#and i think assuming taylor swift just like woke up one day and forgot how to rhyme….. is fucking stupid lol

[mercurysstars]

All That Glitters Is Not Gold (part 5)

Summary: Y/n gets hired to be the avengers chief physician and also happens to be an ex assassin.

Word count: 1.7k

Warnings: Avengers doing domestic things.

A/N: A silly chapter before some shiii starts going down. Also I’m posting two chapters because I really hated this one.

𝘚𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳

𝘣𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘴' 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴

_

"Come on it's not that hard just up and over." Bucky once again demonstrated to Sam how to throw the knife over his arm and catch it. Wanda had her feet kicked up on Y/n's desk painting her nails and Y/n was watering her plants on her office window seal.

Sam took the knife from Bucky and attempted to do what he showed him but failed which caused the knife to fall and slide across the floor. He muttered a few curse words and picked it up. Sam once again flung the knife up, he went to catch it but Y/n was quicker snatching it out of the air.

"No more throwing knives in my office, you're going to cut off your fingers, and IM the one who's going to have to stitch them back on." Y/n hissed.

"Oh come Y/n don't be a buzzkill you should trust me," Sam exclaimed.

"No, I'd trust a sketchy party clown for hire who likes to take 'bathroom brakes' more than you." Wanda scoffed.

"Don't you guys have a job to do? People, to save instead of bothering me?" Y/n put her hands on her hips.

"Don't lie to use doll we know you like having us around." Bucky grinned.

"No, no I don't. You guys are like cockroaches in a shitty Brooklyn apartment that no matter how hard you try you just can't seem to rid of." Y/n waves the knife around in her hand pointing to the three Avengers.

As much as Y/n loved her newfound friends they were distracting and caused her to get little work done, though Tony probably wouldn't care as he was the number one slacker, Y/n still liked to pull her own weight.

Y/n walked back around her desk and plopped down next to Wanda, she took the nail polish and began to do the nails that Wanda couldn't.

Bucky rolled his eye "Anyways, when are you going to move in?"

"Well, Tony said I could hook the SHIELD trailer onto my car and I have everything packed I just need someone to help me move." She shrugged.

Wanda perked up and grinned "I'll help, I've always wanted to see the apartment that you're found enough of to drive an hour and back to every day."

"An hour? I thought you lived in Brooklyn." Sam said.

"Nope." Y/n popped the 'P' "I live in Hell's Kitchen."

Bucky frowned "That neighborhood with all those vigilantes?" Y/n just nodded.

"Well, I and Buck will help." Sam put his arm around Bucky. He tried to shrug it off and Sam pulled tighter.

Y/n thought for a moment, it would definitely help to have more than one other person to do the heavy lifting, and anything she didn't want anyone seeing was packed away so it could work.

She shrugged "Okay we can go we I get off which is in about 30 minutes."

Y/n stood up "But in the meantime, I need to work and I can't do that with dumb and dumber around." She started to push Bucky and Sam out of the room.

"Oh come on Y/n don't be like that." Bucky teased.

She gave the final shove "Wanda and I will meet you by the first-floor elevator in 45 minutes."

Both Sam and Bucky opened their mouth to protest "Bye." Y/n waved and slammed the door.

"Men am I right?"

Y/n scoffed "You're telling me."

_

Wanda and Y/n stepped out of the elevator to see Bucky and Sam leaning against the wall waiting for them. "Boys." She nodded. Y/n and Wanda began to walk over to the front desk while both men trailed along like lost puppies.

Y/n put both arms on the desk and leaned forward. The blonde at the desk looked up with a smile, it dropped for split second, so slight that if you weren't watching you wouldn't have noticed.

"Dr. Y/l/n what can I do for you."

Y/n put on a fake smile and curiously narrowed her eyes "Teresa right? Well, Tony said the trailer was already hooked up to my car I just needed someone to let me into the garage."

"Of course, when you hear buzz head right on."

"Thanks!" She exclaimed.

Y/n turned around and her smile immediately dropped, she walked back over to Wanda and the boys, and they all started to walk to the garage.

"What's her problem?" Y/n nodded over towards the desk.

"Teresa? Well I know she used to be a high-level SHIELD agent but requested to be moved to the front desk, it was a pretty big deal. It happened just right before you started working here actually." Sam told her.

Y/n hummed and opened the door leading to the garage. They walked toward the back and stopped in front of a grey 2010 Honda Civic.

"Here's my baby." She made jazz hands to show off her car.

"This is your car? Being friends Tony Stark I assumed you'd have something newer." Bucky joked.

"I call shotgun," Wanda yelled hopping into the passenger seat.

_

30 minutes into the ride Y/n and Wanda are screaming blank space by Taylor Swift on the top of their lungs while Sam and Bucky are crammed in the back seat trying not to cringe at their 'god awful' singing.

Another 20 minutes and Y/n pulls in front of her apartment. The car was barely at a stop when both men scrambled to get out Wanda chuckled and Y/n just shook her head.

They went inside of the building and once again crammed into the elevator. "You have a really shitty apartment," Sam stated matter of factly.

Y/n rolled her eyes and stepped out of the elevator the three Avengers followed suit and walked behind her while she lead them to her apartment. Y/n pulled out her keys and opened the door.

"Welcome to my humble abode."

Bucky was the first one to step in, he felt something rub against his leg and meowed. He looked down to see a white fluffy cat with emerald green eyes. The cat meowed again and stretched its paws onto his pant leg. Bucky smiled and pick the cat up. The cat immediately began to nudge into him and purr. Bucky turned to Y/n.

"What's his name?"

Y/n arms were crossed and was leaning against the doorway with an amused looked and her face "Her name is Alpine."

"I forgot you said you had a cat." Wanda squealed.

Y/n chuckled at the redhead and started to walk down her hallway "Alright we only need to grab the boxes and the furniture in my room. Matt said he could take the rest of the furniture and use it for his law firm."

Bucky's face slightly fell and his heart skipped a beat "Matt is that your boyfriend?" Bucky tried to sound as though he was genuine even with the sick feeling in his gut.

Y/n felt as she could sense some slight jealousy in his statement. She got a quick sensation of butterfly's and started to feel a little hope at the possibility that he could be interested in her but she quickly shoved that thought down.

"No, no, you could call him a childhood friend." She breathed.

Bucky's heart began to beat normal again and the wide smile was put back on to his face. Wanda walked over and pulled the cat out of Bucky's arms. Alpine snuggled into Wanda falling back asleep in her arms.

"Well, what are you boys standing around here for, get to work," Wanda exclaimed clapping her hands to show she was serious. Y/n chuckled and both men began to pick up boxes.

Y/n and Wanda sat on the couch watching as Sam and Bucky brought boxes to the car. Y/n and Wanda smirked at each other as they watch Bucky and Sam lift her bed. Seeing the way their muscles move definitely a sight for sore eyes. After an hour of talking and moving they were finally done. Y/n stood up off the couch and stretched her arms.

"Guys that was hard work."

Sam scoffed "All you did was hold the cat while watching us doing the heavy lifting."

"Whatever," Y/n murmured.

"Wanda, why didn't you just use your powers?" Bucky asked.

"I was holding the cat." She shrugged.

Both men rolled their eyes in sync "Will you guys stop whining if I buy you food?" Y/n raised an eyebrow.

"I would never say no to free food." Bucky grinned.

_

Bucky woke up to the feeling of vibrations on his chest, he peeked an eye open to see a blob of white fur. Alpine noticed he was awake and nudge her face against his scruff, he chuckled and sat up.

"How did you get in?" He looked over to see his door still closed and locked, he frowned.

Alpine gave him an innocent look, he lightly nudged the cat to push her onto the bed. Bucky stood up and grabbed his pants, he put them on and grabbed Alpine.

"I've got to bring you back to Y/n's room mommy probably misses you." Talking to a cat wow a new low Barnes He scoffed at himself.

Bucky opened his door and walked the far distance of three feet to Y/n's door and knocked. He heard a muffled come in. He walked into her room to see her going through her boxes. She looked up, saw him, and smiled.

"Hey, Bucky what's up."

"I think this belongs to you." He chuckled nodding toward Alpine who was curled up like a baby in his arms.

"Where did you find her?" Her eyes lit up at the sight of her car.

"Actually she found me first I woke up to her laying on me."

"I think someone's got a crush." Y/n teased.

She grabbed Alpine then she noticed what he was wearing, rather the lack of what he was wearing.

Her eyes traveled down his toned chiseled abs landing on the sweatpants laying low in his hips just above his V line.

"Y/n?" That snapped her out of her trance.

"I'm sorry what were you saying?" Her eyes darted back up toward his face.

"I was saying I'm going to make breakfast do you want some." He raised an eyebrow with a smirk. Y/n's face instantly flushed oh my god he totally caught me checking him out.

"Uh yeah, sure."

Part 6

[sambergscott]

your son is going to love you

Summary: Peralta dads are cursed, destined to have terrible relationships with their sons. When Jake finds out *he's* going to have a son, he spirals. Amy helps.

goes without saying that if you haven���t watched 7x10 yet maybe don’t read this

She wakes up at 2am needing to pee.

She’s been waking up needing to pee a lot lately.

It’s like their baby has no respect for her sleeping pattern, perfectly honed over the years to maximise productivity, while still fitting in the full 8 hours of sleep needed a day. Their baby doesn’t care about the 8 hour recommendation, he laughs in the face of scientists. With the bad back and heart burn and constant kick, kick, kicking of her bladder, she’s averaging 4.7. She thought babies didn’t start keeping you up all night until they were born but, oh, how wrong she was.

She pats her husband to wake him up and come keep her company. If she’s awake because of their baby, then damn it, he’s going to be awake, too. But he’s not there, leaving her hand awkwardly patting a bare mattress.

“Jake?” She murmurs groggily, sitting up and switching on her bedside lamp. She’s half-expecting him to be sitting in the armchair playing Mario Party on his Switch (he has become a little bit addicted in the last few months and it wouldn’t be the first time she’s found him trying to beat Wario in the early hours of the morning) or have left a note beside her bed that he had a lead on a case and needed to go in with a scribbled ‘love you’ underneath and a lopsided heart. The armchair is empty, but there’s a light on down the hall and since there’s no way she forgot to turn it off before bed (she triple checks), she figures that it must be Jake.

Forgetting the whole reason why she woke up in the first place, she grabs Jake’s hoodie from the floor for warmth and pads into their living-kitchen-dining area. It’s the open plan-ness that made her fall in love with the apartment upon first visit and submit all her paperwork as soon as she was out the door. It’s the open plan-ness that would make the Property Brothers proud and the dumb people who go on that show foam at the mouth with jealousy. It’s the open plan-ness that allows her to see her husband straight away, snacking on the unfinished party food.

(Apparently people don’t feel like eating after a man cuts his thumb off and spurts blood everywhere. Who’d have thought?)

There’s a weird, pensive look on his face that draws her towards him.

“You OK, babe?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” he responds. He pops a tomato from the salad bowl in his mouth, then another, then another.

She narrows her eyes. He never eats tomatoes unless they’re in ketchup or on top of a famous Sal’s pizza. Something is wrong.

She thinks back on their day, mentally rewinding the events from waking up to the morning briefing to their private sex reveal in the break room and finding out they’re having a boy (the empty cake box and blue frosting around Scully’s mouth was very surprising indeed). They were both floating on Cloud 9 all afternoon, came home and Zoomed the entire family, falling asleep on the couch around 9.30pm because pregnancy is exhausting.

Nothing particularly awful stands out.

Unless...

“Are you thinking about your Grandpa?”

He’d been so excited to see him again, so excited to reunite Walter Peralta  with Roger, The Admiral with the Captain. To be honest, Amy was less than impressed. He’d been nice enough to her, asked her about her job, about the baby, small talked about the weather. But he never asked her about Jake, probed about the 20 odd years of his grandson’s life that he’d missed out on. Which is frustrating because she has a lot of embarrassing stories ready to tell and a whole photo album of Jake on her phone. He couldn’t care less about Roger or Jake, storming out of the sex reveal party after calling his son a screw up and turning off his phone so they couldn’t get in contact with him. He’s a selfish dick and her husband deserves better. Still, he won’t be thinking about what a monster Walter turned out to be, he’ll be finding ways to blame himself that yet another father walked out of his life again.

He nods silently and she leads him to the couch.

“Talk to me, Jake.”

He releases a shaky breath. “The Peralta’s are cursed.”

“With devastatingly handsome good looks?” She half-jokes, trying to lighten the mood. Because, hello, her husband is hot; she constantly overhears other women in the precinct talking about his glow up and it would be impossible to ignore the female attention he gets in bars and even just walking down the street before he scratches his face to show off his wedding band and wraps one arm proudly around his wife’s shoulders. She’s seen the pictures of a young Roger Peralta, too, and with that charm smile... she gets it.

“Thank you,” he smiles briefly, “but no. Peralta dads are cursed with terrible relationships with their sons.”

“That’s not going to be you,” she says without hesitation, without a shred of doubt.

“How do you know?” He launches into a scathing personal indictment that leaves his cheeks stinging with tears. “I’m immature, obsessed with my work, messy, always late. My dad was never around when I was a kid. I don’t even know what dads do with their sons! And what if it’s in my genes? To be a crappy dad, abandon my kid like a dozen Peralta fathers before me. Your parents still don’t think I’m good enough. You didn’t even like me at first. It only makes sense that our baby would hate me, too.”

“Woah, babe. Slow down. Let’s unpack that one at a time.” She wipes away his tears with his hoodie sleeve and squeezes his hand. “First of all, you are way more mature now than you used to be. We bought a family friendly Sedan. You read parenting books. You were eating fruit, like, two minutes ago.”

“Tomatoes are fruits?”

“What? Yes, how do you not - not the point.” She shakes her head. “And so what, you enjoy your job. That’s a good thing, Jake! Do you understand how rare that is? You’re doing the thing you love while providing a decent income for our family. And besides, I’m way more obsessed than you. I have FOMOW, but that doesn’t mean I won’t love our kid more than anything. And as for the messy, late thing, if I can look past it because of how much I love you, so will our son.”

“Love you, too,” he mumbles.

“Now onto your point about not knowing what dads do, that is a straight up lie and we both know it, Peralta. You’re always hanging out with Charles and Nikolaj and Lord Knows Terry doesn’t shut up about all the activities he does with his girls.”

“I know what they do when I’m around, but what do you do when it’s 5am and they won’t go back to sleep?” He frets. “At what age do you introduce them to Die Hard? In Cry Hard With A Vengeance,” he quotes the parenting book she originally bought him as a joke but has kind of become his Torah, “Bruce Willis says right away, but what if he’s not ready to understand the complex plots? What if he prefers Timothy Olyphant to William Atherton? Oh my God, what if our son doesn’t think Die Hard is a Christmas movie?”

He’s spiralling and it’s a good job he’s with the only person who can truly calm him down.

“I think Bruce Willis is just trying to promote his franchise and that we’ll be watching more Paw Patrol than Die Hard for the next few years, babe, but I’m sure when he is old enough, he will love the movies as much as you.”

“Right,” he agrees, “you’re totally right. Action thrillers aren’t very baby friendly. I’ll just watch it on mute with subtitles.”

She laughs, her eyes crinkling in the corners. She loves him so much. Which segways them nicely onto his final two points.

“My parents do love you. Sure, they’re critical, but that’s just the way they are. They’re the same way to all of us. My mom complains to everyone she meets about how I can’t cook, how Tony hasn’t settled down and made her any beautiful grandbabies yet, even Perfect David faces her wrath when he goes a week without phoning her. If the worst thing my mom has to say about you is that you’re below average in height, you’re doing OK. And as for me apparently not liking you at first, I did like you.”

He furrows his brow. “But you said you found me annoying and difficult to be around.”

“Yet I didn’t ask to switch desks, continued working cases with you and went to Shaw’s whenever I was invited.” She stares at him pointedly. “If I really found you difficult to be around, I wouldn’t have stayed. I thought you were cute and funny and good at your job and yeah, you were annoying too, but,” she shrugs, “it never put me off.”

“So what you’re saying is that you had a crush on me first,” he grins.

“No. You obviously had a crush on me back then, too. What I’m saying is that I love you, our son loves you and you’re going to be a great dad.”

He blushes, ducking his head. “My dad said the same thing. About our son loving me.”

“He’s right,” she replies. “I feel him kick every time you get home from work, every time you sing to Taylor Swift in the car, every time I mention your name. Why didn’t you believe him?”

“I don’t know, still nervous about the curse, I guess.” He twists his wedding band on his finger.

Amy bites her lip. “Are you not excited about us having a boy?”

She has to ask. His excitement looked genuine in the break room, but it’s no secret that he was hoping for a girl. A mini-Amy, he said. While she’s always been more accustomed to boys considering the Santiago’s have, like, a million of them, Jake couldn’t get over the image of a little girl in dresses and doing ballet and with long, dark hair that he eventually learns to braid.

“Of course I am,” he’s quick to assure her. “Stupid excited. Never been more excited for anything. Not even the Ninja Turtles reboot. But still... nervous.” He rubs his hand over his face, muffling his voice. “Everyone is assuming what kind of dad I’m going to be. Whether I’m going to be good at it or not. To be fair, the only person who doubted me is that murderer I arrested last week, obviously not my biggest fan. Everyone else is convinced I can do it. What if I can’t? What if I’m genetically wired to be a bad dad? What if I disappoint you and our baby and Charles who has been dreaming about this forever?”

“Jake,” she softens her voice, pulling his hand away from his face, “the fact you are so worried about being a bad dad proves that you will not be one. Nor could you ever disappoint us.”

“But you’re my wife. You have to say that.”

“I would never have married you and become your wife if I thought you were the kind of person who could abandon your kid,” she promises him. “You have been perfect so far, dealing with all the vitamins and over-scheduled sex and washing my clothes when I sweat through them and holding my hair back when I’m being sick. You’ve been to every doctor’s appointment, read every binder, bought me every weird food craving. You hang out with the bump every night, talking and singing to it. I know you’re going to be a great dad, Jake, because you already are one.”

She kisses him and it’s soft and tender and filled with love, only interrupted by the kick, kick, kicking of their son.

“Hey,” Jake says in his best authoritative dad voice/John McClane dealing with German terrorists voice (he’s been practising in front of the mirror following Bruce’s advice), pointing a warning finger at the bump. “I’m going to kiss your mom as much as I want, Peralta. I loved her first.”

Amy giggles, stroking her fingers through Jake’s unruly curls. His bedhead is always wild and it’s maybe her favourite thing in the entire world. She silently sends a message of her own to their son to inherit his dad’s hair. And eyes. And handsome smile.

He kicks again as if to say ‘OK, mom’.

And then she really needs to pee.

[nicknellie]

Honestly time just doesn’t exist anymore lol. Sadly I didn’t have an hour or so until now so I hope I can ‘ask’ this soon. (Same to you, good whatever time of day it is for you!)

Box stuff: (honestly that’s a bit hilarious because we have shifted so far from box stuff and I think this is where Reggie taking people‘s baby pictures came from)

1. I love how you have classic teenage boy angst starting with caps that’s funny. And very true, Alex will come over as soon as he can and tell Luke how much of an idiot he’s being but affectionately (also in the way that friends can but if parents tried to do the same you wouldn’t listen yk)

Yes, mom and son bonding time. I just love the idea of Alex telling Emily everything that’s happening while they are cleaning or making food is adorable. And Emily spreading gossip is everything (also Luke’s childhood stories because what best friend doesn’t want to lovingly tease their friend)

Wait I love that idea. Personally I don’t feel like Alex or Reggie would go to their parents just because it seems as if they left on bad terms. Although Luke did leave on bad terms with his parents as well, I just feel that checking in on them once is something that he would want to do. Also that last sentence is sad, kind of shows that when something happens to someone there will always be another person who is affected by this. That you can’t always tie up loose ends, for example in the show we see the boys say just before ‘the band is back’ that in those 25 years they don’t know what happened to their friends or their family. So it’s easy to assume that they had friends outside of the band and whomever they are possibly the boys would’ve wanted to say something to them but they never got a chance to. (Also I’ve seen theories where the boys have siblings which if this is true then maybe one of them could go back to that sibling/s)

Yea the song is sad. Also could relate to Julie and how she lost her mom that how in the show. They kind of dance around the fact that the boys are some thing that Rose sent down to her ‘you were an angel in the shape of my mom’.

(Also if you want another sad song, ‘soon you’ll get better’ by Taylor Swift because if Rose did die from cancer like some theories I’ve seen have suggested then this song which is very emotional and kind of talks about this as well could relate to Julie and her mom as well) (I promise you can throw some sad songs my way as well, I know I’m just throwing really sad ones at you lol)

Anyways, going back to the actual conversation. I believe that we did say Emily and Julie are close because they’ve met before and just in general after Julie gave her that song they became closer. But yes they hear it one day and just get so upset, maybe someday Julie plays it for Emily and Mitch 🥺

3. I love that, also adding onto this Willie is basically the same way however his experiments don’t turn out nearly as well also he’s just in love with the fact that Alex can legitimately not use a recipe book but make some thing extraordinary. But yes, Luke and Reggie are horrified especially when Alex throws the recipe book. ‘Bye bye Mr. Recipe Book’ as you said.

Board games and jam:

1. Yes, exactly. Reggie just starts laughing when Alex throws that one but quickly stops when Alex throws one at him as well

Exactly, his weapon of choice is his drumsticks, which may not seem threatening but seeing as which Alex is rather tall and weirdly has very good aim they hurt when he throws them.

That is what I was picturing, like Caleb just looks in shock for a second because how dare someone throw drumsticks at him, but at the same time someone threw a drumstick at him.

Among us

Yes, Alex is always annoyed how everyone voted for him with no prove. So he always tries to sabotage Luke, every chance he has.

Alex kind of gives up not talking to Willie after about 10 minutes, his puppy dog eyes convince Willie to never do that again. (Also because Alex has no problems killing Willie if needed)

Honestly everyone just kills Luke first and he gets upset about it but everyone is laughing. Also exactly, if he doesn’t die first then he is usually the imposter.

Accessories- I actually looked at them before I made my comments and I completely forgot about the hat as well but I saw it and I was like oh that’s such a Reggie move. Yes that is exactly why Carlos has the paper bag.

Honestly Flynn being competitive is everything and very true. Also yes, she is totally impatient like I’ve read these rules probably three times and this decision is taking forever so give money.

Alex just sneaking Willie money is very in character and I love that. Alex just being like no is similar to how he says it during the ‘girls am I right’ scene

Honestly monopoly just takes forever and sometimes people just don’t have the patience for that also as you said arguments are a very real thing that happen. (honestly part of the reason why I said Flynn is competitive because depending on the game I can be the same exact way)

Oh yes, Flynn is just like you’re trying to accuse me of cheating and you’re trying to pretend that we haven’t seen you smuggling Willie cash this entire time, Sure Alex.

Oh my goodness, and while Reggie is avoiding Luke. Alex in the background just casually says something like ‘now you know how I feel.’

Numbers:

2. Exactly, and of course Alex is just like Aw Willie is laughing so I may forgive this for now but you’re still replacing this.

Yea I’m hoping that Arthur will grow on me. Also I just haven’t had a lot of time to Address to his character aside from like the two interactions with Merlin who honestly if anything kind of starts the fright.

Exactly. Alex just being done with Luke 24/7, ‘I’ve had to save him 25 times so far, how is that possible’

6. That’s hilarious because Alex is freaking out over this cute hair flip however at the same time he is in the thought processes of ‘oh I have to act cool in front of my best friends because they will definitely tease me more later, so what should I do’

Exactly, honestly I don’t blame you and I totally support that writing decision lol. (On that note best of luck with your other requests, also with school because it seems like it’s been a tiny bit stressful and I don’t mean to over impose but I just hope you’re doing well!)

8. Oo I’m excited for the tangent. I completely agree they are the perfect recipe for a band because their strengths are each other’s weaknesses so they’re able to balance each other out so well. Also in a way where one of them won’t get a big head or anything.

Luke- exactly, and although he does have his insecurities the others are able to balance this and help him out just as much as he helps them. Especially where he is kind of like the leader of the band unofficially with being the lead singer and everything it’s easier for him to possibly get cocky or something but we don’t see that. More often then not, as you mentioned it he tries to be there for his band and make sure that they are doing well before he thinks about himself.

Reggie- precisely, honestly I feel like some people don’t recognize how important an instrument is until you don’t hear it anymore (will bring this up later with Alex). And if they didn’t have the bass line and the one set of back up vocals that Reggie provides (Alex/Bobby as well) then the songs would definitely be lacking some thing. He has such an incredible vocal range, which I feel like is shown rather well in stand tall because although he doesn’t have a lot of solos. It kind of shines very well in the solos he has in that song. (Also the actor in general just released an EP which also not only displays his musical ability with the instruments he can play but his vocal ability as well)

Also, as you mentioned his kind of role as the happy one kind of balances out Luke’s go with the flow, (honestly not sure for Bobby they haven’t shown his character a lot to know but possibly another voice of reason) and Alex who can overthink things and can be mature.

Alex- kind of like what I said earlier. When Alex says get ‘woke these are sensitive times’ due to Luke saying that they didn’t need to have a drummer for that song (later we see that Alex is drumming in that song) if they didn’t have a drummer for that song then the entire tone of the song would’ve been changed because they didn’t have percussion and it possibly could’ve been overwhelmed with string instruments.

Agreed, it’s easier for the drummer to be overlooked but he keeps the rest of the band on track and if the one that the boys fall to if something goes wrong (for example when they appear and Julie starts freaking out, Alex says that he should handle it and the boys let him immediately).

Bobby- Yes, I feel like if season two focuses on the past of Sunset Curve a bit more then it will be easier for us to see what exactly his dynamic is in the band. Exactly, they would be lost without having Bobby in their band. And as you mentioned, he is part of the glue that holds them together from our previous discussions as him being a counselor and who the band would turn to.

I love how you described it because you’re completely right. Without the other three there then it’s easier for Bobby to feel more alone because now he doesn’t have his support system that he’s relied on for who knows how many years. Also as you mentioned he doesn’t have the band reminding him to either let loose a little bit or when to stop so he’s easier to manipulate if that’s the direction that the show wants to take. Honestly I just don’t want to think about Alex or Reggie or Luke being alone that night but exactly, they would be a mess without each other.

11. Honestly Reggie just forgetting to mention that he met celebrities at their concert and stuff is such a in character move.

(Noted, we can just pretend that it happened in like 1994 lol)

17. Oh my goodness, I know we mentioned that Reggie had a Caleb scrapbook. However honestly I forgot about that and it’s hilarious to think about Nick having his own page in that scrapbook due to when Caleb. possessed him.

Oh my goodness, yes. Just like ‘I get that you are trying to take our souls however I want your baby pictures right now’ - Reggie.

Honestly I just want Caleb to be good just because not only is the fashion incredible but Cheyenne Jackson is such a phenomenal singer and it would be sad if due to the character being a villain that eventually they had to get rid of him.

Precisely, he just want to protect them all and he totally would love Julie for the reasons that you said.

I love the idea of Reggie just walking into the White House and basically everyone jumping out of their seats and helping Reggie take over the world.

19. Exactly, they seem to have a very good alliance between them however as the snow fight continues they all just switch sides and eventually it is just Willie and Carlos, Julie and Reggie, and Luke and Alex. (they are really bad at keeping alliances, in the end everyone has had an alliance with everyone) (and or just keep the teams I mentioned but they are definitely chaotic enough for every team possible to happen)

20. Same here, and it’s just so easy to tell that they are close together which makes the their chemistry on screen seem really believable. (Friends, ect)

Exactly, they do you have a few moments however it’s that way for every actor and some of those may just depend on personal preference. Also for quite a few of them as they get more experience than how they act will definitely improve and honestly just seeing how phenomenal they are now, I can’t wait for that to happen

Honestly yes, just jealous Willie I guess. Also just completely ignoring what is happening on screen and what the show is literally trying to show them.

I agree ,because although I feel like it would be interesting if somehow the theory was in the show. At the same time I just feel like it would overwhelm the show and it would be easier for Caleb to turn nice then for him to not be the one at fault. That’s an interesting theory, honestly I didn’t think of him handing over HGC over to Willie and is a new take that may be nice to explore, if the show wishes to.

Honestly, Luke and Flynn‘s friendship does deserve its own post. And legitimately if anyone messes with Julie then they would have to run because not only would Flynn and Luke have problems with them but the rest of the ghost boys alongside Caleb probably would come after them as well.(And the family)

21. Phew, I’m glad you I agree because I legitimately have no reasoning for that except for I just want to see Alex just casually say one day that he got arrested and have Willie just be so startled.

Oh yeah Reggie and Luke would start the fire but Alex would be the reason that it’s continuing to burn while Bobby is just unbothered on the side. Going with the Sunset Curve graffiti, that’s exactly what happened but if any asks they have no clue how it got there.

25. I’m just imagining Carrie accidentally being turned the wrong way for some of the conversation and then she faces Willie and although he was laughing before he all of a sudden gets really serious. (Although it’s Luke’s and Reggie‘s shovel talk that makes him the most afraid)

I love how you’re like it’s not because I want Flynn and Carrie to be together however that’s basically the entire reason. (I embellished a little bit but yeah) But I do agree, I feel like Carrie and Nick could have such a great potential to be friends. I love how you said that it’s Caleb who says yes to going back to Carrie that makes her suspicious not anything else that he does.

26. Oh my goodness, a little list to annoy Alex.

32. Honestly the fact that Alexander‘s Reggie back to the park manager with a batch of cookies is such a mom friend to do and a very in character move for Alex.

37. Legitimately Reggie is just banned from using laundry mostly because Alex and Luke were very horrified that day which they never want to experience again. Yes, and it wasn’t even a colour that made sense but one that theoretically is supposed to be impossible but Reggie managed to do the impossible.

I also love the little detail of candles being banned from the studio because Luke once out his arm in it. Also going off of that Luke and Reggie are also banned from using lighters just because they think arson is fun and would definitely try to set something on fire.

Oh my goodness, Luke being on fire and Alex just being done ‘Luke we are dead it’s not going to hurt’, and Julie is just saying something along the lines of how did this even happen. (Reggie is kind of panicking as well but he is probably the reason why Luke is on fire)

I love the fact that Julie is the first person who believed Reggie about having the Queen‘s baby pictures because that is adorable. Also just because a Reggie and Julie friendship is needed so much.

Good whatever time of day it is for you (honestly love that lmao)! 100%, time hasn’t existed since like March which is why I accidentally slept from four til nine and am now answering this at half midnight because I’m unable to sleep and also it’s brilliant, but anyway!

Box Stuff (oh yeahhh this is where the baby photos came from!)

1. Lmao I love that idea, Alex comes in and sees Luke like sat amongst utter chaos and he just goes “Luke, that was dumb” about whatever he did and Luke just grumbles “I know” obviously doing the angry puppy face. Also I love that detail, like if a parent said it then it’d be unacceptable but it’s a friend so it’s fine, I totally get that. He’s like “this is what I think you should do” and Luke grudgingly listens.

Side note: the way we’ve been talking about Alex is really really strongly reminding me of one of my irl friends and this is literally nothing to do with any of this but I’m now projecting her onto Alex so I wanna headcanon that Alex was really close with teachers. Not in a weird way, like they just got on well with him because he was a good student and he was bright and happy when he wanted to be, and he was mature and well-mannered and everyone he ever met would do anything for him. It’s not like he was a teacher’s pet, it was more like they trusted him and were friendly with him and tended to give him higher grades because he was so nice.

Anyway, idk if that made sense, but back to the actual points! Omggg yes Emily telling Alex all Luke’s stories! (Like places he got stuck as a child bc as we know Luke will get stuck anywhere 😂) Alex starts bringing them up whenever Luke is being particularly annoying - “bold words for someone who cried when they met Mickey Mouse at Disneyworld” and bonus points if Emily happens to be in the room (like they’re at Luke’s house or whatever) smirking to herself because she loves her boys

You put this so beautifully omg 🥺 I think you’re definitely right about all of this, Alex and Reggie would have not wanted to see their parents and given that opportunity to Luke instead. And like yeah exactly!! Alex says they had other friends but we never hear anything about them and it makes me wonder what they did when the band died. Also this got me thinking about tributes the school would have held for them and all the different things going on in their honour, and people being careful with Bobby (like people were with Julie after Rose died) because he’s been so down and them all carefully offering their condolences and saying they’re sorry for his loss and ouch. Oooh yes personally I really like the idea of Alex having a sister who’s quite a lot younger than him like ten years but I think that’s just me projecting, no matter what I definitely think he had a sister. It says in the show that Luke was an only child (and sidenote: that made me headcanon that Mitch and Emily really struggled to have kids, possibly going through infertility treatment and Luke was the only child they didn’t lose during pregnancy but they still ended up losing him anyway), and also I like the idea that Reggie had an older brother who he didn’t see much. I think Alex would have liked to see his sister again but Reggie wouldn’t have minded either way about seeing his brother

I haven’t heard that song but I’ll make sure to listen to it in the morning! And I’m so glad you said I could suggest songs lol because I literally only heard this for the first time about an hour ago but I’m already in love with it - Don’t Stop... by Oasis is literally such a beautiful song and I can definitely imagine it as something Rose wrote to Julie, Ray and Carlos like Wake Up before she died, or alternatively a song sort of similar but not really to Unsaid Emily, more like Luke trying to comfort Emily. It’s less sad and more sort of comforting and emotional, but it’s absolutely gorgeous!

Omggg Julie playing that for Mitch and Emily, I would cryyyy. I feel like the Patterson’s have a piano so Julie would be at their house one day and start playing the chords and humming along and Emily and Mitch would watch as she slowly starts singing and it turns into a proper performance and everyone’s crying by the end omg I love it

3. Lmao that’s great, Willie sees Alex improvise and is like “how hard can it be?” and tries it by himself and almost sets the kitchen on fire. Alex just isn’t even surprised and helps him clean up, then the next time Willie wants to do it Alex helps him - turns out Willie should just be banned from the kitchen at all costs because even with Alex there it still ends up going wrong. And I love that, how Luke and Reggie would just be horrified when Alex throws the book away. Like Luke would go and get it from the trash or wherever Alex chucked it across the room and would nervously say “you need this buddy?” but Alex just waves him away like “NO it’s stupid get it out of my sight”

Board Games and Jam

1. Pfffft this whole thing literally made me laugh out loud. Reggie thinking it’s hilarious but his face immediately falling when Alex is against him, immediately trying to backpedal.

Also I read it wrong bc I thought it said “Alex is weirdly tall” and I was like I’m pretty sure he’s not like much over six foot that’s normal??? Then I read it properly and was like oh ok that makes more sense. And also you’re right, like a drumstick may be a flimsy piece of wood but Alex has perfected his technique and good god it hurts if it hits you

Lmao that’s exactly what I was imagining too! Caleb just looking completely flabbergasted because How Dare someone throw something at him?? And while he’s still looking shocked, another drumstick hits him. He starts to look annoyed more than shocked and another drumstick hits him. Eventually, he carries on with his evil speech, now looking resigned and a little fed up because he’s still being pelted with drumsticks and can’t figure out where Alex is getting them all from

Among Us

Wait yeah I love that, I wanna build on that a little - he gave up on not talking to him because Willie was sat next to him and continuously poking him while saying “I said I’m sorry hotdog please love me” and Alex literally can’t resist, so he’s like “fine on one condition” then whips out the puppy dog eyes and asks Willie never to do it again and Willie agrees instantly. Alex kills him literally the next round.

It gets to the point where if someone finds Luke’s body and there was no one near it at the time then they’ll just ignore it and won’t even call an emergency meeting bc they can’t accuse anyone of being sus because it could literally be any one of them unless someone was running away from the body. Luke gets annoyed so quickly and won’t do his tasks as a ghost because everyone is laughing at him and being mean about his death

Exactly! Flynn has the rules memorised word for word and if someone tries to do something they can’t she will literally be out of her seat like “NO bitch play by the rules, why can none of you play this game properly?!” and everyone is like “... calm down all he did was accidentally move his piece three spaces instead of two. chill.”

YES LOL that’s exactly what the “no” is like absjdldl

I love that so much, also because I feel like they wouldn’t really talk much outside of game nights and stuff - like Willie would be good friends with Flynn so Alex would talk to her whenever they all hang out, but most of the time it’s just them as a group so their interactions are almost always them arguing about the rules of Monopoly. The only time they’re in agreement is if Luke (and only Luke) does something wrong then they will gang up on him, Flynn bc the rules are very important to her and Alex bc he thinks it’s funny

Literally same, tbh I’m usually the one who starts arguments during any board game so it’s good we can both project our competitiveness onto Flynn 😂😂

Pffffft yeah lmao Alex just has no sympathy for Reggie’s struggle

Numbers

2. Omg that’s great lmao, love how you just slightly changed the 25 years quote. I’d like to add “You know what else is rude? Not thanking me for literally saving your life. Get woke, these are sensitive times.”

6. It leads to a disastrous conversation that goes something like Willie saying something and Alex giving a panicked response then Willie replying and Alex attempting to give a chill response bc the guys are watching and the whole thing ends up awkward

Unrelated sort of, but it kinda reminds me of this scene in a show called Miranda (idk if you’ve ever watched it? Again it’s one of my all-time favourite shows. It’s getting an American remake actually called Call Me Kat which Cheyenne Jackson is in!!) where the main character Miranda is talking to the love interest Gary. Basically they’ve not seen each other in years and so Gary asks what’s going on in her life and she tells him she’s an Olympic gymnast. Later he asks if she’s seeing anyone, she says she’s married and has two kids called Orlando and Bloom. Gary says he’s single and she’s like “oh me too” so he asks about the husband and kids and she’s like “we’re divorced now. The kids are... dead” anyway yeah now I wanna write a Miranda AU lmao

8. Luke - exactly!! His selflessness can be dangerous sometimes bc he might just forget to take care of himself but the others balance it out. Also yeah it would be so easy for him to get cocky but he just doesn’t because the band means so much to him!

Reggie - yes to all of that! His solo in Stand Tall is beautiful, and I legit can’t remember if I brought this up before but my favourite Reggie lyric is that “today!!” in Now or Never because it’s just amazinggg. And yes!! Jeremys new music is literally so good, I haven’t listened to all of it but like you said it’s such a great display of his abilities and he’s so so so underrated within the fandom and in general

Alex - yes!! That’s the perfect example because even luke doesn’t realise how important Alex’s part is and like that’s Luke of all people

Wait yeah that’s a great example! Alex keeps them on track by trying to calm Julie - I mean, admittedly he doesn’t do a great job (“wHy ArE yOu In OuR sTuDiO?!”) but they know that he’ll be the best guy for the job

Bobby - exactly I just wish we had more information from the show to go on for him!!

And ok ok ok just this got me thinking - imagine if it had been Luke left alone that night. He finds that his three brothers are dead and he’s just completely lost. It suddenly feels like his dreams have been crushed because he doesn’t want to go on with music without the band. He doesn’t know where to go, but he feels himself longing for home. So he goes to the studio but it doesn’t feel like home anymore. Without the other guys there, making noise, or staying quiet, or laughing and joking or making their music, it doesn’t feel like the home Luke had considered it before - it just feels like a room, a draughty old garage with shattered memories and newfound loneliness. But he’s still aching to go home, he just doesn’t know where that is anymore. He walks, and he keeps walking, trying to find somewhere that feels accepting and welcome but nowhere fits. He doesn’t even really know where his feet are taking him. Eventually he stops walking and he looks at where he is, and he sees that he has stopped outside his house, at the end of the driveway. Through the window he can see Emily knitting and he’s reminded of Bobby, and he sees Mitch doing a crossword in the paper and he’s reminded of Reggie, and he sees a Cake cooling on the counter and he’s reminded of Alex, but also he can just see Mitch and Emily. He walked himself back to his parents. He walked himself home. And he has no idea what he’s going to do or say but he walks up to the door for the first time in months and he knocks and it’s Emily who answers and for a moment they stare at each other and without a word they both move to hug one another. They’re crying, quietly, and Emily whispers into his ear, disbelievingly, “you’re home” and he realises then that yes, he is. He comes in, tells them everything that happened, and from then on they support him and help him pursue a solo career - he dedicates all his songs to his fallen family.

17. That mini Reggie quote literally made me snort with laughter. And Caleb’s response is just like to wave him away like “fine fine you can have them next week”

Exactly!! As brilliant as Cheyenne Jackson is at decadent villain songs, I’d rather get rid of those and have him turn good than defeat him and have him leave the show :(

19. Wait yeah I love that! Eventually every alliance falls apart because they can’t resist attacking each other. It’s Willie who makes his way through everyone the fastest because if he sees a moment to get his partner he will not hesitate

20. Yeah you put that so perfectly!

Ooooh exactly! Seeing as this is a totally new fandom it’s going to be exciting thi at we get to watch it grow and watch them grow with it as they get better and better and hopefully the show gets better with them (if that’s even possible, it’s already pretty perfect). And also I can’t wait to see them in more stuff! Like most of them have already been in other things but for the most part they weren’t well-known but now they are so they should be able to grow as actors because of that too which is exciting

Yeah totally there is definitely such thing as too many villains and I don’t think anyone can top Caleb anyway. And yeah, I’d so love to see Willie take over the HGC because he would make it so fun and also probably turn half of it into a skatepark

Anyone: *messes with Julie*

Luke, Flynn, Alex, Reggie, Willie, Ray, Carlos, Caleb, Nick, Carrie, Trevor, Rose’s spirit: You’d better start running.

21. No I can totally see it happening! Like Willie almost definitely got arrested when he was alive too so one day he mentions it and Alex is just reminiscently like “I remember when I spent the night in jail” and Willie is just ???????

Yeah they’re like “oh the Sunset Curve graffiti? Idk man we’ve got some pretty crazy fans out there. It definitely wasn’t us doing it because Reggie needed cheering up and crime always does the trick.”

25. Lmfao that’s brilliant. Carrie turns around with a face like thunder and Willie is immediately like “oh god I’m already dead but I think she’s gonna kill me again”. Honestly most of her talking would just be her saying “Alex is the sweetest, nicest, funniest, cutest, kindest, most thoughtful, [list of other adjectives for Alex] and I will keep him far out of your reach if you hurt him” and yeah like you said Luke and Reggie are scarier because they’re like “we will literally kill you a second time if you ever make him even a little bit sad” Meanwhile I imagine Julie just off in the corner shaking her head because she knows Willie is a sweetheart and would never hurt Alex so doesn’t need to give him the talk

Ajdbdksk you saw right through that huh 😂😂 it’s not my fault they’re perfect for each other lmaooooo

32. Yes!! I love the idea of Reggie finally getting back to his friends with the ranger. His jacket is all covered in dirt and Alex brushes it off him while saying “never wander off again, Reginald, we were worried sick, anything could have happened to you” and all this. Then the next day Alex hands over the cookies to Reggie and is like “take these to that nice park ranger, it’s the least we can do”

37. Reggie managing to do the impossible is a theme we’re making kinda and I’m loving it! He just has a knack for doing the impossible and most of the time it’s just absolutely terrifying or confusing so that means the guys just don’t trust Reggie with complicated things because he’ll do them but in the weirdest way possible (I hope that made sense but i don’t think it did 😂)

“Because they think arson is fun” lmaooo perfect. If ever Alex or Bobby or Julie finds out they have a lighter on them for any reason they get put in the Time-Out Corner and they literally act like preschoolers about it.

Reggie being the reason Luke is on fire that’s freaking hilarious omg, it’s the one time Alex didn’t realise he had a lighter and of course it ends in disaster. He’s only panicking bc he feels bad and also he’s annoyed because now Alex knows he had a lighter and he’s gonna get put in time-out

YES omg ok I really really really want a Reggie and Julie duet. I made a post about it the other day but honestly I need one right now. It can be called “the Queen’s Baby Photos”

[justhereforseverus]

A Rose by any Other Name Would Smell as Sweet

Miserable_toad

Chapter 14: I would not wish any companion in the world but you

Summary:

It's the day of the Yule Ball but you had a rather unpleasant night. Full of anxiety, hopes and uncertainties you follow Severus to the dancefloor.

Notes:

Lyrics by Taylor Swift from the song “This is me trying.” I’m obsessed with her latest album ‘Cardigan’ so I’m not sorry at all to include the lyrics here. This fic won’t be over anytime soon. Still much to work through with these two. I have to admit, I wasn’t very satisfied with chapter 13. Sometimes I tend to pack way too much of my own insecurities/anxiety and stuff in there, which might ruin the story for anyone outside. I apologise for that.

Listen to the song here to set the mood during the dance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bdLTPNrlEg

Thank you all for your kudos and comments!! They really make my day every single time! Thank you so much for reading!

Chapter Text:

There were no classes on a Saturday, and we’ve all been busy with our own preparations for the ball. I woke up nervous, scared and numb. I had a nightmare in which I was back in London in our old backstage area. He was there, threatening us, yelling at us, making our life hell. As a consequence, a heavy cloud hung over me. I was looking forward for this evening for weeks and now anxiety reigned my heart. In addition, I’ve found another note in my pidgeon hole with the familiar red lettering of ‘whore’. I tried to calm down with tea and did some reading in my studies, thinking to myself: “Please don’t ruin this evening. Everything is going to be fine.”

Severus had send me an owl to let me know he’d pick me up at 6. Punctual as ever, he arrived at point 6 on my doorstep. He was wearing a finer version of his usual buttoned-up jacket made of soft cord fabric. His jacket was embellished with green and golden tendrils growing all over it. He wore a finer white silk shirt underneath and his longer signature sleeves were decorated with sparkling silver buttons. All this was matched with his usual black trousers. His hair elegantly framed his face and looked fluffy and soft. A white handkerchief with a lily printed on it was put in his breast pocket. He looked at me for a moment with eyes wide open, then bowed down and kissed my hand. “My lady, you look wonderful tonight.” I chuckled and thanked him for the complimemt. He looked very handsome tonight, too. On the way to the ball, my anxiety still overcame me and I couldn’t stop shaking. He put me aside in an empty hallway to ask me how I was. I just told him I had a rough night with some nightmares and was incredibly nervous. But that I was also looking forward to the evening. He looked at me worried and then said: “It’s fine. I have to admit.. I’m nervous, too. This is the first time I’m having someone next to me. But..” and here he took up my hand and squeezed it: “It’ll be fine. I don’t care about them or their words. I just want to be here with you and we can go whenever you like.” I nodded and smiled.

Usually teachers who are not head of houses do not stand in the first row when the opening dance is undergoing. Unless of course they are the chosen dance partners. Thus, I stood in the front with Severus as I was his official +1 (though I was invited individually as every staff member). Next to us stood Dumbledore who held hands with McGonagall, Flitwick who, as I was told, usually chose his wife but she was unable to make it this time, so he went with his friend Madame Pomfrey instead. Sprout had brought her tall red-haired girlfriend named Chloe. While we watched the head boys and girls dance, I could feel the eyes on me and Severus. He held my hand tightly but looked as aloof, desinterested and confident as always. I looked around and caught Remus sitting on one of the tables behind me smiling and winking at me. Sirius sat next to him in a dashing red velvet suit. He had put his hand on Remus shoulder and the other in front of his mouth, clearly hiding his laughter. I jokingly rolled my eyes when I saw him and waved.

After the head prefects had their chance to dance alone, the headteachers would be next to join. Remus told me that Severus had never joined in the dancing before and usually left quite early. This time it was different. He led me to the dancefloor and I almost tripped over my own feet because I was so nervous. But he was a marvellous dancer. Despite Remus’s training in the days before the ball, I was dead focused on not making any missteps. Severus though led brilliantly and thus it turned out ok. I think at least. He looked so satisfied and I forgot everything and everyone else in the room including my own anxiety for a while.

After the opening dance was over and the music changed into something faster and more casual, we returned to the tables reserved for the staff. Remus and Sirius came over our way. Remus was the first to talk: “Hello Severus, I didn’t know you could dance so well. That was a great performance. I could learn a thing or two from you.” Severus replied rather dismissively but polite: “Thank you, Professor Lupin.” And then… said nothing else. Silence. You could feel the tension in the air. To break the ice a bit, I said: “I hope I’ll see you two on the dancefloor soon. How are you, Sirius?” Sirius replied, after giving me a hand kiss while looking rather cheekily at Severus: “Oh, my lady, I’m doing very well tonight. And just you wait. Me and Remus have plans to dance all night and it will certainly be a show worth watching.” - he winked. He then turned towards Severus with the utmost politeness and a sarcastic little bow: “Hello to you, too Professor Snape! We haven’t seen each other for a long time. I’m glad to see you are well.” Despite these relatively harmless words you could tell he was enjoying this in a way he shouldn’t. Severus looked unimpressed with an elevated eyebrow on Sirius. He replied rather cold with a slight hint of sarcasm: “Hello Mr Black. Yes, I am. What a surprise to see you’re honouring Hogwarts with your presence once again.” “Well Sni.. “ and here Remus punched his elbow into Sirius side. “Professor Snape, someone has to take care of Remus as long as his girlfriend is gone. He isn’t exactly my type, but I volunteered to keep this scruffy professor safe.” And here he patted demonstratively Remus’s shoulder. Remus looked back at him with a very puzzling expression but then took him by the hand and said “We probably should get to the dancefloor now. Come on, Sirius.” Both waved at us and then moved towards the dancefloor.

I turned to Severus: “Well that was.. something. Sirius really tried. Why do you hate each other so much again? Remus just told me that Sirius was quite the troublemaker and you both didn’t get along at all back in school.”

Severus mouth frowned before he dismissively replied: “Long story not worth telling. But yes, I agree he was a troublemaker, always willing to put others down that he didn’t like. James Potter and he were a horrible combination that endangered the life of others. I see he hasn’t changed much, though he apparently can be polite now if he needs to… with a little help. But to change the topic: Who is Remus girlfriend?”

“ It’s Nymphadora Tonks. Do you know her?”

He nodded: “Yes, briefly. Smart girl but always seemed to be with her head somehwere else and very clumsy. Remus was always the most responsible one of the infamous Golden Trio. Guess, she is a good fit. In the end, we all got older. She might have changed.”

“She is really nice. They’re a wonderful couple.”

Severus looked absentmindedly around: “Indeed. Would you like something to drink?”. We both got some wine from the bar and sat at one of the tables in the back. It was quite empty. Most staff were either on the dancefloor or standing around it to watch the others. The bar was also rather crowded. Severus put his arm around me, and we were watching the dancing crowd. I felt a bit better now that the official dance was over. Some people continued to stare at us and then whispered in hushed tones. It made me feel uneasy but at the same time kinda proud. Though, I wanted to finally clear something up no matter how much I dreaded the question. I asked with a shaking voice: “Severus. Are we.. are we a couple?”

He looked at me like I’ve just declared that I was a lizard and the earth was flat: “What kind of question is this?” - he blured out. “I assumed that would’ve been the case for a while. I’m surprised you still saw this as an open question.”

Ouch…..damn me. “I mean, yes? I don’t know... You were so open in London but here. Obviously, we shouldn’t be all lovey dovey in front of everyone all the time but I thought you wanted to keep it a secret here. Either because you weren’t sure or because you were ashamed or something. Of course, now that we danced together and we’re here as a couple for everyone to see it’s more clear but.." I sighed..."Ok, I don’t know why I thought.. ugh.”

He drew in a long breath before saying: “You’re right but I wanted to wait until you act on your accounts. I don’t have problems showing affections here. But you seemed hesitant about it and maybe you’re not the type for that stuff. Yet, I’ve always seen us as a couple. I didn’t think we had to officially declare it somehow.”

“I’m sorry.. you know how I am.”

“Yes, I know. And that’s fine. Even though it doesn’t have to be said out loud, I say it now: I want to be in a serious relationship with you right now.”

I could feel how my cheeks turned pink and said in a hushed voice: “I do, too.” And then he leaned towards me and kissed me in front of everyone to see. I could hear more murmurs around us. But I didn’t care, and I think Severus did neither.

Remus and Sirius indeed put on quite a show on. Sirius was an absolute show off and danced like a professional pop background dancer at times but Remus was not far behind. It was clear that Sirius had learned how to dance to impress whoever he wanted at that moment. I could see how that works out though his occasional awkward breakdance moves are a bit too much at times. The rest of the staff were equally impressive. Dumbledore danced like a 13 year old in a tik tok video and the students loved it. I’ve never seen a 130 year old dancing that passionately while staying cool with the kids. I also joined them on the dancefloor at times and once sang loudly along Queen’s Bohemian Rapsody with Minerva, Sprout and Chloe. It was a lot of fun. At one point, the students of my drama group invited me to their little circle to sing along some songs. Severus stayed behind for most of the evening though he did talk with Flitwick and Albus. Every time I looked towards him, he smiled though. When I returned to him, he said:“It’s a marvel to see you dance.”

I blushed but then replied: “Why don’t you try it then sometimes? I’m sure you’d have fun.”

He cackled: “I don’t think anyone wants to see me on the dancefloor being silly. I’m not the type. Bats don’t dance after all.”

A slow song came on and the dancefloor organised itself in couples intimately intertwined. Suddenly, Severus stood up and offered me his arm: “But I think, I could make an exception with this song.”

I was beaming and we went to the dancefloor. The song felt like soft snow falling and the lyrics wrapped us in like a warm blanket:

“I've been having a hard time adjusting. I had the shiniest wheels, now they're rusting. Pulled the car off the road to the lookout. Could've followed my fears all the way down.”

Many thoughts ran through my head. I often was incapable of focusing on the moment. I still had to prove myself and my position at Hogwarts. The thing was the play. Would anyone notice if I had to go? Did I change anything in the few months I was here? And why do I still feel haunted and chased by all these old prejudices. I felt so battered and wounded.

“And maybe I don’t quite know what to say. But I’m here in your doorway.”

I never thought I’d find someone like Severus here. That I’d tried to love again at all. But there was still so much that lingered in my heart and mind. My life is far from perfect. I had to fix my sleeping schedule, to fix my fears and insecurities, to battle whatever is happening here. Why does he like me when he usually demands perfection from anyone around him? I still couldn’t explain that. But I knew I’d try my best to keep him, to make him happy, to hold him. My thoughts returned to his gaze. I was dancing with the most beautiful man at this school. My head on his shoulder, his hand on my waist, his breath in my ear. Still, I was scared, and I didn’t know why.

“They told me all of my cages were mental. So I got wasted like all my potential. And my words shoot to kill when I'm mad. I have a lot of regrets about that.”

I thought about why I left London. Why, my life went like it did. There was so much he didn’t know about what happened to me, about what I did to others. About who I had been. But was this really important? On the other hand, he admitted he hadn’t told me much about his past either. Will this all last? He was like an enigma wrapped up in a riddle but at the same time… I felt like we were bound with an invisible string.

“I was so ahead of the curve, the curve became a sphere. Fell behind all my classmates and I ended up here, pouring out my heart to a stranger But I didn't pour the whiskey.”

Once everything looked different. I was so full of passion, dreams and hopes. But they had been crushed up to the moment that I came here, defeated but hopeful to escape everything. Yet, I was wrong in thinking that nothing would happen. I remembered the first time I broke down and how Severus sat next to me. The first time he was truly kind despite my childishness, my broken memories. The first time, I saw my scares clearly and recognised his presence as my medicine.

“And it's hard to be at a party when I feel like an open wound. It's hard to be anywhere these days when all I want is you. You're a flashback in a film reel on the one screen in my town”

The nightmare last night had hit me hard, made me remember things I’d rather forget. Yet, I’ve never been happier than in this moment. I looked at Severus, gazed into his black eyes and wanted to lose myself in him, to never think again. To drown in his eyes forever. His face was full of kindness and love. He was exactly how I always imagined love could and should be when I was a teenager dreaming. This realisation scared me at the same time. In that moment, he moved closer and kissed me in the middle of the dancefloor under the dim purple lights with the mirrorball above us. I melted in his embrace. He tasted like wine and daylight and a warming fire.

“I just wanted you to know that this is me trying”

And that’s all I wanted and all I’d ever do. Trying to make this work. Trying to create something from the broken shards of my life. I wanted to melt them down and start anew with you.

When the song ended, we went outside the hall. His hand in mine, he was beaming and even with his usual aloofness and control he couldn’t hide the fact that he was happy. And I was happy to see him that way. Though I couldn’t quite believe I was the reason behind it. To hold such a treasure and call it mine feels unreal. We stood on the balcony for a moment, looking at the Hogwarts grounds from above. His arm was wrapped around my shoulder and he seemed to hum along to the song we heard from inside.

I looked at him and said: “Never seen you this chippy before. I could get used to it.”

“Mhh..” he replied. “Yes, I can’t imagine why. Must be the wine. Or..”

And here he put his hand on my chin, closed the distance between us and said with a cheeky smile: “A certain nymph has enchanted me.”

I laughed: “Didn’t know anyone could do that to the famous master of potions and the dark arts.”

“Well, IT IS certainly possible but only when I want it to.”

“Then I feel honoured.” - I exclaimed and followed him back inside as it got quite cold.

Most of the staff had retreated to their sleeping quarters by now as it was very late. Even Sirius and Remus sat happy but exhausted on a couch deep in conversation about something. Small groups of students were on the dancefloor talking, dancing or just watching the DJ doing his thing.

Severus suggested the following: “What do you think about retreating to my quarters? I think we have served an appropriate time of duty at this party.” I agreed. I also felt the tiredness in my bones and  I longed to be alone with him.