herself and Charles off guard, “We’ll be going then.”

He offered her his hand. She didn’t know how long she stood there staring at his outstretched arm. Sometimes her high slowed time - it could have been five seconds or five minutes. When she finally looked away from his hand, up at him, she saw he stood unwavered and patient.

“You don’t have to, you know.” Her eyes shot to Charles as he broke the silence. He shook his head, brows still furrowed and mouth set in a straight line. “You’re under no obligation.”

For Charles to know, she understood. He had just been in her mind long enough to know that most of it wasn’t even hers. For Erik to know and offer her his hand made her wonder just how desperate he was to assemble the team - for whatever reason that she was about to find out in a moment.

“We leave now.” Was all he said after he tore his hand from hers.

An hour hasn’t even passed when she found herself on a plane with the two men, mind still buzzing but this time not with a high. This time, with an overwhelming anger and anticipation. The way Erik didn’t make eye contact with her and Charles sent worried glances her way throughout their trip to their “base” was enough to tell her that they knew she had already been briefed on what was happening - the reason behind their assembling of a team. Rather, she knew specifically of the personal motive behind it.

All it made her heart feel like it was beating a mile a minute. It pounded against her chest so hard she was sure at least one of them could hear it. So badly did she want to hide out in the plane’s bathroom and take something to stop the pain, but it was off the table. For now.

Soon enough the flight ended, and she came to find out their “base” was a covert CIA facility where they placed the other mutants they rounded up before her. She just as quickly met and said goodbye to Moira MacTaggert, a CIA officer working with Charles and Erik to stop Shaw. His name alone sent sparks of rage flowing through her veins.

She was left with the group when the three went off that night. There, she came face to face with Raven, Sean, Alex, Hank, Darwin, and Angel - or, Mystique, Banshee, and Havok. Darwin and Angel were “self explanatory”, considering they were already nicknames and described their powers fairly well. Hank was just… Hank.

Her turn came around quickly, once everyone settled down from Alex’s show of his “gift”, when all heads turned to her, sitting at the end of the couch. Raven smiled at her - she liked her, she was sweet - “What about you? What’s your power?”

“I’m,” She paused for a moment, the eyes on her making her anxious and curl into herself hoping, praying, another mutant wouldn’t touch her. “I can move things. With my mind.” She gave a tight smile to Raven and nodded her head, as if to reassure herself. “I can move things with my mind.”

Raven’s smile only widened, excited by either the prospect of her being able to move things with her mind or the opportunity to give her an alias. She assumed it was the latter. She excused herself to the washroom just as Raven asked the group what they thought. “We’ll have one for you once you get back! Promise!” Raven called after her.

Body filled with anticipation, she nearly ran to the washroom, willing the door closed behind her after she entered. It was small, but clean - CIA property after all.

She tried. She really did. Albeit, making contact with a mutant was always the worst; Erik especially. The trauma, the pain, the thoughts. All them clawed at her brain, as though they were tearing through it layer by layer until nothing but them remained within her skull.

Nothing could stop her from taking out the small baggy in her back pocket and tearing it open. Nothing could stop her from taking it, only to feel a rush flow through her. It would take a bit, but soon enough she would stop feeling them gnawing on her very existence. Soon, numbness would wash over her and she could just be no one.

She guessed she was in the washroom for about half an hour. Staring at her reflection, at the floor, at the ceiling, at anything, but when she made her way back to the room, she found it in disarray. Music was blasting from the radio, chairs flipped over, Raven on top of the couch dancing as Hank hung from the ceiling light, the rest of the group messing around with their powers. She couldn’t tell if they were experiencing some high of their own or just happened to have gotten their hands on some alcohol.

“What are you doing? Who destroyed the statue?” Moira’s voice broke her out of the trance she was in watching the group. Slowly, she turned her head to see her, Charles, and Erik walking over as everyone else froze. Moira was angry, that much anyone could tell, but the two men were unreadable.

Hank was the first one to reply back, jumping down the ceiling, panicked, “It was Alex.”

“No. Havok.” Raven seemed to stay unfazed, still standing on the couch with a wide smile on her face. “We have to call him Havok. That's his name now…”

Raven’s words melted away from her. Her focus wasn’t elsewhere; it was simply nowhere at all. She stared at everyone in the room, yet no one at all. So caught up in nothing she didn’t notice Charles himself staring at her until Erik uttered something under his breath and walked away with Moira following, brows furrowed in what looked to be confusion. Just as she caught his eye, he looked away.

Directed at Raven, he spoke firmly, “I expect more from you.”

Not long after, they had gotten word that Shaw would be in Russia, and so she was left with the group of mutants when the three left alongside the CIA to get their hands on him. Before, it would have made her wonder what purpose the group of mutants really served if they didn’t want them there to help. Now, after the incident, she understood why.

By no means were any of them prepared for such a task. She couldn’t claim to be either. She only agreed because she knew a part within her would hate her for not coming and at the very least trying to help.

Just when she thought she and the solemn group couldn’t be any more of a liability, she was proven wrong. Because now Sebastian Shaw stood in front of them, smug and irritating as ever, after having his lackey drop an unsuspecting CIA to his death in front of all of them and cornering them.

“Good evening. My name's Sebastian Shaw, and I'm not here to hurt you.” She was sure she wasn’t the only one assuming he had taken out every single CIA operative in the facility to make it this far; a thought that filled her being with even more dread than she was already feeling at the sight of him. “My friends, there's a revolution coming. When mankind discovers who we are, what we can do, each of us will face a choice. Be enslaved or rise up to rule. Choose freely, but know that if you are not with us, then by definition, you are against us. So, you can stay and fight for the people who hate and fear you. Or you can join me, and love like kings and queens.”

They all watched, both shocked and betrayed when Angel took the hand Shaw outstretched, standing by his side even when he murdered Darwin in his attempt to stop him with Alex. She didn’t see it - she turned away the second Shaw released the energy he’d taken from Alex into Darwin. She heard it, though. The explosion. When she turned back, as Shaw, Angel, and the men he had brought with him retreated, she saw nothing. There was no sign of Darwin; not even a speck of dust.

Suddenly, her chest tightened and the clawing came back.

----------------------------------

The person who happened to almost send them home also happened to be the one who provided them a new place to train their powers for the fight with Shaw. Charles was entirely serious and extremely close to sending them all home; “They’re just kids.” But Erik made it clear to him that they couldn’t be anymore, not after Shaw.

Charles lived, alongside Raven, in a massive mansion that had been entirely too big for her to take in, but it provided the perfect space for them to train their powers. Each of them were assigned rooms by Charles personally that day.

He took the liberty of walking them each there. She didn’t know if it was just her or a Charles thing, but he stayed quiet. Unusual for a man that had so much to say. But then again, with what they’ve already been through, she couldn’t imagine he was feeling very chatty. She certainly wouldn’t have been in his situation. Granted, she would be feeling the same way now, but in her predicament by this point, she wouldn’t mind someone else’s verbal company.

The second he guided her through the bedroom

door, she began to take in the sheer size of the room, feeling bigger than life itself in the way that she was feeling. The bed was even better; huge and looked as though the softness of it would swallow her into a warm hug. Her first instinct would have been to jump right onto it, but the fact that Charles ceased to leave and instead remained planted there, giving her a look she couldn’t make out once she turned to face him, made her fight against her urges.

She opened her mouth in an attempt to utter an “Are you alright?” but never got the chance. Instead, Charles spoke as soon as her mouth opened, slowly, as if to make sure she understood every word he was saying like she had been incapable of doing so before, “Training starts tonight, but I’ll be seeing you tomorrow.”

With her brows furrowed in confusion, she nodded, and Charles began to walk away. He stopped by the frame of the door, back to her, and spoke again, “Try and get some rest.”

With that, he shut the door behind him. Now, she was left in the room alone, tiredness washing over her. Awaiting the next day, she decided to fall into the cloud that was the bed and fall asleep while she could.

----------------------------------

The next morning was when Charles asked to see her - by Raven. The young woman led her over to a room, an odd dome shaped one, where Charles stood waiting. He wasn’t the same as the night before - uncomfortable, was the only way she knew to describe it - welcoming and encouraging.

“We’ve got plenty of work to do,” Charles spoke, hands in his pockets, as she entered and Raven excused herself elsewhere. Looking around, she could see evidence that training had started last night, namely Alex’s. Dark scuff marks were streaked across walls of the dome on the end farthest from them and small balls of fluff on the floor remained, assumingly left behind in the midst of a quick clean up of training dummies that had been torn open.

Despite the mess, several other objects were placed across the floor. All ranged from light to heavy. Chairs, weights - it looked to be anything he could have been capable of carrying in with the help of the others.

She stopped in front of him. “What’s this?”

The man’s smile widened before he started, rather loudly at that. “Well.” He moved towards the objects then spun around to face her, arms outstretched. “This is the beginning of your training.”

She raised an eyebrow, looking at the man unimpressed. “You want me to move this stuff around?”

“You’re not just moving stuff around.” Charles shook his head, arms dropping to his sides as he declared. “You don’t need to move everything here. I only need to see how much you can handle.” His head tilted as he looked at her, blue eyes meeting her own as his expression retreated to one of curiosity. “And how you handle it.”

She didn’t think the professor was aware of the innuendo within the situation, so she let it go despite the sweet stomach dropping feeling that came over her. Instead, she shrugged. “Then what?”

“Then,” Charles hesitated for a moment, “Erik was able to move a satellite dish. If it happens to be possible-”

“A satellite dish?” She laughed incredulously, “You can be serious.”

Charles nodded towards her, challenging her statements as he took a few steps forward. “And what is it that’s making you believe you’re incapable of doing anything similar?”

“Look.” She shook her head, looking directly at him when she said, “I can move the average household item, shut a door and maybe, just maybe, bust it down, but I couldn’t push your couch across the room, let alone move a fu- a satellite dish.”

Charles’ brows furrowed. “And that’s what you believe?”

She hummed. “That’s what I know.”

“Well,” he sighed, disappointment written across his face that sent her into a spiral, “There’s not much we can do if you don’t believe you can better yourself, is there?”

The second he walked past her was when it felt as though ice water had been spilt onto her. A mixture of confusion and gloom washed over her before she turned to see Charles’ back, still moving towards the door. “What?”

He stopped in his tracks at her exclamation, waiting several moments as if contemplating before he turned back to her. Carefully, he asked, “Why do you take them?”

She shook her head, looking almost offended. “How did you-”

“Your mind,” Charles confirmed, “It gets quieter.”

The offence on her face never ceased, but the uncomfortable mixture of feelings she was overwhelmed with had her shrug in response to his question. Charles only nodded and gave her a tight smile before turning back.

She closed her eyes, resigning herself with huff. She could go back to the life she had come to know and hate, or she could take the second chance he was giving her even if it did include the prospect of some suffering.

“I don’t take them for fun.” The sound of her voice made Charles stop again. This time, he waited. “When I touch a person I don’t just take every experience. I take every memory.”

He turned around to face her once more and gave her nod, signalling her to continue. She breathed in and out. “I see and I feel everything that’s happened to them. That’s a lot and it’s enough, but that’s not why I-”

She cut herself off, feeling herself choke on the words before shaking her head and persisting herself on despite Charles’ look of concern. “I take them because, when I take their memories, I take all of their thoughts too. Every one. So every thought of murder, or rape, or suicide, or any fucked up thing, keeps tearing me apart from the inside out.”

Charles nodded, walking closer to her, choosing his words carefully as he spoke, sympathy written deep in his soft voice, “And they scare you.”

She shook her head. Looking away from him for a moment, she willed away tears she felt gathering. She turned back to him. “The thought of acting on them scares me.”

Although slightly taken aback by the revelation, Charles holds his composure. He nodded before opening his mouth to respond, walking closer as he began.

The only reaction he got was her taking a step back, shaking her head. “I swear I’m not a bad person.” Charles assumed she didn’t want him touching her - considering she took away every thought. “I’m always all these people at once - I don’t even know who I am.”

“Then we will figure it out.” Charles tilted his head, making sure her eyes met his when she attempted to look away. His voice was soft and reassuring to her ears, even if she didn’t know whether to believe him or not. “You aren’t alone, Y/N.”

As it turns, the drugs were having a large effect on her ability to use her powers - the next few days told her as much. By no means was she capable of moving a satellite dish, but she had been able to take her powers to lengths she never thought she could have been able to.

Most of it was due to Charles - he’d spent most of the next few days with her, pushing her, sometimes to the point where she’d snap at him. She always calmed, though, and Charles always remained coolheaded.

Still, they grew closer. Or at least she grew closer to him. She couldn’t tell if the praise, the laughs, the banter, and the willingness to come back together after a fight only meant something to her. She hoped it did - because why else wouldn’t he just give up on her? All that time spent on advancing her powers to defeat Shaw, and he still talked about helping her as though their relationship would continue past this mission.

Part of her wanted to touch him so she could just know. Even if he hadn’t taken such a liking to her as she had him, at the very least try to understand him in his entirety and make a space for herself in his life. Then, another part of her was horrified at what she would find in there.

For the time being, there wasn’t much opportunity to dwell on it. The day they would head out was coming soon, and Erik suggested the group get a good night’s rest. They would all need it.

With her luck, she didn’t know why she thought that sleep would come easy that night. Whether it was due to adrenaline, anxiety, or anything else, didn’t matter. Because whatever was keeping her up had her pacing the hallways of Charles’ estate that night.

She wasn’t looking for it, but instead happened upon a conversation.

“… no difference. Shaw’s declared war on mankind. On all of us. He has to be stopped.” She heard Charles’ voice through a door as she passed by. Although knowing that he could probably make out the sound of her mind from a mile away, she still stopped by it. She grew even more curious when she heard Erik’s voice.

“I'm not gonna stop Shaw. I'm gonna kill him. Do you have it in you to allow that?” A moment of silence passed and she shifted on her feet. It made the floor creek. She shut her eyes and bit her lip, nervous, expecting to hear the sound of one of their footsteps coming to open the door and catch her eavesdropping. Whether they heard or not, she didn’t know as Erik continued on, “You've known all along why I was here, Charles. But things have changed. What started as a covert mission, tomorrow mankind will know that mutants exist. Shaw, us, they won't differentiate. They'll fear us. And that fear will turn to hatred.”

“Not if we stop a war,” Charles’ voice wavered on a line of urgency and assurance, “Not if we can prevent Shaw. Not if we risk our lives doing so.”

Charles very well could have been doing nothing but reassuring Erik with his words, but she couldn’t help but wonder if he was actually trying to reassure himself. As if the world wouldn’t either discard or abuse them once they’ve served their purpose of their betterment.

“Will they do the same for us?”

“We have it in us to be the better men.”

“We already are.” Erik’s voice quickly turned from calm to urgent when he next spoke. “We're the next stage of human evolution. You said it yourself!”

“No, no!” She heard Charles attempt to cut Erik off before he sighed. She could practically hear the disappointment in it, although she couldn’t say she felt the same. He only let Erik continue.

“Are you really so naive as to think that they won't battle their own extinction?” She heard him pause. “Or is it arrogance?”

“I’m sorry?” As if Charles had misheard him.

She shifted on her feet once more as their voices became more hushed, despite the feeling coming from the room becoming more hostile than calm. This time, she was more careful. Nothing made a sound below her feet when she moved closer to the door, pressing her ear against it, as well as her left palm for support.

“After tomorrow, they're gonna turn us. But you're blind to it, because you believe they're all like Moira.”

“And you believe they're all like Shaw.” Came Charles’ immediate response. Calmly, she heard him continue, “Listen to me very carefully my friend. Killing Shaw will not bring you peace.”

Erik’s voice never wavered when he told Charles, “Peace was never an option.”

Footsteps came far too fast for her to move away from the door. In a split second, she found herself leaning against the door to crashing into Erik’s chest when he pulled the door open. For a moment, Erik stood staring down at her, watching her attempt to recompose herself and attempt to apologize. She didn’t get a word out before he moved past her and walked away.

She watched his form retreat before she turned back to the room. Standing in the doorway, she saw Charles sitting in the chair facing away from her. With his eyes closed and fingers pinching the bridge of his nose, he sighed, “You realize I can hear your mind from across this house?”

She took a step in, almost reluctantly. She didn’t imagine Charles would be content with anything she had to say, but maybe she could make him understand. “Erik’s right, you know.”

Her words had Charles’ eyes snap open. He got out the chair, setting down the drink he was nursing on the table next to him, before he turned to face her. “Excuse me?”

“Peace isn’t an option ‘cause we’re never gonna get peace.” She shook her head, desperation in both her voice and eyes as she stared into his. “Erik thinks they’re gonna turn on us. They might not, but it doesn’t mean any of us will get any peace. They won’t all be like Shaw, they won’t all be like Moira, but most of them - most of them will just be human. They’ll fear us and they’ll judge us. It doesn’t matter how harmless we are or not.”

She watched as Charles took a step forward, his head tilting to the side, expression unreadable as his voice remained calm. “You can’t be serious.” It was a statement - a wrong one.

“Shaw needs to die,” She spoke with assurance. She felt her eyes fill with tears, Charles watching her suck in a breath and release as he began to walk closer to her, before she spoke in a whisper, no longer trusting her voice, “Shaw needs to die for what he did to us. We’re going to kill him, Charles.”

They’re faces we’re merely inches apart, chilling her to the bone as he looked at her. What she thought he would never do is what he tried the second he began to raise his hand, speaking quickly to her when he asked, “Us?”

His hand almost cupped her cheek when she turned her head away from it. Immediately, his hand froze. Charles watched her profile as more tears welled up in her eyes and her lips began to tremble. Voice weak and tearful, staring away from him, she pleaded, “Please don’t confuse me. I can’t-”

“I know you feel it,” Charles’ other hand came up to guide her face back to him despite her, whispering carefully, “But it is not your cross to bear.”

His hand was warm against her cheek. Comforting - enough to make her mind go blank. Wishful thinking, of course, because soon the clawing in her head would come back with a vengeance at having a man such as Charles touch her. For now, though, he felt safe. Stable. Enough so that she could close her eyes for a moment and let the tears fall as he leaned down to her and let his forehead press against hers.

“You can’t help but feel his pain,” She felt his breath against her lips as he spoke, his voice the same soft and soothing as she’s known it to be, “But you can decide what you do with it.”

She shook her head gently and pulled away, but still letting Charles’ hand rest against her cheek. “It’s not just-” she whispered to him, mouth feeling dry as her eyes avoided his, trying to piece her thoughts together. His hand slid down to the base of her neck, guiding her eyes to his. She licked her lips before she swallowed. “I barely knew Darwin, but he killed him right in front of us. And it was cruel and scary and I couldn’t even make myself look at it when it happened.”

“I know.” Charles brought his other hand up to brush away slow falling tears she hadn’t even known began to escape. He voiced nothing but concern, letting her continue as if he knew what she was going to say next.

Her hands reached up to wrap around his wrists, not to pull his hands away from her, but to simply hold onto them. Almost as if they were an anchor to make up for the tears she now felt were falling faster down her face as she realized. “For the first time, I think I want something, I feel this anger and fear, because of my head. I saw it first and I felt it first. It’s mine, and now I have a real responsibility to take care of it.”

“Not with murder.” Her hands tightened around his wrists as he brought her face closer to his own. A frown on his face as he desperately told her, “I meant it when I told you that we would figure this out together. You told me you were never your own person, that you don’t even know yourself. We were - we are - going to bring you into existence. I beg you, Y/N, don’t let yourself be brought into this world as a murderer.”

His words, as beautiful as they were, only half registered within her brain. All she found herself focusing on then was how close he was. She would think back later and come to realize that it was because the only thing making her tears stop and giving her the will not to commit a murder was the prospect of approval she would get from a man like him. From someone who could never understand her struggle, someone who never tried to or tried to make her feel as though there was some way out. From someone who wanted to build on it and show her the strength she could find within it.

Realistically, she knew he would have a few words for her if she ever outwardly admitted to him that she used approval as a means for bettering herself, but it was the best she could do at the time being.

Charles’ brows furrowed as he watched her face, spaced out and regarding him with an expression not even he could read. Somewhere deep down, though, he knew he had gotten through to her. His lips curled up slightly, speaking lowly with amusement evident in his voice, “Now where did you go?”

Her eyes shot from his lips to his eyes once more. As quick as they made eye contact, she leaned forward to press her lips against his. Lips soft, she kissed him carefully, one hand moving to cup his face. Only in the last few moments did he respond to it by kissing back.

She pulled away, looking at him nervously and letting out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding in. Her mouth was dry again. “I’m sorry-”

She was cut off by Charles’ lips on hers once more. She kissed back instantly, sighing into the kiss in content. Feeling Charles smirk against her lips and deepen the kiss, she put both hands behind his neck, pulling his body closer to hers. He took her lower lip between his teeth, pulling slightly as he let his hands trail down her body to her waist, pulling her to make sure there wasn’t the slightest gap between their bodies.

Their lips broke apart, but only long enough to allow for a quick breath. Charles pushed his lips back into hers as her hands snaked down to the collar of his dress shirt, playing carefully with the top button.

Eventually, their lips broke apart as they caught their breath. Bodies still pressed together, Charles leant forward to rest his forehead onto hers, her eyes still close, for a moment before pressing a kiss to it. He placed his chin on top of her head and rested there, her head resting against the crook of his neck as she felt him - anticipating what it would feel like to feel nothing but him.

#x-men #x-men first class #x-men days of future past #x-men apocalypse #x-men dark phoenix #charles xavier x reader #charles xavier imagine #charles xavier one-shot #x-men imagine #x-men one-shot #charles xavier #erik lensherr #raven #mystique #sean #angel #hank mccoy #james mcavoy #michael fassbender

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maseshine · 3 years

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Oii! Você poderia fazer a fic da música "You Belong With Me" com o Ben? :)

Right for you, Ben Chilwell

Prompt: You being his best friend and at karaoke singing "You Belong With Me" to him indirectly.

Warning: Disappointment, Sadness

Words: 1811

Notes: I was really excited to write this one. It's one of my favorite prompts and I already had it written, I don't know if that's how you imagined it, but I hope you like it a lot because I loved it so much🤍

Author's Note: I know a lot of people write with the use of quotes, but I'm used to using the dash, so I hope it's not a problem.

Being in love with your best friend is one of life's biggest clichés. And sometimes it really hurt to see him and his "perfect girlfriend".

You sure as hell wouldn't have gone to karaoke if you knew she'd be there too. Ben was perceptive in hiding it from you. Really insightful.

You tried to keep your attention on Mason's out-of-tune presentation, but his eyes always seemed to betray you when they landed on the couple sitting across from you.

━ If you keep looking at them like that they'll think you're a maniac. ━ Christian said giving his shoulder a little push.

━ I don't know what you're talking about. ━ You changed the conversation.

━ And Mason can sing well. ━ The brunette joked. ━ We already know of his crush on Chilly, only he doesn't seem to notice it.

━ Or he knows and just doesn't talk about it because he doesn't feel the same way about me. ━ His voice came out dismayed, and Christian looked at her sympathetically.

━ If he doesn't notice, maybe he's not right for you, Y/N.

You didn't say anything else, Christian's words running through your head. Maybe he was right. She and Ben had been best friends for years, but maybe they couldn't be more than that.

━ Our next singer is Y/N Y/L/N. ━ You looked at the stage with surprise, you didn't put her name in the performance list.

His eyes fell on Mason who smiled innocently. Motherfucker. The boys made noise encouraging you to go on stage. You took a deep breath before getting up from the table.

Your hands shook a little as you took the presenter's microphone. His eyes scanned the available songs, stopping at one that fit his situation perfectly. His ears picked up the beginning of the melody.

You're on the phone with your girlfriend, she's upset

She's going off about something that you said

'Cause she doesn't get your mood like I do

━ Babe... baby! Come on, please calm down and listen to me! ━ You heard Ben plead in the next room, your phone pressed firmly to his ear as he tried to reason with his current girlfriend. All you knew was that he had shown his sincere side - apparently, not everyone knew he didn't have a filter.

But you knew the athlete more than anyone else, and he might need to stop and pull himself together occasionally, but it all came from his heart.

You were brought back to reality when you heard Ben grunt, dropping the phone against the table and running a hand through his hair. You looked at him with sad eyes, reaching out and placing your hand over his so gently.

━ Want to talk about it, Chill? ━ You asked him, watching as the corner of his lips twitched into a small smile with the nickname you gave him.

━ I don't believe you can save me from this situation, Y/N. ━ Ben manages to say, clearing his throat to help transition into a new conversation.

You didn't want to push it any further - knowing that if Ben was comfortable enough, he would talk to you. Hell, he told you everything. Maybe it was because the two of you grew up together, so he had to hit puberty much faster.

Ben got undeniably hot fast, all the girls at his old high school noticed that. You were about to ask him if he'd like to watch a movie, but his ringing phone interrupted, making you keep your mouth shut for now.

Ben suddenly straightened before grabbing the screen, a hopeful look flashing in his eyes as his girlfriend's name was projected in capital letters and a series of heart emojis. You rolled your eyes with a small smile and gestured for him to take the call, swallowing your pride seconds after he left the room. You left the house not long afterward, knowing you probably won't see your childhood friend for at least another week.

Walk in the streets with you and your worn-out jeans

I can't help thinking this is how it ought to be

Laughing on a park bench thinking to myself

Hey, isn't this easy?

You kicked a few pebbles off the path as you walked, with Ben by your side. It felt strange for the two of you to be together – but a strangely comfortable stranger, as if life was supposed to be like that.

He was trying to chat a little about the weather, which quickly turned into a funny story of how he fell face first in the rain during last Friday's football game.

Her eyes were mesmerized by him as he threw his head back in laughter, his hands maneuvering in strange ways as he portrayed how the event actually happened. You returned his laugh as you placed your hand on his bicep to steady yourself, little snorts following after.

━ I can't believe you still do that. ━ Ben said, his hand briefly resting on top of hers to hold her against him. You raised your eyebrows in sync with the corners of your mouth, your laugh dwindling to a small laugh.

━ Do what? You'll have to elaborate, Chilly. ━ With his free hand, Ben lightly tapped the tip of his nose while smiling at his nonchalance.

━ That cute snort you make when you laugh too much. I hadn't heard this since we saw Madders get stuck in the invisible wall of tape.

The memory provoked her to put her hand to her forehead as she chuckled her iconic laugh once more, remembering poor James' shocked expression as he recovered from the seemingly transparent 'door' and the few seconds that followed where he was frozen trying to understand what had just happened.

━ This is definitely the sound of joy. ━ Ben said as he looked at you, just for you to poke him playfully.

Oh, I remember you driving to my house

In the middle of the night

I'm the one who makes you laugh

When you know you're about to cry

The end of the week approached faster than expected, especially since you spent most of your time pretending you didn't get Ben's text messages.

You needed time to pull yourself together and organize your priorities, and having him suddenly want you back in his life was an unexpected twist. You've always had a stupid crush on Ben, but unlike the vast majority of girls who did, yours started when you were both young ━ when you had just gotten rid of the braces, and he had already started playing for a football team for the first time.

It was Friday night, and you had just curled up under the sheets, trying to get comfortable as an oncoming storm began to form outside. Your phone was constantly indicating that you had a new message, but it was just Ben asking if you were going to the football game tonight. Like the other messages, you ignored it and continued your favorite show on Netflix.

It was midnight when your phone woke you, realizing that you must have accidentally fallen asleep. You could barely hear the phone ring due to the weight of the rain outside, but you answered anyway, surprised to hear a familiar, desperate voice on the other end of the line.

━ Y/N… I'm down here… me, something happened. I didn't know where to go... I just drove, and I ended up here... something in me, I needed to see you. Let me in, please.

He looked distressed, perhaps because he was crying. You went down to the front door and opened it carefully, suddenly coming face to face with a saturated Ben Chilwell. You reached out and dragged him inside, your eyes scanning his wet, shivering body.

━ Ben... you're freezing, you're going to get sick. ━ You exclaimed as softly as you could, not letting go of his hand, as you led him to your room.

You gestured for him to stay put before grabbing a clean towel from the bathroom, running back and closing the door before wrapping it around your shoulders. You sat on the edge of the bed as he stood in front of you, seeming to have something to say, but couldn't think of how to start the conversation.

━ Why are you here? ━ You finally said after a long period of silence, Ben's eyes strayed to the ground. He cleared his throat a few times before realizing he was just whispering.

━ I saw Charlie with one of the Aston Villa players. She was on top of him. I... I asked her what the hell was going on, she basically said I wasn't good enough. Do you believe that? ━ He said exasperated, his hands pulling at her wet hair as it stuck to her forehead.

You closed your eyes for a moment as you took in this information, able to feel Ben's pain from where she sat. But it wasn't a new pain, it was like it was the kind that was finally released after being repressed for too long. As if it knew it was coming and would hold out until the dreaded day.

You pursed your lips and rose from the bed, standing right in front of him before taking his wrists and pulling them down between the two of you, your thumbs gently stroking the skin of his knuckles.

━ But why are you here? At home? You could have gone to Mase or called Madders. ━ You muttered, hoping his tone of voice would calm you down.

Those eyes you fell in love with as a teenager were looking at you, taking in your details, your passion, your heart. They were kind, just like you always knew he was.

━ Something attracted me to you, as if I was destined to be here. Do you know? ━ He spoke so low you could barely hear him, but you could hear him clearly.

Were you obsessing over him by running out of words, confused as to what he was trying to say – was it a confession of love or some pity plea because you were the only one who cared? You nodded your head to understand what he was saying, feeling your own radiance toward him for a long time.

A week later, he had returned to his girlfriend.

Standing by and waiting at your backdoor

All this time, how could you not know, baby?

You belong with me

His eyes traveled to the table where all his friends were sitting, everyone paying attention to his presentation. Except Ben and his girlfriend. A pang of pain whistled through her heart. At Christian's words coming back to her mind.

If he doesn't notice, maybe he's not right for you Y/N.

Have you ever thought just maybe

You belong with me

Maybe Ben didn't belong to you. Not how you wanted it.

#ben chilwell #chelsea fc #christian pulisic #football #football imagine #imagine #mason mount #ben chilwell x reader #you belong with me #angst #kai havertz #chelsea #london #music #timo werner #premier league

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halloweenbitch2764 · 4 years

Text

It's A Scream, Baby!

Part One

Billy Loomis x Fem! Reader x Stu Macher

TW: None

Key

(F/C)- Favorite Color

(H/L)- Hair Length

(H/C)- Hair Color

(Y/F/N)- Your First Name

(Y/L/N)- Your Last Name

(Y/N)- Your Name

Chapter One

I let out a sigh and dusted my hands off as I carried the last box in from the moving truck. I heard the muffled voice of my mother thanking the movers and I ran my fingers through my hair. A fresh start. Something new. My mother had gotten a job opportunity and moved us from my comfortable hometown to Woodsboro, California. Before my mom told me the name of the town, I had never heard of it. That was to be expected after I found out that it was a fairly quaint town.

I opened the box and started unloading the things that would be in my bedroom. Some magazines and books, my bedsheets, posters of my favorite bands, etc. Things that made my room uniquely me. The move wasn't as stressful as I thought it would be but I already missed my friends. My friends were people who I'd grown up with. Now the only contact I would have with them is by phone. It's okay. Little contact is better than none. However, there was one thing that had yet to determine if the move was worth it. Will I make any friends? I've always had such a hard time doing it. My old friends were just always there and I didn't really make any new friends. Maybe one here or there but nothing like this.

I sat on my bed and looked through the box beside me. I pulled out my phone and plugged it into the wall, setting it on my desk. If I get lonely tonight maybe I can call one of them. I tapped my fingers absentmindedly against the phone before snapping out of my thoughts and continuing to unpack. I was tired from the drive to Woodsboro, but wanted to set my room up a little at least. I hung a calendar on my wall beside my desk and looked at the red, circled date. New school. I would be starting school tomorrow. I think the school said someone would help guide me around, right? Fuck I hope so. I know I'll get lost.

I glanced out the window and saw the sun had almost completely set. It didn't necessarily surprise me, but it didn't ease the nervousness of the fact that school seemed fast approaching. Wish I could have gotten more time to unpack. Then again, the sooner I get this done the less time I'm going to spend worrying about it. It's like ripping a bandaid off. A soft yawn tumbled from my lips as I grabbed my backpack from the corner where I had set it, double checking I had everything I wanted. Folders? Check. Notebooks? Check. Pencils? Check. Once I knew I had everything I'd need, I set the (F/C) bag by my desk.

I continued to unpack the necessities before feeling my eyes start to become heavy again. A knock from my door woke me up.

"Hey sweetie, how's unpacking going?" My mom questioned. She looked tired from everything and I assumed I did as well.

"It's going fine. I unpacked what I needed. I think I'll just unpack the rest tomorrow. I'm really tired." My mom nodded sympathetically.

"Well get some good rest for school tomorrow." I nodded in agreement and she gave me a nod before leaving the room. I got up and closed the door behind her, setting the box on my bed on the ground and away so I wouldn't trip over it. I pulled the covers back and dressed in my pajamas before lying down. It didn't take long for me to fall asleep.

I woke up to the annoying buzzing of my alarm clock. I rubbed my eyes and clicked the off switch before sitting up after a second of letting my eyes adjust. Sunshine filtered in gently through the curtains I had put up. I pushed myself out of bed and grabbed a simple yet cute outfit. One that never failed to make me feel confident. The more confident I feel in the simple things, the more confident I'll feel in myself. I walked to the bathroom and took a quick shower before drying off. I dressed in the clothes and hung the towel up before heading downstairs.

"Good morning." My mom greeted me and I gave her a smile. I was still tired but the shower had managed to wake me up slightly.

"Good morning." She was finishing up a plate of pancakes before setting them on the table.

"I made breakfast." She said cheerfully and I sat down, digging in.

"This is really good. Thanks mom!" It was nice to have a real breakfast. Most of the time breakfast was a granola bar or something similar. Cereal if I was lucky. She smiled and made small talk while I ate. I cleaned up the dishes and headed upstairs to finish getting ready. I styled my (H/L) (H/C) hair and checked over everything, adding a little makeup and grabbing my bookbag.

"I'm leaving for school!" I called out to my mom.

"Alright, be safe and have a good day!" She yelled back. I left and started walking to the school. It wasn't much of a walk, only about five minutes or so. I looked at the school and the nervousness returned, making me nearly feel nauseous. I gripped my bag and walked into the school. There were already a decent amount of kids, all gathered in their respective groups and chatting while they waited for the bell. I walked into the main office and waited, the receptionist soon looking up and giving me a kind smile.

"H-Hi, I'm (Y/F/N) (Y/L/N). I just transferred here." I mentally cursed myself for stuttering.

"Oh, Ms. (Y/L/N), yes. Here's your schedule." She handed me a piece of paper and I swiftly skimmed the words and times.

"Sidney, would you please show (Y/N) around?" A brunette girl stood from a chair not too far from me. She had her bag over her shoulder and a textbook or two in her arms. She nodded to the receptionist and then smiled at me.

"Hi, I'm Sidney Prescott." She introduced herself and I did the same. "Nice to meet you! Guess we should start looking around before the bell rings." She looked at the paper in my hand. "Oh, Mr. James? He's your homeroom teacher. He's pretty nice." She explained and we started to walk around to the classes. I'm really happy she seems so nice. This is already making this whole thing a thousand times easier. The whole tour didn't really take too long and when we got to the final class she smiled. "We have History and English together. We also have the same lunch. If you want you can hang out with my friends and I today." I smiled shyly.

"O-Oh, thanks! Yeah um...I'll probably sit with you if you don't mind." If she minded she wouldn't have offered. She waved her hand and smiled.

"It's no big deal." She reassured me and I nodded. "We usually sit by the water fountain in the front of the campus. Just meet us there when you want." She smiled and I nodded. Suddenly the bell rang, signaling that we needed to start heading to class.

"Alright well, I'll see you later." I smiled and she nodded with agreement before we both left to go to our homerooms. As I walked I felt like someone was staring at me. I turned and looked around but nobody stood out. If anyone's looking it's probably because I'm new. Don't really know why anyone would stare otherwise. I made my way to the class and took a seat at an empty desk. It was more secluded but I was happy about it. Just want to sort of fly under the radar until I feel comfortable enough to start making friends.

I was pulled from my thoughts when a noisy boy entered the room with other boys behind him. He was definitely tall and he seemed energetic for it being so early in the morning. He high-fived the boys and I caught something about football being talked about. Figures. I set my bag by my desk and grabbed out a notebook, copying my schedule into it in case I lost mine. The second bell rang and signaled the start of class. I saw someone sitting at the desk next to mine. Why would anyone sit here when there's plenty of open- oh. Him. The same tall boy I had seen earlier had now planted himself at the desk beside me.

"Hey!" He said in a louder tone than I had expected. I looked at him.

"Hi." My voice was much quieter than his and less energetic.

"So you're the new girl, huh? Sid kept talking 'bout how someone new was coming to school." I raised my eyebrow a bit. I guess he's friends with Sidney? I nodded in response to his question. "So what's your name, sunshine?" He asked in a playful tone.

"(Y/N)." I said and smiled so he knew I wasn't trying to be rude. My answers sound short even though I don't mean for them to. I'm just awkward. He smiled brightly and nodded. He gives me puppy dog vibes.

"Well nice to meetcha, (Y/N). I'm Stu."

#billy loomis #slasher fucker #horror #stu macher #scream #slasher fandom #slashers #sidney prescott #tatum riley #dewey riley #randy meeks #billy x reader x stu #billy loomis x reader #billy loomis x reader x stu macher #stu macher x reader #slasher fanfiction #new series

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maraudersftw · 3 years

Note

You have to leave. Right now. From the prompt list if you are in the mood 🌸

Thank you so much, bby! Did a fifth-year Marauders + Jily drabble because those idiots have my whole heart. x

Stinksap

“Oh, bloody hell!”

“I’m gonna be sick!”

“Peter! Not on my bed!”

“Sorry!” came the groaning reply, followed instantly by a loud retch. “Padfoot’s already in the bathroom.”

“I don’t care!” James cried, watching in abject horror as his beloved Puddlemere spread was sullied under Peter’s hurled breakfast. He quickly averted his gaze, feeling bile rise up the back of his own throat dangerously. Quite unfortunately, the rest of the dormitory wasn’t much better off in terms of being a good landing space for his eyesight.

“I told you!” Remus moaned, voice muffled under the cover of his hands as they sat firmly over his nose and mouth. “I told you this was a terrible idea!”

“You should’ve told us harder,” James grimaced, trying to find a clean spot to stand in. It proved to be an entirely futile effort, however, given that almost every visible inch of space—including his clothes and sneakers—was slathered generously in bright, gross, fumingly green Stinksap.

Three potted Mimbulus mimbletonias sat in the middle of the dormitory floor, angrily squirting more of the substance in vehement protest.

“What are they still going on for?” Peter croaked, eyes watery and red as he emerged from his bout of vomiting. James pinched his nostrils shut as tightly as possible between his thumb and forefinger. “We’re already drenched in this awful stench, what more do they want?!”

James thought it was a very good question, and one that the plants needed to deliberate upon solemnly and as soon as possible.

He cursed the moment that they (Sirius) had the idea of experimenting with Stinksap to invent some potion to prank the Slytherins. James had been abhorrently easily swayed despite his incompetence in anything to do with a cauldron and patience. He knew they really ought to pay more heed to Remus’s advice in the future.

They’d live longer.

“Merlin, I cannot breathe,” Remus wheezed and dove over the side of his bed, having the good sense to transfigure a stray shoe into a bucket that was only slightly disfigured, before he retched into it, too. “Ugh,” he spat, “it still stinks like old, sweaty socks.”

James was about to unhelpfully inform him that it was probably just the Stinksap—though he dreaded opening his mouth and breathing in the smell again—when the bathroom door opened behind him, revealing a flush-faced Sirius.

He took in the scene with a blank look.

“Nope,” he shook his head, retreated into the bathroom, and closed the door again.

“Padfoot!”

“Not fair!”

As the fifth-year Gryffindor boys dormitory continued to ring with moans and groans of complaints, a rapid series of knocks sounded against their door.

“Remus?” called a familiar female voice from the other side, freezing the boys in their various states of distress. They exchanged comical looks of shocked silence. “Black? Potter? Pettigrew? Open the door!”

“Not happening, James,” Remus immediately hissed before James could even open his mouth. His eyes had narrowed into slits. “I told you this would be a disaster, and you and Sirius went ahead and did it anyway, and now I refuse to become the scapegoat. No chance.”

“Moony, please—” James almost sobbed. This was turning into his worst nightmare. “Come on, mate, not—not in front of her!”

“Exactly. Not in front of her. I want my dignity intact.”

James whirled around. “Peter—” But his pitiful plea was completely drowned out by the violent gagging Peter was enthusiastically engaging in.

James almost considered breaking down the bathroom door and forcing Sirius outside for his treacherous abandonment of the site of wreckage, but the knocking outside the dormitory grew more persistent, angrier.

“I swear to Merlin, you lot better open this door! I know you’re in there!”

Of course, she did, James thought morosely. If the noise hadn’t given them away, the stink certainly did.

Seeing no solution in sight, he trudged on towards the door himself, feeling confident that this was the most embarrassing moment of his fifteen years of life. Remus’s parting gaze was sympathetic, but not sympathetic enough, and only made him feel more miserable.

“Stand back, Evans,” he warned through the door, and waited for two seconds before quickly slipping outside onto the landing and shutting the door behind himself. Untainted air had never smelled sweeter before as he drew it into his lungs.

“Jesus, fuck, Potter, you stink!”

James winced, almost running his hand through his hair before realizing he was lavished in green goop. Lily Evans stood across from him, wisely as far away as her body would allow without having her topple down the stairs.

“Alright, Evans?” he tried, grinning. A drop of sap dripped from his hair and onto his glasses. Lily grimaced.

“Are you?” she asked, covering her nose. “What the bloody hell are you boys doing in there? Is that Bubotuber pus?”

“Stinksap,” he corrected.

She shook her head, bravely taking a step forward. “Move. I have to make sure you’re not damaging Hogwarts property.”

“No!” James yelped, thinking of the dormitory and the vomit and the plants and the half-blasted cauldron. He blanched. “Absolutely not. You have to leave. Right now.”

Lily scowled, though she didn’t move forward again. James supposed it had more to do with the fact that he had attached himself to the doorway like a sticky bug and she didn’t look too keen on touching him then—or ever, actually—than her sudden willingness to listen to him.

“And what if I say no?” she formed the question slowly.

“Then you will see things you definitely don’t want to.”

Her eyebrows twitched, though whether it was in amusement or terror, James couldn’t tell. Eventually, she sighed. “Just tell me no one’s dead and that you’ll have all this mess cleaned up and I’ll leave. I think you’ll not find it too hard to believe that I’m having difficulty breathing right now. The smell is wafting all the way down to the common room.”

“No one is dead and we’ll have this mess cleaned up,” James parroted quickly. Then, because he couldn’t resist, “though if you wanted to stop by our dormitory some other time, Evans, you know you’re always welcome to.”

She rolled her green eyes and James’s heart lurched. She was so pretty. “You’re insufferable, Potter. I truly don’t know why Remus hangs out with you lot willingly.”

“It’s because we’re so charming.”

Lily tilted her head, and it seemed like she couldn’t quite control her smirk as she let her gaze fly all over his current state. “Right. I’m sure that’s it.”

James flushed. He’d almost forgotten that he resembled a troll boogie right then. Getting away from there felt like a brilliant idea suddenly. “Well, Evans, it’s been a pleasure, as always—”

“Wish I could say the same.”

“Goodbye!”

“Potter, wait!” she called, and James immediately shut the door behind him again lest she notice how Peter lay groaning on the floor now. Thankfully, Lily only scrunched her nose in irritation. “I hope you remember Professor Sprout telling us that a ninety-minute shower helps remove the stench.”

He didn’t, actually, and his stomach tumbled a bit pathetically. “Er, right. Cheers, Evans.”

She almost smiled, lips twitching, but turned away before it could evolve into the proper thing. “Insufferable,” he heard her whisper, not entirely bitter this time.

When James entered the dormitory again with a dumb smile on his face, Sirius groaned loudly, watching him from the bathroom doorway. “You’re almost as nauseating as the bloody Mimbulus.”

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authoressskr · 3 years

Text

Tracking Death and Magic, pt 2

Characters: f!Reader [known in this fic as Duchess], Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Phil Coulson, Peter Parker, Bruce Banner, Sam Wilson, Tony Stark, Natasha Romanoff, Wanda Maximoff, Pietro Maximoff, Clint Barton, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, mentions of Dr. Strange, OFCs

Warnings: Language, death, angst, and no Beta :: Notes: this was written for @captain-kelli’s #ckcomebacktour – WELCOME BACK!! :: Word Count: 10,414

Mythological + Fairy Tale Creatures AU feat. Alpha Werewolf/Vampire!Bucky, Alpha Werewolf/Vampire!Steve, Giant!Hulk side Bruce, Born Witch!Wanda, Hellhound mix!Reader

Someone is hunting down those with Fae blood in New York. And no one can figure out why or who is behind the crimes. So higher ups in the city hand the case over to SHIELD, who deals with the more difficult supernatural cases. But even after two weeks, this small elite team can’t seem to figure out where the person or persons responsible will strike or the reasoning behind it. Anyone with a drop of Fae blood is scared…scared of being kidnapped or killed. Time to call in some outside help.

Prompt: [*In Part 1*] “All of those people are alive right now - all because of her.”

[ Please do NOT repost, copy & paste, translate, post or share my works on any other platform without my EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION. 18+ ONLY PLEASE, all content providers don’t want serious repercussions from underage interactions, myself included. ]

-+- REBLOGGING is fine and *very* appreciated! -+-

Part One

You could feel it as you walked up to the sidewalk where Cyrus had been killed. The now dried and cleaned sidewalk not hiding it’s dark shadows from you in the waning late afternoon light.

The creeping, underhanded power of the Seelie Court brushing against you.

The poison is a prominent smell to your hound side still since it’s only been a day and a half. Cyrus’s soul hasn’t lingered, so that at least is a blessing, but the conversation with your uncle and this fresh site is putting your nerves on the very edge. You can ‘see’ the faint magic outline where he died, you knew he’d be wearing his homemade medallion to ward off evil. Swallowing, you kneel where his feet would have been, reaching out with your magic.

The flashes that echo painfully through your mind make you gasp.

The cloaked figure is stealing magic. Taking it violently. To him, the more violent and quick, the better. It honestly just makes your stomach roll, the saliva building in your closed and clenched mouth.

But why? You can taste the lighter magic associated with the Seelie Court - the Court of Light - the kind that humans and others often think of when they think of the fair folk. The court thought, it doesn’t deal with humans or others unless absolutely needed…

When you told Hades you suspected a member of the higher courts on your little walk, you hadn’t anticipated to be able to feel it. The boots, the glistening silver swords, the escape when you had moved a forgotten tiny part of the sithen under the alley -- now it all makes a lot more sense now. The shiver that runs down your spine at the implications this creates. May the God and Goddess spare all those innocents involved, you pray quickly.

A henchman for the shining Seelie Court, sweet baby Jesus. What had you gotten yourself into?? What had SHIELD stumbled into??

The residual death is quick, but still it steals into you, taking away what little baited breath you had. Feeling the tears prickle your eyes as you try to figure out these new pieces of the puzzle.

Hades can’t help you - Gods can’t interfere with other pantheons businesses, good or bad.

Hades can’t save you from the other half of yourself.

It was something you had always known in the back of your mind, but the harsh slap of it hurt more than the death and falling pieces of this horrible plot. But...just maybe there could be a light in this cave of fae intrigue and murder. There are others whom you can save.

The three stolen wouldn’t be taken to the sithen, that would be too obvious of their involvement. Plus, they were fae and thus could leave as long as not put into a dungeon there and theoretically had enough power and know-how to do so. But had the cloaked figure been draining them, you weren’t sure if they could get out or away.

So, that would mean they were still somewhere close by.

The last traces of magic from the murder, Cyrus’s own traces, and your hellhound senses in overdrive to track everything - you’re drowning as the sun sinks just a tad lower in the sky, creating the beginnings of the lovely orange autumn color you adore. Fall was closer than you remembered. You can vaguely hear your name being said, like being underwater almost. Then you can smell sage, lemon and juniper - the sweet smells of the entrance to the Underworld.

The way the newcomer says your name grounds you, while Bucky calling your name brings you closer to the surface - your mate...Bucky brings you back to reality. And he’s protective and bristling slightly at the other man who is holding your arm’s firmly.

You’re looking up at the slightly blurry face of a traditionally handsome Greek man, all muscle and blurry smile, with thick black hair and sweet honey brown eyes.

“I hate your human disguise sometimes,” You grunt and turn to plop down on your ass as Bucky watches as the man lean in and proceed to lick from your chin up to your hairline. “Okay, okay...thank you Cerb,” You shove his chest gently to get him to release you, reaching for Bucky’s hand automatically. “This is my mate, Bucky. Don’t snap at him.” Cerberus gives you puppy dog eyes, his nerves calming down slightly to hold his form better. So at least now it was one face instead of the three blurry ones superimposed over each other.

“Did you just say Cerby?!” Wanda sounds astonished.

“As in Cerberus?” Natasha questions calmly. The guardian to the Underworld stands up and he’s visibly excited looking from you to Natasha and Wanda.

“Yes,” You coo. “This is my best friend in the whole world and Underworld, Cerberus. Cerberus, this is Bucky Barnes, Steve Rogers is his best friend. Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton, Phil Coulson. Wanda Maximoff and her twin, Pietro.”

“Pleasure,” His deep voice almost has an echo to it. “Lord said you needed looking after, pup. He was right. Too close.”

“I know,” You sigh out as your hand subconsciously clenches Bucky’s a little tighter even after he helps you up.

“No,” Cerberus growls. “Close.”

“Fucking great,” You growl out in reply, anger rising.

“See anything?” Phil asks, forehead furrowed just so. You sigh again, anger dissipating as quickly as it had boiled up.

“We are in a shit ton of trouble.”

“We are aware of that, kid,” Steve states, crossing his arms over his wide chest.

“Nooo. Like real shit ton of trouble. Seelie Court trouble.” Phil lets out a string of curses as Clint’s stance gets more rigid. “The cloaked asshole is working for the Seelie Court. I can taste the residual light magic. And he’s stealing magic. That’s why he’s been killing most of them. Kidnapping the more powerful ones to drain them continuously, I’m guessing.”

“He can’t take them back to the golden sithen,” Phil states, following where you’re leading. “So they’re still in the area.”

“I think he took them where there’s more greenery and nature, it would make it more comfortable for him. Someplace secretive to drain and hide them.”

“Central Park,” Bucky reasons. “It makes the most sense. It would be easy for him to hide them there, especially if he was -” He stops as you start exhibiting nervous energy beside him, enough to upset his wolf and your scent to change. “What is it?”

“Only royalty can move the sithen,” You whisper, eyes focused solely on Phil.

“I have to let Fury know…” Phil looks at you with pity and sadness appearing in his blue eyes. “Everything.”

“I figured as much when I tasted their magic,” face contorting with a pained expression is all Bucky sees on your lovely face as you whisper the words defeatedly. He’s on edge now with your changing emotions and scents, trying to keep his eyes from shifting too much or his fangs popping out to prepare for the impending fight, the need to protect and soothe you almost overwhelming him internally.

“I’m sorry,” He offers, moving forward to squeeze your shoulder sympathetically, withdrawing the phone from his pant pocket as your free hand shoots forward to grip his wrist tightly, a plea written plainly for all to see on your almost panicking face.

“Please Phil...delay it til the morning. I can’t...they’ll -” Bucky and Steve can taste the fear that’s rolling off you now, raising his hackles as Cerberus eyes him with interest before returning his gaze to Duchess.

“I won’t let your other side harm you,” Cerby snarls, his handsome olive face contorted with anger as you wince hard. Bucky tugs you into him as much as he can with your iron grip still on Phil, soothing the pacing and snarling wolf in his head as much as he is soothing you.

That’s why you said you should be better at wording things, Bucky thinks to himself, nuzzling his nose into your hair, fangs no longer a worry as your scent shifts yet again to worry. Only now he realizes you are concerned about how he sees you.

“Do you care I’m a werewolf and vampire crossbreed 100 year old plus former assassin?” Bucky mumbles softly against your head, making you pull away to look up at him, shock and confusion making you wrinkle your forehead at your mate. Your scent shifts to calm Bucky now, eyes tearing up just a tad as his wolf shakes and settles down. Mate needs reassurance.

“No!” You release Phil’s wrist to cup Bucky’s cheek, thumb moving over the course hairs of his beard. “I don’t care what you are. You’re mine, James.” The light in Bucky’s eyes stun you with his smile, his eyes crinkling beautifully. Just radiating his happiness in that simple little motion of his elated smile, your inner hound almost dopey at the tenderness your mate is exuding.

“Then why would I care if you're half fae?” He presses his forehead down against yours, making you squeeze your eyes closed to prevent the tears from falling. “You’re my mate, Duchess. I don’t care what you are, as long as I get to keep you. Understand, doll?”

“I just don’t want to be known as one of them...as one of the Shining Court. That’s not me.” You keep your eyes squeezed close, taking comfort in your mate’s touch and his surrounding scent, blocking out everything but Bucky.

“You moving that fast with that sword was hot though,” Bucky rumbles out, making laughter just peel out of you, opening your eyes to be met with those intensive cerulean orbs.

“You’re too good,” You copy his statement from the closet earlier, smiling up at the most important person in your life.

But that comment does make you think, yanking your forehead away from Bucky to snap back to Coulson.

“Phil! It’s for my father!”

“You sure?”

“It has to be! Only royalty can move the sithen! The High Prince has probably a quarter of the fae power I do and his son probably barely enough to magically open a doorway in the sithen.”

“Wait,” Clint starts, twirling a toothpick between his front teeth before pointing it at you and continuing. “So you’re a fae princess?!”

You wince again, Bucky’s metal fingers slipping under the edge of your shirt bottom to stroke your skin to ease the emotions swirling in and around you - at least they are much more in control and subdued than minutes ago. “Technically, yes.” You admit in a defeated whisper. “My grandmother is the Queen of the Seelie Court.”

“Which is why Peter said you were ordering the cloaked man to answer you,” Steve states, rolling his shoulders to relieve some tension. Too late you realize that since Steve and Bucky are actually pack that he was getting some diluted effects of your emotional rollercoaster just now just by being so close to the two of you. ‘Sorry,’ You mouth to him as he gives you a soft smile in return.

“So that’s why the ground shook?” Bucky asked, forehead slightly furrowed at Phil then down to you. “How can you move the whole sithen?”

“Oh, I can’t. I couldn’t do that unless I was Queen and would need a whole lot of blood magic to back it up to move it. And honestly, the sithen is a living thing, so it would need to be...um...convinced. But moving pieces of it - especially forgotten or ‘dead’ spaces that the court don’t access - is fairly easy if you know what you are doing. Hades is Lord of the Underworld. Is the “Underworld” just under Greece? No. It’s everywhere AND a specific place. The same properties apply to the sithen,” You shrug as if it hasn’t really occurred to you the schematics of it all.

“Ahh, sort of like the Sanctum Sanctorum of Dr. Strange’s,” Pietro supplies, tapping a finger against his chin with a small grin.

“Yes and no.”

“I was thinking more like the jet,” Wanda supplies to her twin who frowns at her.

“So if Dr. Strange had a Sanctum Sanctorum jet?”

“Jesus. Christ.” Coulson and Natasha mutter loudly in sync, sighing and turning away slightly from the twins and Clint who is nodding along with their continued discussion.

“So could you find the piece of the sithen in Central Park?” Steve moves the conversation back to the kidnapped victims, you watching him unclench and clench his right hand slightly. You move a little more into Bucky and reach for Steve’s right hand. His head snaps over to you almost comically fast, while you just try to exude a calming energy. Bucky whispers a soft ‘thank you’ against your temple before gently reaching over to squeeze Steve’s shoulder. You can almost feel Steve’s blood pressure drop once both you and Bucky are calm and now working on calming him.

“Yeah, I could. I’ve scented the magic signature he’s used both attacking me and at the crime scenes, so shouldn’t be too hard to locate it. I mean, I won’t be exactly spot on, but will be close enough to be able to move the sithen bit to me and manipulate it open hopefully.”

“So that’s the play,” Natasha states as Phil whips out his cell, causing another spike in anxiety to roll through you, but Bucky and Steve both quickly whisk it away with their touch.

“Yes, sir,” Phil states evenly. “We may have located the kidnapped parties. I request a team to subtly clear and surround Central Park. Yes, sir.” His right eyelid gives one lone twitch. “Yes, all Avengers to the Park. We are dealing with Seelie Court involved matters. Yes, she is here and will be leading us to the kidnapped hostages. Affirmative. Will do, sir.” He hangs up to find everyone staring at him. “Tony will be bringing everyone’s gear and then we’ll head to Central Park. If you have any requests or needs, please bother Stark. I have a whole ops to coordinate.” A black suv pulls up behind him, which no one even flinches at. “I’ll meet you all in an hour. Stark will know the location.”

“Onward to probable death!” Pietro mutters with fake enthusiasm and you frown at him, Cerberus moving closer to you until his arm is brushing. The scent of sage, juniper and lemon - overlapped with the scent of coffee, cinnamon, cedar and a soft ocean breeze, things distinctly Bucky to you, even the scent of orange faintly coming from Steve - do nothing to help the pit in your belly.

How true, you muse morbidly, glancing up into sad honey brown eyes. You can both catch the faint, trace smell of death.

And you both know it’s from you.

-----*****-----*****-----

Tony had brought you several SHIELD jumpsuits in various colors: gray, blue and black, smirking as you had raised an eyebrow at him. “Seriously?”

“Yes, seriously, little hellhound. They’ll all form to fit you. Bucky and Peter mentioned swords, so I brought some thigh holsters as well as a back holster, since I didn’t know the length of your swords. Natasha has extra guns aboard the jet if you are into that. Also, we don’t have time for you two to be frisky, so -”

“Shut up, Tony,” Bucky had growled from behind him, just making Tony smile wider. Seeing Bucky in his hero suit was a whole different sexy than last night and this morning. Well, you now understood why Tony was having concerns about you two because - dear gods did you want Bucky to bend you over something and take you with that suit on. You’d be equally happy to just drop to your knees and thank your mate for this look. Bucky obviously can see and sense the changes as you are basically drooling and clenching your thighs, while having an iron grip on the dark blue suit you had been favoring.

“Remember!” Tony says loudly while shaking a finger at you before Steve comes up beside Bucky and herds the grinning man from the room where you’re surrounded by suits and weapons.

“Eyes are glowing again, doll,” Bucky purrs as he comes to a halt before you.

“Can’t help it, it’s an emotional reaction most of the time,” You breath out, a smile playing on the corner of his lips at your answer. “Used to just do it when I was extremely pissed off. Now apparently it decides to pop up whenever I’m -”

“Horny?”

“Focusing. On. My. Mate.” You insist as he rumbles out a laugh, bending forward to kiss your forehead sweetly. You tilt your head up to catch his eye again, giving him a small smile as you reach out to take his flesh hand. “But just FYI, I can smell you’re horny too. And them pants is tiiight.” He captures your lips in a searing kiss, pulling you so tight against his chest that the buckles dig into you a little, just making you all the more riled up.

“Mate,” Bucky’s voice is part plea and warning in it’s roughness after you two pull apart, you nosing along his throat, kissing the skin where your mark should adorn.

“You could leave to let me get dressed…?”

“Where the hell is the fun in that, doll? Huh?” Both of you are chuckling, touching each other as much as possible but struggling to keep it PG.

“Bucky, I know you don’t want to bring this up…”

“Don’t.”

“But this could be it, ya know? So I need you to sort of brace yourself if it does.” His back is now ramrod straight and his jaw clenched tight, but holding your gaze.

“I won’t let it happen.” The determination from your first meeting is back, but you can only muster the softest look in reply, letting the suit fall to the ground as you cup his face with both hands.

“Sweetheart,” You coo gently, watching the sadness dance in his eyes that he’s trying hard to hide. “I adore you. I trust you inexplicably. I would happily spend the rest of my life with you. To mate you, to marry you...to have a little baby that looks just like you, that’s all I want. You deserve some peace and so. much. love.” His hands are gripping tight onto your waist, you can feel the fingertips digging in as you continue. “But you know I’m marked for death, Bucky. They’ve tried most of my life to circumvent it, stop it, undo it. But death comes for me regardless. I need you to not pull away from everyone if that happens. You’ll need them. Please.”

“I don’t - I don’t want to deal with that. I can’t. I can’t lose you too. I said I would protect you and keep you safe. I’m no Alpha if I don’t try. I’m no mate if I don’t try.” You’re at a standstill, both now in emotional turmoil over this topic, trying not to let it bleed into the other. He presses his forehead against yours hard, staring into each other’s eyes. “I love you,” He whispers and it’s all you ever wanted to hear. Right now, you had all wanted right here - a wonderful mate who loved you and would try to move heaven and earth for you, who didn’t care what you were. One of the most beautiful men in the whole world who looked at you like the sun rose and set by your whim. The whole thing was unfathomable.

“I love you, Bucky,” You breathe out in reply, longing for any other outcome but the one you know is coming. “And I will love you as long as you live.” Bucky makes a noise in the back of his throat, a couple tears sliding down his cheeks as yours begin to fall freely, letting him wrap his arms so securely around you as his beautiful blue jacket absorbs your quiet sobs.

-----*****-----*****-----

The sun is nearly set, the sky streaked a hundred hues of dark pink and red as New York slowly descends into darkness.

Bucky is standing right beside you, outfit bringing out his eyes as he surveys the scene stoically. You’d chosen the dark blue jumpsuit to match his, arms brushing subtly as you stand just outside the magic lines - and sight lines from the sithen - of Central Park.

Although you can’t see them, you can vaguely sense the score of SHIELD agents and Avengers scattered on the edges of the treelines. But you can ‘see’ the edge of the piece of sithen just shy of the Azalea Pond at the center of the Ramble. Bucky had been the one with his tablet naming things off to you - you had only moved to New York two years ago after all - trying to help you narrow down areas where it could have been. You wish you had had the time for him to show you around New York, around Brooklyn, and places that still stood from when he was younger.

Cerberus is on the other side of the pond, should the cloaked figure try to escape, swathed in the grip of Underworld magic to keep him invisible and thus much more easy to herd or pounce.

Wanda is piggybacking off your abilities, twined with yours temporarily so she could sense the heartbeats of the victims now that you had a location. Sam is in the trees to the left of the pond with Peter, Steve and Tony on the right while Clint, Natasha and Pietro cut off any other possible exit points. Bruce is staying by the ambulances, ready to Hulk out should the need arise, although you could tell from his face he was radiating the bright hope it absolutely would not.

Any way the cloaked figure ran, he’d be funneled where the Avengers chose. There would be no escape. As a failsafe, Pietro would be the only one to engage with him except you, since he would be the most able to take him on with the fae speed.

You drag yourself back to reality, turning to gaze over at Bucky and steeling yourself with one last deep breath before starting down the short path to the Azalea Pond.

“Be safe for me, doll,” Bucky says softly, almost as soft as the small breeze suddenly around you two. You manage to nod, throat closing up again. The fair folk do not lie. It had been beaten into you, quite literally, when you were little at court. You want nothing more than to lie to Bucky in that moment. To reassure him you will be safe for him. But the fair folk do not lie.

Good thing you are not solely fair folk. You reach for his hand, grasping just his flesh fingertips in your grip and squeezing them hard. It’s a millisecond in time, but it seems like one of those Lord of the Rings moments that are in that slow, dramatic, longing-filled motion. “I’ll do my best, handsome.” Dropping his hand before you lose your resolve, you take the barely visible path towards the pond. Your magic is swirling with Wanda’s, your senses all in overdrive - so much so you can’t even register the smell of the flowers blooming along the landmark.

Pursing your lips, you whistle a simple five note tune that fae had used for time beyond memory.

From behind you comes that deep, craggly voice, “Greetings, highness.”

“Greetings, servant,” He gives a little hiss at the title you bestow. “SHIELD has sent me to inform you that if you cooperate, you will not be sentenced to death.”

“They are mostly human. I do not fear the humans.”

“You are not wise to not fear them,” You give a pregnant pause, making sure you give that haughty look the court loves to disperse. “If you do not accept this offer, I am to inform you that I, Princess Duchess Propolos Hekatos, will be judge, jury and - if need be - executioner.” He pushes back his cloak hood back, allowing you to finally see his scaled face. He was probably one of very few left over of those lizard scaled dwarves who stayed closer to the caverns around lakes and seas when humans first emerged as semi-civilized, with beautiful almost translucent rainbow sheened scales around his eyes and cheeks, his mouth set in a thin line with no lips.

“I was damned from the get go, princess.”

“We are only as we choose to be - it doesn’t have to be that way,” You insist, leaning a little forward, softening your eyes. Even if you disliked court life, the snobs of court who’s magic had begun to dwindle long before you were born, and how you were treated there - he was the same as you; a discarded fae. He doesn’t reply, though there is a flicker of something in his eyes, simply just unsheathes his double swords and gestures to you with his chin.

“Prepare, half breed,” Although his insult has less venom than the alley last night, you huff out a sigh at his tone. Like he’s just going through the motions. Asshat.

You shift your feet just so, straightening your spine as you wait for his move. Physically you are in that moment, but your power shifts the sithen opening to the side where Steve and Tony are waiting, causing the cloaked man to hiss, baring slightly sharpened front teeth at you. “Little bitch!” And his steel meets yours. “We will both die for this!” He snarls as he tries to drive you back towards the trees and brush opposite the pond, you holding the line as you wait for Wanda to signal you that the people had been recovered.

“I’ll deal with them when the time comes,” You growl low, blocking his blades yet again with a heavy clink, shifting just so that you can reach for Bucky’s favorite knife at the small of your back, tinged with the poison that your cloaked friend had been favoring and stabbing it into his side and piercing his lung with a squelch.

“The poison will do nothing to me,” He spits at you as you twirl your wrist to disarm him of one of the swords and slide Bucky’s knife back into its sheath.

“It will now. Dr Banner mixed it with another, a heavy iron involved one - infused with belladonna - to make you human slow,” You lean in as you block another wide swing from him with the one sword left, smiling wide. “And heal human slow.” The whole of Central Park shakes as you show your hand.

“No! NO!” He screams and hisses, attempting to swing his meaty fists at you now that he was without a weapon.

“I am still my grandmother’s first born grandchild. I am still the High Prince’s first born. I am a Princess of the Seelie High Court.” You lean in as your tone becomes more malicious with each word, watching true fear alight in his mossy green eyes. “And with all the inbreeding and decline for the last century,” You straighten up, your blue flames engulfing you as he attempts to scurry away from you, shielding his eyes against the light you emanate as he falls on his ass in the dense brush and dirt. “Let’s face it - I am probably the most powerful fae aside from the Queen of the Seelie and the King of the Unseelie.” Leaning down, fisting your hand in his cloak, you yank him back upright, snarling as your power dances behind your eyes, careful still to at least to not burn him with your flames. But watching him flinch at the heat, the basic fear all animals have towards a large flame, sets you more alight at the taste of that fear. “And absolutely the wrong person to piss off!”

“Spare me! Please!!” He screams, more high pitched than you had imagined, nearly making you wince as you see the red sparks above the tree line and see a blue clad shadow moving along the treeline coming closer to you. Pietro blurs past you, slapping old iron cuffs on the cloaked man, which sends him quite literally howling and screeching from the burn of the metal.

Your flames give off a few large flickers before they begin to die down when Pietro says that they’ve gotten the kidnapped people to the ambulance they had on stand by, Bucky coming down the path towards you with a small smile on his lips as your eyes meet. Your magic shrinks back towards you, the weight of all the magic and your now overworked abilities settling back into you, your shoulders sagging a little with relief. It wasn’t over, but once your grandmother learned about your father and half-brother then she would be the one to end it.

The look in his cobalt eyes shift quickly, widening and moving to glare directly over your shoulder, his mouth moving in slow motion as he begins to barrel towards you, you begin to turn - only to feel the jerk of your body going forward instead. A glance downward shows a shiny red tip of one of the cloaked man’s swords protruding from just under your breasts, when you hear the mournful howl echo in and around your ears - only to realize it’s three distinct howls. The tang of blood spills into your mouth in a surprised gasp, turning slightly to see who has murdered you.

Your half brother’s hand is shaking slightly as he backs away from you, surprise written on both your faces as the scent of death finally fully fills your nose.

“I never thought -” You wheeze out, taking a few shaky steps towards your half-sibling as Bucky slides to a stop before you, his boots kicking up the fallen green leaves on the grass, both hands grasping your hips firmly as his eyes wander all over your body and face, tears already tracking down his cheeks. “You would have the balls!” You finish with another wheeze, the metallic taste much stronger now.

Bucky turns you to face him as Tony and Peter keep your half-brother from escaping, the darkening greenery of the world around you narrowing down to just Bucky. It’s a beautiful world to be relegated to actually.

“No. NO. Come on, doll. You - you gotta stay with me.” His voice is raw sounding, like he’s trying to not be loud, his metal hand putting pressure on the front wound as if it would help. His forehead is shoved against yours, your entire gaze narrowed to his blue eyes and his damp cheeks as he pulls you into his lap, collapsing the both of you to the ground. It’s funny almost to you in the moment...like you can still hear his loud, pitiful howl like a haunting melody behind everything he’s saying. “Doll, you gotta...come on, gotta fight. I need you to fight. Cerberus, he - he went to get Hades and Hecate. They’ll fix it. Just hold on til they get here, okay?”

“I love you soo much, James Buchanan Barnes,” You’re heartbroken to watch him see your bloody bottom lip tremble, and the color seeping from your face. You can see him weighing all his options through his tears, trying to move your tired hand up to touch him, to comfort him.

“I love you too, babydoll, but please God, please … just stay with me.” The choked up sound of his voice makes you want to cry for causing him this pain. No amount of forewarning could have prepared you for this feeling - the feeling of slowly breaking and killing your mate.

“Mate,” is the last thing you manage to get out before you just go limp in his arms, those jewel eyes he loves so much already just staring up at the first stars twinkling in the sky unseeing. In the back of his mind, his vampire side offers up the idea which he swore to God he would never do. But all too late.

The howl that rips from his throat is pure misery and heartache, his body bowed over his mate’s, his grip still holding her in a vice. The blood cloys her scent, furthering his heartbreak.

He looks up, needing Steve on a near visceral level, only to not see anyone at all. Confusion slightly mars his grief, looking over his shoulder and all around the darkened area, but met with no familiar faces or words in his comms. Confusion gives way to his war training, the alertness on it’s highest notch as he scans around, sniffing delicately at the air as the world seems much darker now than it had just been. When he turns back towards the pond, on edge at the very tampered down scents surrounding him, he spots three almost identical women standing there with those dark pink azaleas framing behind them almost like a fresco - just appearing as if from nowhere like Hades had earlier on the street.

“James Barnes,” The one on the left begins, long dark brown hair falling freely to her waist. “We are sorry for your loss,” the one on the right continues, her hair half up in intricate braids. “But now that we have fulfilled our ill-spoken creed,” the middle speaks, all that dark mahogany hair piled atop her hair like a crown, before they all join hands as the hairs on the back of his neck and arms stand to attention at the sudden surge of power that surrounds him, his arms tensing as a wave of azalea scent blows around the two of them, bringing Duchess as close to him as possible again. “We will return our little cousin back to you.”

His mouth goes dry, forehead wrinkled in not understanding as he looks down at his mate, her eyes still open and her skin still dampened with that death pallor. Bucky gently uses his metal digits to close her eyelids, grief and nausea rolling through him simultaneously while the ground beside Bucky gives a small shake and splits open, Hades climbing so elegantly and easily from the ground below with Cerberus - in three-headed giant black dog form - with a wispy blue thing dangling from the middle head’s mouth. There isn’t even enough room left in him to be shocked, there is just acceptance of whatever this shit show was.

“Turns out, sometimes you just have to accept Fate and go through it in order to stop it,” Hades murmurs in his deep molasses voice, bending down just so, his long fingers gripping the back of Bucky’s neck loosely. “Will you accept your fate now, Bucky?”

“I’ll do anything for her,” Bucky rasps out with conviction shining in his tear-riddled eyes.

“Splendid,” Hades motions with his free hand for Cerberus to come forward. “You must take a mouthful of this first.” He orders sternly as a beautiful blonde woman, shorter than Duchess and with a more heavy hourglass shape, emerges from the crevice to the Underworld with a black and golden chalice. Bucky marvels at the tiny wild roses popping up in her wake as she walks around Cerberus to stand between himself and Hades. She sniffles as she looks at Duchess, one hand leaving the chalice as she frowns over at the Fates before brushing two fingers down his left cheek to his chin, the warmth from just her fingers seeping quickly into his icy feeling skin. He doesn’t even notice the Fates disappearing just after that, he’s so focused on the goddess before him.

“Remove the sword, Hades.” It’s gone with a wave at the woman’s order, Bucky unconsciously tightening his hold once again on his mate. “Now, Bucky, sweet little honeysuckle boy, take a mouthful of this - but don’t swallow.” She brings the cup to his lips and tips it up. “Now, when Cerberus drops her soul back into her body, kiss her and push all the ambrosia into her mouth. It’ll take a few seconds for her soul to readjust and the ambrosia to heal her before she comes back to consciousness, okay honeysuckle?” Bucky manages a jerky nod, rewarded with a pat to his cheek before she backs up towards Hades, Cerberus giving a huff as he leans down towards Duchess’s body.

“Three. Two. One.” Hades counts down, Cerberus’s light brown eyes locked onto Bucky’s before the middle head gently opens it’s very large jaw and the blue wisp floats down to her body. “Now.” Bucky smashes his lips against hers, feeding the liquid into her mouth with an edge of desperation barely restrained within him.

“Now we wa-” A gasp startles you all, her jewel-toned eyes blinking rapidly as her hands claw at Bucky’s waist where they’re trapped between them, until they’re focused on Bucky. Bucky lets loose a sob as she smiles up at him, blood now gone from her face.

“Hi handsome,” A tiny little cough to clear her throat. “Bucky,” Duchess manages to rasp out before she’s crushed to Bucky’s chest.

“I lost you,” Bucky half gasps/half sobs into her hair, the scent of blood seemingly long gone, a terrible dream from which he can now finally awaken...it was just her again. Just his mate.

“But you found me, handsome.”

Bucky manages to get out a soft chuckle as he pulls back to cup her face in his hands. “You do anything like that again, doll, and I swear I’ll -” She cuts him off with a kiss but he doesn’t miss the smile and silent eyeroll. When they break apart, she brings her hand up to cup his cheek, rubbing her thumb over his cheekbone repeatedly as Bucky just reveals in the warmth of her fingers and palms against his skin.

“You are mine,” She whispers so damn gently, like a breath of life gently fanning over his lips as her forehead bumps against his softly. Bucky understood this was her sign that everything was alright, that closeness of foreheads pressed together and reading every emotion in each other's eyes.

“And you are mine,” Bucky affirms, electricity buzzing down his spine before he smiles wide at his mate, happy to see her own smile widen as he does so. “You’re stuck with me for forever now.” She tries to feign a disappointed look and tone, to school her eyes and keep her lips from twitching up in a grin is poorly executed.

“Oh, no. What a terrible thing, Sarge,” It comes out more as a purr, lighting a warmth and fire from within Bucky, elation now bleeding as a scent out of him at this tiny but monumental moment with his mate. A deep voice clearing his throat behind you brings you both a bit back more to the present, Bucky glancing to the left as your smile stays gracing your gorgeous face.

“Welcome back!” The goddess burst out, tears opening flowing down her lovely and soft olive oval face, falling to her knees behind Duchess and throwing her arms around her shoulders, squeezing her fiercely. She even pulls Bucky closer, smoothing a hand up and down his back as she hugs both of them just this side of painful.

“Thank you, theía.” Duchess grunts out from the tight sandwich she’s in, looking over to her uncle. “Theíos, what happened to that little motherfucker?”

Hades stern looking face breaks out in a tiny smile, looking so kindly down at the scene before him as Cerberus’s three heads lap and nuzzle at the three on ground. “He’s still being held on the other plane. And speaking of which, we should return quickly. Hecate might actually kill him and start a bigger conflict than which we already have on our hands.”

“Well that answers some of my questions,” Bucky mutters just behind her right ear, nipping at the earlobe gently as Persephone releases you all, gently wiping away her tears.

“I’ll fill you in as best I can later. After someone fills me in, that is,” Duchess promises with a quick but warm kiss to his lips. Hades helps his wife up, kissing both of her palms and exchanging a long, loving look before extending his hand for Duchess, Bucky shooting up beside her as they each have a hand hold on her and help to steady her as she sways just a touch.

“Much later,” Bucky agrees with the barest hint of a nod, just needing to soothe his mate still. Frankly, just needing to reconnect and optimally be alone with his mate. Hopefully uninterrupted for at least two weeks, a month - two months would be absolutely dreamy and very, very far fetched with all the shit they’ll have to deal with afterwards regarding this case. But Bucky would move whole cities to make good on what she’d said to him aboard the jet too. Finally get him some of that apple pie life that he, Steve and the Commandos had talked about all those years and years ago.

He watches as you roll your neck, gently pushing away one of Cerby’s heads to shake both your arms out before reaching up to finally scratch at each of Cerberus’s heads one by one, kissing at their muzzles with gusto as the giant hellhound wiggles it’s butt with abandon. “I didn’t get that warm of a welcome,” Bucky remarks with a smirk, his mouth breaking into a wider smile at the look she shoots him.

“Because that is something personal you’ll get later on, Sarge,”

“Geallaidhean, an dannsair beag agam,” Bucky growls softly, making sure to seal it with a deep, hard kiss. Promises, my little dancer. She looks a little flustered when they break apart, eyes not as focused as before. He knows she can smell the very pleased scent rolling off of him at her reaction.

“Such an Alpha,” She mutters with a teasing eye roll, keeping her hand on his chest. “You wear that jacket and you can have whatever you like,” comes the whisper against his lips, a soft growl punctuating the end before he takes another kiss. “Okay. Okay. Now, let’s go shank the little fairy prince,” Baring your teeth is more cute to Bucky than terrifying initially, but knowing what you’re capable of does make it scarier. And sexier, he wasn’t going to lie to himself. He loves that his mate is that intimidating.

And quite honestly, what will be more scary to the little prince than someone he feared and loathed coming back after watching them die? What's more, coming back for their retribution on him from the other side. Bucky can bet anyone that it’s not a hell of a lot actually.

“Brace yourself for it,” She whispers, hand wrapping tight around his metal one. Bucky feels a tug at his navel as the whole world around him seems to lighten at least ten shades, the overwhelming scent of blood returning, along with the pond waters, and Steve suddenly all fill his nose at once, Steve’s hands suddenly wrapping just this side of painful on his upper arms.

The scent of confusion and awe fill the area around them like a sudden breeze, the fair folk Prince calling for the God and Goddess to protect him in a whisper which might as well be a shout in the eerily quiet park. It seemed like even the regular wildlife noises in the Park had shown restraint, watching the otherworldly conflict in reverence.

“Did you miss me, brother?” No one on the other side of Manhattan could mistake the venom in her voice for anything other than deadly.

“You don’t understand!” The man - if you could call him that, no one in Central Park would though - shouts defiantly with a slice of whining at the end, his pupils blown as his eyes dart around the small clearing with barely restrained panic, nearly everywhere but on Duchess.

“Spare me your bullshit, Bradye,” Duchess growls, the lights beginning to dance behind her eyes as she moves closer to him, leaving her mate behind her. She smiles a bit triumphantly, maliciously. “You have come into this realm and by doing so are now subject to its rules and punishments. That useless title you hold will do you no good.” A few tsks come from her, “For you will face a death punishment either way. Hecate has requested the Queen come here and you and our father will pay for, let’s see, eight deaths and three kidnappings.”

“The fair folk do not lie,” He reminds in a taunt, thinking he’s won something. Her dangerous smile makes his millisecond of gloating worthless.

“Oh, of that I am well aware. I was schooled in that rule with leather. And steel. And sharp blows...and I think it may have slipped your mind, but I DID die. Charon saw me waiting upon the shore of the River Styxx. And he cannot lie about the souls he sees and ferries. Is the shaking of your hand as you drove your servant’s blade into my chest so quickly forgotten? Don’t worry,” Flames begin to gather around her ankles, slowly creeping upward like a nonsensical dance. “I have worked with SHIELD to document all you and our father have done. Did you know that there are some cameras opposite where your servant was seen entering and exiting? And that it has files that date back to before the first murder? Where you can make out two male figures walking into the park and it has a slight shake to it? Almost like an earthquake...or perhaps even a sithen moving…” The color drains from his already pasty face as Duchess strides closer, the blue and white flames now licking up her hips and lower back. There is a slight odor of urine, making Steve and Bucky both wrinkle their noses as Tony takes a small step away from him.

It’s a power move, not just the ever shifting flames but Bucky can clearly spot how sharp her teeth have grown, how her midnight blue fingernails are now black pointed tips. She’s allowing her fae side out as well, those multicolored lights bobbing and dancing behind her irises as each step she takes results in tiny little faerie rings, the tiny flowers blooming in the colors of the pinks, greens, and light blues that dance behind her eyes as small little beings descend from the trees and pixie-looking fae flit from the flowers around the Azalea Pond.

“You have no proof,” The haughtiness returns, looking down at Duchess, and had his voice not shook, might have pulled it off. He also eyes the fae joining the group in the clearing around the pond, his eyes catching sight of the faerie rings behind her and the shock that shows in his eyes is nearly equal to watching her appear back on this plane - alive.

“You hear that, Grandmother? Everything I asked Hecate’s handmaidens to give you is not proof.”

Bucky will remember that look forever. The snapping up of his head so fast it looked like it hurt, the look of complete and utter stunned surprise that seems to echo through and around him and actually make a tremor run through the little slimeball as Fury, Coulson and a lovely looking older woman with hair that went from silver at the top of her head and slowly gained a darker red as it came to rest at her waist came behind him into the clearing.

“I have heard all in this park. I have watched your hand slay your sister.” There is a flash of fury in her eyes, which Bucky notices are mismatched. One green as freshly mowed grass and the other a dark pine bark brown. “And had she not been preoccupied with keeping everyone in this park safe, sealing the sithen closed, and focused on her mate, you wouldn’t have stood a chance, you preposterous, moronic, useless child!” Her voice raises but her face never changes from an indifferent look that Bucky had seen Queen Elizabeth sport more than a few times on tv. “You and your father will be punished to the fullest extent of this plane’s laws. Before that you both will be brought before both courts of Fae and stripped of all your titles, rights, magic -” She looks down her nose at him with a sniff of disdain, “This applies more to your father as he actually has abilities. And you will also be made to pay for restitution to the families of those you had killed and of course those three whom you stole magic from and tortured. By our laws and the old ways, your sister has death rights on all three of you involved. And I must say, if I was her, I would drag your punishments out slowly...meticulously...painfully.”

Duchess strides back over to Bucky, hands already reaching out for him as the fire dies down around her - not as consuming, but still a bright warmth that shadows her entirety. Wrapped safely in his arms, Bucky rests his chin on the top of her head as Steve gently brushes his hand up and down her arm a few times, just reassuring her of their pack bond before taking a small step back to let them bond more. She pulls back a little from the comfort of his arms, tilting her head back to look up at him, Bucky knowing exactly what she wants. This was all very familiar to what happened just before she died...and honestly they all need that reassurance that everything is okay still. And this is the simplest and best way he can do it now; Her lips are soft and easily molded to his own. His sensitive ears can still pick up the little chirps and flitter sounds of small wings of the tiny fae that had climbed into this plane at Duchess’s silent command, gathered closer to her than her Grandmother, waiting for something else it seems.

A sharp featured man dressed in a black suit jacket with heavy, shining gold threaded designs along the wrists, collar, and lapels comes into the clearing with two men trailing behind him dragging a third between them.

The tiny beings begin a high pitched whine as the dragged man is thrown at the Faerie Queen’s feet. The man in black eyeing the tiny creatures with an unreadable something in his eyes.

Bucky is shocked at how much Duchess shares her face shape and nose with her father. Everything else must have come from her mother, making her features softer. Her eye color - she had told him last night - had come from her mother’s father, her mother’s side also responsible for her more soft Greek eye shape and supple body as well. Her father’s face however is harsher, more weathered looking than even his mother’s face. His eyes are a muddy brown and he looks to be maybe an inch or so taller than Duchess herself, unusual for a male - and even most women - of high Fae blood to be that short and not claim Brownie or Goblin blood, both of which a high Fae would absolutely loathe to admit to tainting their line. Him and his son seem to have been the tailings of a long and powerful bloodline, while Duchess was an anomaly of both sides of her family tree which was probably why she was so powerful. She was seemingly that red-headed gene in a sea of black hair which came about once every few generations.

Steve moves closer to the two of them again as the Queen looks down at her son with even more disgust than her grandson, which Bucky would not have thought possible a second ago. The sharp featured man comes to stand before Duchess and gives a deep nod, the two men behind him taking a knee as they come to a stop, the High Prince of the Seelie Court and his son watching from behind the Queen with shock and anger mixed on both their faces.

“Your highness, we at the Unseelie Court are thankful to you as it was a forgotten part of our court that was taken.” His bright green eyes look almost hesitant for his next words. “We are indebted to you for clearing this up. And also for clearing our court of involvement. The Unseelie Court is indebted to you, Princess Duchess Propolos Hekatos.”

Duchess pulls away a little from Bucky and Steve to sink into a deep curtsy, “Thank you, King Odhran. May your debt be cleared swiftly.” The two men behind him rise and they all go over to the Seelie Queen as Duchess’s flames die down further, pulsing softly in time with soft flutters and swayings of the tiny fae that have moved closer still.

“I will be seeing you later for their merited punishments, cousin,” The man says indifferently while also containing a hint of malice.

“Good evening until then, Odhran.” He and his men disappear as the Queen waves her hand to the men and women holding the prisoners formerly known as her family. “Fury. Coulson. We will be off now. They will be put into your custody in a week’s time. My granddaughter will, of course, be there for the handoff as a representative of the good will of my court.” Bucky doesn’t like that she’s ordering Duchess, fighting to suppress a growl. Does she not know he has plans for his mate?? She turns to address said granddaughter. “You will attend this handoff as a Princess of the Seelie Court. Come see me the morning before the handoff, as we have things we need to discuss. Please thank your goddess, Hecate, again for her swift actions and Hades for his too.” Duchess sinks into that deep curtsy once again before nodding at the trees and pond, the tiny creatures melting back into the waters and darkening branches like shadows, her Grandmother watching with something close to fondness on her face as the guards and prisoners disappear first, then her elegant frame takes a few steps and is gone as fast and quietly as the others.

Fury holds his hand straight up in the air after they vanish, no one making a move, just light breathing as everyone glances around the clearing, looking at Duchess and then Coulson who both give a firm nod before he lowers his hand and clears his throat. Fury’s good eye looks tired as fuck to Bucky.

“Alright people, shit shows over. Wanda, please begin magically cleansing this spot with Pietro, I want to be out of here in under an hour. Coulson, get me updates and signed paperwork from the three rescued for prosecution. Tony and Vision, keep the area contained until after the cleansing. SHIELD agents, please collect photos and evidence before the cleansing. Originals we keep, copies to the NYPD. Falcon and Spidey, back on patrols for the next few hours. Barnes and Rogers, take the lady home. I think she’s done and had enough for tonight. Everyone else, find something to do to make this go as fast as goddamn possible.”

“Roger, roger!” Bucky and Steve call out, Bucky tossing his flesh arm over her shoulder, Steve on his left side as they all wave silently to their friends and begin their way out of Central Park.

“This is one of the most terrible evenings of my life,” Steve mutters as Hades, Cerberus - in his human form - and a third figure, who Bucky can scent and see is definitely not the extra curvy Persephone, wave from further up the treeline ahead of them. “And I was just on the edge of the whole thing - witness and secondary pack feelings between you two. I might need a cigarette.” Steve mutters as he runs one hand through his hair and then down his face after taking a deep breath and letting it out.

“You haven’t smoked since 1938,” Bucky remarks with an eyeroll. “And that was before we knew it was bad for you, punk.”

“And this was one of the most terrible evenings of your life so far!” Steve turns his light blue eyes towards her with his Captain America signature disapproving glare at her overly perky tone. “The Seelie Queen says thank you. In that special fair folk way,” Duchess lays on the happy sarcastic tone as they approach the trio.

“As if I give a single fuck,” The woman’s dark voice growls out, her full lips set in a frown at the news. “How do you feel, mikrí mou skoteiní?”

“I told you, your little dark one is fine,” Hades reiterates with an eyeroll.

“I feel wonderful now, eroméni.” Duchess squeezes Bucky’s hand before ducking under his arm and pressing her forehead against Hecate’s as they intertwine both their hands, the power swirling softly around the two of them.

Bucky can feel the comfort in the darkness and mist that surround them temporarily, the two pulling apart and grinning at each other more like sisters or best friends than what they were.

“Mistress, this is my Bucky,” She stretches her hand out to him, Bucky forever heeding her siren call as he slips his hand into hers. “And that is our Steve Rogers.”

“I am honored to be in your company, gentleman. My mikrí mou skoteiní needs more family. I am glad she has found not only her mate, but a pack.” Her face shifts minutely from ecstatic to a little teasing. “One that will surely grow soon?”

“My baby doesn’t need to be having babies just yet!” Cerberus says in his deep honeyed voice, the slight echo noticeable now.

“My ma raised me right, ma’am. I got to mate and marry her before we go that path. My girl hasn’t even been to Coney Island.”

“Psssh. You haven’t been to Disneyland.”

“I was starting with Brookyln and Coney Island, doll.”

“Whatever you say, handsome,” She sighs out with a smile as Hades chuckles.

“And so it begins, Bucky.” Bucky grins down at his mate.

“I can’t wait.”

“Cheeseballs...the both of you,” Steve laughs out as Hades pulls Duchess into a hug, kissing her forehead before pulling away.

“Bring the boy down in a few days for brunch. Persephone will be elated, well more elated, to see you mated and bonded. Steve is welcome as well. You know how we love certain companies in the Underworld.”

“I shall bring the handmaidens as well. Perhaps we can get Mr. Rogers a mate as well,” Hecate teases again as Steve’s ears and neck turn bright red.

“We’ll call to check in tomorrow,” Hades continues, hand stuck out to Bucky who shakes it more firmly than last time which makes the God of the Underworld’s smile widen. “Gentlemen.” He extends his hand to Steve, giving him his own hard handshake before stepping back for Cerberus to enthusiastically hug all three of them.

“I love new pack members!” His echo-y deep timber reveals his obvious happiness, Hecate eye rolling good-naturedly beside him.

“I’ll text you later,” a smirk is painted on her full lips as she stares at Duchess. “But I understand if you are busy.”

“Goodnight Hecate!” comes Duchess’s embarrassed reaction, Bucky wrapping his metal arm around her waist and winking at Hecate. “Stop that!” She swats at Bucky’s chest playfully, just for him to catch it and kiss her fingertips.

“Let’s head home, doll.” Her eyes brighten instantly.

“Ooooh! I’ve never been to Stark Tower!” She states as Steve full belly laughs.

“He meant your bar or our shared apartment in Brooklyn.”

“But I’ll take you to the Tower in a few days,” Bucky promises with a kiss to her open palm as her temporary puppy dog eyes brighten.

“Goodnight all,” Hecate and Hades state simultaneously as Cerberus gives Duchess one last kiss to her cheek before rubbing his own cheek against it.

“Goodnight!” Steve, Bucky and Duchess chime in reply, watching the gods and guardian take a handful of steps before disappearing further up the path to the right, Bucky leading his pack down the left path towards 74th Street.

“So, whatcha up to later, Sargent?” Duchess begins as they enter the area just before the Boathouse Restaurant, squinting just a bit at the brightness.

“Well, I got this mate who smells like fresh baked bread, lemon squares, cayenne, and a little hint of mint - who is in dire need of a mating mark and bond. And lots of baby making practice. Then I was thinking I take her for lunch at the Tower in a couple days to show her off.”

“Can you schedule an old school tour after the Tower lunch?”

“Of course, doll,” Bucky’s accent thickens a little as her eyes soften as she looks up at him. “I’ll even show you everywhere we got our asses kicked when we were young.”

“And by ‘ours’ he means mine after 1934,” Steve says from Bucky’s other side with a scoff, sending Duchess a wink as they get past the Alice in Wonderland bit and start on the path down towards the Model Boathouse.

“Whatever you guys wanna show me,” Duchess sighs out happily, leaning into Bucky and reaching around his back to take Steve’s hand. Steve squeezes back before kissing the back of her hand and releasing it, happy to have her in the pack.

“I’ll grab some stuff, but I’ll stay near - up in Natasha’s apartment a few floors up. Just let me know when it’s safe,” He chuckles out as a flustered look passes over her face. “Don’t worry, kid, it’s natural. Just lots of good luck to our furniture in the house with this Alpha.”

“Is Natasha’s floor far enough away, punk?”

“Well, I love my pack already,” Duchess murmurs as Bucky and Steve continue ribbing each other, watching the stars compete with the New York City lights as a few leaves rustle in the breeze and fall on the bright path ahead of them.

“Doll, as corny as it sounds, it’s amazing how I could try but I could never explain what I hear when you don't say a thing. Just your scent and hearing your heartbeat is a different kind of magic,” Bucky whispers against her hair before kissing her soft cheek, his metal fingers entwined with hers naturally.

“If every bit of magic was stripped from me tonight, I would be okay with it. Because the best magic I’ve ever received is you.”

Bless ya’ll for making it through my long ass rambling stories <3

@stay-frosty-royal-unicorn @chelsea072498 @clockworkmorningglory @sakurablossom4 @galaxiesinmymind @thewhiterabbit42 @nobodys-baby-now @mizzezm

**PICTURE IS NOT MINE - FOUND ON GOOGLE**

**ALL RIGHTS TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS**

#bucky barnes x reader #ckcomebacktour #authoressskr writes #bucky x reader #bucky au #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes fic #bucky x reader au #marvel fanfiction #marvel au

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deniigi · 4 years

Text

So @petrichordiam and I are menaces and giggled over our ideal dinluke flower shop AU for like 4 hrs and then I wrote this.

Title: murderer next door

Summary: Din works as a florist and Luke works as a bookseller and they’re both assassins trying to keep the other off their turf.

-------------

Two times now, Luke had crashed past that flower shop, and two times now, the fucker inside had taken out his mark. Now all Luke had to say about the whole thing was that it was too bad that he was going to have to kill the guy.

Han told him not to turn back. The mark was dead; the mark was gone. They weren’t fast enough this time, but there would be others.

Luke just couldn’t let it go, though. He had rent to pay, and McFloristApron over there was smashing through all his targets and making that nigh impossible—regardless of how many marks there were in the area.

Luke waited until Han had closed up shop for the night and remained there in the dark with his arm slung over the back of the chair in the backroom, surrounded by books. He rolled his shot of whiskey in its tumbler. The sound against the old wood table offered no comfort.

He stood up and left the glass to get his laptop.

He wasn’t losing to some florist, Han, sorry. Only one family could take innocuous cover on this street, and it was them.

---

McFlorist’s name wasn’t listed on the florist’s staff page, but then again, none of the people on that page had names. In fact, the website’s whole vibe was all wedding-chic until you clicked on the ‘staff and contacts’ tab. Then, it may as well have been a line of mugshots.

Luke squinted along the row of increasingly involved headgear until he got to someone with a reasonably-sized neck with no tats. The ladies on either side of him appeared to have sapped all the ink out of McFloristApron. He wore a mask over the lower half of his face and gave a stoic thumbs up to the camera.

Under his picture was the number fifteen.

Damn.

Luke was only making eight per pop. Who the hell was this guy eating up all the feeder fish, huh? Them lower division folks had to eat too, you know.

Well.

‘Lower division’ in a sense of the word. Being two times undercover wasn’t super glamorous, Luke had to say. But when your dad fucked it up for the first family, sometimes you had to take what you could get.

Luke pointed at Fifteen on the screen.

“You and me, pal,” he said. “You and me.”

Step one was to get paid first.

Luke chased down three marks on the other side of town to pay the rent and the medical bills for now. His hand’s new sleeve felt like a dream. It didn’t overheat like the nylon black one did, and the hand was far less shiny now as a bonus. That had certainly reduced the number of people catching something move out of the corner of their eye.

Was it worth fifty grand?

No.

Was it worth the last nine that Luke had left to pay on it?

Yeah. It was definitely worth the nine.

------

Step two was to go make it clear to Fifteen McFlorist that he and his folks needed to back down in the face of the established guard.

Luke put on his biggest sweater and the thickest glasses he could find. He stole Chewie’s messenger bag with all the pins on it. He slung it over his shoulder and rolled the hems of his jeans up just a smidge too much, then scurried over to the florist’s across the way.

Fifteen was off to the side of the register, fucking around with something in the refrigerator. Luke busily and noisily looked through the wall of foliage on the side of the shop nearest the window. He hummed. He hawed. He made anxious nerd-sounds until a voice asked, “Hi, can I help you?”

Luke glanced out of the corner of his eye and found that Fifteen was standing facing his way now. His mask was gray this time. His apron was orange. His boots were too heavy-looking for florist work.

“I’d love that,” Luke gushed breathlessly. “See, my mom just got engaged and I’m on the way to her house.”

Fifteen lifted his chin slightly.

“What’re her favorites?” he asked tonelessly.

Terrible customer service skills, dude.

“Roses,” Luke said.

“Ours are shit today,” Fifteen said. “How about dahlias?”

Luke didn’t know what those were but sure.

“That sounds great,” he said. “You have any in pink?”

--------

He watched Fifteen brutalize some pink, orange, and white flowers into a bouquet wrapped with a silver bow and was sure to smile every time the guy looked up.

“That’ll be $37.59.”

Sir, these are dead flowers. There is no need for that price.

“Can I put it on card?” Luke asked. “How long have you worked here, if you don’t mind me asking? I work just across the way is all.”

Fifteen’s dark gaze flicked up. His hair was covered by a gray beanie two shades darker than the mask.

“At the club?” he asked.

“The bookshop,” Luke corrected him with a shy, but widening smile.

Please be gay. Please be gay. Please be gay. Leia wasn’t going to want to cooperate. She thought it was beneath her to establish boundaries like this.

“Blue paint,” Fifteen said. “Yeah, that place. How long have you been there?”

“My brother-in-law’s place, actually,” Luke said. “I started there last year after I finished college.”

Or, you know, maybe even eight years ago when he’d finished college. No one had to know. Baby faces don’t kiss and tell after all.

“Huh. You must like it there,” Fifteen said.

“It’s fine,” Luke hummed. “You like it here?”

“The kid does.”

“Oh, you’re a father?” Luke asked. “How old?”

“He’s three,” Fifteen said. “Godson. His folks were in an accident; didn’t make it.”

“That’s terrible, I’m so sorry to hear that,” Luke said. “He’s lucky to have you.”

Fifteen handed him his card back. Luke’s hand didn’t close in time to catch it and it fell onto to the wooden counter.

“Sorry about that,” Luke said, reaching for it with the other hand. His knuckles bumped into Fifteen’s when he went for the card at the same time. They both paused and went for the card again with the same result. Luke laughed.

“Slippery, am I right?” he asked, flattening his fingers on top of the piece of plastic and snatching it away.

“Very,” Fifteen said. “I hope your mom likes them.”

“Me too,” Luke smiled. “I’ll see you around—What was your name?”

“You can call me Armando,” Fifteen said.

“Armando,” Luke sounded out. “It suits you.”

It was a falsie.

“And yours?”

“James.”

“It suits you.”

It didn’t.

“Bye now,” Luke said. “Thanks for your help.”

He let the door fall closed behind him with the tinkle of the bell.

--------

He informed Han that “Armando” had a toddler and received only a warning look and a scolding for all his effort. Han told him not to get jealous. If there was a kid in the balance, then Fifteen, for better or worse, was going to have to see each day after the next until there was no longer a kid in the balance.

Luke offered to call CPS and report “Armando” as an assassin.

“You do that and those folks across the street are gonna call the VA and tell them I’m an assassin,” Han said. “Lay low, Luke. Lay low.”

Never.

“Christ. At least until that thing’s yours then.”

Luke glared at his right hand.

“Gimme a double,” he told Han without looking away from it.

------------

It was never easy to hunt in the daylight, but Luke wasn’t here to do easy things. He needed to get Mark No. 1 alone. The man took the train once a week to a gentleman’s club on his lunch break. Luke needed a change of clothes.

He had a rainbow windbreaker, white boots, and fishnets all ready to go.

He got on the same train as the mark and dropped his phone nearby. It clattered loudly and the case came off. Luke swore and squatted to drop it at the same time that two girls next to him decided to become good Samaritans. They crouched with him and one of them caught the phone first. They handed it back with a smile.

“I like your jacket,” she said.

Luke let his face struggle to find a smile at her kindness to him, a sweet little twink trying to find the pride parade that happened two weeks ago.

“Thanks,” he said. “I like your bracelet.”

He stood up. The girls were pleased with themselves. Luke glanced back to find Mark No. 1 turn his head abruptly away.

Come here, Markie.

Do you like what you see?

Mark No. 1 didn’t make it out of his hotel room. A pity. Luke took the elevator down and huffed and puffed about a cheap date when he passed the front desk. He stopped abruptly and went back to ask the receptionist what the cross street was. She judged his go-go boots.

He told her she wasn’t his type. Her manager gave him the cross street.

Mark No. 2 had different parameters.

----------

Mark No. 2’s parameters involved chasing him through a maze of boiler rooms and dumpsters. He was chump change towards a hand that Luke hadn’t wanted in the first place, but alas. The anger still roared.

Luke cornered him, still in go-go boots—no need to sacrifice style for speed—and watched those pale eyes look every which way as Mark No. 2 realized that there was no getting out of this.

“You got options, friend,” Luke said. “I can bring you in hot or I can bring you in—”

“—cold.”

His head snapped up and he lurched out of the way just as the crack of a bullet exploded in the alley. A car backfired around the corner in a sympathetic cough. Luke stared at the body then twisted around just in time for a thick glove to latch onto the back of his neck.

“Well, look who it is,” Fifteen drawled.

Luke glared out of the corner of his eye.

“Hands off, Armando,” he warned.

“I like your boots.”

“You’re gonna love ‘em when they’re on your dick,” Luke warned.

“Back off, Nayberry.”

Fucking hell, Han. This is why they should have set up boundaries weeks ago.

“I prefer ‘James,’” Luke said sweetly.

The glock levelled at his face didn’t care.

“You took my mark,” Fifteen said.

“Aw, poor baby,” Luke pouted. “Maybe you should’ve thought about that before you took mine.”

Fifteen’s orange apron was gone. He’d swapped it for an old leather jacket—something he could more easily wipe clean. He should’ve gone for patent leather. The brown really wasn’t working with his grey mask-beanie situation.

“Stay in your lane,” Fifteen warned.

“Only if you stay in yours,” Luke beamed.

Fifteen huffed.

“Bookstore,” he scoffed. “Who’d you give the flowers to?”

Luke tsked.

“Myself, jackass,” he said.

“Do you even have a mom?”

“What the fuck business is that of yours? You even got a kid?”

Fifteen’s stare was deadly—the cooling body before them notwithstanding.

“Take one step near him and we won’t be talkin’ so friendly, yeah?”

Mm. Yeah.

“You owe me four grand,” Luke informed Fifteen as the glock went down and Fifteen left him to go take a pulse.

The man’s back stiffened.

“Four?” he asked. “You took this job for four?”

Luke rolled his eyes.

“I got bills, Armando,” he drawled.

“How do you keep that shed open? Have you sold even one book?”

Rude. Luke was a great sales associate. If he actually cared to put his mind to it, he’d be worthy of a promotion to manager.

He pulled the rising legs of his shorts down and adjusted the weapon in his windbreaker. He couldn’t leave the alley the way he’d gone into it. Someone might have seen. He was going to have to take a side street. Hmmm, which one? Choices, choices.

“I’ll give you a Dad’s discount. Gimme two grand, and you can have him,” Luke negotiated as he thought.

“Two.”

Hey, no need for that tone. This was a great deal.

“What’re you gonna do with two?” Fifteen asked, already knelling down to heft the body over his shoulder as proof for payment.

“Buy some more tights,” Luke deadpanned. “Two, final offer.”

Fifteen stood up all the way and gave him a weird look. A long look. His beanie was pulled down low, but Luke got the impression that he was frowning at him.

“Take the four,” he said out of nowhere. “I’ll bring it tomorrow.”

Luke recoiled a step at first, then recoiled another when the reality of the situation hit him full in the chest.

“Forget it,” he snapped.

He spun around and started to leave.

“Wh—hey. HEY. Where are you goin’?”

“I don’t need your fuckin’ pity,” Luke called ahead of him as he set to climbing the chainlink fence separating him from the adjacent dead-end alley.

“You what?”

“You heard me,” Luke said.

He jumped down. His left hand found his right wrist and squeezed as he walked.

-------

The phantom pains kept him up all night, and it was definitely that and not the humiliation that made him call in sick. Han told him to answer his therapist’s emails. Luke told him to go do something useful and hung up. He rolled onto his back on his bed and focused on letting his body relax, his jaw unclench, his joints go limp.

There was sunlight finally streaming through his apartment windows again. It had been months.

Spring was almost here. He just had to hold out a little longer.

--------

He came in to work the next day and found an envelope on his chair in the backroom. It was thick.

“McFlorist dropped it off,” he said between aggravated sounds at his spreadsheets.

“Is it tax season already?” Luke asked him as he tried to burn a whole in the center of the envelope with his mind.

“Sure fuckin’ is.”

He stepped forward and snatched up the envelope, then deposited it squarely in Han’s lap. He made an unattractive noise of confusion and alarm.

“For the taxes,” Luke called as he went out to grab his lanyard and name tag. “Gotta keep this place open for another six months at least.”

------------

There were new books in. A new shipment to shelve. Two kids’ displays to set up. And Luke was actually good at this stuff, thanks; he started stacking.

He got peace until he nearly got to the end of the second display, and then what he had was a heart attack. Two liquid brown eyes surrounded by an ocean of ringlets stared up at him from between his knees. The child curled a hand in and out in hello.

Luke jerked himself up to locate the thing’s parents immediately, and promptly found himself in deadly eye-contact with Fifteen.

Armando.

“You were gone yesterday,” Fifteen said flatly.

Luke looked between him and the kid. He was pinned between two enemy parties. How to escape, how to escape.

“Are you sick?”

How to escape. How to escape. How to escape.

“Are you hurt?”

H—what?

“I’m fine, stalker,” Luke snapped with more heat than this present cover allowed. He caught himself and pulled it back. “I’m fine,” he repeated. “Thank you for asking. Is this…?”

Fifteen blinked once. The child blinked once as well. It was creepy.

“He’s mine,” Fifteen said. “And apparently the only thing that will get us through the next two hours is a book.”

Dude.

“Kids are kids,” Fifteen said. “You got any books?”

Luke stared at him, then checked the shelves to make sure he hadn’t teleported into another dimension.

You always had to check.

“We’re in a bookstore,” he said.

“He can’t read,” Fifteen said, pointing.

The kid grinned. His teeth were gapped in that toddler sort of way. He was kind of cute.

“You can’t read?” Luke asked him.

“Hi,” Baby said.

Oh no.

Luke loved him.

“How much?” he asked Fifteen.

“Touch him and you’ll be permanently comatose,” Fifteen said.

“Not if I died out of spite,” Luke said.

There was a long pause. Then Fifteen started laughing? Kind of hard?

“Oh my god, that was so unprofessional. I am so sorry,” Luke blurted out.

Fifteen collected himself and shook his head. His little one giggled and reached for Luke’s fingers.

“Boo,” he said.

Luke couldn’t feel the hand, but he could feel all the heart.

“Book?” he asked, crouching down. “Do you want a story?”

“Mmmm.”

“I have the perfect one,” Luke told him. “It’s about a caterpillar. Do you know what a caterpillar is?”

He got a slow, exaggerated head shake back and forth, back and forth. He stood up straight.

“I’m conducting a temporary kidnapping,” he informed Fifteen. “Do I have consent?”

Fifteen looked from him towards the front entrance and mulled over the merits of leaving his kid with his rival assassin. Then he shrugged.

“Consent granted,” he said. “Luke.”

Luke’s heart stopped.

“James,” he said.

“Your name tag says ‘Luke.’”

Well, fuck.

“Luke Nayberry. It suits you.”

Hhhhhhh. This was karma, wasn’t it.

“Thanks,” he gritted out. “And yourself, Armando?”

“Din.”

Woah, look out. Mr. One-Syllable-Cool-Man had entered the building.

“Din, what?” Luke asked as his arm registered tension. Din’s kid had latched onto his fingers and started pulling incessantly with a chubby hand gesturing in the direction of the wall of children’s books.

“Don’t you worry about it,” Din said.

“Fine, go trip then,” Luke said.

He swore that there was a smile under that mask.

----------

#dinluke #luke skywalker #ficlet #fic #I can't take any trope seriously it turns out #perhaps I am simply too old now to appreciate them #the mandalorian

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futurewriter2000 · 3 years

Text

If I can't have you, nobody can - pt. 3

A/N: This part is a bit more personal to me than I intended it to be... lol.

It's been a mess. You've been a mess. Lately, everything has been a mess that you've been trying so hard to clean up and it never got unmessed up.

A mess, chaos, ... life.

You don't know what had happened to you. What happened to the girl who was so excited to live her own life after Hogwarts? What happened?

He did. Sirius did. James did. The whole Marauders did.

It seemed useless and a waste of time to blame it all them; your misery but it is their fault. As good, fond memories you have with them and of them, they had made you fall into this mess.

*****' "You're so bright and always happy that it makes it so much easier to be myself around you." said Sirius as the two of you walked up the hill.

"Thank you." you smiled. "I love making people happy, even though they don't do the same." you said bluntly, knowing you must have said something odd since he didn't answer back. "I mean... I'm used to people leaving me after they used me..." you didn't know how to quiet yourself down. Why were you telling him this? Why were you opening up? It must have been the all-nighter the two of you pulled for your essay.

He had promised you a sunrise and weed as an award for a successful night of potions and ingridients and six ways of stirring a pot.

"I get it." he said, the light mood faltering into heavy intensity that made you quite uncomfortable. "People have done that to me too... I could never though..." '*****

"But you did." you told yourself after staring yourself in the mirror. You just came out of the hot shower, the steam drizzling in mid air and fogging the mirror. You closed your eyes as if the tears were burning your eyeballs... until you shed a tear.

You wiped it off and the fog was gone from the mirror. It was only you. You and your reflection staring at one another. Trying to smile, you almost scared yourself from how painful your heartbreak appeared. You couldn't smile. Not like before, at least. It didn't come naturally... it came with force and it was an ugly smile.

The shadows of your head were pulsing, the right of your eye continued to twitch and your eyelids puffed up as well as your cheeks.

"I'm fine." you said and took a deep breath out, then in...

Heavy... you were so heavy, so tired, exhausted, drained mentally and emotionally but you were strong. You knew you were strong more than anybody you had ever known.

You looked yourself in the eyes. "Maybe I'm not fine right now. Maybe I am broken, hurt and lost but I've been here before and I got out. No doubt I can do it again better." you pushed yourself off the sink and left the bathroom.

---

Sirius has been stuck at the same desk as he has been for a month but something... something inside of him was missing. Easier than facing that missing piece of him, he pushed it down.

"Good evening- oh! If it isn't the infamous Sirius Black!" the woman smiled.

"Madam Pince!" Sirius exclaimed. "What brings you to this corner of the Ministry?"

"My darling husband has become ill so here I am, taking care of the usual things he takes care of but I don't mind it at all. I love papers." she laughed widely, which Sirius has never seen on the strict librarian who constantly shushed him when he caused ruckus. For a librarian she laughs extremely loudly.

"We'll take care of it immediately." he started to shuffle through the desk, stamping the documents, reading them, copying them...

"And how about James and your other three friends?" she asked.

"James is more in luck than me. He's already got a mentor for an Auror job as I am stuck on the waiting list, doing them some dull paperwork." he smiled, noticing how the last sentence may have offended the librarian who adores paperwork. He quickly cleared his throat and changed the subject. "Remus has thought about teaching but has hard a rough time finding a post at school, so he's finding himself a bit and Peter is in with his family business, which I never really took interest into finding out what that business is." he smiled politely, stamping the last document and giving her back the papers.

"Well, I think you boys will figure it out sooner or later. You were always all so bright." she grabbed the papers and put them in her bag. "How about the girl? (y/n)?"

Something cut Sirius in half from head to toe when he heard your name. Your name was the knife that cut in deep. Widening his eyes for a bit, he was lost with words. "I- I mean... I don't know with her..." he started to stammer, stumbling over his own words.

"You two were so wonderful." she giggled. "It was such a pleasure watching you two walk down the hall or the library- and with the rest of your friends, you all seemed so wonderful."

"Yeah- uhm."

****' You were jumping in excitement, speaking with enthusiasm. "YOU KNOW THAT BACKPACK THING!"

"The back stretch?" he said calmly.

"Yeah!" she laughed. "I always used to do it with my cousin whenever she came to visit but it's been so long."

"Let us try." said Sirius.

"Here? In front of everybody?" said James, a bit worried. "We should just go."

"LET'S DO IT!" you laughed and turned around. Sirius turned his back against yours and took a hold of your arms until he lifted you up and let your back crack quietly. He didn't even hear it but he had heard you laugh like a little innocent child.

"Oh my God. The two of you are so weird." James rolled his eyes.

But Sirius put you back down on the ground and started laughing with you. "How did it feel?"

"My back? Fucking amazing." you stretched your back a little bit more and continued to laugh. ' ***

"We- uhm... we lost in touch." Sirius looked up at Madam Pince with guilt in his eyes... maybe pain that memory brought him.

She gave him a sympathetic look and smiled. "That's a shame. The two of you were wonderful friends..."

"Yeah... we were, weren't we?"

#sirius black #sirius black imagine #sirius black x reader #james potter #james potter x reader #james potter imagine #remus lupin #remus lupin imagine #marauders #marauders imagine #marauders era

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moonyswolfie · 4 years

Text

Baby

So it took me 3 days to write this and I’m actually really happy with how it turned out. It’s 2.1k words (I wasn’t planning on writing that much, to be honest, but it happened). It can be read as a sort of sequel to Love story, but it can be read separately as well and it makes perfect sense.

I really hope you like it and my requests are always open!

Remus Lupin x reader

Summary: The full moon is tonight and, as usual, you join the boys in your Animagus form. What happens though, when you have trouble shifting?

Warnings: there are mentions of a fight and biting, but other than that none.

Missions for the Order weren’t always easy and more often than not, everyone would come back exhausted, cuts and wounds covering their bodies. It was normal though, part of your job, the duty you had for the Wizarding World.

You were pacing in front of the fireplace waiting for James and Remus to return.

The full moon would be up in a few hours and your fiancé hasn’t been himself for the last couple of days, which worried you. You knew, of course, that not every full moon affects him the same way and some might be more difficult than others, but you never minded it one bit. You were in for the long run, not just the good days.

You felt a wave of nausea take over you and rushed to the nearest bathroom. This happened more and more lately and you blamed it on the nerves. You were on edge, just as everyone working for the Order. You were at war and nothing was certain. You didn’t know if the last time you saw Remus would be the very last or if the next time you walked out the door you’d never come back.

Exiting the bathroom, you bumped into Lily, who gave you a sympathetic look.

“Again?”

“Just nerves. They’re not back yet.” you stated, yet you didn’t know who you were really trying to convince, Lily or yourself.

“I went through the same thing when I was pregnant with Harry. Maybe you should see a healer.” she shrugged and went to check on her baby, who was left in Sirius’ care.

Of course, there was a possibility. The first few times it happened, you dismissed it as food poisoning. When it didn’t seem to pass, you figured your emotions were playing you but now, you weren’t so sure anymore. You and Remus weren’t all that careful now that you were to get married, after all. You wanted a big family, you just hoped you’d live long enough to see it happening.

You decided you’d see a healer in the morning. Your priority tonight was the full moon.

A faint sound about an hour later stopped you in your tracks and you rushed to the entry hall to greet the boys. You let out a sigh of relief when your gaze landed on Remus, back in one piece with just a few scratches on his face, but your heart stopped when you saw James, nearly unconscious and leaning almost completely on his friend.

“What happened?” you breathed out just as Lily appeared behind you, letting out a scream of shock.

“Bloody hell, what happened?” she ran towards her husband, a few tears rolling down her cheeks.

You went to help Remus ease James onto a couch and Lily went to get the potions, ointments and bandages, all of your hearts beating erratically.

“M’alright, Lils, it’s nothing serious.” James said softly but tiredly, trying to calm his wife.

“We were ambushed. Lucius Malfoy and a few other Death Eaters appeared out of thin air and attacked us. We fought them off, but we never saw Bellatrix coming…” Remus recalled the encounter while you muttered a few healing spells.

Lily ran into the room once more, Sirius hot on her trail, both fussing now over the Potter boy. Your healing spells helped close the larger wounds on his body, but he was in no shape to join Remus tonight.

“M’sorry, Moony” he whispered, fighting off sleep.

“Don’t be stupid, James, there’s nothing to be sorry about.” Remus was quick to assure his best mate and worriedly checked the clock “however, we do need to go if we want to make it to the woods on time.”

“Will you be okay, Lils?” you asked, concerned for your friend.

“Yes, go. The rest of the Order will be back from missions and patrols soon enough, so we won’t be alone much longer. Besides, there’s not much to be done now anyway.”

You nodded and gave her a hug, before getting up and following the boys out the front door and into the woods nearby. There was little time left before the moon would rise, so you made sure to hug and kiss your fiancé and assure him that you would be right there with him and that he won’t hurt you. He never did, even during the rougher moons. His wolf was always calmer in your presence, a fact that warmed your heart every time.

You let go of Remus and took a step back. The moon was out of its cloud cover. It was time.

The young werewolf let out a scream when his bones started cracking and rearranging themselves and you winced. It pained you every time to watch his transformations and you prayed it would be over soon.

Sirius came to stand next to you, his face telling you that he felt the same way you did watching his friend go through all that. But he wasn’t alone. He had you and he had Sirius.

“It’s time.” he said, and a moment later, Padfoot was wagging his tail next to you, ready to jump in if Moony became violent. It was your turn now.

You closed your eyes and thought of your animal form, repeating the incantation in your mind and –

Nothing.

No, that can’t be right.

You repeated the process two more times, and still, nothing happened. That’s when you started panicking. This has never happened before, what were you doing wrong?

A low growl made you freeze on the spot. You’ve never been afraid of Remus before and you certainly weren’t now, but the prospect of being human and facing Moony? That terrified you.

You backed away a few steps very slowly, trying your best to go unnoticed by the wolf, but it was no use, since his attention was directed towards you. Padfoot stepped in front of you in a heartbeat, but that only angered the wolf more and he jumped, landing on Sirius and biting him instantly.

You wanted to get between the two and push them apart, growl at Moony for attacking his best friend, but you were human and that made you feel useless. Your lover was attacking your friend and you couldn’t do anything about it!

As if sensing your emotions change, Moony stopped, getting off Padfoot’s inert body and faced you, heading almost cautiously in your direction. You moved backwards until your foot caught on a tree root and you fell unceremoniously to the ground. The wolf approached you, his eyes staring directly into your own. When he got within touching range, he took a long sniff before nuzzling into your stomach.

You were shocked, to say the least. You were expecting Moony to attack you , see you as a threat. Instead, the werewolf seemed almost…careful? Loving? You couldn’t quite place it.

You’ve read every book on werewolves you could find in the library during your school days and every one said the same thing – werewolves are murderous creatures and when affected by the full moon, they wouldn’t be able to distinguish friend from foe. They could kill their loved ones in a heartbeat without a glimmer of remorse.

So why was Moony so tame all of a sudden?

The short interaction lasted long enough for Sirius to regain consciousness and move towards the two of you, wanting to keep you safe at all costs. You’d barely had time to scream “stop” before Moony snarled in warning. Your voice halted Sirius in his tracks, yet you could see him itching to move forward.

The conversation you’d had with Lily a few hours prior passed suddenly through your brain.

I went through the same thing when I was pregnant.

You dismissed it for as long as you could, but there was your confirmation: Moony was making sure Padfoot wouldn’t get anywhere near you (and the baby he was probably scenting), for he marked the two of you as his own. And if you did know something about wolves, it was that they were very territorial, especially about their mates and cubs.

You were happy, truly. Ever since Harry was born, you and Remus wanted a little bundle of joy of your own, and now you had it.

You didn’t know, however, how it would affect your shifting.

“I’m alright, Pads. He won’t hurt me.” you said reassuringly.

Padfoot cocked his head to the side, doubt clear in his actions.

“He won’t hurt me, I’m sure of it. You can go back to the headquarters and have Lily tend to your wounds. I’m really sorry you got hurt tonight because of me, Sirius.” you whispered the last part, sadness coating your voice as a tear rolled down your cheek.

You looked up when you heard a scoff, just in time to see Sirius shift back to his human form. Moony tensed near you, ready to attack the intruder, but relaxed the instant you wrapped your arms around his body.

“S’alright, Moony. He’s a friend. He won’t hurt us, I promise.”

Still watching Sirius, Moony settled his huge body down with his head resting on your lap. You couldn’t help but smile at his actions.

“Don’t be daft, Y/N, I’m not going anywhere. But would you care to explain this?” Sirius gave you a bemused smile, pointing to the wolf cozying up into your tummy.

You let out a small laugh “I uh – I think I might be pregnant. It’s why I can’t turn…or at least I hope it is.” you said, still not quite wrapping your mind around it yourself.

Sirius broke into a huge grin “Congratulations! About time it happened” he finished with a small smirk, for which you stuck your tongue out at him.

He laughed and sat down, resting his back on a tree trunk, while Moony fell asleep, lulled by your addicting scent.

The morning sun was up in the sky and your fiancé was helping you clean and patch up Sirius’ wounds from the night before. He felt guilty and ashamed about his behavior even though his friend assured him it was all good. Werewolves are often unpredictable and you were all well aware of that when you decided to become Animagi to help him during the full moons.

He didn’t remember much from the hours he spent as a wolf and you hadn’t had a chance to tell him the news (which a healer confirmed for you first thing in the morning).

When you were done, you let Sirius rest and dragged Remus out of the room, in search of a more secluded space where you could talk without being overheard, as almost all of the Order members were currently at the headquarters.

“We need to talk.” you said, trying to keep a straight face, but a small smile was playing on your lips.

“What’s wrong, darling? Did I hurt you too last night? You – you didn’t say anything…” he asked, alarm taking over his entire body at the mere mention of you being hurt by him.

“You didn’t, Remus. I’m alright, more than alright, actually.” you said and took his hand in yours. “I’m pregnant, my love.”

You watched his face go through many emotions before settling on one: shock, disbelief, excitement and finally, pure happiness.

“We’re having a baby!” his arms enveloped your body as he buried his face in your neck.

“We are. That is why you acted out last night and attacked Sirius. It wasn’t your fault and he knows it, he doesn’t blame you. Please, stop feeling guilty about it.” you pleaded with him, hoping it would help him forgive himself.

He took a step back and seemed to be considering it. Tears of happiness were trailing down his cheeks, until his face took on a serious note.

“What if my condition will pass on to the baby?

“Then we’ll deal with it when the time comes.” you replied with confidence.

“Thank you, my love. You’ve made me the happiest man!” he pulled you closer and kissed your forehead, cheeks, nose and finally, he pressed a passionate kiss on your lips.

You giggled when he pulled away “I’m pretty sure it was a team effort, Remus.” He blushed which made you laugh harder and he joined in, before the two of you were interrupted by your nosy friends.

“Have you decided on the godparents yet?” you heard James ask from behind you before Lily hit his arm. “Ouch, what?”

“Why don’t we wait for Padfoot to wake up before we have this conversation? He’ll be very cross if he finds out we decided without him.” Remus suggested.

“Oh, there’s no need, I’m right here! Did someone say godparents?” Sirius shouted from around the corner which made the four of you laugh and shake your heads.

#harry potter #harry potter fanfic #fanfic #x reader #marauders #marauders era #marauders x reader #remus lupin #remus lupin x reader #remus x reader #sirius black #james potter #fluff #remus fluff #remus lupin fluff

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ginnympotter · 4 years

Text

to the garden

here it is, my betty inspired jily one-shot. to be honest i’ve been struggling to write this for so long i don’t even know if it’s good, but i finished it and i’m at least proud of that. i hope you guys enjoy it. thanks so much for reading 💗 p.s. this is a covid free universe

you can also read it on AO3 here.

Thursday Afternoon

“I fucked up,” James announced as he sat down for lunch.

No one looked up, but Sirius responded after a large gulp of his soda. “That’s nothing new.”

James growled, stabbing at his roast beef. “No, you don’t understand. I fucked up so bad, I’m not even hungry.”

Remus was kind enough to spare him a sympathetic look. “Well if it ruined your appetite, it must be serious. What happened?”

“Evans switched her homeroom,” he muttered under his breath, looking around to make sure she was not near. He spotted her at her usual table across the room, out of earshot. “And I won’t make assumptions but…I think it’s ‘cause of me.”

“I believe that was an assumption,” Remus replied. “And a ridiculous one, at that.”

“But it’s true! She knows,” James cried hopelessly. “She knows I got with Alison this summer.”

Peter laughed. “Well, the whole school knows that.”

James’s eyes widened. He felt his stomach drop. “What do you mean, Pete?”

“Inez,” Sirius answered, still not looking up, browsing through different motorbikes on his phone.

James groaned. Of course Inez ran her mouth. If Inez got word of anything, true or false, she spread it like wildfire.

“On the bright side, I also heard from Inez today that Snape and Lily aren’t talking anymore,” Peter told him comfortingly.

Despite all odds, James’s spirits lifted just the tiniest bit. “They aren’t?”

He shot his eyes back at Lily’s table and noticed that Snape wasn’t there. Mary was sitting next to Lily and Marlene sat across from them, animatedly telling a story. He forced himself to look away so Lily wouldn’t catch him staring.

“Regardless,” Remus said, looking pointedly at James. “Lily switched into my homeroom, and she told me this morning it’s because she’s taking AP Lit instead of regular English class, so she had to move some things around to make it work.”

“Classic Evans,” Sirius laughed, putting his phone down and taking a bite of his sandwich. “It’s going to be a tight race between you two for valedictorian, Prongs.”

James sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Okay, so maybe I’m not the sole reason she switched her homeroom, but she still hates me.”

“No, she doesn’t,” Remus said impatiently. “But if you’re so convinced, why don’t you just apologize?”

James got a distinct feeling that Remus knew something he didn’t. “Did she mention me to you in homeroom today? What are you hiding?” he asked eagerly.

Remus rolled his eyes. “I’m not hiding anything. Just talk to her yourself,” he responded, then gave a look that James clearly understood to mean ‘I’m done with this conversation,’ and dug back into his lunch.

Despite James’s conviction that Lily Evans hated him now, something about the way Remus was even more fed up with his antics than usual made him feel slightly less nauseous, and so he began to eat as well.

But only a moment later, the sound of Sirius’s voice made him feel sick again. “Just hook up with her at her party tomorrow night and it’ll all end well, I’m sure.”

James choked on his mashed potatoes. “Her what now?”

“Her party. You’re invited,” Sirius answered.

“I don’t follow,” James said, feeling as if very little air was entering his lungs. “How do you know she’s having a party? And that I’m invited?”

“She told me,” Sirius informed him. “We sit next to each other in AP Physics because of Vector’s alphabetized seating arrangement. You know that. That’s why you’re stuck with Peter.”

“I’m going to choose to ignore that,” said Peter.

“Anyway,” Sirius continued. “She told me she’s having a party tomorrow night at her house and to bring you guys along.” He lifted up his phone and shoved it in James’s face, a picture of a motorcycle on the screen. “What do you think about this one?”

“It’s fine,” James snapped, taking Sirius’s phone out of his hand. “Did she say my name specifically when inviting us or was she just talking vaguely about our group?”

“James, I don’t know,” he groaned reaching for his phone across the table. “I don’t analyze every word that comes out of Evans’s mouth! Now give me back my phone-“

“No-“

“Give it to him, James,” Remus said sternly.

James resigned, handing it back over. “Sorry, Dad.”

“Now, eat,” Remus ordered.

James was going to listen- he really was- but then Alison passed by with Inez. Alison looked at James and smiled sadly, offering a little wave. With regret in his stomach and guilt in his throat, he waved back, and then quickly looked back towards his friends.

“Coward,” Sirius muttered under his breath.

James gasped. If someone wanted to bruise James Potter’s ego, ‘coward’ was all they needed in their arsenal to defeat him. Above all, James has always prided himself on being brave. “How DARE you. Sleep on the street tonight, traitor.”

“Euphemia would sooner kick you to the curb for this Evans stupidity than depriving me of shelter for simply calling you out on your bullshit.”

“You don’t understand how painful my last conversation with Alison was…having to admit that I still had feelings for Lily…apologizing for not being more straightforward about it in the beginning…you can’t call me a coward after that.”

“Well, until you apologize to Lily too, I’ll continue berating you as I see fit.”

********

Friday Morning

James almost couldn’t complain; he knew he deserved this type of misery. But it still hurt.

Because as he walked into government class on Friday morning and spotted Evans, she was wearing a particular item of clothing that made his heart stop and his throat close up. Her white, knitted cardigan that it was definitely too hot to be wearing enveloped her like a hug.

“I like my sweaters oversized,” she had told him that night.

And now he couldn’t concentrate on a single thing Binns was saying because the very little self-control he had over his daydreaming was ripped away by that cardigan. He sat two seats to the left and one seat behind Lily and stared at the white material, remembering the feel of it through his fingers as he pulled her to him that night under the streetlight, as he took it off of her in his car…

He cursed himself for not treasuring that night more than he did…then maybe he wouldn’t have stormed out of the dance. Then maybe he wouldn’t have gotten in the car with Alison. Then maybe he would have actually had the courage to ask Lily to be his girlfriend when he had the chance.

Sirius was right. He was a coward.

He drowned himself in the memories of that night, letting his ego melt around him, suffocating him with regret. Out of the corner of his eye, waking him from his reverie, he noticed Snape a few seats away texting furiously and glancing at Lily, who pointedly turned her phone over on her desk so that she couldn’t see any messages that might be popping up on her home screen. She started tapping her pencil against her desk in frustration.

He smiled in spite of himself, knowing what each of her little quirks were, because he’d wanted her for so long, and he just made a mess of it all.

He didn’t know how, he didn’t know if he could, but he had to clean it up.

After far longer than he could bear, the bell rang. James was deciding whether or not to approach Lily, but before he could even make a decision, she threw her books into her bag, jumped up, and bolted towards the door. For a moment, James thought she could somehow read his mind and was trying to avoid him before it was too late, but he quickly realized that it was another man in Lily’s life driving her away.

Snape got up almost as quickly as her, his greasy hair blowing behind him as he followed her. James gathered his belongings and followed the class out, curious to see if Lily had made her escape or not.

She hadn’t. Rather, she was at her locker, rummaging through, as Snape stood at her locker door, speaking rapidly to her. As James approached, it sounded like Snape was pleading with her.

“Lily,” Snape said with urgency. “How many times do I need to apologize-“

“None,” she snapped, slamming her locker door. “Because I’m done forgiving you. Just leave me alone.”

“Will you please just listen-“

He strode over. “Snape,” he growled.

Snape turned sharply towards him, his features all narrowed in anger. “This is none of your business.”

“It seems like you’re harassing Evans. She told you to leave her alone.”

Lily finally looked at him, her expression unreadable. She kept her gaze on him as she spoke to Snape. “Please, Sev. Just go.”

But he remained rooted to the spot, his face red, yet seemingly unable to speak.

James adjusted his bag’s shoulder strap unnecessarily. He spoke to Lily. “You have art next, yeah? So do I. Come on.”

And without thinking much about it, he grasped her wrist and steered them away from Snape and down the hallway. He tried to ignore the familiar feel of the cardigan against his hand, noticing how Lily was striding along with him, quickening her pace as they turned the corner to enter the staircase. They walked down the stairs quickly in silence. As they reached the landing, Lily glanced up at him.

It was the first time he got a good look at her face since the dance. The summer sun seemed to have brought out her freckles. Her face was slightly flushed. Her red bangs had grown so long she had to part them in the middle so they wouldn’t fall in her eyes. Her eyes, as beautiful, as wide, as green, as lethal as ever.

When he processed all its parts as a whole, his stomach dropped; she looked… sad. Her eyes flashed to his grip on her wrist, and he removed his hand from her and ruffled his hair anxiously.

She spoke first, her voice not giving her away. “I appreciate the intention, Potter, but you didn’t have to do that. I can handle him myself.”

“I know you can,” he assured her, feeling the heat rise on his neck. “Sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologize…” she sighed, crossing her arms. “For that, at least.”

James’s stomach dropped. She stood for a moment, as if waiting for the implied other apology, but then offered a smile that was gone so fast that perhaps it was just his imagination, before turning out of the staircase into the hallway. Afraid to speak, he followed her into the art classroom. As they were the first ones in the room, Lily chose a table, and feeling reckless, James sat down next to her. “Sirius told me you’re having a party tonight.”

She nodded. “I am.”

“And that I’m invited.”

Her expression was suspicious. “You are.”

He raised an eyebrow. “You sure you want me there?”

She yanked her sketchbook out of her bag, opening it up roughly. “Show up, don’t show up, your choice, I don’t really care.”

But her voice was impassive, whereas it was usually filled with inflection and passion and emotion, so the lack thereof was a giveaway that she did care. He almost wanted to call her bluff, but the rest of their classmates started trickling in, including Lily’s friend, Mary Macdonald, who sat down and gave James a scathing look. He nodded at her politely and then focused on his bag, taking out his materials. Sirius strode in and sat next to James, giving him a questioning look. James just shook his head as he doodled on the corner of his sketchbook.

“Evans. Macdonald,” Sirius greeted their desk mates. “Ready to get smashed tonight?”

“Always,” Mary said.

“How difficult do you think it will be to impose a three-drink maximum?”

“Maximum?” Sirius gaped.

“Impossible, Lil,” Mary told her.

“What for?” asked Sirius, seeming deeply offended.

Lily sighed, pulling on her cardigan sleeves. “I just don’t want anyone breaking anything. Or vomiting on anything. My parents would kill me.”

“Or worse than that,” Mary looked at her. “Petunia,” she and Lily said simultaneously, grimacing.

Sirius let out a laugh like a bark. “Your boring, uptight sister? I’d like to see her try.”

“Oh, she will try,” Lily assured him.

“She won’t be home though, right?” Mary asked. “She’ll be off with her loser boyfriend.”

“Well, I apologize in advance, Evans, but I am going to be having more than three drinks. I probably won’t throw up, but no promises about not breaking anything, especially if this one tags along,” Sirius said, elbowing James. “Becomes a complete klutz under the influence.”

Mary turned her head sharply towards James. “You’re coming? To Lily’s party tonight? Who invited you?”

“I did,” Lily informed her, looking at her friend pointedly as if trying to send her a telepathic message. “Well, technically, I invited Sirius and told him to invite the other three. But Potter hasn’t made his mind up yet.”

Mary looked like she was containing herself as she said quietly, “Well, maybe you shouldn’t come. We can’t risk anything being broken. Although maybe it would be fun to see James suffer from Petunia’s wrath…”

James offered her an obviously fake smile, to which she narrowed her eyes in response just as the teacher began to attempt to gain the class’s attention. As the room became quiet, James caught Lily’s eyes again. Her cheeks were flushed but she didn’t shy away, she held his gaze, as if daring him to do something. If only he knew what.

*****

Friday Night

“James, stop being melodramatic.”

“Have you met him, Remus?” Sirius laughed, which James did not appreciate at all. As if he wasn’t melodramatic himself. “It’s his lifestyle.”

“Come on, we’re going to be late,” Peter urged them eagerly.

“I am unable to move,” James stated. “I have suddenly been rendered immobile. You guys go. I’ll just die here.”

Remus sighed heavily. “We’re two blocks away, James. Enough of your pretend psychosomatic syndrome and move.”

“Should I run back home and grab your skateboard?” asked Sirius, amused. “We’ll strap you to it and push you the rest of the way.”

“That could work.”

“No,” Remus refused. “Just be a man and go apologize to her. Excuse my gendered language.”

“You’re not excused,” James responded. But he grunted as he watched Remus turn and resume their route, so he forced his own legs forward, and he began to walk towards their doomed destination once again.

“Huzzah!” Peter shouted in celebration, scurrying after him.

“It’s a miracle!” Sirius gasped, throwing an arm around James’s shoulders. “Maybe I’ll convert from atheist to agnostic now.”

James chuckled nervously, fighting the urge to run very far away. He thought he could read Lily like a book, but with each step towards her house he felt increasingly doubtful of her intentions, how she would react when he arrived. It was the last time he could dream about what would happen when she sees his face again, and living in the best-case scenario fantasy was much easier than doing it in reality. But he knew if he didn’t seize this opportunity to apologize to Lily, he would never get another chance. And so he trudged on until they reached their destination. He could faintly hear the music that was blaring inside. Mary and Marlene were on the front porch laughing, Lily standing beside them.

Lily, who took his breath away with a singular glance, had her hair up the way he liked, wearing high-waist, denim shorts, a white t-shirt, and that damn cardigan. He felt his airways clog up with desire.

Mary gave James a similar dubious look as she did in art class. Marlene, who was protective of Lily but slightly more sympathetic than Mary, gave him a tight-lipped smile.

Sirius let go of James as Remus hugged Lily. James was filled with curiosity as he watched them quickly exchange whispered words in urgency. Remus patted Lily on the shoulder before walking in to her house. Peter and Marlene followed, but Sirius loitered outside, putting his arm around Mary.

“Come, Macdonald. It’s a beautiful night. Let’s walk.”

“Where?” she asked him skeptically.

“To the other side of the porch,” he told her, winking at James as if to tell him I got you covered, before steering her away from James and Lily.

It was just them for now.

There were so many things he wanted to tell her. How beautiful she looked, how much he missed her over the summer, how sorry he was for everything.

“So, I showed up,” is what he blurted out.

“And so you did.” She gave him a once over. “You look nice.”

“So do you,” he responded in haste. “More than nice- great.”

She shrugged, playing with the ends of her hair. James looked over to the other side of the porch and saw Sirius chatting up Mary, who was touching his arm and laughing.

For fear of Sirius’s distraction skills only lasting so long, James looked back at Lily. “Evans, I…I really need to talk to you. Do you think there’s somewhere we can do that with, er, a little more privacy? Like the garden?”

She bit her lip as she contemplated it. He tried not to stare, he really tried, but suddenly he felt like he was sweating.

Eventually, she nodded. “Sure. Follow me.”

She turned into her house and made her way through the living room and kitchen to the backdoor, striding without once looking back or making sure James was close behind. He followed her out the screen door and into the garden.

He sat beside her on the bench beside the orchids. The same bench where he kissed her last.

“The Evans household has a thing for flowers, huh?”

“What?”

“Well the garden has a lot of flowers. You and your sister, both named after flowers. These orchids are really nice,” he rambled nervously.

“Thanks?” she responded, looking at him suspiciously. “So, you wanted to talk?”

He cleared his throat. “Sorry. Uh, anyway. Thanks, yeah, I do. Honestly, I thought you’d tell me to go fuck myself.”

He could tell she was holding back a smile as she said, “I strongly considered it.”

“I’d deserve it,” he told her honestly, mustering up his courage. “I mean, I do deserve it. That’s why I’m here, I…I want to- no, I need to apologize to you for the way I acted the last week in school before you went away for the summer… I know you already know about it, but I…” he paused, taking a deep breath and locking eyes with her. He needed her to understand this. “I hope you can trust me when I tell you that what happened with Alison was just a summer thing…it’s over now.”

“It’s fine, James,” she said, breaking eye contact and looking off into the distance.

“No, it’s not fine,” he said in earnest. “It was stupid. Leaving the dance like that and not even talking to you and then only a few days later getting with Alison. It’s probably the worst thing I ever did. It wasn’t fair to Alison, because I was just trying to get you out of my head. But it especially wasn’t fair to you. And I’m sorry.”

The silence sat heavy around them before Lily sighed. She continued to stare at the flowers in the garden. “I just don’t know where it all went wrong.”

“I do,” he responded quietly. “At the dance, your favorite song was playing. ‘Lover’ by Taylor Swift. Remember?”

“Yeah…”

“Well, I wanted to dance with you to it-“

“I wanted to dance with you to it too,” she said, snapping her gaze back to his. Her look was fierce. “But I couldn’t find you!”

“I was sitting in the corner of the gym taking a break from the chaos. The dance was overwhelming. If it’s not a football game, I hate the crowds. You know that.”

“I do know that,” she replied, her face red. “Which is why I was trying to find you- I thought…God this sounds so stupid now. I thought we could dance to it outside or something.”

James tried to swallow, but it felt like his heart had jumped up into his throat. He forced more words out of his mouth. “It’s not stupid, that’s what I wanted to do.” They both smiled for a fraction of a second, but then his face dropped again as he told her, “But then I saw you dance with…him.”

Lily’s smile evaporated too. “You mean Severus?”

“Yes.”

Lily put her head in her hands. “Of course. Of course that’s what happened. God, how did I not put two and two together?”

“I know I was wrong now, I know nothing happened that night. Remus told me as much this summer,” he said, putting a hand through his hair, feeling the embarrassment spreading across his own cheeks. “But it was like my worst nightmare playing out before my eyes! I didn’t know you went looking for me at first, I didn’t know what you guys were talking about, I just saw his arms around you and was so angry I stormed out as fast as I could, so that I wouldn’t do something really stupid to him!”

Lily groaned, removing her hands from her face and pulling on her cardigan sleeves. “You could’ve spoken to me about it literally at any point after up until I left for my trip. I tried talking to you that last day in school and you gave me such a cold shoulder!”

“I know. And I’m sorry for that,” he apologized, hoping the sincerity was evident in his voice. “It’s not an excuse, but I was just hurt. We all know how obsessed Snivellus-“

“James,” she interrupted, rolling her eyes.

“Sorry, sorry, I know you hate that. We all know how obsessed Snape,” he corrected himself begrudgingly, continuing on, “is with you, and I know you two are like childhood best friends or whatever, so I jumped to conclusions when I saw you indulging him.”

“Well, you jumped wrong,” she almost spat. She was angry now, real angry, but James could not tell if her fury was directed at him or Snape. “I wasn’t indulging anything, he must’ve had his hands on me for fifteen seconds before I got him off me, told him off and stormed away.”

James felt a sense of relief and guilt tangled up inside him. “What happened?”

She fidgeted, exhaling deeply. “He was warning me about you for, I don’t know, the nine hundredth time at that point, saying how I should be with him instead, the usual bullshit. I went looking for you again but Sirius said you had left suddenly… And then you wouldn’t even look at me at school.”

“I was embarrassed. And furious,” he admitted.

“Yeah, I could tell as much.”

“But I still saw you talking to him,” James remembered, knowing it did not make a difference but wanting her to understand his entire thought process. “That last day in school. I saw you walk home with him. You two seemed fine.”

Lily frowned. “I was giving him one last chance to apologize, to salvage the small sliver of friendship I was still holding onto for only God knows why…we got to my house and he tried to kiss me. I had to physically push him off me, yelled at him like I’ve never yelled at anyone in my life, and he ran home. And that was the end of that.”

“Fuck,” James exhaled, feeling his anger burn every inch of his skin, boiling his insides.

“It’s ok, I’m fine,” she assured him, noticing how angry he looked on her behalf, and put the fingers peeking out of her cardigan sleeve on his hand to help level him. She let it linger for a few seconds in silence before bringing her hand back into her lap. “So that’s how my day ended before I left for Italy with my family. But I heard you had an interesting afternoon that day too, hm?”

It felt like a punch in the gut as she looked at him, her question pointed and knowing. His chest tightened as he asked, “Are you sure you want to know about it?”

“I’d rather hear it from you than Inez, so yes, if you’d please.”

He sighed, wanting so bad to look away from her but knowing he had to look her in the face so she’d see the remorse in his eyes. He summoned all the courage he had. “I saw you walking home with Snape, and was…besides myself. I took the long way home. Remember where we went on our date? That block with the broken cobblestones? I was walking there, thinking of you.” He paused and took a deep breath, Lily’s face still blank. “And then Alison pulled up in her car, noticed I was upset, told me to get in for a drive. It was like…a figment of my worst intentions. I thought you were with Snape, and Alison was throwing out hints left and right that she was interested, and so I went with it…we didn’t officially date or anything, but I spent time with her a bunch this summer. But it was so, so fucking stupid to think any other girl could distract me from you because…well, I dreamt of you all summer long. And so I told her that, and cut the whole thing off a couple of weeks ago.”

He paused, watching her face, hoping for a hint of what was racing through her beautiful brain. She was contemplative, searching his eyes. When she still said nothing, James reiterated, “I’m so, so sorry, Lily. About all of it…about Alison, about ignoring you those last few days at school, about assuming something was going on with you and Snape and storming out of the dance…”

Lily sighed, crossing her arms. “I understand. But it still hurts… I mean, I finally let you in and went on that date with you and I felt so… and then just so suddenly…” she trailed off.

“I know,” he empathized. “The thing I’m sorry for the most is not asking you to be my girlfriend the moment after you kissed me on our date. I was going to ask you at the dance, but obviously those plans got thrown out the window.”

“You were?” she asked, her arms dropping as her face softened.

“Yes,” he told her, needing her to believe him. “But not just that, I wanted to tell you how I feel, because I don’t think you really know, do you?”

She didn’t respond, so he took that as his cue to keep going.

“It’s my fault. I should’ve told you on our date, but I was trying to keep it cool, which was dumb, and I’m done with that. I’ve been…crazy about you since freshman year. I mean, I know I asked you out a bunch so you must have known I was interested, but it’s more than that. You are… the most special person I’ve ever known. You have a way of making everyone feel important. You’re so damn nice to everyone, I wish I had that kind of heart. And God, you are so smart it’s the sexiest thing-“

She started to laugh. When James’s eyes widened at this reaction, she shook her head. “I’m laughing because I think the same thing about you. Especially the smart and sexy bit.”

He smiled. “I mean, you’re so much more than sexy, you’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen. And when I’m with you I can just be myself. We just…fit, you know?”

“I know.”

“Evans, I’ll apologize for the rest of my life if that’s what it takes. I’m an idiot, an absolute fucking idiot for the way I acted. I’m still trying to figure this all out, you know? I’m only seventeen, I don’t know anything! I have no idea what I’m doing!” he laughed. She smiled back, and he took that as permission to hold her hand, and so he did. “But I know I miss you. More than I’ve ever missed anything or anyone. And I swear, I’ll never hurt you again. The only thing I want to do is make it up to you. Please believe me. You don’t have to forgive me yet, but at least say you believe me.”

There was a beat, and then Lily intertwined their fingers. “I believe you,” she told him. “And I forgive you.”

When James exhaled, it felt like it was the first time he properly breathed in months, his entire bodily system recalibrating. “Really?”

“Perhaps against my better judgment, but yes, really. I missed you, too.”

He suddenly felt electric, looking at Lily, letting her admission sink in. “I missed you so damn much,” he told her again, and unable to hold back a moment longer, he disconnected their fingers, put both his hands on her face and kissed her.

To his surprise, she kissed him back with matched enthusiasm, grasping at his sides and pulling him closer so that their bodies were connected. The feel of her was better than he remembered, more than he dreamed it would be. He moved one hand to the back of her head, and she opened her mouth to him. The world fell away as she let out a soft moan at the gentle sweep of his tongue. He sunk into her embrace and never intended to leave, because why would he need to do anything else?

But at some point, a few minutes too soon, Lily pulled away, leaning her head against James’s shoulder and breathing heavily.

“Alright, Evans?” he asked, kissing the top of her head.

She nodded against him. “Yeah, I’m just…hot.”

James chuckled, playing with her ponytail. “Well, that goes without saying.”

Lily snorted, picking her head up and looking at him, her eyes light and dazed. “No, I mean, I’m hot, like I’m sweating. Let me just…”

She pulled back just the slightest bit and unbuttoned her cardigan. As she shook out of it, her expression became mischievous.

“You wore that on purpose,” he accused her with an equally playful smile. “It was way too warm all day for you to actually need it.”

“Guilty,” she smirked, wrapping it around her waist. “I was hoping to spark something in your memory.”

“More like torture my memory,” he said, threading the sleeve through his fingers briefly. “You think I wouldn’t remember that you wore this on our date? The moment I saw you standing in your cardigan this morning, I knew I was fucked. I was distracted the rest of the day.”

“Too bad you didn’t see me sooner.”

“Well I would have if…”

He paused, contemplating whether he should ask her.

“If what?” she asked, looking at him curiously.

James sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Ok, random question, just thought of it like, one second ago, haven’t been ruminating on it since school started yesterday or anything. Did you switch your homeroom ‘cause of me?”

She raised her eyebrows. “Oh, so this is what you were bugging Remus about? No, of course not. I had to move my schedule around so I could take AP Lit.”

“Oh,” he exhaled in relief. “Well, good. But not good about you and my stupid friends conspiring behind my back-“

“There was no conspiring. You should be grateful for that stupid friend of yours; he pleaded your case rather convincingly.”

“He pleaded yours well too. Sometimes I don’t know whose side that guy is on.”

“Well mine, obviously,” she said. “Your assumption about homeroom was ridiculous. Did you think I was too afraid to see you or something? That I’m a coward?”

He tensed up again. “No! I would never- I just meant, I thought you were so sickened with me that the last thing you would want to do is start your day staring at the back of my head.”

She laughed, reaching over and running her fingers through his hair. He closed his eyes at the feeling, reveling in the familiar touch he last felt a few months ago, though it felt like ages. “Nah, I’m quite fond of the back of your head. An exceedingly annoying amount, actually.”

He sighed happily as her nails gently grazed his scalp.

“But as much as that may be true, and although I do forgive you, I do still feel hurt. And that trust needs to be rebuilt over time, you know?”

“I know. Lily,” her name left his lips like a whisper. Her hand paused on the back of his neck. He opened his eyes again and met hers, green and sparkling. He couldn’t blow it this time. “I really am so, so sorry. And I will do whatever it takes to make it all up to you. But can I do that as your boyfriend?”

She bit her lip, studied his face for seconds that felt like an eternity, and then nodded.

“Yeah?” he asked hopefully.

“Yeah,” she confirmed, smiling. “Let’s do it already. I’m in.”

“Finally,” he said, smiling ear to ear. Lily laughed, probably at the goofy grin on his face, before he swiftly swooped in, crushing his lips against hers again.

Her nails continued their work in his hair as she kissed him back fervently, pressing her body against his again, causing him to moan. He knew that every second he had with her was cherished, and he tried to cement them in his mind, but it was only a few minutes later a voice broke them apart.

“Lily!” Mary called out from a distance. They broke apart with a simultaneous sigh, turning to see her standing outside the back door, hands on her hips like an angry parent. Sirius pushed the screen door open, shouted, “Sorry, I tried!” and then retreated back into the house.

She marched toward them, a woman on a mission. “Really, Lil? Really?”

“Why, Macdonald, you look lovely tonight,” James tried.

“Do not test me, James Potter,” she snapped. “You can’t just-“

“Mary,” Lily called her friend’s name fiercely. “No need for the hostility. James and I hashed everything out-”

“Yeah, unfortunately, I can see!” she exclaimed in disgust.

“Could you give us some space, then? Please?” Lily asked. “I know what I’m doing. Trust me.”

Mary rolled her eyes. “Fine. But just in case you forgot, your party is happening in there without you. And you promised me a round of karaoke.”

“And I intend to keep that promise,” she told her firmly. “Just give us a few, alright?”

“Alright. I’ll be timing you though. And Potter, I got my eye on you,” she warned, pointing her index and middle finger to her eyes and then onto James.

He laughed, knowing that Mary always liked him before the summer and would soften up to him again eventually. “Understood.”

She nodded and walked off. They waited until the screen door closed behind her. Then Lily turned back to face him. “Sorry about that.”

“Don’t be, I get it,” he waved it off. “And I don’t want your friends murdering either of us, but there’s so much I wanted to catch up on, like your trip to Italy-“

“I know, me too,” she sighed.

He interlocked their fingers and lifted her hand to his lips. “Are you free tomorrow? Why don’t we get breakfast and take a drive, spend the day? That way no one can interrupt us.”

“I’d like that.”

“I’ll pick you up at nine?”

“It’s a date.”

Knowing his time was running out, he leaned forward and kissed her once more with all he had, feeling elated as she returned each kiss with her own, already excited at the thought of kissing her more in the car tomorrow. With as much willpower as he could muster, he pulled away from her, running the hand that wasn’t holding hers down the length of her arm until it reached the cardigan around her waist. He felt a shiver down his spine at the twinkle in her eye as she squeezed his thigh. “C’mon,” she said, pulling them upwards.

He walked dreamily alongside her to the screen door, hardly able to believe his luck. Before she could open it, he stopped her. “Hey. I just wanted to say…thanks. For giving me another chance.”

“It’s your last one,” she told him, kind but certain. “So use it well.”

“I will. I promise.”

#hp #harry potter #fanfic #hp fanfic #jily #james potter #lily evans #james/lily #james potter/lily evans #sirius black #marlene mckinnon #mary macdonald #remus lupin #peter pettigrew

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aingealcethlenn · 3 years

Text

I Hope

Characters - Bucky Barnes, Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff, Y/N

Pairing - Bucky x Y/N

Summary/Request - When she finds Bucky while out at a local bar with Natasha, Y/N must confront him about his lies.

Word Count - 1,434

Warnings - Angst, Cheating, Language (If you spot any other warnings I should add, please let me know so I can edit this post to include them!)

A/N - Based on “I Hope” by Gabby Barrett

Tags (Want on or off? Send a message/ask or add yourself here) -

Story -

Natasha sat at the small breakfast bar behind me while I worked in the kitchen. It had been a week since I had seen Bucky, and I wanted his return to be special. Just as I was finishing up the dinner I had planned for us; I heard my phone’s text tone go off behind me.

“It’s Bucky. Will you check it for me?” I smile over my shoulder at Nat.

She opens the message and reads it out loud, “Hey, baby girl. I have to stay late for some debriefing. Won’t be home until real early morning.”

I felt my heart skip and sink. “Well fuck. So much for a nice dinner, huh?” I turn to face Nat with a plate in each hand, a tight smile pulling me apart. “Can’t let it go to waste though,” I set a plate in front of her.

Nat’s soft yet hard eyes were analyzing me. “I’m sorry, Y/N. I know you were looking forward to having him home.” To her credit, she tried to sound sympathetic, but we both expected something to come up deep down.

Bucky had been acting distant for the last couple of months. There were rumors he was seeing someone else behind my back, but I pushed them aside. I refused to believe it.

He was a great undercover agent; he was probably just seen with someone else because he was trying to get information from them, right? I mean, that’s the only logical reason, isn’t it?

Nat and I chatted about different things. I know she was just trying to keep my mind off Bucky, but it wasn’t working. Every topic would end with a sour note of re-remembering why I needed to be distracted.

“Hey,” Nat said suddenly, after the umpteenth time of my mind obviously wandering. “Why don’t we go out tonight? Just us girls?” The “girl talk” felt so foreign coming from her, but she said it with a twinge of sarcasm to make me breathe a small laugh.

I look up at her, a small and almost ungenuine smirk pulling at the edges of my lips, “Sure, why not.”

I cleaned up the mess from dinner and went to my room to get ready for a night out. Nat went digging through my closet, looking for something for her and me to wear as I took a shower and did my make-up for the evening.

Once we were ready, we made our way to a local bar with some live music. It was a small place, but it was perfect for a night out with Natasha.

After about an hour of us dancing and a fair amount of alcohol, something caught my eye. Or rather, someone.

“Nat,” I bit out, tapping on her shoulder, leaning in so she could hear. “Look over there,” I pointed just a few feet away to a couple making their way from the dance floor in front of the stage to a table close by. “Is that-?”

“It can’t be, Y/N,” Nat interrupted. “He said he wa—” She couldn’t finish her thought as the man of the couple turned to slide into the booth, and we got a clear look at who it was.

Upon closer look, not only was Bucky sitting at the table with his arm around another woman, but Steve and Sam were also at the same table.

I felt my entire chest fill with air, and I couldn’t exhale, my face heating up. Natasha could see the painful confusion in my eyes, and, setting her jaw, she turned to walk toward where the men were sitting. I managed to grab her arm to stop her, and suddenly I could breathe. “No, Nat,” I said. “Wait a minute.”

I pull Natasha along with me to a table out of others' way, still keeping the table Bucky and the others are sitting in view. Taking out my phone, I send a quick text to Bucky, just to see what he would do.

“Hey babe, any update on when you may be home?” I typed before hitting send, placing the phone on the table, showing Nat the screen. We both look up and watch as Bucky picks up his phone from the table, face completely emotionless, and sends a message back in reply.

“Sorry doll, there’s some paperwork I need to do, and I told Steve I’d go with him to the gym for a bit to workout too. I’ll let you know when we’re done. I love you.”

Natasha huffed, looking at me. “You’re not going to let him get away with this, are you?” Natasha was more upset than I seemed to be. Maybe it was because I had heard the rumors for so long, it felt like a puzzle piece clicked. I was more upset that he was dragging his friends into the situation than I was that he seemed to be cheating on me.

“No, Nat, I’m not.” I took a few deep breaths and tucked my phone back into my pocket.

Just as I was starting to walk toward the table, with Natasha close behind, the band announced that they would take a short break. Good, that means the place would be a little quieter.

We reached the table just as Sam & Steve appeared to be standing to go somewhere.

“Hey guys, out for some fun after work?” Natasha questioned innocently enough.

“Uh, yea. We figured we’d get a few drinks to unwind after the last mission. What, uh, what are you two doing here?” Steve responded.

“I could ask you the same thing, Steve. Especially since Bucky just informed me that you two were doing some paperwork and then hitting the gym.” Every word felt dead on my tongue. I looked between the two soldiers, Steve looking to his friend for an answer while Bucky just looked down at the table.

“Look, doll, I can explain. Just-” I put my hand out, effectively stopping him mid-sentence. My eyes were closed, so I didn’t have to see his goddamn face.

“No, James, there’s no need. Just like there is no need to come and get your stuff, I’ll have Tony come pick it up for you.” I turned to walk away, but he grabbed my hand.

“Y/N, please, just let me -”

Snatching my hand back, I couldn’t help but snap. “No! No, Bucky, I won’t listen. I won’t wait for you to explain. I won’t wait for you to apologize or come up with some bullshit excuse for what you’re doing here with someone else!” I planted my feet firm to the floor and took a deep breath to try to calm myself.

“Y/N, I had -” Steve tried to offer, but I stopped him too.

“I hope she makes you happy, Buck - that she makes you smile the way it makes me smile to hear your voice on the other end of a phone while driving alone. I hope you hear a song that makes you sing along and gets you thinking about her.” I sighed a little, trying to keep myself composed.

The girl just sat at the table, looking between the men and myself and Natasha, probably still wondering who we were to just walk up to the table.

“I hope you both feel the sparks as the night goes on and that you know she is the one by the end of the night, James. I hope she makes you feel freer than ever before and that you can tell your friends just how happy she makes you. I truly hope she comes along and wrecks every single one of your plans and makes you spend every last dime you have to put a rock on her hand.” I bitterly chuckle a little, thinking of the ring that was still on my finger.

“I hope that she is wilder than your wildest dreams and that she is everything you’re ever going to need. I really, truly hope that it comes all the way around and that she makes you feel the same way about her, that I feel about you right now.” I take the ring off my finger and set it carefully on the table in front of Bucky. “I hope she cheats, Bucky, just like you did on me.”

I don’t wait to allow him the chance to say anything to me. Natasha follows close behind, and we make our way back outside. I take a full, deep breath of the crisp night air and finally give in to the tears I had been holding back.

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shadowhuntertrash · 4 years

Text

@octoblus Sorry this is a bit of a mess I've had 8 tests this week lol.

Wolfstar

"I love you too."

Sirius had had a very long night. It had been a long day before that, they had been taking care of Remus all day since there was a full moon that night. Remus had really been struggling yesterday. He hadn’t eaten at all and he skipped all his classes, which was a sure sign that the night ahead of them was going to be horrid.

James had the brilliant idea to prank the Slytherin’s so when McGonagall called after class she also told Peter and Sirius to come. She gave them all detention even though it was only James who had pulled the prank. That just left a guilty James, an annoyed Peter, and one murderous Sirius.

They had detention until eight that night which made them all nervous. They were already supposed to be with Remus, it was always better for Remus when they were there. Mcgonagall had walked them back to their dorm afterwards to make sure they didn’t get into more trouble and had magically locked their door to make sure they stayed shut until seven the next morning.

They had stayed up all night stressing and pacing and trying to make the door open. None of them slept that night, they were all far too worried about Remus to sleep. Sirius was the worst of the bunch screaming at James everytime the door stayed stubbornly in its place.

“Sirius you’re not helping anything by yelling at us! The door isn’t going to open by your screaming!” James shouted back. Sirius’ started at the use of his real name. He glared at James and James ran his hand over his face exasperated. “Pads you just need to calm down. I know you’re worried about him but this isn’t helping him.”

Sirius had refocused his anger on himself after that which wasn’t any better. Eventually after long hours of trying their best they got the door open five minutes before seven. They all rushed out without a word. They found Lily in the common room reading and James quickly grabbed her and dragged her along.

Lily knew that Remus was a werewolf, she had never seen him the morning after though. She kept asking where they were going but no one was answering her, she abruptly stopped when she saw the shrieking shack.

Sirius was the first one inside and froze in horror when he saw Remus shaking uncontrollably on the floor covered in his own blood. Sirius’ feet began moving before his brain caught up and he dropped to his knees next to Remus’ bloody figure. He pulled Remus’ head in his lap and Remus let out a small gasp. Sirius carded his hands through the taller boy's hair.

“Moony.” He said quietly. Remus groaned and buried his head in Sirius’ stomach. Sirius turned with wide eyes and saw James staring at him, horror bleeding from every fiber. Lily was next to James, her hand over her mouth, tears pouring from her eyes. Peter was standing there frozen.

Sirius turned to James. “James, this is bad. I think we should get Madam Pomfrey to help us get him back.” James nodded and started talking quietly to Peter and Lily. Sirius turned his attention back to his boyfriend. “Moony can you talk to me?” Remus made a noise that was a mix between a hum and a whimper. His eyes were still closed.

“Okay babe, you don’t have to talk but can you open your eyes for me?” Remus’ eyes open slightly and Sirius smiled at him softly. Remus tried to return the smile but it ended up resembling more of a grimace. Sirius lowered his head and kissed Remus’ forehead gently. “You’re okay.”

Someone cleared their throat behind them and Sirius froze. He only just now remembered they weren’t alone. Sirius turned his head slowly to see James gazing at them softly with an understanding glint in his eyes.

“You know Lily called this, I told her she was crazy but now it seems that I owe her 10 galleons.” Sirius let out a slightly hysterical laugh and realized he had been holding his breath. He had been so worried about telling James because if James didn’t accept him he would lose everything other than Remus.

He lived with James, James was his family and the thought of losing him had sent Sirius into numerous panic attacks.

James walked over to them and put his hand on Sirius’ shoulder and squeezed. Sirius wondered why he ever doubted James’ reaction.

“I sent Lily and Peter to get Mcgonagall and Madam Pomfry.” Sirius clenched his jaw and looked back down to Remus whose face was contorted in pain. Sirius softly cupped his cheek and ran his thumb along a small cut on Remus’ face.

Remus turned his face further into Sirius’ hand. “I’m so sorry. We were supposed to be here. We should have been here.” Sirius said softly and realized that he had a few tears falling down his face. Remus frowned and closed his eyes starting to shake his head. “It was a bad night I wouldn’t have wanted you here anyway. I could’ve hurt y’all.”

James laughed humorlessly. “Remy, you couldn’t hurt us if you tried.” Remus opened his eyes and narrowed them. “That’s so far from true and we both know it.” Remus said, stuttering slightly. He was still shaking uncontrollably and Sirius pulled him in a little closer trying to warm him up.

James swallowed. “Okay fine, you wouldn’t hurt us on purpose.” Remus smiled slightly and slurred, “Exactly.” before promptly passing out. Sirius’ eyes widened as he shook Remus slightly. “Moony, hey Moony you gotta stay awake.” When Remus didn’t open his eyes Sirius shook him again, this time more desperately. “Remus, please, I need you to open your eyes.”

James grasped Sirius' shoulder tightly and when Sirius looked at him he gave him a sad smile. “He’ll be okay Pads. He lost a lot of blood, I’m honestly surprised he has stayed awake this long.” When Sirius made a desperate sound James flinched. “Okay wrong thing to say.” James was further saved by the door to the shrieking shack opening and hurried footsteps coming towards them.

McGonagll came in first gasping loudly as her eyes found Remus. “Merlin, is he awake?” James looked at Sirius as he answered, saving Sirius from having to talk. “He was, he passed out right before you got here.” Madam Pomfry entered the room with a big bad, followed by Lily. James raised an eyebrow. “Have you lost Peter?” Lily glared telling him silently that this was not the time for jokes. “He’s speaking with Dumbledore.” James gulped and nodded.

Madam Pomfrey walked quickly over to Remus and started cleaning the blood and wrapping the gashes. There were three very visible gashes, similar to the scars on his face, that were running along his side and bleeding profusely.

Madam Pomfry didn’t ask Sirius to move, not that he would have done it if she had. He stayed there Remus’ head still resting in his lap, still twirling Remus’ silky hair around his fingers. Remus didn’t wake up and everyone stayed quiet for the next ten minutes waiting for Madam Pomfry to say something.

She finally sits back and lets a puff of air out. “He’ll be okay but I need to get him to the infirmary.” Professor McGonagall nods and flicks her want murmuring wingardium leviosa. Sirius watched as Remus was lifted as if he weighed nothing and followed the others out. He was standing next to James who put his arm around Sirius’ shoulders, leaning in to whisper a quiet “He’ll be okay.”

Sirius nodded and braced himself against James, his legs feeling as if they might give out. Lily looked at him sympathetically, tear streaks standing out on her pretty face. She reaches out and grabs his hand tightly.

They all sat in chairs around Remus’ bed in the infirmary. Remus had been asleep for four hours. James had given Lily his chair when Peter had come back since there were only three chairs. James was leaning against Lily’s legs, his head tilted back so it fell in her lap with his eyes closed.

They were all exhausted and James and Peter were quick to fall asleep. Sirius was still too anxious to sleep so he watched Remus sleep, his leg bouncing noiselessly as he observed Remus’ peaceful face. Remus always looked peaceful in his sleep. Sirius had always loved it but now it just ramped Sirius’ nerves up more.He wished there was some feeling on his face, a smile, a frown, anything.

He shuddered and looked up at Lily to find her eyes already on him. She watched him for a moment more before speaking quietly. “He’ll be okay. I know you care about him like the rest of us but it’s different for you, isn’t it.” Sirius smiled at her.

He was glad to know her. He loved her almost more than James did (no one could love her more than James) in a platonic way. She was like the sister he never had and always needed. He was struck with the thought that their relationship would be so different if he had ended up in Slytherin, stuck with his prejudiced cousins. He had been taught to hate people like her but he constantly found that muggle born wizards were far kinder and far more understanding than purebloods.

“James says he owes you ten gallions.” Sirius said as a way of admission, Lily smiled widely and looked at Remus who was constantly moving who now lay still on the bed. “I knew it. There was no way you two weren’t together. Not loving each other the way you do.” Sirius blushed. They hadn’t said I love you yet. Sirius knew he loved Remus, but he was nervous as to what Remus would say.

“Yeah. I’m honestly quite shocked that James hadn’t figured it out sooner.” Lily laughed and looked down at the sleeping boy in her lap. She smiled fondly and ran her hands through his hair, he shifted and smiled slightly in his sleep. Sirius snorted, even in his sleep Lily had him whipped.

“I do love him Lily. I haven’t said it but I really do.” Lily smiled knowingly as Sirius sighed and stood up walking over to Remus. He sat on the edge of his bed and took hold of his hand. Sirius froze when Remus shifted in bed before groaning. Remus’ eyes fluttered open and he looked around confused until he met Sirius’ eyes. He smiled widely and Sirius thought he might cry.

He hugged Remus tightly, consciously avoiding where he was hurt. “Remus John Lupin don’t you ever scare me like that again.” Remus’ arms tightened around Sirius, still weak but he was trying. “I’m sorry.” He said quietly. Sirius pulled away and frowned. “You have nothing to apologise for, stop that.”

Remus laughed softly, “Siri you’re giving me whiplash.” Sirius found himself laughing at the inside joke. Remus always said that when Sirius switched sides on a matter too fast. Sirius reached out and patted some of Remus’ hair down. Remus leaned into the touch with a soft smile that Sirius returned quickly.

“Y’all are so cute.” Lily said from behind them. Remus slowly turned to her and smiled wide. “Hello Lils.” Lily stood up quickly, forgetting about James who sat up with a start, and ran over to Remus pulling him into a hug similar to Sirius’.

Remus hugged her back laughing. “I’m okay Lily.” When she pulled back she had new tears gracing her face. “Wass happening?” James slurred sleepily. They ignored him.

“They were all losing their minds and I had to keep my cool because they would lose it if I did!” Lily exclaimed hysterically. Remus grabbed her hand with the one that Sirius wasn’t holding. Sirius squawked. “What do you mean! You promised everything would be fine!” Lily glared at him through tears. “I can’t tell the future Sirius! How was I supposed to know! Not my fault you listened! Plus he is fine so I didn’t lie!”

Remus laughed at James’ lost expression. “Guys I’m fine. Thank you Lily for comforting them. I'm sorry to have scared all of you. And Pads stop yelling at her.” Sirius frowned and Lily beamed at him. James stood up awkwards and stretched before walking over to Remus and sitting at the end of the bed.

“We’re glad you’re okay Moony.” He said, patting his leg. Remus smiled at him. “Thanks Prongs.” James nodded and wrapped his arm around Lily’s waist. She let go of Remus' hand and sat in James’ lap.

Remus looked as if he was going to say something when Madam Pomfry came in. She looked surprised to see all of them. “What are you still doing here! Oh, Remus honey, I’m glad you’re awake. The rest of you need to go to lunch! Out! All of you, that includes you Mr. Black so do stop glaring.”

Remus chuckled as she pushed the rest of them out Sirius turned around once more. “I’ll see you later! I’ll come back!” Remus laughed again and nodded blushing slightly when Sirius winked at him.

Madam Pomfry turned to look him over, handing him a vial of something. He swallowed it quickly not caring enough to see what it was. She smiled kindly at him before taking the vial back. “You know those four stayed here the entire time you were out.” Remus gave a thoughtful hum. “How long was I out?”

Madam Pomfry patted his head. “About four and a half hours.” Remus’ eyes widened. No wonder Sirius had been so concerned about him. It never took him that long to come to. Madam Pomfry gave him a knowing smile. “That boyfriend of yours was quite worried.” She said winking, Remus laughed before attempting to half heartedly deny it.

“He’s not my boyfriend.” He said calmly. Madam Pomfry raised an eyebrow. “No one cares that much to not have feelings. If he isn't your boyfriend then he’s the suffering in silence type.” Remus found himself laughing again. Whatever she had given him made him feel lighter as if he was floating.

“Yeah. Do you think I could go to lunch?” He asks trying to change the topic, he needed to talk to Sirius anyway. She quirked an eyebrow but didn’t say anything. “I advise against it but you never listen to me anyway do you?” Remus smiled at her and shook his head. He pushed himself into a sitting position.

He was still hurting but it just felt like a dull ache now. He stood up, hugged and thanked her, and then headed out to the hall.

He needed to see Sirius. He had heard Sirius say that he loved him and he needed to tell Sirius that he loved him too. He hurried down the hall and stopped when he got to the entrance of the Great Hall. He had been planning to pull Sirius aside to tell him but when Remus saw him sitting at the Gryffindor table, his head thrown back mid laugh at something Lily had said, he felt a rush of affection and adrenaline pump through him.

He walked down the center of the hall, getting stares from everyone except his friends who hadn’t seen him yet and walked straight up to Sirius. When Sirius looked up at him he smiled in surprise. He started to say something along the lines of hello but Remus cut him off, kissing him square on the mouth.

Sirius responded immediately bringing his hands up to Remus’ soft hair and tangling his fingers in it, pulling softly. Remus was aware of the hoots and hollers of his friends and all the other Gryffindors but he couldn’t bring himself to care.

When he felt Sirius run his tongue against the seam of his lips he parted without hesitation letting Sirius roam his mouth. When they finally pulled away, both panting, resting their foreheads together, the entire hall applauded.

Remus laughed hysterically and Sirius smiled brightly. “Not that I didn’t thoroughly enjoy that or want to tell anyone but what was that for?” Remus smiled brightly pecking Sirius on the mouth again.

“I love you too.”

#wolfstar #jilly #remus lupin #sirius black #sirius and remus #sirius x lupin #james potter #lily evans #lily x james #peter pettigrew #minerva mcgonagall #madam pomfrey #fanfiction #mauraders

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fairylightsandchai · 5 years

Text

The Internship - Part 4 (Finale)

A/N: Hello, again! Just popping in again to say that I know I don’t usually post fanfic here, but I really wanted to take part in @darkficsyouneveraskedfor‘s Pre-Code Challenge! Just ignore this if you don’t follow me for fanfiction. :) Also, I’ll be adding tags in a reblog.

Read Part 3 Here!

As a side note, since writing this, I’ve made a side-blog dedicated to writing fanfic, so if you guys wanna check that out, click here!

Pairings: Dark!Professor!Steve Rogers x Reader, Dark!Bucky Barnes x Reader

Summary: You are a student in the former-Captain America’s American History class, and you soon notice that Professor Rogers has been paying more than a professional amount of attention to you. But when he approaches you with an internship opportunity that’s too good to be true, how can you say no?

(A/N: This fic contains non-con elements, stalking, and manipulation, and this part will inclue rape, breeding kink, and kidnapping. It is also inspired by The Wild Party, a film from 1929. I hope you enjoy, and please let me know what you think.)

Being back in your childhood bedroom was bittersweet. The same twin bed was pushed into the corner; the same pictures were on your walls. And yet so much had changed since the days when this was your home.

You lay curled up on the small mattress, watching your window with unseeing eyes. It had snowed last night; a pure white sheen rested over everything. The only disturbance to the blanket covering your front yard were the footprints and tire tracks your mom had left behind when she’d gone to the store that morning.

With a sigh, you rolled over onto your back, one of your hands coming to rest over your stomach. You still hadn’t told her. Hell, you were still having trouble accepting the truth yourself.

When you’d shown up shivering on her doorstep – barefoot, covered in blood, and with no luggage to speak of – she’d bombarded you with questions. You hadn’t been able to answer anything, though. In fact, you didn’t say anything on your first night being back home. You’d just shuffled into the living room, sank down onto the sofa, and cried.

After a night of fitful sleep, you’d told her the basics in the morning – that you’d been raped and kept as a hostage by a very powerful man. Her first reaction was anger, and she’d grabbed her coat and urged you to come with her straight to the police station.

But then, she’d seen your eyes. You hadn’t looked in a mirror yet at that point, but she’d always been good at reading you. She could see how helpless, how hopeless, you were. And when you’d told her that he was too powerful, too well-connected, to be punished for the crimes he’d done to you, she’d believed you.

After that, it was like both of you were grieving. She emailed your professors for you, explaining that you wouldn’t be returning to finish out your semester. She’d even hired some people to pack up some of the things from your apartment and bring them to her house; you’d told her that you didn’t feel safe going back, and she hadn’t questioned you.

Once you got past the initial shock of what had happened, you’d been a shell of your former self. All you could do was cry or sit staring blankly at the wall, trying your best to trample down the fear, the anxiety, that at any moment Steve would come busting down your mother’s door to take you back to his basement.

It was so bad that you couldn’t keep your food down, especially in the mornings. You’d given up on trying to eat breakfast altogether; after spending a sleepless night plagued by nightmares, you couldn’t keep anything on your stomach.

It was only after the second week of you being there that your mom started to question you further – not about who had done this to you, but, rather, a much more disturbing topic.

You’d been hunched over the toilet bowl early in the morning, catching your breath after another round of nausea, when you felt her comforting hand on your shoulder.

“Sweetheart, I… I need to ask you a question,” she’d murmured. “It’s an uncomfortable question, but it needs to be addressed, alright? Did he… Did he ever use protection?”

Your eyes had flown open, and you knew. You didn’t need a test to confirm what you already could feel in your gut, but you took one anyway, and your greatest fears had been confirmed. The trauma, the terror, that you now lived with weren’t the only souvenirs that Steve had left you with.

You were pregnant.

You still hadn’t told your mom, even though it had been a week since you found out. You’d always found a way to dodge the question, thinking stupidly that, if you just ignored it, if you refused to acknowledge the life growing inside of you, then it would go away. It hadn’t, though, nor would it ever, and you were faced with a decision to make.

Were you going to keep it?

With a sigh, you got out of bed, taking the first shower you’d had in days. You tried to keep your mind off of everything, to banish all thought so you could have a few minutes of peace, but everything reminded you of him. It was his fingers washing your hair, his hand scrubbing your skin clean.

“See how much better it is when you just let me take care of you?”

You sobbed, sinking to your knees as his voice echoed in your ear. How long would it take for you to be free? To be truly free of him?

By the time you got out of the shower, it was almost noon. After pulling on some leggings, an oversized sweater, and some thick wool socks, you made your way into the kitchen, deciding that you would start off with some coffee and, if you could keep that down, some toast.

You froze where you stood, however, when you heard the bell ring.

Feeling your heartbeat quicken, you creeped to the door, trying to keep your footfalls silent. Ducking your head, you peaked out of the peephole.

A policeman was standing on your porch, his hands shoved into the pockets of a thick winter coat. You let out a sigh, feeling relieved but also confused at his presence. You opened the door just a crack, poking your head out from behind it and trying your best to smile at the man.

“Hello,” you greeted him timidly. “What can I do for you, officer?”

He looked up and gave you a warm, close-lipped smile, and you were both struck by how handsome he was and how familiar he looked. You couldn’t, for the life of you, place where you’d seen him, but you knew without a doubt that you’d met before.

“Good morning, ma’am,” he smiled. “Are you Miss (Y/N) (Y/L/N) by any chance?”

You narrowed your eyes, feeling a pang of uncertainty.

“Why do you ask?”

He chuckled, taking his hands out of his pockets to show you his badge. You noticed that he was wearing leather gloves as he showed you his identification.

“I’m Sergeant James, NYPD,” he said. You turned the badge over in your hands, looking for any sign that it could be false, but it looked authentic to you. “I’m here in regards to an anonymous tip we received regarding you and a Mr. Steven Rogers. You might also know him as Captain America?”

You gulped, squeezing your eyes shut as you envisioned his face again – smiling at you, scowling at you, cumming inside of you-

“Wh-what,” you asked, shaking your head, “What kind of anonymous tip?”

“…I think it would be best if I stepped inside for a few minutes,” he said, taking back his badge. “You don’t look so good; this might be a conversation best had sitting down.”

You nodded hesitantly, slowly opening the door wider for him. You closed and locked it behind you before leading him to the sofa, sitting as far away from him on the couch as possible. Once you were settled in, he took his hat off, revealing neatly cut brown hair – it was almost a militaristic hairstyle, you noticed, but his clear blue eyes softened the look, especially when he leaned towards you and gave you an honest smile.

“Listen, Miss (Y/L/N),” he began, “I know that, if any of the allegations our anonymous tip made are true, then you’ve been through quite the ordeal, alright? I’m not here to question or judge you; I just need to ask you a few things. And, if you’re comfortable with me after our little talk, I would like to bring you down to the station with me to talk to a few of my colleagues, ok?”

You gulped and nodded, bringing your knees up to your chin and hugging them tightly. After clearing his throat, Officer James leaned back against the sofa, his eyes never leaving yours.

“Is it true that Steve Rogers abducted you?” he began. You closed your eyes, nodding.

“Yes.”

“What did he do after he abducted you?”

You felt a tear slip past your eyelids, and you jolted when you felt the officer’s hand on your knee. You looked down and saw that he was just offering you a handkerchief, though, which you gladly took.

“Thank you, sir,” you murmured, dabbing at your eyes. His smile only grew, and he gave you an encouraging nod. “Um… After he kidnapped me, he, um…” You paused, trying to swallow back more tears, and Officer James waited patiently for you to regain your composure. “After he kidnapped me, he um… He raped me. He kept me for five days and…and…”

You paused, setting your forehead on your knees and trying to breathe.

“Hey, hon, it’s ok,” the officer tried to soothe, but you flinched at the nickname. “So you’re saying that you never consented to any kind of sexual interactions with him?”

Your breath caught in your throat, remembering that last night. You had been the one to suggest going back to bed; you’d wanted him to fuck you, even if it was just part of your escape attempt. But, surely, that didn’t count… Right?

“I… No,” you finally answered.

“Seems like you had to think about that for a second there,” Officer James noted. “Are you sure that you didn’t-“

“What would it matter if I had?” you snapped. “The first time I tried to fight back, he hit me again and again and again, and then he raped me. I just… I didn’t want him to keep hurting me.” Your voice cracked, and you could see the sympathetic look in the officer’s eyes.

“I understand,” he said, but you only rolled your eyes.

“You understand? Have you ever been kept somewhere against your will? Forced to do something that you hate, that will leave you scarred for the rest of your life inside and out?”

“Yes.” Your eyes widened at the officer’s abrupt answer. His eyes were hard and truthful when he’d said so, and you immediately shut your mouth against any further protests.

“Now,” he went on, shaking his head to clear his thoughts, “Do you have any proof that it was Steve Rogers who violated you?”

“I… I have scars on my, um… my wrists,” you stuttered, pushing up the sleeves of your sweater so he could see where Steve had tied you up with rope. “And I could show you where he was keeping me; there’s bound to be evidence there.”

“Well actually, the police have already studied his home, and we did find DNA from the both of you,” he assured you. “That was the first thing we did after we got the tip; that’s why I’m here. But any semen or similar fluids had either been on the sheets, which Mr. Rogers informed us he washed before we could get there, or they’d been on another surface that he’d similarly cleaned. So, while we do have proof that you were there, we cannot prove that the two of you were…intimate.”

You gulped, feeling your limbs go numb at the sound of Steve’s name; he had survived. And he’d escaped. If this police officer could find you, then what was stopping Steve from doing the same?

“Miss (Y/L/N),” he went on, oblivious to your rising panic, “Steve Rogers is a national icon. He will have the best lawyers, and he will have the public on his side going into any trial. Now, I want to help you. Right now, we can’t prove anything, but if you come with me to the station, we can-“

“I do have something,” you interrupted him. Slowly, your eyes raised up to meet his, and you let out a shuttering breath before speaking again.

“I’m pregnant.”

The officer blinked once, twice, before fully processing the statement. His eyes widened, and he opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out as he stared at you. You looked away in shame, the world around you warped by the tears you were desperately trying to hold back.

“I found out a week ago,” you murmured, surprised he could hear you despite how quiet your voice was, “and I haven’t told anyone. Not even my mother. I… I wasn’t planning on keeping it, but if there has to be a trial, and if you need proof that he forced himself on me, then… I’m sure we could get a DNA test done to prove who its father is.”

“I… And you’re sure it’s Steve’s?”

You nodded. “He’s the only man I’ve ever been with.”

The officer was quiet for a long moment, clearly thinking hard about what you’d said, and once more you were struck with how familiar he looked; it was driving you crazy, not knowing where you’d seen him before.

“You must be feeling a lot of confusing…conflicting emotions right now,” he eventually spoke. “And I’m sorry you’re under such duress. But I promise that I want to help you.”

You gave him a small smile, sitting up a little straighter.

“That means a lot, sir,” you spoke. “I know a lot of people aren’t going to take my side over Captain America’s.”

The man smirked and shrugged, standing up once more.

“Well, to me he’ll always be a punk from Brooklyn,” he said. “Now, if you wouldn’t mind, could you come with me?”

“With you? Where are we going?” you asked, standing beside him. Something about what he’d just said was rubbing you the wrong way; there was something…endearing in his tone of voice when he’d called Steve a punk.

“Down to the station, ma’am,” he answered. “We’ll need to take your statement and ask a few more questions.”

“Do we have to go now? My mom-“

“Ma’am, Steve seems very intent on finding you again. You would be safest going with me, rather than waiting here for him to find you.”

You nodded, although all of your instincts were screaming at you to run away from this man.

“A-alright,” you managed. “My boots are up in my room; is it ok if I go and grab them?”

“Of course. I’ll wait right here.”

You gave him a forced smile before walking over to the stairs, climbing them slowly so as not to alert him. When you got to your room, you locked the door behind you before grabbing the burner phone your mom had gotten you for emergencies. You dialed her number with shaky fingers, but, to your dismay, you only got her voicemail.

“Mom,” you whispered, “there’s a man who says he’s a cop here at the house. He started asking me… He asked me about him, Mom. And he wants me to go to the police station with him. I-“

“Ma’am?” You jolted when you heard a knock at your door, and you backed away from it even as the officer called out to you. “Are you ok in there?”

Your doorknob jiggled, and that’s when you knew – there was something off about this, about him.

“Mom, I never told you, but the man who kidnapped me was Steve Rog-“

You screamed when your door was suddenly kicked in, and before you could do anything, the man was upon you, ripping your phone out of your hand and crushing it – just like Steve had done to your old phone.

“I’d really hoped it wouldn’t come to this, sweetheart,” he sighed. “I really do feel for you; Steve shouldn’t have done what he did to you. It wasn’t right.”

“Who are you?” you whimpered, kicking your legs as he picked you up and held your body against his. “Why are you doing this?”

“Doll, I really wish I could say I had noble intentions,” he grunted, struggling to carry you down the stairs with you thrashing around in his arms. “Wish I could say I was doing this for my friend, or in the name of whatever love he thinks he has for you.”

He ripped your front door clean off its hinges and started trudging through the snow with you still captive in his hold, and you screamed, begging the neighbors to come help you. When you got to the police car, though, you looked around and saw no one coming to your aid. With a rough shove, the man had you sprawled out in the backseat, leaning down to give you a smirk.

“But the real reason why I’m doing this is because Steve made a deal with me that was too good to refuse.”

With that, he closed the door, not even seeming bothered when you struggled to open it from the inside. No matter how hard you tried, though, it wouldn’t open, and when the man was settling into the driver’s seat he looked back at you through the plexiglass partition separating you.

“This is a police car, doll. You’re not getting out of it any time soon.”

You pressed yourself against the door as he started driving away, trying to wave at anyone who might see you being abducted. Even after you left Buffalo behind, you still tried to wave at any and all pedestrians, vehicles, or street cameras you could see. But no one helped you.

After an hour, you slumped against the leather upholstery, your head pounding from all the screaming. Your eyes wondered to your driver, your mind teasing you once more with his familiarity. You’d seen his face somewhere before. But where…

It was when his eyes made contact with yours in the rearview mirror that you realized. Years ago, you’d seen news reports of the bombing at the UN the day the Avengers were supposed to sign the Sokovia Accords. And after that, pictures of the ‘Winter Soldier’ had been plastered all over the place. He’d even been one of the ones to fight against Thanos before and after the snap.

And he’d been the man in Steve’s sketchbook.

Bucky Barnes.

“Bucky?” you breathed, watching in the mirror as a grin split his lips.

“There ya go,” he chuckled. “Was wondering when you’d realize it.”

“You’re doing this for Steve,” you sighed, feeling your newly-found freedom slip right through your fingers.

“Mostly, yeah,” he confirmed. “I mean, you hurt him pretty bad, doll. And not just with your little Swiss army knife. You broke the guy’s heart.”

“He raped me! He tortured me-“

“I know, I know,” he interrupted. “I know. He’s not the same kid I grew up with. And back then, I would’ve been ashamed of him for what he’s done to you.

“But I can get it. Neither of us are the same people we were back then. We both got so much darker, doll. I’m not saying what he’s done to you is right. And I sure as shit ain’t saying what I’m gonna do to you is right. But it’s a small price to pay for the things we’ve had to see and do over the years.”

Your blood ran cold, and you once more pressed yourself against he door, putting as much distance as possible between the two of you.

“What… what you’re going to do to me?” you repeated.

Bucky nodded, tapping against the steering wheel absentmindedly. You could see that he’d taken his gloves off, and now he had both hands, one flesh and one metal, exposed as he drove.

“That’s part of the deal Steve made with me. See, we shared a lot of things when we were younger. Toys, clothes, that sorta thing. So…when Steve told me that, in return for me chasing you down and bringing you to him, he would share you with me, the idea really appealed to me. The three of us’ll live together, just like a little family. Especially now that you’ve got a little one on the way-“

“You’re fucking insane,” you spat, starting once more to pound at the window you’d been leaning against. “You’re both fucking crazy!”

All Bucky did was chuckle, nodding his head.

“Yeah, you’re probably right, sweetheart.”

_______

Eventually, you must’ve fallen asleep, because when you woke up, the car was stopped and Bucky was leaning over you in the backseat, trying to pick you up. You immediately were on high-alert, and you swiftly kicked him in the chin and crawled around him, throwing yourself out of the car.

You landed face-first in the snow, and your bare feet were already aching as you scrambled to stand up. Bucky huffed but made no move to put his hands on you again, and when you took a look around yourself, you soon realized why.

It was nighttime, but the thick snow gleamed in the moonlight, illuminating the thick forest all around you. You saw the tire tracks from Bucky’s stolen car wind down a long driveway, disappearing around a bend about a hundred yards away from you; you would never outrun him.

“Go ahead and start walking, dollface,” Bucky drawled, coming to stand beside you. “It’s about three miles from the first stop sign. Ten miles from any neighbors. Go ahead and see how far you’ll make it before your toes start freezing and breaking off.”

You whined, hugging yourself in the cold. Your tears left frozen tracks down your face, and when Bucky put his arm around you, you couldn’t even muster the strength to shake him off.

“Listen, hon,” he murmured. “Steve is gonna wanna punish you for running off on him. But if you get it over with and let him do what he wants to you, I promise I’ll be gentle. I’ll even be nice. But you’ll have to behave.”

You let out a sob, letting him pull you into his arms as you cried into his chest. He shushed you softly, his footsteps crunching in the snow as he carried you to a small cabin close by.

You were right back to where you’d started. The only difference was that, now, you had two super soldiers holding you in captivity.

You held your breath as Bucky walked into the cottage with you, and you flinched when you heard a record player – ‘It’s Been A Long, Long Time’. It was the same song you’d danced to with Steve a month ago, and tonight, it had an even more sinister feel to it.

No words were spoken as he set you down on a sofa, and you kept your eyes resolutely on the ground. It didn’t really matter, though; you could sense Steve nearby. You could feel his eyes on you. You tried to keep your crying quiet, a skill you’d gotten good at over the last month.

You could hear Bucky whisper something to Steve, and then two pairs of footsteps walked away into the other room. You strained your ears, trying to make out what was being said. You thought you heard Steve’s voice say something like, “Are you sure?”

Eventually, you gave up, staring into the warm fireplace just to the right of the couch. The glow and heat radiating from it should’ve been comforting, but nothing could soothe the ache, the emptiness in your chest. You’ll never be able to escape, you thought. You should’ve given in when you had the chance.

All too soon, you heard the footsteps approaching again, and soon you saw a pair of jean-clad legs come into view. A throat cleared above you, and reluctantly you looked upwards.

Steve was glaring back down at you, and you were surprised to see his face freshly-shaven. Somehow, it made him look colder; you were able to clearly see the way his jaw was clenched as he stared down at you. He knelt down in front of you, getting onto one knee while his eyes searched yours. He heaved a sigh, setting one of his hands on your thigh.

“Bucky tells me you’re pregnant,” he started, and you gulped when you finally heard the voice that had haunted your dreams addressing you directly.

You looked away, neither confirming nor denying his statement.

“I wouldn’t,” he growled, “do anything that could tempt me to do something rash right now, doll. I would love nothing more than to tear you apart for what you did to me, so I’d suggest answering my fucking question.”

With a trembling bottom lip, you nodded, making yourself meet his gaze again.

“Yes,” you whispered.

Steve took in a deep, shuttering breath, bowing his head for a minute while his hand squeezed your thigh so hard that it was almost painful. You were stiff as a board as you waited for him to say something more.

“Typically,” he started, “I would be overjoyed at hearing that, baby. But I think you have an idea of just how much trouble you’re in. I loved you, and you…”

He trailed off, looking back up at you with an almost pleading look.

“You almost killed me, doll,” he breathed. “But more than that, you broke my heart. You made me think you cared about me.”

Your teeth clenched together, and you leaned forward, your nose nearly touching his as you spoke.

“You,” you murmured, “raped me. You kidnapped me and beat me and broke my soul. The only regret that I have is not sticking around to stab you in the heart.”

Despite the fury you could see rising up within him, you felt almost lighter. A part of you was satisfied with the glimmer of hurt you saw flash across his face, and despite how scared you were of him, you knew that he hadn’t totally broken you – nor would he ever.

After heaving a sigh, Steve stood up and grabbed you, roughly pulling you into his arms as he marched into the nearby bedroom.

“Is that how it’s gonna be?” he grunted, throwing you onto the bed. “Fine. You want to make me your villain? You wanna paint yourself as a victim with me as your big, bad ‘rapist’? Fine. Then I’ll fucking act like it.” You felt tears running down your cheeks as you tried to crawl away, but his hand wrapped around your ankle and pulled you back to him harshly. His other hand slapped you across the face so hard that you saw stars for a second. You blinked, shaking your head as you felt a sudden wave of dizziness.

“Oh, don’t cry yet, babydoll,” he chuckled. “Oh, no. Not until I give you something to cry about.”

As you waited for your head to stop spinning, you were vaguely aware that Steve was taking his clothes off. You knew what was about to happen, but still you couldn’t summon the coordination to try and move away.

“I tried to be good to you, doll,” he was saying. “I was gonna treat you like a goddamn princess. You could’ve been spoiled rotten. But instead you decided to be an ungrateful little bitch.”

You whimpered when he dragged you over to the edge of the bed, and without any warning he plunged his cock into you. You screamed and clawed at the sheets beneath you; it was somehow even worse than the first time. Because it wasn’t just the pain, oh no. It was the knowledge that you were trapped again, and the chances of you pulling off another great escape were nonexistent.

Steve immediately started pounding into you, the bed squeaking and shaking in protest to his harsh movements. You felt like you couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. You were just along for the ride as he used your body.

You weren’t really even wet, but that didn’t stop him. No, he wasn’t fucking you for your pleasure. Hell, he probably wasn’t even fucking you for his. His teeth were gritting together and his muscles were as taught as a bowstring as he focused on your body beneath him.

“I’m gonna fuck you every single fucking day, doll,” he grunted. “Gonna watch you get all round and swollen with my baby. You’re never gonna forget who you belong to again, you hear me?”

You could only whine in response, looking away from him. And that was when your eyes focused on the man standing across the room.

Bucky was watching you two with an unreadable expression, his arms crossed over his chest. You stared at him pleadingly, begging him with your eyes to help you, to stop Steve. But you were met with cold steel in response, and after a few moments you had to look away.

Steve was getting close; you knew all of the signs by heart. The veins in his neck were becoming more prominent; his voice was getting rougher; his thrusts were becoming harder and more irregular. You couldn’t tell if it was disappointment or relief inside of you when you realized you were nowhere near close to cumming, but whatever the feeling was, you pushed it down and tried to focus on anything but the man on top of you.

“Shit-!” With one last thrust, you felt him cum, his hot seed filling you up. You let out a sigh of relief, wanting nothing more than for this to be over with, but your hope were completely dashed when, after catching his breath for a few seconds, his hips bucked against yours once again.

“What?” Steve laughed after seeing the look on your face. “You didn’t think it was over, did you? Oh, no, baby girl. We’re nowhere near finished.”

You yelped when he flipped you over onto the belly, shoving your face down into the mattress so hard that you could barely breathe. His hand came down on your ass hard, and you tried your best to crawl away from him.

“Fucking lay still and take your goddamn punishment,” he growled, pinning you down with a hand between your shoulder blades as he spanked you once again.

He stopped after three more, though, and when you felt him pull away you knew better than to hope it was over. You weren’t surprised when you felt him kick your legs apart again, nor were you surprised when he crawled up onto his knees between them.

But when you felt your cheeks being spread apart, you realized with a cold dread what exactly he was about to do.

“N-no, please no,” you shrieked. “Steve, I’m sorry, I’ll be good, I’ll never do anything bad again, I swear-“

“God, I missed hearing you beg,” was all he said before thrusting into your ass.

If it weren’t for his hand pushing your face into the mattress again, you were sure you would have made your own ears bleed with how loud your scream was. The sting was unbearable; every thrust felt like he was splitting you in half. You could feel the movements of his hips in your goddamn teeth, and it took all of your focus just to breathe in and out.

“Jesus Christ, baby,” he panted. “You’re so fucking tight, so- fuck, so warm-“

You clung to the sheets as he started thrusting in earnest, struggling to lift your head up with the grip he had on your hair. You gasped for breath, vaguely aware that you were babbling, stuttering half-formed words that all amounted to please, stop.

“I wouldn’t have to do this if you’d just been a good girl for me,” he growled, bending over to press his lips against your ear. “You think I like punishing you? You think I like hearing you beg me to stop instead of begging me to make you cum? Because I don’t. But I have to be sure you’re sorry.”

“I-I am sorry,” you cried, trying to turn your head to look at him. “I’m sorry, I swear, I swear I’m so so sorry, Steve-“

“Yeah?” he asked, hips still moving at a brutal pace. “You’re sorry, huh?”

“Yes!” you shrieked. You managed to turn and look over your shoulder at him for a second before he pushed your face back into the bed.

“Prove it, then. Beg me to cum. Tell me you want me. And you better make me believe it, slut. Because if I have any doubt whatsoever, I’m gonna keep fucking your ass until you pass out.”

You felt his hand let go of your hair, and you shakily leaned up on your elbows, forcing your hips to move with his despite the pain. You arched your back, looking over your shoulder again at Steve, gulping when he met your eyes.

“Please cum for me, Steve,” you begged. “Please, I’ve been so alone since I left. I’ve been so bad, I… I deserve to be punished and you deserve to use me.”

The words tasted like poison on your tongue, but they were working. Steve’s eyes rolled to the back of his head as he kept slamming into you.

“Don’t stop, baby,” he growled, letting his head hang back.

“Please, baby, I want you to cum in my ass. I want to be good for you, now; I’m ready to be good for you, Steve.

“I… I love you.”

His eyes flew open at that, and you suddenly felt his hips give one last twitch before he came again. He let out a long, drawn-out moan, rocking into you slowly as he rode it out. You bit your lip and tried to lean away from him, desperate for him to pull out, but he wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you up onto your knees, your back against his chest.

“Fuck, baby,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to your cheek. Slowly, inch by inch, he pulled out of you, and you gave a relieved little whine.

When he let you go, you flopped onto your side; your legs felt numb, and you looked down to see blood smeared over your inner thighs. Steve gently rolled you onto your back, cupping your cheek and making you look at him.

“I’m not stupid enough to believe you meant that last bit,” he sighed, stroking your cheek with his thumb. “But I know that one day it’ll be true. You’ll see. I’m willing to give you a second chance, doll. You know why?”

He waited expectantly for an answer, and you stamped down that last spark of pride inside of you as you opened your mouth to speak.

“Because you love me?”

A smile stretched his lips, and the hand stroking your cheek turned rough, gripping your chin and pulling you into a searing kiss.

“Yes, doll baby,” he growled. “I love you so much. But it’s also because you’re mine. I own you, and if you ever try to leave me again, I’ll lock you up in the basement and leave you there to starve.”

He let go of your cheek and pulled away, and you heard him pick up his jeans behind you.

“She’s all yours, now, Buck,” he said. “I’m gonna go make some dinner; your plate will be in the microwave when you’re done.”

With that, he walked out, closing the door behind him.

Up until then, you’d been laying there limply, but upon being left in the room with someone you didn’t even know, you forced yourself to sit up despite the pain in your ass the movement brought.

“Well,” Bucky sighed, sauntering over to the bed. “I’m surprised you’re still coherent after that. I didn’t know Steve had it in him.”

You were tense while he walked over to the bed, but you slowly started to relax when you saw him sit on its edge.

“C’mere,” he said, patting the space next to him. “I’m not gonna fuck you tonight.”

Your eyebrows furrowed, but you eventually crawled over and sat next to him, leaving a safe amount of distance between the two of you.

“But… I thought that I was part of your deal with him,” you said.

“Oh, it is,” he nodded. “And I plan on fucking you tomorrow. But, uh… Well, no offense, doll, but your pussy isn’t all that appealing with blood and another man’s cum dripping out of it. Not to me, at least.”

Your cheeks burned with shame and you turned away. Bucky sighed and set his hand on your thigh, and when you scooted away from him, he made no move to pull you back.

“Listen, hon. I meant it when I said that I realize this is a fucked up situation. And I also meant it when I said that I wanted a family with you, Steve, and your bun in the oven. I think both of us know that you’re not getting out of this, right?

“I mean, you could run away. I’m not saying it’s impossible for you to escape from us, but what’ll you do after you get out? He’ll be able to find you wherever you go on this planet. And most people out there wouldn’t believe your story if you told them. And even if they did, this is Steve we’re talking about. No prison can hold him, and Stark will get him the best lawyers in the country. You’re not gonna win this fight.”

You whimpered, knuckles white as you gripped the edge of the bed. Deep down, you knew he was right. You knew that you were trapped. But he didn’t deserve your resignation. He didn’t deserve to break you. You didn’t want to give him the satisfaction.

“I know it’s still hard,” Bucky sighed. “But if you’d let me, I would like to be able to at least be your friend. You don’t have to like me; you don’t have to trust me. But I’d like to at least be civil with one another. Ok?”

You made no reaction, and you heard the gears in his metal arm whir as his hand came up to pinch the bridge of his nose.

“Fuck, I’m crazy,” he muttered.

“You’re telling me,” you sighed. A laugh spilled from his lips and you saw him smile over at you from the corner of your vision.

“Listen, doll,” he started. “I’m gonna go eat. In the meantime, I want you to take a bath, ok? When you’re done, come in here and lay down. I’ll be here waiting.”

With that, he got up and left you, and you waited until the door clicked shut behind him before hobbling to your feet and waddling into the en suite bathroom. The bath you ran for yourself was lukewarm, and there wasn’t enough water in the tub to properly cover your body when you sat down in it, but you didn’t care. With the first rag you’d found in the linen closet, you scrubbed at your body, watching the white cloth turn red after cleaning the cum from your used holes.

You didn’t linger once you were done. Standing up from the now-pink bathwater, you dried off with a towel and drained the bath. You didn’t glance in the mirror, and you didn’t pause to take a breath. With your head bowed, you walked into the bedroom to find Bucky sitting on the bed wearing nothing but a pair of black boxers.

“I thought you said you weren’t going to fuck me,” you stated, startled to hear how lifeless your voice was.

“And I’m not,” he answered. “But…I’m not going to pretend that watching the two of you earlier didn’t make me horny. If you do as I say, I’ll make it worth your while.”

You felt no fear, no stirring in your chest as you made your way over to him, standing next to the bed. Bucky sat up as you approached, swinging his legs over the bed and spreading them wide. Your eyes darted down, seeing that he was already half-hard.

“Go ahead and get on your knees for me, sweetheart,” he commanded. You did as he said without having to be told twice. “Now take off my underwear.”

You stared ahead as his stomach as you complied, rolling his boxers down his legs and tossing them to the side.

“Have you ever done this before?” he asked, tilting your chin up. Your eyes were still looking forward, unseeing.

“No.”

Bucky hummed and dropped your chin, reaching down to hold the base of his cock.

“Well, ya gotta start somewhere, I suppose. Start off by-“

You batted his hand away, replacing it with your own and squeezing his shaft. You hardly even registered the stilted gasp he made when you started to stroke it, pausing only to lick your palm.

“Jesus, hon, you’re-“

He was cut off when you leaned forward, licking a stripe up the slit on his head, ever looking forward, the numbness in your legs seeming to spread into your chest. You felt…empty, totally empty, as you wrapped your lips around the head of his cock, going off of instinct to get the deed over and done with.

“Sh-shit, ok,” the man above you groaned. He was now fully hard, and his hands moved into your hair as you started bobbing up and down, taking more and more of his cock with each downward stroke. “Fuck, doll, I wasn’t exactly expecting this.”

You didn’t make a sound as you struggled to swallow around his cock; he wasn’t quite as long as Steve, only shorter by maybe an inch or two, but he was just as thick. Your jaw was already sore, but you pressed on, thinking back to all of the smutty romance novels you’d secretly indulged in and trying to copy what you’d read about the characters in them doing.

You breathed through your nose and bobbed up and down, gripping his shaft and stroking whatever you couldn’t fit. When Bucky’s hips stuttered upwards you gagged a bit, pulling back to take a calming breath before getting right back to it.

“Ohhhh, fuck,” he breathed, letting himself fall back onto the bed as he guided you to move faster. “That’s so good; fuck, how are you so good-“

You didn’t let up, letting him guide your pace until, with a groan so deep that you swore you could feel it in your chest, he was cumming down your throat. You gasped in surprise, gagging at the sudden intrusion, but only a little bit dribbled down your chin before you reflexively swallowed.

“God, baby…” Buck sat up on his elbows, watching as you sat back on your heels and wiped your chin. “What the fuck came over you?”

You only glared at him, getting up onto your feet on wobbly knees. His smirk only grew, though.

“There it is,” he grinned. “The anger. I knew it was coming at some point. For what it’s worth, I’d be angry too. But I think I know what’ll help. Come over here.”

He patted his stomach, and you hesitantly walked over, climbing up onto the mattress beside him. You let out an undignified squeak, though, when his hands pressed against the back of your thighs, manhandling you until you were straddling his neck.

“What are you doing?” you asked, fighting to keep your balance.

“I know that you must be tired of being used tonight, doll,” he said, pressing a quick kiss to your inner thigh. “So why don’t you use me for a change, huh?”

He grinned and licked his lips, and you froze when you realized what he wanted you to do. The real surprise came, though, when your pussy clenched at his words.

“I… I don’t-“ you tried to say, but he leaned up, swiping his tongue against your slit before letting it fall back again.

“C’mon, it’ll feel good,” he cajoled. “I learned this in Paris from a lady who had no doubts about what she wanted in life. And she sure seemed to like it when we did this.”

You bit your lip and looked away from him, fighting back the shame blooming in your chest as you hesitantly lowered yourself closer to his face.

As soon as you were close enough, Bucky wasted no time in delving in, pushing his tongue past your folds and lapping softly at your clit, running the flat part of his tongue up and down slowly. You gasped, closing your eyes as you felt your body responding despite its soreness; you could already tell how good he was at this.

He let out an obscene moan as he trailed further down, sliding his tongue past your entrance and running it along your walls. You hated to admit it, but its cool wetness soothed the ache left behind by Steve, and a moan worked its way out of your mouth before you could bite it down.

“C’mon, baby,” he encouraged you. “I wanna hear how I’m doing; let me know what feels good.”

Your hands sought out his hair of their own accord as he started tongue fucking you, your hips rocking in time with him. Every now and then, he would pull back to lap at your clit, spreading your wetness over the tight little bud until you felt your legs trembling.

“Bucky-!” you gasped, falling forward to support yourself with your hands. You’d never felt like this before; a part of you was extremely satisfied that he was better at this than Steve. That part of you wanted to moan and scream and gloat in Steve’s face that Bucky was bringing you more pleasure with his tongue than Steve ever had.

You felt your orgasm coming over you fast, and all you could do was buck your hips and grip Bucky’s hair. Somewhere close, though, you registered the sound of a door opening, and you turned your head to see Steve leaning in the doorway, watching you with narrowed eyes as you rode Bucky’s face.

You gasped, trying to pull away, but Bucky’s hands gripped your hips hard, pulling you back down and shoving his tongue inside you. The moan you let out was borderline pornographic as you felt your pleasure build up inside you, pushing you through your climax so hard that your ears started ringing. Your hips spasmed, but Bucky held them steady, slowly lapping at your pussy while letting out a content hum.

Once your body stilled, you rolled over onto your back, trying to slow your breathing as you watched Steve turn away from you and look at Bucky.

“You learn that in Paris?” he asked.

“Yep.” Bucky smirked and licked his lips, his stubble glistening with your juices. “I’ll coach you sometime, Stevie. She sure seemed to like it.”

For the first time that evening, Steve’s smile didn’t hold any malicious intent, and he looked up at you before turning back to his friend.

“I don’t need you to teach me how to please my girl, Buck.”

Bucky rolled his eyes and pulled himself to his feet, bending over to grab his boxers.

“I think she’s our girl now.”

You closed your eyes, exhaustion starting to take you over. When a hand came to rest on your cheek, you knew it was Steve, but you were too tired to pull away when he pressed his lips against your forehead.

“You hear that, doll? You’re our girl now. We’re gonna make such a beautiful family.”

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halothenthehorns · 3 years

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TLTNL- SEEN AND UNFORSEEN

Sirius easily caught the book and began thumbing through pages, muttering this would have been far easier if his twat of a friend would just hand it to him rather than losing his place every time. James ignored this and went to retrieve his son from Remus, quickly stepping out to change his diaper in the slight delay and then nestling back next to his wife with their child between them as Sirius started with residual triumph for Harry's finally able to speak out like he did.

Luna said that Harry might have to wait for the next issue for his article to be published, as her daddy was expecting an expose on the Crumple-Horned Snorkack.

"It's good to know I'm not everybody's top priority," Harry said indulgently. He may have a good feeling about that paper, but he still wasn't sure how much good it would do, so best to put it out of his mind for now.

The whole experience hadn't been easy for Harry, as Rita had demanded every detail Harry could remember.

Lily huffed in agitation that vile woman was pressing her son for those details, hating the irony that Skeeter had finally gotten her exclusive article she'd always wanted, but at least happy enough Harry was on board with this one.

Knowing this was his chance to speak out, he'd given everything he was asked, but still wondered if anyone would believe it. Yet the breakout of Azkaban left Harry with a burning desire to do something!

At dinner, Dean overheard what Harry would be doing and said he couldn't wait to see what Umbridge would do when she found out. Seamus was on his friends other side and apparently ignoring them, but Harry could tell he was listening.

"Guess it's better than calling you a nutter again," James frowned at this continuation, clearly the Death Eater breakout hadn't been good enough to push someone who should know Harry on some level back into reason.

Neville agreed it was the right thing to do, people should be made aware Voldemort was out there, what his Death Eaters could do. Harry caught Seamus' eyes, but the other quickly looked back down at his plate.

"You think Dean's secretly helping Seamus with all the spells he's learning from the DA?" James asked.

"Well I'm sure Dean hasn't exactly told where he's learned them from," Sirius reminded of Hermione's little spell with a proud smirk, "but I wouldn't be surprised either."

His dorm mates left not much later, but Harry stuck around waiting for Ron's Quidditch practice to be over.

Remus let out a low whistle of surprise for such a long running practice, his two friends looking far more disappointed they hadn't gotten to hear about that instead of two-thirds of that Hogsmeade visit.

Cho was spotted first, coming in with her friend Marietta. Hermione saw this and asked why he'd shown up so early before without her?

"At least Hermione can talk you through it," Lily told him, glad that her son had seemed to follow their commentary well enough, but it would still be even better if someone had explained this to him in his time.

"I'd rather just never speak of it again," Harry grumbled.

Harry stated it was a complete fiasco.

"Well I'm glad you're chatting with her about this," James smirked, "far more than I ever got, you've now experienced Sirius' advice first hand."

"Hey!" Sirius yelped, "it's not my fault the woman's the most stubborn creature at school." Sirius clearly repeated an old statement.

Lily raised a brow at him, before looking at a suddenly uncomfortable James, and asked, "exactly how many of your blasted attempts were of his doing?"

James had the grace to fail to answer that, Remus was laughing too hard to answer, and Sirius kept going loudly so he wouldn't have to.

He explained the whole instance, ending with her storming out, and asked of her what on earth had been going on?

Hermione told Harry he was tactless.

"Hey!" Harry spluttered, now much preferring his mum's words.

Lily was still watching James critically, and he was happily ignoring her look by playing with his son's fingers.

Harry was outraged that was her conclusion. They'd been having a nice chat until she'd brought up Roger Davies, and then it had all gotten out of hand.

Hermione began to patiently explain as if to an over-emotional toddler,

All three boys got a chuckle out of that, though none of this was improving Harry's mood at the lot of them ganging up on him in past and present.

that he shouldn't have mentioned her halfway through his date.

Harry spluttered in protest Hermione had asked him to, how was he supposed to bring Cho along without telling her?

Hermione said he should have phrased it differently, still with that maddeningly patient air.

Lily was smothering her own laughter now, finally distracted from eyeing James. Hermione, with her two male best friends, should know better than anyone what if felt like to explain these things to them.

He should have made it seem like a drag Harry had to do this, he'd much rather spend all his time with Cho, but Hermione really had made him swear so he now had an obligation and to really make her feel as if she was more important by pleading with her to come along. It would have helped if he'd also mentioned how ugly Harry found Hermione.

"That is so unnecessary," Remus stated as he eyed Lily, "I'm sure she'd find it just as insulting his pandering to her need."

Lily just shrugged. She wasn't going to try speaking for Cho. She was privy to knowing what Harry had meant and so understood her son's position better than Cho likely had. Plus she'd never had much insecurity in the man in her life, he'd never been secretive about his intentions. Yet at the same time, it was clear she was the only one in here who understood why Hermione had said it that way, it would have helped soothe Cho more than what Harry actually did.

Harry's only response to that was to say he didn't find Hermione ugly.

"At least I could have told you that wouldn't have been helpful in the face of Cho," Sirius offered.

"Thank you Padfoot, I think I could have worked that one out," Harry rolled his eyes.

Hermione just laughed, saying he was as bad as Ron, or perhaps not she amended with a sigh,

All five of them couldn't help a soft snort of amusement at Hermione suffering her own plight of love.

as Ron himself came stomping into the Hall splattered with mud and looking grumpy.

"I'm guessing practice didn't go well," Remus said conversationally.

"I still can't imagine coming away from a practice in such a bad mood," James stated, his tone enough to state the idea was lost on him. "Quidditch is how you relieve stress."

Hermione continued explaining for Harry that Cho was trying to make him jealous after he'd bought Hermione up, it was her way of seeing who Harry liked more.

Harry protested why couldn't she have just said that? Ron clearly wasn't joining in the conversation just yet as he sat down on the bench and began pulling every plate towards him.

"Dessert for dinner, that's got to be some consolation," Sirius chuckled.

Hermione just said it wasn't common for girls to be asking that.

"I love my wife," James needlessly declared as he grinned at her.

"I've never asked anything like this of you," Lily rolled her eyes at him.

"I know," he smirked as she made his point.

Harry said they should! He could have just told her he fancied her, instead of her bringing up Cedric again!

Hermione agreed it hadn't been sensible, but she was just trying to help Harry understand how Cho had been feeling.

Harry just muttered something about he wasn't looking forward to a repeat, or if he had to, maybe he could sneak Hermione along under the cloak so it wouldn't go as bad again, or maybe Ginny if she'd help him out in trade of getting her out of a Quidditch practice she so clearly hadn't wanted to be in...

Ron told Hermione she should write a book, translating things girls did so boys could understand them.

"That would be a bestseller," Sirius agreed.

"I love Ron just automatically took to the important part of that conversation," Remus snickered.

Harry agreed at once, but as Ginny joined decided to change the subject and asked how practice had gone?

Both said it was a disaster, Ginny stating Angelina was nearly in tears by the end.

"That poor girl," James said with honest sympathy. He'd been lucky to have such a fantastic team his final year, yet every time Angelina turned something happened to hers this year.

The two ate quickly without much more detail and then vanished to clean themselves up, Harry and Hermione finally going back to the common room to start some homework. They were interrupted by the twins showing up, asking if their younger siblings were around yet? When confirmed they weren't, they decided to share more details, having looked in on the practice, and stating what rubbish the team was.

Lily struggled to hold back a new wave of pig headed comments about the new mischief makers of this school, her restraint not helped at all by the sympathetic look growing on James.

George did defend Ginny wasn't bad, an oddity as none of them had ever let her play.

Hermione inserted this was because she'd been stealing their brooms since she was six and practicing on her own.

"Ginny keeps getting better with every mentioning," Remus chuckled.

"Absolutely better than the little fangirl," Harry agreed full heartedly, even if he did look back on that with far more humor than he would have thought.

George now looked impressed as he said that explained things.

"He's so casual about having his stuff being nicked," Sirius grinned as well even if he knew he'd have gone off on Regulus for doing the same.

Hermione tried her hardest not to look up from her work as she asked if Ron had saved one goal?

Fred rolled his eyes as he stated he was quite good when he thought no one was watching. Therefore all they had to do at the next match was have the whole crowd turn their back when the ball was at his end of the pitch.

All four boys groaned and shifted restlessly, James wishing more and more someone would offer Ron some actual helpful advice rather than just complaining about the problem.

Then Fred shifted restlessly as he looked out the window, saying Quidditch had been the only thing this place had been worth staying for.

"That was true several months ago now," Sirius scoffed, "I've no clue why they stuck around after what Umbridge pulled, I haven't heard a lick of revenge from them about it."

"Sirius," Lily said in exasperation. "They've been at it this long, even if they don't care about the grades they may as well finish school by this point they're so close."

"I thought the reason they hadn't bailed was because they didn't want their mum to have more worries," Remus reminded. "That's hardly gone away, if not worse with their fathers recent injury."

Sirius turned back to the book in hopes the twins would give some better answer.

Hermione looked sternly at them as she reminded of their exams.

Harry burst out laughing that the closest thing to have crossed their minds in here was his mother's words, and even she hadn't seemed that concerned about it.

Fred scoffed they were not worried about that one bit. Their Snackboxes were now good to go, Lee had turned them onto this essence of Murtlap and that had cured the boils.

James gave a loud applause at his son yet again helping out the twins, this time even unintentionally! Sirius though cracked up even harder as he realized it was Hermione who'd been the pin in this one, and wondered if anyone ever realized the connection.

"I want to know what possessed them to put that in what they eat," Lily crinkled her nose.

"A bit brilliant though," Remus grinned, "considering the essence is to help ease sore skin, and I can't think of a place they were more sore. If they'd put it on those boils, and realized it made them go away, then the next step would be adding it to their batch."

Lily narrowed her eyes with worry in here that this idea clearly didn't bother a single one of them, there was a reason she cooked in this house.

George kept on point and stated he didn't even want to go to the match this weekend, he'd kill himself if he saw Zacharias won.

"Kill him more like!" James scolded.

Fred corrected kill him instead.

Sirius whooped with laughter and James even joined in that time with glee.

Hermione said this was the whole trouble with Quidditch, it created too much bad blood between houses.

The boys looked properly scandalized at this, but Lily defended Hermione on this one. "I may not like the sport much either, but I think a few things could be altered to make it more bearable for those who aren't obsessed with it."

"Like?" James challenged, clearly already convinced she could offer nothing for this.

"What if, instead of pinning the house teams against each other, any person from any house could be on four separate teams? Captains would still be chosen one from each house, and you'd have to create some structure for how each team got players so that nothing too dirty could be abused during selections, but it would do even more good to support a school unity rather than having another way for them to compete against each other. We already have the House Cup for that."

Her speculation ended there, for now, but she looked around and grinned further when she saw none of the boys were immediately dispelling the idea.

Sirius scrutinized her for an extra minute, but failing to come up with an argument against that, continued for now.

She looked up in the silence to see all those around her looking at her with incredulity.

"Well she did say that to the three players who'd been booted off the team for something entirely not their fault," Sirius defended.

Hermione insisted it did, it was only a game.

James opened and closed his mouth in outrage, and Harry was quite thankful his friend wasn't here now, or she may have gotten her ear chewed off.

Then she snapped at least her happiness wasn't dependent on Ron's goalkeeping ability.

Remus inhaled through his teeth as he watched his friends blanch at that spurn even through the book.

Harry would rather have jumped off the Astronomy Tower than admit it to her, but by the time he had watched the game the following Saturday he would have given any number of Galleons not to care about Quidditch either.

"I blame this on your father," Lily told him.

"It's half Ron's fault," Remus said fairly, "he got Harry into the details of it."

"No," James shook his head to try and distract himself from his own disappointment, "I take full responsibility for this."

The nicest thing to be said, it was short. It was debatable what was worse in the twenty-two minutes, Ron's fourteenth failed saves, Sloper hitting himself with the bat instead of the Bludger, or Kirke actually falling off his broom in surprise after Zacharia had startled him.

"I'm going with that last one," Sirius said critically.

"I'm crying on the inside just hearing about it," James moaned at the display.

Ginny was the only saving grace, managing to make their team only lose by ten points, as she'd caught the Snitch under the other Seekers nose, the final score coming out two hundred and forty to two hundred and thirty, Hufflepuff.

All four boys simultaneously groaned at the idea so many goals had been made, but tried to cheer slightly Ginny had pulled that off! Harry in particular found it a novelty at all to be watching a game from his school and with his disappointment still had far more fun watching Ginny play his usual position than he would have thought.

That evening Harry at least congratulated Ginny on her catch, which went unnoticed in the common room which resembled a particularly dismal funeral.

"I can easily imagine," James hung his head in agreement, he couldn't claim his team had won every game either.

Ginny just said she was lucky, Summerby sneezed at the right moment.

"She shouldn't downplay her own win," Harry rolled his eyes.

"Like you would have done," Sirius snorted, which Harry failed to answer.

Then she changed to saying when Harry was back on the team-

Harry corrected he had a lifelong band.

Ginny corrected right back only so long as Umbridge was here,

"How did you need her to remind you of that," James shivered, "it's the only thing getting me through these."

"Really James? The only thing eh?" Lily demanded of him.

He denied answer, even if he wouldn't take his comment back.

and once Harry was back, she'd go try out for Chaser. Angelina and Alicia were leaving after this year, and she preferred goals to Seeking.

Harry had a very bemused smile in place the others all put down to him trying not to remember something about whether this happened or not.

Harry had nothing to say to that and instead glanced to where Ron was sitting all by himself. Ginny whispered Angelina still wouldn't let him resign, she knew he had it in him.

"Credit to her then," James agreed with enthusiasm, though Remus shook his head in a bit of pity as well, at some point that must feel as much like a punishment as encouragement.

Harry liked Angelina for her faith, but at this point may have found it kinder, especially after the pitch had yet again been filled with another chorus of Weasley is our King.

"I can't wrap my head around the fact that somehow banning the teachers from virtually talking to the students was okay, but not this song!" Lily seethed.

Fred and George wandered over again, Fred saying he didn't even have the heart to take the mickey out of his kid brother yet.

"It's really no fun if they're so despondent they won't react," Sirius agreed, Lily scrunching up her face at him as she thought he was entirely missing the point of not picking on someone when they were down.

Though it was tempting after that last one, then he mimed doing a doggy paddle in mid air as demonstration for Ron's abilities, but when no one looked around, decided to save that for parties.

"I'm sure he appreciates your restraint," Remus said deadpan, while Harry felt a nasty prickling feeling wondering why he couldn't remember Fred doing that again.

Ron took himself up to bed not long later, and Harry waited a few moments so he could pretend to be asleep.

"There's a proper mate," Remus said in understanding, before unbidden the idea of which one of his friends were more like that, and it wasn't the two in the room. He blasted that idea away quickly before it could poison more of his life.

When Harry went up there as well, he was snoring just a little too loudly to be believed, but Harry let him be as he sank into his own bed, still thinking about the game. If only he hadn't been banned, he may have been able to save his team some grace, he'd seen the Snitch fluttering by Kirke's ankle five minutes before Ginny had caught sight of it.

"He really is getting as conceited as you, at least about this sport," Lily snipped at her husband, before properly scolding Harry, "you don't know what you would have done in that moment as well, you've hesitated over the Snitch before so the other Seeker wouldn't come in as well. You might not have even seen it from where you were, you were in a different angle in the stands."

Harry did look a bit abashed at his moment, he'd never want to undermine what Ginny had done.

Umbridge had been sitting a few rows below Harry and Hermione.

"And we snuck down and pitched her head first to the ground below. After setting a teacher on fire, this was nothing!" Sirius kept going with absolute conviction as if reading.

"Technically Hermione did that," Harry pouted, "and you're never going to let that one go, are you?"

"No," all four said at once.

Harry shook his head at all of them before continuing to address Sirius, "and you know perfectly well there was no such thing said in there, even Dumbledore couldn't stop me from getting Cruicio'd by her if we'd tried-" he abruptly stopped, as if his tongue had rolled into his head and he'd had no other choice from the sting of his mind warning him further.

Sirius ignored where Harry had stopped and kept going with a mutter of wishes.

Once or twice she had turned squatly in her seat to look at him, her wide toad's mouth stretched in what he thought had been a gloating smile.

"Oh yes, because that's so much better than what I said," Sirius snarled in outrage, wanting nothing more than to sick a wild dog on her already and make this problem go away.

The memory left him raging with anger, and it took him several extra moment to remember he was supposed to be emptying his mind for his Occlumency practice.

"Have you once managed to do that?" Lily asked, an edge of fear trying to push out her exasperation.

Harry denied answering, which was answer enough.

He tried to do so, but his anger only managed to double and now he couldn't push past his hate for both teachers.

"I know that's what puts me to sleep every night," Sirius agreed with a smirk.

When he did nod off, he started with a dream about Neville dancing with Sprout in the Room of Requirements while McGonagall played the bagpipes.

"There's something really interesting in there," Remus said with a raised brow.

"Yeah, how come you didn't mention her wearing a kilt along with those?" James smirked.

"I thought only blokes wore kilts?" Sirius corrected.

"It was the first Scottish thing that came to mind," he shrugged, "that and potatoes."

"It was a dream!" Harry protested this conversation before it could go further.

They frowned at him for ruining their fun, but since McGonagall wasn't here as their foil, nor would they possibly have even dragged it out this far if she had been, he let it go.

He watched for a while before deciding to find the rest of the DA, but when he exited the room he found himself once again in the long dark corridor with a locked black door.

Harry made a guttural noise of frustration at being reminded of this again! Days weren't even passing in here, he wasn't even having the frequent dream as his memory returned except the two times so far, but as often as it was mentioned he may as well be.

For the first time, there was a crack around one edge, a hint of blue light creeping out. He moved forward, reaching his hand out to push it open no matter how futilely, but then Ron gave a rasping, genuine snore and Harry awoke in his room, with his arm outstretched to something miles away.

Sirius couldn't deny he'd had a rising sense of interest at this new alteration to the dream, but it also made him quiver with unease just as much.

He glanced up at Harry shivering at his side, there was some unreadable look on his face Sirius was more convinced than ever he didn't really want to know.

Remus either didn't notice, or as usual was muttering for himself and didn't seem to realize others could hear. "Well this can't be good, sounded like Voldemort's getting closer to whatever this thing is."

Sirius gave a heavy sigh in agreement before continuing loudly.

Breakfast the next morning started as usual, everyone else receiving their owl mail while Harry poured himself some juice, but then an owl landed in front of him. Considering he'd received all of one letter this year, he was sure this must be a mistake.

Sirius tried his best to hide his anger at this being true. He couldn't believe he was scared away from communicating with Harry! He'd even offered his pup another solution and the little birk had denied that out of some skewed idea he was protecting him! He wasn't even sure himself what it had been, but for Harry to clearly have just forgotten about it and not even bothered to check was maddening! He continued reading with far more hostility than a bit of mail should have offered.

He even checked the address on it, but the recipient was clear as day. Before he had time to react, half a dozen more arrived.

"This isn't like what happened to Hermione last year is it?" Lily asked in concern, remembering the amounts of hate mail the poor dear got.

"Luna said the article wasn't even out yet for him to be getting any," Remus disagreed, though now Sirius felt even more justified in his haste of reading.

The whole hall was watching in confusion at the flock of birds trying to surround Harry, but Hermione reacted first in digging one in particular out with a long, cylindrical partial tied to its leg and said Harry should look at this one first. When he unwrapped it, he found a copy of The Quibbler, with his own picture on front with the title declaring Potter Speaks Out: The Truth about You-Know-Who.

"Luna jumped ahead of schedule," James said with glee.

"Still not sure if I'm a fan of the rest of this showing up," Sirius said grumpily, eyeing the rest of the text with worry. If anyone had sent his godson a cursed letter, that meant Umbridge had let that through her screening of Harry's mail, and that wasn't going to go over well.

Luna appeared, shoving her way onto the bench near him so she could say her dad had got it out yesterday and sent Harry a free copy, she supposed all of these were letters from those who'd read it.

Hermione asked if they could go through them, and Harry bemusedly told them to help themselves.

"That's a better reaction than you usually have to getting attention," Lily chuckled.

Ron found one that was from a guy telling Harry he was off his rocker, while Hermione read out one detailing how Harry should be put in St. Mungo's for shock therapy.

Remus scrunched up his face in agitation for that particular suggestion, Harry was tortured enough thank you.

Harry found one that actually concluded in someone agreeing, and believing Harry.

Fred had one that said he couldn't decide what to think, and declared it a waste of parchment.

"Everybody wants to put their opinion out there, even if it isn't an actual opinion," Sirius said in an attempt at Remus' wise voice.

Remus rolled his eyes for his friend.

Hermione managed to find at least three more of people who Harry had convinced!

Ron found one from a woman who Harry had converted, and she'd sent a picture, he trailed off with a wow.

"Err," James said with concerned curiosity.

"I never got to see the picture," Harry answered with that bemused expression lingering in here, so he had no clue if Ron's reaction was to be a good thing or bad for that.

Inserting her girlish voice into their conversation, Umbridge arrived to demand to know what was going on.

"He sent out a request for toad repellent, he still didn't get enough," Remus said with a straight face.

Fred demanded if getting mail was a crime now?

Umbridge told him to watch his tongue or she'd start issuing detentions.

Lily bite down so hard on her tongue from shouting out in frustration for the grounds of this her eyes began welling up in pain. She could never stand the idea of that woman anywhere near Harry, never mind the casual way she dished out torture and no on in that school had done a thing to stop it!

Harry tossed his issue of The Quibbler at her for explanation, and then quickly looked to the staff table to see Dumbledore. He'd felt for a moment his headmaster was watching him, but for now it looked as if he was talking deeply to Flitwick.

"I've yet seen your instincts fail you," Remus said blandly, "so I wouldn't be surprised if you were right." It made none of them feel better this treatment was being continued as casually as Umbridge's.

Umbridge was gazing flabbergasted at the article, demanding what he meant by this interview?

Harry responded a reporter had asked him questions and he'd answered them.

Sirius let out a triumphant bark of laughter, everyone else getting a giggle out of that as well.

Her voice growing higher with anger, she asked of him when this had taken place?

Harry said his last Hogsmeade trip.

Her response to this was to ban him from further visits.

The three Marauders blanched in further outrage from that pond scum. The detentions were still worse, but if there was one thing she could do to strike them hardest, it was ban them from their home turf. She grew luckier by the page they weren't there in person to teach her a thing or two about how she was treating their boy.

Then began hissing how he dared!

"Yes, how dare he have a voice in saying what happened to him that doesn't conform to you," James said dangerously, that smile still in place turning eerie as he thought of yet more curses he planned on using on her someday soon.

Then she decided her message had not yet received, and took fifty points away from Gryffindor as well as another week of detentions.

Harry let out a low whistle even if his face was bland while he stated, "whoever would have imagined Umbridge would do me a favor in getting me out of an Occlumency lesson."

"This isn't funny Harry," James said flatly, his voice flat and his eyes flashing.

Harry raised his hands in surrender at once, wincing and regretting trying to make it funny even if in his own head he was still weighing the two on levels of awful and couldn't quite decide which was worse.

She stalked away with the magazine still in hand, and by midday had issued a new decree that anyone caught with this would be expelled.

Lily felt her mouth flop open in true resignation of the stupidity of these. How did they manage to keep getting more ridiculous with every one?!

The boys were so sick of these being made up on the spot and being passed as actual laws they'd even run out of insults for them, something they wouldn't have believed possible before.

For some reason, every time Hermione caught sight of one of these signs she beamed with pleasure.

"What do you mean, for some reason?" Remus asked Harry, he found the woman's own idiocy almost brilliant.

"Everyone already thinks I'm a nutter, and just cause I said something in a paper wouldn't really change that," Harry said, his spirits clearly hadn't kept hold of that warmth pushing back at the Ministry this had originally given him. "Now there's no way anyone's going to risk getting expelled just to hear my account of being a madman even more."

"Oh Harry," Sirius chuckled, while James shook his head affectionately. "You have no idea what Umbridge just did."

Harry continued to just look around at them, but Sirius kept going before Lily could explain like she was clearly fixing to.

Harry asked what had her in such a good mood, and Hermione explained that if there was one thing Umbridge could have done to make sure every single person read that, it was banning it.

Harry still didn't seem to get it, and was opening his mouth to interrupt again to say so, so Lily did state, "remember back to your first week, how you suspected everyone was talking about your first detention in hopes you'd start shouting at them as well?"

He didn't have to think long before the realization hit, and he nodded as she finished, "they do want to hear you, it's far easier to form an opinion of a first hand account rather than what Dumbledore said. I'm not promising it will change everyone's minds, but those letters you were sent was the perfect example of how this will put things inside school as well."

Harry suddenly turned eagerly back to Sirius now, hope finally filtering through every bit of him! Umbridge had managed to take away yet one more thing about school he loved, now he had managed to circle back around to being banned from Hogsmeade again. In return, she may have gifted him with his best weapon yet in spreading his story for him.

Hermione's statement turned out to be very true. They could no longer walk down the corridor without hearing people talking about the article, but not a corner of The Quibbler ever came into sight. Hermione even said the girls restroom was filled with telling each other about it.

"There's evidence as if we needed it," Sirius snickered.

Then the occupants had spotted Hermione and knew she knew Harry, and they'd bombarded her with questions, and they all seemed convinced of him now.

It was amazing to finally see him smiling in here, practically glowing. The idea of what he'd been put through this year had weighed on him for so long they'd hardly been able to recognize it until it was being lifted away before their eyes. Finally, something had gone right for Harry, and no one, not even Umbridge was taking that away.

Meanwhile, Professor Umbridge was stalking the school, stopping students at random and demanding that they turn out their books and pockets: Harry knew she was looking for copies of The Quibbler, but the students were several steps ahead of her.

All four of them already had that flippant smile set in place, one Harry had grown to associate with their idea they'd never be caught by the teachers of that school. The lot of them weren't long from their own teen years and hiding things from anyone and everyone, and they couldn't wait to see how others were doing the same.

The pages carrying Harry's interview had been bewitched to resemble extracts from textbooks if anyone but themselves read it, or else wiped magically blank until they wanted to pursue it again.

"Passable," Sirius said reasonably.

"Sometimes subtler can be safest," Remus shrugged.

Soon it seemed that every single person in the school had read it. The teachers were of course forbidden from mentioning the interview by Educational Decree Number Twenty- six,

"I never thought the idiocy of that one could be passed, could I please stop being proven wrong," James rolled his eyes.

but they found ways to express their feelings about it all the same. Professor Sprout awarded Gryffindor twenty points when Harry passed her a watering can;

"My favorite thing that teacher's ever done," Sirius chuckled.

a beaming Professor Flitwick pressed a box of squeaking sugar mice on him at the end of Charms before hurrying away;

Lily giggled affectionately for her old favorite teacher.

and Professor Trelawney broke into hysterical sobs during Divination and announced to the startled class, and a very disapproving Umbridge, that Harry was not going to suffer an early death after all, but would live to a ripe old age, become Minister for Magic and have twelve children.

All five of them got a crack out of that one. They seemed to forget a lot how much fun Trelawney could be and enjoyed the reminders.

The best part of all was Cho catching up to Harry, lacing his hand with hers as she whispered in his ear that the interview had been really brave and made her cry.

"Was, that an apology, or...?" James trailed off with a furrowed brow.

"She was holding his hand, I'll take that as a sign of forgiveness for meeting up with other girls," Sirius rolled his eyes at the girls further dramatics.

Harry had a soft smile in place, he was happy he'd found some more even ground with her, and they all wondered if they'd been dead wrong at the end of Harry's first date. Maybe he and Cho did make up and further on from there.

He was sorry to hear she had shed even more tears over it,

Lily couldn't help a further smattering of giggles, all boys considered crying a bad thing, even tears of joy.

but very glad they were on speaking terms again, and even more pleased when she gave him a swift kiss on the cheek and hurried off again.

Harry touched the spot on his cheek, his smile growing more as his face took on another tinge of red, and for once he could easily ignore the snickers of those around him. He could still feel something for Cho, and though it didn't feel nearly as powerful as he thought it would if he'd married her, perhaps his full memories just hadn't been returned yet and he'd have even more happy memories of sharing time with her.

Unbelievably, no sooner had he arrived outside Transfiguration than something just as good happened: Seamus stepped out of the queue to face him.

"Finally!" Remus said in relief. It hadn't exactly been a major drama, but it was still boggling the idea one of Harry's roommates had taken so long to believe Harry. Even not being close friends, Seamus really would have been expected to be one of those who'd know better.

He spoke to Harry's knee as he mumbled his apology, but firmly said he now believed Harry and had sent a copy of that magazine to his mum.

"It's a start," Sirius raised a brow at that.

"I accepted it," Harry said agreeably, that smile was finally so carefree in here, they were all still smiling as well.

Still better, was that whomever would have retaliated such as children from the Death Eaters he had named, could do nothing,

Lily smiled grimly to herself, beyond pleased as she realized they now had names for all of Voldemort's inner circle. There were still more out there, there would always be more Death Eaters, but if she could find one good thing in the throes of these wretched things happening to her son, it was the justice those vermin would get.

because in doing so they'd admit to having read the article themselves.

James pumped his fist in triumph while Sirius cackled, all five of them beyond words at this level of comeuppance.

To cap it all, Luna told him over dinner that no issue of The Quibbler had ever sold out faster.

"Imagine that," Remus said dryly with a friendly chuckle.

Excitedly telling him that her dad was reprinting, people found this more interesting than the Crumple-Horned Snorkack!

"Miracles," Sirius almost managed with a straight face.

Fred and George chose to celebrate this by hanging up a large banner in the Gryffindor dorm, the poster of Harry's face that they'd enchanted to shout 'Ministry are Morons' and 'Eat Dung Umbridge' loudly through the room.

All four boys got yet more laughter out of this, though Lily thought that was pushing it just a touch too far. Umbridge hadn't yet, but she half feared at this point the woman would show up and give the whole house detention.

The charm wore off after a few hours, and by the time night rolled around it was merely squeaking 'Dung,' and 'Umbridge.'

"I'm actually quite confident it would still be amusing," James corrected, thinking of some clever things he could do if he figured out the timing of those words.

Lily didn't argue the point even as she watched his calculating look with exasperation.

To the disappointment of people still chatting to Harry about the article, he excused himself for an early night as his scar began to prickle.

They hated how short lived Harry's happiness was, but before their eyes they saw he was already starting to twitch with unease again, rubbing at his scar, his eyes taking on that glazed look of pain all over again.

The dormitory was empty when he entered, sinking onto his bed and rubbing at his forehead which was paining him worse every moment. Hoping sleep would help, he laid down, and instantly fell asleep.

Lily shivered down to her bone even before Sirius could catch his breath to keep going. Harry hadn't stopped rubbing his scar in here since it was mentioned, and he was looking just as sick as described. She wanted to make Sirius stop, to go get him a cold press for his forehead if that helped him even for a second, but she knew the truth, she was just delaying. They could all feel it was happening again, Harry's fingers trembling and him pulling into himself as some new terrible memory was resurfacing, and the faster they pushed through it the better.

He was standing in a dark, curtained room lit by a single branch of candles. His hands were clenched on the back of a chair in front of him. They were long-fingered and white as though they had not seen sunlight for years and looked like large, pale spiders against the dark velvet of the chair.

Sirius hung his head, shook it for a moment in agitation for having to be right about this, and then took a very long, deep breath before reading the latest travesty of Harry's life in having to see what Voldemort was up to. It was lost on no one this was yet another level of advanced, Harry now seeing directly into Voldemort's mind, the only thing that could be said was at least Harry hadn't been awake as well, he'd fallen asleep, so there was some consistency in this. Even that smallest moment of understanding and knowing one thing about this was of the vaguest comfort.

In the small pool of light was a huddled man. In a high cold voice resonating from Harry's throat, he spoke about how he'd been ill advised.

Sirius looked wildly around, and waited very impatiently for Harry to meet his eyes. He didn't quite manage it, looking more above his left ear, but Sirius said with such determination, that Harry felt he had no choice but to look him full on, "that is not you!"

Harry had no response for that, but clearly Sirius wasn't doing a thing until he got something, so Harry gave a wobbly nod to his head.

The kneeling man craved his pardon, Harry responding that it was not Rookwoods fault.

Sirius twitched harshly again at having to say that, Harry half expected him to chew off his tongue in frustration, but thankfully he didn't call Harry on it again, they all knew it was only in Harry's mind so that would be how he'd describe it.

Then he demanded Rookwood was sure of his facts?

Rookwood seemed to agree, having worked in that Department after all.

Harry responded that Avery had told that Bode would have been able to do it.

Rookwood corrected Bode, the man himself would know it, which is likely why he'd fought so hard against Malfoy's Imperius Curse.

Remus could feel the usefulness of this information relating to a past event they'd heard about, but for now he was far more concerned hearing Harry wake up already and filed it all away. Unless Voldemort was going to be revealing his mortal weakness, seeing Harry in such intense pain from remembering this would never be worth it.

Harry whispered for Rookwood to take to his feet, and the man was in such haste to do so he nearly fell to the floor again. Even having accomplished this, he still stayed stooped, as if terrified to meet Harry's face.

James felt a disgusted taste lingering in his mouth at such an act he could never comprehend. Such proud Death Eater's treating any man like this was beyond him.

Harry praised Rookwood for this, murmuring they would have to begin again on new schemes with this information. Then he asked that Avery be summoned to him.

For the moment he was alone, Rookwood scrambling out of sight to do as told, Harry turned and found an image of himself in a cracked mirror. His eyes were red with slits in a flat white skull.

Harry hollered loudly in pain, screaming no! Ron found him like this, tangled in his bed curtains.

Sirius closed his eyes in blessing that was finally over, his grey eyes looked ready to shatter as he looked back to Harry with more concern than he ever had for anyone in his life.

Harry wasn't looking at any of them, his eyes tight shut and his jaw aching from clenching it so hard to stop his own scream. He hated these visions, hated how they kept inexplicably reminding him of this connection to Voldemort he had no control over, but most of all he couldn't stand to look at his parents while they were happening. The monster that had cut their life short, and Harry kept reminding them of it all happening just by continuing to live.

Inexplicably, they refused to think the same. That was the only explanation for Lily saying in a tone he could have easily found in Molly Weasley, "Harry love, we should take a break."

He opened his eyes slowly, breathing steadily through his nose to find the pair huddled into each other with, well him in their lap. Maybe they just couldn't disconnect the two from the infant who'd done nothing to the life he was cursed to live dragging everyone else around him with.

"No," he whispered, still unable to look at any of them, how his dad and friends were probably trying to stop themselves laughing silly at how he had to fight back tears every time this happened, wondering when Ron would start accusing him of the boy who cried wolf as it seemed he couldn't go any length of time without panicking over something. "No, I just want to," he gestured vaguely back at his stupid biography, trying to grasp hold of anything to take away these poisonous thoughts from himself. He felt like a curse, any managing of happiness seemed destined to be dragged back into the reminder of how quickly he could lose all of it.

Sirius couldn't make himself immediately keep going, sick with worry as everyone else for just what was going through Harry's head. At least no one he'd cared about had been attacked this time, but for a reason his godson could not explain, the more frequent these visions, the more Harry seemed convinced his life was going to end in ruin. He couldn't imagine how these could continue to get worse, but surely if they were to get better he wouldn't be treating these like a death omen.

Remus had to nudge him hard to get his attention before whispering in his ear, "we can only help by continuing, that's proven to work already, don't let him dwell on whatever he's blaming himself for."

Sirius gave a jerky nod of agreement, fighting past blurry vision for the print again rather than focusing on his distraught godson.

Ron had to struggle with his friend for him to roll free, before demanding if his dad was okay, had that snake attacked again?

Not one of them could blame Ron for this assumption, they would have thought the same if they hadn't knowledge of what it had been.

Harry sat up wildly, convinced his forehead was on fire as he explained in gasping breaths what had happened. Ron at first couldn't grasp what had happened, Harry had seen You-Know-Who?

Harry shivered, his seat the only thing keeping him upright. He couldn't understand how Ron had never looked at him with revulsion like he felt for himself during this. Yet he'd found it no more in Ron's face than any of those around him. He wanted to believe that meant something, but he was too stuck in his own pit to grasp anything else except how much worse this was all going to get before these stopped, if they ever did.

Harry corrected he had been You-Know-Who.

Sirius at least looked a little quailed from his earlier outburst. Harry wasn't even referring to Voldemort by name, he was trying to put some distance into what he'd just witnessed. Harry could never really think he had more to do with Voldemort other than the constant...bother he was in Harry's life.

Then Harry went to talking about Rookwood, and Bode's involvement.

Ron realized that Bode was bewitched to remove something, the weapon.

That feeling of significance from before settled on all of them now, Ron and Harry working this out for them feeling like just a little weight had been pushed away so they wouldn't have to immediately speak of it again while in here. Sirius wished he could be closer to done with this already, he wanted to force Harry to take a break from all of this, but he seemed determined now. Any time Sirius stopped for too long or glanced towards the kitchen, Harry actually would meet his eyes. They were too hard, a distance in them he seemed unable to beat away, but he could still look at Sirius with an expression clearly saying he wanted past this and the only way to do that was for him to keep going.

The door opened then, Dean and Seamus entering. Harry straightened himself at once. Seamus had only just stopped thinking him a nutter, and he didn't want him thinking anything else odd was going on.

"Priorities," James managed to say. It came out far too high pitched, but Harry gave him credit for trying when he still couldn't stop rubbing at a scar that wasn't even paining him in here, only in his memories.

Ron kept himself close to Harry in the guise of getting himself some water as he told him he had to tell-

but Harry said he wasn't telling anyone anything. He wasn't supposed to have seen this at all because of his Occlumency, they wanted him to shut this out.

Both Sirius and Remus flinched like Harry had tried to curse them. In this future of trying to convince him he needed to stop these, now Harry had clearly convinced himself more than ever he should be keeping all of this to himself rather than asking for help.

James noticed, and said firmly, "Harry couldn't have told you even if he'd wanted to, there's no way he could get a note like that out." He finished internally he didn't even blame Harry at this point for not wanting to tell anyone else like Dumbledore. If the man couldn't be bothered to explain his actions towards ignoring Harry's existence than his son certainly shouldn't force himself to be in his company.

By they, he'd meant Dumbledore.

Sirius had looked just a bit better at James' reminder, but it was both of some comfort Harry hadn't meant him, and also just a touch more hurtful he hadn't crossed his mind in wanting to say something about this.

He got back into bed and rolled over so Ron couldn't do anymore, yet could not fall back asleep as his scar continued to burn across his forehead. He bit his pillow in his urge not to shout out in pain, as somewhere far away, Avery was being punished.

Lily made a high pitched noise of concern, her infant in her lap making some fussing noises at his mother's distress. She spent several moments just crooning to him it was all going to be alright while watching her elder child, who was watching back with a look she couldn't place.

The next morning, the two told Hermione all of this over morning break.

She quickly put it all together that this was why Bode had been killed. He'd been regaining himself back and could tell what had happened, and they couldn't have that. Malfoy must have done all this, as often as he was in the Ministry and all of his connections.

"This really is all making a disturbing amount of sense," Remus grumbled, this wasn't helping with their whole trying to change the subject thing. Of course it was a good thing Harry was finally getting some answers, it was absolutely fascinating one scrap of information and Hermione was putting all of this together so easily and saving them from false theories that would only hurt Harry in their speculation.

Harry agreed he'd been there the very day of his trial, though Arthur had only said he was trying to sneak down there for that-

Hermione cut him off by gasping out Sturgis. She realized that Sturgis had been another victim of all this, Malfoy must have tried the same ploy on him, shooting the curse in hopes of catching someone guarding the door, but the Imperiused Sturgis had been caught even earlier in his attempts to break in, hence where he was in Azkaban.

"Oh Merlin," Lily sighed as that was crammed down their throats. As if the Order wasn't suffering enough these days. They supposed if they'd thought about this one after the last revelation of where the weapon was being hidden they would have put this together, but considering all the terrible things they'd been trying to keep track of while also trying to keep Harry's mind off of them, it was almost a relief Hermione putting this for them.

Harry finishing now Rookwood seemed to have told how to really get that weapon, and would probably be sent to fetch it next.

Harry had hated his premonitions from the very beginning, almost afraid of this knowledge in his head he couldn't access in knowing these answers, and somehow the worst of all was the feeling he was getting for who it was that would be sent for this.

Hermione went from nodding in agreement, to abruptly telling Harry off for having seen this at all.

"Well he's hardly been given a suitable way not to," Sirius scowled for her sudden change.

Lily frowned deeply, wishing Severus had given something more useful to Harry than the same repetitive advice that clearly wasn't being of much help.

Harry was taken aback at her change, but Hermione sternly insisted he was supposed to be closing his mind to these things and should be practicing harder at his Occlumency.

"It's almost hurtful she thinks I'm not," Harry grumbled, shaking his head and honestly wishing this whole thing would quit being mentioned lately.

Harry was so angry with her he didn't speak to her the rest of the morning, and his day didn't improve from there. The students were still laughing loudly about the last Quidditch game, and Weasley is our King erupted so frequently in the corridors Filch banned it from sheer irritation.

"The first good thing that man's ever done," Remus groused, Harry's mood feeling like an infection. They hadn't kept him smiling for a whole chapter before his high anger was pushing them all back on edge.

The week wasn't going much better, he couldn't shake that dream, but didn't bring it up again as he knew Hermione would only further tell him off for it.

All four of them could be seen rolling their eyes as Hermione continued to act more like a paranoid parent than anything, it wasn't soothing any nerves she couldn't be of any more help than Snape with anything to say other than more practice at something that was just causing Harry pain.

He wished he could talk to Sirius about it, but as that was out of the question, he tried to keep the idea at the back of his head.

Sirius chewed on the inside of his cheek unhappily for a moment, but was all the more agitated he couldn't come up with anything to tell Harry either except more transparent hope.

Unfortunately, the back of his mind was no longer secure these days.

His next Occlumency lesson went the same as always, constantly finding himself on the floor with a swirl of memories, mostly from his primary years and Dudley's old humiliations on him.

"Oh because that's really going to make me feel better," James said bitterly, fighting back the urge more every moment to walk out of the room and find something to curse.

Snape had again cut the connection, and demanded to know what the last one seen was?

They all jumbled together so much for him, Harry thought he was asking about the toilet.

"Err," Remus began, unsure if he wanted an explanation or it would only make things worse.

"I was eight," Harry began prattling off just for the sudden possession of not having to think about magic for a moment, who ever would have thought being bullied by Dudley would be considered a simpler time for him. "Petunia had just got done cleaning the bathrooms, and Dudley was bored so he wanted to see her yell at me. He tried to pick me up and put me in so I'd have to walk around the house with wet feet. That's where the memory ended for Snape," he finished, but continued on even though he didn't really want to, Remus had been right the first time, this probably wasn't going to make them feel better. "I bit Dudley so I wouldn't go in though, and then I ran out of the house till I came back near dinner, which I was denied and locked in my cupboard for because Vernon said the the teeth marks were still there. He told Dudley to bite me back, but he didn't want to because he said it was gross. So I said back I thought I should spend the night in the bathroom, I'd already been throwing up all day from nicking him."

He finished and looked around at them again, expecting to see yet more anger or something, but instead he saw an almost proud smirk from James. "Always love hearing you gave them hell back."

Harry managed an honest grin at him, hoping he'd return the favor by telling him some story from his youth again, and James happily provided. "Reminds me of the time Sirius bit Remus, and we got into this whole argument about what would happen if a werewolf bit a person while he was still human."

Harry busted out laughing more from surprise than anything as he demanded the obvious from his godfather, "why did you bite him?"

"I told him if he took one more of my sugar quills I would," Sirius shrugged, "he clearly didn't take me Siriusly."

Harry doubled up laughing all the harder while Remus rolled his eyes at the lot of them and tried to take the book away from Sirius to keep going. Sirius bared his teeth, Remus rolled his eyes harder, but Sirius kept going.

Snape corrected the one with the kneeling man in the dark room.

Harry denied knowledge of it as Snape tried to bore into Harry's eyes. Remembering eye contact was key in catching a lie in Legilimency, Harry looked away.

"I'm disturbed he's parted wisdom on you," James tisked even as he approved of this.

Snape was not fooled, asking how that particular place wound up inside his head?

"He has a very vivid imagination," Sirius snarked.

Harry tried to play it off as a dream, but Snape cut him off by demanding if Potter remembered why Snape was giving up his evenings for this tedious work.

"As opposed to counting your friends again?" Remus smirked.

"All none of them," Sirius agreed.

Lily frowned lightly at them, and James who wasn't bothering to repress a smile. She may be angry at Snape for treating Harry the way he was, but she still knew she'd never devolve into such petty insults.

Harry responded it was to learn Occlumency.

Snape said that Potter was correct and dim as he was, Harry finally looking back to him with hatred,

"That went without saying," James groused, Lily's eyes flashing in agitation again at once. Even for the one second she'd wanted to defend him it was gone again as he continued insulting her boy who in no way deserved it.

he would have expected after two months some progress. Then he asked how many more of these dreams had occurred?

Harry lied and said no more.

Again, Snape did not believe him, then asked if Potter was even trying? Perhaps he enjoyed these visions, thinking it made himself special, important.

Harry snapped how untrue this was.

Snape coldly responded that was true, he was in no way special or important. It was not of his business what the Death Eaters got up to.

Harry shot back that was Snape's job.

Sirius cocked his head to the side, some amusement for Harry snapping at him in there, but mostly wanting to make the jab Harry could do Snape's job and they wouldn't need the man around at all. It was all lost though before he'd even formed the idea, he still didn't want Harry having to deal with this, let Snape take the risk.

There was a glint in Snape's eyes as he whispered that was true at least.

"You impressed him," Lily said, narrowing her eyes curiously at such a response.

"I think I'm going to faint," James declared, they all looked astounded Snape hadn't just told Harry to shut his mouth again.

Then he at once pushed Harry into going again, hardly waiting past the count of three before Legilimens was used on Harry, and again he was flying through a whirl of memories. He was surrounded by a hundred dementors, he could see their shapeless mouths coming closer, but then he was back in Snape's office, the two overlapping each other and wobbling...Harry collected himself long enough to shout 'Protego.'

"Oh dear," Lily turned flat white in shock, but she hadn't a second to say anything even if she could have hazard a guess what this would do.

It did nothing to stop the flood of memories, but suddenly they weren't Harry's. A little boy sat in the corner crying as an unfamiliar man with a hooked nose shouted at a cowering woman with greasy black hair- a teenager sat alone cursing flies off his ceiling- a girl was laughing as a scrawny boy was thrown from a bucking broomstick-

She wasn't sure if Sirius just didn't care, or didn't know what that would do, but by the time he'd realized it, he'd simply kept going until he ran out before looking around at his friends with a contemplative look on his face.

"Well, err, I recognized that last one," Remus said awkwardly for Harry. "That was Mary Macdonald laughing anyways, our flying practice during first year."

Harry hardly heard him, the same stunned look on his face as the rest of the boys, before they all looked to Lily, who sighed deeply. "I'm not telling you, it's private." She said flatly without looking at any of them.

The fact that she knew what that first memory was about somehow made it even more awkward for them. Still, Sirius turned back with the same look on his face he always did when reading about Snape, he didn't consider how a parent treated you any excuse for what the guy kept doing to Harry.

Snape cut these off, Harry falling back as if shoved in the chest. He again found himself on the floor, looking up at his potions teacher.

Snape spoke in a carefully controlled voice that had actually been of some improvement, brushing his hand against the Pensive that was again in the room, as if checking to make sure the rest of his memories in there were intact.

"And now we see why," James muttered, his eyes still narrowed as he thought back to many insults he'd made in the past, and actually feeling a little bad for a few of them. He knew Snape would never do the same though, Snape knew everything Harry had gone through in his life and continued to treat him the exact same way.

Harry did not speak, feeling in the most danger yet. He was reeling that the same crying child had grown into a man with such loathing gazing down at him.

Lily had a hard time swallowing for a moment, stinging tears in her own eyes as vivid memories from her own childhood resurfaced. Realizing he'd run to her house in the dead of night and throwing rocks at her window until she came sneaking down. The two staying up in their little grove till sunrise wishing there was some escape from those who hated them. At least her own parents had been a bridge between her and her sister, and she'd tried to be that for Sev and his parents, but it had never truly worked, and she'd never even bothered to find out if it got better after she'd stopped speaking to him. She blinked back into the room to find James with his arm tight around her, brushing at the baby's hair and actually holding his tongue against whatever that look meant until she nodded to Sirius to keep going.

Snape instructed Harry to get to his feet, they were going again. Harry did so with dread, knowing he was about to pay for what he'd just seen.

Sirius ground his teeth together hard in frustration for that. Harry was about to be punished again for something from Snape's past.

Harry had not a second to collect himself before it started again, but this time he was revisiting the dark corridor from his memories. As always he ran down, and the blue light was peeking through again. Harry reached for it, and this time, the door opened.

He was in a circular room with floor and ceiling black as night, even more doors on every side of him, the only light coming from blue candles mounted on the walls. He had to keep going, push through into one of the next doors- but then he was back in Snape's office, the man glaring at him with more anger than ever.

Harry gasped wildly, startling so bad he nearly fell out of his seat. Sirius glanced to him in concern, then looked to the others for some sort of explanation. They all looked just as stunned though, unable to understand what was happening here.

"Harry's never been this far before, and Voldemort shouldn't have either!" Lily protested what she was hearing vehemently. "No one should be seeing this!"

"Maybe, maybe Rookwood has though," James ruffled up his brow as he considered the latest Voldemort news. "He worked in this place, right? So he would have shown Voldemort everything he'd seen, and now, now Harry knows as well," he finished sounding just as confused as when he'd started.

"Should it really work like that though?" Harry sounded just as panicky as his mother. "I don't want to know this, see this! I don't want all of his memories and anything he knows in my head!"

He sounded so desperate and panicky by the end, it truly broke the others hearts to see him like this.

"Oh Harry," Lily pleaded, letting the words tumble out on pure instinct. "You can't keep thinking like that-"

"How else am I supposed to think when it keeps being shoved at me!" He snapped back, but Lily wouldn't be deterred.

"You remind yourself why you're doing this! If you want Voldemort out of your head, then you work on every available way to do that! You're worried Voldemort's taking over your life then you remind yourself of all the people who are on your side and fighting to get rid of him!"

Harry kept watching her like he hoped she'd keep going, but she met his eyes and waited as they ebbed back into that calm, that understanding that had pushed him to cope with every terrible thing he'd relearned while here.

She nodded fiercely and waved Sirius on. It seemed to take him a moment, to watch the fifteen year old girl crying over the loss of her childhood friend be flipped into that mother who refused to see her child fall into the same hopeless feeling. He went back to reading with a smile of pride on his face.

He was panting as though he really had experienced all this in person.

Harry couldn't believe how grateful he actually felt towards Snape for stopping this. It was the first time in his life he looked past the hateful potions teacher and knew Snape could actually be of some help to his life if he'd quit insulting him every step along the way.

Snape demanded Harry explain that one, and Harry rubbed at a lump on the back of his head from falling down again while honestly saying he had no clue what that had been, he'd never been that far before-

Snape cut in hatefully he wasn't working hard enough!

Harry rubbed at where the lump used to be, suddenly more ashamed than ever for is poor Occlumency skills. His mother was right, and so was Snape, he'd never really tried to do this. It was of some comfort to him his father and friends rolled their eyes for Snape's jab, that they weren't blaming Harry for this...yet. He pulled away from that at once, there would never be a time they'd blame him because of whatever this connection was, right?!

Potter was lazy, and sloppy, it was no wonder the Dark Lord was-

Harry cut in to ask why Snape called him that, he'd only known Death Eaters to refer to him as such.

Snape opened his mouth, a crude retort clearly awaiting, when a woman screamed.

Sirius startled so bad he nearly dropped the book from surprise. Then he cast his mind out before anyone could get too panicky, and said the first thing that came to mind. "Finally, something entertaining is happening around there!"

Remus gave him a look of great concern as he demanded, "just what could a scream be used for as a good thing?"

"For shame Moony!" Sirius wagged his finger in his face. "Scream of surprise, scream of delight, hell even screaming in laughter! Don't get so dower on me a scream is only a bad thing now."

"I worry about him," Lily told James in an almost conversational tone of voice.

James agreed, but instead he told him, "well get on with it then, or we'll be spending the next hour with you recanting the last time you made a girl scream, and no one wants to hear that again."

Sirius rolled his eyes but complied anyways.

They both looked sharply to the ceiling, Snape asking if Potter had seen anything this would relate to on his way down here?

"Someone standing in the middle of the school screaming? Oh yeah, just slipped my mind," Remus rolled his eyes.

When Harry said no, Snape strode out, and Harry only hesitated a moment before following.

"I'm not even sure why you hesitated," James scoffed.

The scream appeared to have resonated from the large ring in the Entrance Hall, and Harry have to shove his way to get a view. The first face he registered was across the ring, McGonagall looked faintly sick at the proceedings.

Lily felt goosebumps erupt on her at this. If whatever was happening was upsetting McGonagall, but she wasn't stepping in, then what the bloody hell could be happening!?

Then he fully saw Trelawney in the middle, looking more mad than ever. She'd clearly fallen down the last flight of steps, her hair was flyaway and her glasses askew, all of her beads in a pool around her as if she were melting. Even her luggage looked strewn around at her feet. She was gazing up at someone Harry couldn't quite see, who must be standing at the foot of the stairs.

"What in the world..." Remus tried, and failed, but the shock was keeping them all from saying much of anything, Sirius hurrying through words so fast they were mashing together. None of them had a very fond feeling for Trelawney, but it was impossible to believe she was a spectacle without anyone stepping in to whatever mayhem this was!

Trelawney shrieked this wasn't true, she couldn't accept it!

A girlish voice responded surely this wasn't a surprise.

Harry finally got around the last person to see Umbridge, brimming with glee as she gazed down, her voice more feminine than ever with her own delight as she explained that though Trelawney was incapable of predicting the weather, she must have seen this coming.

"You have got to be kidding me!" Lily shrieked, the baby in her lap now fussing in his blankets in her lap. "That is, this isn't, how could she-" she forced herself to stop screaming because her child had joined in, but the anger wasn't being cooled one little bit.

"Why can't this stupid curse kick in early already," Remus scowled. "I want her gone well before the end of the year, like the staircase collapsing on her right now!"

Sirius was too shocked to keep going for a moment. Like Harry had said before, this had been forthcoming with how obvious it was Trelawney may not be around the rest of the year, but no one could have foreseen such a brutal showing like this.

Trelawney had tears pouring down her face as she stated this couldn't happen, Hogwarts was her home!

"Does she even have anywhere else to go?" Remus whispered. He really didn't know much about her except for her classes, but suddenly he wondered if she was like Hagrid, if she had no other place to call home like a few of the other teachers did.

He hadn't expected an answer, and it was probably kinder he hadn't gotten one, no one wanted to consider the alternative.

Umbridge stated this was her home,

"This is..." sick didn't begin to cover it, but James was failing to come up with another word. He'd never even seen some of the Death Eaters out there enjoy watching someone else in so much pain, in such a public way!

until an hour ago when the Minister had co-signed the Order of Dismissal. Umbridge requested Trelawney escort herself off the property, she was embarrassing them.

"How she dare!" Lily was still fired up over every detail of this. "Them! She's no right to put herself in line with anything to do with that school, with a decision no respectable person would ever dream of putting together!"

Even as she said it, her own gloating euphoria didn't dim, she was clearly enjoying the show as Trelawney sobbed in place. There were some muffled crying to Harry's side as well, and he glanced over to see Lavender and Parvati clutching each other with tears in their own eyes.

James was shaking his head in honest sympathy for the two. Though he couldn't imagine just standing around crying during this scene, he knew he would have been in Umbridge's face telling her what's what about this even for a teacher he didn't like. The woman may have the audacity to kick a teacher out of his school, but she couldn't force that teacher to leave the premises...yet.

Then his mind offered one last desperate hope, where was Dumbledore? Surely he'd find some way to stop this? The idea was dashed as soon as it had appeared though, as Dumbledore hadn't seemed to be doing much of anything these days.

McGonagall did step in then, marching to Trelawney's side and offering her a handkerchief and a firm arm around her shoulders.

Lily finally felt herself relaxing, just a touch, as she hummed with approval. McGonagall could always be counted on to offer up some comfort to those who needed it, she was still stunned it had taken this long for their old Transfiguration teacher to step in for this injustice.

McGonagall comforted Sybil she wouldn't have to be leaving anywhere, while Umbridge tried to contest whose authority Minerva had to be saying that?

The front doors opened in that exact moment, and Dumbledore made his entrance.

"I feel the need to reiterate the book now," Sirius beamed, "what an entrance."

Remus smacked him lightly and called him an idiot even as he was smiling as well. Finally Dumbledore's timing felt like it was back on their side.

What he'd been doing on the front lawns was anyone's guess, but he swooped right in on the scene and informed Umbridge that was not her position to claim.

Umbridge made a tinkling laugh as she said she was afraid Dumbledore had misunderstood the position she was in.

"I'm afraid you've misplaced your soul, but I won't be the one getting it back from the dementor," Remus groused.

"Actually, I heard that if a dementor kissed her, she'd suck out its soul," James stated.

Sirius laughed, the first time he'd really been able to do so when mention of those things had come up.

She again flashed the Order of Dismissal, and her role as High Inquisitor gave her power to fire Trelawney, whom she'd deemed not up to scratch.

Harry waited for Dumbledore's reaction, but he only continued to smile.

"What's he got up his sleeve?" James demanded with sudden eagerness, his kindling of hope finally being given life again Dumbledore would pull through on making this actually somehow better.

Dumbledore did not argue that she had the right to dismiss his teachers, not not to ban them from the grounds, that was still his ruling.

Trelawney tried to cut in through her sobs she would not be somewhere she was not wanted-

but Dumbledore kindly cut in it was his wish for Sybil to remain here with them.

"Ha!" Sirius barked in triumph, all five of them seconds away from pumping the air in victory. "Dumbledore's not going to let Trelawney just walk away from this!"

Harry was still grinning along with the rest of them even as he distantly wondered if Dumbledore had some ulterior motive for this other than just proving a point to Umbridge. He wondered if he was growing paranoid, surely Dumbledore didn't have to have a second reason for doing everything.

He turned and asked McGonagall to escort Sybill back to her lodgings, and McGonagall kindly did so, Sprout hurrying forward to Trelawney's other side. Flitwick came up behind them and enchanted her luggage as the four went back up the stairs.

"I love this place," Remus said wistfully. His best memories had been collected in those walls, and now he was adding another from a time outside his own. He'd never underestimated how lucky he was to even be going there, to be treated like any other student on a daily basis, and now he was getting the fortune of watching the teachers band together for one of their own again. He didn't even pity Umbridge, but continued waiting impatiently for that toad to be ostracized from such a place already, for daring to tamper with such a home for so many.

Umbridge watched all this with a frosty expression, and demanded of him what was to be done with her when the new Divination teacher was appointed and needed lodgings?

"You'd have to put her in that exact place eh?" Sirius said poisonously. "No other bloody room in that grand castle would be good enough, you also need to invade her room!"

"Dumbledore won't let her," James said with conviction once again, even this small win of Dumbledore's against Umbridge had finally restored his lacking faith in his old headmaster.

Dumbledore pleasantly informed that wouldn't be a problem, his new Divination teacher would prefer a ground floor.

"He works fast," Lily said slowly as they all paused in confusion of this. Apparently this had all taken place in less than an hour, which means someone very close to the Minister must have warned Dumbledore this was fixing to go down and the man acted lightning fast in getting a replacement set even before Umbridge had gotten the paper herself. It couldn't have been Percy, but they couldn't think of anyone else who'd know about this and been able to warn Dumbledore in time for him to go fetch, well whoever was getting the new job.

Umbridge shrilly cut in he'd found a new teacher? By Decree number Twenty-two-

Dumbledore cordially said that the amendment was only there if, and only if, the Headmaster was unable to find his own teacher, and on this happy occasion he had succeeded.

All three Marauders burst out laughing, a near euphoric mood at their headmaster pushing such a loophole into that doughy face!

He waved back to the grounds of the school still visible from the left open doors, and offered to introduce him now. Only the soft sound of hooves was warning before half a man stepped into the light, with pale blond hair matching his palomino body on his horse half.

Dumbledore announced this was Firenze.

Harry gave an awkward smile for this announcement amongst the shocked faces. His only memory of the centaur wasn't a particularly fond one even if his life had been saved by him.

"Well, who would have seen that coming?" Sirius blinked in surprise.

"This certainly is, unprecedented," Remus agreed as Sirius passed Harry the book, very obviously keeping it open for his spot with an obvious look at James who didn't get it.

Lily ignored the lot of them. Though happy Trelawney got some kind of win out of this, couldn't help but say, "well considering he once saved Harry's life, let's at least hope he won't pick up on Trelawney's trend of telling Harry he's going to die."

HPHPHPHP

Glory this was an emotionally messy chapter!

#Harry Potter #fanfiction #reading the books #OotP #Marauders #Jilly #James Potter #Lily Potter #Remus Lupin #Sirius Black

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