#I pined over James for a whole season

[kj-yikes]

I’m watching season one of supergirl and kara really just tries to find every excuse to not date a man doesn’t she

[robynlilyblack]

But you’re over here

Fred Weasley x fem! shy! Potter! Reader

Summary: During the final game of the season, a certain redhead couldn’t care less about the trophy

Warnings/tags: swearing, friends to lovers, first kiss, getting together, mutual pining, Hufflepuff reader, potter reader, James being a good dad, Cedric being the best wing and hype man, Jess, Timothy and Joey OCs, marauders being parents

A/n: 4.4k words, ngl the alchemy plays in my head during this kiss scene, apologies for any mistakes I'm a bit ill right now, as always reader can be the bio or adopted older daughter of James and Lily, based on this and this requests ♡

Navigation | Fred Weasley Masterlist

“Oh boy, oh boy!” James claps his hands, rubbing them together in excitement as he, Lily, Remus, and Sirius reach the top of the stands 

Lily giggles at her husband's enthusiasm, following him to the front row, while Remus and Sirius brace themselves at the top, catching their breaths after a quite frankly atrocious number of stairs

Today was the big game, not only was it the old rivalry between Slytherin and Gryffindor, but it was the final, and the first year Harry was serving as captain after Oliver passed the torch to him two years ago. It was safe to say as fun as the Triwizard tournament was the previous year, quidditch was still the marauders and co’s favourite pastime. Hell, the whole school was buzzing

“Were they always that high?” Sirius whispers, rubbing his chest “Fuck me” he breathes heavily

“I think we’re just old now my love” Remus chuckles, after all these years he still can’t help but wind up his husband just a little bit

Sirius makes a face “Fuck you! I’m not old…you’re old!” he childishly argues, wearing a grumpy pout that twitches everyone once and again, revealing the smile beneath

“And when is your birthday?” 

Sirius’ mouth opens to reply but alas the man has nothing and is caught looking like a fish, though he’s a very cute fish in Remus’ mind

“We might be old…but you’re still as pretty as you were last time we were up here” Remus compliments, leaning down to peck Sirius’ tinting cheeks “Pretty boy” he whispers one last blow before pushing off the beam and joining his friends leaving Sirius flustered 

“Pads? You comin?” James calls out, head shooting over “Ohhhh” James barks a knowing laugh, whispering something to Remus and patting his back as he sits down

Sirius can’t help but let out a small smile as they turn away “He thinks I’m pretty” he mutters all giddy to himself before joining his friends, taking a seat between Remus and James, with Lily on James’ other side

“See! I told you we were smart coming early, it’s already beginning to fill up” Lily points out, smiling to herself as she shrugs off her jacket, grabbing the others as well, before laying them on the seats behind them to save room for when the McKinnon’s made their fashionably late appearance

James smiles, hand finding the top of Lily's head “That we were, hun” he agrees, patting her head and soaking up her proud little smile as she smooths out the rest of the coats

“Who are you looking for?” Remus asks, pulling James’ attention back to find Sirius squinting off into the distance

“Our goddaughter, I haven’t seen her in ages” Sirius pouts, squinting harder

“You saw her at Easter break” James chuckles 

“Oh yeah” Sirius nods, remembering “Still, I miss her” he confesses, warming the men's hearts

Sirius and Remus decided against children, not that they didn’t want them per se, more they couldn’t confirm the child's safety with Remus’ furry little problem. As such, they filled that hole with you and Harry. Sirius took an extra shine to you though, maybe it was your shy yet cheeky nature that reminded him of Remus, or maybe it’s the little bit of himself he saw in you, watching you get sorted into Hufflepuff when everyone else in your big, wonderfully weird family was Gryffindor. Whatever it was, though today was Harry’s day, he still had to make sure you were alright

“Do you want your glasses?” Remus offers, sighing as he watches his husbands sorry display and reaches for his bag

Sirius swats his hand away “I don’t need glasses moony, I’m fine. It’s just the wind, it’s blowing stuff in my eyes” he gestures around his face, scrunching his nose before attempting to subtly squint again

Remus’ eyes meet James’, shaking his head as he mouths ‘why can’t he admit defeat?’

James smirks, shrugging as he turns away, now interested in where you were, as is Lily after overhearing the debacle. The four searched for you as the student body make their way to the stands. Glancing around Remus’ spots a wild Weasley, smiling as he watches Ron attempt to hold back his blushes as Hermione fixes the red paint on his cheeks. Lily spots Neville, Ginny and Luna in another stand wearing their handmade lion mains. Sirius spots well…nothing, but your father on the other hand is the one to finally find you. 

He watches as you enter the stand diagonal to them with Cedric, Jess and two other boys he doesn’t quite recognise but based on their green scarfs must be Timothy and Joey, which would be two out of the four very few Slytherins in this world he accepted were good, the others being his best friends’ brother and the one and only Dorcas Meadows

“Found her” he points with joy “There she is, ain’t our little fawn beautiful” he shines, causing all their eyes to fall on you as you all worm your way to the front of your own stand

“It’s funny seeing them in red and gold” Remus notes, an amused look as he observes yours, Cedric, and Jess’s Gryffindor scarves, most likely stolen from your brother and his friends…or perhaps secretly gifted from one particular Weasley

Lily nods, but her head tilts to the side as your head taps the taller of the other boy's shoulders “They seem close, which one is he again, Tim or Joe?” she ponders trying to remember

“Tim, she said he was tall in the letters” James confirms “They aren’t together” he says with confidence

“And how would you know that Captain Oblivious?” Remus’ laughs, eyeing his friend but then his gaze drifts to peak at his husband, who's been unusually quiet, realising he’s still very much struggling to see you

Remus slowly collects the glasses from his bag again and holds them up in offering

“Dammit” Sirius sighs accepting the truth and putting them on, looking grumpy until his eyes widen, like he’s seeing a brand-new world

“Better love?” Remus teases while pointing you out again

“Shut up moo…aww there she is, beautiful as ever” he adjusts them smiling “Wait…whoa” he looks at James doing a double take as everything is now in high definition “You’ve aged so well” he notes

James’ smirks “Why thank you, I steal Lily’s muggles products” he admits unapologetically, not that it’s much of a surprise to the girl next to him who just rolls her eyes, accepting the fact she now buys two of every product just for him

“It’s the one with lighter hair, not Cedric, the taller one” Remus points out to Sirius

“Oh…” Sirius eyes the boy, judging “...nah”

“What do you mean nah?” everyone jumps a little at first turning around to see Marlene, Dorcas and the cutest little lion there had ever been joining them “Holy shi… sugar those specks are something” Marlene laughs, catching herself before glancing at her wife, mouthing an apology while their daughter looks up at them confused

“Suu’gar” the little cub repeats before pointing at Sirius “Specky!” she says excitedly “Unkie Jams t‘win” she claps, pointing between James and Sirius before jumping and clapping again all happy with herself

Sirius’ quickly pulls the glasses off, cheeks heating while the others struggle to hold in their giggles 

“I don’t need them” he looks straight at Marlene, trying his best to be convincing

She just gives him a ‘really’ look in return before smiling softly 

Sirius half chuckles, half sighs as he admits defeat, flashing the women a genuine smile “It’s good to see you Marls, you too Dorca darlin” he then looks down at little Lacy “Hello little cub” he coos 

“Rwah!” Lacy holds up her hands in a claw motion, doing her best lion impression 

It was well known the Marauders had one brain cell between them, but when that cell fired it was magical, all including her mothers and godmother pretended she was the most fearsome thing they’d ever beheld, even a couple other parents who had taken seats little ways down joined in. After some pleas and chocolate offered to calm the beast, the group settled in again, catching up as they waited for the game to start.

You rocked on your feet, eyes continually flicking to the players entrance in anticipation

“You good sunshine?” you feel a soft pat to the top of your head, looking up you’re greeted with Timothy's soft smile, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly as he checked in, worried the ruckus and busyness of the stand was a bit overwhelming for you

You gently tap your head into his shoulder, nodding “I’m good…just excited” you confess with warm cheeks as your nose is flooded with the scent of your scarf again

“Ahhhh” he elongates, giving you and then the scarf a look “Y/n and Freddie sitting in a tree” he whisper sings

Your eyes widen before you attempt a scowl that looks more like a puppy pouting “Shut up” you chide, fixing the scarf a little before looking away, hoping Cedric, Jess and Joey were having a more in depth conversion but instead you find them grinning “Sugar” you press your lips into a downturned smile

They all looked at each other before singing in unison 

“K…i…s…s…i…n…g!” 

Despite your cheeks positively flaming around the second ‘s’, you can help but break into a smile. Your friends knew about your little crush on the Weasley boy from afar. Despite your brother’s closeness with the family you didn’t have such ties, you adored Ginny on the few occasions she had visited, along with Ron and Hermione, but as for the rest of the clan your paths rarely crossed. You were meant to spend the summer with them as your families decided to holiday together, but when Cedric won the Triwizard tournament that changed, and instead, he took you and your friends traveling with the prize money 

Yours paths finally crossed at the beginning of the school year, when Sprout created a seating pattern allowing everyone to get familiar with their randomised Herbology partner before the end of year assignment. You were nervous at first, as you were sure the professor was when she pulled out your names. Putting the quietest person in Hogwarts with the loudest person seemed like it would either be the worst pairing she had ever seen or the most genius 

To her good fortune…and ego, it was the latter. It was surprising to see the king of mischief actually try with his assignments, but most chalked it up to the fact that while you were quiet, you were well-loved by your year, you held no prejudices, helped people with their assignments when the asked you, and was just in general sweet to everyone, to the point even the meanest Slytherins were a little soft on you. Therefore, most assumed Fred couldn’t bear to let you down either, and while that was true at first, a second reason soon bloomed for the boy

It bloomed for you as well, you slowly opened up to him each class, topics drifting to something deeper, and by the time Christmas rolled around you both were close friends. So close in fact you began inviting him to your friend’s secret hideaway by black lake, at first to study, but then to hang out both with and without your other friends. It was funny at first, with Cedric and Jess being rivals in quidditch and Timothy and Joey's Slytherin status, but Fred warmed to them, gaining their trust and, not that they told either of you, their blessing 

“I hate you all” you pout, falling into Cedric’s side hug as you shake your head

“Nah” Timothy joins from the other side

“You love us” Jess chimes in, beaming at you

“Not as much as she loves him though” Joey adds cheekily, nodding towards the pitch, it seems none of you had noticed the crowds stir for the players appearances during your teasing session

Cedric and Timothy quickly retract their grasp, smiling at one another as you lunge adorably forward to see. Your friends soon join you, all cheering, while you find Fred in the small mass of people, admiring him as he laughs with the others. After a few moments, the team is finished talking, beginning to take flight and get into position. Once there, you watch as Fred’s eyes begin to scan the crowd, heart thumping as his gaze slowly draws closer, skipping a beat when they fall on you, and damn near stopping as he doubles back, face lifting 

You see, a few weeks ago you had met Fred to check over your final herbology assignment, which meant a late-night picnic waiting to see if your flower would bloom under the full moon. While chatting, the topic of today's game came up. Of course, now that Hufflepuff were out for the count, he teased you with who you would be supporting, his teasing backfired however when, without missing a beat, said you would be supporting whatever team he was playing in. 

After his slight fluster, which, to this day is one of your proudest achievements, conversation returned to normal, you figured he’s forgotten about it until a first year found you this morning holding a small bundle of Gryffindor scarves, one of which had a red ribbon around it with a note for you

You bring your hands up, hugging the scarf as your eyes meet, causing the biggest smile to take over his face. It was times like this you truly believed your crush was requited, and little did you know a certain redhead was thinking the same thing

“Be brave and go for it” Cedric whispers some encouragement 

He’s right, you think, Now or never

As you mouth him ‘Good luck’, you add a little extra to it, blowing him a kiss

His eyes widen in a pleasant shock, melting into a mix of joy and pride as he pretends to catch it, winking at you before kissing his balled up fist before returning his gaze to the field just before the starting whistle blows

“Way to go gal” Jess cheers, reaching over to give your arm a soft squeeze

“Aww the grew up so fast don’t they” Timothy wipes an imaginary tear from his eye while Cedric and Jess both match his energy, taking out handkerchiefs and pretending to be forlorn mothers, with Joey doing the same but with an imaginary tissue

You giggle at them, and while you would usually try to come up with some sort of witty answer, you instead break into a smile “He likes me” you say simply, swaying side to side

“If he didn’t, he’d be an idiot love” Cedric gives you a side hug while the rest of your friends’ smile, happy for you “Now let’s what your man kick snake butt”

“Hey-” Joey and Tim begin to object together but then shrug 

“Oh, who are we kiddin” Timothy laughs, taking off his green scarf and pulling out a red and gold one as does Joey “Pusey’s an arsehole and I want a chance to be a bridesman at your wedding someday”

“Bridesman?” you giggle, heartwarming at the idea of you and Fred getting married someday

“Yip, Ceds already called man of honour” 

The match was a whirlwind of emotion, the kind of game that left everyone on the edge of their seats. Gryffindor and Slytherin were neck and neck at every turn, every goal answered by another, and it was clear to everyone that this match would come down who would catch the snitch first

“Holy shit, this is intense!” James exclaims, practically bouncing in his seat “Merlin, how the hell did you guys watch me and Marls do this back in the day?”

“Jamie…language!” Lily scolds with a giggle, lips quirking up in amusement as she gives Dorcas a please forgive us look

“Oh, don’t worry, Lacey can’t hear a thing thanks to these” Dorcas it waves off, gesturing to Lacey’s adorable, enchanted earmuffs “Watch this” she says leaning over the little girl perched on her lap “You want some ice cream, bubs? What about a unicorn?” 

Lacey doesn’t react at all, instead she stays focused on mimicking her other mothers’ gestures and waves towards the pitch

“Those are…” Lily starts but is promptly cut off 

“What the hell was that!” Marlene huffs, throwing up her hands as the crowds roar once more, a mix of cheers and groans as the Slytherins risky manoeuvre pays off leading to another goal “Fucking Pusey again!”

“Did you get the earmuffs for the crowd or for Marls?” Remus whispers to Dorcas, who struggles to hold back a smile

“Oi! Gingers! Stay in formation! Godric, what are you doing?!” Marlene shouts again, shaking her head as Fred and George narrowly avoid colliding whilst going for the same bludger

“No comment” Dorcas replies with a grin before planting a kiss on Lacey’s cheek

The match grows increasingly heated after Harry lets the snitch slip through his grasp, igniting a fire under Slytherins asses causing their play to get even more aggressive

“This game is insane!” Cedric grips the railing so tightly his knuckles turn white

“Come on, Freddie!” you yell, unable to stop yourself as he whizzes by

You watch him turn ever so slightly, catching your voice over the roar before he dives back into the action, pulling off a spectacular move that has more than one person flushing

“Offt…your man’s a beast” Timothy mutters as Fred swoops in to deflect a bludger, shirt riding up a little as he does “What? I can admire” his cheeks tint as he sees all of your raised eyebrows

“Don’t worry” you say with a laugh, “He’ll never admit it, but he has a little guy crush on you too”

“Really?” 

“Really” you confirm, giggling 

“Did you see that?!” Sirius exclaims, pointing towards Fred after he executes a spectacular mid-air spin to block the Bludger aimed at Angelina “Can’t deny the boys got style!”

“Sure does” James agrees but then his expression sinks to a smug one as he adjusts his glasses “Almost as cool as some of the moves we pulled off ay Marls?” he tries to get her attention but is gifted a passive ‘uh huh’ instead

“Oh, please” Remus argues, chuckling “Are we forgetting in our final year when you tried to do a spin like that and your glasses came flying clean off?”

“What?!” Lily, Sirius, and Dorcas all turned to him in unison

“Moony!” James protests before his face slowly sinks as if awaiting his impending doom

“Wait…” Marlene turns slowly, looking menacingly down at James “You’re telling me. I almost lost my final match as captain because of your speckyless ass?”

James hesitates, his ears turning near crimson as he sheepishly scratches the back of his neck “…no comment”

With one final push, the final whistle blows, and the crowd erupts into cheers. You and your friends join in, your eyes look over towards Fred, who’s the first to get to Harry, pulling him into the biggest bear hug. The sight makes your heart warm, but your admiration is cut short as your friends practically pick you up, ushering you to move 

“What’s happening” you ask confused

“Come on, we gotta get down their sunshine” Timothy insists, shooing you along with Cedric, Jess and Joey “You’ve got a ginger to congratulate”

Over on the other stands your family celebrates. Everyone’s on their feet, except Lacey who is now glued to Marlene’s hip as they cheer 

“Yesssss!” James roars, pulling Lily into a celebratory hug…and subsequent snog 

“That’s my godson!” Sirius bellows, fist pumping the air before looking to hug James then realises “Oh…well if that’s what we’re doing, come here moons!” he hithers towards Remus, arms outstretched 

Remus laughs softly before indulging his husband, pulling him in for a kiss before dramatically dipping him

Meanwhile Marlene and little Lacey remain oblivious to the romance in the air, as she was too busy yelling so hard her voice will be lost come tomorrow “THAT’S MY LIONS!”

Dorcas just chuckles at the scene, pulling out Lilys camera and snapping a shot of them all (A/n: art of this bit in the future?)

As their celebrations calm down, they notice the teams beginning to land and everyone else begin to make their way down to join them

“This takes me back” Remus lets out a small laugh watching the red and gold scarfs fly around

Nostalgia fills the air as the others join him, gazing down

“Man…that used to be us” James remarks, letting out a breathy laugh before glancing over at Marlene

She nods, a happy yet bittersweet smile on her face “Yeah…good times” she reminisces before looking down at Lacey “Times are still pretty good…maybe better” she confesses watching her little cub cheer 

Dorcas joins her side, arm wrapping around both Marlene and Lacy as their foreheads meet

“I think we should give them their moment” Lily suggests “We have time to embarrass them later” she giggles

The group hums in agreement. As their stand empties, they begin pointing out things only they are privy to from their vantage point. Like Nevilles and Lunas intertwined hands as they weave through the crowd with Ginny, Lee sprinting to hug George, the Slytherin team sulks, or even Snape begrudgingly handing a couple of gallons to McGonagall. None of them, however, have managed to spot you or your friends yet. 

“I hope y/ns alright in the crowds” James says softly next to Lily

“As long as she’s with her friends I have no doubt shell be alright” she hums, giving your fathers arm a squeeze 

“Oh, there she is…” Sirius points you out before chuckling to himself “…maybe being your twin ain’t so bad” he jokes, wiggling his glasses 

James laughs, wrapping an arm around Sirius as everyone turns their attention back towards you 

Down on the pitch, it’s a flurry of red and gold, so you hold back at the edge where it was quieter, encouraging your friends to head into the chaos and enjoy it. Jess, Joey and Timothy promise to be right back, while Cedric spots Cho in the crowd little ways from yourself and joins her, being careful not to drift too far from you

You beam as you take a couple of steps back, watching Harry get lifted up by Ron and Neville. Much like your parents and family above, you want Harry and Fred to have their moment in the spotlight. There would be more than enough time to talk to them after

Unbeknownst to you, one of that duo was already looking for you. Fred’s eyes scan the chaos for your figure, but finds a familiar blonde in the crowd first, and he smiles watching him kiss Cho’s cheek. Cedric feels the eyes on them, looking up and noticing Fred’s searching expression. He smiles, giving a knowing nod towards you, as does Cho who’s clearly been filled in on the situation. 

Fred’s eyes follow the direction and there you are, standing apart from the rest, your gaze locked on Harry. Taking a deep breath, he hypes himself up, realising in that moment you aren’t just wearing his scarf, but the jumper he gave you to keep warm a few weeks ago as well. That along with the kiss you blew him earlier, are all the signs he needed to finally make a move

“Oi, Freddie” George calls as he moves away from the rest of the team “Where ya going?” George tries again but to no avail, Fred’s already gone, pushing through the crowd, using his broom to help manage the masses

As he breaks free, you do a double take, and he finds himself smiling as your confused expression melts into hope and joy

“You’re supposed to be over there” you tell him, taking a few steps forward as he closes the gap

“But you’re over here” he replies simply before leaning closer, eyes searching yours for permission 

You bite your lip, giving him a nod, to which his own smile grows and his broom is abandoned as his larger hands come up to cradle your cheeks guiding them up towards his lips as they crash into your own. You clutch the front of his sweater, pulling him closer but Fred being the showman he is had other ideas. His hands drop down, snaking around your hips before he dips you back. You squeal at first, then laugh softly with him before your lips reconnect. After that the rest of the world fades away. The cheers and buzz around you becoming a distant hum, neither of you reacting to your friends’ cheers nor the flash of Jess’ camera 

Your friends aren’t the only spectators of course…

“Wait…” Marlene points towards you and Fred “…is he about to…oh!” her mouth drops open, gently covering Lacey’s eyes while Dorcas smiles in a happy shock beside her 

Remus, Sirius, Lily are next to react, eyes widening, before breaking into smiles. Remus and Sirius take a moment longer, clearly doing the ‘does he deserve her’ math in their heads first

“That’s my girl” Lilys hands come up to face, overjoyed, she had an inkling you were a little love struck from your letters, she just didn’t know with who until now

“He’s alright” Sirius begrudgingly admits while Remus nods in agreement

Their smiles and shock soon melt into anticipation as they all slowly turn towards James, who had been a bit too quiet considering the situation. But when they see him, he is…beaming?

Turns out Lily wasn’t the only one with an incline, in fact, James being the girl dad he was, has known about every crush you’ve ever had, your one on Fred being no different. Safe to say, he was ecstatic

“Yes!” he cheers “Oh the dips a nice touch, very classy” he nods in approval before looking over at the others “What?” he takes in their shocked faces

“Prongs?” Remus eyes him “You realise that’s y/n, right?” he feels the need to check

“Yeah” James shrugs before his mouth makes an ‘oh’ shape, his reply sending them into fits of laughter “I’m supposed to be mad right now, aren’t I?”

Thank you for reading ♡

[persephone-writes]

A Diviner's Guide to James Potter: Series Masterlist

(ongoing) - read on ao3

Description: Being friends with Lily Evans was difficult when you were head over heels for her ex-boyfriend, James. Your problems are only made worse when you begin receiving strange omens that point to a less than desirable future.

Genre: Friends to lovers, slow burn (I mean it!), fluff & angst.

Rating: Teen (swearing, alcohol/weed/cigarettes, no smut). More detailed warnings for the whole fic can be found on Chapter One.

Series Word Count (so far): 112.4k

+:｡.｡.｡:+*+:｡.｡.｡:+*+:｡.♡.｡:+*+:｡.｡.｡:+*+:｡.｡.｡+

Chapter One: The Omen

You tell your friends about your odd findings while working on your most recent Divination assignment, all while trying to push away your growing feelings for James.

Chapter Two: The Heart Wants What it Wants

Answers to your predicament are few and far between when Sirius gets a letter from his parents and the Gryffindor quidditch team receives some excellent news. 

Chapter Three: Wicked and Wayward

Gryffindor plays Hufflepuff in the fourth match of the season, complete with an eventful after party.

Chapter Four: Paranoid

Hogsmeade is fun, but not when Sirius dangles a dangerous secret right in front of your nose.

Chapter Five: The Blizzard

A late winter storm buries Hogwarts in piles of snow, causing James to grow increasingly restless. It also blows in a much needed answer.

Chapter Six: Portraits Talk

Sirius attempts to quell your anger, though the pressure of acting aloof threatens to topple you.

Chapter Seven: Communing with Nature

You receive another omen which points to nothing good, though James is always there to help ease your mind.

Chapter Eight: The Duel

Mulciber becomes a looming threat to you and your friends, only increasing your existing anxieties. 

Chapter Nine: Red and Gold

Old insecurities are brought to the surface, but James attempts to reassure you with the promise of a fun weekend. 

Chapter Ten: Scurrilous Scoundrel

A night of firewhiskey, dancing, and racing hearts is unfortunately cut short when you stumble across eerie meeting. 

Chapter Eleven: The Hour Struck Nine

Tensions between you and James run high when you, Peter, and Marlene return to the RoR.

Chapter Twelve: Discontent

After nearly seven years, you finally make it into Dumbledore’s office, though this does little to ease your growing nerves, especially when it comes to James.

Chapter Thirteen: A Lovely Shade of Turquoise

James forces you to talk about what happened, opening up a can of worms you wish you could charm back in.  

Chapter Fourteen: The Stars Can Speak

After your fight with James, you're left entirely unsure how to act. However, your friends, and the stars, have some (un)helpful suggestions.

Chapter Fifteen: Repairo

Two diverging paths are presented to you: avoidance or intuition. Which one will you choose?

Chapter Sixteen: The Chaste Moon

The full moon comes just before Easter, fostering a time of rebirth and renewal…among other things. 

Chapter Seventeen: An Invitation

You and the others search for answers regarding the return of your nefarious classmates. 

Chapter Eighteen: Innamorati

Presents, dueling practice, and parties, oh my!

Chapter Nineteen: Yours, James

You and James are forced to deal with the highly eventful nature of Saturday night.

Chapter Twenty: And Then There Was You

You learn more about James's former pining, realizing there is less to fear than you initially thought.

Chapter Twenty-One: Coming Soon!

•-—✼.o○☆———☆○o.✼.o○☆———☆○o.✼—-•

Antique book cover credits:

The Deer-Parks and Paddocks of England by Joseph Whitaker, Captain Courtesy by Edward Childs Carpenter & Goldfish Varieties and Tropical Aquarium Fishes; a Complete Guide to Aquaria and Related Subjects by William T. Innes

[regscupid]

1/7 prompt: headache (1113 words) - @jegulus-microfic

Every year at the start of football season, Regulus’ university team holds its annual Boy Toy Charity Auction. A makeshift stage and runway are set up in whatever large, open space the event planners can secure and the players are sent out, one by one, to sell themselves to the highest bidder for the night. It’s a win for everyone really– the money goes to a good cause, the bidders get to go on dates with their pick of ‘the hottest guys on campus’, and the football players get nice, long, strokes to their egos. Regulus couldn’t have cared less about the whole thing.

And yet, here he stands in a room packed tight with people who have spent the whole night ready to throw their money at every attractive man to walk down the runway, too-loud music and voices speaking over each other sending Regulus hurtling towards a headache. Most players have already been bid on, and Regulus can feel himself getting restless.

He only came because Sirius insisted. Absolutely not because James, Sirius’ best friend and the guy he’d been mildly pining over since he was twelve, would be a part of the auction. Even less so because there had been a recent shift in their relationship, barely concealed hope growing a bit with every interaction between them. He wasn’t desperate to see who would bet on James, and how James reacted to it. Not at all.

“Do you think they’ll bid out the sound guy?” Sirius cranes his neck to get a good look at the tall man on the side of the stage, clearly trying to do as much of his job as possible without being seen. Regulus recognizes him immediately as Remus Lupin, the TA in one of his classes.

Regulus scowls, “I don’t know? I don’t care.”

Sirius bites his lip, still distracted by Remus when Regulus�� words seem to register. He turns back to Regulus, squinting. “Just because you’re getting impatient waiting for your choice bid doesn’t mean you get to have an attitude. No one likes a grouch.”

“I’m not bidding on him,” he mumbles.

Sirius nods with a look of mock contemplation, “So you’re fine with someone else bidding on him then?”

Regulus ignores the way his face heats up and his chest tightens at the thought, rolling his eyes.

“I’ll live.”

The music fades as the man at the podium begins to announce the next player.

“Alright, this is our last boy for the night, so get excited and turn out those pockets! Remember, this is for a good cause!” The music swells as the crowd cheers.

James Potter has always thrived on attention. Regulus figured it had to be some mix of being an only child and being as attractive he is. It had to have gone to his head.

So, it’s unsurprising when he bounds onto the stage, smile blinding as people in the crowd whoop and wolf whistle. Regulus watches dumbfounded as he struts to the end of the runway, before reaching down and pulling his jersey over his head, revealing the “BOY TOY” painted across his chest.

“Here we have team captain and heartthrob, James Potter! Do we have a first bid?” The announcer has to all but yell into the microphone to be heard over the crowd.

“Eighty dollars!”

“Jesus,” Sirius laughs. Regulus is not laughing.

“Eighty dollars! Do I hear eighty-five?”

Panic grips Regulus as the bid gets higher and higher. Most bids that night hadn't even reached eighty dollars, yet alone started there. Before his senses can kick in, he’s calling out a bid of his own.

“One hundred and ten!” Just out of the corner of his eye, he sees Sirius turn toward him, mouth agape. His face burns, and he can’t look at James, but he has already committed to it.

“One hundred ten! Is there a one-fifteen?

“One hundred and fifty dollars!” a woman somewhere in the crowd calls. Regulus grits his teeth.

“One-eighty,”

“One-ninety!”

Regulus groans under his breath, too aware that he only had two hundred dollars in his wallet at the moment. He turns to Sirius, who's watching with wide eyes and an amused grin. “Do you have cash on you?”

“Yeah, fifty. Why?”

“Give it to me.”

“What? No.”

“Please for the love of god, Sirius, I’ll pay you back and introduce you to the sound guy, I know him. Just do this one thing for me.”

“One-ninety going once!”

“Fine.”

“Two-fifty!”

When no one attempts to outbid him, Regulus lets out a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding in since the bidding started. He finally looks at James as he begins walking backward on the runway. His smile has turned into a smirk, and he winks at Regulus before turning around and jogging backstage. Regulus’ stomach curls into not entirely unpleasant knots.

“I can’t believe I just agreed to give you fifty bucks to get with my best friend.” Sirius mumbles, before a slightly delirious laugh bubbles out of him. “I knew you couldn’t handle someone else bidding on him.”

Regulus chooses not to respond, only shoving his arm instead.

Everyone begins clearing out, either disappointed that they didn’t win any dates, celebrating their winning bids, or simply buzzing from the dramatic end to it all.

“Better go see your ‘date’. Tell Prongs to have you home by midnight or I’ll hunt you both down.”

Regulus scowls, but there's no real bite to it, the nerves beginning to get to him. He says goodnight, then works his way to the table set up next to one of the doors for payment. Just as he’s finished telling the woman his name and handing over the money, he catches James standing a few feet behind him. His arms are crossed over his chest and Regulus has to try very hard not to look down at his biceps. Not that looking at his grin dead-on was much better.

“If you wanted to go on a date that bad you could’ve just asked, you didn’t have to drop two hundred and fifty dollars on me.”

Regulus is hyper-aware of the woman sitting there watching them. So, with the payment all taken care of, he steps away from the table, expecting James to follow him out of the building. He does.

“Don’t get a big head about it.”

James rests his hand on his chest and faux-gasps, “How can I not when the Regulus Black wants that badly to go on a date with me?”

“...Do you think they do refunds?”

“No, you’re stuck with me.” James’ smile softens, and Regulus can’t help the small smile that pulls at his own lips.

[etoilesombre]

Fic Master List

I got tired of having to decide which fic post to keep pinned, so I made this. Proper summaries, tags and warnings all on AO3.

Black Sails

Another Way - Silverflint, E, 29,399 words, complete.

Dubcon! But in a very old-school fanfic trope fuck or die way. It diverges from the scene where they get captured taking the warship. They do work through everything in the aftermath, and the end is very sweet actually.

By Faith of my Body - Silverflintmadi in various combinations, but emphasis on the flintmadi relationship. E, Chapter 1/4 posted.

Flint and Madi bond over books, the weight of leadership, and being in love with John Silver. FealtySub!Flint, shameless use of literature for my own nefarious purposes, and so much pining.

Another Troy to Burn - Series. Silverflint longfic series, my special precious baby and literally the first thing I ever wrote. It's canon where they're fucking the whole time but it doesn't change anything. There is a moodboard (thanks @jaynovz) and also a playlist.

A Composite Unity - E, 20,366 words, complete. The first two seasons, Flint pov. He is not having a great time.

The Salt and the Sea - E, 60,495 words, complete. Set during the season 2-3 break, how Silver decided to stay and what happened with the gold. He is also not having a great time.

It Only Made Me Real- E, chapters 4/? posted. Silver adjusting to his role as quartermaster, Flint being Flint during the raids. I swear upon everything holy that I WILL finish this series if its the last thing I do, but, it has been on hiatus for a while.

for to fight the cold - Silverflint, E, 11,283 words, complete. Flint arrives to rescue Silver while he is still being held captive on the beach after the failed attack on Nassau. The cathartic murder of Israel Hands, followed by angst, caretaking, and a sexual tension filled camping trip.

If It Was You - Silverflint, E, 17,430 words, complete. Free use gangbang porn that got out of control and also grew a lot of feelings. The boys spend the night in port on a mission. There is only one bed. Flint freaks out and makes questionable choices, Silver walks in on the whole thing, they have to work through it. Cathartic happy ending. The very Most dirty talk.

I'll Carry You Home Tonight - Silverflint, E, 6,604 words, complete. This one is just porn. Season 3-4 break, the guys are newly in a relationship, they get Pirate Date Night. It's working title was 'impact play and 5 phases of ass stuff'.

Kinkmeme-Verse - Series of prompt fills for 2024 Black Sails kinkmeme. I wrote the first two, saw the prompt for the third, and had a Vision of how they could all be connected, so here we are.

As a Boy - James Flint|McGraw/Admiral Hennessey, E, 5,121 words, complete. Young James McGraw is caught with a boy, and punished. Big content warning for CSA, which I tried to treat seriously.

Pressure - Silverflint, E, 4,504 words, complete. More watersports are we all shocked? This is kind of the ultimate expression of that, but really its an exploration of pain and grief and healing through BDSM.

Make Sail for the Dawn - Silverflint, E, 12,504 words, complete. Flint uses submission as catharsis amidst his grief and pain over Miranda, but Silver accidentally reminds him of past history, which he then has to confront. They work through it, because Silver really has to do everything on this ship, including being his captain's therapist. Also Flint gets fucked with his pistol. Just by the way. This is the one prompter hated! Go see for yourself if it is, in fact, Too Awful For Kinkmeme XD.

long as amber of ember glows - Silverflint, E, 7,933 words, complete. If 3.10 ended the way it should have. There are love confessions, and they fuck on the gold. No literally, on it. It's very sweet honestly.

Our Feast is But Beginning - Series. Silverflint Cookingverse! Flint teaches Silver to cook.

Spit-Roasted - M, 5,821 words, complete. The one where Flint shows Silver how to roast a pig. It's canon! Flint is very weird about sex.

Gentille Alouette - E, 11,618 words, complete. Late night cooking dates on the Walrus, continuing intense sexual tension, Flint is basically edging himself. He sure is a way.

Princes of the New World - E, 38,145 words, complete. This one got a little out of hand, it has many things in it, including lots of hurt comfort and caretaking, the guys finally getting together and also not hiding their relationship, some intense gender vibes (Silver gets to be a pampered pretty princess) and yes, even some cooking.

Our Shadows That Are Bold - Silverflint, E, 4,912 words, complete. Dom Silver. The first little iteration of fealty sub Flint, he sure has some feelings about Silver coming into his own as king.

So We Begin - Silverflint, E, 4,038 words, complete. 3.7 missing scene fic that is exactly what you would expect after stomp stomp and the "how good it feels" conversation.

The Soft Animal of Your Body - Silverflint, E, 3,398 words, complete. The watersports one. Yep sure is, omorashi style, with a good side of hurt comfort stuff and also Flint telling a weird dirty story. Set during warship recovery time. This is basically an outtake of longfic because it doesn't quite work there but wouldn't leave my brain.

the sound that you found for me - T, background silverflintmadi, but its really about Silver and Betsy the cat. Yep. 5,699 words, complete. Kittenfic!! Written for the Beach Blanket Black Sails Ficfest, the prompt was 'Betsy has kittens and Silver wants to keep them on Maroon Island.' It's really about Silver and trauma and there are sad parts but nothing bad happens to any cats and there is a happy ending.

stitched with its color - G, silverflintmadi sort of, 1,344 words, complete. The conversation where Madi tells Flint that Silver is alive.

Such Terrible Hungers - E, Flintvane, 3,357 words, complete. Instead of fuck buddies, they're fuck enemies. Fight sex and Flint angst, that's basically the fic.

to pull me from myself again - E, Silverflint, 7,419 words, complete. Written in response to a Tumblr prompt asking for s1 dynamics softe silverflint, Silver's first time with a man. That is indeed it, that's the fic

What Lies Beneath - E, Silverflint, 3 chapters, complete. 11,031 words. Demon Flint AU! Basically make the demon in Flint literal. Silver is fascinated of course.

The Fetch Phillips Archives (aka Luke Arnold's books, go read them!)

announcing your place in the family of things - E, Fetch/Satyr, 6,865 words, complete. The first creature Fetch meets when he leaves the human city is that unnamed Satyr, and that feels like a conscious choice to me. Coulda said 'faun' and we wouldn't be here Luke. Anyway monsterfucking, but in a lovely way.

The Exorcist (tv)

The Smoke of Their Torment - M, Marcus/Tomas, 572 words, complete. A snippet of Marcus angst and pining and also jerking off in a shared hotel room there may be more someday.

The X-Files

The current think I'm (re)weird about is Mulder and Krycek. Yes, I know everyone else got over it in the early 2000's. But NOT ME apparently. Here, have a playlist (it's really for the Chechnya fic but it generalizes)

Whatever You Can Still Betray - E, Mulder/Krycek, Chapter 2/? posted. Set in vague early season five, sometime between Redux and Patient X. Mulder chases a case across the world to a secret Russian facility in Chechnya, and right into the hands of Alex Krycek. Krycek has problems of his own, but believes his interests and Mulder's might be aligned. When disaster strikes, they have to rely on each other to survive.

like the western front - Series. Mulder/Krycek skipping the holidays, a temporary truce that gets to be more complicated.

as common as it is unkind - E, 12,570 words, complete. Set after The Red and the Black. Thinking Mulder is out of town, Krycek breaks into his apartment on Christmas in search of information. Mulder is not, in fact, out of town.

just glad to get to be around - E, 12,226 words, 3/4 chapters posted. Krycek doesn't really think Mulder is going to accept his invitation for New Year's Eve. Mulder does, but things go sideways, and they end up having to do Russian New Year's together at a fancy villain party under duress. Cocaine, caviar and fucking in the men's room.

[idkjustlemmedrownlikerab]

Evermore (Marauder's Version)

@marsmarauders and I welcome you back to our Taylor Swift x Marauders series. We got carried away again but what's new about that huh? Anyways here you have every single song from Evermore related to the Marauders characters :D (I totally didn't forget about this series at all due to midterms, what r y'all talking about? Nope not me)

willow

"Wait for the signal and I'll meet you after dark, Show me the places where the others gave you scars"

Both of us wholeheartedly agree that this is for sure a wolfstar song. This particular lyric could go either way with scars Sirius has from his mother or the scars Remus has because of Greyback and his furry little problem and "Head on the pillow, I could feel you sneaking in, as if you were a mythical thing" bcoz obviously they shared a dorm for 7 yrs and mythical thing aka a werewolf!

champagne problems

"How evergreen, our group of friends, Don't think we'll say that word again"

WOLFSTAR. I feel like this isn't even an argument every single person in the fandom who listens to Taylor can agree on this, this song screams wolfstar from Sirius' pov. "She would've made such a lovely bride, what a shame she's fucked in the head," being said about Sirius ofc

And Tonks being the new real thing who will patch up the tapestry that Sirius shred

gold rush

"I don't like anticipating my face in a red flush, I don't like that anyone would die to feel your touch"

Now this is about unrequited love and I was certain from the beginning is about jegulus specifically from Regulus' pov talking about James pining after Lily for years when he was right there

'tis the damn season

"We could call it even, You could call me babe for the weekend, 'Tis the damn season,"

Seeing as the song talks about a fleeting relationship we couldn't help but think of this as Remus and Grant

tolerate it

"While you were out building other worlds, where was I? Where's that man who'd throw blankets over my barbed wire?"

BLACK BROTHERS. Like no discussion required at all this song screams Black Brothers from Regulus' pov like try and tell me that isn't Regulus talking about Sirius building a separate life for himself with the Gryffindors leaving Reg behind when he always used to be his protector, and now he's all alone. "I made you my temple, my mural, my sky, Now I'm begging for footnotes in the story of your life" this is soo Regulus Black coded

no body, no crime

"I think he did it but I just can't prove it, No, no body, no crime, But I ain't letting up until the day I die"

Upon a lot of discussion and deliberation we have come to the conclusion that this song is Regulus Black about Peter coz he saw him at a meeting and knows he's the spy but by this time his relationship with his brother is basically non existent and he knows Sirius won't believe him so he needs proof

But at the ending the pov changes to Peter, convincing everyone that Sirius was the spy and the murderer

happiness

"Haunted by the look in my eyes, that would've loved you for a lifetime, Leave it all behind and there is happiness"

Now this song we think could go two ways either with jegulus or with nobleflower coz the lyrics "I hope she'll be a beautiful fool, Who takes my spot next to you" and the whole song overall has this tone of the singer wanting their ex lover to lead a happy life without them while also having a very spiteful undertone due to not being a part of it and that screams Black family to us

dorothea

"Hey Dorothea, Do you ever stop and think about me? When we were younger, down in the park honey, making a lark of the misery

Now we have two interpretations for this Marls was thinking more of Remus and Mary from Remus' pov since they are the only two members left of their friend group and Mary was the one who fled, I on the other hand could also see another version which could be Snape talking about Lily, "You got shiny friends since you left town, A tiny screen's the only place I see you now"

coney island

"I'm on a bench in Coney Island, Wondering, where did my baby go?"

For this song while Marls wasn't that sure but I could see Nobelflower all over since the song talks about this badly ended relationship bcoz one of them (Narcissa) had started distancing themselves and acting strange, so the other (Alice) starts questioning their own existence and wondering if they are all alone now that their partner no longer feels known. This being coz Cissa is bound to her house and her duties, one of them being getting married to a pure blood and Alice starts to resent her for it even tho she knows she doesn't have much of a choice

ivy

"My pain fits in the palm of your freezing hand, Taking mine, but it's been promised to another"

Now ignoring the affair since we don't think any of them would do that, if we just look at the dying relationship and the beginning of a new one aspect of the song I can definitely see the end of bartylus and then Barty falling in love with Evan and thankfully Marls agrees with me on this

cowboy like me

"And the skeletons in both our closets, Plotted hard to fuck this up"

Both of us agree that is song is rosekiller all the way through bcoz it talks about two con artists who thought they never needed love but then they fall for each other?? Tell me that isn't sooo rosekiller coded

long story short

"And I fell from the pedestal, Right down the rabbit hole, Long story short, it was a bad time"

This is very obviously about Lily falling in love with James after Severus to the both of us, about how in hindsight that friendship wasn't really what she thought it was and now she is genuinely happy and it's all about James now

Tho Marls also suggested it about James and Lily getting together after he broke up with Regulus as well and while I do like it, I personally refuse to associate "Long story short, it was the wrong guy" with jegulus coz that just makes me sad :(

marjorie

"Should've kept every grocery store receipt, 'Cause every scrap of you would be taken from me"

This track again is Black Brothers coded but this time from Sirius' pov missing his brother after his death and regretting not mending their relationship bcoz there was still a part of him which hated his little brother for not running away with him

"What died didn't stay dead, You're alive, you're alive in my head"

closure

"It's been a long time, And seeing the shape of your name, Still spells out pain"

Evans sister. Yep that's it, it's Lily singing to Petunia about their broken relationship

evermore

"I replay my footsteps on each stepping stone, Trying to find the one where I went wrong"

In the words of our lovely Marls herself "REGULUS RIGHT BEFORE HE DIES LIKE RIGHT AS HE'S GOING DOWN TO THE CAVE, I TAKE NO CRITICISM"

And no criticism she had to take bcoz those were exactly my thoughts no discussion needed at all

right where you left me

"Help, I'm still at the restaurant, still sitting in a corner I haunt"

Now Marls sees this as Remus post war bcoz everyone other than him died (or fled in Mary's case) and left him alone and he couldn't move on from the fact for the longest time

And while I do love this interpretation I can also see jegulus after the break up from Regulus' pov, seeing James falling in love with Lily again and having a family "I'm sure that you got a wife out there, Kids and Christmas, but I'm unaware" "If our love died young, I can't bear witness" while he's still stuck there reminiscing their time together bcoz that's genuinely the happiest he's ever been

it's time to go

"Sometimes, givin' up is the strong thing, Sometimes, to run is the brave thing, Sometimes, walkin' out is the one thing"

Sirius Black. That's it. We hear no criticism at all, try and fight us about it and we will strangle you in ur sleep :D I'm not kidding we hope yk that for ur own safety

AND THAT'S ALL FOR TODAY!! Thank you for sticking with us even tho I was very late for this post, the next post probably won't take this long coz Marls is the one who's gonna post that, not me, but I hope u liked our opinions and if not, we'd love to hear urs

Make sure to come back to see Folklore, coming soon! (To a theater near you)

[made-this-cause-why-not]

How I would re-write Supergirl Season 2/3

(as some one who stopped watching after season three, and also has not rewatched the series since 2020) (reign arc and heroes of the week will remain unchanged)

So, starting off strong, at Alex and Maggie would not have gotten engaged. Season 2 finale would have been Maggie realizing she was rushing into things, Alex being all "no I love you, I know I do" and Maggie being like "there is a whole gay world for you to explore... go do it." This would lead to sadness, a bit of tears (Chyler and Floriana would be AMAZING- daytime emmy nominee worthy performance).

Rhea would reveal Kara's identity to Lena in the finale. It would be casual too, she would be like "you are much better for my son Lena, that kryptonian isn't worth her weight in dirt here. I can't believe he would settle for a lowly slave." And then Lena would be all "reporter" and Rhea would be like "Yes Kara Danver's, former slave to a, Cat Grant I believe her name is" and then Rhea would continue on her spiel and there would be a cut scene as the camera focuses on Lena taking in the information

They save the day- Monel leaves for what ever reason he had to leave- don't remember, don't care. Also, Kara and Mon-el would have never dated, he would have just pined for her and James and Winn would be all "join the club"

Season 3

Alex mourned over her first lesbian relationship over the 6 month gap between seasons, Lena hasn't told Kara she knows.

First DEO scene of Season 3 is Alex talking to Kara (and invertedly Winn and James) about her most recent date on an app. It went bad, Winn chimes in like "what was it this time" and Alex is like "she was weirdly into ___" then J'onn walks in, like "Alex I am sorry to interrupt but there are pressing matter to attend to- there is a meta human down town" (que hero of the week intro)

Lena and Kara hang out, audience find out that Lena hasn't told Kara cause Kara has to leave to deal with a alien and does the usual "uh, I hear my named being called, ugh bye" and Lena just smiles and nodds, and sighs wistfully, staring after her (supercorp shippers go crazy)

Ep 2 or three we first see Sam and Ruby in line for Noonan's or something (why did they establish that as a brand, just to immediately ditch it after season 1???) and it's just a cute simple little "Hi, I'm Alex, let me help you out" but Sam is endeared and Ruby just smiles because (I love Ruby but honestly) she didn't have that much of a personality early on in the season

That same ep we see Lena reuniting with Sam. After that, when ever Sam and Lena meet each other (I don't remember when or how) Kara and Lena are like "you two know each other" and Alex is all blushy like "yeah, Kinda, I mean, not really" and Sam is like "yeah, Lena she is the girl from the place". Sam and Lena share a look (agent reign shippers go crazy)

Sprinkles of supercorp here and there- Just Kara and Lena doing their normal friend shit but Kara being like "woah, I am feeling things maybe"

At ep 8 or so Kara is at the bar with Alex and ask her how she knew with Maggie, that she liked Maggie. And Alex is all "well, I guess I always knew I liked girls but it was always objective. Like, I would think, she is so kind and smart and beautiful and amazing, any guy would be lucky to have her. But something about Maggie just forced me to realize that I was the one feeling these things, not some guy. I don't know, something about her just made alot of things clearer. Like, I realized I was the one driving the car, not a passenger. She made me stop being so passive in my own life" and Kara is quiet the whole time. Alex then ask "why" and Kara is all "no reason". Cut to Lena at L-Corp working on something relevant to the plot (supercorp shippers go crazy) (that conversation inspires Alex to ask Sam out- they then start to date)

Next ep, Kara goes to Lena's office, and is all, "there is something I need to tell you" and Lena is all "I already know" and Kara is shocked an all "how do you know" and Lena is like "in hindsight it was obvious. *list of things that hold double meanings cause miscommunication trope*" "Lee- I would have told you earlier but I-" "It's fine, I get it. You were doing it to protect me" "protect you???" "yeah- you're supergirl". Que Kara sighing and then freaking out, Lena saying Rhea told her, Kara being pulled away by some kind of supe situation, and Lena being all "go get them supergirl"

Kara admits her feelings at the end of the episode. Lena is shocked, but agrees. They agree to go on a date, a real romantic date and not a friend one, but oops- it's ep 9 which means Kara fights reign, goes comatose and then we get angsty, driven lena being like "we gotta fix Kara"

From then on, the show goes like usual, but Alex and Sam are dating and Kara and Lena are as well. The show ends with Season 3, Alex leads Deo, Winn stays but James leaves to help in the future but it really doesn't matter because the show it over. Supercorp is canon, Alex and Sam have a daughter and everyone lives happily ever after.

Edit: forgot to say this orginally but more Cat cameos. I love that woman so much- she has to come back at least twice in season 3 and be like "I leave the city for five minutes and you let her do WHAT? Agent Scully, why on EARTH would you let your sister fight a world killer??? Have you no brains under that thick skull" or something. I just want for her to be there, see Kara and Lena together and pull out of peice of paper from her purse that says "gay" and be like "I knew when you first walked into my office. No straight women would willingly be yelled at that often" or something. Idk, she was just very deeply missed

[msmk11]

Too Far Gone, Don’t Send Help

Part 1

Sirius Black x gn!reader

Word count: 2.5k

CW: Cursing, mention of broken bones

Summary: Multi-part fic of reader pining after Sirius Black and remaining stuck in the friend zone

A/n: Hey everyone! This is a new little fic I decided to start writing because I needed an outlet for my own, unfortunate situation of unrequited pining. I guarantee you that most of my content for this fic will be loosely based on my own experiences. That being said, I have not and likely will not experience resolution to my own unrequited feelings so who knows how this fic will end! Would love feedback or suggestions as I write! Hope you enjoy the first chapter :)

It was safe to say that you were completely and totally fucked. Though you’re not sure if you were ever…. unfucked?

So here’s the deal. You have had a MASSIVE crush on Sirius Black for just about a year now, and you barely know him.

Pathetic, right?

What makes it worse is that Sirius knows. Or, well, at least, knew. After one of your silly little friends had let slip about your crush at a Gryffindor party, one the very same Sirius Black was attending, he had acted sort of weird around you for a few weeks.

In the hallways he’d send you winks, across the lawn he’d shout hellos, and in class he’d pass you notes. But that little bout of attention was merely temporary. Within the month, Sirius seemed to have forgotten you entirely, and you were back to not existing in his world.

So when you find out that Sirius Black has joined the Gryffindor Quidditch team as a beater, the same team for which you play as a chaser, your stomach is filled with dread. You guess it’s no surprise that he joined, now that his best friend James Potter is captain. Still, you were hoping Potter would have picked literally anyone else to fulfill the position.

Just your luck.

Though anxiety claws at your stomach before the first practice of the season, you decide to act as normal as possible. For all you know, Sirius has totally forgotten about your little crush from last year- the one you still have, actually- but he doesn’t need to know that.

As the team gathers on the pitch for practice, you notice the typical start-of-the-year tension and awkwardness radiating from newbie players. Black, of course, is the exception as he casually stands with the fanciest broom and jokes with James about Merlin knows what.

You curse yourself internally that your body can’t help but react to how bloody good Sirius looks in his training clothes. The loose muscle tee that hangs off his body shows his deliciously muscled arms that just so happen to be covered in ink. His long black hair is pulled back into a casual bun with small pieces that seem to unintentionally frame his handsome face perfectly. You admire the glint in his gray eyes as he laughs animatedly and you wish you were the cause.

Knowing that Sirius was going to be at practices now, you intentionally avoid getting to the quidditch pitch until the last possible second. Still, Potter is automatically on your ass.

“Oi, glad you finally decided to join us,” he says mockingly.

You scoff and roll your eyes, “okay, so, no. We’re not gonna be doing that actually, this whole ‘telling me what to do thing’. Especially not when I’ve been your equal for years, Potter. Maybe even better.”

He huffs out a laugh, “if you were better, why am I captain then?”

“Cause I told McGonagall no,” you answer with a smirk.

His jaw drops and you start laughing. “So we good, pretty boy?”

The brunette rolls his eyes playfully at you and holds his hands up in surrender, “fine, fine, whatever. Let’s start practice. Three laps around the pitch everyone.”

While everyone else groans, you simply tug off your t-shirt, leaving you in a black tank and black Nike shorts. You look over to Marlene who is retying her laces slowly.

“Come on Marls,” you tsk, “the longer you put it off the more you have to dread it. Let’s just go do it.”

The blonde looks up at you and whines, “ugh, fine. Remind me again why you keep letting me come back to play. I hate running.”

“Cause you love being a chaser with me?”

“Ehhhhh…”

“Cause it makes you look bloody hot for your darling girlfriend.”

“Ah, right,” she says, her face lighting up. “That’s it. Race ya?”

“You’re on, McKinnon.”

The two of us tear off down the field at a fast pace, zooming past many of the other team members who, smartly, are doing a light jog. As we pass Sirius and James, who are running side by side, you hear Potter call out, “that’s right, kick their ass, McKinnon.”

Too focused to snark back, you simply flip him off and keep running as he cackles.

For you, running is a long game. So while Marlene is certainly beating you right now, you know that, ultimately, she will lose. Though you’re still running fast, you’ve decided to save some of your energy for the end of the race. When Marlene starts to tire out, you’ll still have stamina and end up passing her.

True to your goal, two and a half laps later Marlene has begun to significantly slow down. As she huffs and sort of holds her side, you gain speed and pass her. A burst of adrenaline shoots through you as you reach the finish line and cheer.

“Ah ha! Yes! I won!”

Marlene merely groans through pants and collapses onto the grass. “Merlin, I’m out of shape. I think I’m dying.”

You drop to your knees dramatically, “no, Marls, please, don’t die on me. I can’t survive this without you.”

Your other teammates who have begun to join you as they finish their three laps chuckle at your dramatics.

“If you die, I must die with you.” You then imitate stabbing yourself in the heart and collapse to the ground.

As you play dead with your eyes closed, you notice a shift in light behind your eyelids. You open them and squint up. Of course, no one other than Sirius Black is hovering over you.

“My, James never told me we had quite the actor on our team.”

Your heart starts beating faster and you flush a little, realizing you totally just acted a fool in front of your crush. “Yeah, well, everyone has their secrets,” you say softly.

“Such a disgrace to hide your talent from the world,” he answers dramatically.

You smirk a little and roll your eyes at the raven-haired boy, “Yeah well….” You stand up and brush yourself off before placing your hands on your hips and give him an awkward smile.

“So, a beater, huh? I didn’t pin you as the type to play Quidditch.”

“I don’t really, besides for fun. But James needed another player, and I have a lot of anger so….”

You shrug your shoulders, “fair enough.”

James interrupts your conversation, thank god, by announcing that you all are now going to run drills. He decides he wants to catch the new players up so he has Fabian Prewett, the seasoned beater, work with Sirius, Marlene work with the new keeper, some 5th year brunette girl you can’t quite remember the name of, and you with the seeker, a 4th year boy with bright blonde hair and wide eyes named Jackson Creevey.

“Okay Creevey. So we’re gonna work on your maneuvering first. Instead of releasing a snitch, I’m going to pretend to be it. I’ll zoom all around and I wanna see how quickly you adapt to wild turns, dives, etc. James will be watching and is going to give you tips. You ready?”

The eager blonde boy nods and mounts his broom. You both raise high in the air and face each other. “Okay, I get a five second head start. After that, try to tag me.”

With that you zoom off towards the goals on the left as fast as you can, anticipating the boy following you. Surprisingly, Jackson is bloody fast, but also a little more unstable on his broom. You pause as he rushes towards you and then at the last second fly vertically upward and flip around in the other direction. He zooms past where you would have been and has to slow down before turning around to follow. You zigzag across the sky, looping around the stands into the clouds and beneath the rafters below. As he gains on you under the rafters, you dart upwards back onto the field. This time, though, he anticipates it, and remains close behind.

“Good,” James shouts, “keep anticipating their moves.”

As you feign to turn left, you actually turn right and slip out of his close grasp.

Reveling in your victory of outsmarting him, what you don’t see is the bludger heading your way. Just as you hear the yell of “look out,” the ball slams into your shoulder and sends you off balance. You cry out in pain as you hear a crack and wobble on your broom. Luckily you are able to keep enough control to land safely before rolling off. A string of curses leave your mouth as you clutch your arm and writhe in pain on the ground.

“Oh fuck!” James hops off his broom and runs over to you. He kneels down in the grass and looks at your face.

“Hey, hey, are you okay?”

With tears stinging in your eyes you shout, “obviously not! I think my arm is broken!”

“Shit,” he mumbles under his breath. “Okay, let’s take you to the hospital wing. I’m going to help you up, okay?”

You grit your teeth, “my legs aren’t broken I-“

“Just let me help you- please” He begs pleadingly.

“Fine, fine okay.”

Supporting your back and using your other arm, he carefully lifts you to your feet. “Sirius, you grab her broom and meet me in the hospital wing. Everyone else, practice is dismissed.”

You ignore everyone’s concerned faces as you walk towards the castle with James. As much as you hate to admit it, tears are streaming down your face from the pain.

“What the fuck happened?” You mumble.

“I’m not sure, I was watching you and Creevey. But I think Sirius hit a rogue bludger and it slammed into you.”

You want to be mad at Black and curse his name, but between your feelings for him and the fact that you know it’s not his fault, you instead huff and say, “well tell him that he should save his hits for the rival teams, yeah?”

The bespectacled boy beside you lets out a quiet laugh and nods. “I really am sorry by the way. I can’t help but feel it’s my fault you got injured. I mean, it’s my first practice of the season as captain and someone already got hurt.”

At this point we’ve arrived at the castle and James rushes ahead to open the doors for you. You give him a small, watery smile and walk inside. As he trails after you you say, “look, you have nothing to be sorry for James. It’s not your fault. Accidents happen in quidditch all the time. It’s part of the game, I know the risks. I should have just been more careful. And anyways, it’s not like I’ve died, yeah? Just some broken bones. Madame Pomfrey will have me good as new by the end of the weekend.”

He sighs and rubs his face tiredly, “I know, I know, you’re right. I just want to do well.”

I stop and look into his hazel eyes very seriously, “James, you’re going to do amazing as captain. Though I might be a better chaser than you,” I smirk, “I’ve never met anyone more dedicated and passionate. You’re not just a great quidditch player, you’re a great leader.”

He smiles softly, “thanks.”

“What are friends for?”

*****

Once you and Potter had finally arrived to the hospital wing, you were promptly rushed to a bed by Madame Pomfrey as she mumbled about how dangerous quidditch was under her breath. As she looked your arm over she confirmed what you thought- broken bones. Though with the flick of a wand your bones were mended, she still ordered you a night’s rest in the hospital wing so that she could keep an eye on you in case anything went wrong. The pill she gave you to help with the residual pain quickly put you off into a deep sleep.

When you awake it is clear a lot of time has passed. It’s now dark outside and the room is quiet besides the soft snores of someone beside you. You squint at the figure sleeping in the hard chair next to your bed and realize it to be…Sirius.

Your eyebrows shoot up in surprise and you inhale sharply through your nose. It seems this startles him as he jolts awake and gasps a little.

“Oh, hi, you’re awake,” He declares softly, looking at you.

“What…are you doing here?” You ask quietly.

“I just…wanted to check on you.”

Your heart quickens at his seeming concern. “Black, I’m fine, really. My arm is all good to go, I’m just staying overnight cause Pomfrey wants to keep an eye on me.”

He scratches his head awkwardly, “oh, right. Well….I also just, wanted to apologize. It’s entirely my fault that you’re here. If only I’d been more careful…”

You smile a little at his anxious stuttering and thank the gods that he can’t see the heat flushing to your face over his cuteness. “Black, honestly, you’re fine. Shit happens, it’s part of the game. And if you really wanna repay me, help win us some games hmmm?”

He lets out a huff and slumps backwards in his seat, now more relaxed. “Yeah, course. Gryffindor is gonna bring home the cup again this year.”

“Well duh, how could we lose?”

“If our star player has a broken arm?” He teases lightly. “Don’t tell James I said that. He’d be offended.”

You roll your eyes and smirk, “of course not, gotta protect his fragile ego.”

Sirius lets out a loud laugh and you beam, though quickly shush him.

“Be quiet! Pomfrey will kill you for keeping me from my ‘much needed rest’.”

“Nah she won’t. Poppy loveeees me.”

You quirk an eyebrow in disbelief, “yeah, uh-huh, sure. All those gray hairs that have popped up on her head since you’ve been here really prove that.”

“Uhm, actually, that’s called aging,” the boy corrects you dramatically. “I am an angel.”

You snort loudly and cover your giggles behind your hand. Though you hear Sirius scoff in offense, you can faintly make out the smile playing at his soft lips.

“Okay Black, whatever you say.”

He hums softly and silence falls over us for a few minutes. Your mind is racing, feeling the need to say something, anything.

“Uh, you know you don’t have to stay. I’m fine, you know. You can go get some sleep.”

Okay, yes, send him away. Great idea, dumbass.

“No can do. It is my duty to stay here with you until you’re out of the hospital. I won’t feel right otherwise. You can go back to sleep though, I’ll just sit right here.”

“Nah that’s okay,” you say, “I’m not really tired after I just took the longest nap of my life.”

“Right, well, wanna play a game?”

You raise an eyebrow at him, “what sort of game?”

“Twenty questions?”

“Alright, but I ask you questions first.”

[xoxobuckybarnes]

March 2023 Stucky Fics

Completed

Till It Bleeds Daylight (Rated: E, Words: 44K) by cable-knit-sweater / @cable-knit-sweater 

Summary: Steve has been undercover with Hydra for a couple of months, slowly getting deeper into the organization . As he tries to figure out what they’re plotting and tries to take them down, he struggles with his past, loneliness, and keeping his cover. When he finds out about a mysterious contractor, the Winter Soldier, Steve figures he or she is the key to Hydra’s plans, but getting more information is not without risk. But well, Steve is anything but risk averse - just ask his secretive one-night-stand turned regular hookup turned …something, James “Bucky” Barnes. Or, going undercover with the criminal organization that haunted your neighborhood growing up, a Steve Rogers guide: Step 1 - Don’t make it personal; Step 2 - Don’t take unnecessary risks; Step 3 - Don’t lose your cool; Step 4 - Don’t fall in love with a hitman; Step 5 - Ignore rules 1 to 4, especially 4. Title from the song "Lovers In A Dangerous Time"

From Ice and Ashes (Rated: M, Words: 64K) by phansomedevil / @phansomedevil 

Summary: Steve asks: “How do you move on?” Sam’s eyebrows shoot skyward. He whistles air out from pursed lips. “Do you want the therapist answer or the real one?” “Surprise me.” “The truth is – you don’t get over it,” Sam says, his voice low. “Not when it’s that close to your soul. Not when he’s someone you built yourself up around. Maybe you fall in love again, maybe you don’t. It won’t feel the same. He’ll always be coming up in your peripheral.” As the bus pulls to a stop in front of them, Sam grips his shoulder. “But you still gotta keep living your life. For his memory, yeah. But mostly for yourself.” *** Steve Rogers learns what it means to be a queer hero in a complicated modern age. He tries to move on from the pull of the past, and his lost loves, but fate rarely lets him catch a break.

The Size of Perfection (Rated: E, Words: 31K) by Phoenike 

Summary: The serum enhances Steve’s physical attributes to peak condition. All of them. Unfortunately, ‘enhanced’ doesn’t necessarily mean ‘optimal’ or ‘something that a fella wishes to show the girl of his dreams on their wedding night.’

Introduction to Fake Dating Your Best Friend 101 (Rated: T, Words: 24K) by crinklefries / @spacerenegades  

Summary: Bucky stares at his best friend as though he’s absolutely lost what’s left of his dumbass mind. “Excuse me?” he asks dumbly. Steve sighs and sags back onto the couch, covering his face dramatically with one large, well-manicured hand. “Dean Coulson thinks we’re dating. And gay. But like, for each other. And now I need you to fake date me so I can convince the Chancellor to fund my research.” or; Steve and Bucky are a pair of professors who have to fake date for academic purposes and are real dumb along the way. It's not so much a forest of pine as a whole landscape of it. It turns out fine, probably.

The Best Way to Wake (Rated: E, Words: 42K) by LeeHan / @leehanji

Summary: James Buchanan Barnes lay in a glass pod in the middle of the table, frozen since he fell. Steve’s hands were on the glass before he realized he’d moved. “Wait, Captain!” “Get him out,” Steve whispered, his hands searching for a clasp, a keypad, something. “Captain, we need to keep him in stasis—“ “I said get him out!”In which Bucky Barnes lay frozen in the Alps for seventy years only to be woken up a year after Steve Rogers was uncovered from the Arctic.

Casual Encounters (Rated: E, Words: 66K) by MoreThanSlightly / @morethanslightly 

Summary: “You have never once been careful in your entire life.” Bucky huffs out a laugh. He looks away. “Maybe I’m offended you didn’t think to ask me.” He says it like a joke, but he can’t bring himself to laugh again. “Bucky,” Steve says, scandalized. “You’re my friend. I’m not gonna use you to experiment sexually.”

Pisces Season (Rated: T, Words: 6K) by dreamsinthewitchouse / @dreamsinthewitchouse

Summary: Steve can’t get drunk because of what the serum did to his metabolism, but he still likes beer, and Bucky knows it’s because he likes the simplicity of it; likes remembering how drinking it used to feel, before the war. He watches Steve lift a bottle to his mouth and take a swig, teeth flashing. Steve has let his hair grow out a bit, which is a pretty great look on him, but the truth is that every single version of him, ever, has made something at the bottom of Bucky’s stomach twist into an unsolvable knot. Bucky knows he’s probably got what Natasha calls his smitten kitten look plastered all over his face, but just then he’s way past caring because it's Steve, now looking back at Bucky across the room, his mouth curled in a smile. Or: the one in which Bucky and Steve live happily with their Avengers family and nothing hurts (and Bucky snacks and naps a lot). Also, it’s Bucky’s 101st birthday.

A Certain Slant of Light (Rated: E, Words, 32K) by agetwellcard

Summary: Steve first meets Bucky on a Sunday morning. He's instantly intrigued by the new pastor's son with pale blue eyes and a nervous smile.

a song on a policeman’s radio (series) by rohkeutta / @rohkeutta 

How we rolled up the carpet so we could dance (Rated: E, Words: 7K) art by SulaSafeRoom / @sulasaferoom

Summary: Steve’s already showered and changed into sweats and a tank top, his hair still sticking up in cowlicks. When Bucky drags himself to the couch, still in his uniform with soot on his face, Steve takes one look at him in the soft glow of the living room lamp and opens his arms. Bucky drops the shield on the floor and crawls over Steve’s legs to collapse on top of him, tucks his face under Steve’s chin and exhales. “Jesus fucking Christ.”

our chosen homes (Rated: G, Words: 756)

Summary: “It’s been freezing,” Steve repeats as he drops the wood in front of the fireplace, throws two logs in to make sure that the fire isn’t going out. “Huh,” Bucky murmurs absently from the folds of his blanket, and Steve has to squeeze him a little as he passes, rub his cold nose against the vulnerable patch of skin behind Bucky’s ear. Bucky yelps, a high-pitched sound muffled by the duvet he’s wrapped in, and Steve laughs, kisses his ear on the way to get more water from the well.

The Same River, Twice (The Man Is Still Left with His Hands) (Rated: G, Words: 4K) by dorian_burberrycanary / @burberrycanary & art by amoneth / @amoneth-art​

Summary: Steve had meant to stay forever and didn’t last a year. He meant to return right back to when he left, but that doesn’t work out the way he planned either. Turns out a lot can happen in nine months.—Steve didn’t need his first month back to make him aware of just how many degrees forgiveness comes in, but some lessons feel new each time. Getting a text from Sam asking him to Delacroix for the weekend feels like one tick closer and Steve’ll take it. He’s texting back when Sam adds, Bucky will be there. And Steve? Steve’ll take that, too. A post-The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Stucky Endgame fix-it where a lot needs fixing.

***This fic is complete, but the series (A Man Takes His Sadness Down to the River (The Consolation of Philosophy)) is not.***

Still Left with the River (The Paradox of Motion) (Rated: M, Words: 14K) by dorian_burberrycanary / @burberrycanary​

Summary: Coming back from as good as dead to a changed world is easier the second time around. But then Steve supposes that, like with most things, you get better with practice. A post-The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Stucky Endgame fix-it where even if you can’t go home again, you’ve got to go somewhere.

***This fic is complete, but the series (A Man Takes His Sadness Down to the River (The Consolation of Philosophy)) is not.***

North Fork (Rated: E, Words: 62K) by BeaArthurPendragon / @beaarthurpendragon & art by Stucky1980 / @lisamott9

Summary: Sworn to silence by the Air Force after a friendly fire accident in Afghanistan, former aid workers James and Sam have come home to take over Sam’s family’s vacation rental business to escape the bad memories. Losing an arm and working maintenance wasn’t how James pictured his life turning out, but his life is good: He likes fixing things, he gets to work for his best friend, and he loves surfing every morning. Fresh out of the ice, all Steve wants is for SHIELD to announce his return and let him get back to work so he won't have time to think about all he's lost. But when his psychiatrist refuses to clear him for duty until he's dealt with his trauma, he reluctantly accepts Tony's offer of a beach house for the summer to settle his mind. Armed with a false identity and a stack of sketchbooks, his only goal is to get back into the field. He's got no intention of letting his heart defrost along with the rest of his body. That is, until a handsome maintenance man with a secret of his own shows up with a gallon of ice cream and a smile that could light up half of New York.(Written for the 2021 Shrunkyclunks Big Bang)

with all my skin and bone (Rated: T, Words: 54K) by unicornpoe

Summary: Agents Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes don't get along. With Steve's reckless attitude and Bucky's cautious, no-nonsense way of doing things, they clash from the beginning, and make enemies of each other before they can even think of being friends. But when both men are assigned to a job that will take them to the suburbs in investigation of CEO Alexander Pierce—where they're supposed to live together, to be married to each other, to be in love with each other—old feelings rise up, and new ones emerge. What happens when the person you hate most in the world has to be the person you love? What happens when the line between lies and truth gets blurred? Pining, that's what. And some kissing, too.***Steve and Bucky fall together, and fall in love.

Push It Real Good (Rated: M, Words: 35K) by spoffyumi / @spoffyumi​

Summary: The way Steve had to steel himself to ask the question made Bucky a little wary. "Will you be my partner for a Lamaze class?" For a few long moments, Bucky just blinked at him, not knowing which question to ask first. Finally he went with the biggest question on his mind. "What?"

WIP

Treading Water (Rated: M, Current Words: 96K) by sparkagrace / @sparkagrace & art by Dyslexic_Fetus / @reagy-jay

Summary: Olympic swimmer Bucky Barnes always believed that when the time came to retire, he would walk away with his medals and world records firmly in the history books and never look back. He never thought the water would leave him first.

***Be sure to check out the rest of this amazing series: Lane Lines: Lane Lines (Rated: M, Words: 132K), Lumière (Rated: M, Words: 5K), & New Traditions (Rated: M, Words: 6K)***

a league of their own (Rated: E, Current Words: 8K) by burning_brighter / @burning-brighter

Summary: Steve's sixteen-year-old son's one and only dream is to play in the Major League. He thinks he has a shot when the team get a new coach, retired MLB legend and Steve's high school crush, Bucky Barnes. Steve hasn't thought of the man in many years, but seeing him brings back many memories that push Steve to reach out to an old friend and maybe make new ones on the way. What happens when Steve gets to know Bucky properly? What happens when they open up about their darkest secrets and deepest fears? There's really only one thing that can happen.

An Appropriate Omega (Rated: M, Current Words: 205K) by BeauRadley

Summary: Steven Rogers, the Duke of Brooklyn, is in a bind. The provisions of his father’s will mean he must marry before his thirty-fifth birthday or lose his mother’s inheritance. The catch? He has to marry a suitable omega. James Barnes is the third child of the impoverished Barnes family. If he or his sister don’t marry before the season is out, their family will fall further into poverty. If he doesn’t find someone else soon, he’ll be forced to marry the sinister Lord Pierce. The two men realize they can solve each other’s problems, but will their marriage of convenience turn into something more?

[smutconnoisseur]

𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐭 𝐊𝐨𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐚’𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐜’𝐬

This rec list is created for @stuckybingo

Card # R40101 | Square filled - B4 | AU: Lawyer

Title ⊳ Innocent Until

Author ⊳ L1av

Pairing ⊳ James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers

Rating ⊳Explicit

Word Count ⊳138K

Major Tags ⊳ Lawyer!Bucky, BDSM, Kink, Mutual Pining, Hurt/Comfort, Secret Relationship

Summary ⊳ Bucky Barnes made a name for himself as the attorney who could get anyone off, but he still lives by the saying, "Innocent until proven guilty." Steve Rogers finds himself on trial for multiple homicides but he swears he was only trying to protect a girl. Bucky's been in this business long enough to know when someone's innocent, and Steve is innocent. Steve already feels like a monster and Bucky's worried this guy's going to lay himself on the sword come his trial. So Bucky offers up another course for punishment:

Turns out, chains and whips really excite Steve.

Commentary ⊳ The moral dilemma of a taboo relationship between attorney and client is pushed to the limits in this emotional whirlwind. It explores the start of a complicated relationship based on trust that, with tensions and compatibility so off the fucking charts, it left me screaming and crying for a happy outcome—and for Steve to be proven innocent.

Read it here

Title ⊳ A Hard Case of You

Author ⊳ @chiyume

Pairing ⊳ James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers

Rating ⊳ Explicit

Word Count ⊳21K

Major Tags ⊳Mechanic!Steve, Lawyer!Bucky, Strangers To Lovers, First Meetings, Homophobic Language, Happy Ending

Summary ⊳ James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes, seasoned lawyer at Shield Legal Services, New York City office, is in a bad mood.

He’s driving down the I-90 from Buffalo in his sleek black company car, AC running on cool to keep the air from growing stuffy. He’s got his jaw set in that particular way he knows will cause him a major headache in a few hours, but right now the last thing on his mind is his own future discomfort.

In which Bucky's car breaks down when he's already feeling his worst, and he's forced to seek help from whatever's nearby. Luckily, Rogers' Auto Repair isn't too far away, and everyone seems very enthusiastic about recommending the place. But when Bucky gets there, he has a hard time seeing the professional the whole town's been speaking of so fondly...

Commentary ⊳ Bucky being stranded with only mechanic Steve who can help. Ahhhhhhh. Two idiots and the fun use of tropes.

Read it here

Title ⊳ Sweet Sugar

Author ⊳ this_wayward_life

Pairing ⊳ James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers

Rating ⊳ Explicit

Word Count ⊳ 8K

Major Tags ⊳ Lawyer!Bucky, Student!Steve, Age Difference, Sugar Daddy Bucky Barnes, Meet-Cute

Summary ⊳ This is not Bucky's scene.

Truthfully, most social situations aren't his scene, but particularly this one. He's closer to forty than thirty-five these days, and spending time in an overcrowded bar whose population tends to fall towards the early twenties side of the age scale is not something he particularly enjoys. If it was up to Bucky, he'd be spending his Friday night either in his office catching up on the Martinelli case or half-asleep on the couch, re-watching Criminal Minds and snuggling with his cat.

But, since Bucky sold his soul over to the Devil in sophomore year of law school when he made friends with one Natasha Romanoff, he's here, stuffed into a shirt that is a bit too tight around his midsection and jeans that he can barely sit down in.

Commentary ⊳ College jock Steve pursuing grumpy Bucky, and Bucky accidentally acquires a sugar baby. Also—BOTTOM DADDY BUCKY makes me feral.

Read it here

Rec Masterlist

Header created by @rookthorne

[romanceforransom]

OK HEARTSTOPPER S2 THOUGHTS INCOMING

(spoiler warning ofc)

I love the fact we got to see so much more of the characters than we did in the comics. Like the Elle and Tao storyline was so much more fleshed out and there were more Tara and Darcy scenes too which was amazing

And the fact we got to see more about Darcy and her home life - however heart-breaking those scenes were I LOVED the way they were shot. Like the constant purple shadows compared to the bright yellows and pinks at Tara's (the lesbian flag compared to the straight flag/the implications of repression) will forever go insane over the colouring

The teachers storyline OMG, I adore Mr Ajayi and Mr Farouk they really just added so much to this season (and the friendship between Mr Ajayi and Miss Singh was adorable!!! Never knew I needed it but definitely did). I'm pretty sure that was the only story they got in the comics??? As far as I can remember... But I'm really hoping there is something more for them in the next season, since the side stories are getting more scenes.

SAHAR AND IMOGEN??????? Look I adore Imogen and I have been hoping for her to be sapphic (lost hope a bit when they did the ben plot) and the fact they might actually be doing it??? I'm not just being delusional right that was clearly setting them up? Like the whole 'token straight' thing SCREAMS being in the closet because I swear that happens to almost every person that constantly reiterates they are the token straight lmaoo. Then the cuddling after the party, and the HEARTSTOPPER MOMENT AT PROM!! Imogen literally getting heart eyes when she saw Sahar playing the guitar likeee

Also the way they all have different doodles for their heartstopper moments. The leaves for nick and charlie, butterflies for tao and elle, and musical notes for imogen and sahar <333

The aroace rep in this season was also everything. When the trailer came out and everyone was clinging onto that one clip of James and Isaac and hoping they would get together I was so worried about what was gonna happen (like I thought they would just make Isaac ace and not aro - which would have been fine ofc like that's valid!! but I don't think I've ever seen an (established) aro character in media before and having a character not in a relationship would be so good) so it was really nice that they actually did it. Tbh I was almost tearing up during Isaac's scenes because everything he was saying was something I've felt before still struggling with that tbh because the hopeless romantic in me doesn't want to be aroace?? if that makes sense?? idk i'm tryna deal with it but that's not the pointtt I'm just really happy Isaac got his moment, and really excited to see him fully embrace himself and be happy with who he truly is :')

And Nick and Charlie's storyline this season was so.. I just love them. They are so supportive of one another - and just one small thing I adore is how much they hug each other. Like not a lot of shows present a lot of physical affection besides the hand touching and pining before hand, and then just kissing. But they hug so much and just show their affection and love for one another and I really love that.

Also the way Charlie stood up for himself this season was just *chefs kiss*. For a character who has to be banned from saying the word 'sorry' it's so nice to see him be confident in himself and not just accept the first half hearted apologies that people give him. Like slamming the door on Harry, and actually telling Ben all the things he did that affected him. Like I wanted some violence tbh LMAOOO like the whole time Ben was practically begging for a slap, but those scenes were a good substitute. Also Ben's last scene where he steps away from all of the pride posters and rainbows... Heart breaking, but I can't feel too much sympathy bc being closeted still doesn't accuse assault and all of his general asshole behaviour, yknow??

AND TORI MY LOVEEE!!! never have i related to a character more omgg, like I kid you not every single one of her lines is something I would say/have said before. She is me I am her fr. And the phone kicking scene, WHAT A QUEEN I actually love her. She wasn't in this season enough honestly.

One last thing (I have way more thoughts but I can't remember what they were rn) Sarah deserves the best parent award, there is no competition here, the other parents in this show need to step up their game because she is unmatched in her supportiveness. She's the best.

[graceisinthelibrary]

You made many good points. The one thing I actually struggle with is Tristan and his drinking. I think it's odd that he's so determined to come home drunk every night because he feels lucky to have survived. We all know he prefers to look on the bright side, but this coping mechanism still feels wrong. Maybe Siegfried’s assurance that he wants him around will resolve this issue.

James story in ep6 was well done and Nick could finally prove what a good actor he truly is. It's actually the way his character is written that makes him an absolute bore for 90% of the time.

Helen was violently underused during the whole season. That surprised me. Women can get more than just mothers. Audrey proves that on a regular basis.

I'm going to miss Carmody. He added another layer of humour and humanity to the show.

Audrey was wonderful this season, though her last conversation with Bosworth felt flat to me. I hope their arc gets a proper ending in the CS, but I doubt it. No mention of Edward though, which doesn't sit well with me.

As for Siegfried x Audrey in general: for the first time, I feel the writers are simply trying to prolong it, so it fits a certain narrative. I miss some organic development in this area. Also the way they introduced Miss G - as an obvious misfit - only to make her a big off-screen thing in episode 6 is just.... well, it feels forced. I wonder if we will somehow get a fitting end for this storyline that gives us a clue as to why Siegfried suddenly has overcome his pining for Audrey. It doesn't make much sense, especially since they have grown closer over the course of the season.

A few thoughts from 5.6.

I loved this episode, and I’ve loved this whole series. I know we got very little of our favourite pairing in the second half of the series, but what we did get was good.

In this episode, although they were barely in any scenes together, there were still some things I absolutely loved in relation to them:

1. I love the comparison of Miss G having a hissy fit about Siegfried correcting her grammar, while Audrey, when faced with the man carrying a pig muck covered coat, just smiles and accepts that that’s Siegfried.

2. I also love the comparison of Miss G (presumably) ignoring Siegfried because she’s sulking at him re the grammar corrections, but when he doesn’t get home at the time Audrey expects him she’s worried and rings Dobson to check on him. (She plays down the worry but it was there).

3. I enjoyed the direction at various points in this episode, particularly Tristan telling Siegfried to ask Miss G out, pretty much immediately followed by him injuring himself, cursing, and then a cut straight to Audrey at Skeldale. (Let’s face it Tristan has a terrible track record with romance, so this felt fitting even if it hadn’t given a bit of a ship boost moment)

Re: Audrey in this episode, it was a perfect example of quite how easily the lady could (and does) run the house. She cooks jam, takes care of Helen, knows where to find prescriptions for patients, feeds the dogs, and generally just handles everything in her stride. She is indeed remarkable.

Re: Tristan in this episode, I actually love the way his ‘mystery’ played out. I was convinced there was something malign, something painful from the war. It never occurred to me that actually the problem might be that there wasn’t. That there’s an element of feeling guilty for getting out without injury (which would explain his reaction at Pumphrey Manor) and thinking that his brother maybe thinks less of him for it. I actually think that was a really interesting way to play it out, and I enjoyed it.

Re: James’ storyline, it was heart wrenching when he was talking in his delirium. I think that was handled very well and performed very well too.

And finally, the Siegfried and Tristan scenes were just brilliant for me. They didn’t play out how I necessarily expected them to, but they were brilliant. The love between them coming out in the end, after all of the bickering, and the way Siegfried was audibly upset explaining how he wanted to have his brother’s company of an evening, it was all so beautifully written and played.

So those are my thoughts. I loved it, and I can’t wait for the CS now.

[punemy-spotted]

Dead Trees Like Lavender Fields Chapter 3

Chapter 3: My Fruit Will Bleed

Pairing: Old One!Bucky Barnes x Reader

Warnings: Rape/Non-Con Elements, Dub-Con, Soft!Dark Characters, Dark! Characters, Cult Elements, Human/Animal Sacrifice, Religious Elements, Blasphemy, Cosmic/Dark Horror, Stalking, Possessive/Obsessive Characters, Appalachian/Mountain Gothic, Gothic Horror, Descriptions of Death and Rot and Poverty, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat

Chapter 1; Chapter 2

Chapter Warnings: Rape/Non-Con Elements, Dub-Con, General Sexual Harassment, Conflicting Voices, Mention of War, VERY LIGHT Housewife Kink Introduction, Slight Panic Attack, Implied Brock Rumlow x Reader

PLEASE REMEMBER THAT YOUR CONSUMPTION OF MEDIA IS YOUR OWN RESPONSIBILITY AND IF YOU ARE UNCOMFORTABLE WITH THE CONTENT THAT IS BEING PRESENTED, PLEASE DO NOT READ

Chapter Summary: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea stands He.

O knotted cage and vine-wrought chains, O feast of hills and green, that which feeds our hearts but often starves our blood: Hear us now.

- Old Gods of Appalachia, Episode 11: Season Two Prologue

Notes: Things are... beginning. Massive thanks to @brandycranby, who tolerates me always, and encourages me to keep writing.

All of my work is 18+ Only, Minors DO NOT INTERACT. I do not consent to my work being posted anywhere besides Tumblr or Ao3 and I post my work there myself. Do not copy, translate, or repost any of my content.

Sergeant James “Bucky” Barnes is a war hero, you learn over breakfast, enjoying sweet coffee and biscuits covered in clotted cream and honey while Uncle Cletus half-interrogates the man, an act which you suspect is probably done more for your own benefit than out of any kind of real curiosity. You take care not to speak out of turn while you listen, minding your own business or maybe more mindful of the memory of your Uncle’s temper and the knowledge that the smiling foreman wouldn’t always be here to save you from it.

Because that’s the thing. Sergeant James “Bucky” Barnes is a war hero — though one ever says which war, just the one you hear spoken of with a bitter sort of nostalgia against “The Other” — and the foreman of the time the whole Holler was built around, the one the denizens fed themselves to daily to earn a paycheck and this day’s daily bread. The mine which was currently, On account of the floodin’ and the drain pump bein’ broke, real bad business, shut down, the miners either home with their wives and children or in another part of the mountains trying to earn some extra money on top of their temporary pension — and the smug satisfaction on the Sergeant’s face when you nearly drop your fork in surprise at this information, tells you all you need to know about what he thinks of city-folk and the big companies. Of P&R, you recall numbly, remembering the way his face twisted too when you mentioned their name and the job you’d be starting with them soon.

Better to take care a’people than leave ‘em scramblin. These hollers ain’t that big, and once more, you suspect the practiced speech he drawls out is more for your benefit than his own pride in his work.

You manage another marketing manager smile over the rim of your mug, trying not to think too much about the way his drawl sinks into you, settles in someplace dark and unnerving, makes you want to surrender to some command you don’t even know yet. Easier then, to turn your eyes away and avoid any of that.

Best not to fall in. Best not to let him draw you into the warm dark.

The problem, however, with trying not to think about something is that the something you’re desperately trying not to think about will find every way to become the only thing you can think about and as your eyes land on the Sergeant’s black metal arm — since The Other took the flesh and bone one — your mouth floods with the taste of cold metal and acrid pine and suddenly you swear you see sparks pulse from the gold accents swirling through that coal-black plane, see them glow amber with the heat of a forge or something deep and heated and molten at the core of you the earth and the world tilts, shifts, snaps into a sickening place haint haint haint haint and you think you ought to scream, ought to run right into the woods, ought to do what your mother did decades ago and —

You still with us, girl? A tobacco graveled voice cuts through the river of your thoughts, disturbing the current until your eyes snap up and over to him, flooded with sudden gratitude at something to think on that wasn’t the drawled command to be still in your ear or the pressure of fingers on your tongue, pushing memories back into dreams and letting the delusion remain. Just a little longer.

Just for you.

You manage a nod, another bright smile, another act and Yes, sorry, what was that? And well, no one believes you, not really, but asking where your thoughts disappeared off to when open shock painted your expression just moments ago, well… that’s a dangerous game.

So no one plays.

No one plays and instead Sergeant Call me Bucky, kitten Barnes flashes you another grin full of knowing and knowledge, seen and seeing you, S’I was sayin’, Pastor’ll wanna meet you today. How ‘bout you let me take you ‘round the Holler, kitten? See the folks your momma knew and just judging by the way your mother’s voice hisses warnings in your ear, you know you should say no, should say you want to leave, should tell him you’re cutting your stay in Bell’s Holler far shorter than you anticipated because here is Hell and you cannot stay a moment longer but you…

You don’t.

The mere thought of the Pastor — who you’ve never met, a fact you are more than very aware of — makes your blood run cold, makes you shiver, brings to mind memories not your own, memories of tombstone smiles and words which rattle your very soul and you should say you’d rather be torn apart by the wolves you know are all around the Holler but you…

You don’t.

You end up caught in the kitchen instead, hungry eyes sliding over you in that smart little dress and protective apron, busy with the chores you used as an excuse to buy time away from that walk around the Holler you ought never have agreed to. Dishes clatter into the washer, your hands shaking briefly the moment that coal-metal arm slips into view, a mug placed into the sink and his warm breath against your ear.

Need some help, kitten? He drawls slow and sweet in your ear, a lover’s call, coaxing you into this cage of steady arms and the press of soft lips against your skin.

Pine floods your senses, pine and cold metal, nickel on your tongue, and you hold onto the counter a moment, let the metal pot you were so dutifully scrubbing clang its way back into the sink and try to still the racing of your heart as you do everything to avoid seeing his too-smug grin reflected in the kitchen window.

But he sees you, don’t he? You been seen, girl.

I’m fine, thank you, you lie, determined to stall further as you recover the pot and begin the process of scrubbing it to a mirror finish, just until his fingers trail their way away from you. Or so you hope.

You’re not quite so lucky, not as his gaze catches yours in the glass, a spark of mischief in his eyes and something so deliciously panicked in yours. Seen seen seen seen. The imposition of his presence becomes humid oppression the moment he sees, hands slowly covering yours, stopping you from continuing your work, Scared, kitten? You’re shakin’, he dares, still a low drawl, so very aware of his own role in your panic and yet so very good at playing ignorant, What’s got your tongue, sweetheart?

Answering is dangerous. You know this. Silence is worse. You know this also. It is with a shuddering breathe that you open your mouth to respond, I’m fine, thank you, Sergeant Barnes. A repetition, quiet as a mouse, but enough.

Desperate to be enough.

He allows it, just for now, but does not allow your freedom, not yet. Lips press against your shoulder, mocking and enticing all at once, You know, I keep tellin’ you t’call me Bucky, kitten, he warns against your skin, sinking into your bones and carving a hurried, harassed, sort of desire into your core, But m’startin’ t’like the way Sergeant sounds from your pretty lips.

Pretty lips which you were now curving into a shocked little whimper, brows furrowing with something like panic and distress as you feel cold against your thigh, apparent even through the fabric of your dress as it’s bunched up and raised, exposing you inch-by-shameless-inch. He meets your eye sin the window reflection with another devil’s grin, daring you to make a sound beyond your barely audible gasps and whimpers. Daring you to draw attention to the sturdy arm wrapped around your waist and the nimble fingers stroking delicately over your skin, petting closer and closer to that heated apex molten with the memories of a dream so real you swear you can feel a warm breath splaying between your thighs all over again.

The eyes in the window are gleaming amber, burning into your soul and fixing you in place, hot coals sinking into you and you are hypnotized.

Hypnotized, as, against your ear, a voice like machines rumbling to life whispers, You belong to me, little rabbit, just as the connection snaps like a cut thread and your skirt falls back into place and Bucky Barnes steps away from you moments before the kitchen door clatters open again.

And there’s Aunt Estus, holding yet more dishes and looking not-at-all-aware of the frantic deer in her kitchen or the hunter’s eyes fixed upon his prey, just calling your name like an admonition and You still doin’ dishes, girl, I thought I tol’ you just t’load the warsher an’ I’d take care o’the rest? Now go on, git, away from that sink, you don’t wanna keep the Pastor waitin’! Got the Sergeant standin’ right here, waitin’ on you, ain’t you got no manners in that head o’ yours?

He’s waited this long, honey, you can make him wait a little longer.

So you do.

Outside the kitchen this time, for you to dry your hands and then slip upstairs again. Shed your apron, comb your hair, pause in front of the mirror and breathe.

Breathe. Stare at yourself.

Worry.

There’s… well, there’s nothing else to do anymore. Nothing to do here but face him, your unnerving suitor waiting downstairs.

Your mother always held to the old ways, those traditions you only ever got to see in movies and through the way your stepfather would come by with flowers and his nicest suit to court her. You saw some of it — your Cotillion debut at fifteen was an honor your mother never had the luxury of experiencing herself — but you avoided it. Well, more, she made you avoid it. Too dangerous, too likely to be seen.

Brock — who used to come by with flowers too, who helped get your mother out of the P&R Refineries and into a comfortable desk job with his father’s office — was the only exception she made, and how could she not make it? She owed him her health, and her comfort when even that started failing, but she never pushed you either. Better to keep you close, keep you safe.

Safety.

Well.

Safety isn’t a word you’ve considered for a while. Not since the last day you spent by your mother’s bedside, the hospice nurse quietly offering you her condolences — too soon for your comfort, for your well-being — as the woman you had always known to be your sole and best protector slowly faded away.

Safety was a hard thing to find, when loneliness seeped itself into your bones and you found yourself clinging to whatever else remained. Like a letter, telling you about family somewhere far away, in a town you were told never to go back to. Family that had been searching for you ever since you and your mother disappeared into the dark.

You thought you’d find safety here and what you found instead was wrongness and fevers and… voices.

Just breathe now, for me. That’s a good girl.

Back to the land of the living, honey.

Sweet orange and sunshine.

You swear you feel a hand brush across your cheek, the same way you’d be woken up in the morning, two minutes before your alarm, the hum of a mountain-hardened voice calling you to alertness with honey-water by your bedside, a reminder Gone, but not forgotten. Gone but not lost.

Instinct settles in and you wrap your fingers around the necklace again, remembering its presence on your collar, red stone burning ice against your skin. She doesn’t have to be gone, the lady at the funeral home told you, Not the way you think.

Or did she?

Or is it the warm voice in your ear, calling you to the door, down the stairs, guiding you into the green?

It’s a scene out of a movie, the way he straightens up from the banister he’s been leaning against, eyes fixed on you. Grinning wide, flesh-and-bone hand outstretched immediately to help you down the last few steps like you might stumble into him if he didn’t, There y’are kitten. Was wonderin’ if I needed t’come collect you, whispered low in your ear, just moments before another relative comes sauntering in. Cletus, this time, yelling something at one of his boys and paying neither you nor Bucky any attention.

You’re not sure which you prefer as the Sergeant’s arm wraps around your waist again and he beckons.

Out the door and into the Holler.

[booksarelife-stuff]

our secret moments in a crowded room

Jily (James Potter/Lily Evans), minor Wolfstar (Remus Lupin/Sirius Black)

My entry for the September Jily Challenge! @jilychallenge

Prompt: I tripped on the red carpet and you caught me

Partner was the amazing @kates836! Thank you for being an amazing partner!

In a fake PR relationship with Severus Snape, Lily can’t help be distracted by the real person who has her heart. 

Word Count: 4,077

Read of Ao3     Masterlist

The car took a sharp left and Lily tried to stabilize herself so she didn’t touch Severus, who was sitting beside her. She made eye contact with Mary, who was sitting in the passenger seat. Mary shot her the millionth apologetic look.

Lily glanced back down at her phone, just in time to see a reply to the picture that she had sent of her in her dress.

Ahdjsfhkjdsf I can’t breathe. How dare you send this to me right before I walk out on the red carpet.

She smiled widely down at her phone.

I don’t know how I’m going to function with you that close and can’t do anything about it.

She smiled faltered for a second, because yeah, that was truly going to be torture for her too.

I’m about to go out. I can’t wait to see you.

Lily bit her lip before typing a reply.

If you think this dress looks good on me now, wait until you take it off.

The message bubbles appeared instantly and Lily’s smile turned smug.

You shouldn’t have said that. I’m going to think about it all night now. Love you

Love you too

She locked her phone and handed it to Mary, who would be holding all of her personal items for the rest of the night. Severus sighed deeply beside her and Lily tried not to roll her eyes.

If Lily had it her way, she’d be arriving with a very different date. But Lily didn’t have a choice. What the studio wanted, the studio got. Including a semi-fake relationship with her co-star, Severus Snape.

They had just finished filming the final season of their wildly popular show, The Hollow Hour. The show definitely didn’t need this kind of press to be successful, but Lily still didn’t have a choice in the matter, considering she had already booked a leading role in another one of their shows.

On-screen, Lily and Snape played Tara and Gideon, characters who had been in love since they were children and fighting in a war where they possibly wouldn’t make it out. Off-screen, Lily could hardly stand the presence of Snape.

It didn’t start out that way. When they’d first met, Lily had thought he was pretty cool. The show had been her first big break, as she had only done television guest appearances before then. Snape had a few movies under his belt, one of which was super popular. Their friendship had started out as his kind of giving her direction when it came to the whole fame thing.

Then, it got a little invasive. He would just be in her trailer, coming in without knocking. He started asking for more date-like hangouts. His disgusting political beliefs started coming out through their conversations and his apparent hatred for their co-star, Remus Lupin because he was openly gay. And he started acting as she owed him something, especially since the show took off.

The rumors had started before Lily realized that Snape was the creep that he was. People saw them pining on screen and going out for the occasional drink after a long day when Lily could still stand him and suddenly, people thought they were in love.

It had been a real nuisance in Lily’s life. Every interview, she tried to squash the rumors, whereas Snape would encourage them. It didn’t help that the show got popular, like really insane amounts of popularity. The character shipping took a sharp left turn into people shipping them.

Snily, they called them. From fanfiction to edits and art to covers of glossy magazines. It was everywhere. No matter if Lily was doing interviews from one of her movies, they would ask about Snape.

And since Lily was some sort of a masochist, she knew exactly what the fans thought of their relationship. They thought Lily denied the relationship because she was very private about her life, and Snape would never say it outright because he wanted to respect her but also wanted the world to know that she is his.

It didn’t help that Snape had accumulated a very dedicated fanbase. Like worship-the-ground-he-walked-on kind of dedication. To the point where Lily would get occasional death threats because she was “hurting him by denying their relationship.”

They never seemed to believe Lily when she said no, much like Snape and their studio. Lily couldn’t flat out deny the relationship in interviews anymore until after the final episode. It made her want to dry heave.

The car was slowing, and Lily could hear the buzz of fans and reporters. They were in the queue now for the red carpet. Mary unbuckled and twisted around in the seat, doing a final check of Lily’s hair and make-up.

Lily smoothed down her green satin dress, her legs bent awkwardly to not crease the dress and also not puncture the fabric with her stiletto pumps. Lily’s after-party dress was hanging up in the back, but Lily didn’t know if she was actually going to attend.

It had taken her a long time to feel beautiful at these types of events. Being considered plus size in this industry felt like a death sentence, especially since Lily refused to play the “funny fat friend” or anything like that. But she felt good tonight, especially with the way it hugged her curves and the bit of cleavage showed.

Severus looked like himself, just in a suit. His greasy hair was covered in dry shampoo and tucked behind his ears. He turned towards Lily and smiled like a cat who got the cream.

“We could make this real, you know?” he said, for probably the millionth time. “You and I would work.”

Lily tried not to crinkle her nose in disgust. “Severus,” she said. “You know I have no interest in that.”

There had been many times where Lily wished she could speak her mind and rip him a new one, but she could not get branded as a diva. So, she played off these uncomfortable moments with a laugh and polite words, even when she was telling him no for the millionth time.

She saw the corner of his lips turn down in a slight frown and averted her eyes to stare straight ahead.

The voices outside got louder and suddenly the car was stopping. Mary jumped out of the car quickly as Lily unbuckled. Moody, Lily’s driver, and bodyguard, also got out quickly to open Lily’s door.

She had to take Moody’s hand to step out. She wobbled when she shifted her weight to her high heels but quickly corrected herself. She was going to have blisters for weeks after tonight. Mary appeared from the other side of the car, hands already straightening Lily’s dress.

They were covered from the cameras here, so no one saw Mary make sure Lily’s breasts were firmly taped into the dress. The low cut of the dress required her boobs to be placed perfectly and one slip would probably cost Lily her career. That’s why Lily had Mary, her best friend since they were children and who now worked as her PA. The back of the dress was practically nonexistent and her long auburn waves tickled her with every movement.

Mary quickly batted away one of her dark coily curls that snuck out of its bun before giving Lily a once over.

“You look gorgeous,” she said, smiling. “He’s not going to want to take his eyes off of you.”

Lily gave her a real smile and a quick hug before stepping away to get around the car where Severus was surely waiting. She already had her red carpet smile on and tried not to pay attention to the up and down look Severus was giving her.

Severus reached out his arm to escort Lily, but Lily walked past it. They said they had to arrive together, not actually walk together. Mary let out a snort of laughter as she followed Lily out to the carpet—to walk with Lily but hidden away.

The lights were blinding as Lily walked out on the carpet. Cameras flashing every second, people yelling questions at her. Lily was now a pro at this, after so many years of practice. The screams intensified, signaling Snape was now making his appearance.

Lily moved slowly down the carpet, making sure her smile stayed in place. Towards the end of her walk, Snape did sneak up on her, wrapping an arm around her waist taking extra care to let his fingers drag against her bare skin. She fought to not recoil away from him.

She smiled and laughed though she wanted to push him away.

The entrance to Royal Albert Hall was full of reporters and cameras. Lily never really minded this part of the red carpet because most of the time it was just questions like “who are you wearing?” or the occasional fun game with whatever fledgling media company had weaseled reporters in.

Lily was heading towards the first available reporter, a young woman who was smiling widely as Lily approached. But a familiar head of dark curls caught her eye, and she couldn’t help the way her attention turned immediately that way.

It had been six weeks since her boyfriend of three years had touched her. Six weeks since she had felt the indentation of him next to her in bed, felt his warmth, had him within her fingertips.

And James looked so good, it made Lily want to pull him away and find the nearest secluded spot. The way his tailored suit hugged the angles of his body, the body that she knew like it her own.

She could feel her heart start pounding in her chest, and she hoped the cameras weren’t picking up the way her hands were shaking.

“Lily Evans!” the young reporter cheered. “How are you on this fine evening?”

“I’m doing great,” Lily said, smiling and resisting the urge to look at James.

“So, you arrived with rumored beau and co-star, Severus Snape,” the reporter cheered. “Care to confirm anything?”

Lily fake laughed. “We just carpooled. Better for the environment.”

The girl’s face tightened a bit, but the reporter knew better than to press.

Lily answered her questions with ease. Who was she wearing? Did she feel good about her role as a presenter? What was she going to do after the final season of The Hollow Hour?

Once the interview concluded, she turned to go to the next reporter.

But there was James, looking at her with a slight smile on his lips. His dark brown eyes did a quick once over of her, appraising her every curve quickly. And goddamn, he wore his glasses instead of his contacts, reminding Lily of the quiet moments in her flat where they were tangled together, his glasses pushing into her face. His normal frizzy curls were more defined thanks to whatever hair product his stylist made him use. His brown skin was as flawless as ever, glowing in the camera flashes in the fading day.

It couldn’t have been more than a moment where their eyes met, but it was enough to thoroughly distract Lily to the point of missing the small bump in the carpet. Her shoe caught and the sensation of falling happened before she felt strong arms catch her.

“Are you okay?” James asked as Lily’s world steadied in his arms, the concern in his eyes.

Lily felt her cheeks redden, both from the embarrassment of tripping on the red carpet and the fact that she was in James’s arms. She nodded but when she stepped back, her right shoe gave out.

She moved away from James’s arms, but took his hand, their fingers clasping each other, to keep her balance as she lifted her dress up to see the heel completely snapped off.

“Well, that’s great,” she said with a laugh. James laughed with her. She wobbled for a second and James’s hand grabbed her side to steady her, his fingers making her burn.

Lily couldn’t help but smile softly at him as Mary appeared, getting on her knees in front of Lily, urging her to turn slightly. She let go of James’s hand and used his shoulder to keep her balance as Mary undid the straps on Lily’s shoes. Mary, who was definitely getting a raise after this, took off her own black kitten heels and gave them to Lily.

She was now several inches shorter and her dress dragged a bit on the ground, but it was better than no shoes at all.

“I owe you my life,” Lily told Mary, who smiled in response. Lily didn’t miss the way she gave James a glance and then a teasing smile back to her. She turned back to James. “Thank you so much.”

“No problem,” he replied. “I’ll see you around?”

She wanted to say that she would see him tonight, preferably with no clothes, but she just smiled and nodded in response.

As she let go and James stepped away, the last thing on her mind was the cameras catching every moment.

~~~

To Lily’s detriment, her manager had called Mary to tell Lily that she had to be seen at the after-party with Snape.

Lily tried not to recoil at Severus’s hand on her lower back as he led her to the after-party. The cameras were blinding against the darkness of the night, but Lily let herself be led into the venue, Moody doing his best to push back against the raging crowd.

The venue only had a few selective members of the press inside, but it was little enough that it put all the celebrities at ease. There was no real food, just snacks because seeing your favorite movie star get sloshed would sell magazines and get them trending on Twitter.

Lily’s stomach growled. She couldn’t remember the last full meal she had.

Severus kept a firm hand on her back. She smiled and laughed at the right times as they talked with winners from the night. A live band started and Lily’s ears rang with the loud music. She kept knocking back glasses of champagne because at least the buzz would take the edge off the hungry looks in Severus’s eyes and make her not recoil when he tried to whisper in her ear.

Her saving grace came in the form of Remus Lupin somewhere south of midnight.

She came back from the loo and purposefully walked away from where she knew Severus was waiting. The alcohol was thrumming through her veins, and she felt light. Her shoes—or Mary’s shoes—had been kicked off long ago, and she was stumbling through the crowds of famous people.

Remus stood at the picked-over snack table, probably looking for any scraps of leftover chocolate. He had been Lily’s co-star since day one and her favorite to boot. Severus hated him, mostly because Lily liked him more, but also because he was openly gay and in a long-term relationship with the model, Sirius Black, who Snape also hated.

Remus had been the reason she and James met. She also knew that where Remus was, Sirius wasn’t far, and if Sirius wasn’t far, neither was James.

And she wanted to see James more than anything.

“Boo,” she said, poking Remus’s side. The man jumped, almost dropping his chocolate-covered strawberry.

“Bloody hell, Evans,” he said. Lily laughed, already feeling better. She clumsily picked up a biscuit and took a bite.

“How’s your night been going?” she asked. Remus let out an amused huff.

“Same old, same old,” he said. “You?”

Lily didn’t respond and Remus laughed, knowing exactly how her night had been going. They grabbed a few more snacks and Lily proceeded to follow him, hoping that he would lead her to the person she needed to see.

James was sitting at a table across from Sirius, and Lily’s heart immediately started beating rapidly. His suit jacket and tie were gone, just leaving him in his tight white button-up. The top buttons were undone, hinting at his chest that Lily knew better than the back of her own hand.

The sluggish haze of the alcohol in her system reminded her of when they first met. It had been at The Hollow Hour season one wrap party, and Remus had invited James and Sirius. He had caught her eye from across the room, the curly black hair and glasses were a dangerous combination for Lily, especially with the dark jeans that had hugged his very nice arse. She was so nervous that she had had to take a shot before she walked over to have Remus introduce her.

She had taken him home and when she woke up in the morning, recovering from the best sex she had ever had in her life, she found him making breakfast for her.

He stayed the whole weekend.

Then they texted non-stop and started having dates, sitting in Lily’s apartment with take-away and cheesy movies.

And here they were, three years later, hopelessly in love, and pretending that they weren’t because her stupid television show needed promoting.

It hadn’t been meant to be a secret for so long. In the beginning, they just wanted to figure each other out without all the press breathing down their necks. It’s just how it all happened.

It wasn’t like the important people in their lives didn’t know. Their parents and most trusted friends did. And they already decided that once the whole thing with Snape stopped, they were going to go public because they wanted to move in together and finally go on real dates.

Lily saw the way he perked up when he saw her. A small smile on his lips, his shoulders moving back. There was a moment when Lily could have sworn that there were no other people in the room until someone bumped into her.

She slid into the booth beside him, not caring about how dangerous that was, especially when their legs touched.

“Hey,” he said, his deep voice tugging at her in a way she missed while he was gone.

“Hey,” she replied. She could tear her eyes away from him and she didn’t know if she wanted to, either.

“Bloody hell,” Sirius said, not even jarring the couple. “Get out of here before you start shagging on the table.”

James raised his eyebrows in question, which Lily answered with a smile. He reached down for his pockets.

“I’m texting Moody,” he said.

Anticipation pooled in her stomach and as she grabbed another biscuit to eat because it was something to do, her hands shook. James placed his hands on Lily’s thigh and she couldn’t think of anything else until he leaned over and told her that Moody said it was all clear.

Even in her drunk state, she located her shoes and practically sprinted to the back door where Moody was waiting.

There were a few paparazzi pictures taken as Lily quickly hopped into the back of the SUV and Moody got into the driver’s seat. He handed her her small bag that had her phone in it that Mary had been carrying. She was too excited to even get her phone out as Moody did two laps around the block before pulling right back into the same spot.

The second James jumped in and the door was closed, Lily was on him. She grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him to her, meeting their lips in a deep, but sloppy kiss. Lily kicked her legs up onto his lap and pulled him down as laid down the best she could in the back seat. James laughed a little against her lips, causing Lily to pull away and laugh too.

“Next year, we’re going to this together,” she said, opening her eyes to see him in whatever light that shone in from the windows. She got flashes of his eyes and his wide smile as she sat up, still keeping her legs on her.

“Absolutely,” he replied, pressing a light kiss to her lips. “And we’re going to still traumatize Moody on the way home.”

Said man let out a snort. “No, I’m getting a divider.”

Lily barely remembers the rest of the car ride and getting to her flat. All she remembers is the taste of James’s lips and the feeling of his hands on her.

~~~

The blaring noise of a phone call is what made Lily wake up. She jumped violently, kicking James in the process, who let out a pained groan as Lily disentangled herself from him to be able to reach her nightstand to turn off the god-forsaken ear-splitting sound.

Her hand smacked into the nightstand, but her phone wasn’t there. She realized it must be James’s.

She nudged him and he groaned, but she could feel him move around in the bed. Finally, it stopped and James spoke.

“Hello?” he fell silent. “What are you talking about?”

Lily, who was already falling asleep again, opened her eyes at his tone and suddenly, he was shaking her.

“I’ll call you back Sirius,” James said as Lily sat up.

He hung up the call and threw his phone down on the bed. He tugged at his hair as Lily watched him with wide eyes.

“They know about us,” he said.

“What?” Lily exclaimed, reaching for his phone.

She typed in the passcode and saw the million phone calls from his manager and publicist. She opened Twitter, and right there, trending number one, was a still of James’s arm around her when she broke her shoe.

"Lily Evans, caught in a love triangle."

"Actress Lily Evans and actor James Potter are rumored to have left the BAFTA after-party together despite Evans arriving with Severus Snape."

She clicked on the first article while her stomach soured.

"Lily Evans and Severus Snape have long been rumored to have been dating, but last night’s events have seemingly squashed the rumors for good."

The article went into detail about the rumors between Lily and Severus, before finally getting to last night.

"James Potter, actor, best known in his role on the popular historical drama "Mountainside Valley', was able to catch Evans on the red carpet when her shoe broke. The footage from the cameras that were rolling by the pair has been released.

According to sources, the two are familiar with each other. Lily’s co-star, Remus Lupin is both friends with Potter and is even dating his adoptive brother Sirius Black, so we can speculate that they have met before. Based on the videos, they do seem to be familiar with each other.

What really solidified the relationship between the two actors comes from an unknown source who attended the after-party. 'She sat next to him and then a few minutes later, they left.'

Fans seem to be having a lot of mixed reactions to Evan’s alleged actions.

@snapewife45346 wrote: 'ALL LILY HAS EVER DONE IS HURT HIM. HE NEEDS TO LEAVE HER ASS FOR GOOD!!'

@snnnily394 on Twitter wrote: 'i don’t think it’s true. She would never do that to him.'

@taraisgod wrote: 'They have never said they’re in a relationship, you all are just projecting. Let her be happy!!'

@mountainbaddie wrote: 'Evans UPGRADED'

Lily set down James’s phone, unable to do anything else. She met his eyes and took a deep breath.

Her gut reaction was that it sucked. It sucked that they didn't come out on their own terms. The studio was probably pissed, or maybe they thought the bad press was good press.

But as she looked at James, sitting beside her on his side of the bed, the bed he only rarely got to occupy these days, she realized that maybe it was a blessing.

“We could deny it,” James said, a frown tugging at his lips. “Say that we’re best friends if you think that’s what the studio would want.”

Lily shook her head. “I don’t want you like a best friend. I don’t want to deny myself of you anymore.”

He smiled, soft and sweet. Lily yanked the bedsheets off of herself and crawled over to him, straddling his legs. She was only wearing a pair of knickers and one of his t-shirts. His hands immediately snuck up the shirt and caressed her hips, his thumbs teasing her panties.

“Joint statement?” he asked, as Lily leaned in. She kissed him soundly.

“In a minute,” she said, kissing him again.

[dragonsareawesome123]

2, 5, 8, 19 & 25 for the end of year tv shows asks!

2. Favorite TV show you’ve watched/discovered this year.

-I'm gonna exclude Bad Buddy from this bc only the last few eps aired this year and say A Tale of Thousand Stars and Triage. I actually put off watching ATOTS for a bit bc the plot synopsis on MyDramaList didn't really interest me but boy was I wrong about that initial first impression bc it's now my number 2 fav BL, closely after Bad Buddy. Rich college boy almost dies, gains a new perspective on life, and decides to go teach in a poor village and meets and falls in love with another guy there. Lots of pining, staring and fated romance ensues and creates a story so romantic and emotionally moving, helped by Earthmix's incredible chemistry. It's the BL to me that feels most like reading a really good romance novel. What's not to love? Triage is now my number 3 fav BL (topping WOH, which surprised me bc I didn't think that I'd be moving WOH from that spot for a good while). Resident doctor gets trapped in a time loop and can't get out until he saves the life of a rich college boy, and in the process, falls in love with him of course. However while trying to do so, the resident doctor discovers that this may not be that simple as he begins to uncover a whole conspiracy that's been happening right under his nose. I've been hyperfixating on this show for months now and still am (although I think Never Let Me Go coming out in a little over a week might pull me out of that bc I'm already going feral over that show). It's time loop medical drama romance with murder and corrupt higher ups and it's also basically a spinoff of Manner of Death since they take place in the same universe and this show sets up the plot of Manner of Death's sequel, Transplant. Tin and Tol are my blorbos who I would die for and I'm so happy that they got to have their happy ending after the hell they went through to get it (They better have a cameo in Transplant where they're just vibing like Tanbun's cameo in Triage). Honestly I've already said so much about this show these past few months so I'll just leave it at that before I start writing a dissertation about how much I love this show. Am just gonna add that I'm very mad about AIS Play for making this show basically impossible for international fans to watch legally. I hope they make this show more accessible to international fans sometime in the near future especially since it's gonna be necessary to watch this before watching Transplant.

5. Favorite ship you discovered this year.

-Tian and Phupha from A Tale of Thousand Stars and Tin and Tol from Triage. Village gays and time loop gays my beloveds <3 (Also thank you P'Aof for giving Phutian back to me next year even if it's just for an ep!!! ATOTS special ep let's go!!!!!)

8. A ship that finally got (back) together this year.

-Erin and James from Derry Girls!!! I'm so happy that Season 3 confirmed that they were each other's endgame romances. Oh, and also while this hasn't aired yet, it's gonna start and finish airing by the end of the month, so also Lyra and Will from His Dark Materials. I know their romance doesn't really last that long because I've read the book but it's still going to be incredibly sweet and heartbreaking while it lasts.

19. A TV show that shouldn’t have been cancelled this year.

-First Kill. FUCK Netflix for cancelling this show when it literally had the views! Netflix hates sapphics and it shows.

25. Rec me a TV show I should watch next year!

-Hm, well I'd obviously recommend Triage to everyone bc it's truly one of the best BLs of the year and it's criminally underrated. I'd also recommend GMMTV's The Gifted and The Gifted: Graduation bc they're just so good. It's a series about a school with a program where they basically train kids with superpowers. Nanon Korapat plays the main protagonist and he's absolutely INCREDIBLE in it. It's not a BL but there is definitely something gay going on between Nanon and Chimon's characters, especially in The Gifted: Graduation.

Ask me about TV shows I watched this year

[siriuslyshewrote]

𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐦𝐧 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐬 - 𝐉𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐏𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫

𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: In which you are sick and James comforts you.

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: mentions of sickness, tiny mention of sex.

𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 1.1k

Requests are currently open!

Over the past few weeks, autumn had invaded Hogwarts, with golden leaves slowly dropping from their places on the trees, leaving a delightful crunching noise whenever you wandered around the grounds of Hogwarts.

Hogwarts had started to take on the typical cool chill and drafts which ran through the castle and struck when you were walking around the corridors, and it was due to this, you thought, that you had ended up with possibly the worst bout of flu that you had ever had.

You, in truth, were rather resentful that your favourite season - a time for bundling up in knitted jumpers and curling up in front of the fire with a good book - had targeted you in this way. Feeling rather sorry for yourself, and your utter lack of being able to breathe properly through you nose, you had elected to spend the Saturday tucked into bed, under obscene amounts of blankets and quilts, with a rather large stack of tissues building up in the bin besides you.

Your bad mood over your cold was furthered by the fact that, if you squinted slightly out of your dorm window, you could see the Gryffindor versus Slytherin quidditch game that the whole castle had been abuzz with excitement for over the past several weeks. You couldn't stop thinking about James - the boy whom you had been with for months now - who would most definitely be looking for you in the stands, confused why you weren't there embarrassingly cheering for him as per usual. You really had meant to go - and had been halfway out of your lovely, warm, bed, before your legs started to shake underneath you, and Lily had rather forcefully buried you under so many blankets that you could hardly move to sneeze, let alone get out of bed.

You sneezed again, and let out a very self-pitying groan, before your eyes started to flutter, and you fell into a drowsy, sickly, sleep.

You awoke later to the door opening - having always been a light sleeper - what you realised with a start must have been many hours later, as the dorm room was now shrouded with the last, dusky, light of the day. The house elves must have been, too, as several lamps were lit, lighting the room with a comfortably golden glow.

You blinked sleepily, trying to rid yourself of the exhaustion, glancing towards the person stood in the doorway.

A soft smile appeared upon your lips as you saw James - his hair even more haphazard and windswept than usual, his cheeks red from the cold outside - a worried look on his face.

"'M sorry I didn't make it, Jamie." You mumbled from underneath the mountain of blankets, reaching out a hand into the cold air, reaching out for him.

"'T's fine." He murmured in a way that told you that he wasn't angry, crossing the room in only a few short paces with his ridiculously long legs. "Lils told me you were sick."

He was still wearing his slightly muddy Quidditch robes - he must have come straight here. The thought made your heart swell, and your already hot face warm.

His fingers brushed against your forehead, brushing away some of the hair that was plastered to your forehead.

"Did you win?" You gazed up at him, fingers wrapping his own and squeezing.

"Course." That half-arrogant, half-endearing smirk took its rightful place upon his face as he said that.

You tried to cheer, pride swelling in your chest, but it ended up being a rather pitiful half-cough.

"Merlin, Y/N, you're burning."

His fingers touched your forehead again, as if to confirm what he had just said. Instead of the joy that should have been on his face, was worry, his forehead creased.

"'M fine, James." Your voice was slightly muffled as your blew your nose into another tissue. "Just a cold."

His fingers lingered on your face.

"I should get you to Madame Pomfrey."  He spoke, decidedly.

You gave a small grin at that.

"Honestly, James, I'm fine." You spoke quietly. "Why don't you go to the party that I'm sure Sirius is destroying the common room with right now? Celebrate your win."

He shook his head, instead pulling off his robes and leaving them in a pile on your floor, leaving himself in only a t-shirt and his boxers, which, admittedly, was not a bad sight.

"I know I said I'm fine, but that doesn't mean I want to have flu sex-"

You teased the bespectacled boy, and he let out a slight huff as he rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

"Just want to hold you." He spoke in a gravely, tired voice, and it was only then that you realised that he was probably exhausted, too. He always was after quidditch.

You shifted along to the edge of the bed, making as much room as you could in the tiny Hogwarts twin bed, and felt the slight draft of freezing air as he climbed in next to you. The first few seconds were an awkward mess of trying to coordinate limbs, but, finally, he was curled around you, arms wrapped tightly around your waist. You sighed, nuzzling into his chest, your freezing body warming slightly with his radiator-like heat.

"You're gonna get sick too, you know." You mumbled into the thin fabric of his shirt, breathing in the smell that was utterly him - expensive cologne, pine, and the slight musk of sweat.

Somehow, even being near James made you feel a little better.

"Doesn't matter." He murmured back, resting his chin on the top of your head, tracing patterns with his fingers up and down your back.

You were almost dozing back into a more comfortable sleep, when your eyes flickered back open again.

"Wait-" You blinked owlishly up at him. "How'd you get past the stairs?"

The girls stairs at Hogwarts were notorious for turning into a slide every time someone of the opposite gender tried to climb up them - which all of the Marauders, and most distinctly, Sirius, had proved multiple times over the years.

He let out a gravely laugh at that, the mischief that had been missing creeping back into his voice.

"Prongs helped."

You bit your lip to prevent you laughing and hurting your cold-infested chest.

"You know," You muttered, with a small smile, "People are really going to start talking if they keep seeing a deer try and make it's way up the stairs."

He snorted.

"It wasn't graceful, I'll admit. Hooves don't work as well on stairs."

You let out a giggle, and once more drifted off to sleep, and this time, your dreams were permeated with the image of a fully grown deer trying to climb some very steep stairs.

Sure enough, the next morning, James woke you up with a very loud sneeze.