#and I gave him a braid because I think writing Yellow Lily did Things to my mental image of wtst emmet

[egginfroggin]

*smacc*

It's ya boi. Major character death.

Emmet's fine, he's just a wee lil bit dead, that's all. Nothing some therapy won't help.

So I've had like no inspiration last long enough to really finish an illustration, so instead I'm trying to embrace the sketchy half-finished look.

Also, highlighter brush, beloved.

Have a good day! :>

(Program: Krita; time taken: about 1 hr. 40 minutes)

[katherinewilliams221b]

A Date Before Christmas

This work belongs to the Secret Santa event by @hphmsecretsanta2020​​ and its my gift to @cursebreaker-lilith​​ ! Happy Holidays and thank you so much for making this possible!

I hope you like it despite being out of character lol. I felt very insecure writing about her so I kept it simple and with just a few details so I didnt  mess up the character.

Summary: Lili and Penny spend and afternoon before Christmas having fun in Hogsmeade. Pairing: MC x Penny

A/N: Consider this piece an AU of your timeline lmao

--

The door to the Slytherin common room was closed behind her. The place was deserted, everyone was either in the great hall or on their way to Hogsmeade for the beginning of Christmas.

Perfect.

Lili sat in one of the armchairs in front of the fire and watched through the window the different water creatures that passed in front of her.

She looked down at her fingernails, thinking about the note she had received that morning and how she had reacted without thinking about the consequences.

She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out the scroll in question to read it again for the umpteenth time that day, as if every time she laid eyes on it she would find a way to calm the nerves that were eating her alive.

"What do you have there?"

Rowan's voice startled her, and she hurriedly crumpled up the letter and put it back in her pocket. However, Rowan had already seen it.

"What are you doing here? I thought you'd be in the Great Hall..."

"I've been reading for a while and I wanted to write a letter to my parents before Christmas... what's that?"

"What?" Lilith put her legs up on the couch and shrank to fit in it. She kept looking at the lake water through the window.

"Come on, I'm not stupid. You can tell me anything..."

With a slight roll of the eyes, she took out the crumpled ball of paper from her pocket and handed it to Rowan without making eye contact.

Her friend moved her eyes quickly across the paper and raised her eyebrows before smiling.

"Penny asked you out?"

"She says it doesn't have to be a date..."

"And what did you say?"

Lili looked at Rowan and then at the flames in the fireplace.

"I said yes."

Rowan stared at her. "You don't seem very happy...you've been wanting something like this to happen for months.”

"Rowan, I don't know... what are we going to do?"

"With what?"

"With Penny! If it's a date, then... what am I going to do with her?

"It says here that she's inviting you to some Butterbeers at Hogsmeade. Sounds like a good plan to me."

"Yeah, but it's not the same as having butterbeers as a friend as it is a date. It's different, there are expectations... I don't know, Rowan, I shouldn't have said yes."

"Lili, we're talking about Penny. You've been to Hogsmeade many times and you always have a good time. It's no different now..."

"Yes! Yes it is!"

She got up from her chair and marched towards the stairs leading to the bedrooms. Rowan ran after her and found her lying face down on her bed.

"You're exaggerating, which is counterproductive since you have to meet someone in an hour."

Lili grunted against the pillow and turned around to face the ceiling.

"What should I wear?" She murmured.

"Maybe you should ask Andre, I'm not the best person to..."

"No. Because if I ask Andre, I'll have to tell him I have a a date and he'll ask me with whom and I don't want him to know.”

Rowan sat down on her own bed in front of Lili and sighed. "This is not like you. You have to think more clearly..."

She tapped her fingers to her thigh and despite she knew that Rowan was still talking, she couldn't concentrate on her friend's words. Her gaze shifted to her trunk. She got up with a jump and started throwing Alfred's toys to the floor to be able to open the trunk.

"...so maybe should...what are you doing?"

"I know what to wear." she simply stated.

Rowan caught some pieces of clothing that Lili was throwing, and watched with resignation as she tidied up her room.

"The green scarf and... the black boots should do. Don't look at me like that, I'll tidy up later.

"Yeah...right... Rowan muttered as she watched her friend leave the room armed with a pile of clothes.

Twenty minutes later, Lili emerged from the bathroom enfolded in a black jacket, a green hat that matched her scarf and black boots to complete the look.

"Hoop or stars?” She extended her arms to show two pairs of earrings to Rowan, who lowered her book to look at them.

"Those." Rowan pointed at the hoop earrings and Lili walked to a mirror to put them on.

"Alright, I'm ready."

 The feelings of confidence were gradually dissipated as they passed through the corridors of the castle. The lights that decorated the walls and ceiling created an aura of tranquillity and familiarity that she tried to hold on to.

Right at the doors of the lGreat Hall, there was Penny, clad in a pale pink coat and a matching hat. She smiled at the sight of Lili and rose to greet her with a kiss on the cheek.

"I'm too late?”

"Just in time. Let's go! Madam Pudifoots is waiting for us."

"Have you booked a table?"

"Yes, I thought some hot tea would do us good. Then we can walk around Hogsmeade, it's all beautifully decorated.”

 The trip to the village was quiet: Penny and Lili walked side by side, casually brushing up against each other from time to time. By the time they arrived, a few snowflakes had begun to fall.

"So you're going home this Christmas?

"Yes, Beatrice decided that she wanted to spend Christmas with the family, so I'm not going to miss that opportunity. What are you going to do?"

"I still don't know." They passed a man selling chestnuts but politely declined his offer.

"I don't recommend them," said Lili, "unless you want sparks to fly off your tongue!" They laughed together to the door of the tearoom and entered, immediately feeling the warmth of the place.

"Hello, my dears! What can I do for you? Table for two?"

"Good afternoon, I've reserved a table."

"Oh! Sure, right this way! I've put you somewhere a bit more private, you know, people don't usually book here so I figured it would be something important.”

The woman took them to the end of the shop, leading them to a table behind the curtain that separated the main hall. They made themselves comfortable and asked each other for their tea, trying to avoid each other's gaze. As a courtesy, Madam Pudifoots brought them a small plate of biscuits.

"Since I'm leaving tomorrow morning, I thought I'd give you this," said Penny, rummaging through her coat.

"You bought me a present?"

"Yes! I hope you like it..." She took a small package from her coat and slid it across the table. She waited impatiently for Lili to unwrap it, but she just stared at it. After a few seconds she looked up and smiled.

"I brought you something too." Penny grinned and accepted the small wooden box.

Lili opened her package to find three different coloured scrunchies and some pairs of matching socks. Excited, she chose the green one and tied part of her hair back. "I love them!"

Penny's reaction was much more exaggerated. It seemed that she had got it right with the hair clips... She put several butterflies in her braids.

"They are beautiful, Lili, they match my jumper."

"And there's more..." Penny raised her eyebrows but before I could ask what she meant; several butterflies started flying around her head. Lili looked on with a smile as Penny tried to catch them, laughing all the time.

"They are bewitched, they take a while to become clips again."

"They are brilliant! Thank you, Lili."

 The tea was well received, and they spent an hour chatting about the classes, potions, and the new collection of Gladrags Wizardwear.

 For once, Lili felt comfortable and not guilty about not thinking about the vaults.

They paid on their way out and willingly accepted the Christmas treat that Madam Pudifoot gave them.

"Do you want to go to Gladrags?"

"Yes! Last week I saw a skirt that I liked."

They walked for a while but nature had other plans; the temperature dropped abruptly and a strong blizzard rose, making it difficult for visitors to walk through the village.

"We can make a strategic stop at Zonko's..." proposed Lili.

"Maybe we will meet Tonks."

The sound of the door bells warning of the arrival of a new buyer was not heard amidst the laughter and commotion of the children visiting the shop. Several lights exploded on the roof and Penny and Lili had to dodge several flying objects. They approached a special Christmas section.

"This is fun, there is a present inside and two people have to pull on both sides," said Penny holding a green package.

"Look! Zonko has put up a Christmas tree! Lili approached it, it was decorated with floating candles, lights and colourful ornaments.

"It will be one of the few things here that are harmless." Penny laughed.

She ate her words as one of the Christmas ornaments doubled in size when Lili touched it and a green liquid exploded in her face.

Both girls broke into laughter as Lili tried to get what appeared to be drool of some creature.

"Ah, I see you have discovered my surprise decorations..." said the owner offering Lili a napkin. She looked at him suspiciously and Zonko laughed. "It's only paper.”

 After several scares and jokes later, Lili grabbed Penny's hand and dragged her into the street.

"The blizzard has stopped, let's go before it closes! They walked together hand in hand, none of them wanted to let go. When they arrived at the clothing shop, they examined the shop window for anything that caught their attention.

"Is that the skirt you wanted?"

Penny nodded enthusiastically and pointed to a mannequin. "And that shirt would look great!" They laughed as several eyes fell on them. They noticed it and tried to turn off their laughter, but when they looked at each other, they couldn't resist and the giggles started again.

 Lili was sitting in front of the dressing room where Penny was changing her clothes. When she came out, the blonde turned around and waited for the verdict.

"It looks great on you but... better with the yellow top."

"Isn't it too flashy?"

"That's the idea..." Penny went back into the fitting room with a little smile.

"Well, I won't buy it today anyway. I'll wait for the sales. What do you want to do now?"

Lili got up from her seat and started walking around the shop. A red jacket caught her attention and she went straight to touch it.

"I don't know... some sweets? We can stop by Honeydukes to see how it is decorated."

"Sounds good!"

 The place was packed but they still managed to make their way through the crowd. They looked around in amazement. As many times as they had gone to that shop, each year they outdid themselves in creating the most fun and colourful atmosphere in all of Hogsmeade. Penny went straight to the cotton candy, while Lili kept her eye on some little heart-shaped candies.

She turned to see Penny paying and rushed to grab a handful of the candy. She waited impatiently for the change after paying, and hid the bag in her jacket.

"Here you are" announced Penny from behind a giant pink cotton candy. "If you behave yourself, maybe I'll give you some.” Lili rolled her eyes before giggling and stole some cotton candy from the cone.

They spent the next few hours wandering around the place, trying out some chocolate samples and listening to the Christmas music playing over the speakers.

As they left, the memory of the noisy shop made the street seem quieter than usual.

It was dark, but the lights on the facades were bright enough to walk around in peace.

"Do you want to go get a Butterbeer?" Penny asked.

 "Let's sit down for a while." Lili pointed to a stone bench in front of them and they cleared the snow so they could sit down. She took the bag out of her pocket and gave her date the candies she had saved. "I bought you this..."

Penny accepted the bag in surprise but finally a smile appeared in her mouth.

"I bought you something too..." Penny reached into her pockets and pulled out a small green package. "Shall we open it?"

They pulled the ends to break the package, which exploded in the air with lights of various colours. They laughed as several things fell on their heads.

"A beaded bracelet..."

"And some lemon drops!"

"Penny..."

The atmosphere suddenly became serious, the blonde waited with concern for Lili to say what she was thinking.

"It was a great date."

Penny smiled before nodding, agreeing with her friend's opinion. Leaning forward, she put her hand on Lili's.

"I agree.”

Lili approached as well and placed her lips on Penny's in a sweet, short peck. They both smiled before getting up.

"To the three broomsticks?”

"To the three broomsticks."

--

[vylad243]

Morro and Harumi Headcanons.

Might include spoilers? Maybe? I don't know what you've seen.

There may or may not be over a hundred:

• Morro called Harumi 'Jade' instead of 'Princess'

• Harumi calls him 'Breeze' in return

• Morro and Harumi's friendship started because of their hatred of the FSM

• Morro helped reconnect Harumi with her parents when she died

• Morro braids Harumi's hair

• Harumi taught Morro how to dance

• Following a certain theory that I might post soon, Morro and Harumi visit Ninjago to make sure everyone is okay.

• Morro and Harumi greet the bounty every time her op ass dies

• Harumi likes to see how far she can step before she pisses Morro off

• Harumi tries to convince Morro and the FSM to fight all the time

• Harumi will use Morro as a "Date" for dances and parties and such whenever she gets the chance

• Harumi and Morro are constantly sassing each other

• Harumi likes Morro's elemental dragon and she tries to talk him into always having it out.

• Harumi once tried to get Morro to visit his parents in the departed realm but when he kept refusing she gave up, not wanting to push him.

• Morro once called Harumi his cousin and she freaked out, forgetting he was adopted by Wu, he hasn't done it since.

• Harumi called Morro 'Sour Green' once.

• It bothered Morro because there is a colour called 'Lime Green'

• Harumi will walk up to Morro with random rocks and ask him to identify if because he was once a miner and probably knew a lot about rocks

• Harumi found out Morro really like Amethysts and likes to say his favorite colour is purple, which he never denys 🤔

• Harumi likes to watch Morro's and the FSM's arguements and will occasionally eat popcorn during these

• Harumi is a bit afraid of how Powerful Morro is compared to the Ninja

• Morro showed Harumi all the best places in the departed realm and also showed her how to look upon other realms

• Harumi clings to Morro like a bat whenever they past the Great Devourer in the departed realm, the snake is surprisingly chill

• Morro has slight PDST from the cursed realm and Harumi feels useless whenever she watches him slightly freak out when it's mentioned

• Harumi learnt Morro likes hugs.

• She recently learnt only she can hug him.

• No matter how mad Morro gets at Harumi, he'll never let her suffer alone and will always be there when she needs someone

• Harumi hates that she can't help Morro in return though because he doesn't tell her anything, but she doesn't know that just her presence helps him

• Morro strongly recommends avoiding Harumi's adoptive parents in case they snap at her and he knows she's not emotionally prepared for that

• Harumi thinks Morro should get a service dog if they ever permanently stay in Ninjago

• He disagrees with her about that.

• Harumi and Morro get into alot of arguements about his safety once she found out he was actually allergic to a common metal found in alot in caves, hell if I know what it's called.

• Harumi feels like she's become a little too protective over Morro until she remembers the dumb shit he pulls

• Morro think that he's under protective of Harumi

• Morro tried his hardest to hide the fact he's half blind from her, the scar is so close to his eye, and how he moves his head, he feels like she already know, but she hasn't yelled at him yet so he's unsure (My headcanon hiiissssss)

• Harumi likes to call Morro 'Mini-god' and the Bounty 'Big God'

• It really gets him mad, but he loves her to much to say anything about it.

• Harumi likes Horror movies, but won't watch them, mention them, or talk about any near Morro because they scare him to no ends.

• It makes her really curious of what's in the Cursed Realm though.

• Morro likes puns.

• Harumi doesn't

• Morro can sing

• Harumi is mad he never does sing

• Morro can speak so many different languages it's ridiculous. He can speak Oni and Dragon too.

• Harumi want him to teach her, but she hasn't convinced him to yet. In reality she just wants to understand what he's saying half the time.

• Harumi and Morro insult each other every chance they get

• They don't do well separated

• English actually isn't his native language, he just learnt it at such a young age from Wu

• Morro is short and Harumi makes fun of it every chance she gets

• Harumi's favorite colour is actually yellow

• Harumi comes up with the craziest nicknames for him and he can't come up with any good ones, her personal favorite that he gave her was Onyx, but she really likes Jade too.

• Morro insults her in different languages

• Harumi doesnt like the second largest snake either

• Each time Harumi sees Morro cry she tries to cheer him up by saying "It's okay my life sucked too."

• He will passive aggressively say that she died when she was older then fourteen and she'll just hug him.

• Harumi and Morro's favorite spot is the waterfall in the departed realm despite Morro's anxiety with water

• Morro has heterochromia eyes, one green and the other is silver

• Harumi has pretty sky blue eyes

• Harumi and Morro like to insult Misko, the FSM, and Wu.

• They're both pretty socially awkward

• Harumi has tried to get Morro to tie back his hair

• Morro will stay up all night just to watch Harumi and make sure she's doing okay and not having any nightmares while she sleeps

• Harumi loves to sleep

• Harumi doesn't like fire to much, and ironically, Morro doesn't like water

• Harumi likes to lean against Morro

• They actually ignored each other's existence at first

• The first person Harumi saw in the departed realm was a childhood friend of her's

• The first person Morro saw was the FSM

• Yes they immediately got into an arguement

• Morro makes jokes about how Harumi took his plan, but little does he know his plan was the base to Harumi's plan, just different objectives, and outcomes, and boring stuff like that.

• Morro hates sleeping

• Harumi wonders if she would of been sent to the cursed realm despite redeeming herself, she also wonders that about Morro when he died again

• Morro hasn't told anyone that destroying the Cursed Realm was a stupid plan and that all realms use each other as pillars

• He also never said 'I told you so' when Djinjago was destroyed when the Cursed Realm fallen (Is that how you spell it)

• Harumi and Morro usually greet all those who pass into the departed.

• Morro has called the head writer in Cloud Kingdom stupid on multiple occasions

• Morro might be one of the only characters in Ninjago who doesn't have his destiny being written out by the people in Cloud Kingdom (I say this is a might, I'm not sure, but I'm sprinkling some theory juice in here)

• So technically he did prove destiny wrong since he gets to write his own now. (If the above is true)

• Harumi likes it when Morro does her hair

• Morro refuses to let Harumi touch his hair.

• Harumi is a bit jealous of Morro's powers, but that's only because she felt she could save her parents' life if she had them

• Morro would of most likely given Harumi his powers

• Harumi and Morro actually don't talk about Lloyd that much

• Harumi has tried to show Morro how technology works, but he's beyond that stuff.

• He thinks it's stupid, but doesnt care enough to turn back time to make technology never exist

• Morro actually finds a bit of pride being the first ever elemental master that was a villian, he thinks it's nice that it proves you don't have to become what others think you're going to be.

• Harumi thinks it's funny that Morro is kidna cheesy, but she excuses it because of his young age.

• Morro doesn't like being the youngest villian though

• Harumi thinks it's stupid that Wu puts so much pressure on kids

• Morro, despite having huge advantages against the ninja, liked to be fair and give then easier chances to beat him. (Like seriously, dude. You could of just phased through the FSM's shit. You didn't have to play by the rules)

• Harumi doesn't like The Overlord

• Morro questions how when The Overlord died he was sent to the departed realm instead of the Cursed Realm

• Morro never went to school and is purely self-taught, besides the things Wu taught him

• Harumi feel bad about everything she did

• Morro honestly couldn't care less about what he did

• Moror can play a guitar

• Harumi likes to visit Ninjago, she doesn't like how she has to hide everytime she does it though

• Harumi is afraid of what the FSM will do to her and Morro if they keep fighting with him

• Harumi really likes pearls

• Morro wanted to be a doctor when he was younger

• Harumi wanted to be like the Ninja until the Great Devourer Incident

• Morro made Harumi pet the Great Devourer once. He doesn't regret making her do that

• Morro's favorite flower is a lily

• Harumi's is either a Carnation or Devil's Paintbrush

• Morro is slightly irritated that the FSM made a giant snake that consumes everything in it's path and didn't take precautions to make sure it didn't do exactly what it did.

• Harumi will sometimes just agree with whatever Morro says

• Morro used to like the rain

• Harumi likes mysteries

• Morro once asked Harumi if her adoptive parents had kids, would the baby be the ruler because it's actual blood or if Harumi would because's she's the eldest and she was adopted at such a young age

• Harumi didn't know how to answer and said she believed the baby would

• Morro actually likes cuddles, he's just very selective

• Morro used to be friends with that Grundle he threw a stick at. He named it Honey.

• He never told Wu about his very dangerous pet

• Harumi likes sea creatures and the ocean. Again, mysteries

• Morro likes to read and used the read every chance he got

• Harumi asked Morro what it was like being Wu's student and he just pointed to the Great Devourer and walked away. She still doesn't know what that means

• Morro, despite accepting he's Wu's adoptive child, will fight anyone who says he's Wu's son.

• Harumi made one joke about how Morro should of used the water from his second death to help him survive his first death.

• He just responded with "That's not how boiling works"

• Morro likes to stargaze

• Harumi and Morro can both draw

• Harumi and Morro both don't like the idea of the other talking to other people, afraid they're gonna loose their best friend

• Harumi likes to pick grass from the Departed Realm and watch it fade away

• Harumi wants to learn how to play the piano

--------

And I'm gonna stop now, I need to save some hcs in case I need some more for later xD

[imaginejamesandsirius]

Hi, I was wondering... could you write a fic in which Lily turns James down once again and maybe yells at him, and Sirius defends James because he honestly can't understand how one can not love him. And then James realizes it's always been Sirius (and maybe Lily was rejecting James because she knew Prongsfoot were meant to be)? I know it's cliché, but I'd like it :) and this is not meant to be Lily bashing or anything (I mean, I like her)... Thank you!

For all that she had said no repeatedly, it had never occurred to James that Lily was legitimately not interested. They would be perfect together, he was convinced. It was like the ideal love story! They meet at odds, get closer as they grow, top of the class, Head Boy and Girl, and eventually realise they are great together, marry young, and have lots of children. It was the type of story that dominated sickle romance books (ahem, not that James knew what those were like).

But when James tried to explain what he was thinking to her, she didn’t react favourably. Lily gaped at him. “Are you absolutely mental? Yes, I’ll admit, it makes a nice story, but we don’t get on. Even if we did, we wouldn’t be dating!”

“Why not?”

Lily made an impatient noise, threw her hands in the air, and stormed off.

James stared at her retreating figure, confused. She was acting like he was missing something big, but he didn’t know what. Maybe he should get her flowers; everyone liked flowers. Well, Sirius did, and he always smiled when James gave him some.

He didn’t end up getting her flowers, partially because it would be better to ask than accidentally get her a kind she hated or was allergic to, and partially because when he asked Sirius for help with Lily in the past, he got a look on his face that said he’d rather be anywhere but there. James hated that look, so he didn’t ask Sirius’s advice, though it undoubtedly would have been helpful.

Lily blinked at him. “You want to know my favourite flower,” she said flatly.

He nodded, thinking that maybe, for once, this conversation would go right.

She leaned back in her chair, folding her arms across her chest and giving him a look.

...Then again, maybe not.

“James-- and I mean this in the nicest way possible-- you’re an imbecile.”

“Do you not like flowers?”

“Why do you want to give me flowers?” she asked, not countering, just ignoring his question.

“I thought you might like them. Sirius likes flowers, says they make the room brighter.”

“So you thought I’d like flowers because Sirius-- your best mate-- likes them.”

“Yes?”

Lily shook her head. “Unbelievable,” she muttered. “I need to finish this essay for Professor McGonagall.”

“O...kay.” He walked away, feeling reprimanded, though he didn’t know what for.

Sirius was sympathetic as always when James returned looking glum. “It’s alright mate, she’ll come around.” He’d been saying that for months, but it still inexplicably made James feel better.

“If you say so. What’re you working on?”

Sirius grinned, launching into an explanation of his motorbike and the flying charms he was currently working on, which quite frankly went over James’s head. He’d started on that mechanic’s book Sirius lent him, but wasn’t far enough in it to understand the level Sirius was talking at. It was nice to see him so passionate, though, and he didn’t mind pausing to explain the more complex parts when James asked. James made a mental note to read the book faster on the off chance he’d be able to help by the time he was through. If nothing else, he’d understand more, and Sirius would get that pleased little smile.

~~~

“You want to know what?” Lily asked incredulously, though not offended, so at least he wasn’t regressing.

“Your favourite type of chocolate. Flowers and chocolates are what you get the person you fancy, but you didn’t answer for flowers.”

“What type of chocolates do you get Sirius?”

“Anything with caramel,” he said immediately. When Lily raised an eyebrow pointedly, he defended, “He loves caramel, but he refuses to buy it for himself always insisting that he likes dark chocolate. I’m not about to make him live without caramel chocolate just because he’s being a stubborn arse, can you imagine how sad he’d be?” James shook his head. “It would never be worth it.”

“Mmhmm.” Lily looked like James had just proved her point, but James, as per usual with her, was completely lost.

He left a few minutes later, feeling like he’d just lost a battle he hadn’t known he was fighting and still didn’t know the cause of. She’s certainly interesting, he thought as he made his way to the One-Eyed Witch statue. Sirius was about to run out of chocolate (his caramel stash, not the dark that he only touched when he was out of caramel and hated every bite of), so James figured he could get him some before he got back from Ancient Runes.

~~~

“C’mon Lily we would make a great couple.”

“We really, really wouldn’t,” she said, aggravated.

“I think that we would.” Granted it was for reasons he’d already told her, and she’d denied/ignored, but if she thought about it, she’d agree. Maybe. He was steadily losing faith in that assumption.

“No we wouldn’t! Not when one of us doesn’t care, and the other is clearly in love with their best friend even if he won’t admit it. For fuck’s sake, James ask out the person you actually fancy for once!”

“I- what are you talking about?”

“Sirius! Sirius Black, your best friend, the person you spend all your time with.”

“I don’t- I don’t fancy Sirius,” he stuttered out.

“James just the other day you told me that you get flowers and chocolates for the person you fancy. You give Sirius both.”

“We’re friends,” he protested.

“Oh really? Do you get Remus and Peter those things?”

“Of course not.”

“Why ‘of course not’?”

He opened his mouth, then closed it. When he opened it again, he settled on, “Well, it’s just weird, that’s why. Why would I give them flowers?”

“Why would you give Sirius flowers?”

“He likes them!” James said defensively.

“And you like giving them,” Lily said simply. “You know what, James? I don’t like things like that, these romantic gestures. You know who it does sound like likes that? Consider that all of your suggestions are taken from what you know Sirius likes, so maybe you should be with someone you know, like, off the top of my head, Sirius.” James stared at her, dumbfounded. “Think about it.” With that, she pat him hard on the shoulder and walked away.

He walked back to Gryffindor Tower in a haze, snippets of memories from his time with Sirius flashing through his head. Sirius always- Merlin- he would light up when James gave him a gift, smile so wide, and thank him. Even when he was sad, he would smile at James like he didn’t need anyone else.

Oh gods. One day, all the Marauders were feeling silly, wanted harmless fun with each other in the rare, shining sun. Peter collected hundreds of daisies somehow, and they all played. Remus and Peter did some muggle pastime of linking them to make daisy chains while Sirius and James tickled each other’s noses, seeing how long they could last before they broke (they scarcely went past a few seconds so the game didn’t go on very long). When the two of them were done, James sat on his knees behind Sirius, and started braiding daisies in his hair. It wasn’t a disaster because it was far from the first time James had done this, and he was glad. The neat braids made Sirius look like a god, the white petals shining against his black hair, all of it highlighted in yellow. James took a picture with Sirius’s muggle camera, and it was easily his favourite photograph. He’d caught Sirius with his head tilted back to look at James, but his eyes were closed from the sun, and his nose was scrunched up in a full-body laugh at some quip James had made (he remembered it was specifically to try and get that expression). Peter and Remus had even done the ‘loves me-loves me not’ game to them and James had just rolled his eyes and said of course he loved Sirius, don’t be ridiculous.

But now it was like he’d looked around and realised that, yes, the walls of Hogwarts were made of stone. It wasn’t a realisation necessarily, but he hadn’t thought of it before no matter how obvious it was to everyone else, including the wall.

He was in love with Sirius.

He’d been in love with Sirius for years, had been acting on it, and never fucking noticed it before. Well now he was noticing, and he didn’t want to spend another buggering second without having talked to Sirius about it.

Sirius was in the decently filled common room, sitting in the armchair he and James had transfigured and stuck to the ground in third year, a book Flitwick had given him on professional charms in his lap as he read. No one was nearby, so he didn’t need to ask Sirius to another room to talk. James sat on the ground in front of him, leaning his cheek on Sirius’s knee when he moved the book for James. He immediately half-closed the book, setting it to the side as he looked down at James, grinning and carding his free hand through James’s hair.

“I love you,” James said.

“I know. I love you too.”

“No, that’s not--” James turned his face down, wincing when his glasses dug into his face. Impatiently, he pulled them off and put his head back where it was, looking at Sirius again. He was close enough that James could see him clearly without his glasses, and he adored moments like this. Something about having a filter between him and Sirius felt wrong. “I’m in love with you.”

Sirius wasn’t smiling anymore, instead frowning slightly in confusion. “I know.”

“You know?” he said, taken aback, no longer resting his head on Sirius.

“You aren’t exactly subtle, mate,” he said with an uneasy half-smile.

“You’re in love with me too.” He was thinking and saying it for the first time yet knew intrinsically that it was true.

“Well,” Sirius shifted uncomfortably. “Yeah. I dunno why you’re bringing it up all of a sudden. When you started pursuing Lily, I thought we had an unspoken agreement to ignore it. I don’t know what universe you’re traveling in James, but this is the opposite of ignoring it.”

“I didn’t… I didn’t know.” When Sirius gave him a confused look, he continued in sputtering starts and stops. “You- I never thought about it. I didn’t know I felt that way about you. Or that you felt that way about me. I wouldn’t- I wouldn’t have done that.”

“You didn’t know,” Sirius repeated, an edge of disbelief in his voice, but not like he thought James was lying. “Are you bloody kidding me?” He let go of his book, and it tumbled to the ground with a thump that neither of them heeded.

James shook his head. “I’m sorry. Can we start? Now? Please?”

Sirius grabbed him by the front of his robes and wrenched him in, pressing a long overdue kiss to James’s lips. “I-” kiss “cannot-” kiss “believe-” kiss “you didn’t-” kiss “know.” He kissed him again, opening his mouth against James’s in an invitation that was eagerly accepted. “Everyone in the whole bloody castle knew, and you didn’t. Do you have any idea what it’s like to tell people that no, we’re not fighting, we didn’t break up, you’re just asking Lily out? Any idea, Jamie?”

“Can’t say I do,” he said breathlessly, addicted to the kisses Sirius was giving him so frequently as if to catch up on all the ones they missed.

“Out of curiosity,” Sirius said, looking pleased about his effect on James, “what made you realise?”

James grimaced. “Lily sort of… shouted it at me.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if she channeled Merlin himself to get through your thick skull.”

“Me either.” James kissed him again. “Can I keep buying you flowers? And chocolates? And playing with your hair?”

“It’s required, Prongs, how dare you imply otherwise.”

James beamed at him, already calculating how many gladiolus were in the UK that he could buy Sirius by the weekend.