#barty would probably give it a name and call it his child

[florsial]

Modern au Rosekiller but it's just Evan freaking out and crying to Regulus over the phone because Barty has fallen in a sourdough fascination and now there is a jar of sourdough starter in their kitchen and apparently it's alive.

Evan: Send help Regulus pls WHAT IS THAT THING Regulus: ???

[sommerregenjuniluft]

ok i'm back!! lune. lune oh my god your JP vision is everything to me, i can see him so clearly and i LOVE the fleamont/treasure/estate situation

i have additional questions: does he also have a fun name for the estate the way john b calls his house the chateau? who's who in the friend group bc me personally i can absolutely see sirius as jj and remus as pope and lily could be kinda like kiera (mainly in that like,, fiery and independent vibe she has) and i feel like for peter you'd have to kinda play around with some characters but i can totally see them as the pogues.....

and then regulus as sarah.... yeah..... please elaborate on the fucked up mentor/mentee relationship with riddle also please and thank you

miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiilllllllllllllllll<3333 that makes me so happy to hear T^T

hhmmmm i havent thought about it, maybe we can come up with something! i love having little easter eggs that relate to something in canon. idk if hogwarts would be too on the nose HAHSAHA but i mean. it is an old, big house that kinda looks like a castle...... sjfds idk i'd love to brainstorm with u. and yes mil you read my mind. that's what i thought too regarding the friendship roles/gang composition. though i think it's fun to mix the backgrounds/family situations/relations to the treasure around a bit. i'd want lily to be the book smart one, the one with the scholarship opportunity and also i think i'd want her to be the one related to denmark tanny (or whatever the name will be in the au). but i want her to have had the kook year that kiara had, lily alone in the nest of the snakes. and possible give her something close to jj's family situation. or like, an apathetic parent perhaps. remus can have the poor but loving family that pope has, with lyall and hope<3 i dunno what else he has going on besides that for now, possible something disability wise? terminal illness.....the gears r turning. sirius is a mix and match again. in this au both sirius and regulus are orphans, lets say their parents died when they were pretty small, then it was their grandparents and at last alphard but it didnt take long then for regulus to get swooped up by tom (i'll get to that in a minute.) so sirius is living with alphard and he kind of has the relationship with him that kie has with her parents, sorta abusing his position in a relatively wealthy home and using up all of his resources for his family, his friends (here his inner jj swings with as well, he's so boundlessly loyal). now coming to reg. riddle is a big shot kook obviously, filthy rich but from rags to riches type beat like ward. and his thing is that every like 5 to 10 years he adopts kids and like sponsors them sort of? like a sick twisted version of carlyall from twilight. i'd imagine maybe he started out with an ophaned niece and nephew or maybe or distant cousins and then just. kept going because he craved the company and liked playing the role. sometimes it's more but mostly he adopts two at a time, a boy and a girl. cue, barty and regulus as rafe and sarah versions. now what i'm about to say next is a bit fucked up so feel free to dip jdhgks. when they're 14/15 barty and and reg have this weird little pseudo incest thing going on where they're dating sort of. or not directly in a romantic and sexual sense but it's wildly different from regular platonic and familial. and it's all a bit bananas since they have the same father figure yknow. so they live with riddle, they have dorms at his estate. but evan is also sort of in the picture. (kind of filling the spot where the topper character leaves a whole). and evan is,, idk probably in love with both of them. which is, again, twisted and weird and bananas. since theyre. adoptive siblings on paper. skjgjsd anywho! i'm still not sure what to do about wheaze and rose. i considered bellatrix and delphini (that affair child bella had with tom) but i could never make her barty's adoptive mom. she'd just encourage his psycho ass and then the plot would crumble in over my head. at this point i also wanna take whoever is reading this by the cheeks, look u deep in the eyes and remind you of the little rafe x kie (bartylily) crumbs we'd get when exploring the s3 plotline :3 oh! oh!! also dorcas as cleo. hot sexy badass, french/jamaican accent having goddess of a young women that lily pathetically immediately falls for. it's just a big ol' OH moment where lily is like. yo i'm into girls?!?!!!!! i've pondered for a long minute what to do with the pope x kie romance plotline and i think i'd wanna make it a mutual comphet thing. remus is pissed at sirius for rejecting him after they have an almost kiss after dancing around each other for so long and then lily is there so he takes the out.

((lmao tumblr told me i need a paragraph here, i really been yapping too much already))

and sirius can't say shit because he's the one that bailed on remus, so remus lets him suffer (and also punishes himself for advancing on him in the first place). and for lily it's just that it takes her a minute to understand that the reason she can't choose between her boys is not that she's an indecisive slut but that she really does love her boys all the same amount, just not in a romantic way. cue dorcas strutting in with her knife wielding skill and her criminally sexy little belly button piercing and her braids and. yeah,,,,.

i'm also thinking latino james possibly, lily being mixed ghanaian (1) (2) (3), cambodian black siblings, and remus can be the token causasian lmao. barty as well and evan will always be some kind of blasian to me.

okay before i come to an end i wanna talk about trans fem reg for a second though. i've been browsing the net and reading about mtf transitioning a bit to portay regulus accurately and give a good enough representation. in my mind regulus, in this au, noticed that she's different pretty early on. and what with having sirius and it being a very modern, 21 century au, her transition began rather early. medically it's typically recommended to start with testo-blockers around 15 and added estrogen at 16. and that's exactly what regulus does. like always, when taking hormones there's gonna be some side effects, unfortunately. thrombosis risk increases, your libido decreases and you're probably gonna be tired and exhausted a lot and also more emotional and sensitive, have a shorter fuse. regulus does a lot of biking and swimming in her free time against the thrombosis, preferably in their long pool at the riddle estate but when she's feeling good enough about her body she does like to take out the boat with barty and evan and beat them in a swimming race. she's nap queen, she's sleeping everywhere, all the time and when her and james start getting together he calls her sleepyhead all the time and in the most affectionate tone and it sorta just keeps being the main pet name he has for her. also the low libido/possible body dismorphia go very hand in hand with the sarah arc where she's unsure about having sex for the first time. all in all regulus is pretty snappy and thin skinned, emotinal. but it makes her passionate and compassionate especially, which james loves and adores. all of it. yknow how in s2 sarah and john b stay at that hotel and jb steals the phone. i want james to overhear a pair of older-ish women complain about menopause and their pills and then break into their room when they're away for dinner and steal regulus some estrogen pills. it's probably not the right dosage and reg can't take them but!!!!!!!!!!!! it's the thought that counts and to regulus that counts A LOT.

[spidey-bie]

heyy, for I only just saw you reblogged this ask game🤡 I'm curious about 11, you mentioned giving hobie a nickname based on biscuits at some point (or I'm misremembering) and 41👀

11. How do they feel about nicknames/pet names? If they like them, what pet names do they use? If they hate them, why do they feel that way?

41. What would they do if they lost the other?

I know technically they did lose each other when they were younger, so you can describe what it was like when they were sperated, or how they'd react if it happened again, or both since you love angst so much /lh

I think you're referring to this post somebody in the comments mentioned them calling Hobie Hobknob after the brand but that was not me 😂

11. How do they feel about nicknames/pet names? If they like them, what pet names do they use? If they hate them, why do they feel that way?

Ansi loves nicknames she has multiple for Hobie that I mentioned here. But he switches between Bee, Bean, and Barty-Bee.

When he's upset or irritated with Hobie he calls him Bart or Princess.

Hobie calls Ansi Annie, Tricky, and Trickster.

41. What would they do if they lost the other?

Depends on what your definition of loss is. If you mean if they lost touch then I think they'd both cherish the time that they spent together but secretly hope that they're reunited again. Similar to how they were separated as kids.

If Ansi were to die Hobie would try and push down and ignore his feelings.

He'd wander around her dimension on the days he's especially missing her. He wouldn't go to May's house. It wouldn't feel right.

Instead he'd visit their most frequented spots and stop by Ansi's apartment. The first time he went to her apartment would probably be the first time he'd cry after Ansi's death.

(Ansi definitely has a letter or a video goodbye set up for Hobie somewhere around her apartment. That's what triggers Hobie's breakdown.)

Ansi would be practically despondent if Hobie were to die.

She already has abandonment and commitment issues from the abuse she experienced as a child. It'd take some time before she mentally recovered from his death.

He'd seem fine on the outside but in reality he's falling apart. He'd be more snarky and aggressive and even less willing to get attached to people.

He'd probably burn a lot of the stuff that Hobie gave him because it holds too many memories. (Similar to how he burnt everything related to his past at Alchemax that wasn't important.)

I can see them both shutting people out more too, especially if it was a mutual friend.

Ask Game

[whitewolfofwinterfell]

Harry Potter re-read: thoughts and ranking my favourite books

In 2020 I completed a full re-read of Harry Potter for the first time since I was a child. It was a rollercoaster experience of highs and lows; excitement, nostalgia, frustration, joy, boredom and everything in between. It took the whole year (in between reading other books) and I hit a wall in the sumer, but I’m glad I persevered and made it to the end. This series will always hold a special place in my heart and as much as I love the movies, there’s so much detail that is missed from them. I didn’t realise just how much my memories of the HP universe had been shaped by the movies until I read the books. I feel like I’ve reconnected with the universe and characters in an authentic way and lots of my opinions have changed as a result. 

Before we get to the ranking, some disclaimers:

If it wasn’t already obvious SPOILERS BELOW FOR THE HARRY POTTER SERIES (at this point I’d be surprised if there’s anybody that needs this warning, but better safe than sorry!).

This ranking is completely subjective and very changable. I love all of the books and I’ve based the ranking solely on my enjoyment of reading them. 

In writing this post I am in no way supporting or endorsing J.K. Rowling’s works. Her ignorance and hatred is intolerable and abhorrent. I discuss this more in the conclusion of this post.

None of the images or gifs featured were made by me, all credit goes to the creators.

7. The Goblet of Fire

One of my favourite movies, but my least favourite book. This one hasn’t aged well for me. It’s too long, there’s much too filler and it has the disadvantage of coming after The Prisoner of Azkaban. I like the idea of the Triwizard Tournament in theory, but the execution is dull. We spend chapters upon chapters upon chapters with Harry and Hermione researching and preparing for the tasks and the tasks themselves are very anti-climatic. It’s also difficult to ignore the fact that the second and third tasks take part underwater and in a maze, and the audience can’t even see what’s going on. Apparently there’s no spell that can allow the audience to see underwater or inside a maze, not even those Muggle inventions called cameras *face palm*

The sub-plot with S.P.E.W was equally dull and didn’t add much to the story. I also found it deeply uncomfortable and upsetting to read about the enslavement of elves and the way that slavery was portrayed in general. The one positive I took from it was seeing Dobby with his crazy jumpers and socks. Dobby is The Best.

(credit to xbirdyblue on DeviantArt for this wonderful fanart image of Dobby)

The reactions to Harry’s name coming out of the Goblet of Fire is what infuriated me most in this book because it doesn’t even make sense. Firstly, does anybody really believe Harry’s capable of overcoming such powerful magic to put his name in? Secondly, why the fudging hell would Harry want to put his name in the Goblet? He’s a 14 year old child who has endured endless trauma; he’s spent most of his life living in an abusive household and the 3 years he’d been at Hogwarts fighting against Voldemort. He doesn’t want fame or glory, he just wants to live a normal, peaceful life and hang out with his best friends. Ron’s reaction is particularly annoying because he of all people should know Harry wouldn’t put his name in the Goblet. I understand why Ron felt that way and I love him but... 

The one thing I did enjoy about this book is the evolution of Harry’s friendships with Ron and Hermione. Hermione is fiercely loyal to Harry and devoted every waking second to helping him succeed in the tasks. Despite Ron’s silly tantrum and their divide through most of the book, their falling out really does cement Harry’s love for Ron. 

"He thought he could have coped with the rest of the school's behaviour if he could just have Ron back as his friend." 

Harry liked Hermione very much, but she just wasn't the same as Ron. There was much less laughter and a lot more hanging round in the library." 

"The thing Harry Potter will miss the most, sir!"

"Harry didn't care, he wouldn't have cared if Karkaroff had given him zero; Ron's indignation on his behalf was worth a hundred points to him." 

What can I say? Ron is Harry’s platonic soul mate. That is all.

Barty Crouch’s escape from Azkaban and transformation into Moody is more cunning and intelligent than it was in the movies - this dude switched places with his mother and left her in Azkaban in his place!! 

Fred and George were by far the highlight of this book for me. Their characters are great in the movies, but in the books they’re just--

Their antics, wit and banter are top notch. I’d actually forgotten that Harry gave his prize winnings from the Tournament to Fred and George, and it seems like such a huge injustice!! This act of kindness and selflessness on Harry’s part is largely why Fred and George are able to set up Wizard Wheezes. It’s a testament to Harry’s love for Fred and George that he gave them his winnings. Harry may not have needed the money but he could’ve done literally anything with it, and chose to give it to the twins because he believed in their ideas and wanted to give them the opportunity they needed. 

GOF was always one of my favourite movies because of this moment: 

Voldemort’s return was one of the most chilling, terrifying and shocking moments for me as a kid. The scene in the graveyard still stands out as being one of my favourite scenes from the movies. In the books, it didn’t have the same impact, unfortunately. In fact, this is what was noticeable to me all the way through reading this book - I like the movie more. The movie cuts out the filler, takes the interesting aspects of the book and does them better.

Overall, despite being at the bottom of my list, I still like GOF. It’s a huge step up in world-building and is an entertaining book with a great premise;  I loved the Golden Trio’s friendship, the appearances from Dobby and Fred and George’s antics. Unfortunately, this book is let down by the sheer amount of filler, the underwhelming execution of the main plot and too much focus on sub-plots like S.P.E.W.

6. The Sorcerer’s Philosopher’s Stone 

It was really difficult to rank Phliosopher’s Stone, because it holds a special place in my heart because it’s where the series began. This book does a great job at introducing Hogwarts and it captures those nostalgic, magical Hogwarts vibes unlike any of the other books. This book is all about the wonder and the joy of Hogwarts, and Hogwarts lives in my heart, so stepping into this magical world with Harry for the first time again was a joy to read.  

I love the time spent in this book on experiencing the smaller wonders of the magical world with Harry - Platform 9 3/4, Hogwarts Express, Diagon Alley, Ollivanders, the Sorting Hat, Great Hall feasts, ghosts etc. It’s exciting and fun to read about, and truly a gem of a book for children.

Seeing Harry go from living in a cupboard and suffering abuse and neglect to an incredible world full of wonder and people who want to get to know him and show him kindness was a joy to read. I love the development of Harry, Ron and Hermione’s friendship and how, despite how short the book is, it’s developed properly. Their friendship with Hermione doesn’t happen overnight, but by the end there’s a genuine bond and trust between them. 

But of course, as the first book in the series, the plot is lacking and the writing isn’t at its strongest. Also, despite how short it is I did feel a little bored reading the second half. It’s a great entry to the series and does a wonderful job at establishing the world, main trio and other characters, but in the grander scheme of the series it’s quite bland a forgettable. 

5. The Deathly Hallows

Now this one came as a big surprise to me, because before my re-read I considered The Deathly Hallows to be my favourite book, but I just didn’t enjoy it this time around. The first 50-60% of this book got me like: 

I was bored as hell. The travelling, the hunting for Horcruxes, Dumbledore’s backstory, the bickering between Harry, Ron and Hermione...it was tiresome. Fortunately, amongst that there were a lot of isolated things that I enjoyed. 

Firstly, I adore the Tale of the Three Brothers, it’s interesting and I love the depiction of it in the movies - it’s just so cool!

Secondly, Ron and Hermione are very cute in this book, and for the first time I  appreciated them as a romantic ship. 

Thirdly, Harry looking through Sirius’ room and finding a letter from Lily broke my heart. This moment is so touching and completely unexpected, since I’d forgotten about it over the years. 

(credit to alessiatrunifo for this stunning fanart)

Fourthly, LUNA LOVEGOOD. You know what? I have no qualms in saying Luna is one of my new favourite characters since my re-read. I always liked her, but she never stood out to me, and that’s changed. It’s not just that she’s unique and wacky, but that she’s fiercely independent, moral, kind and loyal. Luna has such a strong sense of who she is and she doesn’t let anyone or anything contradict that. 

Can I also admit that I might slightly ship Harry and Luna now? 🙊 Luna seeing through Harry’s disguise as “Barney Weasley” based on his facial expressions alone and their reactions to the possibility of the other being in danger touched my heart. 

"'She will [survive],' said Harry. He could not bear to contemplate the alternative. 'She's tough Luna, much tougher than you'd think. She's probably teaching all the inmates about Wrackspurts and Nargles.'" 

"Oh, no, I didn't want you to be caught!" 

They’re cute, okay?

Finally, Kreacher! This was perhaps one of the biggest surprises from reading this book, because I’d completely forgotten about Kreacher’s story. And boy, oh, boy did this pull on my heartstrings. Kreacher has one of the most tragic backstories in the HP universe and he absolutely deserves the redemption he got in this book. I loved seeing him develop a genine relationship with Harry, Ron and Hermione, and the fact that they never went back for him made me so sad. Poor Kreacher!

I enjoyed all of these elements of the first half of the book, and then I got to The Sacking of Severus Snape and it was like:

This is where the book finally took off for me (unfortunately, it took 30 chapters to get there) and as soon as Harry, Ron and Hermione are back in Hogwarts I couldn’t put it down. There are so many brilliant moments and things I loved that all I can really do is bullet point them:

The character reunions.

Percy finally redeeming himself!!!!

McGonnagal being the most badass to ever badass.

Neville Longbottom owns my heart ❤❤❤

Neville's grandmother's response to finding out Neville was fighting in the battle - "Naturally [he is]. Excuse me, I must go and assist him." 

Ron and Hermione's first kiss!! and Harry’s reaction to it - "Is this the moment? OI! There's a war going on here!"

Percy handing in his resignation whilst Stupefy-ing his boss - "Hello, Minister! Did I mention I'm resigning?"

The Forest Again was such an emotional chapter. It got me good.

"You'll stay with me?" "Until the very end." 😭

"Harry, you wonderful boy. You brave, brave man."

"Perhaps those who are best suited to power are those who have never sought it. Those, who, like you, have leadership thrust upon them, and take up the mantle because they must, and find to their own surprise that they wear it well."

Did I mention that Neville is bloomin' amazing?

Kreacher!!!!!! "Fight! Fight! Fight for my master, defender of the house-elves! Fight the Dark Lord in the name of brave Regalus! Fight!"

Reading The Flaw in the Plan was soooo much more satisfying than watching it play out on-screen in the movie. 

In many ways DH has some of the best, most satisfying moments of any of the books. It’s a strong conclusion to the series and there’s so much that I loved about it; so many memorable and emotional moments (Dobby and Fred’s deaths still hit hard 20 years later). Unfortunately, it was dragged down by the first half of the book and the epilogue. I tried so hard to keep an open mind about the epilogue, but the truth is it still BLOWS. And the more time that passes the more I resent the decisions that were made about character deaths. I understand that the stakes were high and we needed to lose characters close to our hearts but Fred?? Dobby??? Remus??? NO! Just no, okay? I don’t accept that. 

4. The Order of the Phoenix

Now, The Order of the Phoenix had similar issues as DH for me - it had a very slow start but a great ending. I did take a couple of months break in the middle of reading this one and distinctly remember slogging my way through the first half and devouring the second half. 

I’ve made no secret over the years that Sirius and Remus are two of favourite HP characters, so I expected to enjoy OOTP a lot for that reason. I did really enjoy all the smatterings of Sirius and Remus we go throughout this book. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough for me. This book really highlighted for me how limited Harry’s POV was, because I wanted more of an insight into the Order but Harry was kept in the dark the entire time which was frustrating. 

One of the main character highlights of this book is the legend Minverva McGonnagal. Her sass, strength and determination to defend Hogwarts and its students against Dolores is astounding. Here are some of my favourite McGonnagal moments:

"Well, usually when a person shakes their head they mean 'no.'"

"Can I offer you a cough drop, Dolores?"

"I should have made my meaning plainer. [Harry] has achieved high marks in all Defence Against the Dark Arts tests set by a compotent teacher."

Defending Hagrid against Umbridge.

And of course:

(Still can’t believe the movie robbed us of this!)

Time for a less popular opinion - I loved Harry in this book. In general, this book made me feel very protective of Harry, because Harry is bloomin’ incredible and deserves so much better than what he gets in this book. He’s always had a bad rep in OOTP for being an annoying, angsty teenager, but in my opinion, this is Harry at his most relatable and lovable. After everything Harry went through, he’s entitled to be angry with the world. He endured everything that he did and took the responsibility of the world onto his shoulders with little complaint, and in OOTP he reaches breaking point. Honestly, I’m surprised it didn’t happen sooner. The adults in Harry’s life are glaringly irresponsible in this book. Not only do they force him back to the Dursley’s after the hugely traumatic events of GOF based on some bull about “blood magic”, but they purposefully hide the truth from him even though that puts him at greater risk and adds to his emotional distress. Everyone around Harry expects him to be mature and act like an adult when he’s fighting against the darkest wizard of all time, yet don’t give him the courtesy or respect of telling him the truth about significant things that impact him and the people he loves. Sirius os the only person that refuses to belittle Harry, but in some ways, his behaviour is just as damaging as those that tried to shelter Harry from the truth, because he expects too much of Harry and projects James’ personality onto him. The adults around Harry fail him to such an extent in this book that he establishes the DA because he can’t even rely on the adults around him to keep him and his friends safe. Harry’s emotions in this book aren’t only understandable, but justified and I felt an even deeper connection to him as a result. His vulnerability shows his strength and courage more than ever before. This is the point where he goes from the Chosen One to a true champion, because even when he reaches rock bottom and wants to give up, he doesn’t walk away. I love Harry so much.

The Department of Mysteries is by far one of my favourite sections from any of the books. I love the friendship dynamics, Luna, Neville and Ginny are given the chance to really shine, the stakes are high, the action is great and despite the trauma of Sirius’ death, that moment is so hard-hitting and memorable. This section of the book just took it to a new level for me. It was really great.

The emotion of Sirius’ death was captured so perfectly, and is such a huge turning point for Harry. Like I said above, choosing to go on even after losing Sirius proves that Harry is a true hero; that he isn’t just doing what he was doing out of obligation or has been told to but because he believes in doing the right thing. I best move on before I continue to speak about how amazing Harry James Potter is.

Now we come to Neville. Can you believe that I’d actually forgot the details of Neville being the Chosen One? It was a blast learning about that again and how he’s connected to the prophecy. I also loved that we got to see his family and not just be told about it via dialogue. Neville is by far one of the most loveable and interesting minor characters in the series. He has so many great moments in books 1-4, but he really shines in OOTP.

The more I write about this book, the more I find things to love. It’s just a shame that the first half lets it down, because overall, I think there’s a lot of great material here in terms of plot and character development.

3. The Chamber of Secrets

I know that The Chamber of Secrets is generally ranked low amongst most fans, but I love it. At this point, the books were more simplistic and just fun, and I like that. I also have to acknowledge that I have a deep affinity for the COS movie - I grew up watching it over and over, and of all the movies it’s still the one I know best and always come back to (still can’t believe the “Why couldn’t it be follow the butterflies line?” wasn’t even in the books!)

I love all of the different elements in this book:

Dobby

The Burrow

The flying car

Whomping Willow

Moaning Myrtle 

This idiot

Gilderoy Lockhart is one of my favourite antagonists in the entire series, because he isn’t intentionally bad, he’s just an arrogant fool. His primary concern is his image and reputation and he was willing to go to any lengths to maintain it. He’s a bad person in a subtle and hilarious way. 

Generally speaking, there are too many fun and entertaining moments to count in this book. I love the childish-ness of this book in comparison to the darker tone the series adopts from POA onwards. For me, COS still has the silliness and merriment that I really associate HP with. Entertainment value aside, the plot in COS is actually well executed.

As a short, concise and effective plot, Tom Riddle’s diary and the Chamber of Secrets works incredibly well. I liked the mystery and suspense of the culprit of the Muggle born attacks, and the big moments connected to it - finding out that Hagrid might be the perpetrator, Ginny being possessed by Voldemort, Hermione being petrified, Harry speaking Parceltongue. The stakes are high and this plot is strong enough to keep momentum going between the more light hearted moments.

Overall, COS is a quick, easy and fun read. It may not be the best written or complex book in the series, but I’m a huge advocate for it. Not only is it highly entertaining, but it also introduced a lot of great and important aspects to the series (Horcruxes, Tom Riddle being the heir of Slytherin, Harry being connected to Voldemort, polyjuice potion and Dobby), and built very well on what was established in PS. 

2. The Half Blood Prince

The biggest surprise of this re-read was how much I bloomin’ loved Half Blood Prince. It has the perfect balance of plot, character development, mystery, humour and emotion. Out of the bigger books in the series, this was the one I finished the fastest (2 days), because it was quite literally un-put-downable (yes, that’s a word). 

First, let’s talk about the plot, because wow, it’s a good ‘un. In my opinion, it’s the strongest and best written plot from any of the books. There’s Voldemort’s backstory, the development of Harry and Dumbledore’s relationship, Snape’s backstory, the mystery of the Half Blood Prince, Harry’s rivalry/suspicion of Malfoy, hunting Horcruxes and Dumbledore’s death. This book feels like an incredible pay-off for things that have been built up in the previous 5 books. We learn so much about certain characters - Dumbledore, Snape, Malfoy, Voldemort, Ginny - and regardless of whether I liked those characters or not, I was invested. The clues that Snape is the Half Blood Prince are cleverly interwoven within the narrative and the mystery keeps you guessing, even when you know who it is. 

The last part of this book from Chapter 26 onwards was just explosive. Although I knew what was coming, I was surprised at the level of emotion I felt when Dumbledore and Harry were in the cave and when Dumbledore died. My heart was racing and I had tears in my eyes. 

This book just doesn’t let up for a second. If we aren’t learning more about Voldemort, we’re following Draco to see what he’s up to or unravelling mysteries around the Half Blood Prince or trying to get information from Slughorn about horcruxes. Even the down time is enjoyable to read in this book (Chapter 9 was one of my favourite chapters to read) and the friendships and banter are stellar. 

In terms of character development, this is also one of the strongest books. Dumbledore is finally developed beyond the omnipotent Gandalf-esque archetype and we learn bout his past and his flaws.

"I have already proven to you, I make mistakes like the next man. In fact, being - forgive me - rather cleverer than most men, my mistakes tend to be correspondingly huger." 

The focus on Dumbledore also sets it up for his death, and you know what? It works. If we’d lost Dumbledore prior to HBP, I would’ve been shocked and upset, but losing him at this point hurts that much more because we learn so much more about him, see how important he is to Harry and how vital his guidance is in defeating Voldemort. Dumbledore’s death feels like all hope is lost, and so soon after losing Sirius it feels even harsher.

Insight into Snape’s back-story finally explains some of his motivations and actions (though it does not condone them).

Although Voldemort’s backstory doesn’t necessarily add to our understanding of him, it’s interesting to see how he came into the world, and learn about his family background. What this demonstrated most to me is that a lot of the time there is no reason for evil. Voldemort didn’t really have any motivations for what he did. Sure, he didn’t have the perfect, happy childhood but there isn’t really enough substance there to try to explain how or why he became the monster that he did. 

More could’ve been done with Malfoy, but I enjoyed him having a bigger presence in this book and how the idea that family shapes who we are isn’t always true. Draco does what is expected of him from his family, but ultimately, he has his own conscience and inner turmoil that forces him to question things.

As for Harry...he goes to a dark place in this book. OOTP has always been cpnsidered as the “angsty Harry”, but HBP takes Harry to new places. Harry feels more ruthless, reckless and determined in this book than any other. There’s an underlying sense of apathy that lingers from Sirius’ death. He obsesses about his mission to extract the memory from Slughorn and his lessons with Dumbledore, and fixates on his hatred for Draco and Snape. The fact that Harry uses Sectumsempra on Draco is honestly the most alarming thing that Harry does because it shows how dark a place Harry has gone to. He knows the spell is going to inflict serious harm and yet he uses it anyway. 

Generally, Harry abuses the potions book and manipulates, lies and takes advantage of almost everyone around him. I really see his dependency on that book and his choice to exploit it for his own benefit as adverse effects of the grief and trauma he endured. For once, he has the upper hand and I’d even argue that despite the Half Blood Prince being anonymous stranger to him, he relies on him as a mentor or parental figure. Yet despite it being a dark book for Harry, he also seems to get some genuine peace with Ginny. Although I’m not a Hinny shipper, it was so nice to see Harry experience some normality and contentment. No matter what he goes through, he remains kind hearted. I actually feel like this book more than any other emphasises that point - Harry could just as easily have gone down the same path as Vodlemort, but he made a choice not to.

“In spite of all the temptation you have endured, all the suffering, you remain pure of heart, just as pure as you were at the age of eleven, when you stared into a mirror that reflected your hears desire and it showed you the only way to thwart Lord Voldement, and not immortality or riches. Harry, have you any idea how few wizards could have seen what you saw in the mirror?" 

Plot and character development aside, the comedy in this book is gold and I appreciate the movie (and Daniel Radcliffe) for maximising on that to create some of the best and funniest scenes in the movie franchise. Chapter 18 in particular was hilarious.

Now I have to speak about one of my favourite moments from this book:

Since GoF, Fleur was grossly mistreated and discriminated against by the Weasley’s (Molly and Ginny in particular). The way they treated her was sexist and xenophobic pure and simple. They had no reason to dislike her and all of their reasons seemed to be built on some flimsy notion that she was full of herself (why, just because she was beautiful? and even if she was, what’s wrong with confidence?!) and that she was annoying and loud because she was French. Seeing Fleur finally stand up to their bigotry was fantastic. It’s a moment I’d been waiting for for so long and I’m so glad we got it, because frankly, Molly and Ginny’s beahviour towards Fleur needed to be addressed because it was disgusting.

Overall, HBP demonstrates the strengths of HP as a series. In comparison to the other books, I don’t really have anything to crituqe I enjoyed all of it from beginning to end, which is why it almost took the top spot in this ranking.

1. The Prisoner of Azkaban

It was really close between first and second place, but Prisoner of Azkaban just managed it. This is where the HP series truly takes off and starts to shine. In comparison to what we got in PS and COS it’s richer - the plot is complex, the world building is more developed, the characters are great and it’s generally an entertaining read but with added complexity in comparison to its predecessors.

I like that POA allows us to spend so much time in Hogwarts hanging out, but that the plot comes to the forefront more. We’re all so familiar with HP at this point that it’s easy to forget the impact the plot-twists must’ve punched the first time we read them. But for me, it’d been so long since I’d read the series, that it really was like reading them for the first time and POA was one of the ones that surprised me at various points.

I’d forgot details like:

The Shrieking Shack got its name and reputation because Lupin locked himself up there during transformations; The Whomping Willow was planted to hide the secret passage to the Shrieking Shack and prevent Lupin from escaping and hurting people in his werewolf form

Crookshanks was Sirius’ ally

Sirius escaped Azkaban in his dog form

Unsurprisingly, Remus and Sirius were the highlight of this book for me. I know it’s basic but I really love them and the two of them having such a focus in this book really makes it.

Remus truly shines in this book. He’s a lovable character – a great teacher, a supportive mentor and a loyal friend. His tragic backstory only adds to his character. Snape tries to villainise Remus for being a werewolf, but the reality is that he’s a victim. He was an innocent child that was bitten by a vicious, cruel monster and has to live with the consequences of that for the rest of his life. He carries so much self-loathing, fear and insecurity because of what he is and he doesn’t deserve it. Dumbledore is the only one that separates the man from the wolf and takes Remus on his merits. He knows that Remus is a genuinely good person and a talented teacher, and he’s willing to make the necessary adjustments to enable Remus equal opportunity. Not only does it benefit Remus for Dumbledore to do this, but the students too, because let’s face it, Remus is a bloody damn good teacher.

Remus is arguably the most decent and responsible adult character in the entire HP universe. He respects Harry’s agency but also acknowledges that he’s still a child that needs protection and guidance. Instead of lying to Harry or throwing him into dangerous situations, he does perhaps the most helpful thing any adult ever does for Harry – he teaches him how to defend himself. I love that Lupin and Harry’s relationship in this book foreshadows the formation of the DA in OOTP; Lupin is the only one that teaches Harry practical DATDA skills and in the absence of Lupin as a teacher, Harry then takes on that role as a mentor and provides his friends with the skills to defend themselves. 

Now we come to Sirius. Introducing Sirius as the enemy – a dangerously, mad criminal who is conspiring with Voldemort and wants Harry dead – and then revealing him to be the complete opposite was genius. Part of me wished I could completely forget so that I could experience the utter shock of finding that out for the first time. The fact that Harry saw his parents in the Mirror of Erised in PS and then finds Sirius and Lupin in this book touches my heart. Sirius is a direct link to Harry’s parents unlike anything he’s ever had. Although on the surface, their bond develops too quickly, considering that Harry is 13 years old and all he wants more than anything is to have parents and/or a connection to his parents, his quick attachment to Sirius makes sense. The thought of living with Sirius makes Harry so happy that he used it to power his patronus!!! Likewise, Sirius clings to Harry knowing that he’s the son of his best friends. He spent the entirety of his time in Azkaban knowing Harry was still out there somewhere without James and Lily and in danger from Voldemort. Immediately, Sirius provides Harry with the type of comfort about his parents that he’s never received before.

“You think the dead we have loved ever truly leave us? You think that we don't recall them more clearly than ever in times of great trouble? Your father is alive in you, Harry, and shows himself most plainly when you have need of him. How else could you produce that particular Patronus? Prongs rode again last night.”

One of the highlights of this book is the scene where Snape catches Harry with the Marauders Map. That quote is just legendary.

"Mr Moony presents his compliments to Professor Snape, and begs him to keep his abnormally large nose out of other people's business. Mr Prongs agrees with Mr Moony, and would like to add that Professor Snape is an ugly git. Mr Padfoot would like to register his astonishment that an idiot like that ever became a Professor. Mr Wormtail bids Professor Snape good day, and advises him to wash his hair, the slimeball."

Admittedly, the time travel in this book is problematic as hell. I’m grateful that Harry and Hermione were able to save Buckbeak and Sirius due to time travel, but if it was up to me, I’d remove time travel from the universe completely. It doesn’t fit, it’s too complicated and creates too many issues. McGonnagal condones the use of time travel for Hermione to attend extra lessons and yet won’t use it to tackle real, important problems, like I don’t know, war, death, disease, disasters etc. Not to mention the entire Voldemort problem and Harry becoming the Chosen One could’ve been resolved by going back to the night of James and Lily’s deaths.

One of my favourite elements of this book was seeing Ron and Hermione’s friendship with Hagrid. A lot of emphasis is placed on Harry’s friendship with Hagrid. but this book shows how devoted Ron and Hermione are to Hagrid. They both spend a lot of their time comforting him and helping him to prepare for Buckbeak’s trial.

This book has a great balance – it’s still on the shorter side but it doesn’t suffer for it. and here’s plenty of plot and character development. Ironically, whilst HBP is my favourite because of the emphasis on the main plot, POA is my favourite because it takes a break from Voldemort. It’s refreshing to take a step away from Voldemort and put the focus onto a new villain in Sirius, and then for the twist to be revealed that he’s not actually a villain but Harry’s godfather. The time-turner is the biggest draw-back in this book, but I can overlook that because there’s so much more to love in this book. It’s definitely the most re-readable book in terms of the length and plot. This book is a happy medium which incorporates the strengths from all of the other books in a smaller package than HBP - it’s fun but expands on the universe, introduces brilliant new characters and has a depth and complexity that the first two lack whilst not having the filler that books 4-7 have.  

Conclusion

It’s hard to read these books without it being mingled with childhood nostalgia, so that undoubtedly informed my ranking. Despite being a children's series, the books still hold up reading them as an adult. I enjoyed rediscovering the smaller details I’d forgotten over the years and feel much closer to the universe as a result. The characters and their dynamics are by far my favourite thing about HP. I also enjoy the whimsical magic and how this is offset against the darker tone later in the series. However, in light of JKR’s hateful rhetoric, my attention was drawn to the problematic elements of the books such as the portrayal of slavery in addition to: 

Lack of major/well-written characters of color

Anti-semitic caricature of goblin bankers

Cho Chang’s name (which many consider offensive), stereotypical placement in Ravenclaw (the smart house) while being the only East-Asian character in the books, and she functions almost exclusively as a love interest

Ableism all-around

Nagini, an evil snake who gets chopped in half, is actually an Asian woman according to Fantastic Beasts, making her the second of two named East Asian characters in the franchise

“Magic in North America,” a history of magic in North America published on Pottermore that grossly misappropriates and misconstrues Native American cultures

Anthony Goldstein, retconned token Jewish character, also stereotypically named

General stereotypical naming of non-Anglo-Saxon characters

Remus Lupin’s werewolf status as an AIDS metaphor while depicting his condition as making him monstrous, and the man who bit him goes around biting people for kicks

Declaring that Dumbledore is gay with exactly 0 in-canon references, and no other LGBTQ+ representation  (article credit: Separating Art from Artist - Thoughts on J.K. Rowling written by Melina List on Medium)

This is the last time I will read these books, partly because I’ve outgrown them, but mostly because I can’t, without a heavy conscience ignore the relationship between JKR’s hateful views and her works. If you want to learn more about this, I’d recommend checking out a post from my_weird_bookish_heart on Instagram which explains why we couldn’t and shouldn’t ignore the problems in these books by adopting a “art is separate from the artist” mentality (if you would like the link to this please message me and I’l be happy to share it. We can all still love and enjoy HP, but we all have a moral duty to acknowledge and take responsibility for this and not feign ignorance. Views like JKR’s directly harm individuals and groups, not just in the trans community but also the Jewish and LGBTQIA+ communities and people of colour. I can’t and won’t accept that in silence. No matter how special HP was to me as a child, the lives of real humans are unquestionably more important.

Thank you for reading.

[digitalta]

( you probably get these a lot but...here i am)

i've read antithesis about 3 times, i always stopped reading around chapter 66 because it was too painful, but it's one of my favorite works in fanfiction. i convinced my sister to read it (it's like...the second fanfiction she's ever read) and she's absolutely engrossed, and today is the day i finally finished reading this tragic masterpiece. (now there's a void in my heart).

what i mean to say is...thank you (for the angst, for the drama, for the comedy, for everything). i don't know what to say or even how to say it, this is such a humane and tragic story that touched me so much that i can't even formulate a semblance of what i really want to say and what it means to me. so, thank you.

oftentimes i found myself so entranced in your writing that i feel like i didn't register the best pieces of writing and identified what could be some quotes to add to my all time favorites.

by chance, do you have a compilation of antithesis's best quotes or poetic tidbits you can share with us please?

and thank you, really ♡

So, I got this Ask a few days ago, and I’ve been sitting on it and looking at it constantly.

First- no. The number of messages never EVER take away from the meaning behind them. I could receive four messages, or four hundred, and I treasure each and every one. You are an individual with completely unique experiences and views. You deserve to be treated with kindness and respect, not thrown into a list of messages from nameless people.

Reading the story isn’t easy for some people. It’s all a matter of perspective, and how we can connect with it and how we can hurt from it. I am so proud of you for finishing it, and finding meaning at the end. 

There are...sections? Of the story that I am incredibly proud of. Pointing out quotes from memory is impossible based on the insane length of the fic.

So I tried to find individual portions that meant a lot to me, as an author and writer. I have a style of writing that I started to refine much further in the story, which appears often in the end. Surrealism and lyrical twist that is more akin to poetry than standard literature. Those lines are the ones I’m most proud of.

A few more popular quotes are those I still enjoy.

Truth be told, moments I actually enjoy appear in the middle and towards the end.

Ch. 36: "I could have been raised to kill Potter." Adrian tried again, desperate in his attempt to scare the man.

"You could have been," Remus agreed, with the faintest glimmer of sympathy, "And if you were, I would give you freedom to live away from expectations or requirements. I would give you an opportunity to follow what you want to do, and not what you were raised to do."

"It wasn't your fault Adrian," He repeated carefully, "and I'll tell you that every day for however long it takes for you to realize that. You weren't abandoned because of who you are. It wasn't your fault."

Ch. 37: He had never thought of her as someone with individual dreams and desires, an individual life that everyone would mourn and miss and remember.

She hadn't...she hadn't (or had she always been?) a person, in his eye. She was just an object, a possession of the wrong side…He had left her behind, left her lying in a pool of water too weak to stand or speak. He had turned his back on her and left her on the floor.

Ch. 38: The man's eyes were bulging, his hands were gasping against his torn and butchered chest.

"He is prey," Nagini simplified, "Prey are eaten."The man gasped something wetly, it sounded faintly like a plea.

What had he done. What had he done?

Ch. 40: "I know, I just...I do things on my own." Adrian paused, trying to elaborate but struggling with the words.

"Ah, I know how you feel." Remus smiled slightly, something nostalgic and yet so terribly pained, "We all have our own burdens to carry."

Ch. 40: Luna noticed, and she smiled something soft and sad."You know, I think you'd be a wonderful thestral.”

Ch. 44: She turned, opening her mouth and displaying saliva and venom soaked teeth, as long as dinner plates, "And do you, Cerastes, have anything to your name that make others cower? Or are you a hatchling child who dreams of prey far too large for his teeth."

"That's not true," Adrian shook his head in denial, knowing his face was flushing ugly with his anger. His scars itched and his eyes were burning and his nose was filled with disgusting snot.

"Are you crying?" Barty asked, sounding like he was going to burst out laughing, "as if the Dark Lord would find you useful!"

"Master," Lutain unhooked from Barty's leg, slithering across the distance, "Master that is not true,"

"It is," Adrian swallowed, a lump the size of a walnut was lodged in his throat.

Ch. 45: "That's why you wore this dress." he realized, speaking out loud as the epiphany struck him. "So people would stare at you. Instead of staring at me."

"People always stare at me," Luna offered dismissively, "I'm different and people don't like that. I think it scares them, like thestrals do."

Ch. 46: Luna smiled enchantingly, "Adrian you're good at spells."

"I'm really not," he automatically blurted.

Luna's eyes searched his, flickering from one back to the other, "Why are you arguing? Why do you think you're so...mediocre?"

"Because I am!" Adrian blurted, face feeling warm as he flushed against his will. Luna's spell faded out. She whispered it once more, squinting into his face as if looking for something in particular.

"I don't think you are," She confided, "I think you're brilliant."

Ch. 46: Adrian's throat moved three times as he nervously swallowed, "I...I'm not good enough n-"

"I'm afraid you're going to do something stupid for the approval of someone that doesn't matter." 

Ch 50:  "I tried, but the little demon went savage on Mundungus again, stabbed him with a fork and looked right happy with it." Sirius grimaced.

Ch. 50: "How was your summer?" Luna asked curiously. "You look terrible."

"You know, most times you're supposed to compliment me first." Adrian dryly commented, "It's wonderful to know you're so sweet."

Luna shrugged, "You look like something's eating you."

Ch. 50:  Skylar's jaw flexed, twitching as he refused to look away from the window, "Cedric really...I saw Cedric die. I saw him die, and you saw someone die, right in front of you, years ago."

"I was young," Adrian swallowed, his throat felt dry, "I barely remember it."

Skylar gave a single bark of laughter, bitter and sharp, "You don't- you don't just...just forget about it." 

"Yes you do." Adrian blurted, not even hearing the slightly pained whine in his voice. 

Skylar looked haunted, "I...I remember his eyes. They...Merlin, his eyes."

"I don't think I'll ever forget it," Skylar admitted quietly, "What Cedric looked like. Laying there, on the grass. He, he was just...alive, and then… and then he wasn't."

"It wasn't your fault." Adrian spoke, his voice a hoarse whisper.

Ch. 54: “You’re not unlovable, silly.”

Ch. 56: “I could set this entire room on fire,” Adrian mused quietly. “I could burn this entire house down and kill you. burning people smell a lot like burning meat.”

Sirius realized, that he was afraid. He was quite afraid actually.

Ch 57.: Adrian stilled, pausing as if in thought. He looked at Remus with half lidded eyes, the yellow far too bright to be anything but alarming. "Do you like me, Remus?"

Remus felt as if he was mourning for the loss of something gone, which was impossible. Adrian was right there, but he felt so far away. He felt as if he had changed truly, as if something hideous had condemned him to something so foul, he had accepted it.

"Of course I do," Remus spoke, voice strained and distorted through his distress, "Adrian, you know I do. Why would you ever think I wouldn't?"

Ch. 58: "I thought I was insane." Adrian mused without much emotion, "Disturbed. Psycho. Spastic. Mad. Mental. Thick. Freak." Adrian's body twitched in a small spasm, "Loony." he practically hissed out.

Remus breathed through his nose carefully, "Who called that to you?"

"Nobody," Adrian murmured quietly, "Everyone. They think it, everyone does. Selwyn has a few screws loose. Selwyn is a freak."

Remus gently set aside the comb and scissors. He ignored the few scraps of hair, and instead slid forward slightly so that his weight was a nearby presence for Adrian.

"That isn't even my name," Adrian whined, shaking across his shoulders, "I- I just want to be good."

"You are good, Adrian." Remus assured him, "You're exceptional."

Ch. 60:  "Oh I know," Adrian hummed back, carefree as if truly it was barely of importance, "my life is a tragedy. I think I hadn't cared to truly involve myself to my full capabilities. Now...now with a deadline, I think that It's time for me to step forward."

Ch 60.:  "You love me," Adrian whined out like a dying animal. (Which, he supposed, he was).

Ch. 63: I know what it is like, to be unmade.I know what it is like, to be nothing.And through that, I know I am not.

Ch 64.:  "I'm surprised you never noticed, in all honesty." Adrian mentioned with a wry smile, "after all, professor. I have my mother's eyes."

Ch 65.: For now, all Adrian had was himself.In the sweet smelling heather and deep earthy peat bogs out of sight, in the moonlit shadow of a moss covered mountain which towered over an isolated cobblestone road cut from the mountain itself; Adrian found peace.

Past Chapter 65...honestly, each chapter is filled with absolutely gorgeous one liners. I pulled out small quotes above that I found really stuck out to me, or had some sort of important meaning. It would be impossible to pull out every single quote, basically because it would take so much time.

What’s your favourite?

[cordonian-literature]

The Aftermath - Ch. 21

Two Weeks

Summary: Everyone prepares for the approaching Social Season

Word Count: ~4.2k

A/N: i felt especially evil writing Drake’s part, so i hope you all enjoy!

Warnings: none

*All characters belong to Pixelberry, except those that are unique to my story (I’ve also used some characters and fictional instances from Donna Tartt’s “The Goldfinch”)*

Catch up here!

Tags: @captain-kingliamsqueen @marshmallowsaremyfavorite @gkittylove99 @lovablegranny @loudbluebirdlover @mom2000aggie @kingliam2019 @queenrileyrose @shanzay44 @cordonianroyalty @hopefulmoonobject @hopelessromanticmonie @cinnamonspongecake @queenjilian @kuladekiwi @twinkle-320 @iaminlovewithtrr @charlotteg234 @amandablink @texaskitten30 @tinkie1973 @louiseingram1208 @queencatherynerhys @pens-girl-87 @missevabean @ladyangel70 @sanchita012 @cordonianprincess @liamandneca @cordonia-gothqueen​ @pink-diamond13​

I’m sorry, the tags are being weird and I don’t know if they’re working or not… but I hope I got everyone down! If I missed someone, or anyone wants to be added/removed, let me know :)

✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧

- Maxwell - 

The baby blossoms were improving in their lessons perfectly, and no one was prouder than Liam. Him and Maxwell would sit with the children through lessons, making sure they understood the basics. True, they couldn’t teach the children everything in two weeks, but they needed to know how to act like royalty for the Social Season.  

Maxwell had asked Liam how his dinner with Riley went. The man was ecstatic to say that she was giving him a chance. Maxwell was happy for his friend, but hoped that neither of them would do anything to mess it up. 

Maxwell tired to come up with ways that Riley and Liam could spend time with each other, but whenever the baby blossoms came into their view, they began to worry about the court voicing their opinions about the children. 

Riley and Rowan tried to help the children in terms of memorizing etiquette. By the end of the week, both children knew enough to pass by as royalty. Liam voiced his relief that the children wouldn’t be in the spotlight too much, considering the fact that they weren’t expected to participate in certain events. 

Maxwell had tried to spend more time with Rowan, but the woman was also stressed about what she was going to do in front of the nobility. Even though she followed along in the baby blossoms’ lessons, she pointed out that expectations would be different for a grown woman compared to two small children. 

And even after dinner, when he tried to sneak a moment alone with her, Bertrand would always find him lurking in a corner and would reprimand Maxwell.

After Maxwell and Bartie walked the baby blossoms through what was expected of them behavior-wise, and after Hana taught them some traditional dances, Olivia declared that it was time to teach them self defense.

“Is that... necessary?” Hana asks. 

“With the previous attack on the palace,” Olivia begins. “It would be better for them to know something rather than nothing.” 

“Is the situation truly so serious?” Hana turns to Liam. 

His eyebrows furrow. “Truth be told, I don’t know. The investigations are still ongoing, but so far they’ve found nothing.”

“Don’t you think people may avoid participating in the season out of fear?” Hana continues to ask.

“Perhaps, but I’ve increased security to ensure the safety of the guests.” 

“And thus another reason why the King’s Guard cannot teach them,” Olivia starts up again, referring to the children. “They must protect the palace grounds and continue their investigation. Whoever those thieves are, they better not get away.” 

Liam’s phone rings, and he leaves the room. Hana says she’ll go check on Riley, and so Maxwell, Rowan, and Olivia are left with the children.

“So.” Olivia turns to them. “Answer me this. An intruder has broken into your home in the middle of the night. You open your door to see that they are coming towards you with a knife. What do you do?” 

“Hide!” Ella claims. 

“False.” Olivia states. 

“Um... run away?” Gabriel tries.

“Wrong again. Cowardice is never the answer,” Olivia tells them. 

“So... are we supposed to... fight back?” Gabriel asks. 

“But we’re just kids,” Ella argues. 

Rowan leans towards Maxwell and whispers, “She’s got a point. Maybe they shouldn’t be learning about this.” 

“You can use that to your advantage,” Olivia states. “There’s a chance the intruder wouldn’t hurt a child, so you will take their moment of hesitation to attack.” 

“Attack?” Gabe’s eyebrows furrow as he thinks, and Maxwell can’t help but notice how similar the action is to what Liam does. “So we can... hit them with a baseball bat?” 

“Or kick something at them? Ou! Can we just kick them?” Ella adds. 

“Precisely!” Olivia smiles at the children. “Though it would be better to get the job done with a sharp object.”

“Like a knife?” Gabriel questions. 

“Yes, and today I will be teaching you both how to effectively use a knife to defend yourselves.” 

“Mama said I’m not allowed to use knives anymore,” Eleanor tells the group.

“And why is that?” Olivia puts her hands on her hips.

“Because of what happened last Thanksgiving.” 

“And what transpired on the last giving of thanks?” 

“I chased Gabe with the knife we were supposed to use to cut the turkey.”

A smile plasters over Olivia’s face. “I knew there was a reason I liked you.” 

A flash of childish fear crosses Gabriel’s face, and Rowan pats him on the shoulder.

“Now,” Olivia begins. From different spots in her dress, she removes a series of extremely sharp knives. “Pick one to use.” 

“Uh, no,” Rowan interjects. “We won’t be doing that. These are literal children, Lady Olivia.” 

Olivia rolls her eyes. “Fine. I brought wooden knives, too, but they’re in my room.” She retreats to go get them. 

Maxwell leans into the group, making them all huddle together. “You know what we should do, baby blossoms?” The children shake their heads. “Follow me.” 

Maxwell leads them behind the staircase towards the wall of weapons. 

“Wow,” Rowan exclaims. “Exactly why does your family have this?” She holds in a laugh.

“Are these the knives Duchess Olivia wants us to use?” Gabriel asks. 

“No,” Maxwell answers him. “But wouldn’t it be fun to use them?” 

The children look towards Rowan, and she laughs. “We can hold them, but no swinging them around, okay?” 

“Okay!” Ella exclaims, reaching for the double sided sword. It’s a little heavy for her, but she manages to hold it up. 

Rowan grabs the dagger, and Gabriel settles for the sword.

Maxwell lifts the flail from the wall, and before he can say anything else, he turns to see Eleanor leading everyone back to the ballroom. 

Once they’re inside, they wait for Olivia, but something catches Maxwell’s eye. 

“You okay?” Rowan asks. 

“Look!” Maxwell walks towards a table, where a phone pokes out from under a handkerchief. “It’s Drake’s phone.” 

“Should we give it back to him?” Gabriel asks. 

Maxwell sighs, and regards the phone in his hands. “Probably.” He looks towards Rowan and the baby blossoms, a mischievous look in his eyes. “But first...”

Before he can finish the sentence, Rowan starts giggling. Through the laugh she manages, “If you say, ‘Let me take a selfie,’ I’m taking the weapons away.” 

Maxwell pouts at her. “Fine, I won’t say it, but can we take at least one?” 

He can tell that the situation is amusing to her, but Rowan glances at the children and agrees.

They all pose, and Maxwell takes the picture. Rowan takes the phone and puts it back where they found it from, while Maxwell takes everyone’s weapons and goes to put it back on the wall. 

When he comes back, the baby blossoms each have a wooden sword in their hands. Maxwell notices that they look very similar to the wooden sword Olivia had when she was a child. 

“—Since these are now yours’, you can name them whatever you want.” Maxwell hears her tell them. 

“So...” Eleanor closely regards her sword. “If I name it ‘Gabe’... does that mean I can do this?” She turns to hit her brother’s shoulder with the sword repeatedly, and chants, “Stop hitting yourself! Stop hitting yourself! Stop hitting yourself!”

Gabriel protests, and tries to back away from her, but Eleanor follows him, giggling. 

“Stop! Wait! Give me a second!” The boy protests.

“Get it together, Gabriel!” Olivia calls to him from the sidelines. “You’re losing!”

“Yay!” Eleanor screams. 

“Watch your footing!” Olivia directs. “Widen your stance!” 

Soon, both of the baby blossoms are hitting each other’s wooden swords. They use all of their energy, until Gabriel finally backs away in a coughing fit.

Liam rushes in, having finished his phone call. He goes to Gabriel’s side and tells him to sit down. 

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” the boy states. 

“Alright.” Liam sighs. “I wanted to make sure.”

“Are you here to get a wooden sword, too?” Eleanor asks him. 

Liam chuckles, looking down at her and ruffling the girl’s hair. “No.” His smile falters as he continues, “I came to say goodbye. I have to return to the palace for a few days, but will be back soon.” 

“Aww,” Eleanor whines. She hugs Liam’s waist, and he kneels down to wrap her in his arms. He does the same to Gabriel, who, to Maxwell’s shock and relief, hugs his father back. 

Liam nods at Olivia, Maxwell, and Rowan on his way out. 

After he’s out of sight, Olivia turns back to the children. “Alright, where were we?” 

- Drake - 

Though he was turned away from her, Drake heard Jessica get out of bed. Her phone had vibrated from under her pillow, and she grabbed it and left the room. 

Jessica had asked Drake to return to his cabin for at least one evening, since she wanted to spend time with him away from the rest of his friends. He assumed that Jessica didn’t like his friends’ company, and that upset him. But there was barely a week left until the Social Season; he didn’t want her to be anxious about having to be in the presence of the nobility, so he was willing to spend time alone with Jessica to make her feel more at ease.

He gets out of bed and combs through a small pile of his and Jessica’s clothes that they had thrown to the side. Drake puts her dress on the edge of the bed and grabs his pants. His heartbeat quickens for a moment as he feels the pockets for the ring box. Looking over his shoulder towards the door, he saw Jessica texting away with a blanket draped over her. Drake opens the ring box, and eyes his grandmother’s ring, then turns again to Jessica. 

Not the time, he thinks to himself, putting it back into his pants pocket. 

After he finishes putting on the rest of his clothes, he goes into the kitchen to get himself something to eat. He’s about to ask Jessica who she’s texting, but before he can get near her, she bolts up and says she’s going to go use the bathroom. 

He looks through the fridge and some cabinets. Finding nothing, he decides it wouldn’t be so bad if they went out to eat. 

Drake hears the door to the bathroom open, and Jessica reappears wearing one of his shirts and a small pair of shorts with her hair tied up. He wonders where she got them from, but remembers that some of her clothes were still in his house. 

She gives him a peck on the cheek and goes to open the fridge. 

“What do you think about going out to eat?” he asks her. “Haven’t done the groceries in a while.” 

“Go out?” she starts. Jessica pouts, and Drake feels sorry for upsetting her. “But I look a mess!”  

He smiles and shakes his head. She would never understand her own beauty. No matter what she wore or what she did, she looked perfectly put together. He took a moment to look at her in awe, allowing her image to bless his eyes: her skin was soft and clear, even though she had been sweaty moments before. Her hair looked effortlessly elegant. She could throw on some jeans and would be better put together than half of the women Drake had dated.

“What if we go eat with Papa?” Jessica suggests, referring to her father. “He’s been wanting to see you for a while.” 

“Sure,” Drake says. Jessica leaves the room to go get ready. He had met Jessica’s father a few times, and the man reminded Drake of his own father. As snarky as Jackson Walker, and just as supportive of his children. Out of respect he always referred to Jessica’s father as Mr. Ariti. Drake enjoyed the man’s company, and was always pleased to hear from Jessica that her father enjoyed spending time with him as well. 

Drake walks towards the bathroom, wanting to freshen himself up. He hears the shower running and finds the door locked. Taking a seat on the edge of the bed, he scrolls through his phone while waiting for her. He finds an image of Maxwell posing with Rowan, Gabriel, and Eleanor, each of them holding a medieval weapon. Drake wonders how they got into his phone. 

He continues to scroll and eventually finds a picture he took of Jessica when they went camping together a few years ago. The light from the fire had make her dark skin look like glass, and he had wanted to capture the moment of her raw beauty. She was looking away from the camera, towards the sky. Drake usually felt comfortable in her presence, ever since the day he first met her. There was nothing complicated about this woman; her emotions were always in check and there was rarely anything that troubled her. Even when she was dealing with family issues and her father’s declining health, Drake had never seen her cry. He believed there was a sense of power in that: she knew which topics were deserving of her tears and which weren’t, and even the things that irritated her she solved effortlessly.

But lately the two of them seemed more out of sync than not. Even tonight Drake felt that he wasn’t near her, even though she was always close enough to touch. He thinks that they may just be having one of those days, and tries to forget about it. 

She comes out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel, her phone tightly clasped in her hand. Jessica doesn’t look at Drake, and begins going through drawers to find something to wear. 

He takes a quick shower, and wears his usual denim outfit before Jessica is ready. He waits for her for a few more minutes, until finally she comes out of the room and they leave. 

They take her Jeep. She brought them to a large apartment building in the capital. They park, and the doorman greets them by name, then quickly rings a phone call up to Mr. Ariti to tell him that his daughter was here to visit him. 

The elevator door opens at the twelfth floor, and Jessica leads him down a small hallway. After they knock, Mr. Ariti’s nurse opens the door and greets Jessica with a kiss on the cheek.

The women move aside for Drake, and he smells something cooking from the kitchen. Mr. Ariti’s dog, a rottweiler named Elsa, runs at Drake to greet him.

Mr. Ariti’s apartment was small and luxuriously decorated. He had told Drake that it was Jessica and her mother who had the stylish inclinations, but looking around the room at the decorative sculptures and oil paintings, he couldn’t tell what type of person had decorated the room. Drake felt slightly out of place here, but he enjoyed Mr. Ariti’s company.

Mr. Ariti sits on the couch in the living room, and when he sees Drake, he uses all his strength to stand and greet him. Drake rushes forward, helping Mr. Ariti balance himself. The old man gives him a pat on the back, and they sit down. 

Jessica sits next to Drake, and she entertains them by telling both men about a trip she had come back from a few weeks ago. “Oh, I’ve yet to tell you about this trip, darling,” she tells Drake. It was another trip to a Greek island. She took one about every two months, and it was a different island every time. 

Before she can continue, Mr. Ariti’s nurse comes up to tell him that the doorman is on the intercom in the kitchen. Mr. Ariti has a difficult time standing up, so Drake offers him his arm and follows the nurse into the kitchen. 

Once they stand next to the intercom, Drake hears the doorman say, “Mr. Ariti? Yes... he’s here again.”

“He? Who’s he?” the old man asks. 

The nurse speaks up and tells him, “You know who he’s talking about, Mr. Ariti, the...” She eyes Drake. “The businessman.”

“Sir,” the doorman speaks from the intercom again. “He says he wishes to come up.” 

“No,” Mr. Ariti says. “I don’t care, don’t let him up. Keep him downstairs.” 

“Yes, sir,” the doorman says from the intercom. 

Mr. Ariti turns back to Drake, and he begins leading the old man to the dining table where the nurse had started putting dinner. 

“Everything alright?” Drake asks him. 

“Yes, yes.” The old man waves at him dismissively. “Just some fool who won’t leave us alone.”

Suddenly Jessica opens the door, claiming that she was going to take Elsa for a walk around the block.

A frost of displeasure crosses Mr. Ariti’s face. They hear the door click shut as she leads the dog out of the apartment, and Mr. Ariti asks Drake to sit down.

They begin to eat, and Drake respectfully listens to Mr. Ariti talk about his day, the situation that arose with one of his neighbors, and something his doctor told him. When they’re done with their meal and laughing with one another, Jessica finally reappears. She takes a seat next to Drake and serves herself some cold pasta. 

The men continue to talk while Jessica eats. She laughs along to her father’s jokes, and then when she finishes, turns to Drake. 

“Darling, I meant to tell you,” she begins. “I won’t be able to make it to the Masquerade Ball.” 

“You changed your mind about the Social Season?” Drake asks, slightly relieved. 

“No, silly.” She giggles. “Something’s come up. If I were to attend, I would have to leave early, so it’s best not to attend at all. Oh, don’t look at me like that, darling.” She laces Drake’s fingers through her own. “Didn’t you tell me that Countess Hana said her husband will be making a late appearance as well? Well mine won’t be quite as late.” She leans forward to kiss Drake’s cheek. “I’m participating in the season because I want to support you, darling. I know how you dislike the nobility’s company, so I know how much a friendly face will mean to you.” 

Drake leans towards her to kiss her, and Jessica turns back to her meal. 

After she finishes eating, Mr. Ariti says that the two of them better get home before it becomes to late, and he makes Drake promise to visit again soon. 

While Jessica and Drake ride the elevator down to the lobby, Jessica speaks up: “Papa looked upset today, don’t you think?” 

Drake agrees, and suggests that the man was probably tired. 

“You know what I think we should do, darling?” 

He turns to look at her, wondering what she was thinking of.

Finally, Jessica turns to look at him. “Marry.” 

Drake’s heart stops for a moment. Did she just propose? Wasn’t I thinking about doing that just hours before? What had stopped me from doing it then? And why’s she asking this now?

“Sh- should we?” he asks, utterly confused as to what was happening. 

“Yes, please! I think it would make Papa so happy.” 

She grabs his hand and leads him out of the elevator and towards her car. Drake feels as if he’s never felt so baffled in his life. Jessica turns on the radio, and Drake can’t hear himself think through the music. He can still feel his grandmother’s ring in his pocket. Should I give it to her now? He hears Jessica humming along to the music, and Drake doesn’t know what to do. 

She drops him off in front of his cabin, and says she'll go home to her own apartment since she has some things to settle in the morning. She leans over to kiss him goodbye. 

In a haze, Drake walks into his house and towards his bed and falls onto it, wondering what had just happened, and what that meant since his feelings for Jessica were still uncertain.

- Savannah - 

The Social Season was fast approaching, and the day of Liam’s press conference — the one where he would introduce Gabriel to the people — had arrived before anyone realized it. 

Liam and Gabriel had left for the capital early in the morning. Gabriel’s things were packed, and Liam assured Riley that he would help the boy get settled. When Riley had said that Eleanor could not go with, both children were upset, and Eleanor was still anxious hours later.

Everyone’s things were packed as well. Riley’s doctor would return tonight to take off her cast, so they would leave early in the morning for the Masquerade Ball, but they were all currently sitting in front of the TV to watch the press conference. They each sat on a couch, huddled around the TV. Drake was the only one that stood at the edge of the room. Savannah motions for him to come sit next to her, but Drake shakes his head. She wonders what happened to her brother, and guesses it may have something to do with the visit he gave Jessica last week.

Throughout the past two weeks, there were more cases of stolen art around Europe, specifically in France and Austria. Museums all throughout the continent shut down in fear of more incidents, and some nobles expressed their worries to King Liam. More and more news articles surfaced, asking if the King was going to let priceless works of Cordonian artists be stolen, and not fight for them back?

And so the topic of the press conference changed. Liam told Riley and the rest of them that he would be introducing Gabriel to the people, but he would also try to answer their questions and concerns about the stolen art. 

They watch the screen as Liam and Gabriel are led by guards up to a small platform in front of the palace. The crowd cheers for their monarch, and possibly for the heir as well. Both wear formal outfits, and Savannah notices that Gabriel’s shoulders are oddly tense.

As King Liam stops walking and turns to face the crowd, he smiles down at his son. Gabriel turns, and his face is slightly pale. He gives the crowd a tight smile and a nod. They continue to cheer. 

Liam walks up to the microphone and speaks: “People of Cordonia, it is my humble honor to introduce you to my son, the heir, Gabriel Liam Rys.” His voice drowns out as the crowd cheers again. The crowd continues to cheer for a few moments, but their cries of joy become a roar of people talking over one another. Cameras zoom in towards people’s faces, and they can hear questions being shouted.

“How do we know important historical artifacts are safe?” 

“Cordonia’s history goes back hundred of thousands of years! All that could be lost because you don’t know where to put your military!” 

“Get off your high horse! Our art has to do with our national pride!”

“You cared for the orchard, so care about this, too!”

“I thought you said you were going to honor our history?” 

“What kind of King lets his country’s history get lost like that?” 

“Get the Queen Mother’s goblets back!” 

“Cordonia’s history could be wiped away by some clever thieves, what the Hell are you going to do about it?!”

Guards manage to quiet the crowd, and Liam allows Ana de Luca to speak. 

“Your Majesty,” she begins. “On behalf of Cordonias everywhere, I just want to say that we are elated at the news of the heir.” Gabriel gives a wide smile. “But we need to know, what measures are being taken to make sure that Cordonia’s precious artifacts stay safe? Surely you understand the historical significance of these pieces, and the honor that comes with them?”  

“Thank you, Miss de Luca,” Liam answers. “I understand the people’s concern. Rest assured that I have the best people our country has to offer on this case. We will find the perpetrators soon, and bring them to justice. I’ve increased security in the palace, as well as in Cordonian museums. They would not dare strike again.” 

The crowd begins screaming again, and Bastien walks up to Liam and whispers in his ear. Liam walks away with Gabriel trailing slightly behind.

Maxwell turns the TV off. “Wow.”

“Didn’t know it was that serious,” Rowan states. 

“Cordonians are more worried than I expected them to be.” Hana looks around the group. 

“The Social Season should take their minds off of this,” Bertrand states, standing up. 

After a few seconds, Olivia states: “I trust Liam to handle it. They’re simply a few petty art thieves.”

“They probably fight with paint brushes.” Maxwell whispers over to Eleanor and Rowan, both of who begin to giggle. 

“This is simply a small hiccup,” Bertrand continues. “I’m sure they’ll find something. In the meantime, it would be best that we all finished getting ready. Lady Riley, your doctor should arrive within the hour. Eleanor, if you would come with me, I would like you and Bartie to review your table manners.” 

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

I hate Cursed Child so much, but I can't help but feel like it had *some* worth as a story... And as of late I've been repeatedly overcome with the urge to try to write a better story for Delphi... One where she was raised in a far better environment, because I feel like she had potential to be a far more fun and interesting character if she'd just had a better life...

The concept of Delphi is not a terrible one by itself. 

It would be difficult as hell to have it realistically happen, because Voldemort...not only could he not love, but he was planning to be immortal. To go on forever. He would have no need for an heir, and probably wouldn’t want one because he’d see them as competition. The most likely situation is Delphi being an accident, but even then I find myself doubting that Voldemort would have any interest in sex. Sure, Bellatrix would give herself to him in a heartbeat, but I feel like he’d have more important things to do. Then again...he apparently told Barty Crouch Jr all about his father. He crossed that personal line. It could be that Voldemort was aware that Barty was projecting onto him as a father figure, and fed that instinct to seal Barty’s undying loyalty. And he might have done the same thing with Bellatrix. Okay, Delphi’s existence can be justified.

The main thing about her that I didn’t like was that she was just a one-dimensional wannabe Death Eater. She was heartlessly evil, and while it was cool to see another secret villain, I could have lived without her flirting with a fourteen year old boy. I said before that Voldemort wouldn’t want an heir, and Delphi is deluding herself if she thinks that the “Augurey” would be a thing. Even if she genuinely had no intention of taking the spotlight, Voldemort wouldn’t trust that and he wouldn’t care. He would kill her. Seriously, they could have done something so interesting with Delphi, tied it in with the themes of Scorpius and Albus trying to deal with their family’s legacies. But instead they just made her evil because she was Voldemort’s daughter. That’s morally ignorant, and it’s fucking boring. 

I’ve been playing with this idea too, if it wasn’t obvious. A fix-it fic for Cursed Child, because you’re right, the story did have some worth. Scorpius’ character in particular, and his bond with Albus. I thought Albus was a decent character too. There were a handful of really good scenes in there. The bedroom scene with the old blanket, despite being a Chekhov's Gun for something really stupid...it got emotional. Hell, I don’t even mind the “Sometimes I wish you weren’t my son.” Line. Everybody hates that line with a passion...I don’t. This is Harry James Potter we’re talking about. He nearly killed Draco with an untested combat spell. He is nothing if not impulsive. I can believe he’d say that to Albus. I don’t believe he would mean it, but he would totally say it. Seriously, the way he treated McGonagall bothered me way more. 

I think I know how to fix Delphi.

Concept: It’s the first war. Yes, the first war. Voldemort is gathering more and more followers. Saying what he needs to say, to secure their loyalty. Discovering what buttons he needs to press, and they pressing them. Preying on Snape’s loneliness. On Barty Crouch’s daddy issues. And he realizes that the quickest way to keep Bellatrix starry-eyed is to let her believe he “loves” her. So he sleeps with her. Ding dong, there’s a baby at the door. This baby is not Delphi. But Bellatrix lets everyone believe it’s her husband’s child. But before she can tell Voldemort the truth, he meets his downfall at Godric’s Hollow. Not long after, the Lestranges are arrested, and little baby Jane Doe becomes a Ward of the Ministry, eventually adopted out to...the Diggorys. She grows up calling Cedric “cousin.” At some point, she discovers the truth about her heritage, and eventually has a daughter of her own. She names her daughter Delphi, and Delphi is born in the same year as Albus, Rose, and Scorpius. 

So let’s look at what’s changed - Delphi is now Voldemort’s grandchild. Admit it, that one little thing makes it sound so much less ridiculous than “Voldemort’s daughter.”  which sounds like it’s straight out of a bad fanfic. Delphi is now in Albus’ year. This allows her to parallel better with him and Scorpius. I still prefer Scorbus, but there’s something to be said for a romance between Harry’s child, and Voldemort’s grandchild. That’s an interesting take, and now it can happen without being god damn pedophilia. (Seriously I know Delphi was just manipulating him but it was still predatory behavior, what the hell.) Instead of being insane and thinking it’s her destiny to bring Voldemort back, she can wrestle with her identity and if she believes there was any merit to what Voldemort wanted. At no point is the idea of him actually returning ever discussed, because his role in this story is over, god damn it. She wouldn’t be the villain, neither would her mother - let’s call her Aquilla because it sounds cool. But Aquilla and Delphi could reconnect the same way Harry and Draco reconnect with their sons. Delphi, Albus, and Scorpius could literally be a silver trio. As for who is the villain? I dunno, it’s not especially important. Could be Theodore Nott I guess? As long as it isn’t someone resurrected though bloody time travel. 

[flowerpowell]

Unexpected (Drake x MC)

PART SIXTEEN

A/N: It’s official, this is the longest series Ive ever written. I was waiting for SO long to finally get this chapter out. Since I’m not really not on Tumblr anymore, I’m hoping to schedule the rest of the chapters so I can finally finish this series and not have ‘obligations’ on Tumblr, lol. I hope it made sense. The characters (but not Dani!) belong to PB!

Rating: PG

Word count: 1876

Tagging: @gardeningourmet​ @delightfullypinkglitter​ @desireepow-1986​ @hopefulmoonobject​ @dcbbw​ @kingliam2019​ @the-soot-sprite​ @thequeenofcronuts​ @badchoicesposts​ @burnsoslow​ @annekebbphotography​ @alesana45​ @axwalker​ @walkerduchess​ @ao719​ @texaskitten30​ @lodberg​ @cordonianroyalty​ @emichelle​ @siriusxxvideos​ @i-bloody-love-drake-walker​ @samihatuli​ @choices-lurker​ @i-miss-trr​ @drxkewalker @nikkis1983​ @innerpostmentality​ @msjr0119​ @bascmve01​ @mind-reader1​ @edgiestwinter​ @drakesensworld​ @queenjilian​ @princessleac1​ @saivilo​ @yukinagato2012​ ♥

“Oh no,” Drake muttered as he smelled something burning. “No, no, not my bacon. Not again.”

He quickly ran to the kitchen and took the frypan away from the stove. He wasn’t sure why but he had been burning his bacon every single day since Riley left. No matter for how long he was frying it, it always came out burned. And he blamed Riley for it. He blamed Riley for everything.

Drake poured himself coffee and put the bacon on top of his sandwich. Burned or not, he still needed food.

Ever since Riley left, he felt his life was falling apart. Again. This time was much worse though because he knew what it felt like to be happy, and now he lost it.

He didn’t understand her. He tried to hate her but he couldn’t. He knew she had some issues but he was pissed she would rather run away instead of talking to him.

“Who am I kidding,” the talked to himself, “I don’t talk about my feelings, I’d probably run off as well.”

And he hated how he understood Riley that well. He hated it.

He bit his bacon sandwich which tasted like broken dreams and he heard someone knocking on the door. Without hesitation, he threw the rest of the meal to the trash can and went to open the door.

“Mr Walker, I hope I’m not interrupting.”

“No, not all all, come on it,” Drake let the guest in and closed the door after him. He was a bit surprised his lawyer would visit him in person instead of calling him and started panicking that something had happened.

“Is everything okay?” he asked nervously.

“Nothing new about your sister, sir. But there is something I thought needed to be discussed, in person.”

“Go ahead,” he let the lawyer talk.

“Mr and Mrs Beaumont filed for full custody again, arguing that you and your wife, Mrs Walker, are separated and the child needs a full family.”

“I knew she was going to do it! It was her plan all along” Drake hit the wall with his fist.

“That’s not all... Mr Beaumont found an official document in his office signed by Mr Bertrand Beaumont and his wife, Savannah, stating that in case of something happening to them, it is Mr and Mrs Beaumont who should be legal guards of Bartie.”

“The... WHAT?!” Drake’s eyes windened.

“Mr Beaumont said he had forgotten about the document his son gave to him because he didn’t believe something would happen. Now that they found it... They are going to use it against you. And with your current situation, they have at least ninety percent of winning. If not more.”

“My sister, would NEVER sign such thing. NEVER,” Drake hissed.

“The document is legal and the signatures have not been faked. I brought a copy for you so you can familarize yourself with the content. I’m really sorry.” The lawyer handed him the document and Drake stared blankly at it. It was indeed, his sister’s signature. She had the worst handwriting and Drake could always tell what was written by her. And that document right there was most certainly signed by her. He sighed.

“Thank you, Mr Collins. I’ll contact my wife and let her know about it too.”

“I’m sorry I had to bring such bad news. I wish you two the best,” the older man smiled sadly and headed out, leaving Drake alone with his thoughts.

~~~~

“Maybe I should help you with that,” Riley frowned when Dani almost fell while carrying her bag.

“I’m fine. I think I just need some sleep, I haven’t been able to sleep properly for weeks. I just need to finish packing.”

“You’re not leaving until like, next week.”

“Yeah but I’d rather be prepared. I hate last minute packing,” Dani answered and suddenly felt dizzy again. “Okay, maybe I do need a break.”

“Dude, you should see a doctor. Or at least call your doctor from back home. Maybe she’ll give you something to calm you down or make you sleep again. I’m worried.”

“I’m fine. I’ll be better soon, I always get sick before starting a new job or school.”

“Taking some chill pills won’t make it worse and can help so please, at least consider it,” Riley insisted and her sister smiled at her.

“I promise.”

Riley took the bag from Dani and put it back on her bed. Her phone started ringing and she froze seeing Drake’s name on the screen.

“Hello?” she picked it up hesitantly, for the first time in weeks.

“Riley? I mean, yes, I know it’s you, thank you for answering, finally,” he said and she sighed. She deserved that. “I need you to come here to see something, it’s urgent.”

“Drake... I don’t think it’s a good--”

“I said it was urgent. I wouldn’t bother you if it wasn’t. Don’t worry, I don’t want to see you either but it’s something about Savannah, Bertrand and Bartie.”

“Oh,” her heart sank. “Okay. If-- If it’s about them then I’ll come,” before she finished talking, Drake already hung up. She swallowed hard knowing she deserved that. She deserved the worst after what she did to Drake.

“You’re going to talk to Drake?” Dani asked, suddenly feeling and looking much better.

“Yes, apparently something’s wrong with the whole Savannah thing. Come with me?”

“Umm, no? I’m sick, remember?” Dani covered herself with a blanket. “Besides, it is between the two of you. You are still married after all.”

“Please, I don’t want to be there alone with him,” Riley pouted but Dani only raised an eyebrow.

“Good, maybe you’ll finally deal with it like a grow-up woman you are!”

“Ugh, fine. But you’ll call a doctor to get some pills, ‘kay?”

“’Yes, sir!” Dani smiled and waved Riley goodbye as her sister left. She took out her phone and stared at it for a few moments.

“I hate making phone calls,” she murmured to herself, “why can’t my doctor just answer text messages?”

She thought a for a few minutes about what she needed to say and typed everything in bullet points on her phone. Only then did she finally dial the number.

~~~~

Drake was studying Riley’s face as she was reading the document for the third time. She looked just as confused as he was when he first got the paper.

“And Barthelemy said he just found it?”

“Yeah, apparently he forgot about it and now that they filed for custody again, he conveniently found it,” Drake shook his head.

“And the lawyer said it was a legit document?”

“Yes. And I can tell that Sav’s signature is definitely hers, she has the messiest handwriting. And her ‘a’s are the weirdest.”

“So... Maybe the document is legit? Maybe they really wanted Bart and Maddy to have Bartie? I mean, it was their son after all.”

“You really believe that? After all Madeleine did, you still think it’s all legit?!”

Riley sighed and rubbed her temples. “Maybe we’re just reading too much into it. You said it yourself, this is Savannah’s handwriting. The document is legit, what else do you need to believe it?”

“Are you serious right now?” Drake was losing his patience.

“I am but you’re not. If Savannah and Betrand thought their son should be with the Beaumonts then who are you to question it? Honestly, at least Bart has some experience with kids,” she added and quickly bit her lip, realizing she might have said too much.

Drake narrowed his eyes, “And what does that mean?”

“It means that you didn’t even know how to hold Bartie properly when I first saw you with him. It means that maybe they truly want the best for Bartie.”

“And you believe that?”

“Yeah...” she answered but she wasn’t convinced either.

“You know what? Great. Let’s just get that stupid annulment so I don’t have to see you again, let me give Bartie to the enemies who most likely killed my sister and let me just stay here alone.”

“Drake...”

“Just... go.” Drake shook his head and went to the kitchen, leaving Riley in the living room.

She sighed as she took her purse. She took a one more look at the document studying everything in detail, like Dani would. She went to the kitchen and handed Drake the document.

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry. I really hope you’ll find Savannah, she seemed like a great person. And she had a lovely middle name.”

“What?” Drake turned to her, surprised. “What middle name?”

“Helena. I think...”

“Helena? Savannah’s middle name is not Helena. She doesn’t have one!”

“But... I think I saw it right though? Here,” she pointed to Savannah’s signature. Drake’s eyes widened when he read the messy ‘Savannah Helena Beaumont’.

“I don’t understand,” he murmured. He didn’t pay too much attention to it before, still being shocked but now that Riley pointed it out he carefully analyzed it. “Savannah doesn’t have a middle name! None of us have. My mom said middle names are only a problem cause you never know where to use both of your names.”

“Maybe you just weren’t aware of it,” Riley suggested but Drake shook his head.

“No. She doesn’t have a middle name. But this is her handwriting, how--,” he started and his face paled when he saw something.

“No.”

“What happened?” Riley asked as her phone started ringing.

“It doesn’t say ‘Helena’ it says ‘Helpme’!”

“WHAT?!” Riley raised her voice, as she tried to ignore he sister calling.

“Sav had the worst handwriting but I can read it, pretty sure, I’m the only who can. It says ‘help me.’ She must be alive, she must have been forced to sign it and it wasn’t found in Bart’s office.”

“You need to tell Liam. And don’t confront Madeleine, she can’t know we know anything,” Riley said and Drake nodded. Dani kept on calling so Riley finally answered the phone.

“Dani, can I call you back? I’m a bit busy.”

“Riley?” Her sister’s voice was shaky and Riley started feeling nervous. “I—I’m sorry but can you come please? It’s... It’s urgent and I don’t know what to do.”

“I’m coming,” she said before throwing her phone into her bag. “Talk to Liam, I need to go to my sister.”

“Drake only nodded absent-mindedly, reading the document over and over again, trying to find more clues.

~~~~

“Dani? Dani! I’m here, what--” Riley started but didn’t finish as she saw her sister’s pale face. She looked scared and was shaking.

“Dani? What happened?”

“I-I called the doctor and told her everything and she told me to... and I did and--” Dani stopped to take a deep breath before taking something out of the drawer.

“And?” Riley asked, her heart beating faster than it should.

“I’m pregnant.”

[lizzybeth1986]

Quick Thoughts on The Royal Heir, Book 1 Chapter 1

• We're back! Hopefully with a better series this time, but I'm not going to keep my hopes too high.

• If my QTs are clogging up your dash, I recommend you block these particular tags: #trh quick thoughts, #trh qts, and optionally #long post.

• Much like my Book 3 QTs, I will be exploring as many playthroughs as I possibly can to see how each LI's route is being written. Last book, this experiment definitely helped me figure out that they were putting more effort into some characters and less into others, and I'd still like to keep an eye out for these things as much as possible.

• I feel this QT might be shorter than my usual (edit: joke's on me - it's not!! 🙈), mostly because the opening chapter itself is...pretty light, and is mostly meant for us to spend time and have fun with our chosen LI. Plus a tiny smidgen of buildup to the premise, which is having a child in Cordonia. But I do have a theory about the overall theme that I'm going to be expanding on towards the end of the chapter.

• Okay that's it for preliminary explanations, it's time for me to start with the chapter! XD

• Ooh. Oooooooh. This loading page now has tidbits about Cordonian society!! Interesting.

• Title: Happily Ever Afterwards

Alternative Title: Be Grateful We're Letting You Have This Much Sex For Free This Week, Because That's The Last Time It's Happening.

• I'm extremely offended they're making me wear that Pepto Bismol outfit again.

•

...thanks so much for reminding me you still don't care about Hana, PB! 🙄 Everyone else remains to be some version of "loyal", but Hana is still considered more for her skills than for her own steadfastness, even though she was the most hardcore-loyal of the four (SHE LEFT HER FREAKING HOME. HER FREAKING FAMILY. FOR YOU. While the other three were certainly loyal and honorable to the MC, they definitely didn't have to completely cut ties with their families to do right by the MC).

• The "fairytale" aesthetics of the frame story were what drew people into TRR in the first place, so it's not too surprising that the LIs and MC give a nod to the flagship series with a "once upon a time". If you're with Liam, it goes straight from "falling in love with the Prince" to what his relationship with her taught him, before the happily ever after. If you're with one of the other three LIs, it specifies that she came there for Liam but fell for someone else. Sounds a lot like Maxwell's book 😄 In Maxwell's playthrough, in fact, there is a reference to it when the MC calls him a "famous author".

•

(Screenshots organized as follows: 1 - Liam, 2 - Drake, 3 - Maxwell, 4 - Hana. Liam's and Hana's are my own. Drake's from @thefirstcourtesan, and Maxwell's from Kaitlyn Walker's YouTube channel).

The other interesting thing to note is that in Liam's playthrough, he leads the narration. While in everyone else's the MC is the one who steers it. One reason I can think of is that the narrative still treats this story as Liam's story as much as it is the MC's (if I'm right about the theme) - which...has honestly always been a sore point with the fanbase in TRR. That would depend on how us and our baby are now further involved with Cordonia in the story. Another factor for why she leads the narration...could be that essentially, the MC took initiative in the other three relationships, while in Liam's case it was he who took a more active role by proposing to her.

• The little story ends with this question from the MC:

Question: But what happens after Happily Ever After?

Answer: Mess. In Cordonia it's always mess.

• Cordonians (specifically the upper classes, since I don't know enough about the common populace to tell, since they're, yknow, practically invisible) are addicted to tea, apples and fucking shit up where they don't even need to.

• ANYWAY. What (literally) happens after 'happily ever after' is a tropical honeymoon on Liam's private island. In the case of the other three, he allows them access to the place and gives the staff instructions on making the stay comfortable for them.

• Now, since Liam owns the island and has probably visited it a could times, he shows more familiarity with it. He tells his wife that on previous trips the island had more rustic accommodations, but the villa they're now staying in was prepared recently. Additionally, the butler welcomes Hana, Maxwell and Drake as newcomers to the island, considering it's their first time. With Liam, there is an air of familiarity - he calls the butler by his name (Javier) and enquires about him and his wife (Mariana) - to show us perhaps how familiar he is with this holiday spot.

• Why the hell does everyone call Liam "Your Highness"? It's been two whole books since he became King, and the proper title for a monarch is "Your Majesty". How is it that Constantine gets to rake the MC over the coals for calling him Your Highness, yet Liam has to hear this from practically everyone. From Javier to freakin' Protocol-Monitor-Madeleine! The disrespect, I tell you!

• Okay so we're having a candlelit dinner by the ocean, and we get our first OOTD. Cute beach dress, has bright flowers and some crochet work on the bodice. I bought it because I couldn't bear to have Esther stay another minute in that Pepto Bismol of a dress.

• LOL @ all the LI responses to "this spot is right where the sharks are!"

• Tuna sashimi and pineapple aioli, huh? I have never had either so idek what that's supposed to taste like (someone on this writing team likes pineapples). I remember having to cut down on tuna during pregnancy, which meant no more Subway sandwiches since the tuna sub was the only one I liked at the time. IIRC most of my family were also cautioning me against pineapples and papaya during my first trimester!

• My gosh this butler doesn't waste much time jumping into assumptions huh?

• Also Javier, why is Cordonia's future so dependent on the well-being of my foetus even if I'm not ruling the country?

• Does Cordonia have sex ed? My money is on no. (esp in the Hana route).

• So there are two parts to the way the premise of wanting to have kids is built up in this sequence. In the first part, the LI impresses upon the MC the need to have children soon after the wedding. The second part addresses the urgency - the "why right now?" factor, and explores the LI's personal emotions towards having children. This bit also feels a bit like a follow-up to the Valtoria balcony scene in Chapter 15.

• The first part is pretty similar for Drake, Hana and Maxwell - all three of whom are now married to a Duchess and are aware that securing the duchy is important. They word it in their own distinctive styles, but the gist is pretty much the same. In Liam's case, since he is the king of the country, he speaks more about Cordonia and its tensions with neighbouring countries.

Take note of this because I'll be returning to this point later. (also who are the writers trying to convince about Cordonia's size. "Small kingdom" my ass).

• I'll be going by the LIs' personal reasons to have a baby now, one by one, along with a summary of their views on children in the Valtoria balcony scene last book (since this scene clearly references that diamond scene if you've bought it last book).

(Screenshots: Liam's and Hana's screenshots are mine, Drake's is from @thefirstcourtesan and Maxwell's is from Kaitlyn Walker's YouTube channel)

- Liam: Liam's love for family and need for children is well-known throughout the series. In Book 1, he's dropped hints about wanting to have a different kind of family dynamic from the one he'd experienced as a child, and in Book 2 there were multiple references to wanting to not be Constantine - both as a King and as a father. In the balcony scene in Book 3, Chapter 15, Liam tells us a number of things - about the value of having more heirs for succession, of him always dreaming of having at least 3 children, about Kenna, Cordonia's most legendary warrior queen which leads to an interesting factoid about how the rules of successions for both the throne and duchies are not gender-specific (he also cites Olivia and Penelope as being in line to inherit their duchies). In this sequence Liam undoubtedly has more to say about the political aspect of having an heir than the personal, but his statement about "someone missing" in their lives is of no surprise when he's been enthusiastic about kids for three books straight.

- Drake: Drake perhaps gets the lengthiest 'personal' bit of all, revolving around his eagerness to be a father and his own family history. This scene has Drake speaking of wanting a child with "your eyes and my hair", but most of all of Savannah and her little family, and wanting the happiness his sister is experiencing now. The writing often manages to tie Drake's thoughts about his future family with his past: in the Valtoria balcony scene, his memories of his father and his desire to bring up his own kids the way Jackson did are dominant in the conversation on children. He speaks at length about the absence of a proper 'home' so far in his life (stating that his room at the palace always felt like "a room in someone else's house") and how high on his priority list the prospect of having children is. The Valtoria scene shows him eager to have kids asap, and this scene builds up the same urgency. You're left in no doubt that he wants those kids now.

• Maxwell: Maxwell's route of this scene soundly pretty sudden, tbh. In his Valtoria scene, Maxwell expressed doubt and nervousness when it came to children, citing the example of Bartie ("I love palling around with little Bartie and everything, but if he bonks his head or something, I can just hand him back to Savannah. When it's your kid, you're the one people hand him to."). While this is referenced in TRH's dialogue when Maxwell jokes about forgetting diapers and baby socks - it's a pretty big jump from the man who didn't exactly feel ready to have children yet, and not enough work was done to justify that shift. This could be somewhat excused in the beginning of Book 3, when the narrative had just begun to treat him like an LI, but they've had an entire damn book and several months after to reflect on how to write him properly. That is...if they actually gave a damn.

- Hana: They don't even have the excuse of "relatively new LI" in Hana's case. Because she is the lone female LI married to a female MC, her scene should have been a lot more extensive and explored her urgency to have children so soon after their wedding, a whole lot more. There are tiny changes, like the one where she hints at the "logistical concerns" that come with two women considering a family, and where she speaks of giving her child the childhood she never had (which, frankly, is an extremely vague statement and could be applicable to more than one character in Cordonia). But there is urgency that, again, isn't properly explained in the scene. Even Hana's Valtoria scene doesn't have much that would explain why she would want a child barely weeks after her wedding. The Valtoria scene does have her outlining her dreams for the duchy (along with a joke about her enacting "Beauty and the Beast") and her happiness at the thought of being a mother (she maintains that out of the things expected of her, motherhood is the one she looked forward to). They could have spent some time thinking up a reason for why Hana would rush this, even before anything has happened, or outlined something personal and not ultra-generic. Both Maxwell and Hana deserved a lot better than this.

• Maxwell speaks about possibly forgetting diapers (PLS NO MAXWELL NO) and baby socks (um okay not as bad but depends on the climate), and one of the MC's dialogue options is to say..."diapers and socks are overrated". Guys your kid won't care how much fun you are when they have a bum rash.

• A-ha! Diamond scene. First-chapter diamond love scenes always come cheap in these series' (12 diamonds) and are usually quite a steal.

• ESTHER HAS NEW LINGERIE OMG I'M SO HAPPY I'D BEEN WAITING FOR THIS MOMENT FOR SO LOOOOONG 😭😭😭😭

• ...and it is also matches Liam's underwear. Maxwell's too 😅

• The scene is nice, there are variations between the ways the LIs work up their appetite before they finally roll in the...well, sand 😅 Maxwell has what they call an "ocean duel", Hana's fulfills her lifelong dream of carrying and spinning around her wife on a secluded beach, Drake chases the MC through the water...and Liam just enjoys being a huuuge tease, okay? 😂

• Oh God, why are they still using the old LoveHacks sexytimes music. That "DHUM-boom-ta-doom-DHUM" beat drives me nuts, and not in a good way. You have better music now, PB! Like the sexytimes tunes from RCD and PM. Use those!

• My gosh this entire group is quite horny for dominant duchesses, aren't they. Every last one of them. Each playthrough has these four gazing at the MC in wonder and telling her some variation of "I think you ordering me around is hot". Olivia could trample over them all with spiked heels and they would thank her!

• As always, when something suspicious happens, my dumbass MC goes ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ and never thinks about it again until shit actually goes down. This woman will never learn, will she.

• Anyway! We now move on to the rest of the honeymoon, summed up in three-four varying scenes per LI:

(Screenshots: Liam's and Hana's screenshots are mine, Drakes is HIMEME's YouTube channel, and Maxwell's is from Kaitlyn Walker's YouTube channel).

- Liam: Focused and dedicated. And insatiable as hell. Sex on a bed (SHOCKING!), sex after his wife points out what could be an apple constellation during stargazing (the MC effectively killed Liam's boner for Cordonia, I see), sex after having chocolate strawberries at a sunlit pond, sex again on a bed (Why is he getting four? 🤔). While the staff is still around somewhere on the island. This is a man with a mission.

- Maxwell: Fun and playful - kind of a "let's live wild and do daredevilry while we can!" vibe. In one Maxwell and the MC cliff dive into the ocean, debating over the wisdom of such risky adventuring when they may possibly be having a baby. In another, the MC watches, concerned, as Maxwell eats a raw squid appetizer. There is a nice callback to Maxwell's House sigil - the kraken - when he tells her that a squid would never hurt a fellow squid. The third shows them playing Strip Monopoly in the comfort of their bedroom.

- Hana: Adorable, caring and looking through every detail. Hana's three scenes involve her showing the MC the sights around the sunlit pond (which Hana and the MC lovingly call the "Hana Lee Honeymoon Itinerary"), watching the sunset under blankets, and this little scene of them choosing sperm donors for their baby:

It's a nice addition, but it still doesn't explain why they couldn't have waited a few more months. Nothing has happened yet in the timeline of the story, the women are (they believe) finally safe and happy, and while Javier seems to believe that babies born to a couple that consists of two women pop out of nowhere, I'm hoping the denizens of their duchy will have at least a little more common sense (this is Cordonia, so "hope" is the operative word).

- Drake: Langorous, relaxed and contented. Stargazing on the beach (I wonder whether this was a nod to the meteor shower scene in Book 1), whiskey on a patio/balcony/whatever in the afternoon, and eating roasted pork by the fire. Plenty of sex but also lots of outdoors, which means lots of the stuff Drake enjoys doing.

• Aaaaaand it's time for sexy scene 2! The couple are now relaxing in bed on the last day of their honeymoon, and the LI proposes a momento in the form of a sensual photoshoot (which comes with artwork of the LI in their underwear, posing for the MC) The male LIs pose with their hands at the back of their heads, smirking at the camera, while Hana strikes a coy pose, leaning against her hand. It's a quick, fun scene that's supposed to squeeze as much alone-time out of the couple as possible, because from here on the focus may shift to other things. Basically this chapter is meant to be one giant (but largely safe for readers) smutfest. I like the artwork - it's different and I guess meant to be a little more realistic than the usual full-page art in the books (like the engagement and wedding photos with your LIs last book), which is why I think it takes a little getting used to. I know it took me some time!

• Maxwell got an underwear upgrade too!

• We've now come to the end of our honeymoon, our bags packed and ready for our return to Cordonia. The chapter ends with us seeing a "familiar face", who could either be Liam (if you married someone else, and he doesn't show any expression) or an unspecified person (if you married Liam, and he looks ultra happy). Now that could either be related to some paparazzi-related stuff, if the flash of light was paparazzi-related, or it could be a fake-out and he's actually brought along the rest of the gang to surprise you. Idk and I don't want to speculate too much on this, mostly because something more interesting caught my eye.

• So that's it for my thoughts on the scenes themselves! On to the "general thoughts" section.

• General Thoughts and Potential Theories:

- As a first chapter for a new series that is still tied to an older one, it worked. It mirrors the light feel and sensibility of TRR's very first chapter, in that both chapters build an illusion of a fairytale-like place, with hints of the darkness within emerging the next chapter onwards (in this series though - since we're already familiar with Cordonia - the darkness is lightly hinted at this chapter itself). In a lot of ways I think we're going to see a lot of parallels between TRR and this new series.

- Unfortunately, one of those similarities also includes the imbalance in the writing for the LIs. Specifically with Maxwell and Hana. It's the most glaring in the dinner scene, which builds for us the premise on which this entire book stands (the topic of pregnancy). There are ways you could have them make the jump from nervous about having kids to excited, if you tried - there are elements in their storyline that could have helped us understand their urgency.

- I played Liam's route first, and was happy overall with it but I still have my misgivings. The good in terms of Liam's story is that he gets importance because the story is also about him and his country, where we are staying. He gives us some very important details in his route, and personally I like that his role as Guide To The Intricacies And Nuances of Cordonian Society still exists...but you can't deny that there were things in his storyline which should have been addressed and never were. I hope those are addressed this book. If they do the same this time around, it will only be to their detriment.

- Also, I find it highly ironic that Drake is the one to mention Savannah and Bartie when it was MAXWELL who was more involved in helping her with the child. Sure, he was - as he confessed in that Valtoria scene - more the "fun uncle" type, but he was still pretty heavily involved. Still keeping track of what Savannah needed and what Bartie would want. In his own final Book 3 scene, Maxwell is shown having an amazing rapport with little Bartie, playing peekaboo with his nose. I can barely count scenes involving Drake and Bartie with the fingers of one hand. Why couldn't Maxwell reference that last moment in Book 3, drawing up some inspirational moment from it? Like spending more and more time with Bartie changed the way he felt about kids? Or maybe that Savannah or Bertrand said something regarding the joy children bring to him. Anything that gives us some idea of when this shift happened.

Maxwell may have been new last book. It may have been a struggle to know what to do with him last book. But that isn't the case right now. By now they should have settled in their writing of him and figured out ways to make his story make sense? To give him more depth rather than simply reducing the man to the court jester? Maxwell's story was supposed to be about him growing, the scene in Valtoria was supposed to be about wanting to be a good father for his future children but fearing he might fail...yet the writers have the same man say the exact opposite. Maxwell's family history was thrown away for no good reason last book, and was replaced by Savannah drama. There was more space given to Savannah's love story with Bertrand (which didn't NEED the entire book to gain fruition) and Drake (optionally) enjoying humiliating Bertrand. That time, energy and effort could have gone in building up Maxwell, getting an insight into what happened to the Beaumonts that they became so poor...but no. The only Beaumont that mattered seems to be Savannah (and we know exactly why). And going by the fact that they're going to force an entire wedding storyline involving Bertrand and Savannah down our throats, that still seems to be the case.

- Hana's is even more worrying considering that it was poles apart from the rest of the playthroughs and therefore SHOULD have had more thought. Yes Hana loves the idea of being a mother. Yes Hana loves children and has a nurturing nature. But the urgency is still the same as the others' in her playthrough, and it made absolutely no sense. There was a clear dissonance between their current situation and the rush these two were in.

Hana's deserved at least some more time in her dinner scene. Maybe one where she could speak about growing up an only child, with no companions and not even toys. She could explain the loneliness involved in having a small family with parents who gave her more duties than affection, and then speak about giving her kid a better childhood. There isn't even any discussion about which of them should be the person carrying (we know it will be the MC, but why it has to be her in their case is anyone's guess).

What the team have done here is give Hana the bare minimum, after an entire two books of giving her even less than that. I know I'll probably be judged for thinking negatively rather than being cautiously optimistic, but the fact is that the moment this team feels they can get away with tossing scraps or less than that, they can and will do it. It's not stopped them before: not from botching up Hana's storyline, not from giving Hana fans a reception full of goof-ups and shoddy writing, not from pairing her with her bully. Perhaps last year I would have been happy and grateful to see Hana and the MC calling each other "my wife". This time...I refuse to settle for just mere scraps. If you can give thought and care to Liam and Drake's storylines, you'd better be able to do the same for Hana and Maxwell, otherwise what's the point of reviving this book? What's the point of using Hana specifically in two of your ads as bait for your lesbian/bi/wlw fans?? Might as well let the entire series rot in the trash where it belongs in that case.

- I've heard theories about our child becoming heir to the throne, thanks to a possible future arc that may make Liam unable to have children. I personally hate this possible plot line for two reasons:

1. As it is the MC gets more importance than she deserves, whether or not she actually puts in the work. She becomes a front-runner during the social season even if she fails. She becomes a Duchess even if she lacks even the most basic skills, while Hana who has done way more than she ever had for the country gets nothing, not even a needle-point's worth of land. She becomes Champion of the Realm even if she is literal garbage throughout that book, when that title could have easily gone to Olivia or Hana instead if she didn't earn enough to get it. And now to have her kid be made an heir to the throne? For no good reason? Get outta here.

2. Forcing Liam into yet another storyline that is tragic and painful (and I'm pretty sure the writers will find yet another excuse to write a thesis on Drake Walker in the time they could be using to let Liam actually break down, or vent. If they couldn't be bothered to explore the man's feelings when his own father died, do you really think they will bother with him in this??) on top of whatever else he's had to experience so far? At this point I can do with less of that. I'm honestly sick of storylines that put Liam in very uncomfortable, painful situations with very little space for him to air out his grief. Give the man a fucking break. Let him have some breathing space to rule his goddamned kingdom, get him a fantastic therapist and get him better friends while he's at it. Pushing him into yet another messed-up situation when you've barely even scratched the surface with what his experiences have done to him, is really just drama for the sake of drama, nothing else.

- Nonetheless, since this is about a pregnancy and a future heir, I believe there will be plenty talk about succession, and about the importance given to fertility and children in Cordonian society. But as with the social season in Book 1, the engagement tour in Book 2, and the wedding + Unity Tour in Book 3, I believe the pregnancy itself is a frame story. The kind of story that justifies the glitz, the glitter, and the glamorous events...that can serve as a temporary gloss to cover the conflicts within. All while the inner stories reveals those conflicts, layer by layer (again, if it's done right. Book 3 is a good example of a great premise ruined by bad writing. I sincerely hope this book does not go in that direction).

- Remember those screenshots I put up in that dinner scene from Liam's route? About Cordonia's tensions with its neighbouring countries, and how the country may be viewed as vulnerable? I think that's where the actual theme of the story lies.

Books 1 and 2 mostly revolved around the illusion of Cordonia - the fairytale kingdom - before the MC herself is confronted with the tensions brewing within. Book 3 was about strengthening Cordonia through resolution of internal conflict. It was about learning about the intricacies of the country, its most powerful duchies, their histories and identities, Cordonia's messy, complicated history - to tackle the problems that lay within.

I feel like Book 4 would be taking a natural progression from resolving internal conflict to finally standing united as a nation against outside forces. Constantine - in his conversation with the MC in Shanghai - hints not only at groups within Cordonia that wanted to destroy the monarchy, but also foreign powers ("suffice to say there are those who envy Cordonia's prosperity...". Not the royal family's - but "Cordonia's").

Keeping a united front and showcasing strength through pride in the country - ergo 'patriotism', or perhaps 'national integration' since Cordonia is home to many different cultures and geographical locations (I originally wrote 'nationalism here, but now realize there may be negative connotations attached to that word in today's times: thanks @musicallisto!) is often viewed as an asset against alien forces. The MC is now a part of the monarchy/nobility, and will be irrevocably tied to the country's future - so it makes sense that she will now dig into the deepest and most intimate parts of Cordonia's history, and go several steps further in helping to unite the nation.

- Why do I theorize 'patriotism' or 'national integration' as being a theme? There are several reasons for this:

The Unresolved Storylines: We still have a ways to go in understanding Cordonian history. We don't know which other forces were involved in previous assassinations, and we don't have a clue what happened to Liam's mother. All we do know is that other people and groups that we have probably not even seen yet, may have been involved. Francesco (who also knew Liam's mother) and Xinghai, the only foreign delegates/visitors that we got to network with in Book 2, have minimal roles so far but SEEM to have had some influence when they were introduced earlier. Francesco particularly could have some sort of role to play, given what we were told about him in Book 2. Now would be a good time to explore why he needed contacts with these people (other than the fact that Xinghai is Hana's dad). It's possible that nothing will happen and we may not even see these two, or exchange any important information, but I'd still hope that there is some importance to their appearances in Book 2.

The Connections We Made In The Engagement Tour: Meeting Francesco in Capri was related to getting access to EU markets for Cordonian products. The engagement tour itself revolved around grabbing international attention towards Cordonian problems - one of which was the tsunami that hit Portavira, which we learn more about in Book 3. There is a possibility that these threads may be picked up in the future.

Both the above points hint at possible threats, or allies. At this point we can't exactly determine who is friend and who is foe, but it is clear that neighbouring countries - and indeed countries we have associated with in the past - will play a pretty big role in the way we view Cordonia, and in the way we direct the narrative of this country.

The Artwork: I love this part of my theory because it is the most based on actual evidence rather than guesswork. The idea of a nation depends as much on items of familiarity and symbols, as it does on history. It's why countries have national animals, anthems, fruits. Why art depicting national and local legends can often be considered almost sacred. The book has barely even begun yet, and already it is FILLED with all kinds of things symbolic to Cordonia.

Let's first take a peek at the cover art:

Now let's ignore Liam's and Drake's (busted) faces in this cover and focus on what the three are holding.

The MC holds a rattle in her hand, and the jewel within the rattle looks similar to a ruby, which has been associated more than once with apples in the story (Cordonia's most valued variety of apple is the Cordonian Ruby, Liam's wedding gift to the MC is a ruby in the shape of an apple. The same rattle shows up in the second cover [on the left] as well. It's a stretch, I know, but I've got better evidence. Stick with me).

Liam holds a onesie with a crown design on the front - and we know that "for crown and country" is a popular phrase, especially for toasts, in Cordonia. Drake holds out a toy lion: the lion is the national animal, and holds a place of pride in the national Coat-of-Arms. The throne on which the MC herself sits, is blue and gold - both considered national colours. That's at least 4 symbols related to Cordonia vying for our attention on the same cover!

I mean, even Book 3 had just two major symbols - the apple (related to Cordonia) and the phoenix gown (related to Valtoria) - featuring on its cover.

The biggest proof to me, however, is not the cover, but the loading page. To be more precise - what is written above that loading page. A number of Choices books (BB, for instance) write little factoids about the world they are building above the loading bar, which players can read while they're waiting for the chapter to load. This wasn't a common practice with TRR, but they've definitely started it now! Some of the commentary is usual stuff - about gaining advantages through outfits, welcoming you back to Cordonia, etc...but THIS TIME there are tidbits of information given to us as well. And 80% of those involve apples!

Here are a few I managed to catch. One fact on the importance of apples in Cordonian culture, two specifically on the Cordonian Ruby itself including a rare recipe, and two old proverbs (this isn't the only time we've heard apple-related proverbs in the books - in Book 3 for instance, Bertrand refers to their trip to Fydelia as 'slicing two apples with one knife'). Proverbs in general often give us an idea of what people within a region hold up as important, as so connected to their life experiences that they can use those familiar objects as motifs for things that they see in daily life (eg. proverbs in my home state, Kerala, often refer to things/animals we find locally: jasmines, coconuts, jackfruit, dogs, elephants).

The fact that the apple features so often and with such emphasis in the loading page itself - and we have already seen what this simple fruit means to Cordonia - indicates to me that this national symbol - and the idea of the nation itself - will be of great importance. Not only will we be exploring foreign relations, IMO, but we'll also be learning how to build a national narrative that will benefit and strengthen Cordonia.

What's also interesting is that the apple symbolizes fertility to the Cordonian people as well - the apple cutting ceremony during a wedding (as explained by Regina to Leo's fiancée in RoE) is "a symbol of the fruit the tree will bear - you being the tree, of course", and there are chances that the fruit may feature often within the context of pregnancy/having children as well.

• That's all for now, guys. I hope to write more and theorize more as the chapters progress! Until then, I hope you enjoy this one, and I'd love to hear what you have to say.

• I did the Hana screenshots for this chapter, since the first chapter allows me to play repeatedly within losing keys, but I won't be able to do so from Chapter 2 onwards. If there are any Hana fans out there who keep screenshots of scenes in their route and are interested in sharing, I'd love to hear from you and will definitely credit you for the screenshots I put up!

• If you'd like to be tagged in future QTs, please let me know! Tagging @nikkisha16 for now since she asked xD

• Until Saturday, folks!

[itsalliepg]

What Happened In Vegas - Drake x Erika (MC) - Part 5

SUMMARY: During Catherine’s engagement party, Erika (MC) learns the truth about Drake and Beth’s past.

PAIRING: Drake x Erika (MC)

RATING: Teen

WORDS: 2523

NOTE:English isn’t my native language. I write to practice and learn, so please sorry any mistakes. I hope you like it, and if you do, I’d appreciate if you like/comment/reblog!

Click here to read Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

Tagging @cora-nova @texaskitten30​

Fanfic Masterlist

AO3 Profile

_You look incredibly gorgeous tonight – Drake said as he squeezed Erika’s hand. They were sitting together in the backseat of the car, the driver taking them to Roffinteau’s manor, twenty minutes from Erika’s Duchy. She smiled at her husband. He also looked very handsome in his new suit.

               _And you should dress like that every day. It’s an amazing look for you.

               _Nah, I still prefer my old jeans – he chuckled – but you look amazing in everything – he leaned down to whisper in her ear – in nothing either.

               _Oh? – she smirked – I take that it’s your favorite look for me?

               _Undoubtedly – Drake kissed her deeply, and Erika tangled her fingers in his hair. She wished they could skip the party and come home, so they could be together all night, but she promised they would be there, and Beth was really sweet to invite them. And probably lots of people would love to see them and congratulate them on the incoming baby. Five days ago, Erika posted a picture of her and Drake holding together a pair of baby shoes, and she confirmed in the description that they would be parents. Cordonian press was frantic, crazy about a picture or an interview of the Valtoria couple, as Drake and Erika were known to journalists and fans. That explained the number of photographers and reporters gathered in front of the mansion. Drake took a deep breath and Erika stroked his hair fondly – I hate it, Williams. I thought they would leave us in peace after the way we announced your pregnancy.

               _Don’t worry, my love. We just need to answer what they ask and smile for the cameras.

               _That’s the hardest part for me – he snorted, and she giggled.

               _My adorable grump – she kissed his cheek – think of our baby, and I know you’ll smile – “our baby”. That sounded amazing, and right. Right – leave the rest with me – Drake got out of the car and reached for Erika. Soon, the couple were walking toward the manor, dozens of flashes lightning up, and a couple of journalists trying to get closer.

               _Duchess Erika, duke Drake! Congratulations! You must be excited! – a reporter asked.

               _We indeed are – Erika smiled widely – we always wanted children, and now our dream is coming true.

               _Do you want a boy or a girl? – another reporter asked, trying his best to get closer with his microphone.

               _Actually, we just want a healthy and strong child – Erika kept smiling. That was easier than she thought. Posing for pictures with Drake beside her was what she needed. How could this child not be his? Of course he was the father.

               _We want a lovely baby that grows happy, smart and kind. We must give our best teachings – Erika smiled at Drake. She’d never seen him talking so sweetly about someone other than herself. That was adorable – but we already have Bartie in the family, so I’d love a girl, a little Erika – a wave of awwww’s filled the crowd, as Drake kissed her cheek, and the photographers went crazy trying to get the best shot of the couple. Erika smiled and thanked everyone before taking Drake’s hand and leading him to the hall – well, that wasn’t so hard – he sighed, relieved.

               _I knew you’d be great, Walker – she kissed him quickly, and soon they were in the middle of a ballroom with a large staircase in the middle, very similar to Beaumont’s manor. Lots of silver-framed pictures and mirrors hung on the wall, and a picture of Roffinteau’s family was near the piano. Erika saw Beth in the picture, with a middle-aged couple and two young girls who look a lot like her – wow, it’s beautiful!

               _I don’t even remember the last time I was here – Drake confessed.

               _Drake! Erika! Welcome! – Beth approached them and hugged the couple, friendly. She was wearing a rose dress, made by a lightweight fabric, matching her delicate skin and face. As confident as she was, Erika felt somehow threatened by her figure – I love your dress, Erika! Is an Ana de Luca?

               _Yeah, how do you know? – Erika asked, surprised, and Beth shrugged, chuckling.

               _What can I say, I’m a huge fan of her dresses, although I chose something…French for tonight – she held the hem of her dress and Drake laughed.

               _Always a show-off, you never change, Freckles.

               _And you, in a suit! – she choked out in mock surprise – how did you convince him, Erika?

               _I have my ways – Erika giggled, and saw a girl, one of the ones in the portrait, and a blonde young man, well-dressed and with perfectly straight hair. Beth smiled.

               _This is my sister Catherine Roffinteau, and her fiancé, Henry Dobrev – the host couple shook hands with Erika and Drake – these are Erika and Drake Walker, duchess and duke of Valtoria.

               _It’s a pleasure to meet you. And congratulations on the engagement!

               _Thank you so much! And it’s amazing to finally meet you in person, Erika, I love your story, it’s almost a fairy tale – Catherine said in a shrill voice.

               _It’s almost unbelievable how far you’ve gone due to your…background – Henry said, pompously – I admire that, tough.

               _Oh, thank you – Erika answered, and Drake just rolled his eyes, discretely.

               _Oh, look, it’s Penelope! Excuse us, make yourselves comfortable – Catherine said, and holding Henry’s hand, walked over to Penelope and her parents. Then Erika noticed the couple of the picture, Beth’s parents, looking horrified at her and Drake. Beth noticed too.

               _I think my dad wants to talk to me, excuse me. There’re drinks on that table – Beth said quickly, pointing to a table near the stairs. They were trying their best to disguise, but Erika saw they were arguing with Beth, looking at her and Drake.

               _I knew this would happen – Drake snorted, and Erika looked at him in surprise.

               _What? What’s the matter with Beth’s parents?

               _Let’s just say they’re the kind of nobles who make me hate nobles, Williams. They never approved my friendship with Beth, because I don’t have a title, and they never understood why Constantine let Liam and Leo be my friends. And of course, they don’t like you either, because you were a waitress before being named duchess.

               _Ah, I see – she frowned and stroked his cheek – but we shouldn’t let them ruin our night. Let’s go find the gang and…

               _Excuse me – Beth’s voice interrupted Erika. She brought her parents with her, and they didn’t seem happy to see them – Erika, these are my parents, Count Benedict and Countess Jacqueline Roffinteau. I’d like to introduce you Duchess Erika of Valtoria, and Drake, well…

               _We know Drake very well – Benedict forced a smile and shook Erika’s hand – nice to meet you, Duchess Erika and, nice to see you again, Mr. Drake Walker, or should I call you Duke Drake Walker? – Erika was startled by his tone of voice and expression at Drake, as if her husband was a disgusting insect that needed to be expelled from there. Jacqueline smiled at Erika, but her smile was as forced as her husband’s.

               _Nice to meet you, Duchess Erika. And as I can see, Drake is now one of us. Although his passport to nobility isn’t…legitimate – Erika knew Jacqueline was trying to humiliate her, but she wouldn’t give in.

               _Well, as long as Liam recognizes, I’m a Duchess and Drake is a Duke.

               _Liam was always like that, so close to the people… - Benedict made a face.

               _That’s why he’s so loved by Cordonia – Drake replied.

               _Look, mom, dad, is Viscount of Graham, why don’t you go greet him? – Beth quickly dropped the subject and nodded to a couple who were talking to Catherine and Henry. They said nothing and headed to their old friends. Embarrassed, Beth turned to Drake and Erika – I’m so, so sorry for that. I begged them to behave.

               _Don’t worry, Beth. I should have known – Drake snorted.

               _I can see we’re not exactly…welcome here – Erika frowned – but as I told Drake, we can’t let them ruin our night.

               _You’re absolutely right – Beth smiled, and her smile widened when she saw Hana waving at them – I have to help Cathy play the hostess, but you should have fun with the gang – Olivia, Liam and Maxwell were next to Hana, and also waved to the Valtoria couple. They bowed and walked to meet their friends.

               Erika was surprisingly happy. She suppressed the thoughts on the parenting issue and had a great time with her friends. She even had fun with Maxwell, being near him wasn’t scaring her anymore. She realized she should focus on the good things in her life, and everything would be alright. She was convinced the baby was Drake’s, and end of the story.

               At some point, Erika went to the bathroom. When she was leaving, she could hear Beth and Jacqueline’s raised voices from a bedroom. The door was closed, but she could hear everything.

               _I can’t believe you invited Drake, Beth! You know what your father and I think of him!

               _What’s the problem? He’s my friend!

               _Oh, I remember how close you were, believe me.

               _Mom, he’s married now, and I wouldn’t do that!

               _You wouldn’t? – Jacqueline laughed – did you forget about William? You almost destroyed his marriage! And now are you planning to do the same with Drake? I’m starting to think this is your fate. Catherine is younger than you, and is about to get married. Do you want to be a secret, a lover, the other woman, forever?

               _No, mom, of course no! – Beth shouted – could you please stop treating me like a whore?

               _Then stop behaving like this. You and Drake aren’t teenagers anymore, control yourself at once – Erika was immobile, but when she heard the door open, she quickly hid in the bathroom again. Shaking, she picked up the phone from her purse and texted Hana.

“Could you and Olivia meet me outside?”

“Sure. On the garden swing?”

“Okay”

               Finding the garden swing wasn’t difficult, especially since Olivia and Hana were already there waiting for her. Erika ran to her friends and they noticed the tears leaving her eyes insistently.

               _Erika! What happened? – Hana asked, worried. Erika sat on the swing, each of her hands holding Hana and Olivia’s. She told them everything she heard from the discussion between Beth and her mother.

               _But the worst – she sobbed – is that Jacqueline implied that Beth and Drake had something in the past, when they were teenagers – Olivia and Hana looked at each other. Erika noticed – so, is it true? Did they date in the past?

               _Yes – Olivia sighed – Drake was Beth’s first boyfriend, when she was fourteen, and he was sixteen. They secretly dated at first, only we, Liam, Maxwell and Bertrand knew, because we knew her parents would forbid their relationship. And that’s what Jacqueline and Benedict did when they found out.

               _They dated for almost six months, and Beth promised she wouldn’t see Drake again. But they were still seeing each other in secret. Then her parents discovered again, and that’s why they sent her to Belgium to study and work. She would prepare for her family business and stay away from Drake, that was a win-win in the Roffinteau’s book – Erika gaped. Somehow she felt something weird between Drake and Beth, but she reprimanded these thoughts. Maybe her brain was messed with pregnancy, but she was right.

               _So, they only broke up because her parents forced them? – Olivia and Hana nodded – and…in this case, maybe they’re still in love with each other?

               _No, no, Erika! – Hana’s eyes widened – it was a long time ago!

               _I’m sure he already forgot her – Olivia said – he liked Beth, but he truly loves you. I can tell by the way he looks at you, the way he treats you. He has never done this for anyone before – Olivia gazed deeply into Erika’s eyes – what I will say may be hard, Erika, but despite our differences, I trust Drake. Who I don’t trust is Beth.

               _Oh? – Erika was surprise – but she’s your friend, isn’t she?

               _That’s why we don’t trust her – Hana added, making Erika even more surprised.

               _That William Jacqueline said is the Duke of Albanera, an old friend of Benedict. His son Antonio was engaged to Beth, until he found out she was having an affair with his own father. Victoria, William’s wife, wanted to make a scandal and tell everyone what happened, but in the name of her friendship with Jacqueline and Benedict, she didn’t. We know it because Beth told us, and she was sad that she wouldn’t see Antonio again. If she really liked him, why was she sleeping with William?

               _And I’ve seen her hinting on Landon, Penelope’s father! – Hana revealed – she’s not afraid to seduce married men.

               _I can’t believe! – Erika exclaimed – but she was always so nice to me and Drake…okay, sometimes I noticed something strange between them but…I thought it would be because of their friendship in the past.

               _If you consider Drake, yes, but if you consider Beth…be careful, Erika – Olivia opined.

               _We’re telling you this because we’re your friends – Hana took her hands – and we know Beth. She’s a nice person, but not when she’s around men. Married men – while they walked back to the party, Erika wondered what Hana and Olivia told her. She had no problem with Beth and Drake having had a relationship in the past. The present was what mattered. And if Hana and Olivia were right, now her present was in danger. What if she tried to seduce Drake? Would he want to revive their old days? No…how could Erika think something like this about Drake? Even Olivia trusted him, why Erika wouldn’t? How could she not trust his love? Her thoughts were interrupted by her husband, encircling her waist with his arms.

               _Hey, Williams! Where have you been? I was looking for you.

               _I was outside with Olivia and Hana, sorry if I keep you waiting…

               _No problem, I didn’t want to screw Little Lulu’s Club reunion either – they laughed – Catherine and Henry are about to make a speech and cut the cake.

               _Oh, I’d like to see this – when Erika saw Beth near her family, she felt a flutter in her stomach – Drake, can I ask you something?

               _Of course.

               _Do you love me? – he arched an eyebrow.

               _You know I love you, Erika, I say that all the time! – Drake hugged her – I love you more than anything, more than I’ve ever loved anyone – he noticed her frail expression, and a few tears leaving her brown eyes – hey, what’s the problem?

               _Nothing, it’s just…I think I’m more sensitive because of pregnancy… - he smiled and pulled her into his arms again.

               _If it makes you feel better, I love you, Erika Williams-Walker. I’ll always love you, no matter what happens – that last line clicked into her mind. I’ll always love you, no matter what happens. It doesn’t matter if Beth tried to seduce him. It doesn’t matter if that baby wasn’t his. Erika kept repeating that in her mind.

I’ll always love you, no matter what happens.

[purplebenjy]

Barlights || AU 2018

“Amycus. Come on. You’ve got to let me in.”

Benjy’s arms cross over his mesh shirt, partially in agitation partially to try to warm himself up. 

“It’s fucking cold out here, man.” 

Amycus for his part, genuinely looks the part when he sighs and shakes his head. 

“Can’t do it, Benj. I know you’re not eighteen.”

Benjy scoffs, his breath turns into a poof of smoke in the air that lights up pink from the Lagoon’s neon sign. It was a seedy, shithole gay bar-and thus the best place for rich closeted men to frequent. If people recognized them, they were either in the same boat or too blitzed to care. And even recognition was difficult inside the club with it’s nearly pitch dark lighting and constant color changing and flashing lights. 

Benjy has been going pretty consistently over the past two years, that was, until last week, when someone snitched on him to Oscar. A lot of the other men he worked with were jealous of Benjy’s ability to both appeal to and woo the higher end clients. It was a side effect of growing up in the Black’s various mansions-even if he was just their Show and Tell only foster child. When there were big events, chances for Mr. Black to look good and devoted, they rolled Benjy out, droning on and on about how full he made their lives-their only son.  As soon as the cameras left, they went back to ignoring him save for a weekly chore list he had to work on-nevermind the girls never had to lift a finger. Still, even being basically a servant, Benjy had picked up on a thing or two-including a decently posh accent. He had a client tell him one time that paying him for sex didn’t seem as dirty because Benjy didn’t seem as dirty. He still isn’t sure if it was a compliment or not, but it definitely stuck with him. If anything, Benjy has ramped up the poshness, embodying the dutiful doting nature of too many of the women he had witnessed in his foster mother’s inner circle. And it worked.The men ate it up and he was making more money than he ever had before in his life-clearly someone had tipped Amycus off in an effort to try to move in on his business.

“You don’t know I’m not eighteen.” He says easily as he steps into Amycus’s personal space. He’s not ugly-not that that matters anymore- with big broad shoulders and dark almost perfect skin. He’s got some sort of scar that looks like a burn mark on his neck-Benjy bets it’d be sensitive if he kissed it. Amycus’s brown eyes watch him warily as Benjy produces an ID.

“See? Eighteen.”

“According to that, you’re twenty.”

“Yeah.” Benjy says easily, not missing a beat. Lying is so easy at this point it’s basically his second language. 

“Benjy, this is an even worse fake than last week’s.”

Benjy sighs, takes a step closer.

“Maybe we can work something out?” His voice is low, his touch soft as he traces the outside of Amycus’s thumb around his fake ID. For his part, Amycus’s breath hitches just slightly.

“I don’t sleep with little boys.”

“Who’s little? I’m twenty-one.”

“Twenty.” 

Benjy laughs. “Sure.”

He leans forward and carefully kisses the spot on his neck, smiling when he feels Amycus melt under his lips. That never got old-regardless of who it was or how much he was making. After a few more kisses, Amycus’s strong hands pull Benjy away, resting on the outside of his arms. He’s trying and failing not to smile as he speaks, holding Benjy in place.

“You’re something else.”

“So I’ve been told.”

Amycus’s smile wins out and Benjy smiles back. He is pretty cute. A small part of him wonders if he could push this further-get Amycus to claim him permanently, but he pushes that pipe dream away as soon as it crosses his mind.

“Go ahead.” Amycus says, nodding to the three older men who have materialized out of the shadows. After they enter the club, Amycus turns back to him, still holding him at arm’s length.

“How the hell’d you end up here anyway, Benjy?”

Benjy shrugs as best he can.

“How does anyone?”

He remembers briefly. Andy popping up in his room at 2 in the morning, whisper yelling at him in a hushed voice  that Narcissa had seen him kissing his friend Ollie before Benjy got out of his car. How she just told The Blacks-how her father was planning on sending him to some sort of camp in the morning. She’d helped him pack and given him one hundred quid she’d stolen. That first couple of months spent bouncing between shelters and motels and the street, texting Andy when he could find Wifi, trying to survive. He’d found a job cleaning office buildings until his coworker and eventual room mate Gideon showed him just how much he could make on the street. Gideon introduced him to Barty who, for 40% of what he earned, let Benjy stay in the run down apartment building his family owned. Barty, who was expecting a big amount of money from him tonight and would do lord knows what if he didn’t bring it to him.

“Come on, Amy. Please?” 

Amycus knew Barty-that was how they ended up at this club in the first place. Amycus sighs, Benjy tries again, speaking quickly.

“It’s not like anyone is gonna call about me being in there-there's too many risks and too much loss for everyone if the Lagoon shuts down. Come on. I won’t even drink. I promise.”

Amycus chuckles slightly.

“You promise, huh?”

Benjy nods really enthusiastically. 

“Yep. Hate drinking when I do this anyway. I really need the money, mate. Can you help me out?”

Amycus’s eyes meet his and Benjy knows he’s won.

“When’s your birthday?”

“November. November 23rd.”

Amycus drags his fingers slowly down Benjy’s arms, making him shiver.

“If I let you in-and you don’t drink-and you’re still on the scene by your birthday...maybe I’ll let you pay me back.”

Benjy grins.

“Does that mean I get to go in?”

Amycus rolls his eyes good naturedly. 

“Fine. But if you drink-”

“I won’t.”

Benjy closes the distance between them and gives Amycus a sweet kiss on the lips. He tastes like cough drops and cigarettes.

“A taste of what’s to come in November. There’s no way I’ll be anywhere else.”

But Benjy had no idea how wrong he was.

~

It’s been a relatively good night, and Benjy’s only been inside for an hour. Someone had pulled him into the alley and paid him for a blowjob that had lasted maybe three minutes-easiest fifty bucks he’d made. The man left without looking at him and that had stopped hurting a long time ago. Benjy stands, counting the money again as he put it in his pocket, and heads towards the side door, sneaking back in. A few people leer at him as he makes his way through the crowd, but he’s expecting it. He’s in what he calls his uniform-or one of the versions of it. Black mesh shirt so he can show off the tattoos on his chest-face shaved, his long dark back in a small ponytail with a few pieces springing out to frame his face. He’s got on tight faux leather pants-glorified leggings really-with nothing on underneath to allow the easiest access to his body as possible. Most of his clients liked to fuck him in the alley behind the bar, or, if they were really feeling fancy, the backseats of their luxury cars. He’d learned early on that underwear just got in the way. He has on his old beaten up Doc Martens that were a size too big-easy to slip on and off and also good for a well placed kick if he needed to get away. He’d been lucky in that aspect, though Benjy suspected that had largely to do with Barty and his nearly constant stream of blackmail threats if clients didn’t pay or got too aggressive.

He smiles at the bartender and one of the owners-Alecto-who sort of smiles back. She always gives him shit but she also looks out for all the boys who come through there, kicking out and banning the particularly nasty older men.

“Diet Coke please, Lecto.” 

“And?”

Benjy smiles at her. “Ice cubes.”

She rolls her eyes and starts making his drink. Benjy turns around from the counter, his back pressed against the bar as he surveys the crowd.

“Kept your promise, I see.” 

The sound of someone else startles him, but Benjy recovers quickly, glancing to his left at the sound of the voice.

And his heart stops.

He’s looking at the most beautiful man he’s ever seen. He’s got green blue eyes that sparkle when they meet Benjy’s, perfectly coiffed dirty blonde hair. He’s got the perfect amount of stubble on his strong jawline and the only thing that takes Benjy’s eyes away from that is his perfect, white smile. It feels like the swallows tattooed on Benjy’s collarbone are swooping in his stomach when this stranger licks his lips.

“Uh…” Benjy says, turning himself to fully face this man. “What are you talking about?”

The stranger jerks his head to the front door.

“Your promise. To Amycus. Not to drink. I heard you two talking on my way in.”

Benjy’s eyes must grow wide cause the Stranger’s smile grows.

“Your secret is safe with me, Benjy.”

Oh the way he says his name makes him want to sink to the ground right there, but he resists-he doesn't really get a choice as to when he does that these days. He smiles, still not taking his eyes off of this stranger.

“I appreciate that.”

“Is it short for anything? Benjy?”

Why does it feel like he’s looking through him when he talks? And why is Benjy desperate to know what he sees? 

“Uh, yeah. Benjamin.”

The stranger hums, finally looking away when Alecto puts a drink down beside Benjy’s still untouched Diet Coke.

“I like that.”

“Then you can call me it.”

The stranger smiles as he takes a drink of his gin. 

“You’re pretty adorable, you know that?”

“I’ve been told.” 

Benjy grins when the stranger laughs. 

“God, you’re a touch cheeky too? It’s almost unfair.”

Benjy takes a sip of diet coke to wash the taste of his last client out of his mouth.

“What’s unfair, handsome?”

“That I have to go through a few hoops before I get to have you.”

Benjy smiles, looking over at him as he slowly creeps his hands towards the stranger’s, not speaking until Benjy’s fingers dance along the back of his palm.

“It’s probably not as many hoops as you think.”

The stranger chuckles.

“How much?”

Benjy shrugs one shoulder. “Depends on what you want, honey.”

“To take you home.”

Benjy stills and he knows the stranger can sense his hesitation.

“I uh, don’t think you could afford it. If I go home with you...I lose a whole night of work.”

“How much?”

Benjy laughs at that.

“Cute.”

“I’m serious.”

Benjy looks in his eyes and his blood runs cold with excitement. He is serious.

“Um…” He chuckles. “Well, if I was having a good night...”

“I’d say you are.”

“...then I’d make about two grand.”

The stranger nods.

“So we’ll call it three?”

Benjy laughs, not believing him. The stranger opens his wallet  and pulls out the biggest stack of hundred pound notes Benjy has ever seen. He counts out three thousand worth and puts it gently on the counter in front of him. 

“Believe me yet?” 

Benjy stares at the money, dazed.

“Uh…”

“You’re not forgetting about my commission, right Benjy?”

Barty appears out of nowhere, sliding up behind Benjy and draping his arm over his shoulder.  Benjy stiffens.

“No…”

“Hello, Crouch.” Forest says easily, and Barty quickly removes his arm to stand up straight.

“Everly. It’s been a minute, hasn’t it?”

“A few.”

The stranger, Everly, says coolly.

“Look, you’re interrupting something here. What’s your commission?”

Barty’s hand appears on the small of Benjy’s back, gripping his skin so hard that it  stings. Benjy gets the message-shut the hell up.

“Fifty Percent.”

With a shrug, Forest counts off fifteen hundreds and pushes them into Barty’s chest, sweeping Benjy off his school and collecting the money on the bar in one movement as he stands.

“Fine. Now sod off.”

Benjy is shocked when Barty doesn’t argue, disappearing into the  crowd. Everly’s hand moves off of Benjy’s back for a moment and hands him the money.

“What do you say?”

Benjy is stunned beyond words, something that never happens. Carefully, he takes the money, folding it as much as he can to put it into his back pocket. It’s so much money, money he can’t even imagine-even if he did make two grand tonight, Barty would’ve taken a chunk of it. And it was handed to him by a man who he’d easily go home with of his own accord if he had any left. Everly smiles at him softly as he keeps ushering Benjy out of the bar. Benjy doesn’t speak until they’re past Amycus.

“Um-as excited as I am, there’s a lot of men back there who wouldn't have cost you four thousand five hundred pounds.”

“But they aren’t you.”

Benjy laughs.

“What’s so special about me?”

Forest beeps the unlock button on his Jaguar and then opens the passenger side door for him. Like a gentleman. Who the hell was this guy? That scared Barty enough into silence, that threw money around like it was nothing and opened doors for him? Benjy’s instincts tell him Everly is powerful-but he’s not quite sure if he’s safe. But Benjy decides three grand is worth the risk. Maybe he likes to choke and hit during sex-not Benjy’s thing at all for for three thousand pounds? He’d do about anything. 

“Do you always question your...suitors like this?”

“Most of my clients don’t even want to look at me in the face or tell me their names, so no. Can’t say I do.”

Benjy settles into the seat in silence as Everly gets in and starts the car. Benjy can’t even begin to fathom what it cost.

“Forest.”

“What?”

Benjy likes his smile even more in profile if that’s possible. He watches him as he speaks.

“My name’s Forest. Do you really have no idea who I am?”

Benjy doesn’t say anything for a second, worried he’s offended Forest, but then Forest snorts.

“Bloody hell that sounded pretentious. Sorry. I just figured with Crouch saying my last name you’d uh, you know, put it together.”

Benjy blinks slowly as it dawns on him.

“Everly like….like the deputy Minister?”

“Exactly. That’s my father. I’m sure you understand now why I have to be discrete.”

Benjy doesn’t keep up with politics, but as Forest drives in an easy silence, his mind races, piecing it together. The Everly family has been involved with the government practically since it started. A Dynasty. The Blacks were always excited whenever a member of the Everly family was slated to be at one of their events. There’d been a son, he remembers. Older and handsome. And Benjy was now sitting in his car. 

“You still didn’t really answer my question though.” Benjy says softly, breathing in slightly when Forest’s hand moves from the gear shift to his knee. 

“What’s your question, Benjamin?”

“Why me? You could get anyone and I’m…”

He doesn’t even know how to finish that sentence. Next to nothing is the phrase that comes to mind. Trash is another.

Forest looks over at him as he takes a turn.

“I like people who keep their promises.”

~

Benjy tries to keep his cool when he follow Forest into the elevator, but he knows he’s fighting a losing battle when he pushes the lift button for the penthouse.

“It’s so posh.” He mumbles, shifting between his feet, suddenly feeling a tad out of place. He relaxes the second  Forest holds his hand.

“Nothing to worry about, love. It’s just gonna be me.”

Benjy nods, smiling despite his nerves at how good Forest’s hand feels in his.The doors open into a beautiful, clean, white apartment. Decorated minimally but still somehow inviting. Forest, still holding his hand, leads Benjy across the hardwood floors towards an all white conversation pit.

“Get comfortable. Do you want something to eat?”

Forest looks about as in his element as he could be, while Benjy’s black outfit makes him quite the contrast. Benjy pauses as he gets settled on the couch.

“Um...no, I’m okay. I don’t like to eat before uh, I do my job.”

He blushes and he’s not sure why. Nor why he’s being coy-Benjy’s been on the streets for almost two years-why is he acting like a fucking virgin? 

“I’m not going to have sex with you, Benjamin. What do you want to eat?”

Benjy stares at him, eyes wide as his brain races, blurting it out before he can stop himself.

“Why not?”

Forest laughs, moving something around the kitchen. Benjy watches as he pulls out and pours one glass of wine.

“Clearly you don’t know me well. And I intend to fix that. You’re underage, Benjy. And I can’t be with you that way in good faith while that’s the case.”

“So you don’t want to have sex with me.” Benjy says, not even failing to hide his disappointment. Forest chuckles, bringing over a cheese plate and a glass of wine for himself.

“Oh, quite the opposite. But not while you’re still seventeen. Come on. Eat something? You look hungry.”

He was starving, he’d skipped lunch, but Benjy still doesn’t move towards the plate.

“So what are you going to do to me?”

Forest looks at him, his face softer but his eyes almost dangerous.

“Well I was hoping you’d talk with me.”

“And what else?”

Forest laughs.

“Eat maybe?”

“But what’s the catch? What happens after?”

Forest shrugs. “You can sleep here if you’d like. Though I’m afraid we’d have to share a bed. There’s no catch, Benjamin. I just want to get to know you. You’re beautiful and you’re interesting and I just...have a feeling about you.”

“You shelled out 4500 pounds because you have a feeling?”

Forest smiles, taking his hand again.

“It’s a really, really good feeling.”

~

They talk for hours, learning so much about each other. Benjy realizes he’s never told anyone the full story about what happened to him, but he tells Forest. He listens. When he gets choked up, Forest takes him in his arms and pulls Benjy so he’s sitting sideways on his lap. Nothing sexual, just close. He holds him and he lets him be sad. Benjy can never remember ever feeling as safe as he does then. He listens to-about how hard Forest struggled, how when he told his dad he might be gay he beat him until he almost died. And how after Forest had left the hospital-the papers had reported it as a motorcycle accident-he was sent to the camp that Benjy had been supposed to go to. Changed, tortured and broken, Forest had done everything he was supposed to, and the second he got the chance, pretended to be ‘cured.’

“I’ve made a big enough name for myself now.” Forest says, handing Benjy another slice of the massive pizza they’d ordered once Benjy finally agreed to eating something. “That I’m able to have some fun again. And when I saw you tonight I just….knew.”

Benjy blushes, warmth spreading up from his chest and coloring his cheeks.

“You’re going to have fun with me?”

Forest nods.

“Not the kind of fun you’re thinking, not yet at least,  I just...you’re easy to talk to Benjy. Maybe, uh, and you can say no of course, but maybe every time I need someone to talk to, I come to you?”

Benjy grins, still on Forest’s lap as he pushes his face into his shoulder.

“You wanna see me again?”

Forest puts his slice of pizza down and takes Benjy’s face in his hands, they’re greasy but Benjy doesn’t care when Forest smiles at him.

“I need to see you again.”

Benjy leans into the feeling of Forest’s thumb caressing his cheek, savoring the moment before speaking.

“You can call Barty anytime. He always knows where I am.”

Forest scoffs.

“Barty. Please. Benjamin…”

He pulls away.

“I know this is crazy, and I know it’s too fast-but, well, I was thinking if tonight went as well as it did-you could move in here. I don’t-I can’t be here all the time. I have to keep up appearances with my wife, but during the work week I stay here. I can get you your own bed if you want but…”

He plays with Benjy’s fingers.

“I like the idea of you being here. Keeping me company. Telling me about yourself. And I just can’t stand the thought of you being out there-other people touching you...hurting you. I want to help you, Benjy. I want you to stay safe. I can keep you safe. And you can keep me company.”

Benjy’s head is swimming but he feels like he’s floating, not actually believing what he’s hearing.

“You want me to live with you?”

Forest chuckles.

“It’s too fast. I know.”

“You want me to live...here?”

Benjy looks over Forest’s shoulder into the rest of the apartment.

“Do you want to?”

Benjy grins. 

“I mean, I don’t know-I haven’t even seen the bedroom-”

Forest laughs and Benjy feels like he’s won something.

“Are you saying yes?”

“There’s really no catch?”

Forest shrugs.

“Well I mean...when you’re eighteen, I would like to explore a physical relationship with you. So I guess that could be the catch.”

“So the catch is something I want anyway?”

Forest laughs.

“You’re supposed to want whoever pays you though, isn’t that your deal?”

Benjy shrugs.

“I would’ve come home with you for nothing if Barty wasn’t around. Here.”

He shifts, digging the money Forest had given him out of his pocket and holding it against his chest.

“I don’t want it.”

Forest shakes his head, pushing Benjy’s hand down.

“It’s yours. Keep it no matter what.”

They sit for a while, quiet, feeling how the fit together. Benjy breaks the silence first.

“If I live here...would I be your boyfriend?”

Forest nods. “Something like that.”

Benjy’s face hurts from smiling. 

“I’ve never had one of those before.”

Forest smiles back at him.

“So you’ll move in?”

Benjy nods.

“One condition?”

Forest traces Benjy’s lower lip.

“Anything you need.”

“I wanna-can I kiss you?”

Forest groans.

“When’s your birthday?”

“November. Two months. That’s it but...I can wait on everything else, Forest. I promise. But I can’t wait for this.”

There’s something about his eyes that makes Benjy want to fall in.

“Please?” Benjy asks, surprised at how quickly he’s become desperate. Forest smiles softly at him, somehow wanting and wicked all at once.

“Okay. Once. Then we have to wait.”

Benjy nods as he sits up straighter. Tomorrow, when he wakes up in the big white bed in Forest’s arms, he’s still not going to believe it. He’s going to spend his first day getting used to his new life, take Forest to his apartment building and watch as he covers all the debt he supposedly owes Barty. He’s going to load the meager possessions he has into Forest’s trunk and come back here to start anew.

And he’s going to spend tomorrow, and every day after, ignoring the creeping feeling that he, Benjy, has become a possession in his own right.

But for now, he closes his eyes and seals his future with a kiss, happier than he’s ever been in his entire life.

[likethetailofacomet]

The Broken Bits, Chapter Four:

Been Gone Such A Long Time 

A/N: Who is V the bartender????

Word Count: 3,465

Tunes: Missing, The XX 

Vanna bumped the door open with her hip as she hastily tied her long brown hair in a ponytail. The bell above the door jingled, but the noise of Saturday night swallowed the sound of the bell. Someone was very drunkenly singing “Don’t Stop Believing”, a small group of equally drunken fans gathered near the stage to cheer him on. Ugh, that’s right, it’s karaoke night, she thought as she finished her pony tail and hurried toward the bar. She was only ten minutes late, but the backup had already started at the drink station, and she winced at the look Jay shot her from behind the mixing tin he was shaking furiously- far more vigorously than a martini called for, he was bruising the gin on purpose by the look of it. He shook the container in one hand and haphazardly garnished a long island iced tea with the other by plopping a lemon wheel in it, the dark liquid sloshing out over the top of the glass and onto the rubber spill mat below. Vanna slipped past a group of bachelorettes and lifted the trap door to enter the bar area, an apologetic look on her face. “Sorry, Jay, the baby was-“

“Yeah, yeah, it’s all good, V, just get over here and start pouring beers.” Jay rolled his eyes before giving her a wink to prove that his 5 minutes of hating her were up.  He wasn’t really mad at her, it had just been a long night and Kayla, the opening bartender, had all but evaporated as soon as the clock struck ten having been at The Hippo since noon. She was supposed to wait for her relief to get there, but she had a date and Jay’s pleading did nothing to guilt her into staying past her shift time. Vanna smiled at him as she reached into the mug chiller for three cold glasses and began pouring Brooklyn Lagers, expertly tilting the glasses to create the perfect head of foam before sliding them down the bar to Jay at the drink station. The two worked seamlessly with Jay calling out beers and wine for Vanna to pour as they dug out from under the mountain of orders. When the crowd around the drink station had dispersed, the patrons properly plied and ready to make fools out of themselves on stage, Vanna helped Jay get things back in order before the next wave hit.

“So, everything good with the kid?” Jay asked over his shoulder as he replenished the lime wedges from a container he’d pulled from a cooler under the bar.

Vanna laughed and shook her head. “Yeah, he’s fine.” She gestured with the towel in her hand. “Just at that age where everything is a fight, there’s always a tantrum to be thrown, and he seems to have a sixth sense for when I’m leaving. Kid was passed out, asleep and snoring, but as soon as I said goodbye to the babysitter and grabbed my keys he was awake and screaming.”

Jay chuckled. “Yeah, I remember when mine was like that.” He laughed again, using tongs to refill a jar of maraschino cherries. “Fiona used to switch” he snapped his fingers with a loud crack, “like a demon possessed her when I’d have to leave for work. Now?” he blew air through his lips and raised his tong hand. “Now I’m lucky if I get a “later, dad” It’s a phase, V, no worries.”

Vanna leaned against the shelving behind the bar and crossed her arms over her chest. “Well don’t tell me that.” Jay laughed. “Is it too much to ask for something in between tantrums and indifference?”

“Yeah, that doesn’t exist.” Jay finished filling the garnish bin and moved to lean against the shelving next to her. He wiped his hands on his apron before crossing his arms and gently nudging her with his shoulder as the group of bachelorettes took the stage for “Dancing Queen”. “So, uh, you hear from the kid’s dad recently? I know he was here to visit a few months back and then…I uh…I know that whole… attack thing happened and you said you had family there and…I’m rambling now. If you don’t want to answer just tell me to shut up.” He turned his head to smile sheepishly at her.

She felt her chest tighten at the mention of the attack, at the thought of him…at the thought of her family. He’d finally gotten in touch with her a full two days after the attacks, those two days passing like months while she waited to hear about the people she cared about. But it had been a quick, curt conversation that hadn’t made her feel much better at all. She sighed, ran a hand over the top of her head and grabbed the end of her ponytail, tugging and twisting it around her fingers. It was her nervous tic, and Jay noticed. “I…no, I haven’t heard anything since...”

Jay leaned over and gave her a one armed hug. “Sorry I brought it up, V, just…I care, that’s all. We don’t have to talk about it.”

“Thanks, Jay,” she leaned into his hug without uncrossing her arms. She knew that he was just trying to show interest, show support. He didn’t know all the ins and outs of her situation. He didn’t know the history of it…and he didn’t know she had a brother. As the group of cosmopolitan drowned girls on stage wound down their song, another wave of patrons started approaching the bar and their moment of reprieve was over. They resumed their positions at the drink station and in front of the taps, and Vanna was glad that she didn’t have to do much thinking to pour beers; she was at The Hippo, her mind was anywhere but.

She went on auto pilot, muscle memory taking over to pour the perfect 8oz servings of wine, her wrist tilting at the same angle each time, arm pulling upwards at the same point of each pour. This way her mind was free to wander from person to person, starting with Bertrand. He’d been the first man she’d fallen for, wide eyed and oblivious, like a deer caught in a hunter’s sights. He was serious and dignified, he stood for all of the things she admired about the nobility, all of the things she wanted but could never have. He’d promised her nothing, and they’d never talked about what their relationship meant if it meant anything at all. They hadn’t done much talking period, if she was being truthful with herself, spending their time alone with their hands roving under each other’s clothing, their lips leaving hot trails and little marks all over one another’s skin. She’d sighed his name into a kiss more frequently than she’d said it in any other manner; he’d pinned her to a wall, a bookcase, a door, more often then he’d stood before her and had a conversation. There wasn’t love to have been lost. He was the father of her child, and it had hurt that he didn’t want to give it a try, to see if they could be a family, find love where they’d found pleasure. He’d said it had been due to familial duties, and that was when she learned that she’d never be good enough for these people, and she didn’t want her child to live that way. She didn’t tell Bertrand about the baby because she didn’t want his pity, didn’t want him to see his son as a burden. She always planned to tell him someday, but someday when she could rightfully refuse any monetary aid he’d try to shove at her to assuage his guilt. She didn’t love him when she left Cordonia, and she didn’t love him now that he’d found her, now that he knew about Bartie. He’d said he wanted to be part of their lives, that since he’d found them he’d felt that he was missing half of himself. But she felt nothing other than relief that he wanted to be involved in Bartie’s life in a real way, and not just by writing a check. Since the attacks though, she’d heard nothing from him, and again, it hurt that this time he’d lied about wanting to be a part of their lives. Two strikes against him and he’d started off down in the count; That night, as she mechanically poured a glass of house red, she decided that she was done considering Bertrand Beaumont family.

Her thoughts went next to her mother. Before leaving Cordonia it had been almost ten years since she heard from Bianca Walker. She was vaguely aware of Jay calling for a Sam Adams and two Amstel Lights, and she poured them as she recalled the last time she’d spoken to her mother on the phone -on her 17th birthday. She hadn’t given any clue that it would be the last time they spoke, simply wished her daughter a happy birthday, told her she missed her, like always, and that she hoped she was doing well, that she was happy…like always. When Christmas came and went followed by New Year’s Eve without a call or card, she and Drake had started to worry. They’d reached out by phone only to find that Bianca had changed her number. They’d sent a letter that hadn’t been returned as undeliverable, so they knew that she hadn’t moved, knew that nothing had happened to her…she had simply just stopped being involved in their lives. The visits had stopped 2 years prior, the invites, 3, and she remembered the painful jumble of mixed feelings she had; my mother wants nothing to do with me, did I do something wrong? How could she just... she remembered the hot tears boiling in her eyes. She remembered Drake’s reaction when he saw how it was affecting her.

“Hey...Savvy,” he hadn’t used that nickname since they were much younger. Hearing it had made her eyes flick up to his as she exhaled slowly. “Screw her. You got me. Always.” She knew Drake must have been hurting just as much, knew he was probably angry and confused just like she was. But he was putting it all aside to take care of her. That’s what Drake did for the people he loved.

She’d given Bianca one last chance when she came to the states. She’d figured, even if they hadn’t spoken, or seen one another, even if Bianca hadn’t tried or even made it seem like she wanted to try, Savannah thought she’d want to know that she was going to be a grandmother. When she’d showed up at Bianca’s family ranch in Texas, she was struck first by the joyful resonance of the wind chime that hung from the porch. She watched, mesmerized as the thin metal rods dangled, swaying in the breeze and catching the sun as they clinked together. The sound and the shine of the sunlight hurdled her back in time to a visit nearly twenty years ago. She was 7, Drake 9, and they were bursting with excitement over the gift they’d made their mother, with Bastien’s help, of course. Bastien had cut the pieces of metal, letting Drake help him punch holes so that they could be strung from a small wooden disk that Savannah had painted. Their mother had beamed and carried on about how gorgeous it was and how lucky she was to receive such a beautiful and thoughtful gift, promising that it would grace her porch forever. The paint was faded and chipped, the wooden disk cracked and nearly split in two from years in the unrelenting Texas sun. But there it still hung. So she hasn’t forgotten about us… That thought and the dilapidated wind chime gave her the courage to walk up the porch steps and knock on the red screen door.

When her mother answered, however, that courage evaporated. The look on Bianca’s face was one of mixed fear, anguish and regret, swirled with a touch of defensiveness, and Savannah wished she could take back the knock, take back her trip to Texas, and go back to New York where it was easy to disappear into the crowd. “Savvy…” she gasped, but quickly regained her composure. “What are you doing here?” the woman asked her, propping the door open just enough to speak, not enough to be welcoming. She crossed her arms over her chest as her graying hair danced on the breeze.

Savannah didn’t know how to answer, so she blurted out, “Just thought you’d like to know you were going to be a grandmother. Just thought you’d like to know that your children are still alive.” She heard the venom in her voice and it both surprised her and didn’t- she was hurt, again, let down, again, by the woman before her. “But I was wrong, I guess, huh?” Bianca said nothing, but Savannah caught her eyes flick up to the wind chime. “This was a mistake…” she followed Bianca’s gaze to the chime before crossing the porch and reaching up to remove the chime from the hook that had been screwed into the porch’s wooden roof. Without a word, she took the chime and turned her back on her mother, climbing into the cab of the truck she’d rented. She drove and drove, tears falling and curses flowing. Bianca Walker wasn’t family anymore.

Vanna was pulled back to the present as she realized that she had overfilled the glass in her hand, cold amber liquid flowing out of the tap and over her fingers. “Shit,” she muttered as she closed the tap and wiped her hand on the rag hanging from her apron. She cleaned off the rim of the glass, poured out a bit of liquid and topped it off achieving the perfect 2 inch foam head before sliding it down to Jay. She let her mind go to one last person- Drake. Drake would always be family. He would always be one of the most important people in her life. But she would always feel a twisting, burning feeling of regret for the way that she’d left him; just a note, but he deserved so much more, and she’d always regret not giving it to him. At the time, she thought she was doing him a favor, leaving before he found out about her child. She remembered, painfully, how destroyed her brother had been when he heard of the loss of his own child- a child he never even got to hold- and she thought that watching her go through a pregnancy, watching her raise a son on her own, would bring things up for him that he’d worked hard to bury. She thought, at the time she left, that she’d be doing him a favor-that he’d be better off without her to worry about, to try to take care of. She knew, now, that she was wrong. Every day she woke up full of missing him. Every day she woke up and knew in her heart that he missed her, too. But every day she woke up in New York City was one more day longer that she’d been away, and as the days turned to years she became embarrassed and anxious to reach out to him, knowing that she’d hurt him with her sudden departure. She wanted to but couldn’t.

When she’d spoken to Bertrand after the attacks, she’d gotten an update that had chilled her very soul- Drake had been shot. She’d sobbed and cried herself to sleep that night, despite Bertrand’s assurances that his surgery had been successful and that he was expected to make a full recovery. The only thing that had made her feel even remotely better is that Bertrand had told her that he was seeing someone, and that she hadn’t left his side, that she would be there for him in his recovery, would be there to help him in whatever way that he needed. Her brother was loved, and from the sound of it, loved fiercely. It was the only thing keeping her from complete devastation, and as much as she wanted to fly back to see him, to beg him to forgive her and to hug him more tightly than she ever had before, she knew that now wasn’t the time- that he needed to focus on healing and having her show up to tear open old wounds wasn’t going to help. She may have lost Bertrand. She may have lost Bianca. But she’d never really lose Drake, and she knew that. Drake Walker and her son were the only family that she had left.

That’s not true, said a voice in the very back of her memory. You have Bastien…you have…there was someone else, someone she knew was there for her, someone she knew had loved her very much as a child…someone she couldn’t quite remember, but she couldn’t completely forget, either. I wonder where she is now…I wonder if she remembers me… Her wondering was cut short as Jay called for more drinks and she pushed all the memories down to focus on the task at hand.

The night wore on in waves as it tended to on karaoke nights, until the clock struck 2am and Jay’s shift came to a close. He helped her restock a few items before she shooed him out. “Go home, Jay, I was late, you’re exhausted. Get home to that adorable little brat of yours.” She gave him a good-natured shove.

“Alright, ain’t gotta tell me twice,” he grinned. “Have a good night, V, hope the last two hours fly for ya.”

Jay lifted the trap door and exited the bar just as the bell above the door jingled, and two more customers walked in. Vanna lifted her gaze from the tap to the door and smiled as she saw one of her favorite regulars. She overheard him greeting Jay amicably before leading the girl he was with over to the bar. Who’s that? She wondered about the girl. Usually he comes with…

“Hey, V…” he said, the tone of his voice slightly off. She let the towel she was drying her hands on fall back down to her apron as she pulled the tap to pour Dan’s beer.

“Hey you, long time no see…where’s-“

“V, we need to talk…”

.  .  . .  .  .  .  .  .

Two days before they were supposed to leave for the Council’s trip to New York, Claire was perched on the back of the couch behind Drake, gently kneading the tense muscles of his injured shoulder. Her right leg was draped over his other shoulder, his fingers grazing her shin as he closed his eyes , leaning into her touch. “How’s that feel?” she asked, applying pressure to his shoulder blade with her thumb, rubbing in a circular motion.

He winced and let out a low hiss, but he responded with, “Feels amazing, Berkley, don’t you ever stop.” His eyes squeezed even more tightly shut.

Claire grinned. “Ever?” she craned her neck to look down at him, mischief sparkling in her clear blue eyes. “But if I never stop, how can we-“

Without warning, he gripped her leg and pulled her down and around his shoulders and into his lap, his right arm coming around her, his left hand sliding up to cup her cheek. Surprised laughter bubbled from her lips as he absently brushed his fingertips along her arm. A spark of mischief to match hers was reflected in his dark eyes, and a slow smile spread across his face. “In that case, you can stop now,” he said, voice low and full of intent. He dropped his head to catch her lips, but before the kiss could deepen, a buzz interrupted the moment as the phone in Claire’s pocket rang. “You don’t have to get that, do you?” he groaned.

“No way,” she breathed, kissing him back, bringing her hands up to tangle in his hair. But the phone continued to buzz, even after the caller had left a message. “Ugh…maybe I do,” she whined, reaching for her pocket without pulling away from his lips. She waited until she absolutely had to to pull apart, pressing the answer button before checking the caller I.D. “Hello?” she answered, eyes still locked on Drake’s as he continued to brush his fingers along her arm.

“C?” There was alarm and excitement and news in Dan’s voice, and it made Claire sit up straight.

“Dan?” The way she greeted him drew Drake’s attention.

“C…I just left The Hippo…I think I know where Drake’s sister is…you’re not going to believe this…”

.  .  .  .  .  .  .

Tagging: @ooo-barff-ooo @sleepwalkingelite @zaffrenotes @brightpinkpeppercorn @mind-reader1@jovialyouthmusic @endlessly-searching-for-you @notoriouscs @endlesstaylormckenzie @agent-bossypants@andy-loves-corgis @akrenich @nekkidmolerat @indiacater @thequeenofcronuts @the-everlasting-dream @the-whiskeywife@roonarific @stopforamoment @mfackenthal@mkatschoicesblog @drakewalkerisreal @drakesensworld @gibbles82 @iplaydrake @speedyoperarascalparty @bobasheebaby @carabeth

[sleeplesspensieve]

Remedy for Guilt - XII

Summary: The daughter of Bellatrix and Rodolphus Lestrange is a Healer who finds herself not only haunted by her past but also questioning her choice in career. When Lyra Lestrange’s old headmaster offers her a position as Defence Against the Dark Arts Teacher she finds herself thrown into an adventure involving a secret affair with a colleague, discovering the cure for a disease and dealing with students cursing themselves. Who knew that being a Hogwarts Professor was such a rollercoaster?

Set in the school year of 1990-1991 with the prospect of a sequel, or two, on the horizon.

Rated: E for graphic sex scenes in THIS and later chapters. Over 18′s only please.

Word Count: 4927

Multichapter Fic (Expected to be around 30-35 chapters with a planned sequel which will take place during the Harry Potter Books)

Chapter Twelve – Discoveries

Deep in the dungeons in the Head of Slytherin’s living quarters a young witch stirred in her sleep, her movement woke up the wizard whose arms were wrapped around her. The man was confused by the naked warmth that lay against his body. After a few blinks he registered that the tangled mess of black hair and sleeping figure belonged to none other than his colleague, Lyra Lestrange.

Severus eyes drifted shut; his expression was strained as his thoughts drifted onto the night prior. He had spent his birthday bedding the young witch that slept against him then he was crying in her arms. As he recalled what he had said his first instinct was to get out of that bed, replace his and her clothes and pretend that nothing had happened. For a moment he even considered obliviating her, how could he face her each day knowing that she knew some of his deepest secrets?

As soon as the thought passed through his mind his heart dismissed it. It was telling him he could trust her, that it was ok to open up to her. He felt at peace as he felt her curled up next to him, he allowed his arms to remain holding her. The warmth that she radiated made him reluctant to leave his bed. He closed his eyes and focused on the feeling, not knowing how long this would last.

Severus’ thoughts weren’t allowed to wander too far as Lyra soon found herself awake too. She smiled fondly as she rolled over and faced him. “Morning,” she hummed her hand rested on his chest. “Have you been up long?”

He shook his head no. “Classes will start in two hours,” he said.

She nodded in acknowledgement. “Did you sleep well?”

Their conversation made Severus feel as though he had woken up in an alternate reality, that Lyra was his wife and that she would soon be rolling out of bed to make them breakfast. The thought warmed his heart but he knew it wasn’t a possibility. He simply nodded in response to her question.

The responses he had given caused Lyra to feel concern. “Sev,” she said, her hand reached up and stroked his cheek. “Everything you told me last night I will never breathe a word of to anyone. You can trust me.”

“What do you feel guilty about?” he asked.

Lyra paused for a moment, questioning whether or not she should divulge the truth or not. As a gesture of good faith she decided to do so. “A lot of things,” she frowned, her hand retreated to her side as she began to explain. “I guess the guilt started when Albus made me work in the Hospital Wing and I had to treat that girl that I almost killed. While I was there I could see that I could put my talents to better use so I tried which is how I got into healing, I thought it could be my way of redeeming myself for all I had done but I think it fucked me even more. When I started at St. Mungo’s my first rotation as a Trainee Healer was in the ward for those with permanent spell damage and I saw the Longbottom couple that I tortured along with my parents and Uncle Rab and Barty. I saw their son visit and he would’ve been Draco’s age. I couldn’t sleep. I kept dreaming of them screaming and losing their minds. I felt so guilty for inflicting that on them.”

“You were there?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she sighed as she began to recount, “I had just gotten back from my first year from Durmstrang. My parents were upset that the Dark Lord had fallen and they knew that there were Aurors tracking down his whereabouts so they captured the Longbottom couple. Mum wanted to teach me how to use the Cruciatus Curse properly so they all showed me and gave me pointers on how to do it effectively to cause the most pain. It went on for hours until they were completely incoherent. Eventually my parents were captured and you know the rest.”

“Did you actually torture Karkaroff?” he questioned. Lyra nodded reluctantly, not wanting to admit the cruelty of what she did to the reformed Death Eater that lay with her. His curiousity got the better of him as he asked, “Why did you do it?”

“I was 13, Sev, first day of my third year at school and Karkaroff is introduced as the new Headmaster. I had heard his name mentioned by Uncle Lucius and my parents when I had visited them. Whatever he had done made them angry but they believed that the Dark Lord would return and impart justice. I later asked my Uncle directly what he had done and he told me that in exchange for the names of several Death Eaters he was allowed to walk free. I was so angry that he was living in comfort whilst my parents rotted in Azkaban. I didn’t believe that the Dark Lord would return so I decided to give my own justice.”

“I spent months plotting my revenge. I didn’t want to kill him, no, I wanted him to suffer and I had learnt from the best on how to torture people. I thought it was fitting that I used the skills they had been imprisoned for as a method to carry out my revenge on their behalf. I snuck into his quarters while he slept and I placed a silencing barrier up so no one could hear him and another so we wouldn’t be disturbed. I woke him using the Cruciatus Curse, you should’ve seen his face of terror on his face when he realised it was me. I used the Cruciatus Curse on him for hours and I revelled in it but I was only young, I didn’t have enough magical energy to maintain my torture but I think it stopped him from going insane like the Longbottoms. It went on for about 12 hours before they found us.”

“He was in hospital for only a week and during that time I went to trial. I had the best defence lawyer money could afford and a bulletproof defence. How could I, a child of 13 years, raised by Death Eaters, be responsible for my actions? I was a product of my environment and going to Durmstrang would reinforce the use of the Dark Arts so they gave me a slap on the wrist and sent me to Hogwarts. I think it worked to an extent, most witches and wizards involved in the Dark Arts during my year were pathetic anyway I just got caught up with showing off my skill and that’s how I nearly killed that girl. I did feel bad for her to an extent and I think Albus exploited that which is how I ended up in Healing. Who knows where I would be now if he hadn’t forced me to work in the Hospital Wing? I’d probably be out there trying to raise the Dark Lord back to power.”

Lyra’s description of events terrified Severus. It was evident that she was truly the daughter of Bellatrix and Rodopholus Lestrange.  The thought of Lyra pursuing the Dark Arts further was disturbing. He knew that she was an extremely talented witch with a thirst for knowledge, he was thankful that it had been channelled into a more meaningful pursuit. He wondered where her loyalties would lie if the Dark Lord did return. “Do you think he’ll come back?”

“It’s been what, ten years this year?” she said, “I don’t think so. I went and saw my mum on Christmas Day and she seems to still think so but I think it’s just to maintain her sanity, not that there’s much left. What do you think?”

“I have the same doubts,” he replied, shaking his head, “Albus seems to think he will.”

Lyra’s hand drifted out and reached out for his left arm. Severus flinched at first but her fingers delicately traced the lines of his Dark Mark. “It’s so faded,” she said as she thought back to when she would touch her mother or father’s tattoo. “You’ll be one of the first to know.”

Severus watched as she seemed lost in her thoughts, her fingers still stroking his tattoo. “Lyra,” he said, bringing her back to the present. “We should get up, we have classes to teach.”

She frowned, “Can’t we just stay in bed.”

“It’s too suspicious if we both call in sick,” he said.

“Can I get my panties back?” she asked with a hopeful look.

“I’m definitely keeping them,” he said amused, “Better hurry back to your quarters if you want to wear any today.”

She glared at him as she climbed out of bed and got dressed. He remained in bed and watched as she hid her naked body away from view. “I’ll see you around,” she said as she found her way out.

As Lyra reached the Grand Staircase to begin her ascension to the third floor she saw a concerned Professor McGonagall quickly stepping down.

“Oh, Lyra,” she said, not missing a beat, “You best come with me, something serious has happened. I need to speak with Severus.”

Lyra followed as they headed back to where she had just left. Minerva knocked on the door and Severus opened it immediately, allowing the two witches to enter his office.

“I have terrible news, Severus,” Minerva said, “Marcus Flint had a seizure at breakfast this morning. Poppy thinks it’s Psyrot. He’s been placed in a potion-induced sleep for now but she think he’ll have to go off to St. Mungo’s.”

“I’ll contact his parents,” Severus replied.

“I don’t know how it went undetected,” Minerva said.

“He probably got it when he was on break and it’s just gone unnoticed,” Lyra said, “I know Poppy listed all those symptoms but he might’ve just not had any until now.”

Minerva shook her head, “In any case, we need to be more aware. We all need to keep a look out.”

“Of course,” Severus said.

Lyra remained silent as the two discussed the course of action. She completely tuned out, her head beginning to spin with thoughts. This was the first distinguishable case of Psyrot, with it would come many more. Students would begin to flood the Hospital Wing at the slightest sniffle which probably wasn’t so bad but she knew that Severus and herself would have to keep up with potion requests. They had made around 100 bottles which was about a sixth of the school’s population, if half the students thought they were sick then they’d run out rather quickly.

“Lyra,” Severus said, bringing her attention back to the present, “We’ll probably have to make more Pepper Up Potion.”

“Yeah,” she said, looking slightly dazed, “I was just thinking about that.”

“We��ll brew some more tonight,” he informed her, “Wouldn’t want to run out.”

“Of course,” she said, “I’ll see you after dinner.”

Lyra left with Minerva, Severus needed to write a quick letter to Marcus Flint’s parents. The two made their way up silently, waving in and out of students and carefully following the staircases as they moved about. Lyra found herself alone with Minerva as the set they were on slowly moved.

“So, Lyra,” Minerva began, “What were you doing at Severus’ office so early?”

“Just wanted to check in on him before we had classes,” Lyra lied, “I had a present for his birthday.”

“But his birthday was yesterday,” Minerva’s eyes narrowed as she felt she had caught her. “You and Severus seem awfully close, particularly after the Founding Ball.”

“I’ve known Severus since I was a kid,” Lyra shrugged, “You know, cause my parents were Death Eaters, just like he was. My Uncle is a close friend of his, in fact he even came over for Christmas Dinner.”

“It seems to be more than just that,” Minerva said, “I think there’s something going on between you two.”

“Really?” Lyra’s eyebrows raised in fake surprise. “News to me.”

Lyra was thankful when the staircase finally connected to the landing of the third floor, she said a hurried goodbye, excusing herself from their conversation. Unfortunately for her, Lyra had ran out of time to change her clothes and her students were all lined up ready to enter her classroom. She reluctantly welcomed them all in and began her lesson.

It was surprisingly easy for Lyra to keep her composure, despite the fact that she didn’t have any underwear on. After a while she didn’t seem to notice, her thoughts were more preoccupied on the fact that no one had been paying attention to the content of her lessons. Had she become boring? To be fair everyone was still rather shaken from what they had seen at breakfast this morning. Lyra was over the constant gossiping half way through second period and threatened to deduct house points if they continued their disruption. This tactic seemed to work as they focused on the Hinkypunk she showed them and explained the methods of combating it.

Lyra had hoped to duck off during the break that she had between the second and third period but she saw that two students had stayed behind. Both were Slytherin boys on the Quidditch team who she recognised as Lucian Bole and Peregrine Derrick. Usually she’d be keen to answer questions from eager students but she knew that these two boys in particular had a tendency to cause trouble and weren’t particularly engaged in her class. They approached her desk as the rest of the class were filing out.

“Professor Lestrange,” Derrick addressed the teacher. She raised her eyebrows in acknowledgement so the boy continued, “We were wondering if you knew anything about Marcus? We were supposed to have Quidditch practice tonight.”

Lyra sighed, “I recommend you speak with Professor Snape.”

Derrick went to answer but he was interrupted by his friend. The blonde haired boy sneezed hard, not covering his mouth, and Lyra felt her face become wet with the boy’s mucus. She wiped her face with a hand as she had no tissues at hand and glared up at the boy who was now shaking in his boots at the look his Professor was giving.

“Merlin’s beard,” she glowered, “Did your mother teach you any manners. Go to the hospital wing now.”

The two boys darted off embarrassed that Bole had just sneezed into the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor’s face. Lyra’s untainted hand reached for her wand and went to clean up both her face and hand but she looked closer at her hand. She felt very subtle movement on her hand and as her face neared it she saw tiny dots in amongst the mucus as well as one small worm wriggling. From sight she knew that this parasite must’ve been the cause of Psyrot but she needed to research it further. She summoned a glass vial and scooped mucus that landed on her hand, attempting to coax the worm and its eggs into the tube. She cast a stasis charm on the contents, hoping that it would prevent the eggs from hatching and the worm from dying and she put it away in her office.

Lyra sat at her desk and began to brainstorm on a stray piece of paper the known workings of the disease. On one side of the right hand side of the paper she listed the known symptoms and then on the left she wrote the words parasite and mucus. The fact that it was spread through mucus ruled out the gastrointestinal tract, the symptoms didn’t align with respiratory so the logical conclusion was the brain? She wasn’t convinced but it made sense. Pepper up would increase the body’s temperature and could potentially destroy the integrity of the worm’s body but only up to a certain point which was why they couldn’t cure it once it had reached the second or third stage. She wasn’t entirely sure why Sleeping Draught worked during the second stage and it wouldn’t in the third stage. She knew during the third stage it was the body’s own immune response that would kill the host so maybe the Sleeping Draught prevented the development of the worms to cause destruction to trigger the immune response. There were still a lot of missing pieces of information but now that Lyra had a sample of the parasite responsible she was confident that she could develop a cure for it.

Lyra heard her next class enter and she rushed down to teach but her mind was still curious about the parasite she had found. Over her lunch break she made her way to the library and was pouring over books about parasites and worms, as well as recapping historically relevant illnesses. Madam Pince was reluctant to lend so many books out to the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, particularly as they weren’t relevant to her subject but Lyra managed to convince her after laying on the charm which was a difficult feat as Lyra hadn’t had the best reputation during her years of study.

Lyra placed aside the books, hoping that she would get to them over the weekend as her night would be taken up by brewing potions with Severus. The final two classes for the day seemed to drag on as looked forward to sharing her discovery with the Potions Master. Her eagerness to leave was not lost on her students as she was in fact the first to leave her classroom. She stopped by the staffroom to grab a quick bite for herself and Severus for dinner and she rushed down to the dungeons.

“I wasn’t expecting you so early,” Severus said as he answered the door.

“I have exciting news,” she beamed, bouncing into his office.

Severus prompted her to go on, taking one of the plates she had set out for him.

“I have discovered the cause of Psyrot,” she announced, “Of course, I still need to test my theory but I think I can work up a cure.” Severus listened and ate as Lyra detailed her discovery. As she spoke he felt a great deal of respect and admiration towards her as she was rambling about her theories.

Severus was beginning to realise that he saw Lyra as so much more than Lucius’ niece that needed a close watch, she was beginning to become her own person. Lyra, unlike her parents, was kind and had a passion for caring for people which was evident in the way that she had treated him and her desire to find a cure for this disease. He thought of the way students and staff spoke about her, they all admired her despite the reputation she had gained as a student.

“So, I just need to confirm it is this parasite,” she continued, “Then I’ll need to figure out how to kill it without harming the host and then I’ll write up a report and I’ll be published then my healing career could take off and you never know I might be the one to discover the cure for Lycanthropy, I just hope no one else beats me to it. Why are you smiling at me?”

Severus didn’t realise that he was smiling at her, he laughed it off. “You recall how early in the term you said you don’t know where Dumbledore gets these teachers from?” he asked, “You’re acting exactly like everyone else.”

Her eyes narrowed at the Potions Master’s amusement before smiling as well, “I suppose you’re right.”

Lyra helped herself to the dinner she had brought for the two of them and they caught up briefly over the food before they headed into his classroom to begin brewing. They worked mainly in silence, intending to work efficiently and quickly as possible as Lyra was itching to return back to her room in order to study the books that she had borrowed. It took them a few hours but they finished up at around 10pm, leaving her time to do a bit of reading before she’d settle for bed.

“Did you want to enjoy a glass of wine with me?” he asked.

She smiled and her plans of reading were quickly forgotten as she accepted his offer. The pair moved on to his quarters, thankful that it was past curfew and that no students would see them sneaking around. Lyra probably brought enough suspicion upon herself that morning as she was leaving his quarters so early. The cosied up to the fireplace and cracked into a bottle of elf-made wine. The two began to gossip about the students that they shared and how their attitudes differed in their classrooms.

“How is Marcus Flint fairing?” she asked.

“His parents came to take him to St. Mungo’s this morning,” he replied, “Hopefully they can help them there but I’m not sure what more they can offer as they know as much about Psyrot as we do.”

“Maybe someone’s already discovered a cure?”

“How did you figure out that it was a parasite?” he asked.

“Bole and Derrick spoke to me after class asking about Flint and whether or not they’d have practice,” she recounted, “Bole then proceeded to sneeze on my face and noticed that in the flecks of mucus he left behind that there seemed to be eggs and I spotted a small worm crawling.”

“Wonderful,” Severus said.

“Obviously, I’ll need to test other students to see if it holds true,” she said, “Then there’ll be a lot more work to go but it’s achievable. Do you think I should credit them if I write a report?”

“You shouldn’t give either of them any credit,” he said, “They are both complete imbeciles.”

Lyra laughed at his response, her head shook in disapproval but a smile was still plain on her lips. Severus watched her as she pressed her lips against the cool of her glass as though she was hiding her face away from embarrassment. His gaze caught hers and she smiled forming wrinkles around her eyes as well as a twinkle within. That smile was so precious that he wanted to keep it locked in his memory forever.

Lyra’s eyes cast down as if staring at Severus was like staring at the sun. She felt her heart ache in want and her cheeks were flushed. She attempted to blame the feelings on the alcohol she had been drinking but in her heart she knew that her Uncle was right. That she was in fact falling in love with Severus Snape.  

The thoughts and feelings were uncomfortable and unfamiliar to Lyra. No one had ever made her feel this way, her heart was racing but her breathing slow. She felt faint and dizzy, she finally knew what people meant when they said they had butterflies in their stomach and her stomach was in knots. She had crushes before but this was a completely different ball game, it was almost as though every single one of her crushes came to confront her all at once. The feeling made her nauseous and she didn’t know whether it was because she felt this particular way or whether she was terrified about the consequences of her feelings.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, concerned that the look of joy had fleeted and was replaced by an expression of illness. She shook her head dismissively and he asked once more.

“I feel strange,” she said, her eyebrows strained.

“Are you sick?” he asked, rushing to his feet.

She laughed, “I think it’s much worse than that.”

“What?”

She shook her head and sighed, pushing her feelings aside, “It’s nothing.”

“Don’t make me use Legilimency on you,” he threatened.

“I know better than to let my guard down around you,” she smiled, “I think I’m just tipsy and tired.”

“Time for bed,” he said as he removed her glass and placed it on the table. Lyra took his hand as he pulled her up, escorting her to the bed.

“Can we shower first?” she asked. “I haven’t bathed since yesterday and I feel pretty gross.”

“Are you wearing underwear, Miss Lestrange?” he asked.

“Don’t call me that,” she said, “It makes me feel like a schoolgirl about to get a detention.”

“We should try that one time,” he smirked.

“Are you going to bend me over your desk and spank me?”His eyebrows raised in agreement and Lyra laughed, “When was the last time you were laid?”

“I shagged this beautiful witch last night,” he said his arms wrapped around her and he cornered her against a nearby wall. “I stole her panties then she went the whole day without them.” He slid his hand down the front of her skirt, underneath the material and touched her naked sex. “Sound familiar?”

Her tongue darted out to wet her bottom lip before she bit it. “You don’t know how much I want you, Lyra,” he whispered into her ear.

“I have an idea,” she said, her hand made its his crotch and the palm of her hand ground into it.

“Don’t tease me, Lestrange,” he warned, his breath hot against her lips. She kissed him hard and fast, her hands quickly unbuttoned his vest and his removed her clothes, parting to pull her top over her head.

“Why the fuck do you have so many buttons?” she groaned as she discarded his vest and got to work on the button up that was hidden underneath.

“To frustrate witches like you,” he said, undoing her bra and getting to work on her nipples.

She moaned, struggling to maintain concentrating on working her fingers around the buttons. Eventually he was free from his upper garments and her lips moved onto his neck as her hands fumbled clumsily with his pants.

“Don’t leave marks on me,” he said as she began to suck and bite where she was kissing. It was too late for his warning and she didn’t care. Her lips just moved down to his chest where she continued to make her mark.

“Lyra,” he groaned as her hand gripped around his cock and began to slowly pump and tease. His fingers looped around the band of her skirt and pulled it down. A finger dipped beneath the folds and once assuring she was wet enough his hands gripped onto the backs of her thighs and hoisted her up so her hips were on his. He pressed her body against the wall behind her and held her there as he manipulated his cock to slide deep into her.

Severus’ hips bucked up into hers eliciting a small moan from Lyra with every thrust as he fucked her against the wall. His hands gripped her thighs and her ass hard as he pounded into her. Lyra’s arms were wrapped around his neck, one hand buried into his hair whilst the other held onto his back for leverage. Her eyes connected with Severus for a moment and she could see the lust that was swirling around in his dark orbs. His eyes flicked down, watching her breasts bounce and his cock slide in and out of her sex. The sight alone made him groan hard as he felt the tension in his balls grow.

Lyra too watched what he was focused on, the sight of him plunging in and out was erotic. Severus Snape is fucking me against a wall. The thoughts, the feelings and the sight was enough to drive her over the edge. She grabbed a hold of him tighter, her nails began to dig into his back as she came hard. As the tension began to release for her, so did it for Severus. He came inside her, his thrust slowed and he pressed Lyra harder against the wall as his body relaxed, scared she was going to slip.

He let her down slowly and the two wordlessly headed to the bathroom. Both too tired to stand they settled for the bath again. Severus urged her to sit on his side, on his lap this time, returning the favour from last time. She relaxed into his embrace and allowed her eyes to drift shut for a moment.

Severus allowed the exhausted witch to sleep for a few moments, enjoying the comfort of her body against his. He rested his head against hers and noticed the smell of her hair, lavender like a sleeping draught. Maybe that’s why he felt so peaceful, like he could sleep again. His thoughts were no longer strained with his failures, instead they were calm and restful. He felt as though Lyra anchored him down, he was no longer worried about the future or what was to come because he felt that if he had Lyra by his side that everything would work out. He knew he trusted her and he believed that as she slept in his arms surrounded by a pool of water that her vulnerability was also a gesture of trust.

Ten minutes passed of Lyra sleeping and he gently nudged her awake, knowing that if she slept any longer that she would have difficulty sleeping. She was half asleep as she washed herself so Severus helped her scrub her back. He ushered her out once they were done and made herself dry thoroughly after a lazy attempt. When they moved onto bed Lyra quickly fell back asleep and Severus had no difficulties as she curled up against his chest.

[legatumrpg]

full name: bartemius crouch jr

age: twenty-seven

gender and pronouns: male and he/him

blood status: pureblood

occupation: heir

affiliation: death eaters

i n t r o d u c t i o n »

Perhaps if your own father spent as much time with you as he does in his office, you wouldn’t be this way. You needed him in your youth when you needed guidance and love and your mother wasn’t enough. You were his child and yet you were hardly the most important to him. So you rebelled, got in with the wrong people and did things that were unspeakable. But as dark as they were, you were twisted yourself, happily taking the Dark Mark with pride. It’s a fun little game you play with your father; you wake up under his roof, use his money, his perks, and you side with the very people he wishes to defeat.

b i o g r a p h y »

Barty was born on a sunny day. His mother was exhausted but the first time she heard his cry, tears sprang to her eyes. His father was, from the very beginning, not present but his mother held him and vowed to protect him. For the little that it matters, she did try.

Barty was a bright eyed child. He was quick to laugh, eager to learn, easy to get along with. He wasn’t all that fussy and with his vibrant personality who could not fall for his charm. He was born in a Pureblood family but his parents were hardly traditional. They didn’t agree with most of the values that the Pureblood society held close and so, Barty never discriminated on that front. He grew up with his mother and the house elf Winky by his side and as much as he loved them as well, he also grew tired of them. It was only in the way little boys grew fed up of the constant buzzing around and his mother bent on keeping him in a bubble. He was much more interested in his elusive father who was hardly ever home, who hardly ever spared him a glance, who only talked about the Ministry. Never about him.

Barty was spoiled in a way, their family was wealthy and he had never lacked for anything, his mother fulfilled his every whim. If he acted out he was quickly placated by giving him whatever he desired. Even as a child whenever he threw a tantrum, his father would only sigh and leave the room. His father’s behaviour being so different from that of his mother and Winky was a thorn in his side from the very beginning.

Barty loved reading and he was quick to retain information, not only that but he was also very artisitic. He used to paint on his walls even as a child and his mother would be delighted. She would flick his wand, cleaning the mess up and he would start with a brand new canvas. His father never bothered to look at any of them but it was apparent that he was a gifted child. When it came to Hogwarts he was finally glad to have some breathing room from his mother and Winky. He happily skipped off to school. Upon being sorted in Ravenclaw he rejoiced at being around like minded people.

Barty genuinely enjoyed learning, he excelled at his subjects whether it was Potions, Charms or Transfiguration and got 12 O.W.L.s when the time for that came around. He had been hoping that at least that would have garnered some sort of reaction from his father but all he received was a half smile as he barely glanced at the piece of paper and a half smile before he returned to the proposal he was working on. It was at that moment that Barty realized his father was indifferent to him. It wasn’t that his father was disappointed on him, only that his father simply didn’t care.

It was perhaps then that the rage and anger that was bubbling inside reached its peak. The side of him that was charming and witty remained but it was corrupted by the way his twisted his words to being able to charm his way out of just about everything. He left behind his old friends and fell in with a new crowd, these people really did understand him. They shared the same hunger, the same ambition and he didn’t have to hold himself back anymore. Up till that point he had tried his entire life to make his father proud but with his new friends he was simply enough. He was going to be so much more than his father, he was going to make him rue the day he was born. He would care, perhaps not in the way Barty had initially wanted but he would no longer be able to so easily turn away from him.

Barty was able to get away with a lot of things at Hogwarts with that charming manner of his and the stellar grades. School wasn’t enough so he seeked out other ways. He taught himself all manner of things including the Unspeakable Curses and happily went out with his new friends on weekends to try these out. He experimented with Potions and Charms and finally with spells. Spell invention was extremely difficult but he kept at it and invented the Boiling Breath Curse, the Bone Grinding Curse and the Three Headed Curse. His efforts didn’t get unnoticed by the Dark Lord and he received the Dark Mark with pride as soon as he turned eighteen.

Now, Barty is heavily involved with the Death Eaters, the very people that his father wants to bring down. He takes pride in it. He knows that his father is not a good man - he only wants the glory of being the one who puts the stop to this terror but Barty is just as determined to bring him down. What right did that man have to give him his name if he was never going to be involved in his life? Barty only saw it as yet another sign of his father’s arrogance. His hatred for his father has clouded his judgement and his ability to see the people who do hold him dear such as his mother. He labelled her love as fussy, as embarrassing, only ever wanted something he didn’t have. As brutal as Barty can be he still feels entirely too much. He is passionate and reckless. He is angry and impulsive. He acts out and messes up on missions. He would kill his father in a heartbeat if given the chance but there is still that eleven year old boy in him who longs for a smile and a few words of encouragement. Sometimes he doesn’t know what to do with himself, it feels like his brilliance is the very thing that will turn against him and leave him insane but he keeps up the front. The bright eyed, charming heir who gets away with everything. The tragedy of it is that he could have been so much more, he could have been a blessing for the Wizarding World rather than the curse he taught himself to be.

c o n n e c t i o n s »

rabastan and rodolphus lestrange » They were the siblings you wished you had. Being an only child made it very lonely in your family manor, so you found others that could do with an extra mind in their ranks. They were sinister like you, twisted like you, and as daring as you. It was like you made a family you were proud to be a part of, and you knew that they thought the same of you.

sybill trelawney » While most seem to dismiss the so-called Seer, you think that their words may carry some weight. Who knows when a prophecy might be useful to you or the cause you serve. They’ve become your latest personal assignment, one in which you charm them to your side of the war the way you have done previously with so many.

fabian prewett » You couldn’t care less about which Prewett Twin is which — you just pick one and throw. It just so happens that the one you usually strike is them. What luck. You grin your sly grin and approach, like a snake toying with its prey before it strikes. You find it fun, but they probably don’t share that sentiment.

Bartemius Crouch Jr is played by DOUGLAS BOOTH and is TAKEN

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

crawling into your ask box yet again to humbly request your headcanons for our boy Murphy McNully

I love seeing you in my Ask Box! This is going to be fun! 

I’ve wondered for a while how he might have ended up disabled, and since the Wizarding World has cures for most muggle ailments, I’ve always suspected it must have been some kind of dark curse that he doesn’t like to talk about. 

That’s the thing about Murphy, he talks a lot, but there are certain subjects that he avoids. He clearly has a good relationship with his Mom, and talks about his Grandma too...but never mentions his Dad. I can only assume his Dad is dead, or that he abandoned the family, or something else terrible. 

I tend to think that Murphy, like Ben, may be on the autism spectrum. If there was ever a character who had hyper-fixations, it would be him. 

Dialogue that was data-mined but cut before final release suggests that he wanted to be a Quidditch player and is now somewhat bitter that he can’t be. But surely, in a world of magic, they could design a special kind of broomstick, or charm, to make it possible. Hell, a temporary sticking charm is probably all you need. So I tend to believe he hides that bitterness, but there will one day be a solution for him. 

His snitch pin, god how I love his snitch pin. And I’m willing to bet that his dream was to play Seeker before he was disabled. I bet either Orion or his mother gave it to him. 

Speaking of, we don’t talk enough about Murphy and Orion’s friendship. But I think they would get along very well. I think they would understand each other when most people don’t understand either of them. 

Skye and Murphy are so different, but there must be a reason that they normally get along. I mean, Murphy is “just” the commentator, so it’s not like Skye even needs to register his existence, but she obviously likes him more than Orion. I feel like they must be in the same year, and share classes together. Picture Murphy taking copious notes in the back of the room while Skye snores against the wall. 

Tying into this, I really love how Murphy is essentially an unofficial eighth member of the team. Even Lee Jordan never had that level of closeness with Gryffindor’s team, and he was best mates with Fred and George. It’s part of why I really think Orion and Murphy are actually quite close. Probably hang out a lot outside of practice. I think Orion understands how much Murphy wants to play. 

There is literally no in game basis for this, but I like to imagine that he’s allergic to cats and just doesn’t care, choosing to keep Kneil anyway. I mean, kneazles aren’t even technically allowed at Hogwarts but that’s obviously not stopping him either. 

I bet there’s a funny story behind his hating Gobstones, probably an incident where he got sprayed, accidentally swallowed some of the ink, and then was sick, throwing up and such. 

Likewise, I think Wizard’s Chess lends itself well to the kind of tactical thinking that comes easily to him, and so he would like it a lot because he’s able to shine when he plays. It’s a game that he’s good at, finds enjoyable, and gives him attention for something other than being in the wheelchair. 

That’s another thing, he specifically notes that he’s known for being “the guy in the wheelchair.” Again, I can only assume that this is because Healing cures most ailments. Crutches and wheelchairs are probably rare, and might be seen by the pure-blood bigots as a sign of “muggle” weakness. Sort of like able-ism, but more fueled by racism, if that makes sense. Because of this, I think we can safely assume Murphy is on the right side of history when it comes to muggle relation politics. 

Time for my theory. I think Murphy was afflicted by a curse when he was very young, definitely pre-Hogwarts age. I think he started out as the wide-eyed, excited child of two Quidditch fanatics who dreamed of becoming a Seeker someday. If his parents played professionally, we would have probably heard about it...but maybe not. Or maybe they’re just ordinary fans.

Suppose they were Order members, or if nothing else, they refused the call when the Death Eaters tried to recruit them and spat in Voldemort’s face. Cue a Death Eater getting angry (I like to imagine it was Barty Jr, just for fun.) and trying to curse their son. Murphy’s father jumps in to try and push him out of the way. Taking the main blast of the curse. He later died from it, and Murphy lost all ability to use his legs. 

This could also explain why he prefers using his surname most of the time. He’s probably pretty damn proud to be his father’s son, and carry his name - even if it also hurts to remember. He might even feel like he’s letting his father down by being unable to play Quidditch, though his mother would naturally insist this wasn’t true. 

I’m not sure if the Wizarding World has a concept of Service animals, or if a person in a wheelchair would need or use a service animal, I’m not knowledgeable enough to know if that’s how it works. But I can see Hogwarts (definitely under Dumbledore’s rule) making an allowance for Murphy to bring Kneil to school for that reason. That may be why Murphy got Kneil in the first place, who knows.