#I really wanted that scene from Lupin's eyes cause at that point Harry still had no idea who he was

[maraudersmessrs]

Remus Lupin and the Prisoner of Azkaban--- Chapter 22: Waning Storm

Ao3 link

Chapter 1 / Chapter 2 / Chapter 3 / Chapter 4 / Chapter 5 / Chapter 6 / Chapter 7 / Chapter 8 / Chapter 9 / Chapter 10 / Chapter 11 / Chapter 12 / Chapter 13 / Chapter 14 / Chapter 15 / Chapter 16 / Chapter 17 / Chapter 18 / Chapter 19 / Chapter 20 / Chapter 21 / Chapter 22 / Chapter 23 / Chapter 24 / Chapter 25 / Chapter 26 / Chapter 27 / Chapter 28 / Chapter 29 / Chapter 30 / Chapter 31 / Chapter 32 / Chapter 33 / Chapter 34

(Disclaimer: all of the dialogue in the second half is directly from the book)

“Alright.” She straightened and turned a desk chair about, gesturing to it. He made his way over, slowly, and sat while she gave him a quick once over, then she sat on a bed across from him. “What brings you in today, Remus?”

“Lily.” He answered truthfully. It was supposed to come out wry, but he feared his tone was merely dull.

Poppy froze a moment and he could see her looking at him, hard, searching her memory. Then, she relaxed. “Ah. I see.”

Rising, she wove around him and he watched as she bustled around the room, collecting things from shelves, the windowsill in her office. “I believe Miss Evans would be thrilled that she’s compelling you to take care of yourself from beyond the grave. Here,” she dropped a hunk of chocolate the size of a bludger in his hand in passing. “Gnaw on that. I’m not surprised this is happening now, to be honest. There can sometimes be side effects from the Wolfsbane potion that we are not fully aware of, as it’s so new. And I know that this close to the moon tends to catch you in a low mood anyhow.” She put the back of her hand to his forehead. “Is there anything else that might be contributing?”

Remus watched the chocolate as he slowly passed it from hand to hand to keep it from melting. “Sunday was Halloween. With Sirius and…” he trailed off.

“Heavens, it was, wasn’t it?” A look of reluctant enlightenment crossed her face before she shook herself and slowly moved her wand tip around his head, checking her watch. “Well...I’m glad that you’re coming in for help. Eat,” she added, warningly. “It’ll help.”

He almost protested that he hadn’t even been near the Dementors when the memory of Neville doing the same thing in his office surfaced accusatorily and, guiltily, he started in on it.

He left the Hospital Wing an hour later full of chocolate, empty of words, and with a strict order to rest the day of the full moon. Poppy seemed to think that something like a perfect storm had happened with certain side effects of the Wolfsbane potion, the impending Change, the happenings of Halloween, and his own depression. She had packed him off a Cheering Elixir, that he had been convinced to take once she had invoked the reminder of his status--Professor. “And what would you tell one of your students to do, hm?” Yes. He needed to be able to function.

Over the course of the rest of the day, the edge of the nothing pit softened into a slightly more manageable melancholy. The storming rose to a pitch, rattling the windows with the wind and crashes of thunder. The day of the full moon was rough, painful, and nauseating but it always was. He pushed through. The Change was literally bone breaking and soul wrenching, but…it always was. There was nothing else to do but press on. He dutifully took his small armada of potions Madame Pomfrey had assigned him over the course of the year.

Waking up became incrementally easier over the next few days and the presence of other people gradually became more welcome. The storms had cleared after the day of the Change and pale sunlight was seeping in the windows, heralding the cold turnover from autumn to winter. He had been invited to tea with Hagrid again--who assured him that it was tea, this time--and he was slightly pleased with himself that he accepted. Once again, Hagrid managed to make him smile a bit, and fed him some home baking, which proved to be...a task to ingest. But he managed. Mostly. A pity Fang was so afraid of him, he would have bribed him under the table with the food to help him finish it.

He attended the mandatory staff meeting where Dumbledore briefed all who were not present at the Quidditch match that had gone horribly wrong; Dementor invasion, Harry falling off his broom from the sky, his broomstick smashed against the Whomping Willow. How can this boy hope to gain an education when he’s being assaulted constantly? The other Professor’s expressed their concern, confusion and outrage at their strange behavior. Apparently, the Dementors had been itching to come closer to the castle, having been relegated to the entrances and very outskirts of the grounds, far from any sort of joy or human emotion. They were growing impatient. They were growing hungry. The cold, expressionless fury that sat like a chill mirror behind Dumbledore’s normally warm eyes as he relayed the tale shook Remus. He knew that Dumbledore was a great wizard, more powerful even than Voldemort but rarely was he ever reminded quite so blatantly; there was a force to his anger that was undeniable. He almost felt sorry for the Dementors. But not quite.

It tightened his chest to know that the Dementors’ affects overwhelmed Harry so totally. Voldemort, Sirius, the Dementors; he was under attack so consistently that it was a wonder that the boy had any courage or trust at all. But he had seen him laughing with his friends, showing keen attention in classes, resisting digs from bullies. Speaking of….Dumbledore had informed him that Snape had covered his missed day and he had had to contain his grimace at what that would mean for his...opinionated Gryffindor class. He hoped that Neville had fared alright. He hoped that Harry hadn’t had too hard of a time. Longing to support and help the boy was an ache that felt deeper than his bones; he felt it as keenly as he felt the chill after the Change, as he always did. But fear, doubt, and the knowledge that he was not worthy as a guardian to this boy kept him back, at arms length. What could Remus offer him that he did not have in Hogwarts and Dumbledore? He was a stranger, a man who held a fragment of his past that had been...absent. What claim did he have to any hope for the boy’s trust?

Stoutly, he stifled the impending backwards slide into despair and stoked a fire in his office. He returned to his rooms to let the heat collect while he searched for layers to don while he waited for his afternoon class. As he was digging through his clothes, his fingers hooked into something soft and he hesitated, then carefully drew it out. It was a long, faun-colored scarf, slightly pilled and worn, but still thick. Peter had given it to him, long ago, after he had noticed Remus’ tendency to bundle up after the full moon. His round face had flushed a bit as he admitted that he had knit it himself, that his mum had taught him. Remus ran his thumb over it, staring down sightlessly. Peter.

He always seemed to be slightly eclipsed in Remus’ memory; eager, short, quietly kind, but always elbowed back by the powerful personalities of James and Sirius. It had been him that had pushed for them to include Peter more, when he had seen the boy lurking wistfully at the fringes of their group. He knew what it was to be alone. To be outside. He never wanted that for anyone else. Poor Peter. Even his death was slightly over-shadowed by the sudden, shocking tragedy of Lily and James’s murder the previous day. An afterthought. But he of all people had been the one to find Sirius, to confront him, had shown his true courage at last and had been horribly slaughtered for it. Blasted apart with a street full of innocent people. The memory of Peter was always shaded with regret; I should have done more. More time should have been spent with him, spent on his memory, his sacrifice.

You have this opportunity to do something, now, something in him warned. Do not waste it.

No one should be alone. He would talk to Harry.

A few hours later, he reluctantly stopped soaking in the warmth of his fire and set himself up at his desk in the classroom. Happily, something in him seemed to have woken up and shaken off even more of the cloying weight of the previous week, for his smile as the first few students poked their heads in was genuine. Every entrance to the classroom seemed to be preceded by a strange, furtive peeking around the door frame and it took him a while to realize that they might have been expecting Professor Snape again. He then made sure to stay in full view of the doorway, after that. When it seemed everyone had taken their seats, he cast a smile around at them and it was like a bomb detonated, for everyone started to clamor and complain all at once. Through the storm of noise he gathered that Severus had been, well, Severus, and that he had skipped forward to lessons on werewolves.

At that, a cold wash went through him and he felt the smile drop from his face. With a great deal of control, he wrestled the sudden, overwhelming panic that was trying to run rampant through him. He saw only indignance, anger, and relief in the faces across from him. No suspicion, no disgust, no distrust. No one knew. No one guessed. As he was sure was Snape’s plan. I cannot believe…2 rolls of parchment on how to best kill me. And you intended me to have to read them all...give them feedback on their technique…. James and Lily’s son….Frank and Alice….

He shook himself. Pain was nothing if not familiar. With difficulty, he schooled his face into what resembled vague bemusement. “Did you tell Professor Snape we haven’t covered them yet?”

The wave of noise that followed told him what he already knew. Yes, they had, yes he had known, yes, he had done it completely on purpose. Well. Unlike some people, Remus knew how to be a goddamn professional. He smiled around at them. “Don’t worry. I’ll speak to Professor Snape. You don’t have to do the essay.”

He doubted he would, actually. What Severus would want most, besides a student revolt calling for his blood, was to know that he had shaken Remus. And that, he would not give him, not for anything. Best to let him think that he had stoically graded their murder scenarios and handed them back with praise. It was a knowledge that they needed, no doubt, but he needed to steel himself before going over the topic. He would not let that be taken away; he would do this in his own time. As the class progressed, the dread that had taken dark root in him gradually faded and he fell back into the rhythm of teaching. The students were eager and bright, the topic and specimen hinkypunk interesting. He was teaching, he was helping, he was needed.

When the class was over, he almost let Harry slip out, almost shied away from his decision to offer his support, but instead, called out, “Wait a moment, Harry, I’d like a word.”

Dutifully, Harry returned and watched as he began to pack up his things. “I heard about the match, and I’m sorry about your broomstick. Is there any chance of fixing it?”

“No,” Harry said, mournfully. “The tree smashed it to bits.”

Ah, that tree. Yet another way I’ve made life here just that much more unsafe…. Sighing, he said, “They planted the Whomping Willow the same year that I arrived at Hogwarts. People used to play a game, trying to get near enough to touch the trunk. In the end, a boy called Davey Gudgeon nearly lost an eye, and we were forbidden to go near it. No broomstick would have a chance.”

There was a silence from Harry, then he seemed to force himself to say, “Did you hear about the dementors too?”

Lupin turned to him to see the bewilderment, frustration, and shame warring on the boys face. Oh, Harry. “Yes, I did. I don’t think any of us have seen Professor Dumbledore that angry. THey have been growing restless for some time...furious at his refusal to let them inside the grounds….I suppose they were the reason you fell?”

“Yes.” He seemed to second guess himself a moment, then he blurted in frustration. “Why? Why do they affect me like that? Am I just--?”

Remus could see the despair and doubt creeping onto his young face and all at once he was unshakeable in his decision to reach out to the boy. Alone, he was blaming himself, doubting his strength. Not knowing the truth of what it meant. Unthinkable. “It has nothing to do with weakness,” he broke in, firmly. “The Dementors affect you worse than the others because there are horrors in your past that the others don’t have.”

He could see the boy struggling with this, staring at him with a mixture of disbelief and humiliation. The watery sunlight from the high windows fell across his face, shining on his glasses, his green eyes, the scar on his forehead. He needed to know his worth. He needed to know his strength. “Dementors are among the foulest creatures that walk this earth. They infest the darkest, filthiest places, they glory in decay and despair, they drain peace, hope, and happiness out of the air around them. Even Muggles feel their presence, though they can’t see them. Get too near a Dementor and every good feeling, every happy memory will be sucked out of you. If it can, the Dementor will feed on you long enough to reduce you to something like itself...soulless and evil.” The torn scraps of the Fat Lady’s portrait flashed across his mind, the blazing eyes staring at him from the Prophet. “You’ll be left with nothing but the worst experiences of your life.” More memories attempted to blossom but he redirected his mind, looked at Harry. His parents dead, strangers trying to end his young life, betrayal at every turn. Danger where he should be safe. “And the worst that happened to you, Harry, is enough to make anyone fall off their broom. You have nothing to feel ashamed of.”

Harry’s eyes were fastened on the desk next to them. “When they get near me--” He swallowed, and continued, with difficulty, “I can hear Voldemort murdering my mum.”

Pain clenched in his gut out of nowhere, a pain laden with guilt. Not his mother, Harry’s. But...Lily….His hand had came up automatically to...do something. To reach out, to grasp his shoulder, his hand, to comfort but he forced it down. Teacher. You are not to him what he is to you. He rooted through his mind, his heart for what to say to the boy but what does someone say? What does someone say to a boy who can hear his mother dying for him? Oh, Lily. Harry. You deserved so much better. So much more.

Abruptly, Harry’s face twisted, resentful. “Why did they have to come to the match?”

Remus continued packing up to keep his fists from clenching. “They’re getting hungry. Dumbledore won’t let them into the school, so their supply of human prey has dried up….I don’t think they could resist the large crowd around the Quidditch field. All that excitement...emotions running high...it was their idea of a feast.”

“Azkaban must be terrible.”

I have often hoped so. On dark nights. “The fortress is set on a tiny island, way out to sea, but they don’t need walls and water to keep the prisoners in, not when they’re all trapped inside their own heads, incapable of a single cheerful thought. Most of them go mad within weeks.”

Harry studied him, obviously thinking. “But Sirius Black escaped from them. He got away.”

The surge of emotion that welled up in him at the name took him completely by surprise and he had to hasten to catch his suitcase that slid from his grip. The damping weight of numbness that had surrounded him the past week seemed to have altogether weakened his immunity to it. It felt raw. “Yes,” he stood again. “Black must have found a way to fight them. I wouldn’t have believed it possible….Dementors are supposed to drain a wizard of his powers if he is left with them too long….” And yet….

“You made that Dementor on the train back off,” Harry’s sudden voice spun him onto a completely different track and he had to recalibrate a moment.

“There are--certain defenses one can use. But there wa only one Dementor on the train. The more there are, the more difficult it becomes to resist.” And I barely did a passable job at resisting the one….

“What defenses?” Harry sounded eager. “Can you teach me?”

Anything. I would try to give you anything but… “I don’t pretend to be an expert at fighting Dementors, Harry...quite the contrary….”

But he was nothing if not persistent, like his mother. He was nothing if not endearing, like his father. He was nothing if not completely worthy of being able to defend himself against the horrors of this world. Defense Against the Dark Arts--and all other manner of all too human error and hate. Remus agreed. The beginning of next term, of next year. He would finally be able to be of use to Harry.

[messrmoonyy]

number 3 from the physical touch list (hiding face in neck) for remadora please :)) (no pressure)

Not me neglecting previous prompts/requests because this one the one I got motivation for.

Prompt from this list.

I used this to do my spin on the aftermath of the Battle of the Seven Potters, Cause I like anxious overprotective Remus🙃😗✌🏻( I also changed like. The entire dialogue from the original scenes because why not ). Think battle of seven potters but add a little ✨spice and drama✨. I went off on a total tangent on this tbh. As I do with every prompt it seems. Anyway. Hope you like it my dear anon.

Pairing: Remus lupin x Nymphadora Tonks

Warnings: none

Check my masterlist for all my other writing!

She was late. Incredibly so. Her and Ron should have been one of the first pairs to arrive at The Burrow, he’d arranged for her to have one of the shortest routes. He’d not told her that of course but he was quite sure she’d known he’d gotten a little too tetchy and secretly spoken to Alastor. But he had a right to be over protective didn’t he? This was was his wife. The woman he had literally, and in every sense of the word, sworn his life to. Sworn his dying breath to protect her, care for her.

Yet he’d let her put herself in danger. He could have tried to persuade Alastor to let him and George go the same route as Dora and Ron, or at least in the similar direction. He knew he had to be focussed on the war effort, knew he had a duty to protect the children. But… he also had a duty to protect her. His wife. His Dora. And now for all he knew Bellatrix could have struck her down, her body lying lifeless in a field somewhere.

He wasn’t a particular calm man at the best of times, his stress had its own stress, but he had never felt worse than he did in that moment. He’d already practically attacked Harry, was in no way of any comfort to George and Molly. Or anyone else.

So he was waiting out of the way by the window, constantly looking up at the sky through the glass and waiting for her to materialise through the burrows guards, come skidding over and laugh at him for being anxious over nothing. But the sky remained clear of her vibrant hair and her joyful laugh. The stars practically mocking him as he waited.

“ she’s a tough one. She’ll be okay “ Kingsley had appeared at his side “ Bill and Fleur, Ron and Tonks. They’ll all be here soon. Stop fretting Remus “ Remus almost laughed at the sheer stupidity of telling him not to fret over her. As if he ever did anything else. He always worried for her safety, had done long before they had even become a couple. Waiting up for her to come home from late shifts at the ministry in the days she’d stay at Grimmauld, worrying about her when she’d turn up with a new bruise or gash from something. Marrying her had simply made him fret more.

He’d never felt so protective of anyone in his life, never thinking he ever would either. Yet here he was, constantly putting her first and wanting to do nothing but take care of her. She never left his mind, was his first priority forever and always. He didn’t even want to think about what he’d do if he ever lost her, if he ever failed to protect her.

“ Bill and Fleur were scheduled to arrive as one of the last. Dora and Ron should have been one of the first pairs here “ he said it slightly more harshly than intended and turned to apologise to his friend immediately after, but as he did there was the sound of something passing through the guards outside.

Remus charged outside, almost tripping over his own gangly limbs as he went. He froze to the spot in a mixture of shock and relief as Doras broom appeared in the sky, the bristles smoking and charred as she made an unsteady decent to the ground. She landed in a long skid,stumbling from the broom and directly into Remus’ arms. She practically fell into him and would have knocked him to the floor if he hadn’t been stiff as a board.

“ Remus “ she gasped, hugging him so tightly it took the air from his lungs. But he didn’t even care, he’d give his last breath if it meant dying with her there in his arms. Because she was alright. She was right. There “ was so worried about you. The death eaters and- fuck I know you’re really no good on a broom and you bloody hate flying at the best of times. Merlins balls I was so scared “ she rambled so fast Remus barely understood what she was saying to him.

His hand slipped into her hair in some attempt to hold her as close as he could, still trying to accept that she was really there. Safe. Alive. He had worried for nothing of course. He should have known. She was tough. So much tougher than he gave her credit for it seemed.

He gently pried her out of his grip slightly, needing to see her face just to make sure it really was her. That he wasn’t dreaming it.

“ where were you “ as had most of his words that evening, it came out a little harsh but she didn’t seem to care. She reached up to cup his face in a soothing manner that was the complete opposite of his previous words to her.

“ Bellatrix. Wants me dead just about as much as Voldy wants Harry. Missed our port key. But I’m fine. Ron’s fine. We’re fine. You’re fine? “ he could feel tears welling in his eyes and he felt a bit stupid, but he couldn’t help it. Words failed him and he simply just nodded and pulled her back into his arms “ fucking deatheaters “ she grumbled.

He pressed his face into the crook of her neck, breathing in her scent and letting it calm him. She smelt like the fresh air, her hair all wind tousled and the slightest hint of smoke. Probably from her charred broom. Her hand rubbed gentle circles into his back and it made him feel… small. Which was funny with how much smaller she actually was compared to him.

“ sweetheart… I’m fine “ she said softly, clearly reading his fear still evident on him “ Remus “

He lifted his head as her hand patted him lightly, but he couldn’t bare to part from her again just yet and his forehead dropped to hers.

“ I’m afraid I underestimated you once again, darling. I knew deep down you’d make it back to me, I’m getting far too old to be worrying like this “ he said with a hint of a smile.

“ oh don’t worry, you won’t get rid of me that easily. Take more than a few of old Voldys mental lackeys to take me out. You’re stuck with me now. Im going no where “ their faces were so close he could feel her cheeks shift as she smiled with her words. Her nose brushed against his before she pressed a kiss to his lips. He usually was rather strict on his avoidance of showing affection to his wife in front of well… anyone really. But he happily kissed her back, even if he did cut it off a little shorter than he truly wanted. Still wondering at the back of his mind if any of the order were secretly judging him. It’d never escape him no matter how hard he tried not to care about it.

As they pulled apart she then only seemed to notice that there was blood on his hands and his jacket. She took a step back, her hands suddenly searching for an injury.

" blood? Remus? " her hands were frantic as she yanked at his collar, pushed up his sleeves, searching for anywhere she could find an injury. He grabbed ahold of her hands and shook her slightly so that she would look at him, it was clearly her time to fret and not his.

" Dora. Dora relax. It's not mine. It's not my blood. George was hit.. don't worry he's alive. He's lost an ear but he's okay. So am I. Not my blood love, it's not mine " she couldn't seem to help herself then and dived for lips again, holding his face in her hands and kissing him harder than before. He still couldn’t help but be a little reluctant but kissed her back, his embarrassment of kissing her in front of others not mattering when they were both just thankful to be alive and with each other.

" I'm just so happy you're alive " she whispered when she pulled back, resting her forehead to his. He opened his mouth to say something else but suddenly she was yanked out of Remus' embrace and shoved away, her clumsy legs stumbling in the gravel and she fell quite ungraciously onto her ass with a grunt of pain. Remus immediately rushed to her side in confusion.

" what the fuck! " she shouted and Remus looked up to see that Kingsley had been the one to pull her away, his wand now pointed at her face.

" Kingsley! Lower your wand! " Remus immediately jumped to her defence, crouching beside her and placing a hand to her shoulder  " Dora are you okay? Dora? "

" someone betrayed us we have to check everyone. You didn't even confirm her identity Lupin, she could have killed you. Look I didn’t mean to knock you down- we have to be certain you understand? "

" are you bloody mental?! " Dora yelled again, rubbing at her elbow that she’d clearly hurt on the way down.

" Kingsley... lower your wand she got Ron back safetly it's quite clearly- "

" we have to check " Kingsley said cutting off Molly, who had come outside with the commotion. Remus helped her back to her feet and then grabbed her hand, stepping in between her and kingsleys raised wand.

" lower. Your. wand. " his voice was commanding as he could muster, Kingsley was his friend. But Dora was his wife. And she came first. And he would put himself between her and a raised wand any and every time. No matter who was on the other end of it.

" Nymphadora Tonks gave me a present for my birthday last year. What was it?" Kingsley asked, ignoring Remus entirely, his wand still pointed at her as she was half hid behind Remus’ body.

" this is ridiculous! We're all turning on each other now? "

" answer the question " Kingsley ignored Remus again, which only made his blood boil more. He was already on edge that evening with the fear of losing his wife. This wasn’t helping to lower his stress levels.

" I know my own damned wife- "

" what was it! " Remus drew his own wand then at the increase in Kingsleys anger, pointing it in Kingsleys direction.

" Remus! "

" lower. Your wand. And step away from my wife " he demanded, not wanting to hurt Kingsley… but willing to if he had to.

" you don't even know if that is your wife"

" please! Stop the both of you! " Molly shouted.

" fucking hell " Dora said and held onto Remus hand harder, stepping better into view " I gave you a new set of quills because I charmed your last lot to throw them self out the window whenever you touched them. Happy? " Kingsley was quiet for a moment longer " now drop your wands. Both of you " Kingsley looked to Remus before finally lowering his wand. But Remus couldn’t. He felt betrayed almost, that someone he thought as a friend would do something like threaten the woman he loved.

Dora pressed gently on Remus' wrist to make him too lower his wand when he didn’t do it if his accord immediately " Remus. Lower your wand...Remus “

" this is exactly what Voldemort would want. To see us all turning on each other. We cannot let ourselves get paranoid like this " Remus said bitterly, wrapping an arm around his wife protectively and finally dropping his wand arm. He knew that Kingsley has been right to check in a way. He had needed to check. Though there were much better ways to go about it rather than pointing a wand at her head. To hold a wand to a witch or wizard was one of the most disrespectful things you could do.

" someone betrayed us "

" Dora and I are never out of each other's sight long enough for anyone to have made a switch or have her as their spy. And you know that. How dare you hold a wand to her head. How dare you " Remus was itching for an argument. And Dora could sense it, also so incredibly good at reading his emotions and thoughts before even he was.

" Remus " she said softly, lifting a hand to gently turn his face to look at her instead of glaring at Kingsley " Remus look at me " she ran her hand gently through his hair and he instantly seemed to relax. His own muscles losing tension without his consent at her touch. She had a knack at being one of the only people to get him to the calm down in almost an instant. Sirius and James had been the only other people he knew that could " relax. It's okay " she transported them into their own little bubble. As if the others were no longer in the burrow too and she kept him there, gently rubbing at his hand until his first unclenched and angry breaths returned to normal.

[justsomewritingblog]

Of Boggarts and Nightmares

Request:  None

Requested by:  Nobody

Pairing:  Fred Weasley x reader

Warnings:  Mentions of death

Word count:  4K+

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hogwarts was always fascinating to you.  Every corner you turned, it always felt like something was happening.  There were ghosts, appearing food, teleportation, and things you couldn’t even describe.  You were currently in Defense Against the Dark Arts, one of your favorite classes, with Professor Lupin, your favorite teacher.

“Tomorrow we shall be working on facing our fears!”  He announced as everyone packed up their things. “Please read the chapter on ‘Boggarts’ for homework tonight!”  He called. A couple students thanked professor Lupin before heading out.  You approached the professor after almost everyone had left, placing a small box on his desk.  “Another one, Miss L/n?”

You grinned, shrugging.  “Consider them as ‘tokens of my appreciation’.”  You offered.

“I’ll open it at the end of the day.”  He informed, getting ready for his next class.  You nodded, heading out the door.

“Thanks, Professor!”  You called over your shoulder.  When you faced forward again, you had only just closed the door behind you when your wrists were grabbed and you were drug away.  You rolled your eyes, knowing exactly who it was.  Or rather, who they were.  You allowed yourself to get pulled into a mostly empty hall.  You looked up as soon as you were permitted to stop, seeing two identical redheads looking down at you.

“What do you keep giving the Professor, L/n?”  Fred asked.

“Nothing of your concern.  Why?  Jealous?” You asked, smirking.  A mischievous glint was in your eyes as you stared the redhead down.

“Hardly, love.”  He shot back immediately.  You ignored the pet-name, getting back to matters at hand.

“Does it matter?”

“Let’s just say we’re curious.”  George replied.

“Curiosity killed the cat.”  You retorted.

“Well, it’s a good thing we’re not cats, then.”

“Maybe not, but you are in Gryffindor.”

“Well, so are you.”

“I’m not the one being nosey.”

“Touché.”

You rolled your eyes at his response, placing your free hand on your hip.  (You were still holding your things from DADA class.)  “Can I go now?”  You questioned.  The twins glanced at each other, having a silent conversation.  You knew that whenever they did that it was a bad sign. You quickly turned around, rushing out of the hallway to try to get into a more crowded area, hoping that they would lose sight of you.  Or if they didn’t lose sight of you, if it was more crowded they wouldn’t cause a scene.  You had a feeling they would anyway, and that it was too much to hope for, but you were trying.

You kept glancing behind you, making sure they weren’t following. Your relief was cut short when you bumped into a chest.  Your wrists were grabbed before you could react, and you were pulled back into the chest, a firm hold keeping you there.  Your eyes widened as your face became red.  You looked up, meeting Fred’s eyes.  You tried to swallow the lump in your throat, but you couldn’t.

“Thought you could get away so easily, huh?”  He breathed out softly.  You visibly shuddered, and you knew he saw it.  You groaned softly, burying your red face into his chest, hoping to hide it.  He chuckled softly, letting you feel the vibrations rippling through him.

“This is so humiliating.”  You mumbled.  Fred looked around briefly, noticing that you were getting a few looks.  Fred leaned down to your ear.

“Hold on.”  He whispered. The next thing you know, you’re in an empty hallway.  You looked around, taking in your new surroundings.

“Are you gonna let go?”  You asked after a long moment of silence.

“Not a chance.”

“And why’s that?”

“Now who’s being nosey?”  He asked, a large grin on his face.

“Well, they are my hands, after all.”  You retorted, smirking back.  Fred didn’t respond.  He simply chuckled, pressing his forehead against yours.  You closed your eyes, savoring the moment and trying to burn it into your head forever.  You didn’t know how long you were there, but you heard a voice calling.

“Fred!  Y/n!”

You and Fred snapped apart, turning to the quickly approaching figure.  Fred dropped your hands, placing his in his pocket and turning almost fully to his brother.

“What’s up, Georgie?”

You clasped your own hands, missing the warmth his provided already. A frown formed on your face as you looked down at them.  You clenched and unclenched them, trying to get the nice feeling back.  Giving up, you put your hands into your pockets as well, looking between the twins as they plotted the next stage of their latest prank on Filch.

You stood there in silence for several moments before you finally waved your hand in front of their eyes.  You only spoke when they turned to look at you.  “I’m gonna head out.”  You informed, jerking your thumb backwards.  “It’s getting late, and I kinda want to eat some time tonight.” You joked lightly, backing up.

The twins both smiled at you, but you noticed the smiles were different. George smiled at you with genuine happiness and waved you a temporary ‘goodbye’.  Fred’s seemed slightly forced, and you noticed the usual glint in his eye was no longer there.

You turned your back to them, making your way to the great hall like a normal human being.  As you approached the Gryffindor table, you noticed Ron, Harry and Hermione sitting pretty far down, muttering to each other.  You shook your head.  They were always involved in some kind of trouble.  They were almost as bad as the twins.

“Look, Potter!  A dementor!” You heard a voice shout.  Harry whipped around, facing the door.  You looked to the door as well, seeing nothing. You looked behind you, seeing Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle laughing their heads off.  You rolled your eyes, sighing.  Of course, with Draco at school, everyone had heard about Harry’s little incident on the train.

“Pick on someone your own IQ, Malfoy!”  You shouted across the hall.  Malfoy’s head whipped to the Gryffindor table, scanning for the owner of the voice.  His eyes met yours.  You turned to fully face him, crossing your arms and manspreading, your back against the edge of the table.  You noticed Fred and George walk in, but you didn’t take your eyes off of the blond Slytherin.

“Oh, you mean like you?”  He retorted, raising an eyebrow in a mocking manner.

“Are you saying I’m smart, or dumb?”  You prodded, a sly smirk taking over your features.  You really hoped he would answer in a way that would work.

“Well, I think that sentence speaks for itself.”  He replied, earning laughs from the entire Slytherin table. A crooked grin overtook your face. This was better than you could have ever hoped.

“Well, you said I have the same IQ you do, so clearly that means that you’re dumb as well.”  You shot back, turning back to face the table.  The entire Gryffindor table erupted into uproarious laughter.  The Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables let out a few good chuckles, trying to be less obnoxious.  Malfoy glared daggers into the back of your head as you started your meal.

“Bloody he-”

“Ron!”  Hermione scolded.  Ron cleared his throat, turning back to you.

“That was awesome, Y/n!”

You shrugged.  “He set himself up.”  You explained simply.

“Well, well, well.  The rose has thorns.”  A voice said, joining the conversation.  You turned, seeing Fred.

“But we knew that.”  George told his twin, pointing at him.

“Indubitably.”  Fred replied. You chuckled softly, shaking your head.

“Well, I hope you’re happy, L/n.”  Hermione started.  “He’s now surely going to be upset.”

“What’s he gonna do?  He’s two years younger than me.”

“That doesn’t mean he won’t try anything.”

“You worry too much.”

“He could tell his father.  You know that’s who he cries to when he doesn’t get his way.”  Hermione reminded, her eyebrow raising in superiority. A cold fear swept through you. Your heart stopped beating briefly and you felt like your stomach was in your throat.  Your eyes flashed in terror briefly before you responded.

“Well, he can’t do anything to me.  I technically only repeated what his son said.”  You played it off, shrugging one shoulder.  Hermione opened her mouth, no doubt to contradict you again, but a voice beside her cut her off before she could say anything.

“Well, I think it was amazing.”

“I agree, Ron.”  George told his brother, leaning on your shoulder.  “Couldn’t have done it better, myself.”

“Could have used some dung bombs if you ask me.”  Fred countered with a shrug, his hands in his pockets. You smiled softly, looking down at your plate.  George sat down on your left, leaning in close towards you.

“Really, L/n.  It was brilliant.”  He complimented.  You shook your head, raising your hand to settle him.

“It wasn’t that impressive.”  You insisted.  “It was nothing, really.”  You told him.  However, a strange feeling in your gut told you that you would regret your little bout of courage.  Draco, like his father, was relentless.  You could only hope he would think better than to pick on a Gryffindor two years older than him with the Weasley twins for best friends.  “I’m gonna head to bed.”  You finally spoke, breaking the silence that filled your group.  You could still hear the excited chatter from further down the table, though.

“You’ve only half finished your meal.”  Fred reminded.

“Not hungry.”  You replied dismissively, standing up.  “You can finish it, if you want.”  You told him, sending him a small smile.  You turned and sent a similar one to the rest of the table before walking out of the great hall.  You had thought about checking to see if Malfoy was following you, but you decided that if he was planning something, your ‘confidence’ might make him think twice.  You entered the hallway, trying to make your way quickly to the common room without anyone noticing that you were in a hurry.  But you also wanted to be there fast enough, just in case Malfoy did try something.

You approached the portrait of the fat lady and quickened your strides, hoping to get there faster.  You got there moments later, telling her the password.  The portrait swung open moments later and you hurried in, turning to look at the open portrait.  Only when it closed did the tension leave your body.  You collapsed onto the couch in front of the fire, resting your head against the back of it.  You closed your eyes, allowing the warmth to consume you.

You awoke with a start when you felt your shoulders being shook. Your eyes snapped open and you were met with a red-head’s face less than a foot away from your own.

“Oh.  Hi, Fred.” You mumbled groggily.

“You sound cheerful.”  He remarked jokingly, jumping over the back of the couch and sitting next to you.  You brought your head back down to re-align with your body again, looking forward and rubbing your neck.

“I just got disturbed from a nap.  What do you want from me?”  You asked, a barely noticeable joking tone coming through your grumbles. Fred grinned down at you, wrapping an arm around your shoulders.  You fought the red that threatened to take over your face.  “Where’s your other half?”  You questioned, yawning through the end of the inquiry.

“Oh, he’s still in the great hall.”  He answered.

“Why are you, here, then?”  You wondered aloud.  Fred looked down at you, his face losing the bright smile he had, being replaced with a slightly more serious one.

“We’re not attached at the hip, you know.”  He reminded.

“Really?  Could’ve fooled me.”  You replied, a small smirk taking over your features.  Fred smirked softly back at you.  You rolled your eyes, looking back into the fire, feeling its warmth.  You zoned out, the rhythmic movements being hypnotic.  “What do you think of Lupin’s class?”  You asked suddenly, breaking the silence that had taken over for a few minutes.  Fred’s head whipped around to face you.  His eyebrows were furrowed in confusion.

“Why would you ask that?”  He asked seriously.  He then chuckled softly.  “Where did that come from?”

You shrugged, tearing your gaze away from the fire to look at him. “I dunno.  I guess I was just thinking about what Professor Lupin said before we left class.”

“What did he say?”  Fred asked, tilting his head slightly.

“He said that we would be facing our fears tomorrow.”  You reminded, looking back at the fire.  You didn’t want to look Fred Weasley of all people in the eye when you discussed fear. Fred cocked an eyebrow.

“And?”  He prompted. You let out a small, exasperated sigh, shrugging again.

“I don’t know.  I just-” Your eyes widened.  “I have homework to do!”  You remembered, jumping out of Fred’s embrace.  “Shoot, shoot, shoot!  I have a whole chapter to read!”  You exclaimed, grabbing your books and rushing up to the girls’ dorm.  Fred still sat, frozen in alarm by your sudden outburst.  He chuckled softly, shaking his head.

You entered the girls’ dormitory, throwing yourself onto your bed and flipping through all your books, trying to find the one on DADA.  You grabbed it and headed back downstairs, finding Fred still sitting on the couch.  This surprised you slightly, but you ignored it, sitting back down in your previous seat.  Fred looked over at you, raising an eyebrow slightly.

“There’s more light down here.”  You answered his silent question, flipping through your book to find the chapter on ‘Boggarts’.  You finally found the page, opening the book wider so you could see easier.  “What are you doing?”  You asked, feeling Fred lean in closer to look over your shoulder.

“Well, it’s my homework, too.”  He replied easily, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.  You rolled your eyes softly, shaking your head before you began reading the chapter on ‘Boggarts’.  It was a disturbing chapter, to say the least.

The next thing you know, people are flooding in from the great hall, having finished supper.  Most of them were chatting quite incessantly, being loud about it.  You furrowed your eyebrows as you struggled to focus on the textbook.  You put your hands over your ears, drowning out some of the noise.  After re-reading the same two sentences eight or more times, you quit trying.  You closed the book, now that Fred was talking to George, and was no longer ‘studying’.  You picked up your book and stood, walking back up to the girls’ dorm.  It was much quitter up there, since there was only one other person up there.  She was currently reading something, too, though you couldn’t tell what it was. Once you finished the chapter, having been able to focus better, you went to sleep, dreading what was coming.

The next day in DADA class, everyone took their usual seats, waiting for the professor to arrive.  He walked in a few minutes later, ordering everyone to push the desks along the wall.  Everyone stood, some pushing physically, some using magic.  Once the room was clear, the professor pushed a dresser to the front of the room.  The dresser shook, the creature trying to get out.  “Now, we have a boggart here.  Who can tell me what boggarts are?”  He asked, looking around the room.  When no one raised their hand, you raised yours.  You wouldn’t have normally, but since Lupin was your favorite teacher, you tried to make an effort for him.  “Yes, Ms. L/n?”

“A boggart is a shape-shifter that takes the form of whatever the person it encounters fears most.”  You answered, bringing your hand back down.

“Correct.  Very good, Ms. L/n.”  He smiled softly, standing up straight.  “A boggart likes to hide in confined spaces.”  He informed, which you had recalled from your homework.  “The spell to defeat a boggart can be quite tricky, because you must imagine your fear in a funny circumstance, or with a funny look.  This takes away your fear, making the boggart powerless.”  He paused for a breath.  “If you are able to laugh out loud at a boggart, it will disappear immediately. The incantation ‘Riddikulus’ transforms the boggart into a more amusing form.”  He stopped for another moment.  “Now, I want everyone to say ‘Riddikulus’ firmly.”

The room was filled with a chorus of the word.

“Keep practicing.”  He instructed, turning around to face the closet.  He walked over, standing next to it, then turning to face the class. “Form a line.”  He instructed.  You filed in somewhere in the middle, being squished by the number of people in there.  “Ready?” He asked the first student.  At their nod, Lupin pulled open the door, and out came a giant snake.  Your eyes widened as the snake slithered closer to the group, hissing and showing its fangs.

“Riddikulus!”  The student shouted.  Before your eyes, a small puff of smoke appeared, and when it was gone, the snake was tangled, wrapped up in itself.  You clapped, along with some other students.

“Very good!”  Lupin cheered.  “Stand over there, please.”  He told the boy, pointing another side of the room.  A girl stepped up and the confused snake disappeared in a puff of smoke again. When the smoke cleared, a pile of bugs had replaced it.  They all came rushing toward her.

“Riddikulus!”  She shouted, pointing her wand at them.  The pile of bugs suddenly had a layer of ice beneath them, and they were sliding all over the place.  You chuckled, clapping again.

“Next!”

The boggart changed into many forms throughout the class.  It was a spider, rats, bats, bees, He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named showed up on several occasions, and a clown appeared a few times.

“Next!”  Lupin instructed.  The girl in front of you went to stand along the wall as you stepped forward.  Your breathing was abnormal, and you were terrified of what form it would take.  You hadn’t really thought about your worst fear that much.  The boggart in front of you, that was currently Filch wearing a tutu, disappeared in another cloud of smoke.  You lowered your stance, trying to even out your breathing as you readjusted the wand in your hand.  When the smoke cleared, gasps from every student in the room could be heard.  The scene before you was terrible.  The wand that you had clutched so firmly moments before landed on the ground with a thud.  Your breathing stopped.

Before you lay Fred.  He was pale and his eyes were open, staring into who knows what, with a blank expression on his face.  He was bloody and bruised, and very clearly dead.

“The spell, Y/n.  Remember the spell!”  Lupin instructed.  You barely heard him.  It was as though you were underwater, and he was trying to speak to you from above it. You heard him, but it didn’t really set in.  You tried to remember what you were supposed to do.  ‘What was the spell, again?’ You wondered.  ‘Riddikulus.’  You told yourself.  But as you stared down at Fred’s lifeless form, you couldn’t think of any way that you would make this even the slightest bit amusing.

Your heartbeat raced and you were cold, clammy and sweating.  Your breaths were shallow and labored.  You couldn’t seem to get any air in.  You stumbled backwards, trying to get as far away from the image as possible.  Lupin, seeing that this wasn’t going to get any better, stepped in front of the boggart, which turned into a bright, floating orb.  The orb floated back into the closet, which Lupin closed and locked. He turned back around to face you, crouching down to your height, (you had fallen over), and offered you a kind, sad smile.

“I’m sorry, Professor.”  You squeaked out.

“It’s perfectly alright, dear.”  He told you honestly.  “I don’t know how I would have defeated that one, either.”  He reached out a hand, helping you up.  “Facing one’s worst fears can be quite a terrifying self-discovery and can very much indeed take over.”  He spoke softly.  You nodded your head, not thinking you’ll be able to speak again for a little while. “Just relax.”  He told you.

You closed your eyes, about to begin taking deep breathes, but as soon as you closed them, Fred’s dead form was in the forefront of your mind. Your eyes snapped open immediately as your breathing picked up again.  Lupin frowned, seeing you begin to panic.

“Will someone please escort Miss-”

“We will.”  Came two voices.  You didn’t even have to look to know who they were.  Fred and George appeared at your side, followed by a nod from Lupin.  They each grabbed a hold of an arm, pulling you out into the hall.  They led you to the Gryffindor common room, seeing as DADA was your last class for the day, and set you on the couch.  They both remained standing, whispering quietly to themselves as you stared into the fire, ignoring their presence.  You felt a kiss on the top of your head and you looked up, seeing George smiling sadly at you before exiting the room.  You frowned at his departure, not wanting this inevitable conversation. Fred sat down on your left, looking at you in silence for several moments.

The image flashed through your mind again as you stared at the fire. Tears escaped your eyes before you could stop them; though at this point, you felt you needed a good cry. But you’d do that later: not in front of Fred.  You made no move to wipe the tears away, still staring into the fire, mind trying to catch up with what was happening and what had happened.

“Are you okay?”  Fred asked softly.  At his voice, the tears started streaming faster and you closed your eyes, hanging your head slightly.  “Hey.” He prompted softly, taking your hands in his.  “Your hands are like ice.”  He noted, a small chuckle escaping his lips.  When you didn’t respond, he frowned, chewing on his bottom lip in thought. His face lit up slightly when an idea struck him.  “Come here.” He spoke, picking you up bridal style. You covered your face with your hands. He sat on the floor in front of the fire moments later, putting you between his legs so your back was against his chest.  The intense warmth from being this close to the fire warmed your hands slightly, but you still felt numb.  He placed his chin on the top of your head, wrapping his arms around your middle.  He sighed through his nose, closing his eyes in comfort.

“That was awful.  It was like a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from.”  You mumbled.  If he hadn’t been so close he wouldn’t have known that you’d said anything.  A large, uncharacteristic frown took over Fred’s face.

“Did you……did you know that was your worst fear?”  He asked softly.  Your breathing stuttered for a second as you tried your best not to hyperventilate.

“I don’t know.  I never thought about it much.”  You admitted, wiping your nose with the back of your hand.  “I mean, I knew I cared about you a lot, but I didn’t know that losing you would-” You couldn’t talk anymore.  The lump in your throat was too overpowering.  Fred rubbed his hands up and down your arms, trying to soothe you.

“Well, if it makes you feel any better, I care about you a lot, too.” He informed.  You hummed softly to yourself.  You were sure that Fred didn’t mean it the same way that you cared about him, but you appreciated the thought.  “I didn’t think-” Fred stopped himself, seemingly trying to figure out how to word his next thought.  You sat in unbearable silence, waiting for him to continue.  “I didn’t think you cared about me in that way.”  He admitted.  You weren’t sure why, but you felt like bursting into tears.  ‘He didn’t?’ You asked yourself.  You thought you had tried to make it pretty obvious.

“Fred, I-” You paused, too, unsure if you wanted to go through with this or not.  You sat in internal conflict for a few minutes before you took in a shaky breath. “Fred, I, um…I think I love you.” You whispered.  You didn’t dare face him.  You don’t think you would have been able to bear the look on his face should he not like you back.  When his silence dragged on, you quickly stood.  “You know what?  Forget I said-”

Fred grabbed ahold of your hand, pulling you back down to his level, this time to face him.  You sat in front of him with your legs wrapped around him, facing his bright eyes, surprise written over your features.  He let out a breathy laugh.  “I love you, too, you bloody idiot.”  He told you, a large grin on his face.

You were certain you’d stopped breathing.  You covered your face with your hands, trying to hide the blushing and the enormous grin that had taken over your features.  His fingers gently wrapped around your writs, pulling your hands softly away from your face.  You looked up at him, smiling like an absolute dork.  He grinned back at you, leaning forward and resting his forehead against yours.  You closed your eyes, enjoying the moment.

“Bloody heck! My eyes!”  A voice shouted.  You opened your eyes, turning and seeing George in the doorway.  He was covering his eyes but was smiling.  You pursed your lips in a fake frown, but sure that they could see a hint of a smile, and reached behind Fred, picking up a pillow and throwing it at his twin brother.  It hit George in the stomach with a force he didn’t expect.  He uncovered his eyes, placing his hands over his stomach as he laughed heartily.  You shook your head, not being able to hide the smile anymore.

“Party crasher!”  You shouted.

“Hey, it’s my common room, too!”  He defended. You shook your head, rolling your eyes.

“You’re banished!”  You declared playfully.

“Ah, yes.  I’m sorry, King and Queen of the Room of the Commons.”  George replied, fake bowing.  You laughed along with Fred, throwing another pillow at George.

“Get out!”

“Alright, I’m going!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N:  This is my first Harry Potter story!  What do y’all think?

Tag List:

[fndmxreader]

fandom: harry potter. pairing:  remus lupin x reader | the reader simps for lupin because isn’t that all what we do daily ?  summary:   connected to the self indulgent series where the reader is a slytherin muggle born witch working alongside the teachers at hogwarts.   note: this series will bounce around a lot involving timelines, but a lot of them don’t really have a coherent story line anyway.  movie setting:  prisoner of askaban.  pov:   she/her pronouns.

you were looking off into the distance in a daze, end of pen in mouth as your writings came to a halt and instead getting caught up in thoughts.  your summer hadn’t been great,  if you were being completely honest :  your muggle friends were getting on your case regarding being missing for a year,  you knew at some point you had to pick : the wizarding world or the muggle one,   living two lives was absolutely exhausting,  living them meant being two types of people - like one example,  you had accidentally used a levitating spell to put a cup back and last minute your friend walked in, smashing on the floor as your hand flinched down to your side.

“ what was that crash ? “  “ i put the mug too close to the counter, “ you had laughed nervously, quickly walking towards the glass to pick it up “ it fell off as a result ”  “you’re clumsiness is going to be the death of you “    

that was only one of the close calls,  there were far too many to keep track of,  including dropping hints to the wizarding world in conversation, only to stutter and try and say you were referencing a bizarre indie movie from overseas. at this point you were trying to pick would it be even possible to choose a side ?  it seemed impossible just to pick one over the other,  especially knowing that no matter what route you take it would result in an empty, hollow feeling left inside of chest.    you’re not sure who you could go to for guidance,  you weren’t familiar with any muggle borns your own age,  and talking to a pureblood or half blood would go in vein,  the latter would understand to some degree,  but ultimately it’s not the same and with it being so complicated,  listening to people who barely got it would be a waste of time and only twist the knife in gut. 

 “ everyone,  i would like to introduce you to remus jo - “     that was all you really heard dumbledore say before ears blocked out the world like static,  everything beyond the screaming in your head made everything else seem like a distant hum with no tune,  a crackle of a tv that can’t quite catch signal.  your pen tapped against your bottom lip,  perching against it as you eyebrows knitted together in deep thought.   

maybe professor dumbledore could help,  he wouldn’t get it but maybe he could shred some light on the situation ? he was always good at that. 

“ miss l/n - “

perhaps it’s all just being blown out of proportion,  work leave would surely be something the muggles would understand that.  even if they are after photos, work gossip and other details - 

“ y/n “  between the firmness and the sudden block of your view as the men stepped into eyesight causes you to flinch,  reeling away from nothing in panic as you try and grasped your surroundings once more,   blinking up in a rapid succession that causes concern to flash on the two men’s faces.  it takes a moment to register where you were,  the surroundings,  what the hell was going on in general... 

“ huh ? “  your tongue pokes out to roll against your bottom lip,  eyes wide as you stared up at dumbledore,  only for sight to break away from the one your most familiar with to the new guy...    you won’t lie to yourself,  you weren’t ready for seeing someone like him,  especially in your state.  his eyes were beaming with life,  amusement dancing behind dark hues as a faint smile tugged at lips,  hands pushed far into pockets as eye contact seemed to lock,  your lips part to say something,  anything but much like before your brain seemed to short circuit,  this time for an entirely and much more embarrassing reason,  “ huh ? “ you repeated again,  cheeks coming to life with colour as you kept looking at the new guy.

“ this is professor lupin, y/n.   the new defence against the dark arts teacher - “  speaking slower now,  and you’re rather grateful for the approach because you really needed things to stop going by so quickly,  the whole world seemed to flash in front of you at lightening speed.

“ oh “ a pause,  then it really began to register “ OH ! “  it was the most beautiful example of a pin drop ever to grace hogwarts’ walls  (  yes,  dumbledore will be thinking about it years to come  )   -  you jump up rather clumsily and hold your hand out to the man  “ hi,  sorry  -  i was just ... never mind,  hi  ! “ you repeated again,  the embarrassment settling deep within bones,  making itself at home in the creases of mind that would take weeks to weave out.  but regardless of the mocking in head, you do your best to not feed it and give it anymore attention... at least for the time being.   lupins much bigger hand wraps around yours,  a firm but gentle grasp as he finally takes the moment to speak himself. 

“ that’s quite alright,  i can tell that we disturbed you.  in fact i believe we should be the ones apologising, however professor dumbledore here insisted on the introduction - “ it came easily,  between tone of his voice and the warmth of his hand, you’ve never felt safer, it was like being in a warm hug beside the fire on the night of winter;   you mentally slap yourself for acting like a teenager towards a complete stranger.   your eyes however, narrow towards dumbledore,  in a way blaming you own pathetic display on him.  a faint smile on his lips as he made up some excuse to leave the pair of you alone,  not at all hiding the way his eyes twinkled with amusement at the scene that played out. 

your hand flexed around remus’,  far too busy sending daggers at dumbledore walking away than the fact you were still holding the older man hostage,  not helping the murmured   “ ugh,  he can be such an arse sometimes - “ 

“ i believe that’s apart of the charm “ remus chimed,  your eyes moving back to his as you smiled up at him once more,  less tense than what your face was previously  “ um,   miss l/n ?  your hand - “ 

“ oh, fuck, sorry - “   instantly your arms folded across your chest,  the blush only darkening your cheeks “ i promise i’m not this socially inept,  well,  at least to this extent - “ 

“ oh,  don’t fret.  i’ve met much worse people,  i myself tend to panic in social situations.  they’re not my forte “   you shoulders relax,  though you can’t help but note that he seemed surprisingly at ease even with the confession. your eyes dance around the staff room,  much to your own relief they seemed to be back to focusing on their own work. 

“ well,  you’re doing much better than me if that’s any help.  so,  you’re teaching dark arts -  ? “ then the conversation seemed to spark to life without much spluttering after that,  eventually both sitting on the couch and bonding over lessons;  including how you got your position in the first place,   your arm rested on the back of the furniture as your body turned fully to him,  the longer the pair of you were sat there,  the more they progressed beyond work and more into personal ones, about experiences outside of hogwarts and within the walls, not helping the fits of giggles that bubbled in your chest. 

“ being a slytherin comes with the natural title of ‘dark pranks,’  most of us tend to live up to the name.  people demonise us,  so we give them a reason to continue it.  that certainly doesn’t end at our humour, i think it shows more than ever in that aspect - “ you giggled again, head shaking  “ i remember my friends putting a real snake in one of the gryffindors bed covered in animals blood, the girl panicked for weeks  -  but they started it  ! “   

“ i must say being a gryffindor myself,  i feel like i should be offended on behalf of them.  then again,  my friends here were trouble makers as well.  their pranks could... “  wrist rolled in the air,  and while there’s a hint of pain twisting in features and a haunted look that seemed to cover bright eyes,  there was still a fondness in how he spoke  “ extremely, well and truly out of hand ? “

“ ahah  ! “  it’s like a triumph,  finger pointing at the others face   “ you can hide behind the fancy wording all you want, professor.  but you gryffindors can be just as over the top as the rest of us,  if not more so ! “  he knocks your hand away from his face playfully,  grin widening as mock offence does its best to take over features.

“ firstly,  you may call me remus,  second of all,  i will agree with nothing you say,  i would never stoop so low. “ 

your heart skipped a beat at the notion. 

“ you may call me y/n, only when you admit i’m right - “ 

a nice joke to push down the giddiness of calling him by his first name the short hours of knowing him. 

“ how very slytherin of you - “ 

“ how very gryffindor of you to point that out, remus “ 

the back and forth banter eventually came to a halt, as minutes ticked by it was time to go to the great hall for food and to sort out the new years. you and remus walked in a comfortable silence,  a lightness surrounding you both as it showed in your steps, and showed in the way his lips remained locked in a subtle smile.  you were left with one feeling...  finally, dumbledore hired someone worthwhile. you would also give him a hard time for that awkward bow that he did at dinner. 

[monroeville22]

-DISTRUST-

A/N: this one is an angsty bitch, and it is a bit long. You’re welcome.

Molly Weasley was worried about Remus Lupin. The poor man had went through hell: He had lost his best friends in 1981, he had believed that his lover betrayed him and killed all friends, then was proven wrong after thirteen years of thinking otherwise. And she was certainly concerned about his reunion with said lover, Sirius Black.

She would constantly check up on Remus. Calling him on the muggle phone Arthur, her husband, had. She would propose tea meetings so they could talk. Although Remus would hardly ever pick up the phone. And he would never accept the tea offers. Not that he didn’t like tea, he loved tea. He just knew how Molly got. She was the kind of person who would worry a lot. Maybe it was because she was a mother, or maybe she was just paranoid. She would worry about him, and he didn’t want her to. It would just make Remus feel more like a burden.

One day though, this day, he decided to accept the offer. Sirius was always telling him to go, he would say ‘You need to see other people, love. I don’t want you to get bored. Go talk to her, she worries about you.’ ‘That’s the problem!’ Remus would reply. ‘I don’t want her to!’ Sirius would just shake his head and smile lightly. ‘You can ease her worries by talking to her, you know?’ So, Remus finally agreed to go to the Burrow. He just wanted Molly to relax and stop making him feel upset.

It was a dreary, windy Friday evening. Foreshadowing the events that would soon take place between the red haired woman and the light brown haired man. The kids, including Hermione and Harry, were out camping. Fred and George had forced them to go, Merlin knows what they were planning on doing to their poor victims. Arthur was in the Ministry, working a late night shift. Remus wasn’t entirely sure if that was a good thing or not.

Molly welcomed him at the door with a big smile on her face and opened arms. He smiled also, and hugged her tightly. “Hello Molly, how have you been?” he asked politely. Molly huffed loudly and put her hands on her hips. “Well, you would know if you had picked up my phone this morning.” she said pursing her lips. Remus opened his mouth to speak but was silenced by Molly pushing him to the chair by the table. “I don’t want any excuses, Remus! I just want to talk. For real this time.” Remus furrowed his eyebrows and took a seat. “ What’s wrong with the conversations we normally have?” he asked. Molly sat down in front of him, looking at him with a pity full expression. “I know things have been hard Remus, with having Sirius back and all. And now you have Harry to worry about. And you never talk to anyone! You barely talk to me. Sirius is the only person you see.” she spoke. Remus was fidgeting with his hands. He knew this would happen. ‘Damn you Sirius.’ he thought. “So? I am alright, Molly. I really am.” Molly huffed and cut straight to her point. “I don’t trust Sirius with him.” she said quickly. Remus sighed and ran his hands through his hair. Molly was looking at him as if she wanted him to agree. “I don’t know why you don’t trust him, Molly. He is a great man, he has done nothing wrong.” Remus was trying to stay calm. Breaking Molly’s heart was the last thing he wanted to do right now. Molly chuckled dryly at his words. “Just because he is a great man doesn’t mean he will be a great parent, Remus.” She was still staring at him weirdly. Remus plucked a few strands of white hair from his head. “Does this have to do anything with Azkaban?” he asked. Molly was about to protest but he continued. “Or is it because he is childish? Because believe me, he has matured more than enough.” he said looking out the window, unable to look into ber eyes. The red haired woman sighed sadly. She knew their horrible past. But she just couldn’t trust him with a child. “Is it because we’re both men? Do you think we’ll be a bad influence?” he let out boldly. He was getting angrier by every passing second and his tone was beginning to sound sharper. He met her gaze, finally looking into her eyes. He saw the panicked expression on her face. “ Remus, no!” she rushed.

Remus was fed up with this. She was accusing Sirius with being untrustworthy but was denying every reason he proposed. He pushed back his chair and slammed one of his hands to the table next to them. “Then what is it? What is making you feel like you can’t trust him? What is it that you want!” he roared. His chest was rising up and down quickly. ‘Great’ he thought. ‘You have lost your temper.’ He couldn’t help it. He felt hot all over. He let out a shaky breath and ran his hands through his hair again, looking down. There was a few seconds of silence but then he looked up to see the angry woman in front of him. “Sirius is an irresponsible man, Remus John Lupin. And you can’t make it any better by being there for him. You are in no shape to take care of a fourteen year old boy, either!” she yelled at him. ‘Now she’s just attacking me’ he thought bitterly.

Remus learned to not search for meanings under other people’s words. He learned it a long time ago. But right now, he just couldn’t control it. “Because of the wolf?” he laughed. Molly chuckled dryly. “Stop referring to it as ‘the wolf’ Remus, you are one. And again, Sirius is not fit to be a father.” Remus bit his lip. Hard. He was angry. So angry that he could feel the anger building up like a fire in his stomach. “Don’t be mad, Remus.” Molly said thoughtlessly. And that was the last drop.

Remus yelled in frustration. “Then what should I be, Molly?” he cried painfully. Molly flinched at the scream. She had never saw him like this. This mad. This unstable. And it was her fault. “What should I be if not mad, Molly?” he asked with tears in his eyes. “Patient?” he whispered. “Calm and collected?” Molly couldn’t look in his eyes, so she looked down. “Should I be calm when my friends do not trust my innocent partner?” He asked wildly. He was losing it, he knew that. But he wanted Molly to look at him. “ Look at me, Molly!” he yelled desperately. Molly kept her head down. “See! You cannot even look at me because you know you’re being silly, expecting me to stay cool!” He backed away a few steps. He tried to calm his breaths, but he failed. He was trying so hard not to break down. The tears were burning his cheeks. He had never felt this weak for a while.

“And yet you’re still pushing it. Testing the waters but do you think there’s any left?” he laughed. “I don’t have any patience left.” he continued, calmer. He was feeling small and pathetic. Guilty. He wanted Molly to understand. To feel what he felt. “Molly look at me,please?” he pleaded. Molly finally gave in and did as he said. She gasped at the scene she saw. The tears had left marks on his flushed face. His eyes held years of pain in them, desperation. He looked older than he was. If that was possible.

“Let me be angry. Please, Molly. Let me be angry that my life was taken from me. That I never truly lived.” He reached for the chair and fell on it, his shaking legs not allowing him to stand still. “Blame it on this damned curse.” he sighed, gesturing the moon that shone brightly outside the window. “Or the war. Whatever.” Molly sat down too. Giving him her entire attention. “I trusted the wrong people. I was friends with a literal rat yet I suspected nothing.” he whispered. “It wasn’t just you Remus, we all did.” Molly tried. Remus shook his head. ‘I should have known’ he thought. “I was a fool, so that made me lose everything.” he cried. Molly felt so guilty. She wanted to walk out. Get away from the man in front of her. But she was stunned. So she listened.

“Let me be fucking furious that I lost the love of my life.” his voice cracked towards the end. “I did everything to have him. I spent my time going to all those stupid Quidditch matches to see him. I forced myself to be open.” He stopped for a second and wiped his face. He was moving away from the topic but… he had to. Maybe Molly would know now. What Sirius meant to him. “I was open. I had him at last. I shoved him what he meant to me. And he loved me. I loved him. When we finally had each other, the war came.”

“It took everything from us. It took our love, our friends. It took our happiness. It took our friend’s lives and his innocence! It out a damn mark on a little boy’s head. It took everything we could have had. But it left me! It left me, Molly!” He was screaming and sobbing, pointing at his chest. He walked towards the door, feeling distraught with the revelation he caused her and reached for the doorknob. “So don’t blame us, Molly. Don’t take more?” he asked her. He saw her nodding. He looked at her one last time then left her standing in the middle of her kitchen.

By the time he came home, he was struggling to stand up. He was greeted by a smiling Sirius. Although that smile fell as soon as he saw the state Remus was in. He quickly pulled him in and held him tightly. He could hear the muffled sobs coming from Remus. He ran a hand through his partner’s hair and whispered “I’m assuming it didn’t go well?” Remus lifted his head from Sirius’ shoulder. He saw the warm look in the other’s eyes and couldn’t help but smile. “You bastard.” Remus laughed, hugging him even tighter. Remus had lost a lot, but he was not letting anything slip away from his hands now.

[halothenthehorns]

All in the Family

Chapter 127: Out of the Fire

At first James thought the concussive, ear-splitting shrieking noise was coming from him. He knew he wanted to scream, but the air felt lodged in his throat now, because he couldn't see Sirius! Had he been vanished into an unknown abyss for dying in this future!?

They were in a very dark room and something massive was moving about, a sunset was forcing painful light into their eyes from cracks around the edges of heavy curtains only illuminating movement but no distinct shape. The rank smell of several unidentifiable things left him gasping and wheezing and he just kept flailing madly around, he wouldn't stop until he found him!

Something painfully tight latched onto his neck and forced him to bend over double, he shrieked in fury, trying to pull away and blindly going for his wand, but he couldn't find it! He must have dropped it when he landed-

"Prongs, stop, moving," Remus hissed in his ear with more stress than he ever would have believed him capable of, hand probably white-knuckled on his neck, he was holding so tight and suffocating him a bit, but it was obvious Moony didn't dare let up.

Heart still thudding, the maddening scene of Voldemort murdering his brother slowly ebbed from his eyes to really take in their surroundings.

Buckbeak finally began to calm now that all racket had deceased, but he was still clicking his beak in fury even as all of them edged as far away as they could bent double. He was standing much taller than usual, and James's eyes finally adjusted to see him perched on a bed. There was fresh hay and sawdust all around, plus a bag of dead rats sitting where the pillows should, leaning against a wooden frame like a mock bag of feed. There were deep scratches in the posts, ruining whatever design had once been inlaid, like Buckbeak often rubbed his sharp beak against it. The real problem of why he didn't go back to his meal came apparent when they saw all the blood around him wasn't from his food, but a deep cut in his front leg.

Sirius finally came into view, and James breathed in relief and tried to move towards him, but Remus kept him in the forced bow with bruising force as Padfoot began gently, "hey there buddy, wow that looks like a problem. I bet it hurts, how'd you manage that huh? Come here Buckbeak, come on, I promise I'll summon up whatever your favorite is if you let me have a look."

Maybe it was the gentle tone, maybe it was the familiarity of the person even if he was several years younger, in Remus's opinion it was just Sirius's innate ability to soothe anyone if he wanted to with that natural charisma when he unleashed it and nobody could resist. Regardless, Buckbeak finally folded his wings and made a pitiful cooing noise as he nudged his head against his shoulder and shuffled forward on three legs while Sirius kept up his inane chatter and carefully climbed up beside him, never moving to fast.

There were already some bandages and cotton balls waiting open and ready at the foot of the king sized bed, Sirius ruddy hoped someone was up here helping the poor thing out. He could now only wish it was himself though, it would be the most useful thing he'd ever done in his life at this point instead of- nope! He was doing it now, taking every care to keep chatting with the hippogriff as he cleaned the wound and wrapped it up tight. He didn't dare draw his wand to try anything else, these beasts were notoriously shy about magic in their presence.

The others began cautiously rising back to normal, and Buckbeak allowed it as Sirius began hand-feeding him from the bag of rats. His tail was still thrashing, binocular vision able to track everything on both sides of his head, but he remained at Sirius's side standing on the bed rather than trying to chase them off, which would do no good, he'd already seen Evans try the door out of the corner of his eye.

James tried edging forward, but Buckbeak spat a dead rat in his face, tearing up his bedding with his good claw as he heavily pawed the ground. Sirius reached up and pat his beak while catching James's eye with the most comforting smile he could offer. "Relax Prongs," his tone was still more honeyed than it had ever been speaking to his best mate, he usually reserved such a thing for teachers he was trying to flatter out of detention. It never worked on anyone but this hippogriff before. "I'm, I'm fine-"

He couldn't keep lying, his voice shook and his fingers began to tremble and the restless animal easily sensed his distress and began ruffling his feathers in unease. Sirius quieted himself and began running his hand along the gray feathers now, stopping to scratch in between the shoulder blades and the back of the neck, those hard-to-reach places that had him almost cooing with content and finally relaxing into him.

No, he was not fine. Of all the trouble he'd ever caused his friends, this was by far the most grievous one yet, now with Harry added to the mix! His godson, his poor godson forced to see this, live Voldemort's pleasure of murdering him! All because he couldn't do one stupid thing right and suck it up in this house. Perhaps he should take a page out of Wormtail's book and start distancing himself from them, give them all a break from his never ending catastrophes!

They watched in distress as Sirius worked himself up to a silent storm, he was clearly making the animal ill at ease as well no matter the affection given, so when Smith grabbed the book up off the ground and began reading, both startled badly yet again. Buckbeak threw his wings to their full extent and shrieked at her while Sirius flinched and had no time to duck, earning the retaliation of being thrown into the heavy curtains and sent them all on top of him, throwing the rest of the room into sharp relief.

Out of the Fire, into the frying pan, Remus finished in his head as he and James rushed forward to help untangle him while the powerful horse legs kicked wildly at the wall, sending a splintering noise in the very foundation while the bellowing shrieks began again.

Alice dropped the book and immediately bowed in apology, mildly appeasing the hippogriff enough he didn't lunge off the bed to attack her at least. He still didn't seem able to settle though, making a keening noise of longing and clicking his beak as he began pacing restlessly on the bed.

It was the most splendid thing in here. The midnight walls had silvery threads in the design up to the ceiling like veins that seemed to seep right down to the canopy that was torn to shreds, but the grandeur ended there. Regulus had only been in here once to even know such a thing was in his parents' room, otherwise it was unrecognizable as all of their things had vanished. They were forbidden from entering, but obviously that hadn't stopped Sirius's purge of the house, which of course made perfect sense why Sirius had put his ruddy pet up here.

His brother smiled, just a bit when his mates got him back on his feet and he realized the same of his own destruction. Regulus longed to throw at him it was doing shit like this why he brought so much of his own troubles on himself, he'd never really tried to make peace with mum and dad. Instead he seemed to go out of his way to do things they dislike just to complain that they hated him.

Regulus cringed at the idea of going back and attempting the same. He'd never be so blatant and in their face at it as his brother, but he didn't much like the idea of them shouting at him the way they did Sirius if he told them he had other plans for his life. He still longed for some kind of peaceful balance.

Potter and Lupin both seemed reluctant to let him back out of arm's length, but the creature refused to settle until Sirius got back on the bed with him and snapped dangerously at anyone who tried to join him. Sirius offered him another rodent carcass and waited until he'd gnashed away at it before nodding back at Smith with that calm aloof air once more he was so familiar with, it was impossible to tell what he was really thinking when he shut down like that, just how they were raised. Mother may actually be proud of him at that moment.

Now his idiot brother was going to die because he'd been in this house too long and refused to listen to anyone, but at least he'd have someone around to notice like Harry and Lupin. The shock of it all felt like an insulting blow to his world view. Sirius was going to be murdered for doing the opposite of what he'd done, was there really no right answer?

She began again in an attempt at a soothing tone like his, and though the bird head was tossed in agitation, he didn't throw his companion aside again but allowed the noise as it did him no harm and her voice was very soft, with fear. She read with dread of poor Harry's panic as he tore off for the Hospital Wing for McGonagall, who wasn't there. She'd been transferred to St. Mungo's.

Harry only had Snape to turn to for help, and that idea didn't seem to be occurring to him as his friends caught up and he had to explain the whole maddening concept to them.

Regulus listened with pity for Harry having to live through this, but something else was ebbing to the surface as he watched the Potter in here. Envy. Sirius kept looking to him, offering him that carefree smile as he kept patting at the beast and even winking at Lupin like this was some joke, making silly faces and even starting to hum a tune under his breath as he continued scratching at the animal, and when he wasn't doing that he was just the haughty Black heir. For all anyone could tell his godson was out having a picnic with him. It was a very good farce a lesser person would have fallen for.

Sirius didn't even look at him. Not to gloat this was the proper way to go against the Dark Lord, not to sneer and mock him for being up in this room he shouldn't be or even to have a laugh about it. He'd known for a very long time now James Potter was his brother's equal in a way he never could be, but this hadn't felt quite so insulting until this very moment where he clearly wasn't even going to be a passing blip as his brother was probably over there pondering what his last thoughts would be.

Frank had his hands on Alice's waist as she read, holding her close as her voice trembled for Harry's pain. They didn't even know Sirius, not really, they felt they had a better understanding of the man he'd become through Harry than the teenager who seemed so determined to ignore the proceedings.

Their aching sympathy though didn't dim their downright confusion at the circumstances. He caught Lily's eyes and saw the same confused expression as she watched him, Hermione's pertinent questions that had no effect on Harry had the three of them very worried something about this wasn't feeling right.

Sirius shouldn't have been leaving this home for this plan to be possible, but this was the same man who'd broken out of Azkaban, that part wasn't so unbelievable no matter who told him what. Why would You-Know-Who need him to get this weapon though? That was a very stumping question, and one they hoped they weren't privy to. If Harry dipped back into the other's mind and heard, the answer would give no relief to these transgressions.

Ron's answer was, plausible, but one look at Regulus didn't make it hold much weight. He'd been killed very soon after his entrance, it seemed laughable he'd even been in You-Know-Who's presence, let alone had some key of knowledge.

Ginny and Luna arriving stopped the impending argument, Harry was so desperate with anger by now that it was a miracle a plan was agreed by all to use Umbridge's fireplace to check this out.

The only one he spoke to for his troubles was Kreacher, laughing about the entire painful situation. Sirius really wasn't there, and now they may get a live version of hearing the great and mighty Black turn out like them if he was tortured while Harry was forced to watch. Neville now being in the very room with them nearly made reality splinter before their eyes.

Lily finally dragged her eyes off of James Potter's white face and buried her own away in her hands so she didn't have to see his reaction when Harry finally remembered Severus Snape was a member of the Order. She didn't even believe anymore he would have helped Harry, she didn't believe much of anything anymore. Here she was, nearly crying in sorrow for these two and only able to imagine her poor son losing someone again, and hating her best friend, what on Earth was this future? How could it be possible something like this could exist?

Something in her sparked traitorously as she looked back up when she heard him lying to Umbridge. Veritaserum was far from the only truth serum, and for him to pretend he wouldn't have any others was laughable. She turned mechanically back to Potter to see his silent screaming was still in full blast, but his wand was in Lupin's hand and he didn't even seem to care. Even the simple fact that he hadn't a reaction for Severus and only had eyes for his best friend felt right to her. If he'd gone about insulting him now, at a time like this, she'd know he was heartless. Instead she was now reasonably confident, almost hopeful again that Severus really was still in the Order for Dumbledore's secret reason rather than any plot of You-Know-Who's. Sev had no reason to lie to Umbridge and help Sirius anymore than he would Harry, but that's exactly what he was doing.

Harry seemed to miss this revelation, he watched his potions teacher go with the purest loathing once more, and she couldn't blame him, after everything Snape had done to her boy. She wrapped her arms around herself as if torn in two. Was this just another false wish then? She still wanted to see in him that childhood friend? It didn't excuse what he'd called her, but maybe if he really saved Sirius Black's life it would show he wanted to change...

Alice nearly shrieked and wanted to throw the book away from herself when Umbridge's next solution was to use the torture curse on Harry. Buckbeak was still no calmer in the heavy environment and glowered at her, but Sirius was quick to keep his attention, a murmuring promise of more spoils for him as soon as he could. He was starting to lose his composure though, they could all see the cracks now. He wasn't even looking at his best mate anymore, his fingers were trembling in the soft texture and his hair was covering most of his face.

The two had once been each other's salvation in escaping Hogwarts, Sirius fought the mad desire to try so now. Throw open that window and ride off into the sunset on the back of the hippogriff, maybe animals could come and go from this nightmare.

He knew he couldn't though, he felt like a coward for even thinking it. His friends might be better off without him, but damn it all, even Hermione was coming up with quite the story to Umbridge's face and got Harry out of that situation, the three of them heading off to the Forbidden Forest! If that girl, who hadn't even wanted to help him moments ago, thinking Harry was having some nightmare, could manage that, he'd suck it up and be there for them any way they wanted him.

[ickle-ronniekins]

protection

request from anon: Hey, can I have some protective Freddie please? I could really use some in my life right about now 💕

request from anon: Hi! This is my first time requesting! I absolutely love your writing it’s so cute 🥺 and makes me blush 🥺 could you possibly write a protective!fred x reader? I loved the one you wrote. Maybe where Draco tries flirting and is quite persistent with the reader or sum. Doesn’t have to be Draco but he was the first character that came to mind. Please 👉👈🥺 Ty! Have a lovely day

request from anon: Hey! Your stories are amazing! Any chance I could request some Freddie fluff at bill and fleurs wedding please?! And maybe some protective Freddie when it gets to the death eaters bit…

word count: 2k

A/N: okay so we’ve got a lot going on here—we’ve got protective fred, jealous fred, wants-to-get-his-fiancé-alone-asap fred, we’re a mess of emotions here pals lol. i have so. many. requests. and i had a bunch asking for protective!fred plus also some fluff at the wedding. i did make the persistent male someone @ the wedding instead of draco but i hope you guys still love it!

tag list: @mintlibri @seppys-return-to-madness @how-do-life-does @fopdoodledane @fredd-weasley @iprobablyshipit91 @semmelsemi @cottageoflove @laneygthememequeen @snakesonaplane-7 @lupinsx @keoghans @helloallthethingsilove @bobduncanlover @dreamer821 | message me if you’d like to be added, loves!

“Think we could just.. skip the wedding, perhaps.. stay up here for the evening, run away tomorrow morning, find a little cottage somewhere and grow old together?”

You laugh softly and push playfully on his chest. “Freddie—”

“Doubt mum would even notice,” he replies, gently running his thumb across your cheek and down your neck, across your shoulder blades, over the goosebumps rising on your arms, “she’ll be crying the entire time, anyway. C’mon—” he jokes, pulling you closer to him, “we won’t be missing much, will we?”

“Don’t let your future sister-in-law hear you,” you tell him, wrapping your arms around the back of his neck. “Promise we’ll have some alone time later. You’ve to help the guests when they arrive. Also—you, sir, promised me a few dances, don’t you remember?”

Fred pauses and considers this for a moment. “You sure you want me to embarrass you like that? In front of all these people, no less?”

You laugh again, letting him twirl you on the spot in the middle of Ginny’s bedroom. He tightens his grip around your waist and begins to slowly lean from side to side, careful not to step on your feet. He stifles a bit of a giggle when he notices you watching. “Yes, my love, I want you to embarrass me—for the rest of our lives.”

— -

George, Bill, and Charlie are a few drinks for the worse at this point. The summer heat is dying down, the sun has completely set behind the hills in front of the Burrow. Fred, dancing horrendously next to his twin in the middle of the dance floor but doing his best to pace himself, holds out his hand to you and pulls you into him.

“I love dancing with you,” he says against your ear.

You hum appreciatively as he squeezes your hips and spins you on the spot, and you both glance at Mrs. Weasley in the corner grinning emotionally at all of her sons and their dates on the dance floor. You turn back to Fred and shake your empty drink at him. “In need of a refill, are we?” He grins lazily at you and you say after placing a hand softly to his cheek, “Be back in a jiff, darling.”

You feel a body appear next to you as you approach the table. You turn; a strapping young man in dark colored robes grins at you and sticks out his hand to introduce himself. It’s firm; his smile brightens more when you take his hand in yours and tell him your name.

“Pleasure to meet you,” you reply, turning back to pour yourself another drink.

He takes you by surprise and asks, “Care to dance?”

“Oh, I’m flattered—” you’re nearly tripping over your words now, a bit stunned at how forward he is. You nod to Fred in the middle of the crowd again, “I’ve actually, erm, got to get back to my fiancé.”

“Fiancé?” he asks with wide eyes, but still—there’s something rather flirtatious in the way he’s eyeing you; it doesn’t seem as though he cares at all that you’re engaged. He inches a bit closer. “Young girl like you, already tied up? Shame, really.”

It’s as if this comment alone calls out to Fred like a signal of some sorts, because before you know it, you feel a hand snake itself around your waist, pulling you closer to him. Fred is there; his eyes have darkened slightly, something you’ve noticed happens in bouts of jealousy. His lips form a thin line; it’s always odd to you when Fred becomes irritable, jealous, angry, when normally, he’s the one who’s always having a laugh.

“Can I help you?” he asks, squaring up the man across from him. You can feel his fingers tighten around your hips and it’s hard for you not to laugh at the tickle it’s causing. You clear your throat in an attempt to suppress your laughter.

“You must be the fiancé.”

“Right I am,” Fred says proudly, taking a swig of his drink. He nods in the direction of a few tables on the other end of the tent, “believe there are a few veela looking for a bloke to have a dance with if that’s what you’re interested in; but this beautiful woman,” he turns to you and grins, “is taken. Or have you chosen to ignore the ring, mate?” You peer down quickly at the sparkling ring on your left hand, and back up at the men in front of you.

“You speak for her?”

You place yourself in between the two of them, now both looking like they’re ready to duel, or worse—kill one another; you squeeze Fred’s hand and say to the other, “No, he doesn’t. Once again, I’m flattered, but I really think it’s time you leave. Wouldn’t want to cause a scene in front of the bride and groom,” you say through gritted teeth, “right?”

A bit embarrassed, but mostly a little on edge, he backs away and heads toward the other end of the tent, sipping rather moodily on his drink. You suck in a deep breath and turn back to Fred, whose eyes are still dark.

“I don’t like him.”

You smile cheekily at him. “You don’t say. Ever met him before?”

“N-no,” Fred replies, taken aback by your teasing, “but it doesn’t matter. Did you hear him? ‘You speak for her?’ What a complete git.”

You pull him close to you and whisper against his neck, “You jealous, love?”

“I’m not jealous,” he replies tersely. He swallows thickly when your grin grows larger before continuing, “I just don’t like the way he was looking at you.”

“Yeah?” you ask, “like how?”

“Like he’ll fall in love.” Fred replies, moving your hair gently out of your face.

“Yeah, well, he can fall in love all he wants,” you tell Fred now, pulling gently on his tie, “but he’s not the one who gets to take me home, is he?”

You know you’ve said the right thing; Fred’s lips curl into a sensual smile and he bites down on his bottom lip, probably to keep himself from jumping on you right then and there. He hums appreciatively before nipping at your neck, “Oh no he isn’t.”

— -

You’re both gently gliding along the dance floor, the soft sounds of harps and piano floating through the air between the guests. Then suddenly, there are a few audible gasps coming from outside the tent where the aurors are standing guard; Fred is tightening his hold around you, a bluish white ball of light shoots through the tent, landing right in the middle of the crowd, only to take the form of a lynx.

And Fred is grabbing your hand tightly, pulling you toward his brothers, and aurors are shouting directions at everyone, and Lupin is rushing the tent when suddenly, black hooded figures enter unannounced and uninvited, the screams of guests and the quick whipping sounds of others Disapparating are filling your ears.

You grab your wand from the pocket of your dress, watching as Harry, Ron, and Hermione Disapparate as Lupin shouts, Bill rushing to protect Fleur at all costs, Fred and George back to back as they shield you and Ginny from any spells or curses headed your direction.

Someone’s shouting angrily about the whereabouts of Harry Potter, Mrs. Weasley is yelling in horror, Lupin is firing spells left and right. Ginny hoists herself on top of a table, Mr. Weasley is dragging her down, George grabs your arm and screams “no!” as Fred closely misses a stunning spell by mere centimeters. Fred pulls you and Ginny together and moves you in the direction of a table. “Under here!” he screams, the force of his weight bearing down on you both.

“No!” Ginny yells, tears streaking her face as, undoubtedly, thinks of the safety of her loved ones. This time, it’s Charlie who’s pushing her down, attempting to shield her yet again, from any spells or curses aimed for you both.

“Let me out!” you scream and push passed Charlie and into the arms of Fred, whose eyes are darker than usual, concern plastered across his face.

“It’s too dangerous!” he yells before wrapping his arms around you and forcing you behind him, only to hit another Death Eater with a stunning spell. It’s as if his words alone are enough to sober him up. “You need to get back—now! Where’s Ginny?”

“No!” you yell over the screams of the guests, “I’m not leaving you!”

Your words are drowned out by the sounds of cries, mock laughter, explosive balls of light, and the crumbling of debris around you as a spell hits you and sends you flying backward, slamming into chairs and tables and nearly knocking you out cold.

And in a half conscious, half awake, barely breathing, horrendous state, you catch glimpses of George shielding his sister, Death Eaters being knocked back by the others, Fred’s tear soaked face as he slings an arm around you and pulls you up from the floor, until before you know it, you’re Apparating Merlin only knows where.

— -

You’re watching from the entrance of Shell Cottage as the sun begins to rise, Fred next to you, asleep on your shoulder, the sound of his breathing like a soothing balm to your soul. Suddenly you feel a blanket wrap around your shoulders and peer up at George, who smiles softly and places a gentle kiss to your forehead before retreating back into the house. “Breakfast should be ready soon.”

“Thanks, Georgie,” you say. Your voice is hoarse in your ears; it sounds strange. Like it’s not even yours. Fred stirs for a moment before fully waking, his eyes bloodshot and tired and weak, only having slept for maybe twenty or so minutes.

There’s silence hanging in the air between you both. You swallow a few times—your throat is extremely dry, it feels like you haven’t eaten or had anything to drink in days. It’s scary that it’s only been a few long hours since the wedding.

“It’s really happening now, isn’t it?” you ask suddenly. The words sound foreign in your mouth. Fred lifts his head in surprise, peers at you solemnly for a moment before squeezing your hand.

He watches a few tears escape your eyes. “Yes,” he replies, and still, it seems so strange to see him in such a serious, stoic state. It makes you feel off balance. You don’t like it. You shudder for a moment and wiggle your way closer to him under the blanket. “But I promise to do everything I can to protect you.”

You wonder, selfishly now, if maybe you should take up Fred’s offer from the day before. Run away, find a small house somewhere far away, grow old together. You wipe a few tears away with your sleeves before turning to face him. You can see tears welling up in his eyes, to. But it’s not long before he’s making you smile and you’re letting laughs escape your lips with no effort. “But we’ve just got to finish this, haven’t we? Reckon those slimy Death Eaters don’t stand a chance—”

And yes, he’s making you laugh, and he’s grinning broadly at you, but the memory of last evening’s events, and the thoughts of events to come, hover over the both of you like a storm cloud ready to release the rain. His voice is a bit shaky when he tells you softly, “We’ll be okay, you know.”

“I hope so.” you reply.

“Besides,” he continues, taking your hand in his and examining the still sparkling ring, “I promised to embarrass you for the rest of our lives, right? Our wedding being the prime spot for it!”

“You’re ridiculous, you are.”

“Yeah,” he replies, kissing your forehead, “but you still agreed to be my wife, anyway.”

And soon, Bill is calling the both of you for breakfast, Ginny is bringing you both steaming cups of morning tea, marking the start of a new, stranger beginning as you both peer in front of you, once more, at the blending of sea and sky.

[malereader-inserts]

broken crown | x.

“As sad and dreadful as death may be, it forces to cherish every moment,” You had hummed out, turning your head to kiss the top of Harry’s head, “Everyone continues to defy the bad, because they see you, Harry. Hope.”

Word Count: 1,692

< Previous | Next >

Harry looked over to you. Lying still, Harry knew you were fine, you were breathing normal and you weren’t abnormally discoloured. The snake wound was closed, just fresh scars that was nasty to look at. But, Harry couldn’t help but feel guilty, he pulled up a chair to your bed before brushing parts of your hair out of your face.

He gets up to join Hermione outside, missing that you were starting to wake up. You groaned as you felt your neck, there was pain there but nothing much after - no blood painting your fingers as you swung your legs around. Stretching your legs as you could hear Harry’s and Hermione voices outside. You grabbed your coat as you exit the tent.

“Why is Harry’s wand broken?”

“I cast a curse and it rebounded,” Hermione says in a sadden tone, “How are you feeling?”

“Surprisingly well,” You responded, shrugging your shoulders, “Here, it’s my turn to wear the locket anyway, let me stand on guard.”

“(Y/n)-”

“Harry,” You responded, “It’ll only be a few hours, and you wore it when we visited Godric’s Hallow, it’s only fair. I need the air anyway and I am the other one with a functional wand.”

Hermione strode to you, taking the locket off as she place it around you. Examining the wound and handing you the blanket, before making her way into the tent. You looked at Harry who sighs, you grabbed his hand before he leaves you alone. You kissed his knuckles, he gives you a strained smile before going back inside.

You sat down, allowing the blanket to cover you as you take out your book form inside your coat. Some times you would take your compass out, watching the arrow spin around, there were times it would point to Harry, other time it would point in a different direction with the only explanation it was pointing to your dad. 

You sighed as you snap it close. Looking up to the clearing, seeing nothing as you hold your hand out. Making shapes and figures out of golden dust you had produced. After some time, Harry comes out to check on you.

“I see you’re in your element,” Harry says, pointing to the gold dust ballerina dancing, “Out of curiosity, do you think you could defeat... him?”

You sat up straight as he sits next to you, “Possibly,” You looked at him, “Dumbledore could as well, and yet he didn’t. Perhaps there’s a reason, or it’s because it’s not our prophecy to fulfil.”

“Right...” Harry nodded as you looked at the golden figurine, blinking as it switches to a young man, praised by people, “You have something on your mind? You’ve be awfully weird.”

“We’re good people, Harry, but what if I get too caught up in the power? Hungry like...you know who? Merlin doesn’t know any of his descendants, he doesn’t know me personally, how does he know I won’t change like that-”

You snapped your fingers and the golden dust boy being praised by others had changed into a black dust, with the figurine shooting spells at the bystanders. Harry watched as you looked at the scene you had produced before allowing the wind to erase it.

“-What if this was a mistake?”

Harry looks at you, “I know you, (Y/n), you’re my best friend, you’re my boyfriend, the one I can trust with my whole life, I know you won’t turn bad. I’m sure you’ve heard from professors that the fates won’t allow it.”

You scoffed, “I don’t think I’d ever hear Harry James Potter talk about the fates,” as Harry shakes his head as you chuckled lightly as he bumps shoulders with you, “But, you’re right, that the thing with fate, you see, I guided my fate... And I'll decide who I am...I fashioned the course of my life and my death. Me. Not you. Not the gods. Not Merlin. Me."

“Well, you’re Merlin!” Harry says as you looked at him, “It’s our nickname for you, remember?”

“How can I forget?” There was no bitterness in your voice, after all, it wasn’t like your friends were expecting too much of you, it was the twins that started with the name, Ginny, Ron, Hermione and Harry just picked up on it.

The two of you sat in silence as Harry leans his head against your shoulder.

“I was scared, you know?” Harry mumbled, coming closer to you and your warmth, “I know you weren’t injured badly but still, people have made sacrifices for me and-”

"Sometimes doing the right thing requires sacrifices and without sacrifices, there can be no victory,” You had spoken, as Harry keeps quiet, “Death is a funny thing, we’ve looked at Death’s eyes more than we should have. You and your journey to end You-Know-Who and me to unlock the cursed vaults of Merlin.”

“Death is an old friend of ours,” Harry whispered, watching the mist exit his mouth.

Harry and you share a bond, often unexplained to others. But, whilst Harry has experience death more than you everyone, in the end, experience loss. You two have been burden with a purpose you did not want, sharing bitterness. You were always there for him, patient with his outbursts and always there to listen to him just like he was to you. Sometimes, you two don’t need to say anything and you would understand.

There was mutual love, care and affection needed within two broken boys. Hiding the truth from the world, and facing the truth together. Many don’t believe that Potter and Lupin were dating after all, you weren’t often hands on with each other. But, Hermione and Ron see different types of affection, a different type of love.

“As sad and dreadful as death may be, it forces to cherish every moment,” You had hummed out, turning your head to kiss the top of Harry’s head, “Everyone continues to defy the bad, because they see you, Harry. Hope.”

“What if I don’t see that? The hope that I can make a better country.”

“While there is life, there is hope,” You say as Harry looks at you, you smiled at him softly, pushing hair from his eyes, “Don’t ever let Hermione give you a haircut.”

He chuckles, he looks down at the locket, slowly taking it from your neck and puts it on him. He shows that Hermione has given him her wand for the night as you give him the blanket. 

“Don’t do anything stupid.”

He smiles up at you as you stretched your legs, a glimmer in his eyes, “No promises.”

“I see Ron is back.”

The three of them looked at you as Ron looked at you sheepishly, waving at you. Sword at hand and the locket - broken. You raised an eyebrow at him.

“Hi, mate,” Ron greeted, before craning his neck, “What happened to your neck?”

You crossed your arms, “Snake attack.”

“Right.” Ron nods as Hermione sighs, looking at Harry.

You were sat on the stairs half-listening to Ron and Harry as you concentrate on your book. Blinking a few time as you struggle to read English. You only escaped the book as Hermione marched into the tent, causing all three of the boys to stand up.

“We need to talk,” She said, mostly towards Harry.

“Yeah, all right,” Harry nods as Hermione looked at him.

“I want to go see Xenophilius Lovegood,” Hermione stated as you and Harry share a look of confusion. 

“Sorry?” Harry questioned, confused.

Hermione sighs and gives Harry the book she had stolen from Baghilda’s home, “See this? It's a letter Dumbledore wrote to Grindelwald. Look at the signature. It's the mark again,” She closes the book sitting on the stop you had once occupied, “It keeps cropping up. In Beedle the Bard, in the graveyard in Godric's Hollow.” “It was there too,” Harry mumbled as you looked at him.

“Where?” You questioned.

“Outside Gregorovitch's Wand Shop,” Harry answered,  “But what does it mean?” “Look, you've got no idea where the next Horcrux is, and neither do I, but this, this means something.”

“How do you make Hermione stop being mad at you?” Ron asked, walking next to you as you walk towards the rook house that resides the Lovegoods.

You give your best friend a side eye, “Well, she never really stops being mad, Ron.”

“Helpful mate,” Ron scoffs as you smiled at him, patting him on the shoulder, he seems to be alright with you slight dig as he flashes you a smile.

“She’ll come around, she always does.”

As Xenophilius Lovegood allows you to come inside, he offers you all to go upstairs. You looked at Harry, who shrugs his shoulders as you give him a long to why Lovegood was taking his time. 

“So how can I help you, Mr. Potter?” He asked after an awkward silence had subsided and everyone took a sip of the horrendous tea.

“Well, actually... It was about something you were wearing around your neck at the wedding. A symbol,” Harry asked, not knowing how to approach the situation.  “You mean this?” He holds the necklace up as Harry nods.

“Yes, that exactly,” Harry looked at him, touching the symbol before making eye contact with the man, “What we've wondered is, what is it?”

“What is it?” Lovegood questions, repeating Harry, you shifted uncomfortable, “Well, it's the sign of the Deathly Hallows, of course.”

“The what?” The four of you chimed in, as Hermione had leaned in for a better look whilst you had seen Ron just being confused with the whole situation - you could feel how awkward Ron felt being there.

“The Deathly Hallows. I assume you're all familiar with "The Tale of the Three Brothers."?” 

“Yes,” You, Hermione and Ron spoke at the same time.

“No.” Harry spoke over the other three as he looked lost, it wasn’t the first time Harry lacked knowledge.”

“I have it in here,” Hermione rummaged through her bag, before pulling her book out. 

Opening it up the page, she took a deep breath, looking at everyone, especially Harry as she started to read the book.

Tagged

@carefulthatsharassment-sir​​ @lanlanlan020202​ @hanniejji​ @dumbssbtch​ @lea-the-foxe​ @stan-joonies​ @littertortilla @purpleshusbandd

[dxxdlexxdle]

Mr. and Mrs. Prongs Love Story Headcanon!

my fav heteros deserve some love tonight. it’s raining currently where i live, and it’s a good night to write some heart-wrenching headcanons, i think!

words: 1,694

warnings: fluff, hints at smut, maybe? pain. eternal fucking suffering cause this fandom kills me. some of the storyline may be fucked my memory is HORRIBLE and i tried to base some scenes off of MsKingBean89’s all the young dudes

—

In their first year at Hogwarts, the very first day they had even been inside the castle, actually, James Potter realized something.

The copper haired girl across from him was awfully pretty.

She was disgusted at the way he declared someday they would be married. “WHY would I ever marry you?” She had shouted, moving down the table to the blonde and curly haired witches she had met earlier on the train. James stared at her, doe-eyed. She was perfect.

This did however mean he was the first of the boys to take an interest in girls. By girls I mean, well, just Lily. Sirius Black thought it was awfully funny. “Mate, girls have cooties.” Remus Lupin was too shy to have an opinion. Peter could hardly even tell his own feet apart from left and right, and his lip trembled when he got yelled at, so there was no hope for him.

James took to teasing Lily to try and get his point across. Lily thought it was horrible. Why was he being so horrid if he supposedly fancied her? Why did he even fancy her in the first place? Somebody like her, a witch from non-magic parents, and somebody like him, a pureblood wizard?

It wasn’t until one day in potions she told him just what she thought of him. His tormenting had gone on too long. He had bewitched one of her pigtails to tug on its own from across the room.

“You are foul, James Potter!” She had shouted, resulting in thirty points from Gryffindor. James had just beamed.

James was a smiling mess, really. For starters, she had said his name, out loud, to him. Secondly, her nose scrunched when she was angry.

Anybody would notice a girl’s nose scrunch when she was angry, surely?

In second year, he announced that this would be the year she would want to marry him too. Alas, no luck. If anything, this year, she came prepared with snarky remarks to his teasing. It made him swoon.

In third year, Lily Evans overheard the boys whispering in the common room.

“What are you four planning?” She had asked, plopping down beside her lanky, slightly edgy looking best mate Remus. She avoided James’ eyes.

“Look at this, Mrs. Prongs come to join the party.” Sirius chuckled, and James punched him in the arm.

“Mrs. Prongs..?”

“SIRIUS.” James hissed at his friend who was doubled over.

In fourth year, she had begun to tolerate him. The teasing from Sirius was what did it. James was bad enough, his almost-brother was as relentless as him, but for different reasons.

“Prongs and Lily, sitting in the Whomping Willow, S-N-O-G-“

“Sirius!” Lily and James shouted in unison, equally red.

Fifth year changed them both. This was when Lily realized Remus was a werewolf. She swore secrecy, and promised to tell nobody else, as long as she lived.

James had already known. Once a month he was running in the woods as a stag, pushing his half-wolf friend around playfully with his antlers- or should I say prongs? ;)

In sixth year, Remus Lupin noticed Lily sitting in the stands, watching Gryffindor’s quidditch practice.

“What’s got you here? Marlene isn’t at practice today?”

Lily had turned a shade almost as red as her hair. “Oh Remus, don’t make me say it,” she hissed. Remus was in a fit of giggles.

“You fancy James!”

“Hush!” And she whacked his arm with her textbook.

To be honest with herself, this was not the beginning of how she felt for James. It had been a fluttering feeling in her tummy when she noticed him in the common room a few weeks earlier, sweater sleeves rolled up, reading over the quidditch signups. His messy hair, his glasses perched on the bridge of his nose..

But, anybody would notice the way a boy’s sleeves were rolled up, exposing brown skin and pretty veins, surely?

Lily never knew this, but James had noticed her watching him. He kept the smirk to himself. He felt the flutter too. Ah yes, twitterpated.

Sixth year was also the year they learned how to cast a patronus. A silver doe shot from Lily’s wand on her first try, which elicited squeals from the girls and cheers from the boys. The deer pranced around the room, as if looking for something. As if missing something.

James purposely disrupted the class that day, so he could be sent out. It cost 50 points, but he didn’t care. He knew as soon as he cast the stag that would shoot from his wand everybody would know, and he just couldn’t do that to Evans.

In 1977, when the Marauders and co. went on their camping trip, James and Lily really had only stayed up talking that night, despite the somewhat knowing looks Sirius tried to pass to James in the morning.

It had been late, after Remus had come out, and the other girls crashed in their tent. Sirius had gone down to the beach after him.

“Sirius ought to leave him be, reckon that was difficult to admit..” and James scratched the back of his neck. Lily had turned to him then. Their eyes met.

“Are you joking? They’re both gay, you idiot. They’re very clearly in love. Look at the way Sirius looks at Remus, he looks at him the way I look at you.”

Their kisses had been hot and heavy in the darkness of their tent, but that was it. Kisses the two had waited far too long for.

That night, James admired the girl lying beside him. He pulled out his wand and cast his patronus, and due to the size of the tent the stag was tiny, dancing over their heads. Lily blushed and cast hers. For the first time, the doe wasn’t searching anymore. She had found the stag.

Their relationship was as expected. Letters all summer, Lily even taught her boyfriend how to use a muggle phone. Then, in the autumn, they were all over each other. Holding hands in public, snogging in broom closets,

“You are foul!” Lily had giggled, smacking her boyfriend on the hand as it slipped up her skirt in potions.

“What was that, Princess?” He murmured, and she couldn’t argue with him anymore

James admired her every minute he had the chance. How she looked reading, sleeping, spilling tea down her sweater, and especially how she looked at him with her heavy, fluttering eyelashes.

Because, how could he not admire the prettiest girl in the world when he was on top of her?

After they graduated, they immediately moved in together. Due to the war, Lily promised her muggle parents she would be safer. Although they didn’t understand (or like) the idea of their daughter fighting a war, they let her go with warm goodbyes.

They fought. They attended order meetings. They had lunch with Peter and Sirius and Marlene and Mary and Dorcas when they could. They fretted over Remus’ whereabouts. They paced.

Lily proposed. Well, I suppose James proposed first every damn year at Hogwarts, but she meant it for real that time. They were married by the fall. They invited everybody still alive, and they danced, and they seemed to glow under twinkling fairy lights. They had cast their patronuses again that night, just so the doe and the stag could dance over their heads.

“Reckon they like each other?” James smirked, and Lily just laughed.

When she found out she was pregnant, James slung her over his shoulder and spun around with her, and they laughed. They laughed until they cried because holy shit, we’re having a baby!

He talked to her belly every time he had the chance. “Hello little boy-“

“Could be a girl,” Lily objected, leaning against the headboard, guiding James’ hand with hers over to where the baby was kicking.

“Right. Whatever they are, they’ll kick ass on the quidditch pitch, huh bub?”

In July, with a scream and a cry and a push, a slimy baby was placed on Lily’s chest. She couldn’t believe it. She couldn’t believe she was here, with this boy who chose her, looking at their beautiful boy. James was right, and he was ecstatic.

“A son! I’ve a son-“ and then he was too choked up.

They taught Harry how to hold his head up, they both tried to get him to say “Mumma” and “Dada.” They took polaroids of his drooly smiles and his giggles. They took pictures of Uncle Moony and Padfoot holding him. They had a picture of Uncle Peter with Harry on his hip, and the pen on the bottom read ‘future chess master ;)’

When they went into hiding, their only real fight was about whether Remus was the spy.

“He’s our friend,” Lily had argued, angrily picking up baby toys from the floor and putting them into the toy bin.

“But he’s a were-“

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence,” Lily said, tears threatening her waterline. “Remus is a good man. He’s as good as you or Peter, or Sirius. He is our friend. He’s my friend. He would never.”

And although that night they fought, James still told Lily to take the baby and run, because even though they were angry, he’d die before he ever let Voldemort touch her.

“James, wait, I’m sor-“

“You and me, right Lily?” His voice was strained. He almost couldn’t look at her. At the fear in his eyes that reflected in hers- the eyes he had to see every time he looked at his beautiful son. He wanted to run with her, but he knew he couldn’t. “Take Harry and go. It’s him. I’ll hold him off.”

Lily Evans made it upstairs by the time the front door was blown open. Harry had been asleep. She cradled him in her arms, preparing for the blast of the door being opened.

“Harry, Mumma loves you. Dada loves you. Be brave, Harry.”

James Potter died thinking Lily Evans had made it out alive. It wasn’t until the stag saw a familiar silver doe at the edge of the woods, waiting for him, that he knew.

—

#imsosorryyall

[whenihaveyouromione]

When I Have You - Chapter 18

Read on Fanfiction.net or ao3 if you’d prefer!

Follow this story’s Instagram account ‘whenihaveyou.romione’ for fanart, challenges and sneak peeks!

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

Chapter 18

Four days after Christmas, Ron and Harry stood in the living room of Grimmauld Place, staring down at the small child in front of them. 

The boy looked up, a little fearfully, clutching a teddy bear close to his chest. 

Teddy was a quiet boy (so unlike his mother) and hadn’t appreciated being left alone with two near-strangers when Andromeda had left only five minutes before. He hadn’t cried, but he’d clung to her as she left via the Floo, wishing Harry (and Ron) good luck. She’d somehow managed to unglue him from her and disappear all in a matter of seconds.

Teddy was now their responsibility for the next two hours. 

Or Harry’s, but Harry wasn’t going to let Ron get out of it easily. 

“And you thought this was a good idea because…?” Ron said as Teddy simply sat there, clutching his bear and watching them. 

“Because I owe it to Remus and Tonks,” Harry replied, though he didn’t sound convinced. “He’s… my godson, and I spent thirteen years not knowing Sirius. I don’t want that for him.”

Ron nodded, turning back to the baby. In the five minutes they’d been standing there, Teddy’s hair had changed colour three times. 

“Well, we know he takes after his mother in that way,” Ron said, smiling. 

“Yeah,” Harry said. “Er, so, Teddy, what do you want to do today?”

Teddy continued watching them. He stuck his thumb in his mouth. 

“Not sure he can answer, mate,” Ron said. 

“Andromeda said he’s fascinated by magic,” Harry replied, and he took out his wand. 

Teddy’s eyes lit up the moment he saw it. His thumb came out, he dropped the teddy bear and he stretched out his arms as if wanting the wand. He made a sound that might have meant he was asking for it, but Ron couldn’t be sure. He didn’t speak baby. 

“It’s pretty cool, isn’t it?” Harry said, looking pleased with himself at managing to make the boy smile. “You want to see some magic?”

Teddy continued to reach for the wand, but seeming to realise that wasn’t going to work, he crawled closer, sat at Harry’s feet, and reached up. 

Harry beamed. “Alright…” and he allowed a rainbow of fireworks to leave his wand, shooting them upwards towards the ceiling. 

Teddy squealed with delight, clapping his little hands and then reaching up to try and grab them.  

When they’d all extinguished, he stopped and turned back to Harry, an expectant look in his eyes. 

Harry set off more fireworks, Teddy’s expression one of pure, innocent delight. Ron watched on with amusement. 

It wasn’t until the third time of Harry producing the sparks did Teddy get a little over excited. He got onto his knees in an attempt to reach them, but he apparently wasn’t that skilled in such a movement. Before either Ron or Harry had registered, he’d fallen forwards and face-planted the ground, his head narrowly missing the corner of the coffee table.  

Harry’s mouth fell open. There was silence for a few seconds, and then came the piercing screams of Teddy. He sat up, clutching his face — which thankfully looked fine — tears pouring from his eyes. 

Harry swore, pocketing his wand, and bent down to pick up the screaming child. 

“It’s alright,” Harry said, rocking Teddy back and forth in his arms. He looked incredibly uncomfortable and ridiculous doing it, and Ron wondered just how people ever managed to parent a child. It seemed so unnatural — at least for Harry (and Ron) in that moment. 

They were virtually kids themselves, and as Teddy continued to scream, shaking his head and fighting Harry’s hold, Ron realised that they had made a terrible mistake in doing this. They weren’t ready to look after someone so young.  

Harry being Harry, though, had gone on some stoic power trip when he’d insisted that he and Ron would be fine looking after Teddy for a few hours. Andromeda had even offered to stay, but Harry had said no, apparently feeling some responsibility to the boy. 

Even then, Ron had had his doubts. Harry could still be a godfather with Andromeda there supervising them. He’d said as much to Harry, but Harry had been determined. 

Well, so far it was going well. They’d had him for no longer than ten minutes and he’d already been injured. 

Harry turned to Ron, still awkwardly bouncing the crying baby, appealing for help. Ron shrugged. He knew as much about children as Harry did.

They weren’t cut out for this. 

Still trying to settle Teddy five minutes later, Harry once again appealed desperately to Ron. He even held Teddy out for Ron to take.

Ron took a step back. 

“Oh, no,” he said. “I’m not —”

“I have no idea what I’m doing!” Harry said.

“And you think I do?” Ron retorted.

Harry looked close to tears as he tried everything with Teddy, but to no avail. The baby just kept on crying, yet physically, he seemed fine. 

“Maybe going out might be better?” Ron suggested. “You know, in public? Maybe someone will take pity on us and offer to help.”

Harry nodded, now swaying Teddy backwards and forwards. It didn’t work. 

“Hey, Teddy,” Ron said. 

To his utter astonishment — and to Harry’s, it seemed — Teddy stopped crying. Ron wasn’t even sure the boy was old enough to know his name, but whatever — for a moment, they had a non-screaming child.

Teddy looked at him with a very suspicious expression. 

Ron swallowed. Right about now he felt that having three tarantulas on his arm would be preferable than entertaining a child who he’d never truly met before. This was why he’d never volunteer to look after Bill’s child alone. Uncle duties could be performed under supervision. 

A lot of supervision. 

“How do you feel about cool toys?”

Teddy continued to watch him curiously. He obviously had no idea what Ron was asking, but seemed intrigued by his voice. 

“You like toys?” Ron continued, glancing at Harry who was staring at him with a look of confusion. 

The only response was now blue eyes staring back at him. They’d been brown a moment ago. 

“Toys?” Harry asked in exasperation. “Mate, we have no —”

“The joke shop,” Ron said. 

Harry paused. “But that’s not open.”

“George is still there.” Ron shrugged. He looked back to the baby and smiled. “I know a cool place where you can play with all the toys you want.”

Teddy didn’t do anything other than stare at Ron. Though, his hair had changed to a fiery red, which was a very odd sight. 

Harry looked mildly impressed as he said, “Alright, let’s go and look at all the toys.” He then hesitated. “You don’t think George’ll mind, do you?”

“I reckon seeing some kid’s face light up will really be the motivation George needs to reopen,” Ron said.

Harry nodded, carrying Teddy over to the fireplace.

“Maybe a coat for him?” Ron suggested. “It’s threatening to snow today.”

“Oh, right!” Harry said and he Summoned Teddy’s coat from the sofa. “Merlin, never let me have children,” he added.

Ron smiled. “I’m sure it’s different when you know them better.”

Harry put the coat around Teddy and then stepped into the fireplace. 

It wasn’t until Harry and Teddy had disappeared in a sea of green flame did a sudden sense of dread wash over Ron. The idea of visiting one of the last places he’d seen his brother suddenly felt very overwhelming, and he was surprised that he’d even bothered to mention it to Harry at all. It had been a spur of the moment idea, one he’d suggested without thinking. But now the idea of setting foot inside... was that how George felt too? Walking into the place every day where all of his fondest memories of Fred were and having to sweep up the last remaining pieces of the jokes he’d left behind? 

Ron Disapparated directly to Diagon Alley. He landed just on the other side of the brick wall to the Leaky Cauldron in one of the assigned Apparition points. 

Being a Saturday, the alley was packed with shoppers, all going about their daily business, hardly noticing Ron or the other Apparators who’d appeared moments after him. 

He only had to wait a few minutes by the wall before it jumped apart and out stepped Harry with Teddy in his arms. 

Teddy’s eyes widened at the large number of people walking about — all dressed in wizard clothes, all laughing and talking with one another. It was incredible to see how, almost a year later, people were returning to some normalcy after the war.

Diagon Alley hadn’t been like this two years ago, but it was once again resembling his childhood memories of coming with his family. 

Ron led the way through the crowd, making a path for Harry and the small child they’d ended up with. They received some looks — well, mostly Harry, who was still so easily recognisable by everyone. They were no doubt wondering who the child was and why he was with Harry. 

Ron couldn’t help but smile at what the gossip articles would publish in the coming days. No one knew that Harry had been named godfather of Teddy Lupin and he was certain some people would run wild with their theories. 

They hadn’t walked very far when Teddy began wailing again. 

Ron stopped and turned to face a panicked Harry, who was once again bouncing the poor child. 

Merlin help Harry’s future children, Ron thought. 

What had Harry been thinking? The louder Teddy cried, the more he thrashed against Harry, and the more difficult he was for Harry to keep a hold of. If only Andromeda had been here. Or… Molly.

She’d dealt with seven children, she would have known what to do. Perhaps the Burrow should have been their point of call and not Diagon Alley. 

“Come on,” Ron said, and a large path had cleared now that Teddy was causing a scene. 

“Ron, do you reckon George will let us in?” Harry said over Teddy’s cries.

“If not, I can get us inside,” Ron said over his shoulder. He stopped out the front of the unlit joke shop. George still lived above it, and despite refusing to open, Ron knew his brother still came down every so often, mostly to sit in the back office and contemplate things. 

He peered through one of the windows to try and catch a glimpse of his brother. To his relief, he caught movement near the counter at the back and knocked loudly. 

He saw the figure jump, then look over with a rather irritated expression. It didn’t improve when he saw Ron’s face peering through the window. 

Mouthing something that Ron could only assume was a long trail of swear words, George came to the door and flung it open. 

“The sign says closed,” he said irritably. 

“I know,” Ron said. “But we are in desperate need of some entertaining devices. Anything for a small child.”

“A small child?” George asked. “Dear Merlin, what have you done, Ron?”

“Nothing,” Ron scowled. He indicated Harry and Teddy standing slightly behind him, Teddy’s cries now reduced to whimpers as he looked at the newest stranger before him.

George’s eyes widened. “Is that —”

“Teddy Lupin, yeah,” Ron said. “We’ve had him for twenty minutes and already he’s hit his face and spent most of the time crying. Please can you help us?”

George stared between the three of them for a moment, then with a heavy sigh, stepped aside to let them in.

“Are you two babysitting, are you?” George asked. “Really?”

“Harry’s idea,” Ron said, stepping into the shop. “I thought it was a very dangerous idea, myself.”

“Merlin help the poor boy.” George smirked, and Ron was pleased to see a hint of his old brother back — no matter how quick it vanished again. 

“Do you have anything to keep him busy?” Harry asked. “Ron promised him a toy.” Teddy was now fussing so much that Harry was forced to put him on the ground. His crying had stopped completely, eyes scanning the shop eagerly. 

The moment he was on the ground, Teddy crawled off amongst the shelves.

George grimaced. “I just sorted them.”

“Well, find something for him!” Ron said. 

“My products are more suited for five and up.”

“A toy wand would do,” Harry said, hurrying forward to catch Teddy before he emptied a shelf of bottomless cauldrons. “I know you have them.”

George hurried to a shelf and extracted one of the toy wands Harry had mentioned.

“Oi, Teddy…” 

Teddy stopped. His eyes turned to George. George held up the wand.

Teddy crawled forward, and George bent down to pass him the wand. He waved it around for a few moments, stuck it in his mouth, and then tossed it aside. He crawled off again. 

Looking a bit frazzled, Harry chased after him, leaving Ron and George alone. 

“I can see you’ve been working on it,” Ron said, trying to keep his voice even. He didn’t want to sound hopeful, or excited, but it pleased him nonetheless. 

George shrugged. “Something to do.”

“You still don’t want to open up then?” Ron asked. 

George remained silent, his eyes staring at nothing in particular. Ron noted that he wouldn’t even look at him. 

“Mate, if you need any help — Harry and I are free most weekends.”

“I wouldn’t ask you to —”

“You’re not,” Ron said. “I’m volunteering. And Harry. He volunteered me for Teddy, so this is his payback.”

George shook his head. “I haven’t decided what I want to do with this place. This was… ours. It almost feels wrong to do it without him.”

Ron hesitated. He had to tread carefully. “I’m sure he —”

“I know, Ron,” George said. “He’s probably sitting back, wherever he is, rolling his eyes at me and telling me to get back into the game now.”

Ron smiled. That sounded exactly like something Fred would say. “The offer still stands,” he said. “Whenever you need us.”

“Thanks,” George replied. “That means… something.”

While Harry was occupied with chasing Teddy around, George showed Ron around the shop. It really was no different to the only other time Ron had set foot in it, apart from the melancholy atmosphere. The vibrance of the place two years ago had gone, replaced by the despair of the war and its aftermath. 

“What do you think people need to get a good laugh?” George asked after a while.

The question unsettled Ron. It was strange hearing George ask that. He was normally the one with the answers on how to make people laugh. 

But he wasn’t going to deter his brother, who suddenly seemed somewhat interested in starting up his business again. 

“Something that lets them look to the future and not at the past.”

“So, a crystal ball?” George said.

Ron smiled. “Something like that.” He looked over to where Teddy was once again trying to empty the shelves. “Maybe things appropriate for the real little ones. Soft toys that come to life. I know Muggles have those things inside toys that help it make noise. I don’t know what they’re called —” 

“Batteries?” George said. “We looked into some Muggle things when creating some of our stuff.”

“Probably. Anyway, they have them. But, what kid wouldn’t love a dragon that opens its mouth and roars, or a stuffed house-elf that plays with them?”

George stared at Ron for a moment, seeming a little shocked by the suggestions. Then, he said, “Huh. Maybe.”

“Just a thought,” Ron said, shrugging. 

“Maybe we should go back,” Harry said, coming back over to them, his glasses slightly askew and his hair sticking up all over the place. He was clutching Teddy around the middle, who had a fistfull of rubbish in his hands. “Andromeda will be back soon and she mightn’t be happy if she learns we’ve taken him out…”

“She’s probably thrilled to have a break,” Ron said. “Imagine having a kid that young in your care when she’s as… old as she is.”

“Do you think I should offer to look after Teddy more often?” Harry asked, sounding defeated. “To give her more breaks?”

Ron shrugged. “How would I know?”

“Well…” George said, looking over at Teddy, “at least you’re going to hand him back in one piece. That’s something.”

“Very true,” Ron said. “If it was just me, he’d be handed back in a Floo powder box.” He stepped forward and gently removed the pieces of torn up paper from Teddy’s clenched fists. The boy didn’t protest. In fact, he yawned, snuggling his head into Harry’s shoulder. 

They bid farewell to George, Ron once again offering George some help.

Diagon Alley was still as packed as ever, but with Teddy firmly in Harry’s arms, they made their way through the crowd without any hassle. 

Once back at Grimmauld Place, Teddy was sound asleep in Harry’s arms. 

“Andromeda will be happy,” Ron said. “You got him to sleep.”

“It’s been alright, hasn’t it?” Harry asked, carefully lying Teddy on the sofa of the living room and placing a protective enchantment around it like Andromeda showed him just in case he rolled over.

Ron snorted. “If you call chasing him around the shelves of a joke shop alright.”

Harry smiled. “I think I will offer to do it again. I owe it to Remus and Tonks… and I owe it to myself, I think, too.”

Ron nodded, not needing to ask what Harry meant. Harry, the boy who had grown up in a home that wasn’t ideal, had not known his parents, had not felt loved or wanted, or even appreciated, did not want the same fate for any other person — especially the son of a friend. Where Harry’s own godfather had been unable to raise Harry, Teddy’s life would be different. Harry would make sure of that. 

“And, like I said to George,” Ron said, “my offer to help you as well is there. If you need it. Can’t say I liked today, but it was hard enough with the two of us, so I couldn’t imagine you on your own.”

“Ha,” Harry said. “Thanks.”

Ron looked over to the sleeping Teddy. “He’s cute when he’s asleep.”

“I think all children are,” Harry replied, and he sat down on the same sofa Teddy was now fast asleep on, watching the boy with something resembling affection. 

[space-helen]

Impress

Words: 1154

Pairing: Remus Lupin x Reader

A/N: I love Remus  🥺

Request: 🥺 could I request Remus trying to impress a Slytherin Professor who's also Healing Arts teacher? 🥺 - @humaninventorysystem

______________________

Remus had known you for years but would never say that you were close friends in the slightest, even more so now since you hadn’t seen each other in what seemed like forever. 

He was taken by surprise when you walked into the great hall on the first day back at Hogwarts and sat at the professor's table. You however, were not surprised to see him. You knew he’d joined the team of staff this year since news travelled between professor’s fairly quickly.

You smiled at the man politely before taking your seat at the opposite side of the table. Remus’ eyes followed you as he did so. From that moment on he kept glancing down the table towards you, still shocked yet enchanted by your presence. He thought he no longer held a crush for you after all this time but he was proved otherwise as soon as he saw you again. He felt himself blush at the prospect of being near you again, surely fate had meant for this to happen.

Remus spent the next month trying to spend time with you but it seemed like you were always busy and your schedules never lined up. At one point you’d expressed how much you wanted a good cup of tea before running back to your classroom and he delivered. He made you a special cup and delivered it to your classroom before disappearing, it took him until then to realise you were in-fact Hogwarts’ Healing Arts teacher. 

After that he saw you pass his classroom on several occasions, sometimes stopping outside to talk to other teachers or speak to students. You admired how he taught the children, they genuinely seemed engaged and responsive to his teaching. The position seemed natural to him and you were happy to finally see him happy and content. One time he caught you staring into the classroom and he smiled at you before casting a demonstrative spell in front of the class, a spell which would be hard for most wizards but he cast it with ease. That day you left impressed but he’d caught your heart in another way long before then.

He stuffed his hands in his pockets and left his classroom, having no more classes for the day he decided to take a stroll around the castle. He let his mind aimlessly wander between thoughts as he walked. As he turned a corner the whole corridor brightened up, the windows much larger here, the light caused him to look up to see you sitting on a bench next to the window looking out, a book on your lap folded closed with your fingers in between the pages to mark your place.

He quickly pushed his hair back before slowly walking towards you “Professor Y/L/N?”

He watched you jump as if he’d ripped you from some deep thought before you turned to him and smiled “Professor Lupin. Please.” you gestured for him to sit next to you as you moved your legs, the two of you sat either end of the bench but turned into each other with your knees touching.

“It’s good to see you.” he smiled a wide genuine smile “I’m sorry I didn’t come and talk to you properly sooner.”

“Remus it’s fine.” you reassured the man “I’m sure you’ve been really busy catching the students up on stuff they’ve missed learning from the last two atrocities that were teaching them.”

He laughed at your comment “You could say that.”

“I appreciated the tea the other day by the way. No one makes a tea like you.”

The man blushed and looked at you his eyes softening as he noticed you still wore your house colours even after all this time. “I see you haven’t got out of the habit of dressing for your house.” he teased.

“Well some of us have an aesthetic that we like to stick to. I see you’re still in those cardigans.” 

“Touche” 

“Don’t worry though I don’t always wear my house colours.” you joked and nudged the man slightly.

“Green’s a good colour on you though.” he complimented.

The two of you fell into silence briefly, but it wasn’t awkward in the slightest.

“So Healing Arts? I didn’t take you to be a healer.”

“Still hanging onto those Slytherin stereotypes huh?” you raised an eyebrow at the man as he caught your eyes. What you didn’t expect was for the man to look almost as quickly away towards the floor, his face going bright red and his hands coming together on his lap to fidget.

“That’s not what I meant at all. I just meant that. I’m sorry Y/N I didn’t mean to offend you I was just trying to say…”

You laughed “Remus it’s ok I was just teasing. Slow down.” you reassuringly placed a hand on his arm.

He sat to his full height again and took a deep breath and smiled “What I was trying to say is that the last time we spent a significant amount of time together your interests weren’t within healing arts and instead you were more interested in Astronomy.”

“Well, as you should know, sometimes it’s just about taking a job that's offered. Maybe one day I’ll get to do something I love and teach Astronomy.” you paused for a second and thought over your last sentence “It’s not that I don’t like Healing Arts, apparently I’m quite talented at it but it’s not something I want to be stuck doing forever. My heart lies with the stars and space.”

“I understand. I really just got lucky with the Defence Against the Dark Arts Position.”

“You’re a natural teacher, I’ve seen you teach. Those kids hang on every word. They’re finally learning something.”

“They’ve had a rough time with teachers.” he admitted.

The sound of hoards of children walking down the corridor made Remus tear his eyes from you, the two of you stayed unmoved as you watched all of the students go to their next class. A small first year trailing behind everyone else dropped his books and Remus quickly leapt up and helped the boy pick them up “Here you go.” The boy gladly took the books and was soon running down the corridor again shouting his thanks behind him. You smiled at the gesture, Remus really was kind of heart.

The corridor was quiet yet again and Remus took his seat back next to you.

“So, another free period?” 

He nodded “The first afternoon off in a long time.”

“Same here” you beamed. You took a moment to look out of the window and take in the beautiful scene in front of you before turning to the man. “Since the weather’s nice, how about we go for a stroll around the grounds.”

Remus jumped up from his seat and held his hand out to you “I’m up for it if you are.”

Tag List: (open)

Remus: All Harry Potter: @andreasworldisboring101 @wallows-spring​

[the-glitter-acetylcholine]

Harry Potter characters that were criminally underused (in no particular order)

(MAJOR SPOILERS)

Luna Lovegood - literally only introduced like halfway through the fifth book, yet probably the most influential ravenclaw character. Her odd mannerisms and odder outlook would have made her a fabulous addition to the golden trio’s shenanigans, yet she only serves this purpose in one case

Mad-eye Moody - he’s “well-developed” in the fourth book, and we get a lot of content of him... only to discover it wasn’t him at all. Then, he briefly appears with the order and then dies. Great. What a wonderful use of a skilled fighter and mentor.

Remus Lupin - okay, so he does get the whole third book but then... he just fucks off? Ofc then he, too, returns to fight with the order, fall in love with a woman half his age, have a baby with her, and then die immediately thereafter. He’s just such a cool guy with so much to offer to Harry and to readers (when it comes to insight on discrimination in the wizarding community) and he just doesn’t get a chance to do nearly enough. What a wasted opportunity.

Pravati and Padma Patil - yeah, these are two different characters, but we know so little about them that I can’t even discuss them individually. They’re twins in different houses! How cool! There’s so much to be explored there, especially considering the competitive atmosphere among houses that Harry perceives. Not to mention the fact that they inexplicably agreed to go to the Yule Ball with Harry and Ron respectively despite a) apparently not knowing them very well and b) not even being all that desperate to hang out with them at the ball (I think Padma asks Ron to dance a few times and then gives up) (side note: this made me extremely mad when I was little, because I had I major crush on Padma). What compelled them to do that? What are they like? What are the differences between them that caused them to be sorted into different houses? Gah, they could have been so interesting!

Cho Chang - this is one that makes me genuinely a little mad (same goes for #6). She’s just so two dimensional, and that’s really not fair. She’s a decoration on Harry’s arm for what? A year or two? And she then cries, dates Diggory, and then she cries again (I think she dates Diggory first but you get the point). HER PURPOSE IS NOT JUST TO CRY OVER GUYS. She’s a ravenclaw. Let’s hear about that. Where do her interests lie? Is she an academic? Is she an artist? What kind of intelligence does she have, what kind of knowledge does she seek? What made her like Harry to begin with? Did Harry ever like her for more than her “sleek black hair” (not a direct quote, but I’m sure it’s described as something to that effect)? I want to knowwwww

Lavender Brown - aka... Ron’s brief, annoying girlfriend? The precursor to Romione? I mean, was this girl even in the D.A.? Maybe she was, but I don’t remember, and that’s the problem. She’s a Gryffindor. She’s brave, she’s headstrong, she’s proud! But she’s only ever portrayed as overbearing and clingy which SURE, may be some of her traits, because she’s allowed to have flaws, but that’s not all she is. I want to see her relationship with Pravati and Hermione, who she roomed with for six years (beyond her annoying Hermione when she dated Ron). But nope! I guess she’s just another accessory!

Nymphadora Tonks - i.e. Tonks. She’s funny and brave and powerful, but we barely get to see her in action (yes, before you ask, i had a crush on her, too). She’s interesting, so interesting, because her emotions are often expressed through her appearance, and she undergoes like two full personality shifts throughout the books (it’s worth noting that she’s also introduced pretty late in the series, book five, i think). She’s depressed for a while, then she falls in love, gets married, and has a son (and then dies), and, while it seems like this is a lot of usage (which it is), I can’t help but wish we had seen a little more of it all, specifically of her falling in love and of her married life, of her motherhood, before she died.

Xenophilius Lovegood - literallly (i would argue) one of the most interesting characters in the series, despite the fact that (I think) he is only featured heavily in one scene. I would definitely call him a more complex character than Snape. In his one scene, Xenophilius offers the golden trio one of their most important lessons through the Tale of the Three Brothers, the story which ultimately wins them the war against Voldemort. And yet, it’s a trap. He’s stalling, keeping them around so that Voldy’s goons can come pick them up and presumably kill them, or at least imprison them until Voldy comes ‘round again. But, and here’s the important part, he does it to save his beloved daughter. His daughter, who is the only family he has left, after his incredible scientist-witch of a wife died doing what she loved. The Lovegood’s are a family of inherently good people, yet Xenophilius sides with the very people who took his daughter in a weak effort to get her safely back. His plan won’t work, they won’t return Luna. They DON’T return her, but Xenophilius is fundamentally weak, made weak out of his love, and his fear of losing the last person in the world he has to care about, to protect, to love. He’s just SO DAMN INTERESTING ughhhhh give me more Xenophilius pleaseeeee

Kingsley Shacklebolt - he’s??? so cool??? Literally he’s just awesome, but we barely see him. He acts as a spy, essentially, when the ministry gets taken over by the death eaters, and helps the order actually get shit done, but he’s just so underused. Idk, I don’t have much to say except that he’s awesome and I want more Shacklebolt content

Cedric Diggory - he’s actually talked about a fair amount, so I don’t think I need to say much, except that he is literally the nicest guy ever, and, despite Harry actively hating him for like a whole year, he helps him in the Triwizard Tournament and represents Hufflepuff beautifully as being more than just the “miscellaneous house”. But then of course he’s killed before he and Harry can become friends, and before readers get a chance to understand anything about his social status (is he the asshole popular guy or sweet quite guy???) or motivations. Of course.

Percy Weasley - aka MY FAVORITE WEASLEY KID. R*wling did my boy so dirty. He’s cool because he’s kind of a stuck up academic asshole stereotype, or at least Harry perceives him as such, and then he changes slightly over the years as he and Harry both grow and mature and then it all culminates in his great moment of emotion and humanity! Fred’s death is, without much contest I think, the most devastating death in the whole series (Dobby could admittedly give him a run for his money, though), in part because he’s just so damn sweet and funny and innocent, and in part because right before it we FINALLY get to see Percy smile. He smiles at a dumb joke Fred makes, and then Fred DIES (a well placed death, I’ll admit begrudgingly), and just the juxtaposition of the moment... *chef’s kiss*. And then we never really check back in on Percy, and we don’t really get enough closure on that moment. :/

Colin and Dennis Creevy - again, two characters stuffed together, this time because we actually know a fair amount about them and... they’re kind of the same character. Colin is obsessed with Harry, and so is Dennis. That’s about it. I just WISH we got a little more on these kids, on why they felt so drawn to him as this apparently untouchable hero among them. Were they abused? Orphaned? Abandoned? Did they have some sort of trauma in their lives that made them so attached to the idea of a savoir? Or did they simply regard Harry as most little boys might, as a cool sort of action figure character? The world may never know :(((

Susan Bones - God, I wish I had more to say about her. She’s sweet, she a hufflepuff, I think she helps Ron at one point in Herbology. Her aunt dies I think. Is she the one who had the rabbit at one point? Idk, she’s just one of those characters who’s so far in the background that she almost stands out, and I kinda just wanna know more.

Fawkes - yeah, I know he’s a bird or whatever, but he’s fucking cool, and we get a Fawkes-ex-machina in the second book and then he’s essentially inconsequential for like... forever. I want to know how he and dumbledore bonded, why his feathers in those two specific wands were so attracted to Harry and Tommy boi specifically, other than symbolism uwu. Does Fawkes have a moral compass, or does he simply follow Dumbledore’s orders? Could his loyalty potentially be changed?

Narcissa Malfoy - please, for the love of god, give the Malfoy’s a chance. At least Draco and Narcissa. Narcissa is essentially the flip side of Xenophilius’s coin. Her side of the family is shrouded in dark magic, but her priority is keeping her dear son safe. I just want to know her and her inner struggle more intimately, because she’s such a contradiction, she’s a death eater who loves and protects, a dark magic user who wants to create something warm and beautiful for her family. She’s scared for a husband, a top death eater, one of Voldemort’s personal faves, and scared for her son, who she knows is good at heart but who struggles through the first steps of death eater initiation out of a sense of duty, a duty to her and his father. She’s the intimate mother figure, yet she’s an antagonist, fundamentally speaking. Fascinating.

These are just some I thought of off the top of my head, I’m sure there are literally hundreds more, from the two guys from the Knightbus to Bathilda Bagshot to Nagini the legend (also wtf happened to her in the Cursed Child?? Nvm, I can’t even get into that shithole right now), and I have to admit that I still love Harry Potter, for its characters and it’s incredible world building, though R*wling is a massive piece of terf-y shit.

It’s important to note that I understand the purpose of flat characters, I understand the purpose of background characters, of undeveloped characters. What I’m pointing out here is that there was a lot of potential in these characters that was largely squandered because R*wling focused her energy on attempting to redeem Snape without a redemption arch, attempting to redeem Dumbledore with an inadequate one, and refusing to properly redeem Draco despite his well-developed arch, for some fucking reason. If you can’t tell, I’m salty, but I’m only salty because I care. Ily, have a good day!!

[in-madhouses]

i dont mean to bother you but can you link me to the epilogue of your fic ‘they’ll hang us in the louvre” i absolutely have adored reading and im happy i stumbled across your blogs and fics and i cant wait to read more!

HELLO! NO BOTHER AT ALL. Life has just gotten in the way a little and I’ve been absolutely trash about updating. But here’s the epilogue for louvre for those who are actually still out there reading things I post  😭😭😭

.

“So what can you tell us about the Marauders film coming out in a couple of weeks?” The excited host asks with a little glint in his eye, as though he’s asking something he already knows the answer to.

“I.. I can tell you what I don’t know, which is everything,” Aahna deflects instead with a bit of a blush staining her cheeks.

Niall forces to keep a straight face at the sight of her on the screen, slightly squirmish but totally acing it.

Despite being high key in the interview spotlight (on and off) for well over two years by now, he can never get over the fact that Aahna confident to the point of arrogance Deakins doesn’t do very well with interviews.

For all intents and purposes, she does just fine. She carries her confidence like a shield and her charm simply radiates onto the screen. But after being intimately acquainted with her and her idiosyncrasies for a better part of a year, her slight awkwardness is evident. Especially when it’s on red couches and with interviewers that she binge watches on a regular.

“You have to know something!” Graham presses on.

“They didn’t exactly… I mean, at this point I know more about how nuclear reactors work than I do about the Marauders movie,” Aahna says casually.

“Are you saying you haven’t watched it or that you’re surprisingly well educated about nuclear reactors?”

“Both?” She laughs.

And Niall knows she’s not lying, she’d looked it up the week before and spent her night explaining to him it how it worked in detail.

The flamboyant host presses on, “Do you even know if you’re in it at all?”

“I don’t… I… I’m not sure,” she stutters a little before chuckling.

The petite host all but practically screeches at that, “You’re not sure?”

“Is it because they don’t trust you to keep things off social media?”

“Pretty much,” Aahna nods, her grin wide and bashful at the same time, “I wasn’t exactly given a script. Everyone on the principal cast knew what was going on, they literally jumped straight into filming after the last season but I was only given the scenes that I was in, and mid-way through production, so I could be a ghost, a memory, a spell-induced hallucination, I’m possibly not even in the movie at all.”

Niall smiles to no one in particular, somewhat proud how well she’s fending despite the multitude of complicated factors surrounding the interview;

a) the possibility of letting too much about the movie slip and therefore violating her NDA, his NDA, and everyone’s NDA basically because she only knows as much as she knows because they’d told her,

b) the possibility of not talking about the movie enough which would cause the audience to be less excited about the boys being on the show in the following week,

c) the fact that she’s not actually on The Graham Norton Show to promote the Marauders movie but the new season of her own show, and of course,

d) the possibility of deflecting everything far too much and then having to maneuver questions about their relationship status which was a newly hot topic of much speculation.

Despite them not even trying to be sneaky about things after the completion of Marauders: The Final Chapter, the internet stayed unsuspectingly calm.

Apart from that one grainy low quality images of them having dinner surfacing on a fan blog, they’ve actually managed to evade the full force of rumours and speculation with Aahna busy with season two of her show and Niall preoccupied piecing together the parts for his own expansion of title from just ‘actor’ to ‘actor slash screenwriter slash director.’

It only unexpectedly comes to a head when Aahna tweets one of the March Madness bracket charts comparing the fictional men on television by replacing every name with Remus Lupin.

Twitter, as it does, promptly loses its shit over it.

@itsAahna

Fixed the chart for you 🙃 @BBCOne

@BBCOne

Wow what were even doing before you came along? @itsAahna

@itsAahna

Sleeping on Remus Lupin, clearly @BBCOne

@drowningg-in-deniall

can @itsAahna and @NiallOfficial just get together already i want peace 😭

@mishchiefnmayhem

OTPOTPOTPOTPOTP #drowningindeniall

@moooony

I WILL REVOLT #wandsattheready #drowningindeniall @MaraudersMovie

@padsnprongs

I mean we all know #jily is endgame in the movie but i want to see @itsAahna and @NiallOfficial IRL #drowningindeniall

@NikkiSwiftCeleb

If this doesn’t change your opinion on the “friendship” between @itsAahna and @NiallOfficial nothing will.

@PerezHilton

Can we say we called it first? @itsAahna and @NiallOfficial

@EW

@MaraudersMovie exclusive. The cast weigh in on the new fave will they won’t they couple and THAT tweet >> bit.ly/Jh8e3rd4

Niall was back in Ireland when it happens, but his Twitter blows up with fans asking if they really are dating. Oddly, none of the guys or any of the Marauders’ cast members pester him about it. Probably because they think that Aahna’s contractually obligated to keep the conversation on the upcoming Marauders movie, but keeping their sexual relationship turned actual relationship a secret for months on end is surprisingly easy when your friends aren’t being complete nosy fucks.

The only person who truly suspected anything had Caroline, and even then, she’d only thought they were having hate sex to fix all their problems. (Not like she was wrong.) But when they decided to come clean when they wrapped filming with a round of drinks, they find out that there’d been a betting pool going on in regards to their relationship instead.

“I had a tenner riding on this,” Louis says, swaying a little after his umpteenth shot, “I still can’t believe the two of you didn’t get together before the movie wrapped!”

Niall and Aahna share a look at that, but before either of them can let the cat out of the bag, Louis then goes off on how no one but Harry expected them all to become friends and how this lead to them all losing money to Harry and they telepathically decide against telling their friends. (Seems only fair, since their friends were all proving to be complete pricks.)

Which only brings things to their current conundrum of having to promote a movie whilst making use of their fan favourite characters’ practically non-existent romance while some fans were emotionally invested in the actors’ very secret but very real romance.

He smiles at the thought. Because he likes to tell people that he was in love once, back in Ireland. But he didn’t really fall in love, fall in love. Not really. It was more of a familiarity. Like one day something that was there all along that just… became love. And it’s entirely the opposite of what happened with Aahna. Before he was even fully aware of what was happening, she was just… all over his life. Everywhere. Like someone poured her over every inch of him and she just seeped into the very fabric of his life and he can’t wash her out no matter how much bleach he used.

The on screen conversation shifts to the other guests for a bit focusing on the projects they qere involved in, but when the host with the big red couch says he has some tweets to pull out circling back to her, Niall could see the subtle signs of panic creep in on her face.

“Lips were obviously sealed quite tightly when you got cast for the backdoor pilot on Marauders, but an incident got leaked to the press didn’t it?”

“Wait, is this the video?” Aahna asks realisation dawned upon her.

“These were the tweets following that video that most people seem to have forgotten about.”

“Something that you won’t let happen, obviously,” Aahna comments good humouredly, mentally bracing herself for whatever the Graham Norton team has managed to dig up on the interwebs.

“Obviously,” the host announces as they move their attention to the screen on set, “Now these tweets are, I believe, the immediate aftermath of the video hitting the internet.”

@NiallOfficial

4 yrs on a top rated tv show only to end up sharing scentime with someone who got famous lookng gd in thr underwear

@NiallOfficial

that’s not me throwing shade at modesl that’s me throwing shade at @itsAahna

@NiallOfficial

it’s really not my fault that @itsAahna finds memorising lines harder than slupring tequila off her girlfriend’s belly button

@itsAahna

are YOU slurping tequila off of your girlfriend’s belly button right now? @NiallOfficial

@itsAahna

lol kidding (what girlfriend) 😂 @NiallOfficial

@NiallOfficial

at least i’m not about to send in a sex tape to @DailyMirror to distract people from how i cant act atall

@itsAahna

if you wanted to make a sex tape all you had to do was ask @NiallOfficial

“And this went on for like a whole hour at 3 in the morning,” Graham titters excitedly as he continues scrolling through the seemingly endless barrage of tweets.

“They do say that the best relationships start from heated online arguments,” Aahna shrugs, a smile dangling coyly on the edge of her lips.

Niall’s heart skips a whole beat at that.

But luckily, no one on the red couch seemed to have given it as much thought and they glide by the whole topic unsuspectingly.

“I mean, at one point you weren’t even typing words!” The host exclaims, still scrolling through tweets.

“No, you have to say it really fast, it’s… it’s a joke on the Irish accent, I was making fun of his accent,” Aahna admits, looking a little pink in the cheeks in embarrassment and nerves.

She then does an (in his opinion, piss poor) impression of his Irish accent.

Niall can’t help it though, his smile is still so wide, he’s at risk of his face splitting in half.

“You might as well have insulted potatoes,” Graham responds, rather aghast at her impersonation.

“Or Guinness, the Irishman is rather fond of his Guinness,” Ines chimes in.

The rest of the interview goes on with attention bouncing back and forth between the guests and before he notices it, the musical guest comes on and the credits are rolling. He does his best to pretend to be upset when she breezes into his apartment like it’s hers the next day (although to be honest, it’s all hers really; his apartment, his mind, his soul, his heart).

“That’s your best impersonation of me?” He tuts, faking being insulted so hard he wonders how he was ever employed as an actor.

She, in turn, does a very poor job of not smiling as she sets down boxes of takeaway in his kitchen, “Seeing as that was the dumbest I’ve ever looked on telly, I think it was pretty on.”

He grins, “You were great.”

“I can see why you need glasses,” she raises a brow at his direction.

Niall merely shakes his head at that. It’s a quarter past four and the gang should be at his place in about an hour because everyone unanimously decided that he needed to host a party to celebrate his script selling and the studio wanting him to direct and she’s doing the dishes because ‘only losers eat out of takeaway boxes at a party’ and he can’t stop staring.

She looks up and finds him sort of looking at her weird.

“What?”

You, he thinks, I’m looking at you. I’m always looking at you.

“You know this is probably what Sierra meant,” he points out, a little breathless over absolutely nothing, “About distractions.”

She links her hands behind his neck, feigning ignorance, “No idea what you mean.”

And then he’s kissing her against the overflowing sink and she’s laughing, and he thinks it tastes better than anything in his whole atmosphere.

And honestly, Niall is pretty sure he could live off of that feeling for the rest of his life.

@Harry_Styles

I don’t mean to alarm anyone but I think @itsAahna and @NiallOfficial are legitimately dating.

@AinsWills

BETRAYAL!! DECEPTION!! OUTRAGE!! @itsAahna @NiallOfficial

@LeeyumPain

Pics or it didn’t happen @Harry_Styles

@itsAahna

DELETE. NOW. @Harry_Styles

@Louis_Tomlinson

SSSADFGDSASDFGDSADFSF

@Louis_Tomlinson

#DROWNINGINDENIALL @itsAahna @NiallOfficial

@Louis_Tomlinson

#AAHNAANDNIALLERSITTINGONATREE @itsAahna @NiallOfficial

@itsAahna

Stop yelling or I s2g I’m coming over there and choking you @Louis_Tomlinson

@Louis_Tomlinson

Kinky. I take it @NiallOfficial likes it rough?

@NiallOfficial

@Louis_Tomlinson keep your kinks to yourself. yes this is me kinkshaming you

@itsAahna

There are children on the interwebs!! @Louis_Tomlinson @NiallOfficial

@Louis_Tomlinson

Kinkshaming is my kink @NiallOfficial 😉

@Louis_Tomlinson

Kids, kinkshaming is bad

@NiallOfficial

jokes on you kinkshaming kinkshames is my kink @Louis_Tomlinson

@AinsWills

Caaaaan we bring it back to the betrayal bit @NiallOfficial

@C_Davies

Yes. In case you’re all wondering, the @MaraudersMovie cast has a betting pool on @itsAahna and @NiallOfficial

@C_Davies

And I want my money back @Harry_Styles

@itsAahna

Et tu @C_Davies? Et tu??

@Harry_Styles

None of that 👆 was a ‘yes, we’re dating’ @C_Davies

@itsAahna  

I’m blocking all of yous. @Harry_Styles @Louis_Tomlinson @LeeyumPain @C_Davies @AinsWills

@NiallOfficial

Yes, we’re dating 🙃

@itsAahna

BLOCKEDDDD @NiallOfficial 😡😡😡

@zaynmalik retweeted @AinsWils

BETRAYAL!! DECEPTION!! OUTRAGE!! @itsAahna @NiallOfficial

@itsAahna  

Okay internet (and former friends) You win this one.

@Louis_Tomlinson

I want my tenner back @Harry_Styles

[wickedsingularity]

Until Next Time [Chapter 10]

Banner by PhoenixAlthor @ TDA

The hand on my heart clenched painfully. I stiffened and gritted my teeth. My eyes stung and I couldn't breathe. I was there. I had reached the point where it hurt so bad I didn't know how to live for one more second.

War. We do what we can to find comfort and hope.

Remus Lupin x OC Warnings: Language, lemon, anxiety, slight racism Words: 3935

Note: The revised version of chapter 10. Just changed some scenes in the middle to fit with the direction chapter 11 and 12 took during NaNoWriMo. It's not absolutely necessary to read this chapter again, but it also wouldn't hurt :)

Chapter 9 | Masterlist | Chapter 11

Blur

This is crazy.

It had been more than two weeks since Remus and I had our sort-of conversation about what happened between us and I felt confident that whatever it was, was over and done with. I Apparated to Grimmauld Place, feeling some excitement about seeing people again. It had been more than two weeks since I'd seen any of them as well, other than the one I relieved from guard duty and the one relieving me.

The entrance hall was quiet as I opened the front door, but Tonks had apparently arrived just before I did and she squawked and jumped around when I greeted her, causing the portrait of Mrs Black to wake up.

"Filth! Abominations! Scum living in my house!"

"Oh sorry," Tonks said, cringing a bit at the insults echoing around the house.

Hurried footsteps came from the basement kitchen and Sirius bounded upstairs to shut up his mother's portrait.

"I'm so sorry, Sirius!" Tonks called after him, but he just grunted.

"And I'm sorry I frightened you, Tonks," I said loudly, to make myself heard above the besmirching the ancient and noble house of Black.

"It's alright. I thought I was the last one here," she explained.

"I took a nap before I came and it went on a bit longer than I had planned." I grinned sheepishly, then starting a bit as there was a loud bang from the floor above and Mrs Black's ranting was silenced.

Tonks and I wandered down into the basement kitchen, closely followed by Sirius, the light chatter of Order members now audible. Almost everyone seemed to be there and their eyes were on us because of the racket we had caused. I looked down at my feet as I stepped through the door while Tonks apologized.

"My fault," I said once Tonks was finished. "I accidentally frightened her."

"Don't worry about it," Sirius said from behind us. "I love shutting her up."

A few of the people around the table snickered and Tonks and I found our way to empty seats next to each other.

"Maybe we can start the meeting," Alastor said with a grunt. "Now that everyone is here." There was a murmur of agreeing sounds and the ones who had been lingering around the room found seats, nearly filling the entire table.

Alastor began by having Minerva tell us the latest news from Hogwarts and the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor that the Ministry had appointed and how she had been made Hogwarts High Inquisitor after a new Educational Decree had been created by the Minister. Only three weeks into the school year and the Ministry was already starting to do what everyone feared – take over Hogwarts and undermine Albus.

It wasn't far into the discussion before I very much regretted sitting down in this particular chair. All through the meeting, I could hardly concentrate. I don't know if he had sat down in the available seat next to me on purpose or by "happy" accident. And I don't know if he did what he did on purpose or not, or if I just noticed it because of what we had done and had it been anyone else I wouldn't react at all. But every time Remus shifted in his seat, his knee would press against mine, his elbow would graze me. And one time his hand actually touched mine. It was driving me insane. I had no idea what had gotten over me. Whatever it was, it wasn't like me at all, and I didn't like what it was doing to me. It was like we were a pair of awkward teenagers testing the limits.

Doing my absolute best to focus on what was being discussed, I tried to exercise some of the mental control I used for Occlumency. Setting up a rock-hard barrier on the entire right side of my mind and nervous system, refusing to feel the unusually high body heat radiating off of Remus.

"– two weeks' detention."

"That's my boy," Sirius commented on Minerva's story. I was completely at a loss but figured it must be something involving Harry.

"Umbridge is dangerous, Black," Minerva said. "She is power-hungry, and – mark my words – she is going to make life at Hogwarts very difficult and Potter is better off to stay out of her way."

"How much can she really do with Albus there?" Hestia asked.

"As the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic?" The venom with which Minerva said that title, I'd say she was the dangerous one. "A Minister that is currently at odds with Albus and everything he does at Hogwarts? And as High Inquisitor of Hogwarts? She has the power to do more than any of us can imagine."

"She has a very dangerous and backwards view of the world, and she's willing to do a lot to shape it to her liking," Remus chimed in.

I glanced at him.

"Sounds like you know a lot about it?" Tonks leaned forward and looked past me to Remus.

His amber eyes rose slowly to hers. "Yes," he said and looked down at his lap. "She's not very fond of... half-breeds, as she calls them. Werewolves among them."

"She's responsible for the anti-werewolf legislation that came two years ago," Sirius explained, eyes on Remus, who was now staring at his fingers fiddling with a loose thread on his cardigan. I had read about that legislation, it made it as good as impossible for people with lycanthropy to get a job.

Minerva finished her report on Umbridge at Hogwarts and Molly started levitating dinner and plates onto the table. We all helped ourselves as Alastor continued with the next item on the agenda, news about He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Each mention of the name had me trying to hide a shiver and I was very grateful to scoop up more of Molly's warm stew to settle my nerves. The warmth radiating off Remus on my right side also felt oddly comforting to me, even through the mental barrier I had put up. He was still close enough that our elbows sometimes touched when we ate, his knee sometimes touching mine, and it was all too distracting.

As everyone had finished dinner, leaning back in their chairs and chatting, I glanced at the grandfather clock in the corner and noticed with a sigh of relief that it was getting late. I slid to the edge of my sear, ready to get the hell out of there. I was getting antsy knowing I had three weeks at Azkaban coming up on Monday and I wanted to get some rest. But just before I could get up, Remus laid a hand on my arm and leaned forward.

"Third, fourth, left," he whispered as he passed my ear and then he removed his hand and engaged in conversation with Kingsley across the table.

I blinked a bit in confusion and looked around to see if anyone else had caught his actions, but it was a bit chaotic as Molly had started levitating dinner off the table.

"I think I'm going to go," I said quietly, stood up to pull on my cloak. "I need to prepare myself for Azkaban."

"Of course, dear." Molly began fussing as I moved towards the door and stopped me for a hug. "Go home and rest. Do you want some biscuits to go?" She was straightening the collar of my cloak and wiping away some imaginary dust from my arm.

"Oh, no thank you. It was all delicious, but I'm so full I don't think I need to eat until next year."

She swatted my arm playfully. "You're too kind! You take care of yourself."

I just smiled and moved to turn around and caught Remus' eye above Molly's shoulder. I wasn't sure what to do with the three words he had whispered to me, so I just snuck out of the room before I figuratively burst into flames. I rushed up the stairs, but as I walked across the hall to the front door, I slowed down and looked at the staircase leading upstairs. It was like I was stupefied for a moment, staring upwards. Footsteps sounded on the stairs from the kitchen and I had to move. Without thinking about it, my feet took me to the stairs and I hurried as quietly as I could up to the third floor.

This is crazy, I thought as I stopped at the top of the stairs, looking down the hall. I moved slowly towards the fourth door, heart beating wildly in my chest. My hand reached for the handle, but then I retracted it as if I'd burned myself. I couldn't just go in. So, I leaned against the wall next to the door instead, trying to calm myself down and convince myself this wasn't the worst idea in the world.

Waiting there felt like it took forever and I was starting to think I had misheard Remus when I heard footsteps walking quickly up the stairs, dearly hoping it was him and not Sirius or anyone else. I didn't even know where Sirius' room was.

"Hi." Remus was slightly out of breath when he reached the landing, but smiling slightly.

"Hi." I straightened up. He took a few long strides and before he could say anything else, I had grabbed him by the collar and pulled him into his own room.

As I rode my broom from the Apparition station and out to the prison to start my rotation at Azkaban, the anxiety and fear weren't as noticeable as I expected and I sent a mental thank you to Remus. I had my Patronus Shield up, and tiny tendrils of fear poked and prodded at my heart, but it was a little bit easier to ignore them. But that was only Monday morning.

The late September sun still shone brightly and managed to warm up the air during the day, but out on Azkaban it was chilly no matter what. And as the week went on, it was getting to me much more than it had ever done in my eight years working there. The chill seemed to stick to my bones and rarely felt warm enough even at home. It was getting harder and harder to get out of bed in the morning and I looked at the clock too often after lunch, counting down until I could go home. Working my three weeks at Azkaban used to be something I preferred over the three weeks at the Ministry, but not anymore.

Every day I heard the Death Eater prisoners call out for their master, urging him to come to rescue them. Every day the Dementors' influence grew weaker on the Death Eaters and stronger on the other criminals and us witches and wizards working there. Even though we didn't talk much about it amongst ourselves, I could tell that my colleagues were also becoming more and more affected. I knew Walter best out of all of them, and he was always the one who kept on working no matter what. He let nothing distract him and refused to stop until he was done with his task. But I noticed his mind wandering, he would stop what he was doing and fix his gaze on something outside the window or on some invisible phantom near the upper cells, his face often drawn. It broke my heart and that did nothing to help the anxiety and fear I now dragged around in what felt like a trunk full of rocks tied around my waist.

Halfway through my second week, I was getting antsy. I needed to get away, it was all becoming too much. I was cold and jumpy and anxious and could barely focus on anything. It came as such a relief when a wet and windswept owl pecked on the window to mine and Walter's office right before lunch.

Walter ran over and hurriedly opened the window to let the poor screech owl inside. It fluttered onto his arm and swayed slightly as he closed the window and carried it over to our desk. "It's addressed to you."

Raising my eyebrows, I reached for the bedraggled bird and pulled it gently over, untying the letter on its leg and letting it help itself to water from my goblet.

It was from the Auror Office. "There's some new evidence in the Black-case. They need me there to look through it." Walter looked up from petting the owl. "Huh, and they need me now," I added, folding up the parchment.

"I was starting to think that case would never be solved."

"Me too. Will you be okay without me? I'll probably be gone for the rest of the day."

"Yes, I'll be fine. You go help solve our embarrassing breakout. I'll send the owl on its way once it's dried up a bit."

I nodded and reached for my wand to clear away the parchments and quills, donned my cloak and renewed the Impervius Charm on it. "See you tomorrow!"

The relief of getting to go early was monumental. To get on my broom and fly away from the soul-sucking creatures, to feel the long fingers of anxiety ease up a bit the second I was outside the wards around the prison and able to land on the Apparition station and drop the Patronus Shield. Even though I hadn't felt my breath being constricted out on the island, it somehow felt like I could draw my breath again after holding it for hours.

Turned out the meeting at the Ministry was a waste of time. It was the same old story, some witches and wizards were convinced they had seen Sirius Black somewhere, and this time it had been made interesting by someone claiming he had kept them hostage in their own house for a week, with Dementors as guards. Of course, none of it was true, and now that I knew the truth about it all, it was very amusing to see what cock and bull people would come up with for attention. If it weren't for the fact that the relief of a few extra hours away from Azkaban did me good, and the fact that I saw Lucius Malfoy there – with the Minister, it would have been a completely wasted afternoon.

And that's why I made it onto the step of 12 Grimmauld Place, telling myself for the hundredth time that I had to make sure Albus knew that Lucius Malfoy had been meeting with the Minister again and that it was no way Kingsley or Tonks or even Arthur had seen and could tell him.

I tapped my wand to the door and had another moment of are you stupid as it swung open. Shaking my head and gritting my teeth, I walked inside and shut the door quietly behind me. It was my duty as a member of the Order of the Phoenix to do this. Even if Kingsley, Tonks or Arthur had seen and would leave their own messages, it was better that we all left the same message than none at all. Whatever other reason lurked at the back of mind, I pushed down and refused to acknowledge.

The house was quiet and dark. Now that the children were off at school, there was less and less activity in the house, mostly just Sirius and Kreacher, and Remus when he wasn't out mingling with the werewolves. Just the odd Order member stopping by to leave a report or a message to Albus or someone else.

I wandered across the hall and down the stairs to the kitchen. There were no sounds from there either, and no one but a small mouse scurrying across the floor as I opened the door. I stopped at the head of the long table, a sigh of disappointment leaving me. The cold fist of fear that had loosened a bit as I left Azkaban and even more since I made the decision to come here, tightened again. I gritted my teeth and took a deep breath, pushing it down. Then I stepped over to a cabinet by the wall where I knew held parchment, ink and quill and wrote down what I had seen at the Ministry. I laid the parchment on the table and gave the room a last glance before heading back upstairs.

But when I reached the hall, I didn't head for the door. Instead, I turned to the next staircase and slowly made my way up to the first floor and then the second floor. There, I paused on the landing, looking around, trying to convince myself to walk back down.

Suddenly someone said my name and I spun around, drawing my wand, aiming it at the figure on the next landing. Remus stood there, his hands in the air in mock surrender.

"Don't scare me like that!" I hissed, pocketing my wand.

"Sorry. Hello. I thought I heard someone."

I took a couple of steps upwards, seeing him clearer and noticed he looked tired and scruffy. A quick calculation in my head told me it was only four days until the full moon.

"Yeah, I just dropped off a message to Albus."

"On the stairs?"

"It's in the kitchen. I don't... I'm not sure what I..." I closed my eyes and shook my head. Breathing suddenly became harder, I heaved for air. My fists clenched.

"Are you okay?" Remus' voice was suddenly a lot closer. The hand on my shoulder made me gasp and snap my eyes open again. He was standing right in front of me. My breaths slowed down and something lit up inside me.

"I don't..."

Remus' nostrils flared and his hand slid down my arm and my fist unclenched the second he reached for it. "I think I know," he said and pulled me with him upstairs. Past three doors and in through the fourth. The air inside was cold and immediately surrounded me, making my heart constrict, it reminded me of Azkaban. The door slammed shut behind us and I jumped, my hand slipping out of his, my heart beating wildly again.

"You're easily startled today," he pointed out before muttering a few spells to the door. Then he stalked towards me and suddenly his lips were on mine. His hands wound around my back, pressing me to him, and he was so warm. Before I had time to kiss him back, he pulled back slightly. "Is this okay?"

I hummed in agreement, chasing his lips. We hadn't kissed before, which was a shame because he was so good at it and he tasted like chocolate and wood smoke. His tongue pressed against mine and then everything turned into a scorching blur. Clothes flew everywhere and I found myself falling back onto his bed, stark naked, not even sure when we had moved towards it, and he crawled after me, making me feel like prey for a moment. And then he was right above me and then inside and I sensed nothing else but him. Lips on my neck, one hand in my hair, the other claiming my breast. I had my legs wrapped around his waist and when I clawed at his back he grunted against my collarbone. He seemed almost feral in his behaviour.

I don't know what made him so goddamn special, but he seemed to reach places inside me I had no idea existed. I tightened my legs around him, heaving for breath and digging my nails into his back, trying to get him closer, deeper.

"Silencing charms?" I choked out.

He nodded against my neck. "Yes."

And I lost it. I convulsed underneath him, threw my head back and saw stars as I came loudly, scorching tongues of fire burst from my core. Remus didn't let me rest one beat, as he continued ploughing into me, chasing his own high and almost sounding like he growled every time he went deep. His movements seemed stiff and the little I could see of his face was contorted. But then, with a definite growl from deep in his belly, he bit into my neck and came. I think I came again from the bite and his animalistic behaviour, and I was completely out of it until Remus suddenly gasped and rolled off me.

"Oh Merlin, I bit you. I'm so sorry." I could hear the shame in his voice.

I reached a hand up to touch the tender area and felt small welts starting to form from his teeth. "It's okay. I don't mind." I looked at my fingers and when I saw no blood, I put my arm behind my head and turned to look at him. "I think I actually enjoyed it."

His head snapped around, surprise in his amber eyes.

"Is it because of...?" I asked.

He nodded. "This close to the full moon, a lot of... instincts come to the surface."

I couldn't help but smirk. "I think I like that."

His own lips flashed a quick smile.

"But I should get going," I said and sat up. "Thank you though. I needed this."

Remus nodded. "I could tell."

I began walking around the room, looking for my clothes, and pulling them on as I found them. "Can you make sure Albus gets my message?" I asked as I buttoned up my jeans.

"Yeah. What is the message?"

"It's all on the parchment I left in the kitchen, but Lucius Malfoy visited the Minister again today." I looked around for my bra and found it draped over a chair by the window. Remus stared as I pulled it on and adjusted myself. "They were in the cafeteria when I grabbed a bite before the meeting with Magical Law, and then I saw them again later in the atrium when I was leaving. They looked awfully chummy."

Expecting a reply, I halted the search for my jumper and glanced at the werewolf on the bed. He was staring at my bra, a small grin on his face. Good thing he was over his shame for biting me, but honestly... I put my hands on my hips and glared at him. "Did you hear what I said?"

"Yes," he said, eyes slowly moving up to meet mine. "Albus is supposed to drop by tomorrow morning, I'll make sure he gets the note about Malfoy and the Minister being spotted in the cafeteria and later in the atrium looking chummy."

"Thank you. Where's my jumper?"

He bent down over the side of the bed, grabbed something and tossed it my way. I chortled and pulled it on, fluffing out my hair. Just before I stopped to pull on my cloak, I paused and looked at Remus again. He was still staring and it was starting to annoy me. He wore a small grin still, and it was not appropriate for the message I had just delivered. I wanted to discuss it a bit before I left, theorise and badmouth Malfoy.

"Why are you staring like that?" I asked bluntly.

He blinked slowly and seemed to refocus. "No reason."

"You'll tell Albus?"

He climbed out of bed, stark naked and sauntered over to me. "Yes, I'll tell him."

I tried so hard to keep my eyes from wandering. "I'm going to go. Until next time."

Then Remus did something completely unexpected and laid one hand on the back of my head and pressed his lips to mine. For a long moment, he lingered, leaving me a little flustered. "Until next time."

Chapter 9 | Masterlist | Chapter 11

Permanent tags: @imamotherfuckingstar-lord @geeksareunique @iguess-theyre-mymess @neeadinghugs @earinafae @mattmurdocksgirl @joulien @imaginesofdreams @brewsthespirit-blog @lemonlime799 @reading-in-moonlight

[halothenthehorns]

All in the Family

Chapter 137: Horace Slughorn

Regulus crashed headfirst into a toilet with a knitted cover on the lid to soften the blow. He still cursed and grumbled for it while looking around and found the rest of the décor matching. A knitted stuffed cat on the sink by the soap and a box of crystalized pineapple, unopened. There was a walk in shower, as well as a pile of knitting pattern magazines for reading leisure in a wicker basket he'd knocked over along with the book, its silver spine standing out in here.

Not exactly tempted to sit on the toilet to read, he exited into the hall to find pictures on the wall that weren't alluding to an easy hint of where they were, an array of kids of various ages in frames down to the stairs. He stopped to admire them for a moment, taking a second to realize he could only know they weren't wizards because they weren't moving, but otherwise there was no clear difference. How fascinating, Mother always spoke as if there should be something. He no longer tried to convince himself he just wasn't seeing it, but maybe there just wasn't anything inherently 'different' about them either, aside from the lack of magic.

The entire house was still silent though, not a stair creaked as he went down into the dimly lit living room where a scene of total devastation met his eyes. The others were frozen in place, as if afraid to move once more and find something they shouldn't. Surely their landing hadn't caused this destruction, and his pulse quickened with worry.

The door was blasted off its hinges, a grandfather clock lay splintered at their feet, its face cracked, its pendulum lying a little farther away like a dropped sword pointing right at where Evans was still on hands and knees. A piano was on its side, its keys strewn across the floor, Peter tangled up in the wires. The wreckage of a fallen chandelier glittered nearby, Longbottom and Smith still had bits of it in their hair and clothes. Cushions lay deflated, feathers oozing from slashes in their sides, the Marauders weren't even at fault judging from the stark white faces; fragments of glass and china lay like powder over everything, and there were even chunks and gashes in the walls. Regulus immediately lit his wand and raised it high, giving illumination to something darkly red and glutinous spattered over the flowered wallpaper.

When Peter saw him at the foot of the stairs, the streetlights outside glinting off the bright cover of the book even before he'd lit his wand, and completely unharmed he couldn't help a relieved sigh. He'd done a quick count as always and hysterically wonderd for a moment if Regulus had just been blasted to smithereens from this recent slam. Instead, as he hovered on the last stair with the book in hand and a white face, he quietly whispered as calmly as he could, "start getting us out of here please?"

He swallowed convulsively, eyes still flinching to every corner looking for something none of them wanted to see again, but finally opened and read the chapter title that illuminated some horrible answer to this.

"What the hell has he been up to in this future?" Potter quietly demanded, getting slowly but steadily to his feet. Nothing attacked him like Moody's place, so the others cautiously began doing the same, but nobody wanted to answer him.

Dumbledore and Harry had no idea what they were fixing to walk into with their pleasant little evening stroll, destination this place. He even read right over the passage on Inferi like that was nothing in the face of this. They all felt beside themselves Harry was fixing to just be brutally reminded of the casualties of war even with the headmaster there for him this time.

So when the ruse was revealed, nobody could quite blame Potter shouting at the top of his lungs, "that arse!"

Regulus was so disgruntled at his near heart failure being a trick himself he gave the book an ugly toss into the mess and heavily contemplated for a moment jabbing his own wand into every available bit of furniture just to be safe. Still muttering some of Kreacher's favorite foul tongues, he went over to the piano and began helping disentangle Peter.

The others all went to scatter away in frustration from here, Alice and Longbottom heading towards the kitchen, Sirius and Lupin going up the stairs, but the other four stayed uneasily in the mess, an answer still more tempting to them even if they would have given their potions teacher a good whack upside the head for it.

Evans finally went for the book again with a look of distaste like she used to give Potter all the time. He still watched her avidly for a few moments before an odd look passed his face and he went jogging up the stairs. Regulus's stomach was still twisted into a painful knot of unease for this abrupt turn around of their environment being all a farce and glared at his retreating feet. At least Sirius was making an effort, he wouldn't be surprised though if Potter went up there and encouraged Sirius to stay the hell away from both of them at this rate.

Peter watched too in fascination as that was the first time in his life he'd ever seen Prongs purposely turn away from her when he had no good reason to. He was tempted to follow and ask, but still he hesitated.

Sirius had offered him a bridge, back there in Malfoy's room, but it wasn't just Sirius' continued attitude that was putting him off trying to coexist with the other three. Remus and James had never been so vivid in their reaction to him, but he still felt it sometimes. Like the chunks missing from the wall. The place still stood around them, but even when it was fixed as it was in the book, he doubted he could ever get the image from his mind again of how that betrayal felt he'd never want to cause. It still felt safer then to never let it go that far at all. He still wanted to try and be friends, just maybe not best friends anymore. Like Neville he supposed, he could stay on the fringes and still be on good terms with them, right?

Instead, he turned to Regulus and gave an explanation he knew was owed, now that there was no chance of a dead body being around. "Sirius is worried about you, by the way. In case you were wondering."

Regulus looked startled at the abrupt change of topic, but then smiled in a way Peter so rarely saw as he glanced at the stairs.

"He was apologizing, for back in the Forest, said he was sorry for getting in the middle when he knows he hasn't been helping before that. Well, in his own way," Peter finished with an awkward laugh. "It's pretty funny to watch someone roll their eyes when they're closed." He tacked on for levity.

Regulus just watched steadily for the rest, that didn't feel like something Sirius wouldn't say in front of him.

"Okay yeah," Peter relented, "he also tried to ask what we were talking about, but I wasn't telling him what you told me. Not unless you want me to."

"Thanks," Regulus whispered in surprise, though he didn't know why he was, he knew Peter was good at keeping secrets. It wasn't even really a secret he was so afraid of this future, but nobody had ever given him the option before to decide who knew what about him.

He was tempted to go find Sirius now and talk to him, but Peter told him quietly, "maybe give Sirius a moment? You probably don't want to bother them messing around here."

Regulus didn't quite get the odd tone but believed him. He'd waited this long, he could wait a bit longer to try talking to his brother, they had plenty of time left and he was still plenty curious to pay attention to this.

Remus shivered in distaste for the room he wandered into, despite its clear opulence. The silk sheets and plump pillows spoke of a well rested bed, but he quickly bypassed that for the window despite the fact he could feel well enough there was no full moon, but the mist clung to these very streets as well. He made nonsense patterns in the dew and thought hard about how he could get around his stupid promise to Sirius about telling James and yet knew full well all secrets had a way of coming out eventually, Slughorn hadn't been able to avoid Dumbledore for long- Then someone grabbed him from behind.

"Stop screaming you idiot, it's still me."*

"Sirius, I rarely find that less of a reason to scream," Remus tried to laugh, but Sirius didn't seem in the talkative sort of mood as his hands dropped to his waist. "Are you insane?" He giggled even as he flicked his wand and the door locked. Not permanently, obviously, but it would give them some warning. "This isn't just a bit weird?" He still half expected Slughorn to pop up any moment after that heart attack moment, he'd never look at furniture around that man the same way again.

"It's on my bucket list to do this in a teacher's office," Sirius breathed into his ear. "This is the next best thing. Not up for it?" He pressed his lips down hard on Remus's throat and moaned when he felt Remus swallow convulsively.

'Ask you idiot, now, before this goes any further,' he tried keeping a straight head even as he let himself be pulled towards the bed, shamelessly helping Sirius out of his clothes with every step. "This um, list of yours-" he was panting already, what the hell did it matter again what this meant to Sirius so long as he kept doing that with his lips? "What, um, I mean who," he'd already forgotten his question anyways as Sirius sunk onto the bed and grinned up at him.

"Relax Moony, I'll give you a break when we get back, I wouldn't peg you for wanting to do half the shit I get up to anyways," he laughed as he coaxed Remus on top of him.

He'd only been half listening as he eagerly straddled him, nipping at his neck and jaw while palming him through the last of his clothes, but froze suddenly as what he said really sunk in, and a flair of possessiveness caused his hand to constrict.

Sirius gasped eagerly, but Remus' voice came out more clipped than he'd ever believe while holding Sirius like this, "what does that mean?"

Padfoot didn't seem to hear the warning, that wild, addicting laugh inches from his lips, his legs nudging him into a rocking motion as he teased, "I'll let you see the rest later. You really want to talk about this, now?" His breath was whiney and nearly pleading by the end as Remus hadn't yet moved again.

'Yes,' he knew he should have said. "Nope," he whispered, eagerly succumbing.*

It was far enough back on his neck even Sirius had to twist in the mirror to see it right. Nobody should be able to do the same, his hair covered it well. Sirius checked himself one last time as he smoothed the long black locks back perfectly to hide the mark, deciding he only looked as rumpled as everyone else for this near constant ricochet through reality before finally exiting the bathroom, prize now in his bag. Who kept sweets in their bathroom besides this lunatic? Remus probably would if he got his own house...He licked his lips longingly as he looked back towards Slughorn's room, but knew better than to go back, telling himself he'd risked enough for now. Moony needed a break and would understand if he just didn't come back, maybe he really did just want an alone moment Sirius wasn't giving him.

He'd pretty effectively blocked out Evans's voice as Slughorn already tried reminiscing to Harry about his old position, but the only thing he cared about for this anyways was that Snape should now be gone. He certainly hoped so, it was the only plausible reason he'd allow for this old walrus being back in school, none of the Marauders particularly liked him, so it wasn't at all surprising when he found Prongs behind a secret wall and rummaging through several jars of potions unabashedly, a golden vial flashing about, a strong smell of chocolate lingering in the air as he uncorked something and then quickly put it back.

"Moony okay?" He asked without looking away, he clearly wasn't that concerned with the small yelp of fright he'd caused Remus before muffling the door. "Heard something, what were you guys doing down there? Found this shit though-"

Sirius grinned in delight as he leaned against the wall to see him holding a glass flask full of a thick, mud like substance up curiously with a look Sirius was already on board with. "Fancy a swig Prongs?"

"Yeah, actually," he grinned remorselessly as he pulled the stopper out. "Care for a wager Padfoot?"

"Whoever gets caught first owes the other a galleon," Sirius instantly agreed.

Everybody would surely enjoy the laugh once they realized what the two had pulled, and this was a harmless spot of fun! Sirius grabbed up two dusty but waiting glasses and blew on them impatiently as James pulled out the cork and let the disgusting semi-liquid squelch out a shot into each.

James pocketed the rest and casually plucked a few hairs from his head and dropped it in. It looked almost as if it was pulsing in the cup, the thick maroon concoction was quivering along the edges just waiting for something to happen. He reached a finger out and traced along the edge with an amused smile, he was tempted to drink it himself no matter the uselessness of the action. He glanced curiously at Sirius to see him hesitating though and snorted in amusement as he was running his hand vainly through his hair. "Not going to make me drink your toenails are you prat?"

Sirius was quite tempted to spit into his just to lord that over him, he knew James would still drink it anyways, but ah, do to recent activities, he wasn't sure how much of it would be his own. So glaring at the arse, he delicately plucked at one precious lock, and winced with little pain as it came loose but watched eagerly as he dropped it down.

It was the brightest of scarlets, like if the sun had struck a ruby just right and dumped the color into his cup. He swirled it about like a fine wine and pursed his lips to stop the urge from licking it, but finally swapping cups and grinning like the loons they were as they tossed them back.

The two gasped in unison for how unpleasant the whole thing felt, but thankfully it was over quickly enough. They were shaking their heads though, still unintentionally mimicking each other as they held their new hands in front of their faces.

"Glory Prongs, it's a good thing you haven't lost your glasses. You'd be even more useless without them." It was so weird to hear his own voice, the deer nickname coming from his throat. James decided he didn't really like it as he figured out why the world was blurry and painful to focus on, removing them and passing them wordlessly along. His nose felt weirdly light and bare despite the fact Sirius' should feel no such thing.

Finally though he could properly see, himself. He briefly wondered for a moment if this could be sort of like looking at his son later, before quickly reminding himself like he had downstairs to knock off those kinds of thoughts now.

The two wordlessly exchanged clothes and kept uncomfortably flexing their shoulders and stretching, but by the time they were done it felt almost bearable.

"Don't know how that Crouch Jr. freak managed this for a year," James grumbled, still disturbed to not hear his voice come out and be staring at himself. "This is weird."

"Well thankfully the effects aren't permanent," Sirius sniffed, scratching oddly at his bare neck. "May the best man win!"

"I intend to," he said at once, fighting back the urge to pull Sirius' hair into a ponytail, it was heavier than he'd expected and he felt flush. Though after running his fingers uncomfortably through it for a moment he admitted to himself he had no idea how and he'd probably just hurt himself and either cause Sirius to piss himself with laughter or threaten bodily harm, either was likely.

The book had still been going, and Sirius grinned eagerly as he made his way towards the living room, at least that was a familiar expression on his own face. He obviously thought he could last longest around Evans, and he was probably right, he'd just have to stand there looking at her, the git. There was no fun in that though, and while Sirius was probably more concerned with winning and bragging rights, James wanted a challenge, so he went off in the direction he'd seen Remus go.

He found him quickly enough in Slughorn's room of all places and tried not to look too pleased he found him fidgeting with his shirt and a contemplative look on his face. The bed was all kinds of messed up like he'd been jumping on it for some reason. He had to remind himself not to try and falsify his voice when Remus glanced up. "What's on your mind Moony?"

"My treat," he sniffed. "Where's that pineapple you promised, I'm withholding round two until then."

James silently cursed himself and instantly regretted this, clearly he had missed a conversation between them and had no idea what they'd been up to. Still, he was nothing if not adaptable, and stepped forward to try and sooth out, "you'll get that crystal pineapple when I get mine."

At first he'd thought it might have worked, Remus got a smirk in place that always meant he was up to something, but then he whispered, "is that a challenge?" His hand moved to rest on the inside of James' thigh.

He jumped back like he'd been electrocuted again, accompanied by a high-pitched yelp that he would deny upon death he could ever make. He heard distantly something dropped in surprise in another room, his nose scrunched up in involuntary disgust as he watched Remus in concern. "The hell mate?"

"What-" he looked as confused as James felt now, but then he scrutinized him for several long seconds and demanded, "James?" His own face puckered with some anger and grotesque now.

"Yeah?" It took a moment for him to remember why his voice still sounded odd, and it wasn't all shock. He'd honestly forgotten he was in Sirius' body there for a moment. "How'd you know it was me?" He was only minorly distracted as he realized he lost and still watched his hand wearily, though it had fallen back into his lap.

"Because Sirius has never in his life done that," Remus said stiffly, and James froze in surprise as Moony's eyes flickered up to his own hand, which had been unintentionally ruffling up his hair with nerves. He cleared his throat awkwardly and smoothed his hand down the long main instead, but he knew the gig was up.

"Right," he muttered, far more concerned than anything still and not trying to play it off. "Found some Polyjuice Potions in Slughorn's stores, thought we'd have some fun, sure you didn't find anything you shouldn't have drunk? Like Essence of Insanity?"

Shock quickly collapsed down on Remus, he surged to his feet with a look of pure terror. "Oh shit, James? Um, look, we, I mean I, he was going to-" his eyes began darting to the door and back to him and changed to cussing fluently and backing away from him nearly to the wall.

"Hey, Remus, relax," James quickly soothed, taking a step towards him without even thinking. "I'm not angry, alright, breathe mate. Just, what the hell?"

Remus took several shaky breaths and still wouldn't even look at him, and James was starting to feel really bad. In his defense, that had come out of bloody nowhere, but Remus obviously hadn't done it on purpose, right? Maybe he'd been trying to grab at Sirius as a weird joke or whatever, hell is that what they kept whispering about, had Padfoot figured it out? They'd made weirder werewolf jokes to each other if so. He didn't at all want Remus to think he'd care if the guy was gay, he half suspected it sometimes as he showed such little interest in the girls back at school.

"Everything okay in here?"

The two jumped and turned around to see Evans of all people standing in the doorway, a look of genuine concern on her face as she watched the two. "There's been shouting." She clarified when the silence persisted.

"Um, yeah," he thought he grinned believably enough. He now had to fight off the compulsion with more effort than ever not to rumple up his hair in delight at the mere sight of her and was almost grateful for Moony catching him at that.

She still hovered, and both suddenly realized the book had been silent for quite some time, but there was still some kind of raised voice they'd been blocking out, and maybe it wasn't 'Sirius' shouting she'd meant. "Might want to check on your mate," she finally said, and confirmed as she shrugged and walked back off.

The two exchanged a very concerned look, what the hell had Sirius gotten himself up to? James went after her at once, beckoning to Remus without a second thought and filing this away for later. Moony thankfully followed without hesitation, even if he was a few paces behind than was natural.

She'd only got about halfway through the chapter and was feeling quite dispirited their teacher was on the run from Death Eater's in this Muggle neighborhood, but at least he'd agreed to come back. Dumbledore had been stepping into the broom shed back at the Burrow when Potter came in. There was an odd air about him, he kept scratching at the back of his neck and rotating his shoulders as he went and sat on the floor watching her with a stupider look than usual on his face.

Regulus and Pettigrew had been having some quiet kind of conversation about this new development and all it entailed for Hogwarts staffing. It didn't seem Potter was going to participate, until Pettigrew turned to him and asked, "What do you say Prongs, would you swap Vector out for anyone or take our chances?"

"Um," Sirius stuttered for only a moment. Damn, he hadn't taken Arithmancy with those three idiots, but he'd heard them complain enough over the years he could get along. "Guess we'll keep her around and avoid her, we've enough practice."

Regulus gave him a rather testy look he couldn't begin to guess at, he really didn't know his brother at all anymore.

One bridge at a time, he amended in his head. He still wasn't even clear on Regulus' loyalties. He was asking questions now and clearly trying to loosen up, but still defending the house-elf that got him killed and he still could not separate from their parents no matter what Regulus tried to say.

Peter kept going in an off-hand kind of way of forced casualness still, "look, I'm sure you're curious what Sirius was saying-"

"Not really," Sirius grinned.

Peter looked floored and a little hurt, so Sirius quickly gave himself a mental kick and redirected, "it's between you two." He stopped there and bit his tongue, he wasn't going to speak for Prongs and say everything was all good. James had been the one to convince him to even start at forgiving Peter, but he wasn't going to assume that meant he was all good either.

"He listens to you though," Peter tried to keep going, "and I was just hoping you could tell him-"

'Oh crap,' Sirius tried right then to give it up, he was not going to let Peter think he was talking to James and cause another fight later for this stupid prank! "Hey Wormtail-" Peter was already looking so annoyed, how had this gone so wrong so fast?

"Would you let me finish real quick-"

"No, really mate, I'm not-"

Regulus snapped.

He admired Peter was trying to keep going now around the obnoxious bloke still not taking a hint, but he couldn't just sit here and watch this anymore. "Can you not let him finish one bloody sentence without your opinion! I am so sick of you thinking you know what's best for everyone around here, no one elected you leader!"

He did not hear the thunk of something being dropped in the kitchen, nor realize Evans had lowered the book and was looking at them wearily before getting up, probably to finish reading in another room, though he doubted he'd take in a word of it now.

Peter felt too floored to notice any of it either, fighting down the urge to get between Regulus and James any second, but James didn't go for his wand. He didn't even seem upset or angry. Instead, there was some mingled look of pity, almost regret on his face which didn't at all track with the way he kept side-eying Regulus lately.

Sirius watched, half in fascination half in guilt as he let Regulus tear into Prongs, wincing for each blow his little brother dealt and glad to be taking this for James regardless.

"Ever since Sirius came home that first bloody summer all he's talked about is your bloody opinion on everything and I'm sick of hearing it!"

Sirius was starting to get annoyed by that point, he wasn't some mindless yup like his little brother and let Prongs speak for him, but he forced himself to hold his tongue and let Regulus get it all out now, he didn't even notice the other three coming back down the stairs.

James sure as hell wasn't going to allow the same when he took the scene in. He wasn't going to let Sirius' new passive approach to the two of them allow them to dog ear his best mate like that, and he immediately shoved Regulus. "Back off you bastard, now!"

Regulus looked stricken for just a moment before his face settled back into that cool mask of indifference the Black's carried so well. Sirius felt a pang in his heart the kid managed that at his age, his little brother even twitched for his wand, but Sirius forced his way between the two, snatching the vial out of James's pocket before this could escalate.

"Listen, we swapped bodies, okay! James and I, we found some Polyjuice Potion, we thought it would be fun! Merlin, how long you been holding that in Reg?" He still didn't really regret it when Regulus gave the both of them a look of deepest loathing and stormed up the stairs, slamming something up there. He didn't want to know what Prongs really would have said to him if he'd been down here this whole time.

Evans gave them a scathing look as well and turned quickly away to finish, muttering about their idiocies and stupid pranks again. Even Moony wouldn't meet his eye and Longbottom and Alice were watching from the kitchen with slightly open mouths like they still couldn't believe the stupidity they got themselves into.

Only Peter was left actually looking at them, and he was biting his lip to hold back a smile. Little shit. Whether he actually found the whole thing funny or was laughing at them neither could really be sure, and that was as irksome as Regulus' reaction.

The two gave each other exasperated looks, Sirius finally saying, "think we should hold off trying to get the others to laugh for now Prongs?"

"Guess there's no point in a prank if no one's going to laugh, not even us," he huffed in agreement, still eyeing the stairs with great dislike Sirius was far too used to seeing on his own face regarding his brother, but for the first time realizing James hadn't just been defending him, or himself, whichever. There was something else in what had just happened.

Evans watched them for a few more moments before saying with a guilty look upstairs the chapter was done and finishing good as her word.

HPHPHPH

You didn't really think I could go the whole book without some sibling drama did you? I wouldn't know what to do with myself at this rate!

* Porn will be posted in a separate post shortly.

[conundrum-rp-blog]

Under the cut you can check out all the players that have been accepted for their roles. Congratulations!  Please take a look at the instructions at the bottom of the page. For those who haven’t been accepted this time around, don’t be discouraged! Send me a message if you want more feedback on your application and I would love for you to re-apply in the future! Congratulations again to all of you and Welcome to CONUNDRUM!

✦ Christine, you’ve been accepted to play the role of James Potter. “He thinks, for a moment, of the house, in Godric’s Hollow, empty and abandoned, more a crime scene than a house these days; it’s still the first thing that comes to mind when he thinks of the word home. He thinks about the pictures all over the walls: pictures of both of them at Hogwarts, with their friends, pictures from parties and Order meetings, pictures of their parents – his moving ones framed and hung alongside her perfectly, strangely still ones. Pictures of them, their wedding, their honeymoon. Pictures of Harry. He thinks of the decor, the hand towels and throw pillows and the little key dish on the table in the hall, all things they picked out together– thinks of the sound of her laugh as she picked up a stupid toy grindylow at the shop and insisted they put it on the mantle. He wonders if that stupid toy made it out of the wreckage, if he could go back there and pick it up and take it with him, or if it was broken in the explosion.” There were a lot of parts I loved about your application, but I chose this particular part of the interview because it’s such a spot on way of represent the trauma James has been through and how he’s dealing with it. I’m so eager to read how his story plays out, and hopefully write it with you! Great job! Your Face Claim change to Dev Patel has been approved.

✦ H, you’ve been accepted to play the role of Bellatrix Lestrange. “Her obsession with the Dark Lord is purely rooted on his ideas, and his voice. She is in no way romantically or physically attracted to him, even if at some point she wishes that she was. what she is ‘in love with’ is everything he says about his cause, how he views the world changing once he has won, and the dark, deranged, passion he has to have it come about. She will continue to stand behind him even after he fails, for this purpose alone. This is why she is so adamant to get him back, without him she thinks that they will continue to fail.” Definitely my favourite headcanon of the application. Bellatrix’s obsession with Lord Voldemort is something somewhat crucial to her character, and it’s both really original and bold that you were willing to give that a psychological explanation. I can’t wait to see her in action! 

✦ Jane, you’ve been accepted to play the role of Emma Vanity. “Given the opportunity, Emma will always maintain her cold and collected exterior. However if something or someone really gets to her, she won’t shy away from a physical altercation. This is something she’s not proud of; given her propensity to try and fit in and emulate what she believes it’s the proper behaviour of a pureblood lady. As a child she was encouraged to take ballet like many of the wealthy daughters of the families her parents frequented. She was expelled from her dancing class at the age of thirteen because she threatened her dance teacher with her wand after the man called her “spineless little girl without an ounce of grace.” That was the moment she started getting interested in Quidditch, and her parents allowed the new hobby if only to tame her snappy temper.” Such an original interpretation and an amazing twist to the skeleton! I really enjoy the idea of Emma trying to hard to be something she’s clearly not. I can’t wait to see how the war impacts her world! Your Face Claim change to Adele Exarchopoulos has been approved.

✦ Marie, you’ve been accepted to play the role of Lauren Wakefield. “She can be often found outdoors. Back at school, she would have slept next to the lake if she had been allowed to. She loves being in contact with nature and treats every living being with adoration and respect. In fact her favourite subject used to be care of magical creatures. She meditates on daily basis and she’s also a vegetarian. She loves plants, flowers and before graduating she was known for fighting for a great variety - and sometimes a little strange - causes; such as house-elves, goblins and even the Giant Squid’s rights. It is said that Filch still has many of the protest banners she used to paint in bright colours, obviously stored and confiscated.” This headcanon might seem a little silly, but I personally think it’s amazing how you gave Lauren such a defined personality and took into account the context and the hippie culture of the 60s and 70s while writing her story. Simply wonderful! Your Face Claim change to Kristin Kreuk has been approved.

✦ Lux, you’ve been accepted to play the role of Remus Lupin. “This was the burden with which Remus Lupin was saddled. His first memories became those of tearful full moons, of clutching at his mother’s skirt and sobbing, begging her to fix him, falling to his knees in front of the Crucifix on the parlor wall and demanding that she tell him why God had let him become a monster. His mother could only kiss his forehead, watching as the tears fell to the threadbare carpet, and tell her son that everything happens for a reason, that our pain makes us weak so that we can depend on the Lord who makes us strong. Over time, the words lost their meaning, and everything else in his life along with it. Every breath was like walking through cement, struggling to keep his head above water for a life not worth living. His father had built a life, a reputation, upon helping the people of the world, and Remus could hardly even help himself.” This quote absolutely killed me! I absolutely love how much detailed you’ve put into Remus’ history and his inner thoughts. I’m super eager to see him in this universe!

✦ Ella, you’ve been accepted to play the role of Cassius Mulciber. “What drives him is the moment he stands on the precipice, wand in hand, dozens cowering before him, dozens more in his thrall, and knows he is truly great. There’s a reason the imperius curse is his signature. Mortals  could never understand the power that flows through his veins, that sparks from his fingers, drips from his tongue. Dance for me, Bow to me, Jump off a bridge for me. Cassius is divine. The Death Eaters offer him a way to the top, one which recognises his superiority and which is unbound by the rules and laws the mudbloods cling so tightly to.” Amazing description of a true villain! I have a particular soft spot for darker characters (says the person who plays Alecto and Rodolphus) and I can’t wait to see how this new stage of the war affects Cassius. Your Face Claim change to Jeremy Dufour has been approved.

✦ Riley, you’ve been accepted to play the role of Mafalda Hopkirk. “Mafalda would never describe herself as anything other than a supporter of Mafalda.  To do anything else would be a dangerous, destructive decision.  An unfortunate side-effect of taking a side was that the side you did not choose began to count you among their enemies – nothing about the war that encompassed most of her adolescence  was worth creating enemies over. Taking a side meant taking a risk, and as a half-blood in an industry dominated by the Pureblood elite, there were only certain types of risks she was willing to take.It just so happened that in as far as her career went, the Death Eaters were more often the ones who were in a position to propel her forward.  For that reason, most of the world would see her as a Death Eater supporter.” Mafalda is clearly a character who’s a victim of her circumstances, and I believe you did a splendid job describing just that. That’s pretty much why I chose this part of your application. A spot on description! Amazing job!

✦ Grace, you’ve been accepted to play the role of Edgar Bones. “He realizes his anger is a problem when he finds himself standing in his parents’ living room, having just yelled at them for…something. It’s not important what they were discussing, it was ages ago; what is important is the fact that they’re staring up at him like they don’t even recognize him. His face is beet red and he can barely catch his breath, but that doesn’t matter in this moment. All he feels is shame overcoming every centimeter of his body. There’s no way to talk his way out of this one, no way to laugh it off in that way he’s grown adept at. The moment becomes one of his biggest regrets, though he has more than just a few. But, like there is with many things, there’s a bright side: from it he learns, he grows, he changes.” I really liked this part of the application because it’ such a nice way of show how the war and the loss affected Edgar, and how it’s his nature to survive and persevere. I can’t wait to see how his story plays out!

✦ Mallory, you’ve been accepted to play the role of Amos Diggory. “Amos closed his eyes against the rushing, grey nothingness. He thought of his grandmother, in the stands, watching him run towards the dirt. He couldn’t help feeling the knot he knew would be rising in his throat, a scream he wouldn’t be able to voice, rise in his own throat. Amos called again, this time aloud: “Accio broom!” The team liked his tenacity, that’s what they said. They lost the match – nothing to one fifty – but the Cannons took him on anyway. From the Cannons, he joined the Arrows, and then Puddlemore United. Two years on, the national team found him in the local pub and convinced him to come out for open try outs. The rest, he guesses, is literally history, if only to the readers of Seeker Weekly.” Yes, yes, I’m choosing a quote about Quidditch; but I think this was such a nice way of summarising Amos’ personality and how he always seems so effortlessly lucky. With the war starting again and the situation with his wife, I can’t wait to see what happens! Your Face Claim change to Kit Harington has been approved.

✦ Cal, you’ve been accepted to play the role of Sirius Black. “He spent his whole life preparing for a war, ready and willing to be a martyr and the downfall of his family name. But with Voldemort gone, the enemy has become, scattered, less clear, and well aware he’s coming for them. He feels as though there’s nothing he can do, nothing that won’t earn him a few years in Azkaban. But that doesn’t ease the anger that eats at him like rot, chipping a little part of him away until the only thing left is the anger. He’s trying to find a purpose for it, an outlet, but all he wants is revenge.” I love this headcanon because it explains perfectly Sirius’ struggle between his willingness to do good and protect his friends, and his inner demons and bitter feelings towards the purists and the Death Eaters. I can’t wait to see how this develops! Amazing job!

Again; congratulations to all of you and thank you for showing an interest in this group! Now that you’re here, this is what you need to do next:

Follow EVERYONE

Track all of the tags (found HERE)

Make your character account send it in within 24 hours

Open up your askbox

If for any reason you need more time to get your account in, don’t hesitate to message me so I can keep your role open! If I don’t get a message from you then I will assume you’re no longer interested in keeping your spot. Once you send your account, you’ll be provided with the necessary links and we can get started! And of course; HAVE FUN!