#OHHHHH MY GOD HOW COULD I HAVE FORGOTTEN THIS QUOTE

[a-tale-of-two-stans]

OH MAN YOUR QUEUE TAG...IS PERFECT

!! OH THANKS FAM!! Yeah I was looking around for quotes I could use for like a half hour and then I went back and watched ATOTS and I was like. THIS IS PERFECT.

My other option was gonna be “Queue’re our hero Stanley” but this one works way better lol

[two-friends-read-hp]

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: Cat, Rat and Dog

THIS IS IT Y’ALL, SHIT’S GOING TO GO DOWN… FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS PLEASE

Oh yeah I almost forgot, they basically witnessed Buckbeak’s execution because Ron’s Rat wouldn’t sit in his pocket

I feel like Scabbers would be safer inside the castle now that there’s so much security… I trust people would notice a random dog roaming around the castle, whether he used secret tunnels or not

Ohhhhh it’s because of Crookshanks! Of course! How foolish of me

OHHH IT’S HAPPENING

AN ENORMOUS PALE-EYED, JET-BLACK DOG YOU SAY? SIMILAR TO MAYBE… A GRIM? pERHAPS?

Lol, as if being attacked by some feral dog wasn’t bad enough, they had to be in the vicinity of the Whomping Willow

Oh yeah, it’s also dark out now… so it’s not like they can even see the damned tree lol

Ooooooof Ron’s leg breaking… I could feel that… that must’ve HURT

I wonder how completely shocked they must’ve felt… some rando dog just pulled their friend into a tree that hits back

Oh, a Thank God For Crookshanks moment

How crazy does Harry sound right now, “yOUr cAt iS FriEnDS wiTH tHaT dOg, I sEEn iT”

Gosh… them crawling through the tunnel, it seems like a whole different time

Oh so the tunnel goes off the edge of the map so there’s no way Fred or George could’ve known about it when they were trying to break into the Shrieking Shack

This was a detail I missed in the movie when they ended up in the Shrieking Shack, so I was definitely surprised when I found out here

Oof, I wonder who peeled off the wallpaper and broke all this furniture… or rather… what…

“‘Ghosts didn’t do that,’ he said slowly.” Well… that you know of…

Oh yeah… I keep forgetting that it’s probably hella dark while they’re searching for their friend who got dragged into this haunted house

Wow, it must’ve been really quiet if they could hear the purring too

I like how they keep exchanging looks and nodding, like asking each other “Are you ready?” or “Should we keep going?”

I like how Crookshanks, the Cat, is on the bed and Ron, the Human with a Broken Leg, is on the floor… that’s such accurate cat behaviour

OH SHIT THAT REVEAL! Ron being like, “It’s a trap!” and then they spin around and Snap! The door closes… who’s standing behind the door?

HE’S AN ANIMAGUS

OHH SIRIUSSSSSSS

This part scared me the most as a kid… like, I’d forgotten everything about how Sirius was actually a good guy, I was so engrossed in this I couldn’t put it down if I tried

IT SURE SOUNDED LIKE A TAUNT BUT IT WASN’T! SIRIUS IS JUST A MASTER AT MISUNDERSTANDINGS AND PLAYING THE PRONOUN GAME

SIRIUS, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, CAN YOU PLEASE TELL THEM???????

It is taking all of my willpower to not curse out loud… JUST TELL THEM! IT’S JUST FOUR SIMPLE WORDS! ‘I’M’ FOLLOWED BY ‘NOT AFTER HARRY’

‘Perhaps it was the shock of Harry doing something so stupid,’ LOL honestly, what’s new

Gosh, I feel really bad for Sirius since a bunch of thirteen-year-olds are basically beating him up, but it’s kinda partially his fault fOR NOT SAYING THE WORDS IN TIME!

Gosh, you have to admire Ron and Hermione in this scene… they are both way more scared of Black than Harry, but not only did they both tell Black to his face that he’d have to kill all three of them, but Ron, with his painfully broken leg, helped attack Black… like, there’s no question of their loyalty and friendship

Oh, now he’s being urgent, when there’s a wand being pointed at him by a very angry thirteen-year-old

WOW, Crookshanks sat on his chest… I forgot about that part

LOL, they got disarmed twice in like, five to ten minutes?

Ohhh it makes so much sense when you know all the facts now… Lupin’s half sentences I mean

Also, he pointed at Ron? Why is that I wonder?

Lupin must be so confused right now… because he still didn’t know why Pettigrew was alive, even if he knew now that he was in fact, alive

And the “Why hasn’t he shown himself all this time” thing… because if he didn’t do anything wrong, and he escaped Sirius’ clutches, why hasn’t he shown himself? That’s a good question Lupin!

But also, finally, Lupin put the pieces together, THANK GOD, at least one person now knows that Sirius is innocent

But also, OMG LUPIN IS TALKING TO SIRIUS? LIKE FIRST NAME BASIS? I WONDER WHY THAT IS? HE KNOWS SIRIUS? OOOOH

OH MY GOD, HE’S EMBRACING SIRIUS LIKE A BROTHER? BETRAYAL! HE WAS THE ONE WE ALL TRUSTED! HE’S A REALLY NICE TEACHER TOO! ALWAYS ON OUR SIDE! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO US LUPIN!

Oh Lord, they’re surrounded by screaming teenagers… how are they going to get out of this one lol

Oh, an odd shiver passed over Lupin’s face at the thought of Harry being dead…

Oh… the damage is done… Lupin must be so hurt

I love how he just drops this bombshell, that he was one of the writers of the Marauder’s Map, and passes over it like it’s nothing, as a kid I was like, ‘hwhaaaaaaaaa?’

LOL he just keeps passing over these very important details of how he knows about the invisibility cloak and how he knows it was James’, I’m living for it

They were accompanied by someone else after they left Hagrid’s hut?? But who?? Who were they accompanied by? We were with them, all the way up until Sirius the feral dog dragged them into the tree

Lol imagine Lupin in his office spying on Harry with the Marauder’s Map being like, “Lol this kid, sneaking out of the castle just like I knew he would” and then they return with his friend who he thought was dead, only to collide with his other murderer friend who wants to murder said kid, he must’ve flipped his shit with how quickly it all happened lol

“‘What’s Scabbers got to do with it?’... ‘Everything,... ’” Lol why does that almost sound like some iconic Harry Potter quote that should be on a T-shirt or something

I can’t believe Scabbers didn’t escape yet… he had multiple chances, what with Ron’s broken leg and them beating up Sirius

Hwhaaaat? Scabbers the Rat is Peter Pettigrew? Dun dun duuuuun

Chapter 18

[marvelsquicksilver]

The Bucket List

Pairing: Steve x Reader 

Warnings: none? 

Prompt: you talk in your sleep

word count: 3390

A/N: this strayed so far from the prompt but I liked it too much to stop writing it. Hopefully you guys enjoy it. It could be really shit!!!! I wrote it running on four hours of sleep, so please don’t judge me if it’s bad, I just wanted to write something nice for you guys. 

“You talk in your sleep—“ Steve spoke as he entered the kitchen, pulling the bag of oatmeal from the top shelf.

I looked up from my bowl, a small stream of almond milk dribbled down the side of my mouth. “Huh?” I questioned as I wiped it away with my sleeve.

He narrowed his eyes and stared at me in confusion and a little bit of disgust, “uh—“ he shook his head, “you talk in your sleep. I heard you last night.”

I furrowed my brow as I shovelled down another mouthful of cereal. “What was I saying?” It interested me to know what I spoke about in my slumber. My college roommate had always told me that I did it, but my punishment for chatting away to myself was never knowing what I’d said—she was tough on me.

“You were talking about a handsome man in blue, I can only assume that was about me.” A small smirk played on his lips as he placed his bowl in the microwave.

“Okay Rogers,” I warned, “don’t reach. Now what was I really saying?” I asked again—a slight blush creeping onto my cheeks. The truth was I had the biggest crush on my training partner. It was just like high school, when you’d get a crush on one of the senior boys. Steve was the senior boy everyone had a crush on and I was lucky enough to train with him. It pleased me to walk into the gym every day and watch as he went one on one with the punching bag—his training shirts were always tight, accentuating his ungodly muscles and he was always so damn nice—but what I liked most was that he never played down my ability to fight. He fought me like he would fight any enemy and that in itself was the most attractive thing about him.

“Are you blushing (Y/N)?” He continued to smirk at me, knowing he was getting a reaction.

“Oh jog on.” I waved him away, “I see you shirtless every day, pretty sure if I wanted to—okay you know what nevermind, I can’t talk about you like that.” I began to toy with my cereal instead of eating it.

“Jog on—“ he repeated me, “is that a British thing?”

I rolled my eyes and poked him in the chest, “tell me what I was saying.”

“Fine, fine!” he put his hands up in defeat. “You were talking about the ocean—saying you were scared of it. You said something about a giant squid taking you away and pecking you with its beak.”

“Mmmmm,” I leaned back in my chair, “now that sounds more like me.” I really did have an irrational fear of giant squid.

“You’re really scared of the ocean?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Yep,” I got up from my seat and meandered to the sink.

Steve turned to face me, “but you can control it?”

I scoffed at his comment—I always seemed to get the same reaction when I told people. “Just because you can control something, doesn’t mean you can’t be afraid of it.”

“Wow,” he nodded his head in agreement. “That’s so deep.” He took a sip of his orange juice just as I went to lightly slap him on the head. The juice went sputtering out of his mouth and I let out a loud gasp.

“Oh wow—“ I couldn’t help but laugh, “I’m so sorry.” I grabbed some paper towel from beside the sink. “Oh my gosh.” I dabbed at his mouth before I could wipe the table. “You should’ve seen your face.” He rolled his eyes and grabbed the paper towel from me.

“Very funny.” He sighed as I sat back down—still chuckling at the mess I’d caused.

“Hey,” I tilted my head, sending him a tight-lipped smile “you shouldn’t make fun of my quotes.”

He shook his head, in disbelief “I never disagreed with you, but whatever you’re right.”

“I know I am Rogers, when am I not right?”

“When you’re left.” He looked up at me, the biggest smile plastered on his stupid face.

“Ohhhhh my god.” I didn’t want to laugh—I really didn’t. In fact I was certain that I was laughing at him and not with him. “You—no” I slapped my hands over my mouth in shock. He’d just told what was possibly one of—if not the worst joke of all time. “You really need to never tell that joke again, please I beg you.”

“Oh,” he frowned, “I got it from Scott—I thought he was the funny guy.”

“Scott is the funny guy, let it stay that way.” I leaned over the dining table to pat him on the shoulder.

“I’m scared of the ocean too by the way.” He quickly changed the subject—I slumped back into my chair when I noticed the blue of his eyes deepen.

“Well that’s because—well, yes—well, okay, yep.” I awkwardly got up from my seat. I hated that sometimes I was so calm and collected around him and then two seconds later I was the definition of ‘awkward mess’. “You know what, I’ll just see you at training.”

“Uh—okay,” I could tell he was confused by my suddenly erratic behaviour, but he went with it nevertheless. “I’ll see you then.”

I awkwardly waved before scrambling out of the kitchen.

–

“He said he was afraid of the ocean too and I freaked out, cause you know he’s been through so much with the damn sea—“

Wanda couldn’t wait for me to finish my sentence—she instantly burst out laughing. “Wow,” she calmed herself down. “I can always count on you to make my bad days better.”

“Don’t laugh at me,” I whined, “this is really bad.” I knew I couldn’t blame her for laughing because I really was a joke.

“Okay no, no” she stopped herself from laughing again. “I’m telling you now,” she placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. “If there’s anyone he likes in this whole facility it’s you!” I didn’t know where she’d pulled the idea from, but I liked it. “You haven’t embarrassed yourself—I can bet that he’s forgotten about it already.”

“Yes, but I keep making myself look stupid—eventually he’ll remember.” It was only a matter of time before Steve realised; I wasn’t funny, I was just a mess.

“You’re his training partner, he knows how fierce you are! So for you to be awkward outside of that dojo means nothing! He’s seen you in your rawest form, he knows the real you.”

“It’s just the fact that I try my best to flirt or create some banter and then I ruin it.” I shoved my head into her pillow and let out a loud groan.

“You really don’t see how great you are. All those awkward encounters? They add to your character and show that you feel something.”

“Jeeze,” I whistled under my breath as I lifted my head. “You really know how to be the supportive friend.”

“I know,” she smiled sincerely. “I didn’t have anyone when I thought I was making stupid mistakes, so the least I can do is be a good friend now that I have one.”

“Wow—“ I placed a hand over my heart, “I’m pretty sure that’s the sweetest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

“Stop it,” she laughed, “I’ve been nice before.”

“Hmmm,” I pretended to think about it. “I guess you have.”

–

“Hey—“ Steve said as he waltzed into the gym “what are you doing in here before me?” He knew the drill, he’d box and I’d walk in and pretend to be unfazed by his perfect form.

“Well,” I struggled to speak as I did my push ups, “I don’t like to admire hot and sweaty Captain America every day.”

“I always knew you were admiring me,” he dropped his bag and then lowered himself onto the mat next to me. “You having a bit of trouble there?”

My arms felt like jelly and there was sweat dripping from every crevice, I was on my 65th push up and I only needed one more to beat my personal best. I managed to squeeze in another three before collapsing into a heap. “I never have trouble.” I joked as I struggled for breath.

Steve chuckled as he got back up. He walked over to my gym bag and foraged for my water bottle. “Here,” he said placing it down next to me.

“Thank you,” I breathed—sitting up, before I gulped down almost the entire contents.

“So you never denied that you were admiring me.” The stupid smirk that I was far too accustomed to graced his face.

“Shut up,” I mustered enough strength to elbow him in the ribs.

He grabbed my elbow and pulled me closer. “That’s still not denying it.” It was the first time he’d ever been so cheeky around me and I had to say; I loved every single moment of it.

“You know what.” I wriggled myself free from his grip and grabbed my water bottle—without warning I squirted it in his face. “Is that enough denying for you captain?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Shit—“ he lifted his shirt to wipe his face and the bottom of his torso peaked out from underneath. I had to stop myself; I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if he caught me. “I’ll get you back for that (Y/N)” he warned.

“I’m sure you will,” I said casually—as if my heart wasn’t about to explode.

“Enough of that. Down to the serious stuff.” He wriggled himself around so that he was sitting in front of me.

“What,” I fake gasped. “You mean we weren’t being serious just then?”

He laughed lightly before shaking his head. “I was thinking that we could find the spare pair of gloves in the storage room and spar today.”

My arms felt like they were going to snap off, but I couldn’t resist sparring with Steve. He was just so precise and agile—all his movements were so natural, yet so unpredictable. “Sounds good to me.” I huffed before gulping down the last bit of my water.

“Great!” he sprung up, “I’ll go find the gloves.”

“Wait!” I shot up as well, “I’ll help you look.”

–

The two of us stood at the door of the storage closet, not sure where to look first.

“Christ, this is a tiny room.” I coughed as dust particles bombarded my throat.

“You’re not wrong.” Steve agreed as he crouched down.

“I regret not bringing my gloves today.” I said as I mirrored his actions, our shoulders pressing against each other as we both rummaged through random crates.

“Well—“ whatever he was about to say was cut off by the sound of a siren blaring.

“Shit!” we both stood up at the same time. The door to the storage room slammed shut within seconds, ultimately sealing us inside. The shock of it all caused me to stumble back into his arms.

He caught me gently, as if I were as light as a feather. “I forgot there was a lockdown drill today,” he let me go and I awkwardly shook myself upright.

“Well that’s just dandy isn’t it?” I flopped down onto one of the crates. Hiding my face so he wouldn’t see the blush that had crept onto my cheeks.

“Sorry,” He sighed as he pulled up a crate next to me.

I took a second to calm myself before looking at him, “it’s not your fault.”

We both sat in silence—instructions blared from the speaker in the dojo, but they were muffled by the titanium door that had sealed us in. I fumbled with my fingers for a while, before turning to look at Steve.

“What?” I questioned—my voice catching in my throat when I realised he’d been staring at me.

“Your eyes—“ he gulped, “they changed colour.”

“Oh yeah,” I averted my gaze to the floor—I was embarrassed by the whole situation.

He placed his knuckle under my chin and gently turned my head, so that I was looking at him again. “They’re—“ he hesitated for a second, “they’re beautiful.”

His comment struck me—I honestly felt like my heart was going to exit my body through my throat.

He didn’t move his knuckle from under my chin; instead he moved his face closer to mine. In fact, he was so close that I could smell his aftershave, which by that point should have faded—so close that I could feel the heat radiating off his skin.

“This is a really small room.” I repeated, as a lump began to rise in my throat. Was he going to kiss me? Or was he just moving irrationally close to me for no reason? I had no idea.

He smiled, “you say the dar—“ the clanking of the titanium door struggling to opening broke us apart. I’d never moved faster in my life—I felt like Pietro as I stumbled to my feet at the speed of light.

“Um, you know what? I’m not feeling so great. I think I’m gonna cut this short, if you need me I’ll be in my room.” I didn’t wait for a response—I rushed out of the dojo and toward my room, leaving him as confused as ever.

–

 I was half way through a pint of ice cream before there was a knock at my front door. “Bloody hell,” I muttered under my breath as I set down the dessert and slinked towards the door.

“Hi—“ Steve said as I flung the door open. “Can I—uh—I just came to check if you were okay.” He ran his hand through his hair nervously.

“Uh hi.” I narrowed my eyes— still not quite sure why he was standing there, considering I was perfectly fine. “I’m okay, is there a reason I wouldn’t be?” I moved aside and gestured for him to come in.

“It’s just that you left in such a hurry before—“ He held on to the back of his neck as he spoke, “I thought maybe I did something wrong.”

“Oh—“ I bit my lip, remembering just how close we’d gotten in that moment. “No, you—you were fine.” I resumed my seat on the couch. He stood beside the armrest, awkwardly staring down at the TV.

“You can sit down you know.” I chuckled as I patted the spot next to me.

“You know I—nevermind.” He sat down without any complaints to which I replied with a smile.

“Your hair is still wet,” I reached out to feel it. When I realised how weird I was being I pulled away, but was caught off guard when he entwined his hand with mine.

“I uh—“ he quickly shook his hand away and the two of us averted our eyes to the TV—unsure about what had just happened. “What are you watching?” he croaked.

“American Gangster—hey do you still have that list of movies you need to watch? Surely this is on there?” I distinctly remembered him telling me about his lists and how he’d aimed to finish everything on them.

He let out a small laugh, “you still remember that?”

My mouth formed an ‘O’, “I am shocked that you have such little belief in me and my listening capabilities.”

He laughed louder this time,“you’ll be happy to know that it is on my list and that I have in fact seen it.”

“I’m so proud,” I beamed as I clapped my hands together. “Look at you, de-fossilizing yourself one step at a time.”

His face fell in an instant, and I felt like I’d been stabbed. I’d upset him and I hadn’t meant to. “Look I better go.” He got up from his seat, “I’m glad you’re okay.”

“Hey wait!” I grabbed his hand and pulled him back down. “I didn’t mean it like that.” I hadn’t meant for my comment to hurt him, but I realised that it’d been a dumb move on my part. “I’m proud of you, you’re not a fossil and even if you were, you’d be my favourite.” A cheesy grin spread across my face as a small smile fleeted on his.

“Favourite fossil huh?” he raised an eyebrow in question.

“Favourite.” I leaned forward and in the spur of the moment I kissed his cheek.

We were both taken back for a second—each of us knowing it was out of character for me.

“(Y/N)” Steve said quietly, “there’s something on my list that I need your help to finish.”

“You need my help?” I wasn’t quite sure what he would need me for. There was nothing I could do that the others couldn’t—apart from controlling the sea, that there was exclusive.

He nodded, his eyes turning the dark shade of blue that I’d only seen once before.

“You’re not going to kiss me are you?” I snorted, trying to play it off as if it weren’t a legitimate question.

“Uh—dammit.” He slapped his hands against his knees and got up. “I’m such an idiot.”

“No, nO, nOo, NO!” I scrambled to my knees and waved my hands in the air like a mad woman.“I mean, no don’t go anywhere not no don’t kiss me.” My voice was frantic.

He sat back down, his head in his hands as he let out a frustrated groan. “So you want me to kiss you?” Now it was his turn to be confused.

“Yes!” I almost shouted, “I would like nothing—“

He didn’t wait for me to finish, before I knew it our lips were pressed against each other. His hand roamed to the small of my back, pulling me closer so that I was able to straddle him as our lips moved in sync. I couldn’t believe what was happening—after all those days of admiring him, Steve Rogers was kissing me and he wasn’t holding back either.

I found myself lost for breath as he deepened the kiss. His hands balled into fists as he grabbed ahold of my t-shirt—he was trying to pull me closer, but I was already as close to him as I could be with my clothes on.

“Fuck,” he moaned as I fumbled to pull his black v-neck off.

“Wait,” I breathed as I pulled away.

“What?” He asked, staring at me cautiously.

“That was the first time I’ve ever heard you swear.”

“Dear God,” he said as his lips caught mine once more. “You are really something else.”

I pulled away again and surveyed his face, “like a good something else or?”

He laughed out loud and I couldn’t help but laugh either, he was just so infectious. “Good I promise.”

“Okay cool” I grinned before wrapping my hands around his neck. “Cause I’ve had a crush on you for a while now.” I whispered my confession against the skin just below his ear. A massive smile spread across my face when I heard him mutter something inaudible under his breath.

“Oh really?” He smirked, as one of his hands slinked under my T-shirt so that he could trace shapes against my skin.

I frowned as I led my index finger around the outline of his abdominal muscles. “I hope you’re not laughing at me internally.”

He leaned forward and placed a small kiss to the corner of my mouth. “I swear I’m not. I think you’re the funniest woman alive and honestly I want to spend all of my time with you.”

“Is that why you set up so many training sessions Rogers?” I tapped my finger against his nose and he kissed my chin.

“Maybe,” he grinned as he gently pulled me back down. “Is that why you attended all of them (Y/N)?”

“Mhm,” I sucked in my bottom lip as I stared down at the man in front of me. “That’s not even a question.” I answered—our foreheads pressed together.

“Then let’s not waste time dwelling on it.”

“Hey Rogers?”

“Mmmm?” He mumbled in response.

“Why am I the only one with a shirt on?”

[quentinsquill]

Bereft: Chapter 6

Read it below or at AO3 at http://archiveofourown.org/works/10703295/chapters/24575814

“Can you say that again, man? Because I don’t think I heard you right!”

Quentin glanced at Penny as he paced the throne room. He glanced at Eliot’s chair as he passed by, his stomach clenching at the thought of Eliot never getting to sit there again.

 “You heard me. I want you to take me to the Neitherlands so I can break into the library and find the spell we need to trap Reynard!”

 Penny scowled and folded his arms over his chest.

 “You do realize how crazy you sound right now, right? How out of touch? You don’t ‘break in’ to the Neitherlands library!” Penny made finger quotes, which rankled Quentin for reasons he couldn’t place. “Or have you forgotten how that member of the order exiled us with a flick of her fucking hand? You don’t go up against power like that!”

 “I don’t have any other options! If I don’t, Eliot’s going to die!”

 “Man . . .” Penny took a step forward. “You might not be able to prevent that anyway.”

 “Right.” The word wavered and Quentin’s Adam’s apple bobbed visibly. “Because when Mike stabbed you with the Virgo Blade and everyone said you were going to die, we just gave up trying to find a cure and that’s why you’re standing there right now.”

 “That—”

 “Don’t you dare say that was different!” Quentin shouted. “Because it’s not, Penny, it’s exactly the same thing!”

 “But with the Virgo Blade, you at least had some idea where to start! Reynard isn’t a part of your Fillory books, Quentin, and you have no idea where to begin, even if you get into the library!”

 “Eliot saved me. When you winked in, he used the last of his abilities to tell you to get me and Margo away from Reynard! You told us that! Penny . . . don’t you understand how incredibly brave that was of Eliot? Don’t you get what Reynard was doing to him?”

 “Yeah man I get it!” Penny said abruptly, and Quentin saw the left side of his mouth twitch. “I was there, like you said.”

 Quentin stalked over to the taller man. Penny watched him approach, mildly surprised but refusing to give any ground.

 “Then either take me to the Neitherlands or give me the button. Either way? I’m fucking going!”

 Penny rolled his eyes so hard the whites nearly showed, and then he sighed.

“Fine. I’ll take you. But if you get me killed or some dumb shit like that, I will haunt your ass for the next seven millennia! Got it?”

 “Yes, fine, got it.” Quentin murmured, and Penny paused.

 “You’re right though. It was brave. Didn’t think he had it in him—thinking about other people.”

 “He’s going to be a good king. And. And he’s my friend and—I care. A lot.” Quentin said almost too quietly for Penny to hear. Penny nodded.

 “Fine. So let’s go.” He grabbed Quentin’s wrist and both of them vanished from the throne room with a whoosh of air.

_____________________________________________________________

 “Eliot! Ohhhhh Eliot!”

 Eliot opened his eyes, the strange sing-song voice cutting through the haze of pain he’d been floating in. A dank, hot rush of breath filled his right ear and he flinched in surprise as he turned his head. Reynard’s grin and flaring, reptilian yellow eyes were less than an inch from his own and he jerked back.

 “Uh!” He gasped, and Reynard’s grin widened.

 “Don’t bother screaming for your high queen or King Quentin.” He grinned, and Eliot struggled to sit up.

 “Why? What did you do to them? You fucking bastard—” Eliot gasped as Reynard shot out a hand and strong fingers clamped around his neck, threatening to dig in, to pierce the tender flesh there and rip it out.

 “Do? Why, nothing! But if you continue to insult me, High King, I will end this here and now and they’ll find nothing left of you but a pool of congealing blood and what’s left of your intestines after I’ve eaten my fill!” He removed his hand, letting Eliot gasp in a few lungfuls of air.

 “Where are my friends?” Eliot asked when he could speak again, and Reynard leaned his elbows on the bed.

 “Out in the throne room, planning your very royal funeral, I imagine. But it doesn’t matter. They can’t come in here anyway . . . we’re suspended in time.”

 “What do you want?” Eliot asked, unable to keep the tremor from his voice, and Reynard cocked his head.

“Why, I came to check on you!” He rose all at once and yanked back the duvet that covered Eliot’s legs. Eliot reached out to tug them back up, but Reynard pointed a finger at him and he fell back, pinned against the pillows, unable to move.

 “You’re so determined to go on playing the High King and the mighty magician, aren’t you? Even though I’ve made you powerless as any everyday human?” He shoved Eliot’s legs apart, ripped off the bandage, and buried his face in the bite he’d made. Nausea swept through Eliot as felt the god’s lips on his skin, and then his tongue.

 “Please.” He whispered, and Reynard gave the area another long, thick lick before pulling back.

 “Oh yes. You’ll be ready soon.” Reynard leaned forward until his lips were nearly touching Eliot’s. “You’re going to be so delicious, and when I’m done feeding on you, I’m going to kill the others and make Fillory mine. My own personal abattoir!”

 “Fillory doesn’t belong to you!” Eliot said, and Reynard grinned again.

 “Not yet it doesn’t. But it will—and so will you.” Reynard’s lips took Eliot’s in an aggressive kiss, his hands coming up to tangle in and pull at Eliot’s dark curls. Eliot squeezed his eyes shut and tried to stay silent, and then he was alone in the room again, the spell broken. He exhaled hard and wiped a hand firmly across his mouth. Margo stepped into the room a moment later, her stride all business.

 “Quentin and Penny are off on an errand and Q wanted me to tell you he’ll be back—” She cocked her head and frowned. “El? What is it?”

 “Nothing. It’s nothing. I’m fine.” Eliot wiped his mouth again and Margo’s gaze traveled to the uncovered wound. Eliot covered it with one hand. “I’m sorry. I must have torn it off in my sleep or something. Maybe Tick or that doctor could fix it.”

 Margo put her hands on her hips for a moment and glanced away, as if in thought, and then she went to the large armoire where they were storing the medical supplies Winding Path had given them. She brought over the gauze and the tape and the fresh bowl of water Tick always kept on Eliot’s dressing table, along with a soft square of woven cloth. Eliot watched her.

 “Margo . . .?”

 “Well. How many times did you hold back my hair when I worshipped the porcelain god at the cottage our first year? I owe you a few.” She soaked the cloth and dabbed at the wound while Eliot set his mouth in a grim line and tried not to flinch away.

 “You were right. It’s not healing.” He said at last, and Margo soaked up dots of fresh pus and blood before using another square of cloth to apply the herbal salve the doctor gave them.

“No. But we can maybe keep it from spreading until Quentin and Penny get back. Q is determined to find a spell that can trap Reynard and fix all this.”

 “And if he can’t?”

 Margo applied a fresh bandage and changed the padding under his thigh.

 “I’m not ready to accept that scenario any more than Quentin is. So let’s take things one step at a time, all right? I’m going to bring you some soup from the kitchen. It’s not the scrippelle ’mbusse from that place in Manhattan that you love, but I’ll make sure it’s edible.” She stood, tossing the soiled bandages into the receptacle nearby. Eliot snagged her hand and she glanced down at him.

 “Thank you, Bambi.”

 Margo’s dark eyes softened and she squeezed Eliot’s hand.

 “The Fillorian doctor’s practices are as arcane as his stupid hairdo. It’s not a problem.” She pulled the covers up over Eliot’s lap and lowered the room’s lights with magic, leaving Eliot to lay wakeful, searching the shadow-filled corners for a pair of flaring yellow eyes.