#2 he's *almost* the same height as remus

[fire-but-ashes-too]

CSREAMIN G CRYING TRHOWING UO I LOCEBTHEM ANDBDJSBDHSHSJA

[kquil]

POLY MARAUDERS | HEROES IN TATTOOS PART 2

02 : THANK YOU

SUM. : you thank your heroes with home made lunch at their work place, leaving with a temporary tattoo and three men wrapped around your little finger.

TAGS. : modern au ; muggle au ; tattoo artist sirius ; tattoo artist james ; piercer remus ; innocent reader ; all three are smitten with you ; all three also being casually dominant with you ; sweetheart reader x rough tough men is the trope! ; prepare to be as obsessed as i am over these men! ; marauders with tattoos and piercings are hot

LENGTH. : 2.6k

PREV. : 01 | RESCUE

“Well there’s a familiar face,” Remus greets with a smile as you step into the shop. You timidly smile back and wait for him to wave off a customer with their care kit before stepping forward with your heavy tote strung over your shoulder, “do you have an appointment for a tattoo or a piercing?” he asks, eyes trained on the tablet at the front desk. 

“Oh, no no,” you bashfully stammer, “I’m not here for any of that, I’m scared of needles,” 

“That’s a shame,” Remus contemplates and you look up to see him leaning over with a thoughtful look, his elbows on the counter as one hand holds his chin up - he’s so handsome. He has several piercings decorating his ears and an eyebrow piercing to accentuate the angles of his brows. As he moves his chin off his palm to caress it in contemplation, he continues to take you in as you also take the opportunity to admire some of the tattoos on his arms. There are some phrases in different fonts, an impressive vision of a wolf with a full moon and a minimalist set of the moon phases alongside much more, “you’d look good with cute little piercings on your ears,” he finally comments, reaching out to point at your ear. 

“Th-thank you,” you subconsciously reach up and touch your ear, his statement making you briefly consider his suggestion.

“So what are you here for if not for a piercing or tattoo?” straightening up into his full height, Remus lets a light scowl take over his face, “Is that bastard troubling you again?”

“It’s alright, don’t worry, I told my manager and he’s been banned from the pub I work at so I haven’t had anymore bad encounters,” 

Remus smiles at your precious appearance, you really look adorable being all timid in front of him, “I’m glad,” his voice is warm and comforting, different to the roughness brought on by the ink on his arms. He was dressed in a white shirt under a sleeveless brown sweater vest, high-waisted, tailored pants with the bottoms just about reaching his Doc Martens - he’s a good balance of soft but edgy. It’s a unique charm of his, you gather.

“I-I just wanted to say thank you to you guys,” you gesture to your tote bag, “so I made you some lunch, I hope that’s okay…” 

“Free lunch, home cooked by the most beautiful lady I’ve ever seen?” Sirius interrupts, stealing your attention as he appears from a corridor to your left with a boyish grin. He reaches for your hand and brings your knuckles up to his lips for a soft kiss, “what an honour,”

Your cheeks heat up incredibly at the gesture, “it’s really nothing, you guys saved me last night, it’s the least I could do,”

Sirius smiles down at you and after sharing a look with Remus he begins to lead you down the same corridor he had just appeared from, “well, you have the most perfect timing, darling because it’s a slow day and almost our lunch break,”

“I’ll tell James and help him finish up with his last client for the day. We’ll see you in a bit,” Remus announces as he flips the sign at the door to ‘CLOSED’. You wanted to protest and say that you didn’t want to waste too much of their time but the mousy haired piercer smiled and that was enough reassurance for you to hold your tongue. 

“Let’s go love,” Sirius leads you down a corridor to a room with rock posters and varying pieces of art decorating the wall as sofas lined half of the walls with varying aesthetics, one was very much distressed but still cosy looking, as the other was of a sleek, black leather. Thankfully, there was a pretty large coffee table that you could set your tote bag on and slowly began to take out the food you had cooked. On the distressed sofa behind you, Sirius admired your tentative figure and appreciated your stark difference in aesthetic to the room around you. Your style fits close to Remus although more feminine and carefree. There was a cosy structure to Remus’s fashion but with your long flowing white skirt, chiffon blouse and delicate jewellery, you embodied a breath of fresh air under the summer sun, “what a beauty,” Sirius says to himself, arms resting along the back of the sofa as you finally settled down.

Thinking he meant the food in the tupperware, you smile, “you like the food already?”

“I’m talking about you, darling, although the food does look delicious,” Sirius chuckles under his breath as you timidly tuck a strand of hair behind your ear. 

“Th-thank you but really, I hope you like the food,” 

“I’m sure I will,” silence slowly permeates the space between you as you wait for Remus and James but it was still comfortable, not awkward at all. In that time, you both take in each other’s appearance. Sirius wears a white tank that clings to his toned figure and ends just under his belly button, showcasing a majority of the tattoos that embellish his skin. He’s also in black jeans and a pair of worn combat boots. The tattoos on his arms and those that peak out from his torso and chest don’t have a visible theme but they all still go together somehow. There are many unknown symbols and long winded sentences written decoratively around said symbols and the occasional elaborate illustration. There are some doodles dedicated to music, some to inside jokes you would guess and you want to ask questions but you bite your tongue. You didn’t want to be rude. 

“Curious?” Sirius asks, having noticed your wandering eyes and smiling at your kitten-like interest. 

“A little bit…”

“Ask away,”

When James and Remus finally join the two of you a few minutes later, they see you fully turned towards Sirius on the sofa, eyes focused on a tattoo on his chest that he was explaining the meaning of, catching you in a trance with his voice. The tattoo artist has his tank top moved down and to the side as you absentmindedly reach your hand up to his tattoo, almost tracing the ink on his skin with your delicate fingers. From the grin on Sirius’s face and the love-eyes he was watching your face with, they could tell he was smitten with you, which was rare. Sirius was very much a ladies man but you’ve managed to rope him in with hardly any effort put in. Remus doesn’t blame his friend, though, you’re very captivating. 

The chuckle from both Remus and James pulls your attention away from Sirius who smirks up at them, unbothered by their interruption.  

“I heard a pretty lady was treating us to some home made lunch today,” James eagerly sits down in the space beside you as Remus sits atop the far right of the coffee table. 

“Y-yeah, I hope you like it, please dig in,”

“Don’t mind if I do!” James cheers and promptly consumes his share of food, giving the occasional groan of satisfaction from the taste in his mouth, “Sho good!”

“Don’t speak with your mouth full,” Remus corrects with an amused smile before turning to your with an appreciative grin, “Thank you, truly, (Y/N), I was getting tired of take out,”

“Home cooking is the best,” Sirius groans from your other side, already half way through his share, which makes you giggle in happiness. Your heart swells with joy knowing that you could properly thank your heroes. Speaking off, you finally get to admire James in better lighting than the street lamps. He isn’t nearly as decorated with ink as Sirius but there was a pretty illustration of a stag on his forearm that you admired. You hadn’t wanted to feel awkward so you brought some lunch for you too and ate alongside the trio, stealing secret glances at James who remained oblivious, too engrossed in his food. He’s in much cosier attire compared to Srius and Remus. Hanging from his broad shoulders was an oversized, faded shirt and washed-out jeans with the bottoms rolled up to showcase his high converse shoes. Framing his face was a charming pair of round glasses and, matched with his unruly curls and tattoos, made him a pictured balance of casual and wild that suits only him.

Lunch passes and James was the first to finish between the trio, quickly proceeding to pull puppy eyes at his two friends in a soft plea for them to surrender some of their food to him but they firmly decline. 

“I’m not letting you have some of my lunch just because you finished yours too quickly,” Sirius huffs, pulling his tupperware closer to him. 

“Sorry Prongs,” Remus laughs, “those puppy eyes aren’t going to work on me, our dove’s cooking is too good to share,”

Unable to resist James’s pouting face, you hold up a spoonful of your meal, “it’s okay James,” you bring your spare hand to sit under the spoon and move it to James’s lips, “here, say ‘ahh’,”   

With a boyish, golden-boy grin, James happily accepts the mouthful and moans in happiness, chewing away like a happy squirrel. Enjoying his glee so much, you happily feed him the rest of your lunch, saying that you were already far too full to eat any more so that Remus and Sirius didn’t scold James too much. It was partially true though because seeing James eating was enough to make you feel full already. 

Once done, you set aside the tupperware and was completely unprepared for when James kissed your cheek as thanks for feeding him the rest of your lunch, “you’re too kind, angel, thank you,” he whispers into your ear, his breath brushing against your sensitive skin and sending a shiver down your spine. You could only muster a timid nod in response. 

When lunch ended, casual conversations started which slowly divulged into the boys wanting to give you a temporary tattoo as thanks. You wanted to protest the redundancy of their actions but were quickly convinced by the verbal pleas of Sirius and James as Remus simply stared at you with interested eyes.

“What tattoo would you like, doll?” Sirius asks, smiling at your pondering face. You're far too cute for your own good.

“Surprise me!” you finally chirp, missing the roguish grin the three men share. 

Not too long after, you were brought into a room with a computer connected to a specialised printer against one wall of the room. Remus and Sirius immediately move to prepare the temporary tattoo on the screen and set up the printer while James leads you to the tattoo bed in the middle of the room. 

“This can fold into a chair but that’s a bit of a hassle right now, do you mind sitting on the bed instead?” James asks as you shake your head and reassure that it’s alright. He loves how compliant you are and watches for a moment as you struggle to get on the high bed before offering assistance, “May I?” his hands hesitates just before they reach your figure but you pay his touch no mind and nod, moving your hands to rest on his shoulders as he secures his hold on your waist. With a small countdown, James lifts you onto the tattoo table with hardly any effort. 

Shuffling back, you smile up at James who remains taller than you on the table as he stands between your thighs, “Thank you, James,” the tattoo artist smiles when you say his name but frowns at the distance you’re sitting at the table. 

“No worries sweetheart but you we need you a little closer than that,” without another word, James grips your thighs with his large hands and pulls you with some force to sit closer to the edge of the table, which also pulls a surprised squeal from your lips, “sorry sorry,” James chuckles softly his hands still on your thighs and shudders at your proximity when he looks down to see your skirt bundled up, accentuating how close your hips were to his. Stepping away, James tidies up your skirt as you giggle and thank him once more for his assistance. He smiles at you before being called over to the computer, trading places with Sirius. 

“Where would you like your temporary tattoo, love?” he asks gently, opening a packet of sanitising wipes as the sound of the printer starts and whirrs in the background. 

“Hmmm…even though it’s temporary I want it to be easily hidden,”

“Such a shy princess aren’t you?” Sirius comments with a smile, “it’s so cute,”

Ignoring his comment, you rush to think of the perfect place for the tattoo and distract from your racing heart, “how about here?” you point to your chest, just above your breasts and below your collarbone. Sirius immediately recognises the placement and raises an amused brow. 

“Like my tattoo?”

You timidly smile, “yes please,”

“Very good choice,” Sirius praises playfully as pride swells within his chest, “but we need to get to that spot first, love,” you look down at your blouse and curse under your breath. 

“Umm…” you try to pull down the collar but it was a small cut and the fabric resists. The temporary tattoo finishes printing and Remus approaches the table with James to see you struggling with your blouse.

“Where does she want it?” James asks as Remus carefully holds the small tattoo. 

“Where mine was,” Sirius points to just below his collar bone, “but her blouse is in the way,”

Remus nods and approaches you, “that blouse is going to have to come off, dove,” his brown eyes watches you gnaw at your lip, it’s a hesitance he’s familiar with so he knows what to do, “don’t worry, you have nothing to be scared of, okay?” he gives you a warm smile when you look up at him and soon feel assured enough to untuck your blouse and pull it over your head, “good girl,” he praises with the same soft tone. You feel silly, these men give tattoos and pierce people’s skin, you’re sure that they’ve seen plenty of shirtless women in only their bras. Remus especially…he’s an expert piercer and has probably been asked to pierce lady parts that weren’t…very common.

“I’ve got to prepare your skin, love,” Sirius holds up the wipe and once you confirm exactly where you wanted the tattoo again, he wipes the area clean. Your skin is soft and slightly bouncy as it leads down to your breasts that makes the tattoo artist wipe at your skin a little longer than normal. After Sirius finishes prepping your skin and letting it dry, Remus steps up and applies the tattoo as best as he can without wrinkles. He swipes over the tattoo with his fingers and smiles at the handiwork. Beside him, Sirius and James admire the temporary ink, all three internally screaming at what you had let them ink you with.   

“Wait a full hour before you peel off the applicator,” Remus gently instructs, “and try to avoid sweating or showering for the next 6 hours okay?” you nod and Remus pats your head in approval with a contented hum. You put your blouse back on and let James help you down, laughing brightly when he raises you up high and spins you in the air before he finally sets you down, laughing alongside you. 

The boys still have a business to run so you collect your empty tupperware and wave the three goodbye before hurrying home, excited to see what tattoo they had given you as they were adamant at keeping it a surprise from you. When you finally arrived home and got a hold of a mirror, you examined the tattoo with your blouse off and felt your cheeks gradually heat up as you trace the differing fonts of the three names decorating the space beneath your collarbone. 

Their names in their handwriting. James, Sirius, Remus.

NEXT : 03 | GROCERIES

NAVI. | HEROES IN TATTOOS SERIES

A/N : i'm becoming more and more obsessed with this au - i couldn't stop writing! if i'm going down, im bringing your darlings with me! no survivors allowed! maybe i'll make a part 3? i don't know yet. again, i've added additional tags of the people who have expressed interest in more parts for the timestamp. tell me your thoughts, lovelies!

TAGLIST : @melinajenkins ; @astonishment ; @until-i-found-you ; @goodoldfashionedluvergirl ; @tiensmamains ; @manical-heaven ; @ch3rry-pops ; @unholyhuntress ; @animeluvr99 ; @peppers-library ; @thepowerthismanhasoverme ; @buck-fics ; @bohemian-lavender-girl

[goblinpuppy35]

Out of Place Together

University Remus x Male Reader

(Previous Chapter) - Part 2 - (Next Chapter)

Summary: An academia-core themed story about the Marauders during their final year of university in the Muggle world. Soon after meeting each other  Remus begins to fall for one of Sirius' friends Y/N another shy student.

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

It was 5:35 am and Y/N was in the university library. It wasn't his original plan to be hunting the long corridors of tall bookshelf this early but his inconsiderate housemates had chosen 3 am on a Thursday morning as the perfect  time to come home after a extensive night of clubbing. Their return had not annoyed him greatly, Y/N accepted he was a light sleeper, what more annoyed him was his housemates insistence on coming home to continue thier intense audio intact of drum and bass music by hooking up their speakers in the kitchen and jumping up and down until the clock on Y/N's nightstand which painfully remained him of what time it was, was shaking and jumping itself.

This was not the first time Y/N's housemates had done this and despite the results of limited sleep turning Y/N into something which resembled a dishevelled and angry badger, Y/N was also an incredibly non confrintational person. Therefore once his shaking alarm clock woefully passed 4 in the morning he made the decision to get up. Flinging his notebook and some books into his bag and putting on his long black coat on as he briskly walked down the stairs, ignoring the loud chaos coming from the kitchen and left through the front door. Y/N had felt the temptation to slam it behind him but with his housemates speakers on at full blast he doubts the passive aggressive gesture would have even been registered.

Now at the library Y/N felt a lot calmer, the warm morning light was starting to shine through the large windows and highlight spots on the carpeted floor. Y/N happily spent a peaceful morning writing and reading until his stomach began to grumble, so he wondered to the universities cafeteria to pick up a sandwich and a peppermint tea. Cradling the warm cardboard cup as he rested his back against the buildings wall outside in the smoking area Y/N suddenly thought back to being at James and Sirius' house and how their housemate Remus started to make Y/N's tea for him. This made Y/N smile to himself a little before returning to his cigarette. It assumed him how flattered he was by the gesture, a rather minor act of kindness, nevertheless one which took Y/N by surprise. Y/N contemplated whether he needed a new found sense of self worth as he finished his food and returned back to the library.

The afternoon rolled on by and Y/N was still happily spending his time in the library as he often did if he wasn't in his own department. At this point he was running his finger across the spines of the books in the 'Art and Illustration ' sections, looking for something specific. "Hello again." sung a low voice suddenly taken Y/N out of his tunnel vision searching. Standing in the hallway between the shelves stood someone whose tall figure almost surpassed the height of the shelves themselves. At first Y/N recognised the baggy jumper before he recognised the handsome face of the man he'd met earlier that week. "Remus! hello" a mixture of surprise and delight came through in Y/N's voice which he instantly felt embarrassed by. "Not interrupting am I?" Remus asked pleasantly surveying the rows of books in front of them "oh no, no not at all, I was just looking for something. A book about northern landscapes painted in the Romantic period." "Ah I see" Remus replied in a low purring like sound pushing his shoulder off the shelf and starting to look at the books on the top row. Y/N stared at him befuddled for a moment before silently returning to his search as well. A moment of silence passed between them. "So, if your looking up art books I can assume your an art student?" Remus asked still looking at the books, Y/N did the same as he answered. "No, well sort of. I'm a drama student but I'm not into acting or anything. I'm studying to be a theatre technician you know building sets, rigging and doing the lighting mainly". "Oh, so while everyone is watching the stage your the one in the little room above all the seats making the lights switch on and off" Remus mused as he gently pulled down a book and handed it towards Y/N, eyes still locked on scanning the shelf. Y/N took it and smiled "Yeah exactly, though we call that little room the box", after saying this Remus turned to face Y/N his eyes bright with amusement, "oh really?" he smiled and Y/N found himself getting lost in the corners of his raised lips. He felt weak for a moment and then incredibly tense.

Remus was able to help Y/N find several useful books which he explained he wanted to look through for lighting inspiration for an upcoming play. Sitting across a table together in a corner of the library the two men sat, Y/N hunched over several large open books, flicking through the pages and making notes while Remus sat pressed into the corner against the wall, feet propped up on the seat next to him while he read his own book. He had not asked to sit with Y/N nor did Y/N ask him to however they appeared to find each others company relaxing. The afternoon gradually transformed into evening.

Before starting his third book Y/N looked up and titled his head in Remus' direction, "Your and English student right?" Remus hummed in agreement without looking up from his page. "So why have I never seen you in the library before?" with this question Remus smiled and looked up "I get most of my books from charity shops, they are always teaming with them and selling them for basically nothing". "Well that explains the mound of books flooding your guys living room" Y/N said with a small grin, "You should see my bedroom!" Remus chuckled with a sense of pride. The thought of Remus' bedroom gave Y/N the same weak then tense feeling from before, this feeling then increased when Y/N wondered if that was an actual invitation.

A wave of energy was about to burst upon their tranquil evening as Sirius stried through the library doors. Resulting in a sharp shush from the libraries desk. "Sirius! You alright?" Y/N asked pleased to see his friend. He believed this was the first time he's ever seen Sirius inside the library and not outside in the smokers corner. "Oh hello you too!" Sirius was noticeable taken a back seeing Y/N and Remus together but quickly his mind refocused and he grabbed Y/N's shoulders. "Y/N please I need your help. I'm handing in my course work tomorrow and I haven't finished it yet". "STILL?" blurted out Remus, "oh shut up Mooney! since your here you will need to help me too. Y/N I promise I've written all the personal analysis I just need some help finding case studies and you know this library so well and" Sirius' words began to drift off and his face took on the expression of a melting puppy, it made Y/N laugh more then feel sympathetic, regardless he agreed to help. With a long sigh Remus also rose from his chair to help look for relevant books in the psychology section. 

The evening yawned on and grow dark, the groups table was now littered with books and pages of Sirius' coursework. He frantically scribbled in paragraphs as the other two handed him books, open on the key pages. Every now and then Y/N would look up and across the table and lock eyes with Remus, they would smile at one another, primarily because of silliness of the situation they were in, but Y/N also got the sense that they liked to look at one another, he did at least. 

Several hours later in victory Sirius pumped his fist into the air, clutching his pen, "I'm done! Victory is mine. Thank you again for helping me, really". "Anytime" Y/N said before he started to collect the assortment of books to return them. "Oh by the way what time is the play tomorrow?" Sirius asked leaning back in his chair, "what play?" Remus chimed in looking confused. "The play my year is putting on for this semester. It's the opening night tomorrow. That's what I was researching for" Y/N explained. "What! Pads you dick making him help you out when he's got to prep for a bloody play" Remus said kicking Sirius' tilted back chair making it wobble, forcing the relaxed man to panic and then grip the edge of the table. "No no really it's fine, us technicians are never allowed in the theatre to prep for a play until the morning before. It's too much in demand. The set has already been built and I have a lighting plan and everything for tomorrow. I was just doing extra research today for what colours I wanted to use". Hearing this Remus' face relaxed however he still seemed mildly annoyed with Sirius. "Anyway it starts at 7:30 pm Sirius. I'll be in from 7:30 am doing all the prep I can before the actors get there" Y/N added extra empathise on the "am" followed by a weak laugh. He loved his theatre lighting but show weeks were always brutally draining. Sirius looked at his watch quickly "It's already pretty late Y/N. The last bus might have already gone. Do you want to crash on our sofa again?". "Thank you but I can't, I have my script and cue sheet all at home" Y/N said looking at his own watch with concern, "I'm sure a bus will come along its fine". "Nope" interjected Remus shoving his book into his bag then swinging it over his shoulder as he got up "I'll drive you home come on". Y/N wanted to object but truthfully he was grateful for the offer, "Wow. you know he never busts out his car for me" Sirius said playfully while putting on his own jacket. "Finish your course work on time and maybe I'll consider it" Remus retorted back, he lightly placed his hand on Y/N's upper arm guiding him to follow. This contact made Y/N's breath hitch for a moment despite the touch being so delicate. Y/N was transfixed on Remus long slender fingers, coming back to reality he waved goodbye to Sirius and they left the library. 

In the dark car park only a few circles of garish orange light from the streetlamps highlighted the ground. One spotlighted the only car left in the parking lot a beaten up second hand grey one. "The real reason I don't give people lifts is I can't afford that amount of petrol" Remus said with a smirk as he reached the driver's side, fiddling with the key to open the car. "Well in that case, thank you really. Your helping me out a lot here" Y/N said as he waited, with a click the inside light in the car switched on and the doors popped open. Before dunking into the driver seat Remus straighten his figure and rested his hand on the cars roof, looking across to Y/N, "It's my pleasure". 'You really mean that' thought Y/N as he looked at the man's honest blue eyes, his chest tensed again.

As they began to drive across town Remus opened the cassette player and ask Y/N to pick something to listen to. Opening the glove compartment in front of him Y/N was welcomed with a flood of cassettes, some falling onto his knees. Rummaging through the box he was able to find Rush's album 2112, "an excellent choice" Remus remarked as he popped the cassette in and soon music filled the car as they drove into the night. Y/N watched the streetlamps in formation pass the car window, he felt very relaxed, it was rare he found traveling so easy. After giving him the address it took about 30 minutes before Remus' car reach Y/N's house, the Rush album was about half way through when the car stopped as did the music. "This is where you live?" Remus asked looking around and then pursed his lips realising how impolite his remark sounded. "It's okay I know it's a shithole but it's cheap" though this was what Y/N said he was reluctant to get out of the car. Thankfully there were no deafening drum and bass music pulsing from the house meaning his housemates were most likely out.

He thanked Remus again for the lift and then made his way to the front door. As he turned his key in the front door and started to step inside Y/N turned seeing Remus car still there on the street. In the dark night Remus hunched over his stiring wheel watching Y/N was framed like a painting in the car light. Y/N waved at him and Remus gestured back with his own little wave and then his engine weered into gear and he began to drive away. Y/N shut the front door behind him and made his way upstairs smiling. All these kind deeds were going to get to his head.

[prince-rowan-of-the-forest]

(Vi)vianne Marie Zephyr (2/2)

| Ao3 | <- Prev |

Warnings:

A tiny bit of deadnaming/misuse of pronouns for Virgil, but it's far less than the first part.

Pairings: Virgil & Remus

Word Count: 2098

Notes:

Hi all! I'm now uploading Random Things every Sunday whilst I take a break from my fantasy au, here's the first one!

Side note: my Ask Blog is now up and running on Tumblr! Where you can go over there and ask things to my characters :D Please go check it out if you're interested I'm perpetually bored, lol.

Also also, please reblog if you enjoy! It really helps out with the good ol' motivations and makes me very happy <3

Taglist: @reptilianrapscallion420 @your-local-random-dino (if anyone else wants to be added please lmk!

Over the next year, Vi shot up in height.

By the end of eighth grade Vi had gone from being one of the shortest in their grade to being one of the tallest. Remus took great pride in making fun of him for his ‘long ass twig legs’ and in return Vi had taken pleasure in his new ability to taunt Remus about being short. Vi had dreaded going back to school that year, but it turned out that he had more classes with Remus this time around which made it… a little more tolerable.

Speaking of Remus, Vi had finally felt confident enough to speak up around Remus, at least when they were in private and especially in Vi’s house. Remus had freaked out a little when he’d first heard him speak (apparently he’d assumed that Vi was incapable of speech completely, rather than just anxious). It had been slow going at first, especially after that minor hiccup, but by the summer between eighth and ninth grade, while in Vi’s house he was comfortable enough with Remus to have full, real conversations. 

At the end of eighth grade their grade had been split up by gender and of course Vi ended up with the girls (because he still hadn’t actually told anyone in school about not being a girl yet.) and they had been taken into classes to be taught about puberty and sex ed. Which was important for them to know at fourteen, because they’d start seeing the changes they were learning about in themselves soon enough- some had already, as Kailee already announced, very loudly, when they were talking about periods.

Vi had gone home in tears after that. He’d barely been able to hold it together for the rest of the day and he’d lost that small amount of control when Remus had mentioned it after school and ended up sprinting home and leaving Remus in the dust- determined not to be seen crying. He had just wanted to get home. 

His parents had sat with him for almost an hour until he’d calmed down enough to talk and explain. They’d held him tight and kissed his forehead and promised to look for a solution that could work for them. 

For Christmas that year, his parents had given him a binder and let him know that they were looking into medical treatments he could consider now that he was getting old enough to consent for them himself.

For the same Christmas (Which Remus spent at his house, having snuck out of his own to avoid his parents) Remus had given him a hoodie that was clearly too big for him, the sleeves falling past his hands and the button of the hoodie reaching his mid thighs. It had patches of purple fabric hand sewn onto it with messy white thread. Vi had barely taken it off since. 

—-

“So, Vi,” Remus said, lying back on Vi’s bed. It was the summer after ninth grade now, Vi had started wearing the binder he had gotten almost daily a few months ago, and he still hadn’t taken off the hoodie for longer than was necessary to wash it- even now that it was hot outside. He turned around in his spinny chair to face his friend- he had been working on some stupid project one of his teachers had set to be done over the summer, he hated it.

“Yeah?” He asked. Remus propped himself up on his elbows.

“Are you ever gonna tell everyone else that you’re a guy?” He asked, “I mean, t’s been like, two years now, and I know they don’t know but still hearing everyone but me and your folks call you a girl is-��

“I dunno,” Vi shrugged, “I- I really don’t like it either, but- I guess, I don’t want to tell everyone else until I’m sure about- everything." 

"You're a guy," Remus said, "What else is there to be sure about?"

"My name, for starters," Vi explained, "Vi was just a placeholder, based on my deadname, I uh, never intended it to stick. I know it's already been two years and that's a while for most people but I still want to be sure that I'm sure y'know - and I need to be sure I'm happy with my pronouns and how I want to present myself -"

"Ok ok, so there's a lot," Remus said, interrupting, "But! We can sort through all of it!" 

"We can?" Vi asked. 

"Course, c'mon take a break from that stupid project that doesn't matter cause you probably won't have Mrs Douchbag next year anyway," Remus said, "And we can go on a name hunt!" 

"A name hunt?" Vi repeated, raising an eyebrow even as he pushed his project away and picked up his phone to give his hands something to fidget with.

"Yeah!" Remus nodded, "Ok, so for starters, d'you want to keep the 'V' sound or go completely different?" 

"I uh- think I'd like to keep the V?" he said, "I like the way it sounds." 

"Ok!" Remus nodded, typing something on his phone, he read for a second before his eyes narrowed, "Ok, I've got a list, I'ma just fire these at you, Kay?" 

"Sure," Vi said, frowning.

"Ok, Victor?" 

"No," 

"Yeah, sounds too much like an old prospector, Vincent?" 

"Definitely not,"

"Mm, too 'Rich British kid', Vance?" 

"That's a name?" 

"Says here it is! Is that a no?"

"Definitely a no," 

"Ok, ok, Valentine?" 

"The people called Valentine always end up being the villain in sci-fi stories," Virgil huffed, "And I don't want to be named after a holiday."

"Mm, fair, Vermon?"

"Isn't that the name of Harry Potter's abusive uncle?" 

"Vector?"

"The Villain from Despicable Me," 

"Virgil? Lemme guess, too 'Roman Poet' for you? Vince?" 

"Sounds too much like Mince, wait, go back one?" 

"Virgil?" 

"Yeah uh- I don't - hate? That one?" Vi said.

"But do you like it?" Remus asked, leaning over.

"I- maybe? I guess? It's just- embarrassing," Vi said, looking away.

"Why's that?"

"I mean- it's not exactly 'cool' is it?" Vi rubbed the back of his neck, he did like it, in fact he really liked it, it's just… he didn't want something else for people to bully him for.

"Ok well first of all who gives a fuck." Remus rolled his eyes, "Second, it doesn't matter if it's cool! Just if you like it! Heck, if they had named Roman Romulus we'd fit the Roman myth, instead I just ended up being named after a character who freaking died. I don't care if it's cool, and you shouldn't either." 

"I-"

"Just do what you want, Kay? Don't give a shit about other people's opinions." Remus said, looking at him seriously. 

"I- I think I like Virgil. Then." Vi said.

"Ok Virgil!" Remus said, grinning, and Vi- no, Virgil, couldn't help but smile back. That sounded so… right. 

“That- I like that.” Virgil said, his smile widening as he thought about it, suddenly he found that he couldn’t stop smiling and Remus was grinning right back.

“Awesome!” Remus nodded, “Then that’s all that matters, isn’t it?”

“I suppose so…” Virgil mumbled. 

“Ok what else was there? Right, pronouns!”

—-

They had spent the rest of that day talking through different pronoun sets. Virgil finally revisited that red underlined note he had made in his notebook that first day of researching and together they faced the daunting list of neopronouns.

In the end, he still found that he/him was the best fit, his favourite and the ones he wanted to keep using. He had also decided that he was ok with they/them, it didn’t make him feel any certain way, as well as a fairly long list of neos too. There were some he didn’t like, especially she/her and Remus had promised never to use those. 

—-

Remus had finally persuaded Virgil to go shopping with him the next weekend and Virgil’s dad had agreed - expression brimming with excitement - to take them. The closest shopping centre to their little village was at least forty-five minutes from their house and the good shopping centre that Remus wanted to take him to was almost an hour and a half away. Virgil had only agreed in order to stop the relentless asking and his dad… really hadn’t taken that much convincing, he was just happy to get Virgil out of the house for the day for once.

The mall had been overwhelming at first, it was such a massive bright building with so many things to look at, the shops themselves of course but also the decor, the small vendors set up around the central pathway, the fountain he could hear clear as day but couldn’t see. Remus had grabbed his hand as they walked in together, squeezing it to ground him before dragging him off to a shop near the entrance. 

In the end the trip hadn’t been nearly as bad as Virgil had expected. They had spent more money than Virgil ever thought they could spend shopping (Remus’ parents were supposedly the richest people in their little town but Virgil wasn’t sure Remus had acquired all the notes he seemed to have by asking them). They’d gotten McDonalda and then returned home with their wares and for the next three days Virgil was at the receiving end of an inordinate amount of dress-up that he only allowed because it was Remus. 

He’d let Remus do his makeup and paint his nails when Remus had insisted he’d like it despite his obvious hesitation on the subject. But when Remus finally turned him around in his chair so he could look in the mirror Virgil couldn’t help but gasp. The makeup didn’t make him look- girly- in the slightest, it made him look more like he’d just stepped out of a punk-rock concert, he found he couldn’t be happier and Remus had excitedly said: ‘I told you so’. 

—-

Virgil had gone back to school in tenth grade looking like a whole new person. 

Remus had appeared at his door on the first day of the grade far too early in the morning armed with a whole host of supplies that he had stolen from his brother (Virgil had some of his own by now, but Remus was annoyed that the only colours he seemed to have were purple and black). 

He had been sat down as Remus forcefully insisted on doing both of their makeup so they could go into school looking ‘super swag’. Virgil had protested that he knew how to do his own makeup by now, but Remus had informed him whilst already applying eyeshadow that he did it better and that Virgil should just let it be. 

In reality, Virgil hadn’t really wanted to make a scene going back to school. He was still being bullied after all, though it was far better than it had been. Remus had promised him that it would be fine as he picked an outfit out of the clothes they had bought together and threw things at Virgil until he started to get a little overwhelmed. 

Despite all his protests, though, when Virgil left the house in massive platform boots with straps and buckles, loose ripped up trousers with chains and strings hooked onto the belt loops and the jacket Remus had made him (because despite Remus’ attempts he refused to budge on that). He wore a Paramore band t-shirt under the jacket that he’d been worried was ‘cringe’, to which Remus had told him to shut up and that ‘cringe’ was an illusion people made up to stop other people from having fun and to just wear the t-shirt if he liked it. So Virgil wore the t-shirt. 

And despite the fact that he was wearing earrings and makeup and had paint on his nails, Virgil had never felt further from uncomfortable in his life.

The world was looking up now, as Virgil walked into school on the first day of tenth grade to stares and whispers that were different than they used to be, people saying: “Who is he?” and “Woah look at what he’s wearing,” but not in the same mocking tone they used to asy it. When someone asked and he introduced himself as Virgil for the first time, when halfway through the year he got his name changed in the school’s database and Remus was finally able to correct teachers and students alike when they acted like assholes. 

Slowly, people were forgetting the little girl called Vivianne Zephyr, and wasn’t that the greatest feeling ever?

[fictionalwhores]

Dating Remus Lupin would include...

A/N: I already want to make a part 2 to this

-The marauders always tease Remus about girls but when they see you give Remus his book back they almost fall on top of each other trying to rush to him because holy shit, Remus lent you a book? You must be pretty special, what’s going on here 

-So many nights in the common room reading together until you’re falling asleep in each other’s arms 

-The werewolf ordeal. Listen, this goes one of two ways, he either keeps it from you forever and the boys have to push him to tell you OR you figure out in the first 3 months of your dating and he's baffled no between 

-Remus isn’t big on PDA but sometimes around the full moon he gets so overstimulated and he just needs you to ground him. Sometimes this means him just burying his face in your neck, arms around waist and trying to block out every noise, light, and unwanted thoughts 

-Keeping him company in the library and making sure he takes breaks before he rots his brain out with stress, he’s fairly quiet but you can get him going on a ramble if it comes to his favorite studies 

-Getting him out of bed is impossible so have fun with weekly morning cuddles when you spend the night and him groaning anytime you try to leave 

-During parties Remus tends to stand closely behind you, sometimes resting his chin on your head while you guys talk to other students. HUGGING FROM BEHIND ugh 

-The other marauders love and adore you but tease you all the time about stealing their moony 

-You help him around his time of the month and he’ll help you around your time of the month.. If they happen at the same time.. Lord help us all 

-Remus is insecure about his scars, so when he allows you to touch his skin under his clothes, thats a big deal 

-And this boy is a sucker for back scratches under his sweater so buckle up 

-I imagine Remus being patient and wouldn’t get too worked up with you unless it was too close to the moon but you would know what time of the month it was and he would make sure to separate himself for a couple of hours to calm down before he lashes out 

-He’s also patient in the sense of teaching you things, he’ll walk you through any homework assignment if you need it 

-This boy is a radiator you cannot convince me otherwise, stick your hands under his shirt for warmth and you shall find he finds it so amusing

-he likes to play with your hands if he gets anxious and does the “wow my hands are so much bigger than yours” comparison 

-He’s so tall he could kiss the top of your head with ease and does 

-Borrowing his sweaters 

-Remus TRIPLE checks the lock on the dorm room when you guys do steamy things because the other marauders walked in once and they still do not let it go 

-Jokes about height differences 

“You are so tall” 

“Maybe you’re just abnormally short” 

“You’re practically a tree! I have to break my neck to talk to you” 

“You’re one to talk, I lose you in a matter of seconds with how easily you disappear!”

“I’m right here” 

“Yet I can look over you without any effort, you just disappear from my line of sight”

[depressed-sugar-baby]

More incorrect quotes

{With some, they will be out of character}

**************************************

Regulus: What do you think Severus will do for a distraction?

Lucius: he’ll probably, like, make a noise or throw a rock. That’s what I would do.

*Building explodes and several car alarms go off*

Lucius: ... or he could do that.

**************************************

Regulus: Why are you on the floor?

Severus: I'm depressed.

Severus: Also I was stabbed, can you get Lucius, please.

*************************************

Lucius: Naturally, we are on the cutting edge of technology.

Severus, amazed: Wow...

Regulus, to Severus: Well what does that mean?

Severus: I don't know.

Severus, to Lucius: What does that mean?

************************************

Lucius: Are you the big spoon or the little spoon?

Severus: I'm a knife.

Regulus, from across the room: He's the little spoon.

***********************************

Regulus: Fitness tip: never stop pushing yourself. Some say 8 hours of sleep is enough. Why not keep going? Why not 9? Why not 10? Strive for greatness.

Severus: Next time you’re working out do 15 push ups instead of 10. Run 3 miles instead of 2. Eat a whole cake instead of just a slice. Burn your ex’s house down. You can do it. I believe in you.

Lucius: There were so many mixed messages in that I can’t-

**********************************

Lucius: What if I press the brake and gas at the same time?

Regulus: The car takes a screenshot.

Severus: For the last time, get the fuck out.

*********************************

Sirius: So, what, now I’m just supposed to do anything that Severus does? I mean, what if he jumped off a cliff?

Remus: If Severus were to jump off a cliff, he would’ve done his due diligence regarding the height of the cliff, the depth of the water, and the angle of entry, so yes. If you see Severus jump off a cliff, by all means, jump off a cliff.

Sirius: You jump off a cliff!

Remus: Gladly. Provided Severus did first.

********************************

Sirius: I told Severus his ears flush when he lie's.

Remus: Why?

Sirius: Look.

Sirius: Hey Severus! Do you love us?

Severus, covering his ears: No.

Remus:

*******************************

Sirius: Sometimes I drink milk straight out of the container.

Severus: The cow???

Sirius: What?

Remus: Severus, W H Y?

******************************

Sirius, at a restaurant: You guys should get the orange soda, it's amazing.

Severus: Okay

Waiter: Can I get you guys anything to drink?

Sirius: Orange soda, please!

Severus: I'll have the strawberry soda.

Remus: Me too, strawberry soda.

Sirius:

*****************************

Sirius, driving Severus and Remus: So how was your day?

Severus: We almost got surprise adopted!

Sirius: What?

Remus: We almost got kidnapped.

Sirius: Oh, okay.

Sirius: *slams on the breaks* WAIT WHAT?!

****************************

Severus, texting Sirius: Sirius! Help I’m being kidnapped

Remus: Where are you?

Severus: I’m with some strange person. In a car. Help.

Sirius: I’ll call Remus.

Remus, answering their cell: Y’ello?

Sirius: Where’s Severus? He texted me that he was being kidnapped.

Remus: Severus? Whaddya mean, he's right next to me-

Remus:

Remus: I’ll call you back. *hangs up*

Remus: THE NEW HAIRCUT ISN’T THAT BAD!

Severus: WHO ARE YOU?!

***************************

Severus, holding a python: Guys I impulsively bought a snake, what do I name him

Sirius: You did WHAT–

Remus: William Snakepeare

**************************

*The squad is having dinner together*

Sirius: Remus, can you pass the salt?

Remus: *Throws Severus across the table*

*************************

Sirius: If I accidentally sat on a voodoo doll of myself, would I be trapped forever in that position, doomed to starve to death?

Severus: How am I supposed to know?

Remus: You say, as if we don’t use you as a source of knowledge of the occult.

Severus: *sighs*

Severus: You wouldn't be trapped.

************************

Severus: Dandelions symbolize everything I want to be in life

Remus: Fluffy and dead with a gust of wind?

Severus: Unapologetic. Hard to kill. Feral, filled with sunlight, bright, beautiful in a way that the conventional and controlling hate but cannot ever fully destroy. Stubborn. Happy. Bastardous. Friends with bees. Highly disapproving of lawns. Full of wishes that will be carried far after I die.

Sirius: edible

***********************

Sirius: Hah! 69! You know what that means?

Remus: What?

Severus: That you're a child.

James: HOW'D YOU GUESS MY IQ!?

**********************

Severus: Care for another sundae, weenie?

Remus: I am not a weenie!

James: Relax, you’re among friends. *raises his drink*

Remus: My friends don’t hang out at Weenie Hut Jr’s.

Sirius: You tell ‘em, Remus! *sips their drink*

Remus: Sirius, what’re you doing here?

Sirius: I’m always here on Double Weenie Wednesdays.

*********************

Severus: There is no future. there is no past. do you see? Time is simultaneous, an intricately structured jewel that humans insist on viewing one edge at a time, when the whole design is visible in every facet.

Remus:

James:

Sirius:

Everyone Else At Severus’s Surprise Birthday Party:

Remus: All I asked was if you wanted to cut your birthday cake first.

********************

Lucius: What did you guys get in your yearbook?

Severus: 'Prettiest Smile'

Regulus: 'Nicest Personality'

James: 'Most likely to start a bar fight'

Sirius: 'Least likely to start a bar fight, but most likely to win one'

*******************

Sirius: Why cant trees give off something important like wifi??

Severus: So fuck oxygen, I guess.

******************

Severus: ...This is one of those moments where it doesn't really matter what I have to say, isn't it?

*****************

Regulus: This is horrible! This is the most humiliating thing to ever happen to me!

Severus: Oh-? Even more humiliating than-

Regulus: We are not doing this!

****************

Lucius: Come on Severus, do it for our friendship. You can't put a price on that...

Severus: Yes I can, dear. Fifty Galleons.

***************

Professor: Your child was in a fight.

Remus: Oh no, that’s terrible!

Severus: Did they win?

**************

Severus: I am very small and I have no money, so you can imagine the kind of stress that I'm under.

*************

Severus: You gave me up, you let me down, you turned around, and deserted me.

Remus: But did I make you cry?

Severus: *cries on the spot*

Remus: ...Shit.

************

Severus: I don’t think the therapist is supposed to say ‘wow’ that many times during their first session with a client, but here we are.

***********

Remus: Are you really planning to shoot the demon?

Severus: Don't worry, it's a holy gun.

Remus: How so?

Severus: It makes holes.

**********

*James holding their baby*

Severus: Oh God, I can’t believe one of us actually has one of these.

Sirius: I know, I still am one of these.

*********

Severus: Some people are like slinkies.

Remus: What?

Severus: Not really good for much but bring a smile to your face when you push them down the stairs.

Remus:

Remus: Please don't push James down the stairs.

Severus, pushing James down the stairs: Too late.

********

Demon: Hey, I took your soul last month and-

Severus: No returns.

Demon: *sobbing* But it's making me sad...

*******

Sirius: Guys, I didn’t memorize my lines!

Severus: Just use your lack of common sense! Everyone knows the characters in plays are dumb as fuck!

*During the play*

James: Hey! You finally made it! Did you get the donuts?

Sirius: W-what’re donuts?

******

Sirius: Let me copy your homework.

James: I was gonna copy yours.

Sirius: Well, shit.

James: Guess I'm not doing it.

*****

Severus: Is anyone going to tell me what's going on in here?!

Lucius: It's kind of complicated, but Regulus-

Severus: Got it. Forget I asked.

Severus: Time sensitive question how flirt boy.

Regulus: Throw rocks at he.

Sirius: Hot Dogs.

Remus: Kill him.

Severus: Thanks guys.

****

James: I want to kiss you.

Severus, not paying attention: What?

James: I said if you die, I wont miss you.

***

James: Think you can answer some questions without the usual level of sarcasm?

Severus: If you can ask the questions without the usual level of stupid.

**

Sirius: Severus, my old friend!

Severus: I think you tried to kill me at some point.

Sirius: That was obviously just my way of getting to know you.

*

I'm gonna start posting one quote at a time instead of doing this

This time I used

[messers-moony]

Divorce 2 | J.P

Paring: James Potter X Slytherin!Reader

Summary: Reader goes through divorce with her arranged husband but sees her Hogwarts crush almost two years later at her Potions shop in Diagon Alley

Prompt: Holding hands while driving

After that moment in the Potions store, James came around a lot more, much to Leo’s excitement. It became customary for James to restock items or help brew potions despite his lower levels. Leo was ecstatic to have him around. The mischievous and playful James Potter always kept Leo excited.

James spent lots of time with both of them. Making sure they were both taken care of and loved unconditionally. Frequently James would stop by to make dinner for them while Y/n worked late shifts or take Leo out of the shop to give him an adventure. A year had passed, and James had a crucial question for her. The shop was empty, and Leo was upstairs - ecstatic for his new Hogwarts adventure.

“Love?” James called as Y/n stepped down from the ladder, “Yes?”

“Can you- Can you come here a moment?” James ran a hand through his hair as she walked in front of him, “What's on your mind?” Y/n questioned softly.

James was hesitant, “Move in with me.”

“What?”

“Move in with me, please?”

Y/n chuckled, flabbergasted, “James, that’s a big step.”

“I know, but I- I really want to be with you, all the time. I want to wake up to you every morning. I want to make you and Leo breakfast. I want to see you in a dreary state after a long day at work. I want to take care of you when you’re sick. I want to take Leo to Platform Nine and Three Quarters.” James swallowed, “I- I want to be the father Leo never got….” He murmured.

Y/n’s eyes turned soft at his muttered confession, “You- You mean it?” James nodded, “You want to be Leo’s father?” He nodded.

“I want to hug him before he leaves to Hogwarts all seven years. I want him to jump into my arms after his terms at Hogwarts. I want to watch him cause mischief and get those owls home. I want to write him letters to remind him that I’m here if he needs anything.” James’ eyes welled with tears, “I- I want to be there for everything.”

“I may not be his father biologically, but he is the closest thing I have to a son, and I’ll be damned if I don’t treat him like my own.”

Y/n wiped the stray tears away, “James, you need to understand that this is a big responsibility you’re taking on. You know there’s no one in this world I’d rather than you to be a true father to Leo, but I want to make sure this is truly what you want.”

“I’d want nothing more.” James swore, and Y/n smiled softly, “Then yes, we’ll move in with you.”

That night James, Y/n, and Leo were eating at the dinner table when James finally decided to speak up, “Leo?”

“Yes?”

“How- How would you feel about leaving this place?” James asked carefully.

Leo’s face contorted to one of confusion, “Leave? Why?”

“Leo…” Y/n began with a smile, “James wants to know if you want to move in with him.”

“Both of us?” Leo queried, looking at his mom and gaining a nod, “James wants us to live with him!?”

James’ features softened at the boy's excitement, “Only if you want to.”

“Of course I want to!” Leo exclaimed with a bright smile.

Leo jumped up from his seat and hugged James tightly, “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

James chuckled and ruffled the boy's hair, “You’re welcome.”

Lots of packing came with moving. It was a lot of cardboard boxes. James insisted they do it the muggle way, wanting Leo to experience new things after growing up being a pureblood. James saw how sheltered Sirius was and didn’t want Leo to be the same. It was also the reason they took a car to James’ house. Leo was fascinated when he entered the back seat.

It made Y/n and James laugh at how the boy was so quickly excited. Leo always had a lot of energy and not many ways to exert it, but with James around, that energy never went to waste. James and Leo would spend hours walking around Diagon Alley or flying on broomsticks together away from the muggles. Leo would enter the shop breathless and hair in disarray. James not too far behind. It warmed Y/n’s heart to see her son so happy.

While riding in the car, James gently took her hand in his. It was a small gesture, but it made her blush. Leo stared out the window of the vehicle the entire time while James played music from the radio. It took about an hour, but eventually, they got to Godric’s Hollow. James parked the car outside - upon hours later, he confessed it was Remus’ car - and began putting the boxes in the house. It was about midnight when all the boxes were on the bottom floor.

Leo busied himself with an old spell book James gave him while the other two unpacked. Y/n was opening a cardboard box when two arms wrapped around her waist. Y/n rested her hands on his and leaned back into his embrace. James left a kiss on her cheek, relishing at the moment. His girlfriend in his arms and her - their - child on the couch.

It took a month to get everything in place. James and Y/n had settled in their room together. Leo had found sanctuary in his bedroom that they painted a deep blue color. Leo was always obsessed with the stars and constellations. Perhaps a gift he collected from his biological father. Zenix always had a way with the stars Y/n didn’t quite comprehend. James was always willing to listen to Leo talk about them, though.

Only days until Leo was due to leave for his first year at Hogwarts and Y/n, was wishing for more time with him before she had to send him off. She was well aware that he’d be fine, but it was still her baby. More often than not, she was still selling Potions at her potions store. James stayed home with Leo and took him out on adventures. But the week before Leo was supposed to leave, Y/n took off of work.

The following week was filled with school shopping, getting ice cream, exploring the muggle world, riding broomsticks, and playing board games. It was possibly the best time Y/n had ever had since before getting married to Zenix. Although marrying Zenix was something she never wanted, she did get something amazing out of it - Leo.

He was her pride and joy, so when they - James and Y/n - stood on the platform, Y/n felt like sobbing, but she didn’t. Instead, James was the one crying. Leo held his mom extremely tight out of nervousness and anxiety. Leo reeled back to meet his mom’s bright e/c eyes.

“You’ll be fine, honey. You’ll make plenty of friends.” Y/n assured, and Leo’s eyes welled with tears, “I’ll miss you.” He whimpered.

“I’ll miss you too, my love.”

Leo hugged her again. Y/n chuckled and wrapped her arms around him again. James stood beside him, quietly crying. Here he was - James Potter - crying over his stepson leaving for Hogwarts. He wasn’t expecting it, but Leo wrapped his arms around him too. He was quietly sobbing into James’ shirt. Y/n stood back and watched with a bright smile.

They pulled apart, and Leo’s eyes looked like an ocean with the glossy texture, “You’ll be okay kiddo. Raise holy hell for me, okay?” James chuckled tearfully, kneeling to Leo’s height.

The boy nodded and wrapped his arms around James' shoulders, “I love you, dad.”

Y/n was barely able to withhold a gasp, and James was sobbing, “I love you too, kiddo.”

The raven-haired boy pulled away and took one last look at his parents. Leo jumped on the train and quickly pulled down the window as the train began to move, “I love you, mom! I love you, dad!”

“We love you too, sweetheart!” Y/n exclaimed, and James wrapped his arm around her waist.

The adult male was crying with a smile on his face facing his girlfriend, “He called me dad!”

Y/n laughed, “I can’t believe it! He called me dad!”

“I’ve dreamt about this moment for months!” James laughed, “Is it everything you dreamed of?”

“It’s so much better.” James replied, kissing her lips sweetly.

Not every story starts great. Maybe you’re loved one rejects you. Perhaps you start a commitment with someone you never loved or fell out of love with. Maybe not every story starts excellent. But who’s to say you can’t change the end? The beginning of your account is just that - the beginning. James and Y/n’s start was dreadful, but they were determined to change the ending.

[sidespart]

The Fall of King Romulus Part 3

Summary: Twin Princes Remus and Romulus are cursed at birth with Honesty and Obedience. When Romulus, who cannot disobey any order, is told to kill his brother the next time he lays eyes on him, he changes his name to Roman and runs away. Roman joins up with a misfit group of adventures and plans to never return to his homeland. But the fae have other plans for him…

Warnings (for whole fic not necessarily individual chapters): Violence, mind whammying/memory altering, curse of obedience related consent issues, references to sex, references to war related injuries/PTSD, references to child abuse/neglect (YMMV on that one but just in case), antagonstic-but-not-exactly villian!Janus, Extremly-moraly-dubious-but-not-exacty-unsympathetic-Remus

Pairings: Mostly Platonic LAMP and all the found family feels. Could be read as pre-slash.

Feedback appreciated. 

NOW ON AO3 :D

Prologue     Chapter 1   Chapter 2  

Remus. Remus, Remus, Remus.

The mad Prince of Notaleveale.

Remus was coming here. Remus was coming to Steveange and if Romulus saw him-

Roman had to leave.

Which was easier said than done; when the streets were crowded with hoards of shoppers and revellers all pressing against him, blocking his path, stealing the air out of his lungs-

“Roman!”

He needed to go. He need to find Virgil and Patton in whatever rooms they’d managed to find, collect his belongings and-

No. That would take too long – he could replace the clothes and books, he already had his sword-

“Roman, what’re you-”

- but he needed his lute. To make any kind of living he had to be able to perform. It was the only thing he was good at and once he’d got away he’d be -

He could do it. He’d run away before. He survived alone, without anyone, he could do it again and-

“Roman! Stop!”

He stopped.

Logan. Heading towards him. But he hadn’t given a time frame and if Roman grit his teeth and pushed past the spike of pain he could start to move again in just a second-

“Wait!”

Dammit.

Roman waited. Fists clenched by his side, until Logan was next to him.

“Roman.”

His chest was tight. His brain wasn’t -wasn’t working right and Logan looked so odd, with his glasses askew and his face flushed – had he been running?

“I thought I saw Patton.” Roman blurted.

It was the first excuse that popped into his head and it was clearly not – not good enough. Logan was frowning at him, a pinched expression, studying him like an experiment and-

Roman hated him, suddenly.

Logan was an upstart swot with ideas above his station and a chip on his shoulder. He poked and prodded and lost them jobs with his terse words and his better than you attitude. He reminded Roman of the tutors who snap at him for his lack of understanding and bark orders for him to recite, repeat, remember, to be better, smarter, stronger: someone worthy of his title.

He reminded him most of all of Julius. His fathers closest advisor, who had been charged with unravelling the Princes’ curses. He was the one who had helped Romulus learn how to push against his curse. He would give him orders that were almost impossible to follow and watch with cold eyes as Romulus struggled to disobey. Together they’d categorised how much pain he could withstand, what orders could be navigated and misinterpreted and which ones he was truly helpless against.

Once, he’d bid Romulus to stand on one leg. And left him there until his muscles started to cramp and shake, waiting to see if gravity or the curse was stronger. Romulus had been in tears by the end. Had even wondered, briefly, about complaining to his parents. But is was such a silly, innocuous order compared to other experiments. What had truly upset him was how Julian had just stood there, not speaking, his eyes distant and cold and calculating as he noted down every twitch and whimper from the boy. Even when he circled him, Romulus could feel those eyes boring into the back of his neck like a-

“Princey.”

Roman blinked. Julius’ practice room disappeared, replaced with the sights and sound of the Steveange street. Logan was in front of him and his eyes were far from cold. When he spoke it was with the same gentle tone that Roman had heard him use when Virgil’s worries overwhelmed him or when Patton woke from a nightmare and didn’t know where he was.

“Did the cro- the woman. Did she say something to you?” Logan was holding his hand. Gently but firmly, he tugged at Romans tightly clenched fingers, encouraging them to unfurl. Roman stared uncomprehendingly at the deep crescent marks he’d made in his palm.

Slowly, Logan released his right hand and reached for his left, repeating the process.

Roman felt shame ripple through him.

Logan wasn’t Julius. Logan would never push him so far he broke.

Logan was his friend and Roman has made him worry with his silly behaviour and his slapdash lie. But he could fix it.

He forced a smiled. Flexed his fingers and straightened up his full height. Made a show of looking around him.

“I swear I saw him. Big man, big sword, big smile – he’s hard to mistake!”

Hesitantly, Logan glanced around too before quickly refocusing on Roman.

“Are you sure you –“

“Ah well, the mind plays trick I suppose – must be hunger getting to me, speaking of which…”

Roman reached forward and deftly snatched the bag from Logan's grasp, reaching in blindly and shoving the first pastry he found into his mouth.

“Mmmm so good!” He beamed at Logan with berry stained teeth, flakes of pastry flying through the air. “Aren’t you going to have one?”

Logan stared at him. Roman kept his smile sweet and his eyes clear. He held up the bag and wiggled it enticingly.

Hesitantly, Logan took the bag and selected a tart. Keeping his eyes on the bard the entire time, he ate his treat with much more refinement then Roman had shown. “Holding back?” Roman asked, teasing, “I’ve seen you eat jam before, there’s no point pretending to have table manners now.”

Logan just hmphed but his shoulders relaxed slightly and Roman decided to take that as a victory. “We should get going” Roman said and started walking, Logan easily falling into step beside him.

The streets were crowded enough that none of the sellers seemed to feel the need to call to Roman specifically, and so this time he was free to investigate the stalls he was actually interested in.

But instead he stayed by Logan's side

Logan was a good friend. For all he claimed to lack an understating of emotional nuances he was letting Roman have his space. He’d even distracted him earlier, when his biggest concern had been the a spike of homesickness after meeting their northern customer.

He was nothing like Julius.

Roman was going to miss him so much.

***

Roman kept up his performance of normality all the way back to the main square, where they had agreed to meet the others once their mission was done. The sky was beginning to turn dark by the time they got there, though it was easy enough to navigate from the sheer number of stalls still in operation, each one boasting its own selection of colourful lanterns.

“This is fantastic!” Roman gasped theoretically, spinning on one foot to take in the whole spectacle.

“It’s a fire hazard.” Logan muttered with a frown.

They found Virgil waiting for them by the central fountain. He had manged to find a seat on the fountains edge but was wedged between two young couples who had clearly taken the romantic festival atmosphere to heart. The healer’s shoulders were up by his ears and his cloak was wrapped so tightly around himself it looked constricting. When he saw them he sprang to his feet so quickly he almost knocked one of the young ladies into the water.

“Took you two long enough.”

Roman and Logan glanced at each other.

“Logan got lost-”

“Roman kept wandering off.”

“-We brought you baked goods!”

Virgil took one of the two remaining pastries with minimal grumbling and led them out of the square. They took the north east road, a path that curved its wary upwards into the higher levels of the city. Here the buildings were all built of a blush-pink marble that sparkled in the evening twilight. The streets were wide, with neatly arranged flowerbeds and street lights which had the steady glow of Arkazeii glow lamps rather than the flicker of oil. There were certainly no traders spread out on blankets. Logan looked distinctly unimpressed.

“Was this inn you found an…economical choice?”

“It was a ‘the whole town’s rammed and this was the only place with a room left’ choice.” Virgil snarked “and don’t worry – its one room for all four of us with no breakfast included, if you were worried about getting too… bourgeoisie…or whatever."

Logan raised his hands for peace.

“I’m sure you did the best you could.”

“Well …we were lucky.” Virgil told him, and then glanced over at Roman, his lip twitching.

“Apparently they give discounts to performers.”

***

The inn was certainly a cut above their normal haunts. With brightly painted walls almost obscured by well pruned climbing plants, outdoor seating, and a wrought iron gate leading to spacious stables behind the building.  Even the doors were of better quality then your typical village tavern – made of wood heavy enough to make a satisfying crash when Roman stormed in.

The room was crowded, but Patton really was hard to miss. Roman shoved his way through to the back table where the big man sat waiting. Leaving other customers cursing in his wake.

‘Hey kiddo!’ Patton greeted him with a wide smile “Did you-“

“Key.” Roman snarled.

Patron blinked and him, shock writ large on his face. “Sorry?”

“The key. To my room.  Give it.” Roman snapped. “It is mine right? Since you seem happy to pimp me out in exchange for-“

“Hey!” That would be Virgil. Roman half thought he had left both men behind in his rage after Virgil’s little announcement, but the elf at least seemed to have kept up. He’d reached the table just in time to hear the start of Roman’s rant. “What the hell is your problem Princey?”

“My problem? Oh I’m sorry, I’M not the one signing other people up to sing for their supper without permission Virgil.”

“You like singing for your – we thought you’d want to!”

“Well it would have been nice to have a choice!”

“Virgil. Roman.” That was Logan, it had taken longer for the shorter man to force his way through the crowd but he wasted no time now in inserting himself into Romans business. “whatever this is… it’s not about putting on a show.”

He turned to the other two. Virgil scowling, Patton wide eyed.

“He had an…episode in the market.”

“Excuse me?” Roman shouted.

“Roman, whatever disturbed you, you practically ran away.”

“Well perhaps I had simple grown tired of looking at your face? Had you considered that?”

He turned his back to Logan, rounding on Patton again: “Now, give me the-“

Patton already had his hand out, wrought iron key resting loosely in his palm.

“We’re on the fourth floor.” he said calmly as Roman snatched it from him. “First door once you get up the stairs.” Roman spun on his heel only to find Virgil blocking his path.

“Move.” Roman hissed.

“What is wrong with you?” Roman narrowed his eyes. Virgil looked angry. Looked one second away from telling him to sit down, shut up, stop causing a fuss. He wondered if he could get past him without using his sword.

“I’ll bring you up some food in a bit,” Roman blinked glancing back at Patton, startled. The warrior still hadn’t moved from the table - admittedly no easy task in the cramped corner- and was looking at him calmly.

“I don’t want anything” Roman muttered, sullen.

“But you might later.” Patton smiled at him. Not knowing how to respond Roman turned back to Virgil. The elf glanced between the two, chewed on his bottom lip for a moment, before sighing and stepping to the side. Not fast enough to prevent Roman from knocking his shoulder with his own as he pushed past however.

It wasn’t as satisfying as he hoped.

**

At a guess, the room was normally meant for storage not guests. Two rickety looking beds had been shoved in, so close together they might as well have been one. There was one small table forced between the end of one bed and the wall, with a basin of water perched on top. Someone,  presumably Patton, had organised their bags neatly at the end of the beds. Roman’s was at the far end, closest to the window. Then Patton, then Virgil with Logan closest to the door, next to the only built in shelf where a candle had been left for the night. Roman would be able to wake with the dawn, as he liked to do, and Logan would have light for the longest to stay up and read.

Romans lute was not on the floor with his pack.  Instead he found in had been placed on the bed itself, propped up on his pillow, away from any potential harm.

Whatever righteous anger he had been able to hang on too as he stomped upstairs dropped out of him now like a stone from a cliff. Without it, the despair he had felt in the market came rushing back. He sank down right there by the door, bringing his knees up to his chest as he’d done in the forest. As he used to do in Julius’ room.

He almost wished Julius was here – at least he would tell him not to cry.

The through was so absurd he let out a weak snotty laugh and buried his head in his arms.

He needed to leave Steveange.

He didn’t want to leave them.

But they had planned to stay for a week at least, hopefully longer.

Convince them to leave early? Except he couldn’t explain why. Find them a job out of the city? How? When the coronation and accompanying celebrations were over it would be easy enough to find a traveling group in need of a little extra protection, but for now no one was leaving.

They’d been excited to come. Virgil want to try the city baths, famed for their heated pools and soothing water. Logan had been talking about the library for half the trip. Patton was just excited to explore the city itself, meet the people and try the food. He loved when they stopped in busier towns but it was a rarity.

There was no way Roman would be able to convince them to leave just because he wanted to.

Roman did what other people wanted. It was all he knew how to do.

And even if he had a convincing reason…well, they probably didn’t want him around anymore anyway.

He scrambled up, grabbed the first pillow he could reach and buried his face in it to muffle a scream of frustration which turned into more sobs.

He was so pathetic.

Since he’d left home, he’d kept his memories, kept Romulus, buried as deep as he could. But now it was like Romulus was just under his skin. Ready to jump out If he let himself slip. With all his anger and hurt and fear.

Romulus was a liability.

Romulus was a murder. Or would be. If Roman couldn’t think.

He stepped over to his pack, still hugging the pillow to him like a teddy bear, and started to review the contents. He didn’t need to take all of this with him, surely? Half of it wasn’t even his, their belongings having become more and more intertwined the longer they travelled.

The healing salve was rightfully Virgil’s, the soft shirt he wrapped himself in during cold nights was actually Patton’s, at least one of the notebooks belonged to Logan.

He opened the nearest book to check, but instead of Logan's neat lists his own sloppy scrawl stared back at him. Song lyrics and passing thoughts and, on the next page, an unfinished sketch. It was of Virgil, hand covering his mouth but eyes betraying his laughter. The other pages, he knew contained scribbles of all three of them. He flicked back and found his favourite, the page marked with a yellowed leaf he couldn’t remember picking up.

It showed all three in one sketch. Logan, sleeping and so looking years younger, head pillowed on Virgil’s thigh. Virgil was turned towards Patton, rolling his eyes as if to say ‘can you believe this?’ but making no move to actually shift scholar off him. Patton was laughing, he was the most well rendered of the three figures, you could almost see his shoulders shaking.

Roman looked at it for a moment. Then slowly replaced the book mark and closed it. This would have to come with him.

A knock at the door startled him so badly he dropped the book, which bounced under the bed.

“Kiddo? Can I come it?”

Fuck.

Patton. He had -he had been so, so unbelievably rude to Patton.

His first instinct, which was admittedly not a good one, was to jump out of the window.

Roman took a deep breath. Focusing on the mundane task of sorting items had cleared his head somewhat. He was still a little shaky but his eyes were dry. He knew what would be expected of him now - Romulus had spent most of his life apologising.

“Come in.” he croaked and stood, squaring his shoulders.

Patton entered alone, two bowls of something that smelled delicious cradled in his arms.

Roman ignored the sudden spike of hunger – the fruit tart seemed a long time ago now- and bowed from the waist. He kept his back ramrod straight and bent low enough that it quickly became uncomfortable. It was the kind of bow Romulus would only have given his father or elder brother.

“Patton, I owe you my most humble apology I-“

“Roman I am so sorry.”

“The way I spoke to you was the height of disrespect and unprin- ungentlemanly behaviour I – wait, what?”

He straightened up and looked at Patton, confused. “Why are you sorry?”

“Roman, I – wait hold on.” Patton handed him one of the bowls and turned to close the door. “Do you mind if we sit?” he asked and Roman nodded, smiling despite himself. Patton was the politest person he had ever met.

Once they were both seated, Patton’s bad leg stretched out in front of him, Patton looked at him seriously.

“Roman you were right downstairs. We should never have promised you’d perform without asking you first - no it's true!”

But Roman was already shaking his head. “Patton you were fine, you know I love singing! I was the one acting like, like some sort of beast I-“

“I know you love singing but that doesn’t mean we get to pick and choose when-“

“But I wanted to perform as much as possible whilst we were here- I’d told you that!”

“-especially after travelling all week. We were, er, presumptuous.”

Roman stared at him.

“Unlike this soup, which is pre – scrumptious.”

Patton beamed at him. Roman groaned.

“Anyway I’m sorry for letting you stew-“ he held up the bowl again waggling his eyebrows “- up here for so long, but we needed to make things right with the landlord.”

Roman, who had been starting to relax under the force of two puns in a row, tensed again. “What things?”

Patton smiled. “We paid the difference – you don’t have to perform! Uhh unless you want to of course, but it’s your choice.” He nodded decisively whilst Roman gaped.

“b-but isn’t it expensive?”

Patton just shrugged, “Well, the last job paid well didn’t it?”

“Not that well!”

“Aw c’mon kiddo, what’s the point of having money if we don’t spend it? Right?”

Not knowing what to say. Roman shoved a spoonful of stew into his mouth without tasting it. Guilt turning the meal to ash.

“Patton…how many days did you pay for?”

“The rest of the week! And there’s still enough to have some fun at the markets, don’t worry, we can all have a – hey!” Patton put his bowl down, shuffling closer to put one warm hand on Roman’s knee.” Roman, hey kiddo, buddy what’s wrong?”

Roman found, quite to his surprise, that he was trembling. He followed Patton's example and put the bowl carefully on the floor before digging the heels of his hands into his eyes. “I…can’t Pat. I can’t stay here. I have to go.”

“Go?” Patton looked at him with confusion clear in his big brown eyes, “But why kiddo? You don’t like the inn?”

Roman groaned shaking his head “not the inn. The city. I’m not – I can’t – if ‘m here it- “ he let out a whine of frustration, hating his curse heavy tongue.

Never tell anyone about our conversation.

“I just-“ My brother is coming and if I see him I-

“If – “ my brother is coming and he won’t be alone. There are people who know who I really am and I –

“Okay.”

Romans head snapped up.

Patton still had a frown on his face but when he looked at Roman his eyes were as serious as Roman had ever seen them. “If you can’t tell me the details it’s fine but-“ he lent forward, “Roman, are you safe here?”

Without breathing, Roman shook his head. No.

Patton nodded and squeezed his knee. “Well then of course we’re not staying.” Hesitantly, he lifted his arm and rested one large hand on the back of Romans neck. Forcing their eyes to meet. “Whatever it is – we will help you. You know that don’t you?”

Embarrassingly, Roman felt his eyes filling with tears.

“We’ll leave in the morning.” Patton told him. Patton stood up, taking Romans congealing stew and his own empty bowl and headed to the door. He paused, one hand on the door handle. “Everything’s going to be okay kiddo.” he smiled, “We love you.”

And he was gone.

For a long moment Roman sat frozen, staring at the closed door.

“Yeah.” He agreed, eventually. “Right.”

Except. They didn’t. Not really.

They loved Roman.

Roman had screamed and insulted them and instead of kicking him out of their group like they had every right to do, they had given up what little money they had just to make Roman feel better.

And Roman was a lie.

Roman was Romulus with a bad haircut. And Romulus was everything they weren’t’ – a stupid, pampered, prince with no power or pride.

Patton might be willing to upheaval their lives just on Roman's say so, But Logan and Virgil were more practically minded. They would want explanations. Might even demand them.

Never tell anyone about your curse. Remove yourself from anyone who might ask you about it and put as much distance between you as you can.

Romulus was a liability.

One they shouldn’t have to deal with.

He strapped his lute to his back and secured his dagger in a hidden pocket that Virgil had taught him how to sow.  Everything else he left, including, after a moments hesitation, his sword. He had been training Logan to use it, on and off, and whilst the scholar was no solider he was improving. At the very least, it would be some source of protection until they could hire another swordhand for their travels.

The climbing plants he had noticed on the way in made getting down from the window much easier than he had originally anticipated. Dusting off his hands he skirted the building, taking care to avoid the large windows of the main hall, until he found the entrance to the the stables.

He wasn’t proud of it, but he had stolen before when he first left home. He would have to again now in order to put some distance between the city and himself.

It wasn’t his worst plan.

And it might even have worked, had they not already been waiting for him.

When Romulus was eleven, and had taken to following the young Marquis de Orenlla around like a love sick puppy. Even now, under the weak light of a covered lantern and with almost fifteen years distance from the memories, he still recognised him instantly.

“Good evening, your highness.” The Marquis smile was as dazzling as he remembered, although his eyes were colder.

He had no army with him, and no weapon that Roman could see. But then, why would he need one?

“Come with me.”

Roman went.

part 4

[theeslytherinslut]

12 Grimmauld Place (8/?)

Pairings: Sirius Black (post-Azkaban) x reader, Remus Lupin x reader’s brother, Sirius Black x Slytherin!reader

Word Count: 2,130

Warnings: gross imagery

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 9 |

A/N: Next chapter will have the trio! Don’t worry the smut is inbound, I love me a slow burn lol. I have a feeling this will be a fairly long story, possibly pushing 20 chapters cause I’m only just coming up on the storyline I had in mind lmao

As Snape pushed open the hospital wing doors, the girlish voice you'd heard earlier returned, and this time you were stunned to find it was arguing with Dumbledore. Surely no student in their right mind would argue with Dumbledore.

“I’m afraid that whatever is behind that door doesn’t concern you, Madam Undersecretary,” Dumbledore said serenely. Glancing warily at Sirius, you found him giving you the same look. So it wasn’t a student. You recognized the title as well, possibly from filling out paperwork for work. Work...the Ministry...Sirius Black sitting right next to you, a very much wanted Sirius Black. 

“Sirius, it might be best you transform now." Madame Pomfrey said before you could. Sirius shot her a shocked look, and she shook her head. "Oh, don't look so shocked. Of course I know--and I'm not the only one, you know. Now, go on. I don’t believe that woman is going to be sated by Dumbledore.” 

And sure enough, a second later, the woman pushed open the doors, and Sirius’ hand slipped from yours. Looking over, in Sirius’ spot sat a large black dog, panting slightly. Bewildered, you stared at Sirius’ new form as a small, toad-looking old woman pulled back your separating curtains. 

“What is this?” she hissed, looking to Madame Pomfrey. She was dressed entirely in an alarming shade of pink, which made her resemble a bubblegum ball. Feeling slightly nauseated, you tore your eyes away from her vivid color, but not before noticing her face was also pink in agitation. 

“This is a patient,” Madame Pomfrey responded icily, barely looking up from your leg. Thankfully, it seemed she’d ceased her draining until Sirius was able to support you once more. 

“She isn’t a student, what’s she doing here?” the woman asked, barely looking at you.

“She used to be,” you retorted, stung by the lack of empathy. She seemed not to hear you, but instead stared expectantly at Madame Pomfrey. 

“I shall treat any who seek medical attention, regardless of their status within the school.” Madame Pomfrey said, drawing herself up to her full height. 

“I don’t believe that’s your decision to make, dear.” the woman said in a sickly sweet voice. Your temper flared.

“As Headmaster, I bestow upon Madame Pomfrey the ability to treat whoever she sees fit. So, unless you plan to bodily remove Mrs. Y/L/N, I don’t see why this conversation can’t be continued in a more conducive setting. I do believe we’re keeping Y/N’s wounds from being drained.” Dumbledore said, gesturing down to your leg. “Decaying drought,”

The woman let out a ghastly noise as she looked down, and you rolled your eyes.

“Oh, that’s nice. Really love being gasped at, as if being mauled weren’t enough.” you quipped, unable to hold your tongue. Sirius growled at the woman, and her eyes fell to him.

“There! Now that can’t be sanitary, can it? It’ll have to go,” the woman said, reaching out to pull Sirius from the room. It seemed she was determined to assert some sort of authority over the situation. Sirius growled more loudly and now raised himself to stand on all four legs; whatever dog breed he’d chosen was massive, and he stood almost as tall as she did. Looking at him, he looked truly terrifying. His long fangs glinted in the light pouring in from the massive windows and his hackles were raised as he viciously growled at the squat woman before you. He looked more wolfish than like a dog. 

“I’d advise against that, Madame Undersecretary. I do believe he holds a certain affinity for Y/N. Dragging him from her bedside might not get you the results you so wish to receive.” Dumbledore smiled fondly down at Sirius, who still stood barring his long fangs at the woman. 

“Well,” she gasped, pulling her short, stubby hand from Sirius’ reach. “Cornelius shall be hearing all about this, Dumbledore. I must say it is most unusual for a prior student to be treated by staff during the school year, nevertheless joined by her mangy mutt.”

“I should expect nothing less,” Dumbledore said, serene as ever, “Now, shall we? Unless you wish to see the effects of an expertly made decaying drought on the human body?

She made a face and peered back down at your angry leg, and you were sure to meet her gaze with an icy glare. She cast a look around at the group of you, and you suddenly remembered Remus’ unconscious body in the next compartment. Hoping she wouldn't look around, you held her eyes with a glare. Thankfully, she seemed unable to find anything worth staying for and allowed Dumbledore to sweep her from the room.

Madame Pomfrey let out a string of words that made you proud, and you smiled at a now human Sirius, his hand slipping back in yours.

“That was Dolores Umbridge. Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic, and by all accounts, simply the very worst of humanity.” Sirius explained, absentmindedly running his thumb along the outside of your hand. Madame Pomfrey still bustled about agitatedly, but you knew she’d soon return to you. 

“What’s she doing here? Surely Dumbledore would never hire such a horrible woman?” you asked. It’d been a while since you’d been at Hogwarts, but that you knew.

“Of course not. She was placed here by the Minister. Fudge is becoming intensely paranoid--and about all the wrong things. As I’m sure you’re very much well aware of, he refuses to acknowledge,” and casting a look at Madame Pomfrey, he cut himself off, “You-Know-Who’s return. Instead of dealing with the real enemy--the only true enemy of the whole of the wizarding world--he instead has set his sites on Dumbledore. As I’m sure you’ve read, he’s already got the Daily Prophet to work on subduing and poisoning the public against him and his claims. They’ve even begun to go after Harry now, too. Cowards. Complete and utter sodding tossers, the whole lot of them--”

“Sirius, there are students in here,” Madame Pomfrey hissed, swatting him lightly with an empty medicine bottle.

“Sorry, Poppy. Anyway, Fudge -is so deluded he thinks Dumbledore is using Hogwarts to train up young wizards for a fresh, formidable, wizard army.” Sirius said

“He’s what?!” you laughed, sure he must be exaggerating.

“He’s gone completely round the twist. Thinks Dumbledore’s training up all these children to get them to storm and take over the Ministry. Utterly fuck--sorry, completely nutters. So, he’s placed Umbridge at Hogwarts, fulfilling both the vacant position of Defense Against the Dark Arts and a fiercely loyal mole. Word is he’s working on drawing up the plans to take over the school completely. This just being the first of many steps.” Sirius explained. Madame Pomfrey leaned in and gasped at his story.

“Take over the school? That wretched woman?” she said, holding her hand to her mouth in horror. Sirius nodded grimly, and a look of intensity came over Madame Pomfrey’s features.

“Well, I don’t cave so easily,” she said, sniffing haughtily at the thought of being under Umbridge’s thumb.

“Spoken like a true Gryffindor,” Sirius smiled up at her.

“Gryffindor?” you said, shocked. I mean, it made sense for Madame Pomfrey to attend Hogwarts in her youth, but you’d never really thought about it--much less what house she’d belong in.

“Yes, Gryffindor, but I never let that cloud my judgment, Slytherin,” she sneered playfully at you. You and Sirius let out a laugh, yours dying much quicker as she came back towards you.

“Alright, dear, last one. It looks like his pinky claw didn’t quite reach you,” she said, grimacing as she spoke.

Wrapping my fingers around the bed frame and Sirius’ hand, you nodded. 

And like always, it was hell. Screaming, you tried to quiet yourself, but it was to no avail. Your mouth seemed to have a mind of its own as she worked her way down your leg, pushing out the rotting flesh

“Y/N?!” a voice yelled groggily. Cursing, Sirius slipped from your grasp and disappeared from view. Despite Sirius’ absence, Madame Pomfrey continued. 

“Almost done, ‘few more seconds, dear,” she said.

Casting a look down, your head spun at the image below you. Your limb looked more zombie-like than human. It was a horrible mixture of deep burgundy, black as the infection ran down your leg, and purple from your enlarged veins highlighting here and there.

“Remus! Contain yourself!” Sirius scolded. You knew you should shut your mouth to calm him, but it didn’t seem possible with the imagery added to the sensation. Finally, she stopped, and you fell back against the pillows once more, vision blacking round the edges as you fought to regain your breath. 

Then, what sounded like a dull thud followed by a groan sounded, and Remus burst through the curtains. What he saw brought him to his knees.

“Would you believe me if I told you it’s not as bad as it looks?” you said, trying to force out a laugh. It came out as a strangled cough, though, as your throat was raw from yelling.

“It’ll be alright, Remus. She’ll be fine by this time tomorrow, come on,” Madame Pomfrey fretted over Remus, and you could see her soft spot for your brother remained.

“But...” he trailed off. Words seemed to fail him, and he gestured weakly to your grotesque limb.

“Well, sit down, drink this,” she said, forcing a lavender-colored liquid into his slightly shaking hands. “Calm down, and we’ll explain. If you go roaring off again, I’ll have to knock you out with something much stronger than the last,” she threatened, lowering her eyes at Remus. With a sudden fondness, you remembered her disdain for chaos in her wing.

“Oh, Sirius,” she sighed. He’d just come in clutching a bloody nose, but seemed amused rather than angry.

“Remus!” you said, shocked at your brother.

“It’s quite alright, love. If someone were trying to keep me from you while you were screaming like that, I’d do the same.” Sirius smiled at you. A tingly feeling brewed in your chest at his words. “Excellent right hook, Moony,” he complimented, bowing slightly at his friend.

Tonks followed in soon after, rolling her eyes at the two of them. You met her eyes, and the both of you mouthed ‘men’ at each other whilst shaking your head.

As Remus laughed weakly at Sirius and downed the rest of the liquid, a small boy in scarlet and gold came to collect Tonks. With a wave and a glance back at Remus, she was gone. The effects of the potion were instantaneous; his hands ceased their shaking, he sat up a little straighter and took a deep breath.

“Now, then,” Madame Pomfrey sighed, “Her leg. It seems our favorite furry little friend seemed discontent with the marring effects of his claws alone and dipped them in what we’ve found to be a decaying drought.” 

Bracing yourself for his reaction, you were extremely shocked to find him reasonable still.

“You’ve got Severus making the antidote, then?” Remus asked logically. 

“I’ll take a dozen of whatever that was for later,” you breathed at Madame Pomfrey. Remus was such a reasonable, logical person in every situation, except when it came to you. When it came to you, however, he was much more reminiscent of his wolfish counterpart.

Everyone laughed lightly at your comment, and you sat up slightly, most of the pain fading. 

“So, what now?” I asked.

“Now, dear. You rest. Though, I daresay at some point your friend here will have a trio of visitors,” she said, twinkling at Sirius.

Sirius smiled in realization, and you were happy he got to see his godson early--even if it did take you suffering from a poisonous werewolf attack.

“I’ll be staying, Poppy,” Remus said, pulling up a chair. You opened your mouth to reason with him, but he stopped you by lifting his hands, and you sighed--there was only so much the potion could do.

She cast wary glances at Sirius and Remus.

“You know, I don’t believe there was a single night in which the two of you were in here that didn’t end in various bangs, pop, and screams.” Suddenly, her demeanor was very intense and McGonagall-like. “The first will be tonight. Or you’ll both end up in an empty cot!”

“Poppy, we are adults, you know,” Remus reminded her, smiling lightly.

“Oh, like that ever stopped you lot,” Madame Pomfrey said, giving them each a stern stare as she left.

“We’ll be on our very best behavior, Poppy,” Sirius said solemnly, though the mischievous twinkle in his eyes gave him away.

 “You two will be the death of me,” she sighed, whisking away back to her desk, a concerned look on her face. 

******************************

Taglist: @geeksareunique @fredweasleysbitchh @green-intervention @stopbeingcurious @ @blackbirddaredevil23 @pan-pride-12 @deathkat657 @theeicedamericano

[darth-does-stuff]

okok this is such an incredibly specific post but lets talk about each of the soulmate au sides postures

logan - ok so he actually has??? really good posture??? like his spine is a fucking metal rod holy shit. you think that he’d be a sloucher but no. this is mostly because since he plays soccer (and subsequently gets hurt a lot) he’d rather not have another part of his body hurting and janked up

patton - patton on the other hand has absolutely horrendous posture. in front of a computer screen, he is bending so far forwards and his head is so close to the screen. when standing up, he’s very slouched, but this is also mostly due to dysphoria reasons (which is also why he likes to wear hoodies) because he has literally just started T around 2 months before the story begins and the effects have BARELY just started

roman - he’s pretty much average tbh although he does tend to slouch a bit, this is mostly cause he’s around patton a lot (going to the same school as him as well as hanging out with him and virgil often (and logan when they start becoming friends)) and patton’s slouching habit has rubbed off on him a bit

virgil - oh my GOD he’s almost as bad as patton lmao, he is technically like 6′1 but because he slouches so much he’s usually clocked at around 5′11 (same height as logan) when slouched. part of his slouching is also patton rubbing off on him but its also an effort to just make himself smaller due to his anxiety sometimes getting the best of him and slouching at least lets him hide himself a little bit

janus - his posture changes when the situation calls for it because he is a NOODLE (remus teases him about it often but it usually ends in various methods of flipping each other off)

remus - not p e r f e c t posture but pretty damn close. this is because he has No Shame and will announce that he has arrived as he walks into a room and as such has no problem standing up tall

[hxlyhead-harpies]

The Last Dream of My Soul part 2. (R.L.)

This part is a bit short but I hope that’s okay with you all! Any feedback is appreciated and message me or comment if you want to be tagged! My requests are also open. Enjoy!

Pairing: Young!Remus Lupin x Reader

Summary: The very bookish (Y/n) has spent most of her life alone, aside from her best friend Lily and her beloved books. But when the infamous Marauders get thrust into her life, how could she resist the beautiful and unattainable Remus?

Warnings: none

Word count: 1.8k

Part one

By your second week eating breakfast with the Marauders you were starting to feel like you really belonged with them. James was extremely funny, in your opinion the funniest of the group. He never failed to make you laugh when you sat near him in the common room and once he made you laugh so hard in the Great Hall that you had almost choked on your toast. Sirius was also funny but in a different way. He playfully flirted with anything that moved, something that would normally make you scoff, but with him it just made you laugh. You weren’t as close with Peter, though you helped him with his transfiguration homework and he occasionally shared his sweets with you. And then, of course, there was Remus. Remus was by far your favorite of the group, though it was for reasons you’d never dare disclose to anyone but Lily. He was sweet, sending you reassuring smiles when you’d muster up the bravery to tell a story to the group. He’d slip you chocolates when you were studying late at night and fostered the same love for muggle literature as you. Every little thing he did only added to your attraction to him. In your eyes, he was absolutely perfect

You looked forward to the evenings in the common room, sitting next to the crackling fire with the marauders and Lily. Laughing at James and Sirius’s jokes and stealing glances at Remus’s face, seemingly glowing the light of the fire. You finally felt as if you had found your place at Hogwarts.

“Hey (Y/n),” Remus said, startling you out of your thoughts. You turned to look at him.

“Yeah?” you replied. He shifted in his spot on the floor, next to the couch where Lily sat with James.

“I just finished Crime and Punishment,” he said. You turned in the large armchair where you sat to fully face him.

“Oh really? How did you like it?” you asked.

“I liked it, though I have to digress- you were right- it is a bit dense,” he answered. You smiled at his from your seat, quickly looking down at your hands.

“Well of course. I told you so,” you responded. You heard him laugh lightly from the floor.

“I was wondering though if I could borrow your book? The one you talked about at breakfast the other week,” he inquired.

“Oh of course!” you said. “I can go fetch it for you right now.” You gestured towards the stairs that led to the girl’s dormitory.

“Oh you don’t have to get it right now,” Remus said. You smiled and shook your head.

“It’s no trouble. I’ll be right back,” you replied, pushing yourself up from the armchair. He thanked you as you made your way towards the staircase, but you just smiled and waved him off.

When you got to your room you rifled through your bag, attempting to locate the book. You searched for a moment to no avail, before realizing that you had left it on your bedside table. After you retrieved it you turned to head back downstairs, only to almost run directly into Lily.

“Oh my goodness Lils! You scared me,” you said, clutching your chest.

“Oh I’m sorry,” she replied.

“What are you doing up here?” you inquired. Mere minutes ago she was downstairs in the middle of a conversation. You wondered what had brought her upstairs so early. She usually didn’t leave the common room for at least another hour.

“It was getting late and I’m tired,” she replied, shrugging. “Plus James and everyone else decided to go up to bed,” she continued. You felt yourself deflate.

“Oh,” you said. “I was supposed to bring this down to Remus. I guess I took too long,” you said, holding up the book. You felt embarrassed that you had gone all the way upstairs to retrieve him the book when he had just decided to go to be without waiting for you.

“Don’t be silly,” Lily said with a smirk. “He’s still waiting for you downstairs.”

“Oh,” you responded.

“Yes he’s waiting for you all alone in the empty common room,” Lily said in a teasing sing-song voice. You felt yourself blush.

“Lily, I’m going down there to lend him a book. What do you think is going to happen?” you said. Lily just laughed, wiggling her eyebrows at you. You shook your head and headed down towards the common room, now feeling slightly nervous. When you got to the bottom of the stairs you saw Remus’s head pop up. He had moved from his spot on the floor to the now vacant couch. He shot you a smile as you walked over to him.

“Here it is,” you said, handing the book to him. “Sorry I kept you down here waiting for me, I didn’t know everyone was planning on turning in so early.”

“Oh it’s no problem,” he replied, taking the book from you. He quickly flipped through the pages, feeling the worn parchment against his fingers.

“Wow, Lily wasn’t kidding. You really have marked this thing up,” he said, chuckling. You ducked your head in embarrassment.

“Yeah… Sorry about that,” you responded sheepishly. Remus looked up at you, his eyes sparkling in the dim light.

“Oh don’t worry about it. I can tell that you really love the book,” he said. You nodded silently, averting your eyes to your shoes. A silence fell between you as Remus turned the book over in his hands. You were debating whether to bid him goodnight and go upstairs or attempt to start a conversation with him. Luckily, he made the decision for you.

“At the risk of sounding like a complete idiot, what is this book about?” he asked, rubbing the back of his neck. You giggle softly before sitting down next to him on the sofa.

“Well,” you began. “It’s the story of the muggle French revolution. It follows a man who was kept as a political prisoner, his daughter, a French aristocrat, and a drunken lawyer. It’s full of intrigue and espionage, and while not a romance, it contains what I consider to be the most romantic scene ever written,” you said, catching yourself before you continued to ramble. You look up to meet Remus’s eyes to see that he’s smiling.

“That sounds incredibly interesting,” he said after a moment. You smiled and nodded.

“What qualifies it to be the most romantic scene ever written?” he asked in an almost teasing, yet earnest tone.

“I’m not sure exactly. Something about the words is just perfect. I guess it’s just the kind of thing I wish someone would say to me,” you answered shyly. You saw him nod in your peripheral vision.

“Are you a fan of romances then?” he inquired.

“Yes, I am. They might be my favorite type of book to read,” you answered abashedly. You had always loved the allure of romance novels; Pride and Prejudice, Wuthering Heights, and Jane Eyre had been your go-to reads throughout your adolescence. You longed for a romance of your own, and since that seemed unattainable, you lived vicariously through your books.

“I don’t think that’s anything to be ashamed of,” Remus said, “Though I can’t say they’re my favorite types of books.” You laughed.

“That doesn’t exactly surprise me, Remus. You are a boy after all,” you said jokingly, nudging his shoulder with your own.

“Hey! That’s an unfair stereotype. I’m sure plenty of boys enjoy romance novels. I am just not one of them,” he said with a smile, nudging you back.

“Why don’t you like them?” you asked. He shrugged, his joking demeanor morphing into a more uncomfortable one.

“I don’t know exactly… I just don’t picture myself wanting a real-life romance, so why would I want to read about a fictional one?” he elaborated. You felt your stomach drop.

“Oh,” you said, attempting to keep your voice even, “so you just don’t want to fall in love?”

“Yeah, I suppose that’s it. I don’t think the whole falling in love and marriage thing is for me,” he responded. You hoped that you appeared to have an unbothered demeanor because it felt as if your heart was breaking.

“That sounds a little sad, don’t you think?” you asked. Remus shook his head, still appearing a tad uncomfortable.

“Not to me. Besides, loneliness isn’t the worst type of pain that one can feel,” he replied. You frowned.

“I’m not sure about that. For me, the pain of loneliness seems unparalleled. I want nothing more than to fall in love,” You took a deep breathe, playing with the hem of your sweater. From the corner of your eye, you saw Remus shrug.

“I guess that’s where you and I differ,” he said after a beat. You nodded quietly. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, you stood up from your seat on the couch and dusted off your skirt.

“Well, I best be off to bed,” you said. Remus looked up at you quickly. He gave you a small smile before bidding you goodnight. You quickly turned around and rushed up the stairs.

By the time you got to your dorm, your body felt heavy with disappointment. You closed the door hurriedly behind you before flopping onto your bed. You let out a sad sigh, looking up at the ceiling, After a minute you felt the bed dip beside you and you look up to see Lily grinning down at you.

“So how’d it go?” the redhead asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

“Fine,” was your response. Lily groaned before laying down next to you in the bed.

“Come on (Y/n). Please just tell me what happened,” she begged.

“Nothing happened,” you said simply, “and it’s been made clear to me that nothing ever will happen.” Lily looked at you, clearly confused.

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“I have been informed that Remus Lupin is not one for romance. He doesn’t want it now, and he doesn’t want it ever,” you replied, wiping away the tears that were threatening to fall.

“Oh,” Lily said softly. “That was not how I expected that to go.” She turned her head to look up at the ceiling.

“It’s fine,” you said. “I’ve gone seven years without needing a boyfriend. I certainly don’t need one now,” you said defiantly, getting up to begin getting ready for bed. You saw Lily frown.

“But that doesn’t mean you can’t want one. You’re allowed to be sad you know?” she says, propping herself up on her elbows.

“Lily, if I let myself be sad over every boyfriend that I never had then I would have been sad for the last seven years,” you replied. Lily began playing with the threads of the quilt that was splayed across your bed.

“I guess.” She got up quickly and went to join you by your dresser. “Well even if Remus Lupin is too daft to realize it, you’re quite a catch,” she said reassuringly. You giggled quietly.

“Thank you, Lils,” you responded.

“Don’t worry someday you will meet your Mr. Heathcliff,” she reassured you, patting you on the shoulder, before skipping off to her own bed. You run your brush through your hair, desperately hoping that she was right.

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

Taglist:

@goosegorl​ @serenefreakgeek​

[inkandpen22]

All I Want (2/4)

Pairing: Sirius Black x Reader 

Warnings: swearing, mild smut 

Word Count: 1.8k

Part Summary: Sirius convinces Y/N to take a little risk which leads them to trouble

Masterlist

Sirius

"I need Y/N to go with me," I complain to my friends as we settle around the table in the Great Hall. 

"Why do you need Y/N to go with you?" James questions idiotically. "You could ask Marlene, that girl from potions, what about-" 

"Y/N is the only option," I emphasize, growing annoyed that no one else understands. 

"Since when?" Remus interjects as he flips open his textbook. 

"Since she told me no!" I repeat what I told them last night. 

"Ooh, so this is all to prove a point?" James accuses with a raised brow. 

"No! I genuinely want to go with her!" I justify. 

"She's probably just giving you a hard time, playing hard to get. Give it time," James tries to reason. "Keep up with the compliments and maybe even give her a gift or something!" 

"You could just ask her publicly so she can't say no," Remus suggests uncharacteristically. 

James and I share the same confused expression. 

"What do you mean, Moony?" I frown. 

"Do it here," he clarifies. 

"In front of everyone?" Peter sounds astonished. 

"That's sort of what 'public' means..." Remus sasses. 

I shake my head. "Y/N would hate it. She hates being the center of attention." 

"But it would grab her attention," Remus points out a matter-of-factly. 

"I don't know guys..." I'm hesitant to do something so extreme when she was fine with rejecting me in front of our friends. 

"I think it would be great!" Peter gleams, enthused by the idea. 

"You also thought bringing snacks to the Shrieking Shack last month was a great idea," James reminds him disapprovingly. 

"I forgot I had the cinnamon roll in my pocket okay!" Peter huffs. 

"Hush!" I hiss at the group quietly. "Y/N is coming!" 

Glancing over my shoulder, I watch the most beautiful girl approach us, surrounded by Marlene and Evans. Her perfect Y/H/C hair and Y/E/C eyes. I've always known that Y/N is beautiful, but lately, I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. It's weird, foreign to me. 

___________________________

Y/N

"And then I wrote back to my mom and told her no," I tell Lily. "So I think I'll be able to visit you this summer for sure!" 

Lily squeals, gripping my arm with excitement. "You can go on holiday with my family to the lake!" 

When we reach our usual spot with the boys already there, I take my seat beside Sirius. Lily sits on my opposite side, already in deep conversation with Marlene to make plans this summer.  

"Spending the summer with Evans?" Sirius inquires with a cheeky grin. 

"A few weeks at the start," I explain. "Her family is taking a trip and invited me." 

Sirius leans close to me and whispers, "I would pay large sums to see you spending hours laying in the sun." 

I playfully nudge him away with a giggle. Goodness, he's such a painful flirt sometimes. 

"What if after you visit Evans, you and I go on a holiday of our own?" He suggests mischievously as he turns his body toward me. 

"You and me?" I giggle as I pour myself some juice. "I think we wouldn't even make it out of London." 

"Just think about it. You, me, on a beach... We could spend weeks alone in a cottage somewhere," he describes as he leans in close. I can feel his lips brush against my ear as he guides my hair back over my shoulder. "No distractions. Days and days of us doing whatever we want for, wherever we want, as long as we want..." he insinuates. 

Chills course down my spine as Sirius glides his fingers down my back to my waist. I turn my head to the side to meet his jet-black gaze. Mere inches from one another, we stare into each other's eyes longing. Merlin, he's a vision, isn't he? Even though I see every day, it's never enough. 

His lips part as his vision falls to my mouth. "Want to get out of here?" 

I nod frantically and he's already a step ahead of me, rising from the bench. 

"We're gonna... uh... we're gonna go for a walk," he stammers as he takes my hand. 

James chuckles knowingly, "yeah sure." 

"Use protection," Remus instructs casually without even glancing up from his textbook. 

“Remus!” Lily gasps his name in disapproval. 

“A spell, Lil!” He smirks, giving Sirius and know glance. “You never know what’s poking around on these “walks” if you know what I mean...” 

“Oh dear heavens,” Lily grumbles while the remaining Marauders chuckle. 

Sirius eagerly tugs me toward the entrance of the Great Hall. I snicker as I struggle to keep up with his speed-walking. He combs his fingers through his long jet black hair with a childish grin. 

Once we make it out of the Great Hall, Sirius glances back at me and we break out into a race. Hand-in-hand, we run down the corridor, weaving between students to get to the nearest empty room. To my surprise, Sirius skids to a stop and yanks me into the closest alcove. Tucked away is a hidden stairwell by the courtyard. Sirius presses me against the stonewall and brings his lips to mine hungrily. His hands roam my body as they've done so many times before. The way he knows exactly what to do like clockwork amazes me. I want to slip into the sensation and just forget the world, yet I can't. 

"Sirius," I mumble against his lips. 

He hums, not willing to stop. 

"We should stop," I pant. 

I'm speaking these words as they're what my mind is telling me what to say, but my body is telling me to do the opposite. 

"Don't want to," Sirius wittily remarks. 

I giggle, making him smile against my lips. "But we should before anyone sees." 

He breaks away from my lips and starts at my neck. "Let them," he determines. "I don't care." 

Okay, that's hot. His ability to be so carefree and willing motivates me to be the same. Since the moment I met him, Sirius has driven me to break through my boundaries and reach for me. It isn't fair that he's so perfect. Everything about him is irresistible. 

"Don't you want to?" He whispers and the warmth of his breath brushes against my neck. 

My eyes fall shut as my fingers comb through the hair on the nape of his neck. 

"You know I do," I sigh. 

"Then why shouldn't we?" He urges mischievously. 

A can name a hundred reasons, but here the moment I can't think of any. Will it ever stop, the pining for him? He's always in my thoughts. 

"We'd be breaking the rules. If we get caught-" 

"Detection would give more time alone. More time to-" 

"Mr. Black! Ms. Y/L/N!" McGonagall's voice echoes through the corridor. 

"Fuck!" Sirius curses under his breath and parts from me swiftly. 

"I told you!" I hiss quietly. 

The sound of her heels vastly approaching makes my heart race. We're in such trouble. 

McGonagall appears in the archway leading out to the alcove. She must've seen us through the windows of the courtyard. She wears a disappointed and bewildered expression. 

"Mr. Black and Ms. Y/L/N, this not the time nor the place for your endeavors!" She puts ever so lightly. "Shouldn't you be in the Great Hall for supper?" 

"We um...We..." I stammer anxiously, at a loss for words. 

I never get in trouble. I may act rebellious here and there, broken a few rules, but I've never been caught. I've never done anything that requires discipline. 

"It was my idea, Minnie! Entirely my idea," Sirius takes the full blame. 

"Well, I sure hope so as this is entirely unlike you, Ms. Y/L/N!" She looks at me with pure disappointment and I feel the same. 

"I'm so sorry, Professor!" I apologize instantly. 

My heart is in my throat. If my parents hear about this, I'm royally screwed! One, they'll be furious that I've received detention. Two, they don't even know that Sirius and I are... well... whatever we are. 

"Detention after school tomorrow," McGonagall determines. 

"No please!" I try to plead, but McGonagall raises her hand for me to save my breath. 

"Be in my office right after your last class," she declares as she turns back down the hall. 

Sirius follows her without a moment's hesitation. "Professor please! Allow me to take all the blame," he sighs. "It isn't Y/N's fault!" 

I follow behind the pair, praying Sirius can change her mind. They're close and I know McGonagall has a soft for him. 

"Have you ever heard the phrase, 'it takes two to tango,' Mr. Black?" McGonagall wittily replies, not giving at all to Sirius's pleading. 

"I'll do both my and Y/N's detentions! Add a third even!" He requests. 

McGonagall releases a deep sigh and as she slows to a halt. I stop a few steps behind as she glances between Sirius and me. Then, she turns to address Sirius directly. 

"I respect your willingness to take the fall for Ms. Y/L/N, it's very noble of you. Yet, my mind is made up," she declares calmly. 

I hide my face in my hands with a deep sigh. This is going to be terrible. My parents are going to kill me! I've made it to seventeen without a single thing on my record and within ten minutes that achievement went down that drain. All for a hot piece of ass too, unbelievable! 

"In light of this being Ms. Y/L/N's first offense-" McGonagall announces, causing me to glance up at her, "-I will not be contacting your parents and it will not go on your record. However, you will use the detection time to think of your actions!" 

A massive height lifts from my chest and Sirius grins. I exhale deeply and approach the pair with relief. Sirius reaches for my hand and I swat it away. Now is not the time! I see a hint of amusement on McGonagall's face at my action. 

"Thank you, Professor! It'll never happen again!" I guarantee her. 

"I sure hope not!" She replies. "Keep in mind there are First Years around!" 

"Yes Ma'am," I nod. 

When Sirius doesn't respond I below him in the side, causing him to wince. 

"Right, right," he agrees absentmindedly, as he doesn't care. "Keep out of sight of children." 

McGonagall huffs, but never the less hurries along down the hall, knowing she'll never reach Sirius. 

"That's not what she meant," I hiss between my teeth quietly as we watch McGonagall walk away.  

Sirius chuckles, "I know. I just like pushing her buttons a little." 

"Well, your pushing almost got me in immense trouble!" I remind Sirius as I turn to start back to the Great Hall. 

His fingers wrap around my wrist and yank me back to him, causing me to land in his chest. I attempt to wiggle out of his hold as he slips his arm around my waist, but then he uses his free hand to grip my chin. He forces me to look him in the eyes as he chuckles. He truly doesn't care that we just got detentions. I guess it's just another notch on the stick for him, huh? 

"Don't fret Y/N, this will be fun," he voices confidently. 

"How can you be so sure?" I grumble. "It's detention." 

"What's life without a little risk?" He winks and brings leans in for a kiss. 

Sirius Black will be the death of me. 

_____________________________________

Masterlist

Tags:  @agirlwholovescoffee @hyperactiveravenclaw​ @fleurho @rangergranger11

[moonshine623]

marauders’ heights over the years

this is of course personal headcanon! but do rb if you feel like it’s wrong (this will be from tallest to shortest)

first year james, sirius, remus/peter

second year james/sirius, remus, peter

third year sirius, james, remus, peter

fourth year james, sirius/remus, peter

fifth year james/remus, sirius, peter

sixth year remus, james, sirius, peter

seventh year remus, james, sirius, peter

final heights remus - 6′2 james - 6′0 sirius - 5′10 peter - 5′8 (he likes to say 5′9 though)

height hcs:

remus was tiny in first year, as tiny as peter, but he was skinner and none of his uniforms fit, so peter looked taller than him. think sweater paws.

in second year, james and sirius were almost the exact same height, but james’ hair was fluffier so he looked taller. sirius once poured a container of sleakeazy over his head just to be taller.

in third year, james would forever swear that he was taller than sirius, just because it was so embarrassing to be shorter than his best friend. sirius relished this because it was clear to everyone that he was taller, and james’ protests just made himself look more pathetic.

remus started shooting up in the fourth year and it was so embarrassing for sirius, who’d always considered him the tiny one. but at that time sirius got a massive glow up, so he was ok.

in fifth year remus reached james’ height and everyone was shocked, peter was very put out because he wasn’t growing and tiny remus was. james was very upset and kept pushing remus down. sirius was upset at first but then he started thinking gay thoughts and we all know where that went.

remus had a massive growth spurt in the summer of fifth year and grew like four inches. the others grew too but they all looked tiny compared to him. james was very put out because remus kept using his shoulders and sirius’ head as an elbow rest. sirius was very, VERY gay.

james is much broader and muscular than remus, and sirius is also more muscular. remus is a long and lanky beanstalk. peter is short and square and stocky.

tl;dr - sirius loves his tall boyfriend. no one expected remus to be the tallest. james is very upset. peter accepted his role as the shortest.

[cotncandyboifics]

The Bidding of the Prince Twins: Chapter 2

AO3 Link

Masterpost

Chapter 1 ~

Pairings: (vague/qpr) Loceit, eventual Analoceit

Word count: 2,961

Story summary: Virgil finds himself being held hostage in an unknown location. His two suspected captors seem to care for him more than any strangers should, especially strangers who kidnapped him. But were they really the ones who kidnapped him? That aside, Virgil also can't shake the feeling that there's something familiar about them. He just can't pin-point what it is. As time passes, the layers of lies the three of them are caught in are gradually peeled away, one by one.

General CW: U!Roman, U!Remus, food, kidnapping, implied Stockholm Syndrome, moderate to severe amnesia, swearing, sexual innuendos, graphic descriptions of gore/violence/scarring, minor character d-aths, anxiety attacks, panic attacks, non-graphic descriptions of needles, graphic and non-graphic descriptions of physical pain, (will be added to as I write more)

Chapter CW: Unsympathetic!Roman, Unsympathetic!Remus, food, moderate amnesia, kidnapping hostage, swearing, non-graphic descriptions of physical pain, (let me know if i missed anything please!)

Author Notes: <none>

...

Virgil woke up to an abundance of soft fabric surrounding him. He was groggy as all hell, and immediately felt a small ache coming from his left outer thigh. He grunted to himself as he tried to shift around - turns out his whole body was sore and aching to the bone. He managed to flop himself onto his back, only entangling himself deeper in the lush fabric that was practically engulfing him.

As he felt around him, he came to the ingenious conclusion that he was in a very soft bed. Likely a double, since he had more room to sprawl out than he usually did at home in his twin. He finally decided to try at opening his eyes.

He shied away from the light as he had before, but this time it was far less intense and concentrated on him. In fact, it seemed to be dim and gentle for the express purpose of providing a more docile mood than last time. He was able to turn his head in a wobbling jolt, and found that the only active source of light in the room was a yellow-bulbed lamp that sat cozily on the bedside table to his left.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty," Virgil recognized J's voice from across the room. He tried to sit up, and was somehow successful in his semi-panicked state, but set his jaw and squeezed his eyes shut as his head pounded in response to his unwanted movement. He cursed under his breath. "I see you slept well," J's voice was as snarky as ever.

When Virgil got his bearings enough to open his eyes, he looked around the room, trying not to move his head too much.

There wasn't much in the room. On the opposite wall was a very large mirror set into the wall - not a very discrete false mirror, Virgil mused to himself. Set in the top corners of the mirror were two rectangular black boxes that appeared to be small speakers. A nice carpet beneath his bed stretched half the length of the room, which then gave way to cement. A metal chair welded to the floor just above a drain was in the middle of the far side, beyond the carpet. In the far right corner, an opaque glass door with a metal frame, and Virgil could see the glint of tiles beneath the raised bottom of the door. On the far side of the left wall, there was a heavy-looking metal door that was bolted shut, with one small window at head height and one at the floor. Just beyond the door, in a fold-out metal chair, sat who Virgil assumed to be J.

He was sitting with his legs crossed, hands folded over one knee. He eyed Virgil from behind light-brown golden bangs that curled around and over the brim of his black bowler hat. Virgil couldn't make out his face well from where he was, but he could see that, while one of his eyes was a deep chocolate brown, the other was a nearly pale-white, and a very long and jagged scar ran vertically up through his eye from the edge of his jawline, along with a few other scars on that same right side of his face that ran across his cheek or down his neck and below his collar.

J stood swiftly, and started stepping toward Virgil cautiously. Virgil scowled, considering hissing at him or trying to get away, but his physical state combined with a strange gentleness he detected in the man's eyes kept him quiet and planted in place.

Janus sat on the edge of the bed, never taking his eyes off Virgil, who quietly gulped at the other man's closeness. "Virgil," J addressed after a momentary staring contest. "Will you answer me something?" J's voice was sweet and silky again, but this time it felt far less forced to Virgil somehow.

"Depends on what it is," he narrowed his eyes at J slightly. J only smirked at that, but any expected condescending tone had dissipated before he spoke again.

J leaned closer to Virgil, searching his eyes, before continuing. "Tell me. Do you recognize me in any way?"

That was certainly not what Virgil had been expecting. He scoffed. "y'know, I think I would remember meeting someone with-" He cut himself off, and J didn't miss how his pupils dilated slightly. "hmm," he hummed after a moment of searching J's face almost feverishly.

"...no?" It almost sounded as though some sort of hope J had been holding onto was dissipated, dissolving into oblivion with that single small word.

"I thought... no. No, I don't." Virgil's tone was unsure as he continued to search J's features like a blind mouse surrounded by the scent of cheese. J pursed his lips and sighed in defeat, looking away.

"That's good, I suppose," J mused, seemingly to himself. Virgil was growing more confused by the second. He knew there was something familiar about this man, but that feeling he was chasing the tail end of seemed to be detached from any memories he may have had of seeing him before. Eventually Virgil gave up, looking down at his lap.

"I thought L said you guys were only coming in together," Virgil's voice came out much smaller than he wanted it to. J opened his mouth to reply, but a sudden static noise shot through Virgil's ears and it felt as though it was scraping the inside of his skull. The sound was gone sooner than it began, before Virgil could cover his ears, and L's voice came through from the two speakers set in the frame of the false mirror, distorted and somewhat spooky.

"Hello Virgil. I am watching through this false mirror. At this time, only J can reveal his physical appearance to you, as it is less likely to jeopardize our assignment." J groaned, throwing his head back, and Virgil wondered if it bothered him that L kept calling it (whatever "it" was) an assignment. "However, you will be... meeting me, face to face, very soon. For now, J and I assumed you'd be more comfortable with a softly lit room, as opposed to pitch darkness." With that, the static sound returned for a moment, and was followed by silence. Virgil trained his eyes on the false mirror, wondering where exactly L was behind it. He scoffed yet again.

"What do you two care if I'm comfortable?" He hissed, glaring from the mirror to J, who was still sitting beside him. He considered his words for a moment, letting his angry expression fall away. He looked from the soft bed to the dim lamp, and realized that J and L clearly did want him to be at least somewhat comfortable.

"This is not meant to be a torturous experience." J's near whisper of a statement coalesced with Virgil's train of thought. he stared forward blankly, and Virgil quietly waited in his surprise to see if he would explain further. "We don't have a choice in this, as much as you don't. We-"

"J, I think that's enough for now," L's voice came through the speakers again, and J's eyes widened as he turned part way to face the mirror.

"Yes, perhaps you are right." Virgil hadn't expected that. Then again, he hadn't expected to get kidnapped by two strangely familiar men that he seemed to be developing some sick and twisted attraction for, despite how he had despised the concept of Stockholm Syndrome his whole life.

J seemed lost in thought, not moving for a long moment. Then he stood, glancing at Virgil with an unbridled sadness, before pacing to the large metal door, undoing the mechanical locks with a very long string of numbers entered into a keypad. There was a buzzing and the door shuddered open, and Janus slipped through quickly before pushing it shut hastily from the other side. The door immediately relocked itself when it was shut.

Virgil almost laughed at the half-assed security that was just displayed, but remembered he could scarcely move his legs, let alone stand or walk. He flopped backward on the bed.

After a short moment alone, there was a sound of scraping metal, though much smaller and more high-pitched than that of the door opening. A small tray of food slid through the opening at the base of the door. Virgil shifted in the bed to try to get up, but quickly gave in again to the aching soreness that was racking his body. He'd get the food later.

...

"Janus, what the hell was that?" Logan hissed through clenched teeth as Janus opened the door to their observation room. He slowly stepped over to the chair nearest to the door and dropped defeatedly into it, staring blankly forward at nothing in particular. A single heavy tear rolled down his cheek from his unblinded eye. Logan sighed frustratedly from the chair beside him in an almost-growl. "We cannot risk allowing our emotions to interfere with-"

"Oh can't we, Logan?" Janus fumed, whipping his head around to stare Logan down. "I could have said the same god damn thing to you yesterday. The way you spoke to him did so little to disguise your empathy for him that I nearly slapped you across the face then and there." Logan breathed a scoff after a moment, mostly amazed that he was being told off by Janus- the two had been in (objectively) much more strenuous situations together in the past, and never, never had Janus actually snapped at him. "I'm sorry having to interrogate him was your breaking point, but having your life-long friend look you in the face and tell you he doesn't recognize you is- is mine."

Logan waited a few beats of silence, trying to discipline the brash tone of his voice into something more manageable and clinical. "Janus. We knew this would happen. The amnesia is a direct side effect of the required doses. Assuming everything is working according to plan, he will not recognize me either when I see him tomorrow."

Janus' jaw was set, and he bit his cheek so hard he tasted blood. "Easier said than experienced, Jackson." Logan cringed at the use of his last name. "See how it makes you feel when he's got those eyes trained on you without a single trace of recognition."

With that, Janus stood, tromping away and gone with a slam of the door.

Logan stared unfocused in the general direction of where Janus had been, pursing his lips in thought. After long enough of that, he turned his attention back to the laptop before him, deciding it would be best to just get back to work.

...

The rest of Virgil's day was extremely uneventful and boring. He gradually mustered the strength to go eat, sitting cross-legged with his back against the wall as he picked at buttered mashed potatoes and some kind of flavorless meat. He took his time, not hungry enough to finish it quickly but bored enough to keep working at the meal. Eventually he was down to just crumbs and little smeared spots of mash. Still, he finished it all, cleaning the entire tray of any organic substance. Although then, he found himself having to search for a new source of entertainment.

He looked around for a while, from where he was sitting on the floor beside the heavy metal door. He noticed some white stuff sticking to certain parts of the metal chair welded to the floor, and assumed they were remnants of the duct tape from his interrogation session yesterday, or whenever that had happened.

From there he started spiraling about how long he'd been in "solitary confinement" as he'd dubbed it, but quickly tried to avert his attention; he knew panicking about something he very clearly could do nothing about would just make things harder for himself. He took a few slow deep breaths.

Opening his eyes again, he searched the room more thoroughly. There were a few visible dust bunnies under the bed, but the exposed carpet looked freshly vacuumed. The lampshade was positively covered in dust. There was a single caged lightbulb that looked very heavy-duty set in the very center of the ceiling, but it looked burnt out. On the other side of the door beside him, Virgil could see the outline of the edge of a light switch that must have been removed. In the far corner of the room, on the opposite side of his bed, a single long crack ran crookedly up the cement wall, just shy of touching the ceiling.

He looked to the glass door in the furthest corner of the room, watching as the tiles visible on the floor past it gleamed. Wait.

If the tiles were reflecting some sort of light- did that mean there was a window?

Virgil scrambled to his feet, dropping the food tray with a few loud clacks on the floor. He winced at the sound, but maintained his attention as he beelined for the door. He yanked it open a little too hard, and felt his shoulder ache slightly.

It was a small box of a room. There was a toilet, sink and shower all lined up uncomfortably close to each other on the wall Virgil faced. There were two cups on the sink, one on either side of the faucet; both looked well-cleaned, and one had a brand-new toothbrush resting in it along with a small tube of toothpaste. Above the sink there were indentations in the wall, as though there'd been a mirror there at one point that got taken down. The shower was really just a showerhead hanging from the ceiling directly above a small circular drain that the tile pattern dipped slightly at. There were two twist knobs on the wall above said drain, one marked with a red H and the other a mostly scratched off blue C. A small white soap bar sat on a little porcelain protrusion in the wall beside the knobs. And of course...

No window. There was just a vent with a cage drilled to the wall surrounding it set high in the corner of one wall, and a single industrial-looking light in the center of the ceiling that looked identical to the one in the main room. Virgil sighed, rubbing his temples.

He didn't know what else to do, and figured this was the only way to get certain privacy. So he pulled his shirt off lazily, shoving his pants and underwear off. He turned to see himself in the mirror, only to be immediately reminded that the only mirror was in fact just an observation tool. He wouldn't be able to really look at himself without feeling his guts whirl unpleasantly until he could get out.

If he ever did.

He twisted the cold nob around once, and didn't touch the hot. The pipes in the wall shook audibly for a moment, and then a surprisingly steady water pressure spilt over his hair and back. The water was cold, as promised, and Virgil fought a shiver as he felt his skin erupt in goosebumps.

After a moment of enjoying the coolness against his previously quite hot skin, he realized that a cold shower would likely hurt more than help his muscle situation. He groaned to himself and turned the hot knob around two and a half times.

The water changed surprisingly quickly, but not suddenly. Virgil adjusted to the gentle heat, relishing the steam that surrounded him and made it easy to keep his dark thoughts from taking over.

...

Remus Prince sat impatiently, leaning forward in the drivers seat to stare down the stoplight above threateningly. He thrummed his fingers on the steering wheel to keep himself from slapping his obnoxious, dramatic excuse for a brother in the passenger seat across the face.

"Yes hello, I'd like an iced Venti Chai Latte with - excuse me, ma'am, are you going- excuse me, will you allow me to finish my sentence?" Roman had always been disrespectful toward service workers, and it had always irked Remus. Though, he knew yelling at his brother now would only make it worse for the employee.

Finally the light changed, and Remus stepped on the gas slightly too fast, jerking Roman forward. He made offended noises as he continued conferring with the Starbucks employee on the other end of the line.

"Yes. Precisely. Thank you." His tone suggested he was anything but thankful, and Remus growled vaguely at him. Roman just side-winked at him, with his stupid smile on full display. "Yes, that'll be for Roman Prince."

Remus couldn't hear very well what the person on the other line had been saying before, but this time he did hear a "...is this a prank call?" after a beat of silence. Roman smirked to himself.

"No, my dear, it is indeed not." With that, Roman hung up.

As Roman set his phone down, Remus' received a notification and lit up. He grunted, non-verbally asking his brother to check it. Roman grabbed the phone lazily, and Remus saw his brother's smirk widen into a sick grin out the corner of his eye. Remus grinned at the road ahead, teeth slightly too sharp to be human sticking out grotesquely in a few too many directions.

"Shall we see how our boys are doing?" Roman connected his brother's phone to the car speaker system, pressing play on the audio file they'd been sent.

There was a slight static fuzz, before a voice could be heard. "Good morning, sleeping beauty." The twins both immediately huffed a laugh as they recognized Janus' voice coming through the car speakers.

"I see you slept well."

[stars-a-n-d-scars]

10 Days of Summer - Chapter 2

Hey guys! Here is chapter two!!! As always, constructive criticism is welcome, homophobic bitching is not. I love you!!

***

Sirius had always been an early riser. There was just something about the way the sun shot pink and orange daggers to shatter the impenetrable frost of the night that drew him. Soothed him. He couldn’t count how many mornings he had spent on the roof of Number 12 Grimmauld Place, observing a world rarely seen. Keeping the company of the moon, she who shone her light for unseeing eyes, as she slipped from dark’s cruel grasp and was liberated, to finally rest. Watching as, one by one, the stars faded into nothingness and the great eastern orb returned to claim the sky for its own. And so, it will likely come as no surprise that when we rejoin our protagonist, he is partaking in the same activity as he had every morning for the last 12 years.

The sun had a peculiar way of setting the world on fire. It was never loud or obnoxious. It didn’t burst into the sky in a shower of confetti and yell of its presence for all to hear. It seeped over the horizon, inch by inch, so that even the most attentive of onlookers could never pinpoint the exact moment that night turned to day. Sirius sat perched on the roof of the Potter’s, watching smoke from his cigarette unfurling in that inexplicable, mesmerizing way that it does. But one can only sit alone on a roof for so long before one’s mind starts to wander. In Sirius’ case, it found its way to the boy sleeping on the sofa downstairs.

He had always been drawn by Remus. From the moment they’d met, something about that awkward, scar-ridden 11-year-old had caught his eye. Maybe it was the way his timid hands had quivered when they shook hands for the first time, or the way his eyes gleamed with a type of gold that a thousand goblins couldn’t conjure. Ever since that moment, he always wanted to be around him. To be close to him. It was impossible to explain, but Sirius was under a spell that not even the most powerful wizard in the world could break.

He was pulled from his thoughts by the sound of a window creaking open. He turned around and was shocked by the sight of Remus climbing through the attic window and out onto the roof of the Potter house.

“Morning.” Remus’ morning voice never failed to take Sirius’ breath away. Simultaneously gravelly and soft, it enveloped him in what could only be described as comfort.

“Hey”, Sirius said, and it was frankly impressive how many voice cracks he managed to fit into that one, short word. Clearing his throat, the smitten boy persisted; “I thought you were afraid of heights?”

Nice one Sirius. Make him think you see him as a wimp. That’ll get him to fall in love with you.

Sirius internally cursed himself for his insensitivity, fully expecting Remus to turn right back around and go back inside out of anger. It was to his surprise, therefore, that Remus smiled and settled down next to him.

“I was. But these last few transformations… I don’t know. Every time the wolf rips me apart, I feel like I’m going to die. And so, after I changed back the last time, I decided that I wouldn’t waste whatever time I have left being scared of things that don’t matter. Because there is no way to know which full moon is going to be my last.” A heavy silence settled over the boys. As the weight of Remus’ confession sank in, Sirius found himself on the edge of tears. He knew it was selfish, but he couldn’t help thinking about how he would survive if Remus did die. If, one day, the blood on the floor of the shrieking shack would become too much, and they would all drown in its repercussions.

Wordlessly, Remus reached over and took hold of Sirius’ cigarette. Their fingers brushed only for a second, but it felt like forever and was over too soon. A shiver ran down Sirius’ spine at the feeling of Remus’ cold finger on his. His finger, surprisingly unmarred compared to the rest of his body, seemed to set every nerve in Sirius’ body in fire. That simple act of proximity was enough to set his heart beating at a rate that, frankly, shouldn’t be allowed.

When Remus withdrew his fingers, the cigarette perched between them, Sirius was left tingling in the small but infinite point of contact, and he vowed never to wash that hand again, lest he lose the shimmering ecstasy that the tingling brought. The situation was not improved by Remus’ decision to bring the cigarette to his lips, placing his mouth exactly where Sirius’ had been only seconds before. He took a long, languid drag from the joint, his beautiful lips perfectly shaping to exhale the smoke. Sirius marveled at how this boy could make even an act as simple as taking a puff from a cigarette seem like the most sensual, lascivious experience of his life. Sirius’ mind was flooded with obscene thoughts of what he wanted to do to those lips, what he wanted them to do to him. He felt dizzy at the thought (although that might have also had something to do with the sudden lack of blood in his head; it seemed to have decided that it was needed elsewhere).

The stillness was shattered by a hacking cough.

“Merlin, what the fuck is in this thing?” Remus exclaimed through another shuddering cough.

“It’s only a cigarette”, Sirius answered, confused.

Remus laughed. “I know that, dipshit. But why? What the fuck are you doing out here at bloody six in the morning smoking this cheap shit? Here.”

Sirius watched in bewilderment as Remus reached into his sweater pocket and withdrew a long, hand rolled joint.

“What is it?”, he asked stupidly.

Once again, he found himself blessed by the presence of Remus’ gorgeous laugh. “It’s weed. Marijuana. It’s a muggle drug.”

Sirius was skeptical. “And it’s better than cigarettes?”

“Way better. Here.”

Before Sirius had a chance to say anything, Remus was bringing the joint up to Sirius’ lips. Startled, Sirius instinctively parted them, and let the rough paper of the tip slide in. Then, Remus’ fingers skimmed his lower lip, and he was paralyzed. His mind was plunged into a world of haze, where his lip and Remus’ fingers existed alone. Where all the unsaid words were unimportant, and all that mattered was that Remus was touching him.

But something inside him realized the sheer impossibility of that dream and brought him back to reality. A reality where Remus would never love him back, because why would he? Why would an ethereal creature like Remus Lupin, with all his intangible beauty, pay any attention to a bratty pureblood who couldn’t even tell the difference between a mandrake and a spinach leaf?

Well, Sirius concluded, if this is the closest I ever get to him, I may as well make the most of it.

Sirius sighed, leaning into Remus’ touch. Memorizing the sensation of cold fingers on his skin. But Remus drew back. Sirius supposed he must have angered him with his display of intimacy, because a red flush was creeping up his neck and highlighting his cheeks.

Drawing back, Sirius cleared his throat, which was not an easy feat, due to the joint now in his mouth. When he was satisfied that an ordinary level of awkwardness had been restored between them, he lit his joint. Almost immediately, he felt a wave of relaxation wash over him. It was amazing, the sensation of every muscle in his body loosening, becoming calm. The tension was gone from his shoulders, and he couldn’t even remember why he had been worried about this in the first place. He had never felt anything better.

He felt a tug on the spliff and opened his mouth so it could slide out, the paper sticking to his lips. It was Remus, of course. He took it into those elegant, beautiful fingers and took a puff, closing his eyes as the glorious smoke entered his system. After a couple of seconds, he exhaled again, the smoke rippling through his voluptuous lips and ascending to join the clouds in their endless dance of mesmerising shapeshifting.

The rest of the morning was spent that way, sharing that slice of euphoria, tucked away on a rooftop in a tiny corner of a tiny island in a huge, huge world.

***

The sun was dipping into the west now, and James and Peter had long since engaged themselves in a fierce game of monopoly. Surprisingly, Peter was doing very well. Although James would later claim that he “let Peter win”, it was clear to see that he was severely frustrated by his lack of success. Although, his agitation might have had something to do with his anticipation of the next day; the girls had agreed to come over in the morning and stay for a couple of nights. Inevitably, James had spent many hours fretting over what to say when Lily arrived, before finally agreeing to partake in a game of monopoly to settle his nerves. Clearly, this hadn’t helped. To their merit, Remus and Sirius had abstained from the activity, aware that an apprehensive James and board games were never a good combination. They had instead elected to watch, which proved to be a far more enjoyable pastime.

“That’s it!”, James exclaimed, throwing his money down on the table. “I don’t get this dumb muggle game. I’m going for a walk.” He pushed back his chair with an unpleasant screech and stormed out the front door, leaving a bewildered Peter in his wake. They didn’t have long to revel in the absence of James’ intense leg-jiggling, however. The door had barely swung close before it was wrenched open again, and James came thundering back in, unchanged, except for the fact that he was now soaking wet.

Fuming, he mumbles something about “s’raining”, and sloshed his way up the stairs. A distant door slammed, and the house was quiet once more.

“Well”, Sirius clapped his hands together. “I’m starving. Dinner?”

Peter perked up at the mention of sustenance but was quickly shot down by Remus’ next statement.

“In case you haven’t noticed, we can’t exactly walk to town in this weather. And the muggle delivery place won’t come out here in the rain.”

But Sirius was unperturbed. “Well I’ll cook something! Peter, why don’t you go make the guest rooms up for the girls, and Remus and I will whip something up for tea.”

Peter quickly scampered upstairs, not one to pass up an opportunity to clean a bedroom (it was one of his many unappreciated blessings; the need for cleanliness).

Left alone now, Sirius turned to Remus. Just being close to him was enough to set his heart racing, but he pushed that down.

Not right now. We’re just cooking. Just two friends, making dinner for their other two, less sophisticated friends.

However, he found himself unsure of how to proceed. So, as a demonstration of his ever-present sophistication, he decided to go with the most refined of communicative methods: finger guns.

Immediately regretting the decision, he dropped his arms to his side and cleared his throat for what was probably nearing the millionth time that day. “Shall we?” Remus nodded.

The Potters’ kitchen was sprawling with innumerable cupboards and drawers, all immaculately designed and painted to create a blend of antique styles and modern methods. There were 3 ovens, and a number of industrial fridges, including a blast-freezer. A mini fridge sat on the bench, containing sodas of all flavours and, further back, expensive alcohols. To Sirius, who had grown up in the dingy prison of Grimmauld Place, it was heaven.

He walked over to the industrial fridge and started pulling out ingredients, ideas flooding his mind. Although he would never admit it, cooking was one of Sirius’ guilty pleasures. The thought of so many elements, things that are seemingly useless of bland, coming together to form a gastronomical masterpiece was something that he enjoyed immensely. Within minutes, he was working away at a bouillabaisse, the pastry for a quiche already in the oven, and an ice-cream mixture chilling in the fridge.

Remus was watching in amazement from his perch on the island bench, a cold raspberry soda in his hand.

“Where did you learn to cook?” he asked, unable to tear his eyes from the mesmerizing bubbling of the bouillabaisse.

Sirius blushed. “Andy taught me, actually. After she moved in with Ted. I would go and visit her every Saturday and help out around the house when Ted was out working.”

Remus was well aware of Sirius’ feelings about Ted Tonks. Although he had not approved of him initially, believing strongly that Andromeda was worthy of someone better, he had seen how passionately he cared for his family, and grown to like the stumpy little man.

“She says she learned from Ted’s mother, who was a chef in France before the Depression. She said that Andy had a knack for it, and so taught her everything she knew. Since no one in the ministry would take her in fear of her parents getting mad, she decided to do everything she can at home, taking care of the house and of little Nymphadora.”

“Oh yeah, how is she going? God, she must be going on a year now!” Remus asked, remembering the pictures Sirius had shown him of his baby cousin when she was born.

“She’s doing good. It really is a breath of fresh air, seeing that even in the midst of the oncoming war, there is still such innocence and good in the world. But at the same time, I’m terrified that she might have to grow up in a world governed by Voldemort.” His voice shook on that last sentence, his throat swelling painfully as tears sprung to his eyes. He tried to blink them back, unwilling to let Remus see that side of him, but they knew each other too well. With two quick strides, Remus was across the room, enveloping him in a hug.

Sirius sank into it, letting himself be consumed by the warmth or Remus. By that comforting smell of nutmeg and tea, coupled with chocolate and books. The brush of leather jacket on woolen sweater, the feeling of heads on shoulders and hands on backs. And he knew that, as long as this boy was in the world, everything would always be okay.

***

After dinner, the boys had opted to take their dessert into the living room and watch a movie. Remus had suggested Titanic, and James had protested for all of 5 seconds before remembering that Rose bore a slight resemblance to one Lily Evans and supporting the idea wholeheartedly. But now the movie had ended, and the boys found themselves, yet again, in limbo between waking and sleeping. At some point during the movie, Remus had moved over to snuggle next to Sirius, and it hadn’t taken long before they were sprawled out on the sofa, Remus’ head on Sirius’ chest. Sirius had tried no to think anything of it, justifying that Remus was tired and probably didn’t even know what he was doing. But a small part of him couldn’t help but wonder, couldn’t help but hope.

Remus opened his eyes and looked out the window into the dark garden. The night sky was speckled with a tapestry of a thousand stars, each one so small, yet burning with a fire so intense it could consume everything they held dear in less than a second. There was no moon in the sky that night.

Then Remus turned his head to look up at Sirius, his golden eyes meeting grey ones.

“It’s stopped raining”, he said.

Sirius looked up, and saw that the skies had, in fact, cleared.

Glancing down again, he went to reply, but was cut short by the sight before him. Remus was asleep, safe in his best friend’s arms. And so, Sirius spoke his answer for the unlistening ears of the night.

“Yeah. Yeah it has.”

***

I hope you liked it!! It is up on ao3 as well, and the next chapter will be coming soon! Please reblog is you liked it, I’m smol and would love more people to see it. thankyou!!

[halothenthehorns]

Catch a Falling Star

by  bookhater95

5 Times Remus was afraid to fly and one time he wasn't. Wolfstar galore

Sirius had already decided that Lupin kid was the odd one before they'd all lined up next to their brooms, him last with tentative steps at the bit of wood. All he did was sleep up in their dorms whenever he wasn't poring over homework, you'd think the lad would enjoy a bit of fun they were being forcibly taught.

James leaned over to whisper in his ear, "I can't decide which is funnier to watch, that guy, or Snivilius?"

Said pompous Slytherin was standing next to his own broom and glowering down at it as if ready to throw a hex at that instead of them for once. How was it possible they seemed the only two ready to have some fun?

A whistle was blown and Sirius' jumped right into his hand of course, he even swung his leg over already before even being prompted and sat proud and ready to do more than just hover, when he again glanced over and saw Remus Lupin looked quite green around the edges, putting some color in his usually gray face.

Pity warred with hilarity, all the idiot had to do was get off the ground, but then, he'd also offered his notes already before they'd even had to ask as a sign of good will if the two promised to keep it down at night, which they'd graciously been doing by being ten times louder in the common room.

At least when they came up and he was snoring away it didn't bother them, Snape on the other hand had been nothing but a useless waste since the train and deserved to have that smarmy look brushed from his face. The fallback would just be happenstance.

A quick curse at just the right spot, and the broom went bucking wildly away with its rider shouting profanities even Sirius didn't yet know. A girl burst out laughing in delight, while Remus watched the progression in horror as if his worst nightmare were being played out. Sirius winced as he realized he hadn't thought that all the way through, but then the other boys eyes caught his, and he smiled. He'd seen him do it, and he mouthed 'thank you' as Snape hit the mud, disbanding their flying practice for now.

2

The pitch had long since emptied out, James in the lead as he ran across the entirety of their school with excitement for making the team, but Sirius hung back as he sat in the warm sun and trimmed the tails of his precious broom for practice that evening.

Remus came down from the stands and sat beside him until he was finished with that quiet air of his, he hadn't even brought a book this time, just watching him handle his broom with fond exasperation. "I'll never understand you lots appeal to this madness," he told yet again as if he hadn't been doing so for over a year now.

"And I'll never understand how anyone can hate being in the air," Sirius said back at once. "Won't you give it a go, just once?" Remus blanched in disgust and finally took a leery step away from him, eyeing the cloudless sky above as if a hand would reach down and squash them all. "Don't you trust me?" He wheedled. "I've never fallen off a broom and I'm not going to just let you!"

"I'd really rather not," he pleaded. "Honestly Sirius, isn't the promise of sitting in the stands and watching enough for you?"

"For now," he pouted as he slung it over his shoulders and clapped him on the back. "I'll get you one day though, you mark my words."

"Haven't you learned by now not to bet against me," Remus said back with a challenging smile he only ever showed around them.

"You cheated, not getting caught last time!" Sirius was instantly distracted and pulled into the argument as he allowed himself to be steered to lunch.

3

The moon was three quarters full above them. The stands were empty and every snatch of wind had them standing closer together than normal as they shivered and sized each other up.

"Sirius, this really isn't necessary," Remus whispered. "I said I forgive you, and I do, please stop trying to make it up to me, especially like this."

"Please?" He was, actually begging. He looked as distraught as when he'd confessed what he'd almost done to Snape.

"Why is this so important to you?" Remus wasn't even sure he heard he spoke so quietly.

"Because I," Sirius was still clutching the broom and looking at him with hungry eyes. "I want to, prove that I'm worth, more than just a killer. Moony, I want to give you good memories too."

Remus stepped close and cupped his cheek. Sirius leaned into the touch without breaking eye contact, watching his every inflection carefully. "You've given me more than I'll ever dream of Padfoot," he promised, putting special emphasis on the dog nickname. "I look forward to the future because of you."

Sirius melted in his palm, turning his face just enough to kiss his wrist before covering his hand with his own and smiling. Just a sweet, simple gesture that meant the world to him, that Sirius even seemed to enjoy his touch was a miracle he'd never believe anyone would because of his affliction and Sirius proved wrong every day. "Okay," he whispered, dropping the broom and pulling him in closer.

4

"What are you up to?" Remus asked, trying to keep the worst of the poutiness out of his voice for going out into the cold November air given the occasion.

"Nope," Sirius refused to answer, again. "It's my birthday, it's my surprise!"

"Pretty sure that's the opposite of how this is suppose to work," he corrected in exhaustion, but was ignored as Sirius got him all the way out to the broom shed and pushed him inside before closing it and leaning in to grin up at him.

Remus started to frown already, his gut clenching unpleasantly at how this was starting even as Sirius tried to coax otherwise by trailing his hand up and down his zipped pants suggestively. "So, shall we do what does work then? Our last year here, I'd love to get the full experiences of life."

"Like getting ourselves expelled early," he tried to curb, plenty distracted by Sirius' nimble fingers but eyes still darting around to all the broom tails suspiciously, the strong smell of wood polish was making him nauseous. "Please be gentle with whatever's about to happen." Sirius laughed lightly, but there was a hesitation now as he prodded at the button but didn't move farther like he was second guessing himself now. "Sirius?" He asked uneasily.

He let his hand drop and pouted up at him. "Never mind, I guess. I thought, I don't know, but never mind."

"Well at least tell me what you were thinking?" He offered in consolation even as he relaxed in relief.

"It's stupid, you'll laugh," he muttered, moving to hold his neck now and pull him in for a proper kiss. "Just, bloody shag me, yeah?"

Guilt tampered out the need though as he gently kissed him back before leaning out and frowning. "You're making me feel like an arse, just tell me, I promise I won't laugh."

"I, um," his eyes darted to his and away to his own broom before going back and repeating the pattern several times before reluctantly blurting, "I was hoping you would, let me give you a ride. Just a small one, I swear, we'd barely hover off the ground, but you clearly still don't want to, so let's just let it go."

Remus bit his lip rather than go back to kissing him as he stroked his hair absently for a few moments and watched hope war with his insistent expression to let it drop back off. "This really means a lot to you, doesn't it?"

"No," he impulsively lied. Something of that eleven-year old who still wanted to laugh at anyone being afraid of heights though would always be in his boyfriend, and Remus knew that. "I've never pushed you, have I? Just, thought you'd want to give it a try now, it's been so long, and a lots happened since then. The wizarding world is literally at war Remus, we don't even know how many more birthdays we're going to get, so I just sort of thought this little thing of yours had fallen off. I was wrong, I won't bring it up again, promise."

Remus kissed him then, because he was incapable of doing anything else in that moment or he'd explode. Sirius snogged him back eagerly, and as always let himself be guided anyway Moony wanted as he started pushing and nudging him to whatever position he desired. Sirius obviously wasn't expecting to be let go though when they were in the center of the little space and blinked his eyes open in concern to see Remus reaching out and holding his broom.

It was a gift from the Potter's he'd screamed like a delirious child over, it was the same one he rode on every Quidditch game, so it's not as if Remus grabbed at random. His heart stuttered with hope, but then he just watched in confusion as Remus let it go at chest height. It hovered in place, and then Moony moved fast, he squealed in surprise a noise threat of death couldn't make him admit had issued from his throat as his waist was seized.

"Ask me again after the war," he whispered as he sat him down on it sidesaddle, stepping in-between his legs. "Doesn't mean we can't have some fun in the meantime?"

Sirius laughed in delight and vowed, "I'm going to remember that."

5

"Her name is Elvendork," Sirius told him with pride as he ran a rag over her chassis one last time.

"Of course it is," Remus nodded without surprise. "Do you plan on many broken bones at once, or just one at a time?"

"Moony, how dare you," Sirius scowled. "I've never fallen out of the air in my life, I most certainly won't start now!"

It was no use telling him otherwise, Sirius was a natural skyborne and he knew it. "Just please be careful," he asked instead. "You and Prongs, watch your back, you promise?"

"Her christening night out Remus!" Sirius reminded with the same delirious happiness he'd had the entire time he'd put her together. "Voldemort himself couldn't knock us out of the air!" He stopped and watched him roll his eyes and bit down hard on his lip to stop himself asking just like he had every other time the idea popped into his head. Remus would say no, he hadn't even gotten within arms length of his beautiful motorcycle. "Kiss for luck never hurts though," he added as he sat astride her.

Remus stepped forward willingly and moved their lips together with eagerness. Blood rushed so fast through Sirius he didn't even stop to consider himself as he abruptly stood up and grabbed him, trying to pull him forward and down with him, and to his utter amazement Remus complied, settling himself down and opening his mouth in an invitation Sirius greedily accepted. Moony even began knotting up his long hair in his fingers and grating against him, it was intoxicating and he longed to let his fingers itch off his waist and just casually flick the engine on, maybe even just being astride it with the power activated would be okay, and if they happened to start getting a bit off the air while he kept Remus distracted than surely-

"Oi! Padfoot! Are you coming or what?"

Sirius startled and fell off the bike as James' voice echoed from his pocket mirror. Remus watched him with amusement as he got up and offered him a hand.

"I hate all of you," he groused as he dug it out.

"Love you too," Moony gave him one last promising peck before stepping back away.

And 1

The Shrieking Shack had been their reunion, but Sirius Black abruptly showing up on his doorstep with a stolen hippogriff while being on the run from the world was their official homecoming.

"Ah Padfoot," he chuckled for old times when Sirius' latest crazy stunt wouldn't surprise him. Actually, that was a lie, Sirius continued to surprise him his whole life with every turn they took. "You know I can't go on the run with you."

"I know," Sirius nodded, he hadn't even dismounted but just smiled down at him as he reached out and gently traced one of the scars he hadn't been there for. "Just couldn't leave without saying goodbye first."

The awkward silence hung as they watched each other. To many words from their past hovered between them, it may even take another long thirteen years to unravel it all and really be able to talk again. Maybe distance would help. Neither still moved away.

"You all unpacked yet?" Sirius stalled even as he drew his hand away. "Settling back in to, whatever the hell you 've been up to."

"We can talk about that later," he promised. "You'll owl me, won't you? The birds won't trace back to you, I swear."

"I'll get word to you Moony," Sirius promised solemnly. He turned away then, looking at the horizon with long dormant eyes that were finally waking up again.

He couldn't bare to watch him leave again without a proper smile. "What's the matter with you, not even going to offer me a ride first?"

"What?" Sirius just looked at him in pure confusion, blinking dazedly like he'd forgotten he was here.

"You forgot, didn't you?" Remus whispered. There was no need to watch him for any hint of a joke. The haggard lines of his face, the mess of his hair and prison robes, it was like looking at a warped mirror of the teenager he'd once loved with all his heart and given out on.

"Forgot what?" Sirius asked in concern. Shit, it wasn't Remus' birthday. Azkaban had taken away memories, but not facts, he still knew dates.

Remus seized his shoulder and climbed without a second of hesitation, hooking his boot into the notch in Buckbeak's wing-joint like a pro as he swung himself up behind him. Wrapping his arms tight around Sirius' waist after thirteen long years felt as natural as breathing, but Sirius remained frozen beneath him in surprise unlike usual. "Padfoot?" He whispered in concern.

"Are you, really offering, I mean, I'd swear I remembered, but maybe I was wrong," he began babbling and wasn't even twitching, unnaturally still.

"I did use to be afraid of heights," he promised, squeezing his hands and resting his forehead against the back of his shoulder. "Please don't do that to yourself. I once told you though I'd give this bloody flying thing a try after the war, and well," he swallowed as he heard how hollow this would probably sound to someone who had never really left the war, time had abandoned Sirius in there. "I won't waste anymore time being afraid of something as silly as a little height. Not when I have you again."

To his horror, Sirius' chest stuttered beneath him, he gasped in a breath and Remus leaned forward to see his old love was actually crying.

"Sirius?" He asked again in concern, moving to get off now and get him to come with him inside. Instead his hands left the birds neck and clamped down on his knees still resting on the wings to hold him in place, breathing raggedly but refusing to move, so Remus waited. He rested his chin on the shirt and leaned over to kiss his wet cheek and neck gently, closing his eyes and just letting him be.

"We can't go back," Sirius finally spoke, and Remus fought back his own sob at hearing true emotion in his voice again, the likes of which he'd thought stripped away from him forever. Love, Sirius still loved him, his past he was still piecing together. "I keep hoping I'll find something out here that hasn't changed, now even shit I didn't know about is different. You'd never get on a broom with me before, would you?"

"No," he admitted, "but I never said I had a problem with winged creatures. You just never asked."

Sirius threw his head back and laughed. That sharp barking noise he'd gone far too long without hearing. "A hippogriff. You're really telling me I never thought of that?"

"I'd never lie about something like this," he grinned, nuzzling as tight into his back as he could. "Now please, the poor creature's getting restless." Buckbeak had been remarkably still and calm beneath them the whole time in fact, but Sirius didn't call him out on it. "Can't I have that ride?"

"Anything for you Moony," Sirius' voice was brimming with excitement, his brittle fingers squeezed Remus' legs before nudging him around a bit, making sure his feet were securely behind the coming wingspan. Remus just held on tighter to his chest and leaned into his every motion with anticipation as Sirius rode with his legs and their hippogriff began a soft walk at once. "Hold on now," Sirius dug his fingers back into the deep gray feathers, sitting properly with his back straight but nearly vibrating with anticipation.

"I'm not letting go," he promised.

Sirius did something with his legs again, and their ride moved to a fast gallop in one stride, Remus worried for a moment his hold went painful on Padfoot but he merely whooped with delight and shouted, "get ready!"

There was no warning that he could tell, the wings burst forth and unfurled with a beautiful glory of streaming feathers already flapping and beating the air around them as they launched into the dark night, the two laughing the entire time.