#cormac once a year “yeah that should be good for a while’’

[jadedxrealityw]

-Rivals- Hermione Granger x Female Reader

    ☼-☪-☼

    Kody: I’m using the owls grading system for the story so if that’s not right, sue me i guess idk. 

    Movie/Show: Harry Potter, ignoring the storyline

    House/Year: Ravenclaw / 7th year

    Request:  Can I request a bold ravenclaw reader (her attitude almost could pass as a slytherin ngl) she's been Hermione's rival when it comes to grades and they DON'T get along very well. Reader is the opposite of mione's reserved personality. But rivals don't kiss and make out with each other secretly in the lavatory 😭 pls enemies to lovers (with some tension;) ykyk and then one day, they walk the great hall hand in hand and everyone is like don't they find each other insufferable?

    Possible Triggers/Warnings: if you don’t like lesbians get the hell off my page, sexual tension, enemies to lovers trope, cursing

    ☼-☪-☼

    love came unexpectedly at times, you learned that at young age from fairy tales and such. Well all kids did, but kids eventually grew up and came to the realization that fairy tales were exactly what they were, fairy tales. Fiction. Not real. 

    people could call you cold hearted or rude, but you would describe yourself as blunt or brutally honest. Never afraid to speak your mind or point out injustice when you saw fit. To put it simpler terms, professors at Hogwarts preferred you didn’t speak at times. 

    “Your too outspoken Ms. L/n” 

    “Stick to your academics Ms. L/n”

    “You wouldn’t be in detention so much so if kept your mouth shut Ms. L/n”

    merlin, you were exhausted of hearing your own last name. You guessed the only reason you weren’t reprimanded as worse as the Weasley Twins was because you were one of Hogwarts brightest witches, always excelled in academics, in every subject. 

    you couldn’t explain it to others even if you tried other then it just came naturally. Your parents, when they were attended Hogwarts were both just as naturally skilled in there studies as you were. So you must have inherited there ‘big brain’ as your mother said many times before.

    you were never one to gloat though, it was never your style. You were more humble about what you could accomplish. That was until she got involved. That egoistical, hypocritical, Gryffindor girl. Hermione Granger became the bane of your existence early into your fifth year. 

   until then Ms. Granger had been the top of all her classes, no one even came close to her intelligence, naming her ‘The Brightest Witch At Hogwarts’ and Hermione wore that title with pride. Being a Muggle born put a target on her head as well as stereotypes.

    most students and some staff almost immediately came to the conclusion she wasn’t capable of achieving goals that regular half or pure bloods could. It was a terrible way to think, but it was unfortunately the reality of being involved with the wizarding world. 

   Hermione was lucky to have friends like she did that cared about her no matter who she was or what she became, but it didn’t stop her need to feel validated in her academics. It was the one thing no one could giver her shit for, because she was the best at it and no one else was. 

   until that fateful fifth year that was mentioned earlier. It was the time when you finally got your mind and heart into your studie. You blew past most of the student body rather quickly, earning the title of the fastest turn around at Hogwarts.

    it was nice

    then it wasn’t, for Hermione of course 

    ☼-☪-☼

    fifth year / past

    “It seems we have two students with an Outstanding this time around” Professor Flitwick spoke as the exams from the previous week had landed neatly onto the wooden desk in front of you. “congratulations Ms. Granger and Ms. L/n”

    Hermione’s head perked up like a cat who had heard a bag of hard food shake from the nest room over, eager. She had never heard that name before, it didn’t come as much as an surprise though considering how big Hogwarts was. She leant to the left where Harry Potter sat. 

    “Who’s L/n? Do you know her?” she asked, casually though Harry knew her better then most. He gave her a half hearted shrug “No clue, try Ron” he suggests. Hermione nods once before leaning over to the right, where the Weasley sat, scowling at his exam. 

    “Mum’s going to kill me” he muttered, bringing no reaction to Granger’s face. He never studied. “Ron, do you know who this L/n is?” she repeated the question she gave to Harry. Ron turns his head away from the parchment and to Hermione. 

   his brows furrowed as he searches the corners of his mind for where he had heard the name from, until the visible light bulb popped over his head- well not so visible actually. “Oh um- Y/n L/n. she’s a Ravenclaw, her parents are certified geniuses. They work at the ministry. Department of magical education”

   his words did not soothe the wracking thought in the young Granger’s mind. “Certified geniuses?” Hermione echos. “If that’s so how come she’s only getting Outstandings now? she must have cheated somehow” she thought aloud. 

    “I surely didn’t cheat”

   like an owl Hermione’s head turned over her shoulder, her two Gryffindor pals doing the same. In her sight was a girl, her age, in a Ravenclaw robe. She had S/C skin with H/L H/C hair and E/C eyes that were staring back at her. Hermione was almost stunned into silence- keyword being almost. 

    “the explain the good grade all of the sudden, L/n?”

   you looked rather confused. You had never met the girl and she was accusing you of cheating because you had never gotten an Outstanding before? Was this a prank of some sort or fever dream? “I studied for once. You have no right accusing me, i don’t even know you that well”

    Harry placed a hand upon Hermione’s shoulder, signaling for her to stop before she caused a scene. Looking back, she should have listened “No right? I have a right to point out people who are just trying to cheat their way through school while people like us actually care about our grades”

    what the Gryffindor girl wasn’t expecting was for you to start laughing. Her friend, Cho Chang joining in, finding it just as equally hilarious. Hermione’s face turned just as bright as Ron’s hair. “What is so funny?” you and Cho slowly come to a stop, breathing in and out. 

    “what’s funny is that your ego is so incredibly large, so much so that it can’t comprehend that someone, not a Gryffindor either was able to match your intelligence. Now shove off ” you said it all with a grin on your face, because you certainly knew you were right. 

    and from that day, you both despised each other

    ☼-☪-☼

    seventh year / present

    and with every exam, every questioned called on by a teacher, you fastly became Hermione’s rival. It was a term Cho used, but you didn’t really see it that way since you weren’t competing with her. You never studied harder to make sure you got the same grade, never tried to sabotage her in any way. 

    you didn’t care much about it actually

    but you did quite enjoy her face, the way her nostrils flared up an her cheeks turned a bright red in anger. It was cute seeing her so mad. Sending er a wink or sly grin when she glared at you became a daily routine as well. When at first you ignored her you now loved annoying her.

    never having to say a word was probably your favorite part. 

    that’s probably when feelings began to mix into it, but you either didn’t notice or refuse to acknowledge them at all. You genuinely thought you hated this girl, so why in the world would you ever think you liked her? Makes sense, right? Were not even going to mention the questioning your sexuality.

    “Sit still while i pass out your exams from yesterday. Once you recieve your paper you may get up and leave” 

    “You think if Snape got laid he wouldn’t be such a prick?” the Slytherin boy spoke, leaning towards you. turning your head ever so slightly, you lock eyes with Draco “Why are you even sitting here?” you whisper back, giving him a mock astonished look.

   he rolls his grey eyes, shrugging his shoulders “You never talk to me outside of class anymore” he grumbles. Is he- Is this- What is happening? “That’s because your a little shit and pushed Neville in the hallway yesterday” yeh, you caught his dumbass. 

    Draco’s eyes widen a bit, not knowing you had been in the hallway during the crime. “You saw that?- what are you his protector?” he says, clearly as an insult, but oh little did he know that you were indeed exactly what he just said and would say it with pride.

    “Yes-”

    “Ms. L/n, Outstanding as usual as well Mr. Malfoy. Good work, the both of you” Snape places the exams in front of each of you, but you were both to busy staring in shock. This bitter, old, mean, crude man just compliment you. Merlin, you had finally gotten fathers approval

    (what in the fuck am i writing)

    “Is this heaven?” Draco questioned, staring bug eyed forward. 

    “No”

    “How do you know?”

    “Cormac is here”

    “Yeah your right, feelings over” both you and Draco sighed, turning to look at each other before laughing quietly. He was a pretty chill dude sometimes. “What!?” the loud screech filled your ears. All heads turned behind you, so you followed that and saw the one and only Hermione Granger. 

    she was huffing and puffing. You feared for the stick and straw houses in the world for a moment. Harry quickly stood up and pushed her shoulders down, forcing her back into her seat “I've never gotten an Exceeds Expectations before” Hermione sputters out. 

    she

    got

    what

    now?

    oh this was rich, absolutely hilarious, so much so that Draco had already began to laugh. “Poor Granger, guess you really aren’t the brightest witch” he taunted. Hermione looked up, glaring daggers at the Slytherin. Merlin, he had such a big mouth.

    then her brown eyes strayed to you, but you only pursed your lips together, providing her no emotion to work off of. In a haste, she collected her things, leaving the cursed exam on the table nd rushing out the door, both Ron and Harry calling out for her. 

    fuck

    standing up, you grab your bag and look down at Draco. His laughter comes to an end and he looks up at you “What?” he asked. You copied his dementor singers from third year, making him look at your hands. You took that time to reach down and flick his forehead. 

    he pulls away, his palm rubbing his head in circles “Bloody hell, what was that for?!” he exclaimed. What an idiot. “This is why we don’t hang out” you deadpan before finally going to exit the classroom, leaving a grumbling, mumbling Draco. Something about you being  ‘mean friend’

    ☼-☪-☼

    only having ten minutes until Charms class you began to search the halls. Merlin where had she run off too? The school wasn’t THAT big- okay maybe it was. You had almost called quits, making a mental note to check up on her during lunch when you passed the restroom.

    sniffling and crys were heard. You’ll admit, it kind off hurt to hear. Taking a few steps backwards, you use the palm off your hand to slowly push the door open so it wouldn’t creak like the old shit it was. When it was open just enough for you to fit through, you slip in. 

    gazing around, you see Hermione bent over the sink, sobbing. You could hear her voice becoming rougher by the second as she destroyed her vocal cords. “Granger?” you say, staying a few feet behind her. Hermione looks up in the mirror, spotting you behind her. 

    her distraught expression quickly shifted to anger “You” she seethed. Your eyebrows furrowed in confusion “Me?” you say back, crossing your arms. “Leave me the hell alone L/n!” she shouts, angry tears flooding down her cheeks. Raising your hands, you offer your surrender.

    “Shit, sorry. I was just trying to see if you were okay” you admit. Hermione turns on her heels, facing you directly this time before speaking “Oh so now your my friend, your a bully! All you do is step on my toes and try to make me look like a fool!”

    “Are you on fucking drugs Granger? Not once have i ever gone out my way to harm you of any sort. Your the one who is obsessed with trying to be better then me and i never gave a shit. I never wanted to be your rival for three years and i certainly never bullied you!”

    the words you spoke went out one of Hermione’s ears and out the other. For someone as smart as her, she could be quite dense when angry “You don’t get to play the saint, L/n! I have spent those three years studying as hard as i can and you don’t even have to try!” 

   throwing your hands up in the air a crazy person because she was honestly starting to make your brain hurt quite a bit, you laugh loudly “Oh my- no one asked you too! What is so wrong with us being the same?! ” you shouted, finally raising your voice as much as she had.

    “Because your not a Muggle! You don’t know what it’s like to have everyone you meet already assume your not worth their time just because your parents aren’t witches or wizards!” she crept towards you and which each step she took you took a step right the fuck back.

    this chick wasn’t going to hit you, right?

    “I have never judged you for your blood status Granger, i frankly could care less. What i do judge you for is you know, the giant ego thing” you spat back only causing her to gasp in offense “I do not have an ego!” she yells, stepping into your boundaries basically.

   you had tried to back up like before, but you were pressed up against a wall at this point. “Yes you do and it’s as big as Hagrid!” you reply. Hermione grabs the collar of your white uniform shirt, pulling you down a bit so her face was inches from yours, trying to intimidate you.

    “Take it back!” she threatens. In that moment your eyes scanned her face, noting her almost perfect skin, her brown eyes that looked more hazel up close then far away, and her lips. They looked so soft and inviting. You couldn’t quite understand why you were thinking like this all of the sudden.

    but it felt right, so right

    in a swift motion you place your lips on Hermione’s. You had thought she’d pull away, but only half a second later her arms were wrapped around your neck, pulling you as close as possible to her. You tangled one of your hands into her light brown wavy mess and the other pushed on the small of her back. 

    the kiss was messy and sloppy, not amount of anything really could make it appropriate. How did you two go from fighting to almost ripping each others uniforms off? A question no one could really answer but yourself as well Hermione. 

    it was over as soon as it began with Hermione pulling away, leaning her forehead against yours. You could make out the small smile on her face, it made you smile as well. “That was-” she started to speak, but was stopped by her own laughter. 

    “Yeah” you breathed out. What had just happened?

        ☼-☪-☼

    four months later

    ever since that day you and Hermione would casually meet up in the lavatory to kiss and feel up on each other after, btween, during classes. Anything really. You both had also not interacted at all outside of these visits. Just stayed away from each other as much as possible.

    most people thought you two had either made up after three years of rivalry or had decided to no longer interact with each other at all. Little did they know right? Speaking of that, you pull away from Hermione, panting for air “We have divination in three minutes” you spoke. 

   her face turned to worry instantly making you grin to yourself “Godric, i have to get out of here. Wait a couple minutes” she gathered her belongings and rushed out the restroom not even leaving you with an goodbye kiss. How rude. After about five minutes or so you leave as well

    once you get to class you look around the room and spot Hermione already sat with Harry and Ron on one side of the arch like sitting area for the students. “Y/n!” oh not again. Turning your head to the right, you spt the Slytherin boy with his mates.

   this guy just doesn’t quit. You plop yourself next to Draco Malfoy “I thought you were going to ignore me again” he admits. Ignoring his statement, you gaze around the people at your table “Where’s Parkinson? If i’m going to be stuck with you gits and Theo i rather it be with her” 

   Theo cracks a smile while Draco rolls his eyes “She’s sick, stuck in her dorms” he explains. You nod mindlessly and look over at Hermione. She was brushing through her hair with her fingers, trying to make it look like you weren’t tugging on it just minutes ago. 

    “What’s that on your neck?” Harry asks, moving the top part of Hermione’s robe with his finger, causing her to swat his hand away “It’s just a bug bite” she says with haste. quick thinking, that’s kinda cute. For some odd reason you liked seeing her explain her way out of a hickey that you gave her. 

    class soon started, but you kept your inventive gaze on her. It was adorable how she would catch you staring and turn a nice shade of red. It brought a smug smile to your face each time. Professor Trelawney had called upon Hermione to ask a question, but she seemed to be too busy avoiding your gaze. 

    “My dear, Ms. Granger” Trelawney said for maybe the third time until Hermione finally fell back down to reality. She looked at the Professor who gave her a kind smile “Oh um-” the Gryffindor put on a nervous smile, her eyes looking to you. You sent her a wink.

    merlin you were such an asshole

    Hermione looked at her lap, trying to muster up the words, any words actually. Her savior wore glasses “Hermione isn’t feeling to well. Can Ron and i take her to the hospital wing?” Harry asked. What a buzzkill. Trelawney nods, waving her hand to the direction of the door. 

    Harry tapped Hermione’s shoulder while Ron grabbed her things and off they went. 

        ☼-☪-☼

    a week later

    “I have to head to dinner, you should too. I saw that you didn’t eat during lunch” Hermione spoke, buttoning her uniform shirt. You smile, looking into the mirror so you could fix your hair “Watching me Granger?” you ask, turning away from your reflection.

    “You know i worry about your health” she said, which only made your smile wider “What is that stupid smile for?’ Hermione questions, an amused laugh in her tone. Shrugging, you lean against the sink counter “Stupid? I thought you liked my quote on quote ‘Goofy smile’” 

    Hermione shakes her head, grabbing her bag from the floor “I better see you at dinner or i’ll drag you there myself” she said playfully. An idea popped into your mind. “Then drag me” you smirk, tilting your head to the left. Hermione looks at you, shaking her head again. “You know i can’t”

    “Why not? It’s been four months. I would like to be your-” you stopped mid sentence. You both had never really gave each other labels before. It was always just the casual make out and flirting, but now you were much more. Fuck it “I would like to be your girlfriend in public”

    Hermione’s brow eyes went wide as she heard those words. It becoming a little too real. You saw her conflicted face and immediately felt some sort of shame. Averting your gaze to the ground, you take a deep breath. “Forget i said anything” 

    “No!- i mean. I’m ready. Plus i’m tired of being distracted by you during class” Hermione lightened the mood just a tad. You look back up at her, cracking a half smile “I’m most likely still going to distract you” you point out, making her chuckle. Cute.

    she inhales sharply “Let’s do this” she states confidently, letting out the breath. She reached out, opening her hand for you to grab. In that small gesture, you knew you would be with this woman for as long as you lived. Grabbing her hand, you intertwined your fingers with hers. 

    ☼-☪-☼

    hand in hand, you walk into the great hall. Heads turned and pupils dialated at the sight of you and Hermione walking in together. You honestly felt a little self conscious until you saw the bright smile of Cho and Luna as well as Draco who gave you a hidden thumbs up.

    both you and Hermione took  seat at the Gryffindor table. “So Hermione, how long as this been going on?” Harry asked. Hermione glances at you before her best friend “Four months, one week.” she said, gleaming with pride at her memory. 

    Harry looked taken aback at the time, but gave you both a smile “Well at least you both are getting along finally” he says, Ron nodding beside “Yeah- getting along” the Weasley jokes. You laugh a bit before leaning over to kiss the temple of Hermione's head. 

    rivals am i right?

        ☼-☪-☼

    Click here to join my Taglist so you never miss a new story from me!

    @the--queen-of-hell @sonbelleame @dracosathenaeum @queeriacs @marrymetheonott

    ☼-☪-☼

    Kody- Aye look its 10 am and i haven’t slept. Good night, my requests are open blah blah. Anyways, peace. 

[jobrookekarev]

The In-Laws

Chapter One of One

Words: 5970

Summary: When one of Meredith's dinner parties goes disastrously wrong, Meredith, Alex, Amelia, and Maggie go up to her room to drink and talk, while Jo, Link, Hayes, Winston, and the kids all hang out in the backyard as the in-laws talk together.

Fandom: Grey’s Anatomy.

Relationship: Meredith Grey/Cormac Hayes, Alex Karev/Jo Wilson, Atticus Lincoln/Amelia Shepherd, and Maggie Pierce/Winston Ndugu. 

Characters: Meredith Grey, Cormac Hayes, Alex Karev, Jo Wilson, Maggie Pierce, Winston Ndugu, Amelia Shepherd, Atticus Lincoln, Zola Grey Shepherd, Derek Bailey Shepherd, Ellis Shepherd, Liam Hayes, Austin Hayes, Scout Shepherd-Lincoln, and Luna Ashton-Wilson.

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences, 

Additional Tags: Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Kids, Dinner Parties, Drinking (Mentioned), Babies, Pregnancy, Labor, Ice Cream, and S’mores. 

Read at AO3

Read at FFN

AN: I've had this one in my draft box for a long time and I finally just got around to finishing it. I hope you all enjoy it.

……………………………………………………………………

“Hey, good you're all here,” Meredith said as she came and the attending’s lounge.

Everyone was eating lunch. Link and Amelia were with Scout in a highchair next to Cormac, while a pregnant Jo and Maggie sat on the couch with Winston, Alex, and Luna. 

“So, as you all know, Carolyn, Derek's mother, is coming to town next weekend,” Meredith said, folding her hands together as she stood in front of the group.

“Yep, we've got it all planned out,” Link said, as he offered some of his pasta to one-year-old Scout. “We’ll have a dinner party, where she will get to meet her new grandson, and the other kids get to play with Grandma before following up with desserts and a quick exit, short, simple, and fun.”

“And our emergency get away excuse is an MVC in the ER with encephalitis and multiple broken bones,” Amelia said with a smile as she fed Scout another spoon full of applesauce.

“Either that or Jo going into labor, it depends on the situation,” Link said as he and Jo exchanged a look of agreement.

“We have a secret text code and everything,” Jo said as she nodded and she rubbed her eight-month pregnant belly while Alex bounced Luna in his arms.

“I, for one, am looking forward to meeting your ex-mother-in-law,” Cormac said with a smile as he looked over at Meredith. 

The two of them had been dating for a little while, and although things were still new they were beginning to introduce each other to the other’s extended families. 

“Well, plans have kinda changed,” Meredith said, a little hesitant before she dropped the bomb on them. “Your sisters got word of Carolyn's trip, and now Nancy is tagging along with her family, kids and all.”

“Nancy is coming!” Amelia said, putting down the spoon and sitting up.

“I've met Nancy. Are you sure this is a good idea?” Link asked, looking between Amelia and Meredith. 

“Yeah, she did spend the entire time she was here calling me a slut,” Meredith countered despite the hesitant look on her face. 

“This is bad,” Amelia said as she started to freak out. “Nancy is the worst of them all.”

“She also wants her kids to spend more time with their cousins,” Meredith argued. “And I don't think she'd do anything too bad with the kids around.”

“So you're okay with her comparing her perfect kids to our four messy kids because that is exactly what she's going to do,” Amelia said, pointing the spoon at Meredith to make her point. 

“Well, Luna's a bit fussy, so we should go put her down for a nap,” Alex said despite the completely calm baby in his arms as he got up off the couch and pulled Jo up with him. 

“Wait, just hang on for a second,” Meredith said to him, holding up her hand.

“Why none of this concerns us?” Alex said, of course, as Meredith’s best friend, he was willing to go to dinner with her and her family, but not if he could avoid it.

“Well, I was hoping to make a dinner party out of it and extend the invitation to you, Jo, Maggie, and Winston as well,” Meredith said, plastering on a smile and trying to seem like it was a good idea.

“No, that is a terrible idea,” Jo said, looking over at her wide eyed.

“It can't be that bad, I’ll make my lasagna, and I think it would be nice to meet Derek's mom and his other sisters,” Maggie said with a shrug, that jostling Winston from where he had pressed his head against her five-month pregnant belly. “Sorry, honey.”

“My other sisters are nothing like Derek and I,” Amelia added angrily, staring at the applesauce before Link put his arm around her shoulders.

“Exactly,” Jo said, nervously rubbing her belly. “And besides, every time we have a dinner party at your place, it ends in disaster.”

“That's not true,” Alex said, only for Jo to give him a look. 

“Oh really, what about the dinner party a couple of years ago where Callie brought Penny?”

“That was an extenuating circumstance,” Meredith countered.

“What about that game night that you tried to host two years ago? Half of you didn't show up, which I guess it's a good thing as I heard from Jackson that it was a huge disaster,” Jo said, waving her arm around gesturing to the magnitude of the disaster.

“Again, there were kind of extenuating circumstances there,” Maggie argued again before Jo cut her off.

“What about all the times we tried to get together the year Meredith was gone or that time your mom came into town and made lasagna. This group and dinner parties have a bad track record, and this is one train wreck that I do not want to be a part of.”

“Well, suck it up, Karev. You're part of the family now, and that means whether you like it or not, we are all going to at least attempt to have a nice time at this dinner party,” Meredith said, glaring at Jo before she looked over at everybody else. “So, is everyone on board?”

“I think we can make it work,” Maggie agreed with a nod from Winston. 

“I will help you cook, and I'm sure we can prevent any disasters,” Winston said, kissing Maggie's cheek before he leaned down and kissed her stomach.

“I'll be there,” Cormac said, getting up and putting his hand on Meredith's back. “And I'll do everything in my power to make sure things go over smoothly.” 

“What do you think?” Link asked as he looked over at Amelia.

“I am going to reserve my right to bail at a moment's notice and there better be cake,” Amelia said, pointing to Meredith, who nodded in a quick agreement.

“I think we can make it too,” Alex said, looking over at Jo for confirmation. “I’ll rub your feet and change all of Luna’s dirty diapers for a week.”

“Okay fine,” Jo said, crossing her arms before pointing a finger at Meredith. “But when everything goes to hell, and you, Alex, Maggie, and Amelia are all falling apart upstairs drinking and eating cake because shit hit the fan. I'm going to be in the backyard with your kids and getting them hopped up on candy.”

“You can't feed my baby candy Jo,” Amelia said, looking over at her.

“He’s a year old, I can feed him ice cream,” Jo countered, raising her eyebrow over at Amelia as Link laughed before Amelia silenced him with a look.

“Well, you better keep the candy in your car, Karev, because you're not going to need it. This dinner party is going to be great!” Meredith insisted as if she was trying to convince herself.

She gave Cormac a quick kiss before she left and Alex raced after her and followed her out of the room. 

“Are you sure that this is a good idea? I mean, I know your ex-mother-in-law is pretty nice, but Jo’s kinda right about our history with dinner parties.”

“It's just Carolyn, and she's on good terms with both Amelia and me, and Nancy has promised to be on her best behavior,” Meredith insisted with an optimistic smile that definitely looked out of place. “It's going to be great.”

It was not, in fact, great. 

Jo balanced the four cartons of ice cream in her arms. She pulled out the bottle of tequila from the fridge for Meredith and the bottle of sparkling cider for Amelia and Maggie and handed both to Alex. She slowly walked over to the drawer to grab a hand full of spoons and balanced the bowls in her other arm. Given what happened that night, she figured that all the kids deserve endless ice cream.

“Why don't I help you with those,” Alex said, he held Luna in one arm and reaching out to take the ice cream carton from her before she turned away.

“No, set Luna down, and go and take the drinks upstairs and comfort Meredith. She needs you right now. I got ice cream. I’m fine,” Jo said, shoving him off with her hips and a wave of her hand.

Alex tilted his head and smiled as he took the drinks and set Luna down. She toddled over to the back door, calling out for Scout. “Out, out?” 

“Lu Lu,” Scout called out to her as she giggled and waved her arms excitedly as she walked into the backyard.

She had started walking a few weeks ago, and since then, Jo and Alex could barely keep up with her. They knew that all of the adults and older kids outside would keep an eye out for her until Jo came out. They both watched Luna through the window for a moment as she and Scout met in a hug. 

“Are you sure it's okay?” Alex asked again, catching her before she moved to follow Luna as he reached out and placed his hands on her belly. “I should probably help you out with the kids, Mer will be fine with just Maggie and Amelia.”

“Alex, I told you it's fine. Meredith isn't stealing you away from me. You're helping out our friend now go,” Jo said as she grabbed the bowls and waddled towards the laundry room to head out to the backyard. 

“Are you at least going to say I told you so?” 

“Maybe next week, once the sting wears off,” Jo said as she turned around to look at him with a smirk before she opened the screen door. 

Jo waddled out into the backyard where Link, Hayes, and Winston, were calming down the kids. They were all upset at the things Nancy had said to Meredith, especially Zola. With the bowls in one hand and the ice cream in the other also balanced on her belly, Jo felt the baby kick against the ice cream shuffling the stack of cartons. 

“I know it's kind of cold, just hang on, squirt,” Jo said as she put the ice cream on the table and sat back in the lounge chair.

With extra reassurance, cuddles, and ice cream, the kids were doing better. Soon all of them were scattered around the yard. Zola was eating ice cream in the chair next to her while Bailey and Ellis were playing on the play center with Liam and Austin. Jo sat with her carton of rocky road as she fed Luna and Scout a spoonful. She watched her daughter and godson take in the cold treat with wide eyes and exciting squeals. As soon as they were finished with their bite, they would open their mouths and silently demanded more. Their little bodies were vibrating with the amount of sugar.

“Are you sure they're okay up there? What Nancy said was pretty harsh, maybe I should go talk to Meredith,” Cormac asked as he took a step towards the house.

“No, they're fine, trust me, if they wanted us up there, we would be, but they just need some time to talk it out amongst themselves,” Jo said, as she fed Luna another spoonful of ice cream.

“I just feel awkward and a little out of place standing around here. I know Meredith and I have only just started dating, but I feel like I should be there for her more,” Cormac said, staring down at his bowl.

“Yeah, I get that,” Link said, with a nod as he ate some of his own ice cream. “But you were there and stood up for Meredith in front of Nancy when it counted and she appreciates that, but now she needs time to complain about it with her brother and sisters.” 

“How long do you think before they're dancing out?” Jo asked, tilting her head up to look at the room where they were all probably still drinking.

“I give it thirty minutes tops,” Link said with a shrug. 

“Might be a bit more than that,” Winston said as he took a sip of his beer. “I know how Maggie gets when she's angry, she can rant for at least a half-hour.”

“Yeah, she's pretty good at bringing the thunder,” Jo said as they all chuckled. 

She looked around the backyard and smiled. A few years ago, it would have just been her heading back to the loft alone, maybe with Stephanie, maybe not, but now she had Link and Cormac and Winston. Alex, Meredith, Amelia, and Maggie had always been their own little family, and Jo now realized she had her own little in-law party tonight. 

“Hey, Aunt Jo,” Zola said, coming over with an empty bowl and putting it on the side table. “Can I use your phone and run inside and grab my speaker so we can have our own dance party?”

“You can use my phone Zola, I've got a really cool playlist I'm sure you'll like,” Liam offered, coming over and pulling out his phone and handing it over to Zola. 

“Yeah, that sounds fun,” Jo said before Zola ran inside to grab her speaker. 

“I hope this playlist of yours isn't too offensive?” Cormac warned Liam. 

“Relax. It's all clean music, I promise,” Liam said as he held up his arms in defense.

“They seem to be getting along pretty well,” Link noted as Zola came back out, and they set up the speaker together.

“Yeah, sometimes a little too well,” Cormac said as Liam and Zola giggled together.

The four of them sat there eating ice cream and talking as they watched the kids run around and dance to the music. It was so adorable to watch Scout and Luna dance to the music. However, it was a little embarrassing when Luna started twerking something Jo had definitely not taught her how to do. 

“Hey Liam, what song is this?” Link asked as he sat up his head lately bopping to the music.

“Um, It's,” Liam paused as he checked his phone. “It’s Sam Smith’s, Make It To Me.”

“Nice, I’ll have to add it to my playlist for tomorrow's surgery,” Link said as he added it to his phone as he looked over at her and raised his eyebrows. “A surgery you could get in on too, Jo. I need a general surgeon.”

“Or you could get in on one of my cases’ the next time I deliver a baby with a broken collar bone,” Jo suggested, smirking at him as she glanced back at Luna just in time to see when I reach for the bullet ice cream almost tipping it on to herself before Jo pulled it out of her reach. 

“Ah, that's more of just a Ped’s case,” Link said with a shrug.

“I don't know. It's always good to get a second opinion and you are the bone expert,” Cormac said, tilting his head at Link and taking a sip of his beer.

“Yeah, I just miss working with you. It seems like I never see you anymore,” Link complained with a pout. 

“I miss working with you too,” Jo said, sharing his pout. “But it's not like we don't see each other all the time. We still have our Wednesday night playdates and Waffle Sunday.”

“Yeah, but that's with the kids. It's never just the two of us,” Link said with a sigh as Scout came over to him and he picked up his son. “I love our kids, and I love that they're such good friends, but I miss having adult time with my best friend.”

“I miss you too,” Jo said, looking over at him. She rubbed her belly as she felt her baby move around inside of her. “Well, it's not just going to be the two of us, but why don't we carpool to work tomorrow and let Alex and Amelia drive the kids. Then we can get breakfast at the coffee stand before work.”

“Sounds good,” Link said as he gave her a fist bump. 

“Luna and Scout’s friendship is just so cute. They're definitely going to grow up and be best friends,” Winston said with a smile as he watched them play together on the grass. “I hope our baby has that.” 

“Don't worry, I got you,” Jo said, pointing at her stomach as all of the boys laughed. 

“Yeah, it's nice that all of our kids are around the same age and will be in the daycare together,” Winston said, walking over to sit next to her.

“You know, when Amelia told me she was pregnant, I kind of hoped that you and Alex would have a baby too so that our kids could grow up together,” Link that with a smile as he watched Luna and Scout dance together. The two of them had grabbed onto each other's arms and were swaying together. 

“Was this before or after you freaked out?” Jo said, raising an eyebrow over at him as the boys Winston and Cormac chuckled.

“It was an unplanned pregnancy. I think I'm allowed to freak out a little bit!” Link said, holding up his hand in defense.

“See, that's the hard thing about moving when your kids are older. They lose touch with their friends, but I’m glad Liam and Austin have always been able to make friends here, although I know they miss their friends back in Switzerland.” Hayes said as he watched his boys play with Zola and Bailey.

“Good friends always have a way of coming back to you,” Jo said as she and Link exchanged a smile. 

“Which is why you should scrub in on the surgery with me,” Link said as he leaned forward in his chair.

“I'll think about it,” Jo said, and she did mean it because as much as she loved OB, but there were parts of surgery that she did miss.

“What we need is a case that we can all work together,” Hayes said, leaning forward in his chair. 

“Oh yeah, that would be so cool,” Winston said as Jo and Link nodded. 

“It'd have to be a pretty specific case,” Jo said that she thought about it. “Like a baby with osteogenesis imperfecta and Mom with a bad heart or something.”

“We could probably all work together on a case with a mom and baby with Achondroplasia,” Link said as he snapped his fingers.

“Yeah, that could be possible,” Winston said, lifting his shoulder in a half shrug. “But that doesn't necessarily mean there's a heart issue.”

“It's going to be a needle in a haystack to find a case, but it would be fun for the four of us to work together,” Hayes said, crossing his arms.

“Well, I'll definitely keep an eye out and hopefully, we get to work together before the two of you go on maternity leave,” Link said, looking over at her and Winston.

“It might have to be after my maternity leave. I don't know how much longer this one's going to stay put,” Jo said as she rubbed her belly again when the baby kicked her. At 36 weeks along, she was ready to be done with her pregnancy.

“Speaking of which, did you and Alex finish the paperwork for your maternity leave.  Maggie and I went over it this afternoon, but it’s just so complicated. You think two world-class surgeons would be able to figure it out, but it's a little beyond us,” Winston said with a shake of his head.

“Yeah, Alex and I struggled with it when we took leave after we adopted Luna and we put in the paperwork for our leave this time around last month. If you want, I could go over it with you tomorrow at lunch,” Jo offered with a shrug, she remembered how dumbfounded Alex was with the paperwork the first time around, and the two of them had spent an embarrassing amount of time trying to figure it out.

“Yeah, thanks,” Winston said, clearly relieved as he relaxed back into his chair.

The four of them continued talking as they watched the kids dance. The warm evening sunset turned into a chilly evening, and they turned on the porch lights and started a campfire getting out marshmallows and making S'mores for the kids. It had been a few hours since the dinner ended and she could tell the boys were getting anxious. Yet, she wasn't too worried, and she knew how these things could go.

“They've been up there quite a while. Should we be concerned?” Winston asked, looking up at the window where the light was on, but none of them could see the shadows through the blind. 

Jo didn't realize that they were staring at her as she had her eyes closed and was breathing out and rubbing her stomach as she had a Braxton Hicks contraction. 

“Jo, are you okay?” Link asked, getting up and coming to sit next to her, putting his hands over hers on her belly. 

Jo smiled as her baby rewarded their Uncle Link with a soft kick against her belly. “I'm fine. It’s just another Braxton Hicks. I've been getting them more frequently these days. What did you ask Winston?”

“I just thought that maybe one of us should go up there and check on them?” Winston said, stared up at the window and absentmindedly picked at the paper on his beer bottle.

“It's probably best just to let them talk it all out,” Jo said as Link nodded in agreement. “Or else Meredith is going to end up in our bed tonight?”

“Wait, what?” Cormac asked, his eyebrows shooting up into his wrinkled forehead.

“Yeah, Meredith does this thing where she comes over to talk to Alex and crawls in bed next to us. She did it after you guys introduced the kids a few weeks ago,” Jo said before she took in Cormac's hesitant look. “Don't worry. It’s completely platonic, if not a bit annoying. They used to kick me out of bed while I was naked.” 

“Wait, you were naked?” Link asked, he had heard the story before, but Jo had left that detail out.

“Yeah, she used to toss me whatever shirt was lying on the ground and rip the covers off of me so she could sit next to Alex,” Jo said, waving her hand and trying to dismiss the conversation. 

“And Alex let her do that?” Link asked, and Jo could tell that he was shifting into protective big brother mode, so she put a hand on his chest and shook her head.

“Only because Alex was more of a pushover back then and Meredith trampled all over him. It's better now. These days she just crawls in bed next to me and steals all the blankets,” Jo said with a laugh as she remembered how Meredith had crawled into bed with them a couple of days ago. She had woken up in the middle of the night to pee, only to realize that she was sandwiched in between Meredith and Alex. 

“Yeah, she does this thing where she grabs the blankets and holds them close to her chest and almost to cocoons herself,” Cormac said with a soft smile on his face. “But sometimes, she'll share her cocoon with me.”

“Eww, Dad, we did not need to know that!” Austin said, making a face from where he was making a S’more with Bailey.

“Sorry,” Cormac said, holding up his hands. 

“Maggie does the same thing with her blanket, except she just rolls around when she's asleep until she's a burrito, and sometimes only her head sticks out,” Winston said, getting this far off look of love on his face. “Which is why I think we work together since I love the cold and sometimes only end up sleeping with a sheet.”

“I’m the opposite. Sometimes I’ll just spread out like a starfish. I kinda take up the whole bed, much to Amelia's annoyance, but she does the same thing too, and sometimes I'll wake up with her on top of me with her foot in my face,” Link said, yet he had a happy smile on his face. “So, of course, Scout does the same thing. That's why he loves the crib, as now he can stretch out. He's got to be able to starfish without any of his limbs touching sides.”

“Luna’s like me, she likes to curl up on her side, and Alex is a little in-between. Usually, he sleeps on his back straight as a plank, but then sometimes, I'll wake up, and he will have rolled over in the middle of the night to cuddle up against me. Which is nice, except for the fact that he runs hot, especially at night. It’s like a human sized furnace sleeping next to me. So I've got him up against my back and then this little one up in my ribs, and if she gets out of her crib, Luna will be up against my chest, and I'm trapped,” Jo said with a shake of her head as she affectionately rubbed her belly and smiled down at Luna who was asleep on her chest. 

“I like cuddling with you and Luna, Auntie Jo. You’re both so warm and snuggly,” Ellis said, joining the conversation as she came over and crawled up next to Jo and rested her head on her belly as Jo wrapped her arms around her. 

“I like snuggling with you too, Ellis,” Jo said, wrapping her arms around her and pressing a kiss to her forehead as Ellis’ eyes fluttered shut.

It was getting late, but it was also a Saturday, and none of the other kids seemed to mind the later hours as they kept playing and roasting marshmallows. Luna had passed out an hour ago, and after she passed out, Cormac took Ellis upstairs and put her to bed. Jo wished she could join them and fall asleep as well. The peaceful night lulled her to sleep, but her Braxton Hicks contractions kept her awake.

“Okay, maybe one of us should go and check on them. It’s getting pretty late,” Link said as he walked around the yard with Scout as he tried to get the toddler to sleep. 

“I doubt any of them are going to come out anytime soon. Most likely, they're still holed up in there with their drinks,” Cormac said, glancing up at the window as well. 

“We could fake an emergency? That would get them out,” Winston offered with a shrug.

“Yeah, we could say that Jo is in labor?” Cormac asked, raising his eyebrows over at her.

“Your Braxton Hicks were pretty strong earlier. How are you doing now?” Link asked, looking back at her in concern.

“I’m fine!” Jo insisted a little too loudly as Luna let out a sigh, but thankfully, remained asleep. Jo rubbed her hand up and down Luna’s back before she whispered. “They’re not so bad, but let’s not lie and say I’m in labor. I don’t want Alex to freak out again. A week ago, I had a few close Braxton Hicks contractions, and he was sure I was in labor. So he freaked out, running around and talking about all the baby stuff we didn't have yet.”

“Oh yes, I remember it was quite funny to watch,” Cormac said with a laugh, and the rest of the guys had a chuckle as well.

“Yeah, funny for you to watch. Not so funny for me to have to put up with. He was anxious for the rest of the night,” Jo said as she huffed and their chuckling tapered off.

“I’m sure I'll be calm when the time comes. We’ve got everything planned out, so I feel good about it,” Winston said, with a nod, looking sure about it.

Jo, Cormac, and Link all laughed before they exchanged a look. Jo glanced over to the older kids that were playing on the swing set. She didn't want to freak out any of the kids, but they were far enough away that it could work if they didn't play it up too much. So as Link came over to take Luna from her, Jo closed her eyes as she tended up and pretended to have a fake contraction. 

“Are you sure you're okay, Jo? That one looked a bit strong,” Cormac said after she pretended it passed and although he seemed a little too happy to be genuinely concerned.

“It was,” Jo said as she decided to pull out the fake tears, which was actually easier for her to do now that she was so hormonal and was something she absolutely did not abuse in any way. “Guys, I think it might be wise for one of you to go get Alex. I think I might actually be in labor.” 

“Oh my god,” Link said as he and Cormac rushed over to her, played along. Although when she looked up at Link, he was biting his lip to keep from smiling.

“Oh my god!” Winston said, jumping up from his seat and dropping his beer that spilled on the grass as he rushed over to her as well. 

“Alright, Karev, take it easy,” Cormac said as he came over and helped her stand up, letting her lean into him as she pretended to have another contraction.

“Okay, okay, nobody panic,” Winston said, holding up his hands, clearly panicking. “Okay, okay, we need towels, and hot water, and your hospital bag, and Dr. DeLuca, and the hospital!” 

Winston ran around the fire once before he started to head towards the house before coming back and then running back again. He ran around like a madman and Jo wasn't sure how long they should let this go. She didn't want to panic Alex or the kids, but it was so funny to watch. Cormac and Link could barely contain themselves, and Jo let out a cry of pain as she faked another one, biting her lip to contain her giggles. However just as Winston ran to go into the house, Link burst out laughing. He laughed so hard that he had to bend over and put down Luna to hold his sides. They all dropped the act and Jo stood up straighter and started laughing along. 

Winston paused still in his panic before catching on and glaring at them as he walked back over. “Okay real funny, guys.”

“Dude, the look on your face,” Link said as he imitated Winston’s look before adopting a high-pitched voice. “Oh my god! Get hot water! Get some disinfectant! Get some Iodine!” 

“You were worse than Alex was,” Jo said, she had to lean into Cormac because the two of them were all howling with laughter. 

“I've seen a lot of panicked fathers in my time and it's never not hilarious,” Cormac said as he laughed so hard, he snorted. 

“What's so funny?” Bailey asked, coming over to them as they just continued giggling like school children. 

Winston set them with a glare as he sat back down and pouted in his chair. He swiped a new beer before picking up his old one and setting the empty bottle on the side table. Their laughter tapered off and Cormac helped Jo sit back down in the lounge chair as Link handed her Luna, who had thankfully slept through the whole thing.

“I don't be so hard on yourself,” Link said as he reached out to put a hand on Winston’s shoulder. “It's better to get it out of your system now than to be freaked out when Maggie really does go into labor.”

“Link’s right. When Maggie does go into labor, you need to take a deep breath and not panic because if you panic, she is going to panic, and that's the last thing both of you need,” Jo said with a smile as she shook her head. 

“Parenting is the most terrifying thing you could ever do, but if you come at it with a level head, you'll do all right,” Cormac said with a nod as he glanced over at his two boys.

“If you guys want a thank you for this little stunt, you’ll be waiting a long time,” Winston said with a shake of his head, but he smiled as they all laughed again.

The screen door slammed and startled all of them as they looked back to see Meredith, Amelia, Alex, and Maggie come out of the house. 

“Hi, Mom,” Zola said, running over to her and giving her a big hug. “I hope you're feeling better.”

“I am Zo Zo, and I see you’re doing good too,” Meredith said as she swung her arm over Zola’s shoulders as they walked over.

“We made S’mores and I saved one for you,” Zola said, holding one up for her.

“That's great, thank you,” Meredith said as she hugged her daughter before wobbling a little as Cormac caught her around her waist.

“Oh, the baby and I want a S'more,” Maggie said, her eyes going wide. Winston had got up to hug her and let her take his seat. “Do you think it goes well with cheese?”

Everyone chuckled as Amelia went over to Link, and he passed Scout over to her before wrapping his arms around her waist as they silently greeted each other with a kiss.

Finally, Alex came up to her, falling to his knees in the grass next to her as he leaned in and pressed his nose into her neck, getting tangled up in her hair. “Umm, your hair smells nice.”

Jo smiled as she turned to look at him. His eyes were glazed over and he had this big dopey smile. He leaned in to give her a sloppy wet kiss and she just giggled when he pulled back. She didn't mind that he was completely drunk because of how adorable and happy he looked.

“Come here,” Jo said as she gently scooted forward so as not to jostle Luna.

Alex climbed in behind her as he wrapped his arms around her, placing both of them on her belly as their baby rewarded their dad with a few kicks, and Alex giggled. “There's a fish in your belly.” 

“It's not a fish. It’s a baby,” Jo said with a laugh. “Remember, you put them in me.” 

“I did?” Alex said as she turned her head back to look at his wide eyed expression. “I love babies, and our baby is going to be so cute, just like Luna. She's so cute, Jo. Sometimes I just look at her, and my heart melts like, like ice cream. She’s like ice cream.”

“Yeah, she is,” Jo said as he ran his fingers through Luna’s short blonde hair. They settled in and she leaned her head back against his chest as he rested his chin on her shoulder. 

“How are you doing?” Jo caught Hayes asking Meredith as they stood by the fire while Zola made her another S'more.

Meredith gave a noncommittal response, but Amelia spoke up from where she was sitting with Link and holding Scout. 

“We talked shit, and they drank, and we danced, so we're doing a lot better,” Amelia said, giving Link a smile as she leaned in to kiss him again. “Thanks for looking after the kids and stuff.”

“Yeah, thank you,” Meredith added, looking around at all of them as she patted Hayes’s cheek.

“No problem,” Jo said with a shrug. “We kind of had our own little dance party too.”

“Did you have fun,” Alex asked, his voice hot in her ear. 

“Yeah, we did,” Jo said, looking around and catching Winston, Link, and Hayes’ eyes. “We had a lot of fun.”

[chudleycanonficfest]

Lover

Day 8, Story #2 is by @adenei

Title: Lover (or, five times Lavender felt Ron slipping away, and the one time she didn't)

Author: adenei

Pairing: Ron Weasley x Lavender Brown, but also heavy insinuations on Ron x Hermione 

Prompt: 5+1

Rating: T (for fabricated insinuations)

TW: Teen heartbreak and all the drama that comes with it.

Author's note: While I am primarily a Romione writer, I could not get this idea out of my head. So, here's a little Lav redemption. After all, she was only a girl who fell for a boy and pursued a perfectly unattached boy.

******

9 November 1996

I think he knows his hands around a cold glass 

Make me wanna know that body like it’s mine.

-I Think He Knows

The Gryffindor common room was aglow in crimson and gold, filled to capacity for the celebration of today’s victory against Slytherin. Seamus and Dean managed to smuggle in a boatload of Butterbeer for everyone, which masked the two bottles of Firewhisky Seamus was passing around their inner circle. Parvati and Lavender were lounging in the same armchair on the far side of the room.

  Lavender’s never been one to pay close attention to a Quidditch match. Sure, she was all about the parties and house spirit following a match, and if Hogwarts had a cheer squad, she’d be the first person to sign up. But sitting in the stands, watching a match for an indeterminable amount of time? She could think of at least five other things to do that didn’t involve the wind claiming victim to her hair as players whizzed by on broomsticks.

  Now that they were inside and out of the crisp November air, she could enjoy the party with her friends. Though, it’d be much more enjoyable if a certain redhead would stop flashing a grin in her direction and just come over to talk to her instead.

  “You're staring again,” Parvati chided.

  Lavender sighed in response. She couldn’t help it. He’d filled out over the summer, and Quidditch training had been kind to his physique. Red hair wasn’t a feature she ever gravitated to in the past, but freckles and those bright blue eyes were her downfall. Not to mention his infectious smile and the way he was always able to make everyone around him laugh. Ron Weasley was a good guy, and Lavender wanted to get to know him better.

  “He’s single, right?” Her fingers twirled her curly blonde hair between her fingers as she watched him take a swig of Butterbeer from the cold glass in his hands.

  “As single as the last time you asked me,” Parvati responded with an air of nonchalance in her tone.

  Lavender wasn’t surprised by her bored tone. There was only so much they could talk about when it came to Ron, considering neither knew that much about him. She contemplated Parvati’s response, weighing the options of trying to pursue something. A voice in the back of Lavender’s mind was screaming at her to ask what her other roommate’s thoughts were on the matter concerning Lavender asking Ron out, but Hermione was nowhere to be found. 

  Besides, did it really matter what she thought? Hermione has had all the time in the world to make a move on Ron if she really wanted to. She had no claim on the redheaded Gryffindor. As far as Lavender knew, he was fair game, and at the rate Ron kept glancing in her direction, she was sure it meant something.

  So, Lavender swiped the bottle of Firewhisky from the space between Parvati’s legs and the arm of the chair, where she’d been keeping it hidden, and took a large swig. She’d need the liquid courage for what she’d just decided to do.

  “What are you—” Parvati started to ask before Lavender cut her off.

  “I’m going for it.”

  Without another thought, Lavender hopped off the chair and marched over to Ron, who had just set his empty glass down on the table behind him. She still hadn’t made up her mind about whether she was going to say anything or not and let the wide lopsided grin that erupted on his face decide for her when he saw her approaching.

  “Hey, Lavender! What’d you think of the—”

  Lavender didn’t wait to hear the rest of Ron’s question as she threw her arms around his neck and planted a kiss on his lips. His eager response paired with his hands finding a home on her hips egged her on as she refused to break the kiss right away. It was sloppy, and he was inexperienced, but he didn’t pull away at her advances. 

  I can teach him a thing or two and whip him into boyfriend material in no time.

  When they finally did pull apart, it was to a chorus of catcalls around the room. A coy smile passed over her lips as she asked, “should we find someplace a little more private?”

  ♚

20 December 1996

  Kiss me once, cause I know you had a long night

Kiss me twice ‘cause it’s gonna be alright

Three times ‘cause you waited your whole life

~Paper Rings

  “So, what do you want to do tonight?” 

  Lavender bounced up and down on the sofa next to Ron. It was the last night before the Christmas hols, and she wanted to make the most of it since she wouldn’t get to kiss him for two weeks. But something was off. Ron seemed distracted, and he kept looking past her, which was beginning to grate on Lavender’s nerves.

  “Er, I don’t know. I’ve got a lot of packing to do still, so I’m not sure if we should really—”

  Lavender was taken aback as Ron threw himself at her, lips clashing together even though he was just in the middle of telling her he was too busy to do anything. Lavender cracked an eyelid open to see Hermione shoot them a disgusted look as she crossed the room and waited by the portrait hole. She clamped her eyes shut a moment later when she sensed Ron’s twitch.

  She wasn’t going to complain about snogging her boyfriend in the middle of the common room, but she kept her ears open.

  “Ah, Granger, looking delicious as ever.”

  Hermione was going to the party with Cormac? She must really be desperate to want to go with that sleazeball. 

  “Let’s get going,” Hermione responded in her usual clipped tone. “I’d rather not be in the vicinity of that much longer.”

  Lavender tried not to be offended by Hermione’s icy words. Ron didn’t deserve to be treated like rubbish, and neither did she. It’s not like Hermione had laid any claim on Ron. She tried to refocus her attention on the snog, but Ron pulled away as soon as the portrait hole closed.

  Huh, well, that was odd.

  “Well, I should go and get packed, then. I’ll see you in the morning?”

  What just happened? Is he really going upstairs after snogging me like that? 

  Lavender was thoroughly confused by Ron’s actions. Nothing seemed to match up tonight, and she didn’t want to leave things like this at the train station tomorrow. She needed to know what was going through his mind.

  “Won-Won, what’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Doesn’t seem like ‘nothing'. Why’d you start snogging me when Hermione came down the stairs?”

  “What? I can’t snog my girlfriend? It had nothing to do with Hermione.”

  Ron sounded convincing, but Lavender was still hesitant to believe it.

  “Are you sure? 

  “Yes.”

  Lavender noticed how Ron’s ears turned a bright shade of pink and wondered if he was hiding something. Even if he was, he was her boyfriend, and she decided to trust him. Switching gears, Lavender asked him the other question that was weighing on her mind.

  “Not that I care who Hermione’s going to the Slug Club party with, but why McLaggen? Everyone in Gryffindor knows to stay away from him.”

  “Dunno. Why do you say that?”

  “You don’t know? McLaggen doesn’t like to be told ‘no’.”

  “He—what?” Ron groaned and rubbed the back of his neck while his nostrils flared in annoyance. Or was it anger?

  “I’m sure she’ll be fine.”

  “Yeah, well, she shouldn’t be going with him in the first place.”

  “Why?” Lavender peered intently at Ron, waiting for an answer.

  His cheeks were flushed as he shook his head, eyes darting to the boy’s staircase as if he was looking for an escape.

  “Er, no reason…”

  “Won-Won,” warned Lavender.

  “I—er, I think I was supposed to go with Hermione tonight.”

  “Excuse me?”

  Lavender sensed his immediate attempt to backpedal the conversation before he even spoke. He was already standing and moving around to the backside of the sofa. Even as he attempted an explanation, Lav gathered the impression that he was trying to convince himself more so than her.

  “Well, she never officially asked me! Besides, we got into a huge row, and now I’m with you, so it doesn’t matter. Look, Lav, I’m tired, and I’ve got a lot to do. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  Without another word, Ron disappeared up the boy’s staircase, which left Lavender on the sofa, reeling at his words. How had she not known that Hermione had asked him—or tried to ask him—to the party?  He wasn’t trying to get back at Hermione by using Lavender, was he?

  No, that’s ridiculous! He fancies you! You wouldn’t have spent a whole month together if he was trying to get back at your roommate. 

  Lavender pushed her discomfort over Ron’s actions to the back of her mind. She’d know if he wasn’t interested. He probably just misses his friend. It was really a shame Hermione couldn’t be happy for Ron, or Lavender for that matter. But Lav wasn’t going to do anything about it, not while she had Ron all to herself. Maybe she was being selfish, but Ron was her boyfriend, and she intended to keep it that way.

♚

5 January 1997

  Said I’m fine, but it wasn’t true

I don’t wanna keep secrets just to keep you

~Cruel Summer

  Lavender was chomping at the bit to spend time with Ron upon their return to Hogwarts the Sunday after New Years, but obligations kept getting in the way. Apparently, Ron was busy with rounds and Prefect meetings during the entire train ride back to the castle, and then Harry had scheduled a team meeting after dinner. She’d given up the hope of seeing him that evening and settled on waiting for him to go down to breakfast the next morning. 

  Lavender hoped Ron wasn’t embarrassed because he never bought her a Christmas gift. They were only together for a month, and there wasn’t a Hogsmeade weekend where he could have gone to buy her anything anyways. And since Harry was staying with the Weasleys, she assumed there were more safety wards in place, so the chances he could get to Diagon Alley to shop for her were slim too. 

  It’s not like she intended on getting him a gift, either, but when she saw the opportunity to get two lockets at buy one get one free, she couldn’t resist. She’d purchased one for Parvati’s gift, and her mother had always taught her to never pass up a deal, so she’d had the locket engraved with ‘Won-Won’ and sent it to him for Christmas.

  When Ron came barreling down the stairs the next morning, Lavender was so excited that she pounced on him, which caused him to flail backwards and almost topple over. 

  “Won-Won!” She left a sloppier than intended kiss on his cheek as he turned his face.

  “Hey, Lav. Er, sorry about yesterday.”

  “It’s fine, are you ready for breakfast?”

  He nodded as they exited the portrait hole. They were halfway to the Great Hall when Lavender attempted to engage him in conversation again. She knew he wasn’t a morning person, but she wasn’t willing to wait another few hours.

  “So, how were your holidays?”

  “Huh? Oh, they were good. Yours?”

  “Wonderful! I love going home for Christmas. My younger brother was so excited to see me. I picked out a toy broom for his gift this year, and he spent the whole two weeks riding on it! I was so sad to say goodbye to him again, but Easter will be here before we know it. Maybe you can come home and meet my family for Easter hols.”

  “Huh? Oh, yeah, sure.”

  Lavender could sense from Ron’s lackluster response that he wasn’t paying attention. So, she followed his gaze, and of course, there was Hermione, most likely darting off to the library or wherever she went to avoid her former best friend. Her blood boiled at the way she was treating Ron. At least that’s what she was telling herself. She certainly wasn’t jealous of the way Ron was watching her.

  Lavender reached up and gently turned his face back to focus on her. “Did you like your gift?”

  “Y-yeah, it’s great.”

  “Are you wearing it?” Her hand slid down to feel his chest. Maybe it was concealed under his uniform.

  “Er, no. I—uh—I’ve got it tucked away under my pillow for safekeeping.”

  “Why? You aren’t embarrassed of us, are you?”

  “N-no! I just like to—uh—keep it close when I’m sleeping so I can dream of you!”

  Lavender suppressed a laugh at his attempt to give an excuse to not wear it. It was sweet, no matter how ridiculous it sounded. She threw her arms around him and squealed in response to his reasoning. The last thing she wanted was to make him feel uncomfortable, so Lavender figured a positive reaction would make him feel better about the whole ordeal.

  “That’s so sweet, Won-Won! I’m glad you liked it!”

  His face turned a blotchy red as they entered the hall and found a seat at the Gryffindor table. Lavender chose not to press the issue anymore as she turned to her thoughts instead. Maybe the locket wasn’t the best idea to give a boyfriend of only a month. But she’d never felt this way before. Seamus had been a fun fling, but with Ron, she felt different. He made her feel all warm and fuzzy inside, and she hoped she hadn’t given him the wrong impression with the gift. 

  She’d just have to make it up to him in other ways. Yes, that was it. Lavender would make sure he knew how much she cared while also making sure his eye didn’t continue wandering toward her roommate and his former best friend.

  ♚

14 February 1997

  Can I go where you go?

Can we always be this close forever and ever?

~Lover

  Lavender sat alone in the empty classroom, waiting for Ron to show up after rounds. Rounds! Why did he have to have rounds today, of all days?  It was completely and utterly unfair. He promised her he’d meet her in the empty classroom near Gryffindor tower as soon as rounds were over, but it was already ten past eleven, and he was nowhere to be found.

  She hadn’t gotten him anything this time for fear it might embarrass him again, just like the locket. Oh yes, she’d heard Harry telling Neville about his Christmas present while she was searching for a book in the library, and she heard every excruciating detail of how mortified Ron was by it. Apparently, it wasn’t under his pillow after all. It was hidden in the bottom of his trunk. So, for Valentine’s Day, she opted to give him something he could hang onto in his mind instead. 

  At least, that’s what she planned. Lavender took to pacing the classroom for another ten minutes before resigning to the fact that Ron wasn’t coming. A pang of disappointment rippled out from her heart, and she tried to convince herself that maybe he’d forgotten. But ever since they’d returned from Christmas hols, she felt Ron pulling further and further away. Before the two week break, they’d gone off to spend time together every night, snogging in empty classrooms and broom closets, and sometimes even a late-night walk around the castle. Now, she was lucky if she could pry him away from his studies twice a week to spend some quality time together. 

  Sure, they ate meals together and sat next to each other in their shared classes, but it wasn’t like they ever talked that much. Come to think of it, every time she’d try to ask about his life, he’d always deflect to her. And of course, Lavender never had a problem finding something to talk about with her family because she wanted to share everything she could with Ron. Yet now, she was wondering if he actually cared or if he was just being polite.

  Thoughts consumed her mind as she walked silently back to Gryffindor tower. By the time she entered the common room, it was deserted. Part of her thought about checking to see if Ron was back in the dorms, but the other side told her it wasn’t worth it. It’d be his own fault if he got caught sneaking around after hours without her since he’d ditched her on what was supposed to be the most romantic night of the year. 

  The last thing she wanted to do was go up to her dorm and face Hermione’s smug look when she found out Ron ditched his girlfriend tonight, but she wasn’t about to hang around the common room like a rejected piece of garbage. 

  Ron is still yours. Not hers. Even if tonight didn’t go as planned, still make her remember that.

  So, when she entered the girl’s sixth-year dorm, Lavender plastered a smile on her face. Parvati was sitting on her bed while Hermione’s curtains were closed tight.

  “Hey! I was wondering when you were going to show up. Have a good night?”

  “Oh, it was the best!” Lavender gushed. “Ron was so sweet and romantic. He gave me some chocolate frogs, which I know are his favorite, and I gave him...well, you know.”

  She made her voice sound as suggestive as possible, and if Hermione was listening, then that was her own fault.

  “I need to freshen up now. I’m rather sweaty from all that we got up to. And then I should head to bed. We’ll talk more in the morning, Par, I promise. Ron thoroughly wore me out, I’m exhausted.”

  What neither girl realized, though, was that Lavender let out a good cry in the shower instead. Because her boyfriend ditched her on her favorite day of the year.

  ♚

2 March 1997

  Cause I can’t pretend it’s okay when it’s not

It’s death by a thousand cuts

~Death by a Thousand Cuts

  “I’m sure he’s just on a lot of potions, Lav. I wouldn’t think too much of it.”

  Parvati was attempting to comfort her best friend. Lavender had had a rotten weekend. Ron was poisoned yesterday, on his birthday of all days! Not that the day mattered. He was still poisoned, and he could have died!

  What did make it worse was that nobody thought to tell her until well into the afternoon. She’d burst into the Hospital Wing to find his best friend, sister, and her sitting vigil at his bedside. Lavender didn’t think she’d ever been so livid in her life. And then he’d croaked something out in his sleep that sounded like a name, but it was not hers.

  She felt the entire relationship slipping through her fingers. When did things start to take a turn for the worse? What went wrong? Surely he still fancied her because if he didn’t, then why hadn’t he called things off?

  Because he does still fancy you. Of course, he does! Don’t worry about her. She means nothing to him. 

  Lavender tried with all her might to believe it, but it was becoming harder and harder every day. And despite her best friend’s attempts to make her feel better, it wasn’t doing any good. Parvati wasn’t outside the Hospital Wing with Lav when she overheard Ron talking to Harry and asking for Quidditch magazines. There was no question that he was awake, but as soon as she walked in, Ron ‘magically’ appeared to be sleeping again. And Harry had the audacity to cover for him!

  She’d tried to go see him two more times that day, and both times he was ‘sleeping.’ Something happened, and he was avoiding her, and it hurt. But how could she call him out on it when he was ‘asleep’? 

  She thought about whether she should confide in Parvati or just internalize her feelings. Parvati had been there through everything, but Lavender decided she wasn’t ready to bring up her speculations until she had more proof. So instead, Lavender chose to keep her thoughts to herself.

  Did she want to break things off with Ron? No. Was she willing to do what it took to keep him around? Yes. So, Lavender resolved to do whatever it took to keep Ron interested. She’d back off, not be as needy, and keep things cool and breezy. They could make this work. She was sure of it.

   ♚

2 April 1997

  And I don’t want you to (go) I don’t really wanna (fight)

‘Cause nobody’s gonna (win) I just thought you should know

~Miss Americana and the Heart Break Prince

  Lavender entered the common room after Divination to see Ron sitting on the couch next to Harry. The two were furiously scribbling on parchment, and Lavender couldn't help but roll her eyes at what she assumed to be a last-minute attempt to finish one of his assignments. Even so, she figured she’d surprise him and see if he could be persuaded to take a break and go for a walk instead.

  She dropped her bag behind the sofa and covered Ron’s eyes with her hands. “Guess who!”

  “Oi!” Ron flung his arms back, sending ink droplets flying over his and Harry’s parchment, as well as the table and upholstery of the sofa in the process.

  Lavender ripped her hands off his eyes and apologized with a pout. “It’s only me, Won-Won. I just wanted to surprise you.”

  “Oh, er, sorry, Lav. I’m busy right now. I need to finish Snape’s Defense essay.” 

  The words sounded apologetic, but the lack of sympathy in Ron’s expression caused unease to bubble up in Lavender’s stomach. Usually, he’s better about hiding his disinterest in showing affection around his friends. But the way he’d acted just now made her feel like he was downright repulsed by an innocent touch.

  “But that essay isn’t due until tomorrow. I still have to put the final touches on mine as well. Maybe we could go for a walk now and work on it together after dinner?”

  Sure, the snogging was brilliant, but that’s all they ever seemed to do. She wanted to make things work between them, and after five months, she knew they’d never have a successful relationship if it stayed strictly physical. Besides, that clearly wasn’t working in an effort to keep him interested anymore.

  “Sorry, Lav, I can’t. I’ve got rounds tonight.”

  Another pang of hurt emanated in her chest at his rejection. “Oh, well, maybe I could work on it with you now, then?”

  She knew what his answer was going to be before he said anything. He was already packing up his things. 

  “Er, maybe on another assignment. I’ve got to hit the library before dinner and see if I can find one more source. I’ll meet up with you later, though, yeah?”

  Ron was already out of his seat and headed for the door without bothering to wait for a response, which further solidified Lavender’s suspicion that it was an offer he didn’t intend to follow through on. Ordinarily, she would have given him the benefit of the doubt, but it’d been three weeks of him avoiding her ever since he and Hermione had reconciled. With a heavy sigh, she picked up her bag and headed for the girl’s dormitory, where she passed Hermione on the stairwell.

  “Let me guess, Ron’s busy?” Parvati asked, saving Lavender from having to retell the excuse.

  “Yeah. He has rounds tonight, I guess.”

  “Huh.”

  “What?”

  “Hermione has rounds tonight, too. Padma said they switched back for the month.”

  Lavender felt as though a fifty-pound weight had been placed on her chest as her heart constricted at Parvati’s news. She knew this was coming but refused to believe it, choosing instead to turn a blind eye to all the signs. A tear escaped out of the corner of her eye as she tried to come to terms with the fact that no matter what she did, Hermione was going to win. Which led her to wonder whether Ron had ever truly been hers at all.

  Well, good. If Ron’s not interested anymore, then he can be a man and break things off. And if he’s too much of a coward to do it on his own, then I’ll do everything in my power to help push him along, all while reminding Hermione that he’s still mine in the process.

Maybe it was spiteful, but Lavender no longer cared. Deep down, she knew their relationship was probably doomed from the start, but that didn’t lessen the pain. Perhaps she never stood a chance, especially knowing his relationship with Hermione never was a typical friendship, but Ron could have told her no all those months ago if that was the case. Their fleeting relationship may have come to pass, but at least Lavender had the memories of time spent together to look back on when he had cared. Because he had cared once, right?

[vivithefolle]

I just wanna ask, and don’t get mad at me cause I’m genuinely curious, how do you stan Ron? Like, I like him, but he is definitely misogynistic (slut shaming Ginny, treating hermione like she owes him something and being mad that she kissed someone years before, always objectifying Fleur, and acting like girls who aren’t pretty aren’t worth much). Like, by DH I feel like he definitely has mostly grown out of it, but still 6/7 books he’s kinda unbearable IMO

how do you stan Ron? 

Like this:

OH MY GOD HAVE YOU SEEN. HAVE YOU SEEN HIM DID YOU SEE MY BABY OH MY GOD. WHEN HARRY’S ARM HAD GONE KABLOOIE BECAUSE OF LOCKHART AND HE. RON. HE WAS. HELPING HIM GET DRESSED???? OH MY GOD BABY???? HHHHNNNNGGGG. AND. AND. AND ALSO WHEN HE. OMG. WHEN HE WAS PUTTING FOOD ON HIS FRIENDS’ PLATES LIKE. MOM FRIEND ALERT MOM FRIEND ALERT MOM FRIEND ALERT. AND THE WAY HE’S ALWAYS BLUSHING AND BEING EMBARRASSED AT THE SLIGHTEST PRAISE BUT ALSO HE’S SO DESPERATELY SEEKING IT BUT HE KNOWS HE CAN’T TAKE IT AND EEK EEK EEK THAT’S SO CUTE SOMEONE HOLD ME IT’S ADORABLE RONALD WEASLEY YOU ARE SO GOING TO BE THE DEATH OF ME IT’S ILLEGAL TO BE THIS CUTE!!!!

Ok and then.

he is definitely misogynistic 

No. And here’s why.

slut shaming Ginny 

Yes, that was wrong. And guess what, that’s also something he probably - scratch that, definitely - picked up from his mother. And also his brothers, recall how Fred and George too don’t like to see Ginny go around with boys. There’s also something to recall: Ron was there when Ginny was taken into the Chamber of Secrets and learned later that it was because she had trusted an older guy. You seriously wouldn’t be paranoid about who your sister dates after that? It was wrong. Yeah. And he more than learned his lesson when Ginny clapped back by virgin-shaming him and basically told him that he was childish because he hadn’t have a relationship yet. So would that make Ginny sexist too? Or is it just for Ron?

treating hermione like she owes him something 

..................... uuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhh... when? When the fuck did anything like that happen?

He made a prat of himself at the Yule Ball, that much is obvious. But he didn’t tell her anything like “you should be with me” or didn’t insinuate anything of the sort. He was a jealous bitch but kept attacking Krum, not Hermione.

If you mean in sixth year when he treated her with “icy, sneering indifference” for the course of two weeks, yeah that was bad but that’s not “treating her like she owes him something”, the fuck?

being mad that she kissed someone years before 

Yeah. I know. And that was bad, ooooh you got me to admit Ron did bad stuff, that’s what you want to see, right? And I reckon he was also mad that she hid it from him, and that he had to learn it from his sister of all people. We see Ron handles what he considers betrayals terribly. I have some meta discussing the possibility that he has a form of Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria.

always objectifying Fleur 

Um... no, he doesn’t. He makes a stupid comment about her once in GOF then stops. Let’s also fucking remember that Fleur is a Veela, she literally makes guys stare at her as part of her powers!! I’m not blaming her because she’s literally born that way, but you can’t blame someone who is under magical compulsion either.

acting like girls who aren’t pretty aren’t worth much 

So tell me why he was friends with Hermione then?

Because Hermione wasn’t Emma Watson the super hawt sexy model goddess. Hermione was Mrs Generic. Until this once at the Yule Ball when she got the pretty princess perfect Mary Sue makeover but then stopped because she had to remain ~relatable uwu~.

Again. Ron made stupid sexist comments. But it’s actively shown that he doesn’t follow up on them. If he did indeed live by the motto “girls who aren’t pretty aren’t worth much”, explain to me why he wasn’t simping and drooling all over Padma Patil who is explicitly stated to be one of the prettiest girls at school when she was his date? Why exactly did he ignore her and was a miserable twat the whole evening instead of basking in the joy of having snagging a girl that was “worth it”? Well surprise, it’s because HE ACTUALLY ISN’T LIKE THAT AND WHAT HE SAYS IS MAYBE SHIT HIS “COOL OLDER BROTHERS” SAY AND HE THINKS THAT BY EXTENSION IT WOULD MAKE HIM COOL TO REPEAT IT. MIMETISM, THAT'S BASIC FUCKING HUMAN PSYCHOLOGY FOR FUCKING TODDLERS MY FUCKING GOD.

Like, by DH I feel like he definitely has mostly grown out of it, 

............

...................................

...............................................................

so. so why. so why wouldn’t you. use that. as a reason. to stan him.

like.

fuck all the “hurr durr ron weasley the boy who made it out of the friendzone!!!!” bullshit, let’s start going with “Ron Weasley, the Boy who became a Man, and not one of those 'uugghh im such an alpha male’ ones but one that’s got the balls to say ‘hey love, I’ve got an idea, what if you kept doing that job you love and feel passionate about while I support you and do the majority of the childcare while also working a smaller job on the side so we’re never short on money’“

Why you people gotta be “yeah I like Ron BUTT” when you know full-well this fucking awful fandom will rake him over hot coals over the slightest mistake he does - worse, will actively go out of their way to interpret his positive moments in the most negative way possible??? Fuck off with that bullshit. Ron dared to say bad stuff omygah big deal, he was forgiven for it all and you’re just all cowards looking to feel “pure” by telling yourself “oh yeah but he was problematic once uwu”. FUCK. THAT. NOISE.

but still 6/7 books he’s kinda unbearable IMO 

And IMO he’s not, funny how that works

So.

I guess it’s impossible to stan Ron because he was problematic uwu.

Ok.

Then I hereby decree that it’s impossible to stan Hermione Granger because:

“I’ll bet you wish you hadn’t given up Divination now, don’t you, Hermione?” asked Parvati, smirking. [...] “Not  really,”  said  Hermione  indifferently,  who  was  reading  the  Daily Prophet. “I’ve never really liked horses.” She turned a page of the newspaper, scanning its columns. “He’s not a horse, he’s a centaur!” said Lavender, sounding shocked. “A gorgeous centaur . . .” sighed Parvati. “Either  way,  he’s  still  got  four  legs,”  said  Hermione  coolly.  “Any-way, I thought you two were all upset that Trelawney had gone?” - Order of the Phoenix, ch 27

wow casual use of a racial slur yay!!! A+

And it’s also forbidden to stan Harry Potter either since:

It was raining hard now, and she was nowhere to be seen. He simply did not understand what had happened; half an hour ago they had been getting along fine. “Women!”  he  muttered  angrily,  sloshing  down  the  rain-washed  street with his hands in his pockets. “What did she want to talk about Cedric  for  anyway?  Why  does  she  always want to drag up a subject that makes her act like a human hosepipe?” - Order of the Phoenix, ch 25

and

“Harry! There you are, thank goodness! Hi, Luna!”  “What’s  happened  to  you?”  asked  Harry,  for  Hermione  looked  distinctly  disheveled,  rather  as  though she had just fought her way out of a thicket of Devil’s Snare.  “Oh,  I’ve  just  escaped  —  I  mean,  I’ve  just  left  Cormac,”  she  said.  “Under  the  mistletoe,”  she  added in explanation, as Harry continued to look questioningly at her.  “Serves you right for coming with him,” he told her severely.  “I thought he’d annoy Ron most,” said Hermione dispassionately. “I debated for a while about Zacharias Smith, but I thought, on the whole —”  “You considered Smith?” said Harry, revoked. - Half-Blood Prince

Victim-blaming! Nice Harry, nice. Always classy.

Ok, Ginny stanning is already cancelled because she virgin-shamed Ron, right, so who’s left, who’s left... ah yeah:

“There you go,” said Fred proudly. “Best range of love potions you’ll find anywhere.” - Half-Blood Prince

Selling date rape drugs proudly ouh là là. Bye Fred.

"Do they work?” she asked.  “Certainly they work, for up to twenty-four hours at a time depending on the weight of the boy in question...”  “...and the attractiveness of the girl,” said George, reappearing suddenly at their side. “But we’re not  selling  them  to  our  sister,”  he  added,  becoming  suddenly  stern,  “not  when  she’s  already  got  about five boys on the go from what we’ve...”  “Whatever you’ve heard from Ron is a big fat lie,” said Ginny calmly, leaning forward to take a small pink pot off the shelf.

Assuming that only girls use love potions, and only on boys. Men never rape in JKR’s world, only women do, you heard it from George Weasley here folks, I’m just passing on the message. Ah and I hope you’re also starting the Fred And George Hate Club given how he’s also slut-shaming Ginny.

“What’s this?”  “Guaranteed  ten-second  pimple  vanisher,”  said  Fred.  “Excellent  on  everything  from  boils  to  blackheads,  but  don’t  change  the  subject.  Are  you  or  are  you  not  currently  going  out  with  a  boy  called Dean Thomas?” “Yes, I am,” said Ginny. “And last time I looked, he was definitely one boy, not five. What are those?”  She  was  pointing  at  a  number  of  round  balls  of  fluff  in  shades  of  pink  and  purple,  all  rolling  around the bottom of a cage and emitting high-pitched squeaks.  “Pygmy  Puffs,”  said  George.  “Miniature  puffskeins,  we  can’t  breed  them  fast  enough.  So  what  about Michael Corner?”  “I  dumped  him,  he  was  a  bad  loser,”  said  Ginny,  putting  a  finger  through  the  bars  of  the  cage  and watching the Pygmy Puffs crowd around it. “They’re really cute!”  “They’re  fairly  cuddly,  yes,”  conceded  Fred.  “But  you’re  moving  through  boyfriends  a  bit  fast,  aren’t you?”  Ginny turned to look at him, her hands on her hips. There was such a Mrs. Weasley-ish glare on her face that Harry was surprised Fred didn’t recoil.  “It’s none of your business. And I’ll thank you” she added angrily to Ron, who had just appeared at George’s elbow, laden with merchandise, “not to tell tales about me to these two!”

Ah, good on you for defending yourself, Ginny, but remember, Ginny stanning is prohibited because she’s been problematic in the past and is gonna be problematic in the future and that’s baaaaaaad. Careful kids, don’t get ideas. It’s problematic to like people who’ve done problematic things.

So I guess nobody can like anything or anyone now. Sorry guys. Liking things is evil, what if the thing you liked had, OR USED TO HAVE, *gasp* flaws, can’t take that risk, ohmygah.

[dracoxgeorge]

Romeo & Juliet | Draco Malfoy

A/n: Hii, thank you guys for 56 followers!! Love you guys, I hope you enjoy this!!

Warnings: Angst? fluff, swearing, and crying. Please let me know if i missed anything <3

Summary: You get really insecure about Draco and Pansy’s play. 

Draco x fem!reader

You and Draco had been dating since the beginning of 5th year, it's now the middle of 6th. 

Professor McGonagal and Professor Flitwick decided that they wanted to do a school play inspired by the muggle book ‘Romeo and Juliet’ by Shakespear. 

You had caught Draco reading the book once in the library, and you had thought he should audition when it was announced during dinner. 

He has many of Romeo’s qualities, he's extremely handsome, clever, very loyal and though he doesn’t believe you, he can be very immature at times. 

You did manage to persuade him to audition and he not so surprisingly got the lead role as Romeo. He beat not only Cormac Mclaggen but also Fred Weasley. 

Draco desperately wanted for you to audition for Juliet, but you turned him down. You are pretty shy, only around people you don’t know though, you are very open with your friends. 

There was a lineup of girls auditioning for Juliet which did manage to upset you knowing your boyfriend would have to kiss another woman while you watched.

Flitwick and McGonagal narrowed it down to 4 girls, Hermione Granger, Lavender Brown, Padma Patil and finally, your best friend, Pansy Parkinson. This surprised you because Astoria Greengrass auditioned as well but Pansy had much better acting skills. 

You were happy for Pansy and Draco, you helped them both practice their lines together. Thats what led to now, you had finally made it to the kiss part without them making any mistakes at all. 

“We should leave this for the show, right Yn?” Draco asked, silently asking for you to say yes. You knew that Draco more than anything felt guilty at even the thought of putting his lip on someone else's. 

That too made you queasy. Day and night your mind would wonder, what if he catches feelings for her after the kiss and falls out of love with you. Or what if Pansy falls in love with him?

Maybe for them it would be more than just a kiss and they keep doing it behind your back. You have no clue what's going to happen but can only hope for the best and prepare for the worst.

By preparing for the worst you just tried to spend more time with your boyfriend as if it could end, but you kept your head held high. 

-

You and Draco were cuddling in his prefect dorm, you had been on your side while you had your leg draped over his middle. 

Dracon was reading a novel, you tucked your head into the crook of his neck while your mind continued to wonder once again. I tear slipped down your cheek, as a small quiet sob escaped your lips.

Draco put his book down, looking down at you. 

“What's wrong, love?” He asked, you turned up to look at him, quickly wiping the tear away. 

Your eyes met, you watched him examine your features. Another tear slipping past your eye. His hand moved to your face, caressing it with his thumb while wiping the tear away. 

“It's nothing, get back to your book.”  You suggested, your hand began playing with the hem of his loose black t-shirt. 

You took a deep breath, inhaling his scent as if it were the last time you would do so. 

“Is it about the play? If it is, I hope you know Pansy is nothing more than a friend to me.” He whispered softly, kissing the top of your head.

“No, no, I want you guys to do good, I’m excited. I mean Saturday is only two days away.” You replied, cherishing the feeling of his warmth. 

“That doesn't tell me why you're crying,”

“I’m not, just tired is all.”  You answered, hoping he would buy it, which he did. 

Draco knew something was off, but he didn’t want to push you nor make you feel forced to tell him. 

Draco is very clever when it comes to you and how you feel. He can somehow always sense when or if there's something wrong. But he never wants for you to feel like you need to do something for him or to please him. 

You are a people pleaser to say the least. 

“Okay, did you want me to move over or are you comfortable?” 

“I’m fine, goodnight, my love.” 

“Goodnigt,” He whispered back. 

-

It was Saturday afternoon, the play was to begin after dinner. You wanted to be excited yet the thought had your stomach turning.

You heard rumors flying around you left and right, “did you hear, malfoys breaking up with yn”, “Draco cheated on her”, and “Pansys gonna take him”. You would be lying if you said it wasn’t getting to you.

“Hey, Draco, how are you feeling?” You asked, Draco was reading over his lines, pacing back and forth. 

“I-i’m fine, you're not supposed to be here, please, leave. Me and Pansy need to practice.”

ouch

Considering you had just seen Mrs. Parkinson, and Astoria you knew he just wanted you gone. Were the people right? Maybe he was just a little too stressed.

You did just as he asked, and without a word walked out. Unfortunately you walked right into Mrs.Malfoy.  

“Oh Yn, how are you? Have you seen Draco?” 

“Oh, yeah I just saw him, but apparently we’re not allowed to go in there. He just asked me to leave. So how have you been, where is Mr.Malfoy if you don’t mind?” You asked, with a light smile.

“Unfortunately he couldn’t make it. But we’re doing okay. Has Draco asked you about Christmas break? We wanted you to come see us.” 

You gave her a confused smile, why wouldn't he ask you?

“Oh, uhm yeah, but I’m not sure if I’m able to go just yet, I would love to see you though.”  You answered. 

“That’s okay, well I’ll see you in there.” You gave her a nod and left to see your friend Amara.

-

“He told you to leave?” She asked, you nodded eagerly. 

“Yeah, and he didn't tell me about Christmas, what if what everyones saying is true? What if he actually leaves me?” You asked, your words full of hurt and discomfort. 

“Yn, he’s not going to leave you over a stupid kiss, espeacially with someone he knows your insecure about. And Christmas is probably just a coincidence.” 

Amira stated, trying to relieve you, but it only slightly helped. 

But who could blame you? Everyone around you is talking about what they think is going to be happening. You were allowed to have your doubts. 

It was time for the play. 

You braced yourself for what is to come, wearing one of Draco’s black hoodies, making sure it was a long sleeve. 

You made your way to the great hall, finding a seat next to Luna and Neville. 

“What's wrong, Yn?” Luna asked, once you took your seat. You shook your head, putting a gentle smile on your face. 

“Just a little nervous is all.” You answered, adjusting yourself, scanning the room for a blonde. 

Your eyes landed on his, you watched as he hugged his mother, Pansy standing nearby. 

“I can see that you're sad, has Draco done something?” She asked again, very innocent and softly.

“Not yet, but that's okay. I guess I just have to play the waiting game for now.” You murmured. Neville scrunched his nose in confusion, but he decided not to question you. 

“Okay, well I wish the best for you and whatever it may be going on.” Luna continued. 

You envied Luna. She is an amazing person, she has a golden heart. There is not one bad or even half bad quality that you’ve noticed came along with her. People find her to be weird and tend to stay their distance, but she is so lovely. She sees things differently for sure, yet she always manages to stay so positive. You adored everything about her.

“Thank you everyone for coming. Please enjoy Hogwarts' first play and our interpretation of the muggle play ‘Romeo and Juliet.’” Professor McGonogal stated, stepping off the stage and beginning the play.

-

You watched the play go on, you were not only impressed but also extremely proud of your boyfriend. However the not couldn’t be said for Pansy. You hated seeing her as the enemy and attempted to shake out that part of you. 

You watched intently in awe as Draco and Pansy portrayed the characters very well. 

You watched the way he held her and looked at her, just like he looked like you. He’s acting, that's all it is, you thought.

Pansys long brunette hair swayed on top of her shoulders, you could never deny that she was beautiful. She had many boys wrapped around her finger, she could pull anyone she wanted with barely any effort.

This is it, you thought. You could only watch. You studied Draco’s expressions. You could see through most of his emotions, and watched his face contort between passion and an awfully awkward look. 

You watched him put his acting to work, instinctively discarding the face of awkwardness and replacing it with passion and intimacy. 

He leaned in, as did she, and closed the space between them. 

A tear fell from your eye, you felt as though your relationship had just come to an end. You had been practicing plea’s for Draco to stay since you found out about the kiss, which now you had worked out by figuring out which one exactly to use.

Although you had been contemplating what could or could not happen in your eyes. Thats when it hit you. 

He could actually leave. 

Draco was your oxygen, he was the light of your life and though you had only been dating for just over a year, he made you significantly happier than you were able to make yourself. That man has made you feel things you were never able to feel with anyone else, mentally and yes also physically. 

You felt over the moon whenever you were around him, you were ecstatic just getting a look at him, and oh how he could get you flustered. You couldn’t believe your ears when Draco asked you for Hogsmeade. You couldn't imagine a world without him, you went as far as to imagine a future with a man you’ve watched from afar for years. You loved him dearly and to think that he even considered leaving you at one point or another made you want to throw up. 

Tear after tear streamed down your cheeks, you couldn't watch any longer so you decided to make a trip to the bathroom. 

Once you got to the prefect bathroom, you slid down the wall and cupped your face in your hands and sobbed as if it were the last thing you’d ever do.

“Hey, knock knock, anyone there?” You heard a voice come from the other side of the door.

“Yeah, I’m done, sorry.” You answered, wiping your face with Draco’s hoodie, inhaling his scent as you did so. You stood up, opening the door to a very tall ginger who you knew as either Fred or George Weasley. 

“Shouldn’t you be at the show?” He asked. 

“Uhm yeah, which one are you?” You asked, looking him head to toe.

“George, and you are Yn,” You nodded at his gentle words. 

You scooted behind him, and murmured “I should be getting back now, see you around.” Before making your way back. 

Unfortunately yet somewhat fortunately, when you got back you saw that the show had ended and everyone was on the stage, bowing and saying ‘thank you’s’. 

You saw Draco, up on stage holding Pansy’s waist. You caught his eye and watched his smile drop, making your stomach- in turn- drop. 

He looked at your semi wet face and droopy mascara, flipping over what was supposed to be his happy night. 

You watched everyone begin watching off stage, Draco walking straight to his mother, and Pansy to you. 

“Hey, you did great.” You smiled full of sorrow. You watched her smile grow, making your heart throb. 

“Thank you! Where were you, you left in the middle of the show, what happened?” She asked, a flood of guilt washed over you. 

“Oh, I needed to use the bathroom. Sorry about that. But you guys did amazing!” You exclaimed. A deep blush flooded Pansy’s cheeks. 

“Well I’m going to go see my mom, talk to you later.” She said, walking away leaving you stranded, students absolutely everywhere. 

Suddenly, you felt a very familiar hand wrap itself around your wrist. It held three silver rings, which burned into your skin. 

He pulled you away, to the back of the room, he moved left and right dragging you along with him. Finally he found his mother, bringing his arm around your waist to greet her. 

“Draco, darling, you did phenomenal!” She said, leaving her son with a faint blush and beautiful smile plastered on his face. You were stuck admiring his features. 

“Thank you mother.” He responded, you looked up at him, smiling. Looking back over at his mum. 

“Well, I should be on my way, my dear, talk to you soon, love you.” 

Draco nodded, whispering an I love you too.

She gave him a hug before making her way to the entrance of the school and apparating home. 

Draco dropped the happy smile on his face, dragging you to his prefect dorm. 

He gently pushed you into his room, shutting the door behind him. “Why’d you leave?” he asked, sitting on the edge of the bed beside you. 

“First, you did absolutely incredible and secondly, I needed to use the washroom.” You answered, watching him sigh. 

“You know I don’t like it when you lie to me.” He stated, in a very stern voice. You hated lying to Draco, but you couldn’t bring yourself to be honest. 

“I’m not lying, why would you say that?” You asked, scrunching your face in fake confusion. 

“Oh really? Is that the story you're sticking to?” You nodded confidently in response. 

“Well Weaselbee told me otherwise.” You felt your heart drop, a frustrated sigh left your throat, you threw your head back trying to blink the new forming tears away. 

“How much did he tell you?” You exhaled, why did George have to say anything? 

“Why were you crying?” He asked, using his index finger and thumb to make you look at him.

“It’s nothing. No need to worry, Blaise told me they are throwing a party for you in the common room, you should go. You're the man of the hour of course.” You stammered, hoping the newly formed tears threatening to spill would just disappear.

“No, not until I get an answer.”  

“Fine, look I’m sorry, just seeing you kiss her and look at her. Have you heard what everyone’s been saying? And your mother told me about Christmas, I just, I don't know. Maybe you’d be better off with Pansy, it seems to me that you two really are Romeo and Juliet.” You answered, letting out a choked sob and not even trying to stop the tears anymore.

“Yn, don't you get it. I don’t like Pansy like that, as a matter-of-fact I resent her. I absolutely hated having to work with her. She’s annoying and petty. I would’ve much rather had you to work with. You are the most amazing girl I have ever and will ever know, you are the best thing that has ever happened to me.” He started,

“And as for Christmas, It’s the beginning of November, darling, I wanted it to be a surprise. I need you to understand that I would never in eternity try to hurt you, I have only ever wanted to see you happy. I fucking love you and nothing will ever change that. It's you and me, we are Romeo and Juliet.” 

It was true, never once had he told you a lie, and never has since. You guys really were Romeo and Juliet. 

A/n: Sorry if this is absolute shit, but i hope you enjoyed it, thank you guys for 56 followers again! Requests are open!! 

[winterscaptain]

co-regulating.

Aaron Hotchner x Fem!Reader a joyful future fic

a/n: following balancing out, an anon asked about aaron and mom’s first time after her recovery, so here it is!! our first fic of 2021! and it’s smut. who’s surprised? not me!! i’m doing blog housekeeping this weekend, so let me know if you want to be on taglist!

words: 1.8k warnings: smut (p in v penetration, creampie, very soft, quite tame), mentions of canon-typical injury and recovery, language

summary: “scars have the strange power to remind us that our past is real.” - cormac mccarthy, all the pretty horses. au!march 2021

masterlist | a joyful future masterlist | ajf faq | requests closed!

You turn off the lights, crawl into bed, and slide under the covers, immediately rolling halfway onto Aaron and pulling his lips to yours. 

He makes a little surprised noise and takes the back of your head in his hand, his other arm wrapping around your lower back. You run your fingers up his abdomen under his shirt, finally landing with your palm over his racing heart. 

“Did you take your meds?” You whisper against his mouth. It wasn’t like him to forget, but his pulse had to be higher than a hundred. That might be alright for someone actively running a marathon, but for a fifty-two-year-old stabbing survivor with chronic health issues due to said stabbing it was less so. 

He laughs. “Really?” 

“Yeah, really. You’re fucking tachycardic.” 

He shakes his head and kisses your forehead. “That’s your fault. And yes, I did take my meds.” 

You hum. “Good.” 

“Any reason in particular you ask?” He’s still the picture of fond skepticism - eyebrows raised and a little smile curling at the corner of his mouth. 

You shrug. “Just got some clearances from physical therapy today.” 

“Oh?” 

“Mhmm.” Your hand slides down past the waistband of his sweats, palming his cock through the fabric. He hisses through his teeth, his hips tipping up, searching for more contact. 

His eyes flutter shut as you stroke him over his pants, your touch gentle and slow. He swallows thickly, his breath stuttering for a moment. “Are you allowed?”

“I have to take it easy,” you tell him. “But I’m allowed.” 

He reaches down for your thigh, brushing up to your ass, and he inhales again, sharp, when he realizes you’re wearing one of his shirts and one of his shirts only. You oblige him and shift to straddle him, settling down against him and circling your hips for just a little friction. 

Aaron’s fingers play with the hem and a little flash of anxiety jolts through your belly. He sees it in your face and lets go, dropping his hands to your hips. 

“What’s wrong?” 

You shake your head. “Just got nervous about the scarring. I’m fine.” 

Aaron tilts his head to the right, studying you. “Do you want to leave your shirt on? It’s okay if you do.” 

“I know.” You take a deep breath and remove your shirt, your ribs only pulling a little as you lift your arms over your head. “But I’m good.” 

Of course he’s seen you - he’s the one who dealt with your wound care when you got home - but this is the first real sex you’ve attempted since your injury. It’s silly to feel insecure, really. Aaron loves you from top to toe and you know it. He’s also got scars of his own, and you know they don’t impact the way you see him, but it’s new to you. 

Scary. 

Aaron’s hands slide up to your waist, his right thumb just brushing the angry, raised scar over your left side. You run your hands down his arms, coming to rest on his forearms. The pair of you just sit there for a moment, breathing together. 

Co-regulating. You remember. That’s what this is called. 

“Can I turn on the little light?” He asks. 

You nod, knowing he can see you. One of his hands leaves you and stretches, sliding the dimmer on the bedside lamp just bright enough that you can see each other, but not so bright that it’s harsh. 

His eyes soften as they wander from your hips, up your abdomen, and finally meet yours, watching him look at you. He wets his lips as he shamelessly checks you out and heat floods you from head to toe. You know he can feel it when you start to throb between your legs, your center pressed against his hardness. 

“There you are.” His hands slide up, reaching your chest, brushing over your nipples with his thumbs. “I missed you.” 

You smile, despite yourself. “Hi.” 

When you nod, he presses his hips up into you and you lift up, giving him space to slide his pajama pants down enough to free his cock. 

You settle back over him, grinding without letting him enter you as you slide against him. Bring a hand to the back of his head, winding your fingers in his hair while your other hand rests on his shoulder for balance. 

“Fuck, you’re soaked.” Aaron’s head tips back and gentle hands guide your hips back and forth, coating him in your arousal. His next words come through an almost-desperate gasp. “I missed you. God, I missed you.” 

There’s something in his voice that makes your breath catch, brings tears to your eyes. His eyes snap open and meet yours, his hands leaving your hips with fingers open and palms out. “Did I hurt you?” 

“No, no.” You shake your head. “I think this is what the kids call catharsis.” 

He laughs a little and sits up, kicking his pants all the way off and gingerly pulling both of you to the top of the bed so he can lean against the headboard and bring a leg up behind you. “C’mere, honey.” 

You melt into his chest, picking yourself up a little and slinging your arms around his shoulders. You feel his hand between you, guiding himself into you. 

You tense with a little hiss through your teeth, and he stills. “What’s wrong?” 

“Nothing, nothing.” You kiss his cheek. “Just gotta go slow.”

He presses his cheek to yours, his other hand brushing over your back. “Okay. At your pace, sweetheart.” 

You finally sink down with a deep breath, taking all of him. 

The hand that was between you slides up around your back, finding a place at the back of your neck and holding you close. Aaron barely moves, thrusting up into you just as far as he can without jostling you too much, taking all your weight on his hips while supporting you with his thigh. 

You take a shaky breath, the tightness in your throat hanging on until you let yourself cry into his shirt. Nothing hurts more than it should given your injuries, you’re not sad, but you missed him. 

“Are you alright?” He asks, pressing his lips to your shoulder. 

You nod. “Yeah.” 

He doesn’t say anything else. The hand on your hip begins to guide you so he can pull out further before sliding back in. You whimper. 

The feeling of him moving within you is achingly familiar; he feels more like an extension of your own body than a separate being. 

There’s no hurry, no rush, no aim in his movement. Neither one of you tries to get anywhere, preferring the proximity to anything else. You literally can’t get closer to him. When he bottoms out, you can feel the pleasure and pressure behind your cheekbones, in your aching ribs.

He’s a perfect fit. Always has been. 

You tuck your face impossibly further into his neck, your lips locked to his pulse point, as your tears subside. 

His heart rate has slowed significantly, beating steadily, without haste, under his skin. He wraps further around you, the hand on your hip crawling up your back to meet the other between your shoulders. 

He doesn’t mean to, but he crushes you a little to his chest and you flinch, your ribs twinging. 

Immediately, his hands disappear and he stills. You lean back and press your palms to his chest for stability, breathing as deeply as you can with your eyes squeezed shut until the pain passes. You open your eyes to Aaron’s concern, guilt coloring the lines around his eyes. 

Bringing your hands to his face, you rub the tension away with your thumbs. “I’m okay, love. Just a little gentler. It’s okay.” 

His eyes flutter shut, but you keep your eyes and hands on his face as you lift yourself again, feeling the intoxicating drag of him against your walls before you drop back down. He lets out the breath he was holding as he bottoms out again, his hands returning to your waist. 

You lean forward, your foreheads meeting and noses brushing. His hands drop to your hips, guiding them to that angle that always leaves you both wanting for air no matter the pace.

Without fail, you find it together and the ribbons of pleasure curl up your spine, unhurried and gentle. You let out a breathless moan and Aaron steals it from you, capturing your mouth. Deepening the kiss, you drop your hands from his face to the nape of his neck, your fingers winding into his hair. 

The pace never changes, remains slow and meandering, even as you both get closer to the edge. You almost don’t want to finish - didn’t think you would, really - but the pleasure nevertheless builds in your lower belly, your walls throbbing in time with your heart.

Aaron’s thumbs pass back and forth over your skin where they work your hips against him. 

You reach your peak first, his precision and consistency tipping your body into a rush of pleasure that takes your breath and your vision. Aaron never frees your mouth, swallowing your cries as they leave you. 

“Good, baby. Just want to make you feel good.” It’s a mumble as he finally wanders away from your lips, wandering down your jaw. 

His command of your body prolongs your orgasm, drawing it out to a constant dull hum that thrums through you. 

Aaron never falters for a second. You know he’s entirely focused on you, but he told you once that the focus only makes it better. The effect of your pleasure on him is clear when you open your eyes, even weighed down as they are by sensation. 

Aaron’s eyes are closed, his breath leaving him in time with his movement inside you, his mouth pressed into a thin line. You fall forward into him again and his arms wind around you, gentle and mindful. 

His orgasm seems to surprise him a little, his hips and breath stutter as he thrusts up and pulls you down by the hips, spilling deep into you with a short groan. You gasp at the pressure, the last dregs of your own orgasm fluttering through you with renewed purpose. 

The two of you continue to move against each other as you come down, your body feeling looser and almost without pain for the first time in three months. Aaron’s hands trace up your back, smoothing over your skin and setting it alight. He softens inside you, but doesn’t leave your heat. 

Aaron curls forward, pressing his lips to your collarbone and wandering down your chest. You let yourself tip back, supported by his hands, as he continues down your body until he reaches the new scar. His lips pass over it three or four times before you feel a firm, but gentle, kiss right over the center. 

He straightens, bringing a hand to your face. “I love you.” 

The words sound so simple in his mouth. They make you smile. 

“I love you, too.”

+++

tagging: @arganfics @quillvine @stxrrywildflower @rousethemouse @criminalsmarts @shrimpyblog @genevievedarcygranger @ssaic-jareau @good-heavens-chris-evans @angelsbabey @writefasttalkevenfaster @venusbarnes @marvels-agents100 @hotchslatte @risenfox @mrs-dr-reid @mrs-marcus-moreno @dwellingsofrosie @pinkdiamond1016 @aaronhotchnerr @violentvulgarvolatile @mooneylupinblack @ssareidbby @ssa-morgan @violet-amxthyst @capricorngf @pan-pride-12 @mandylove1000 @joanofarkansass  @cevanswhre @infinity1321 @zizzlekwum @popped-weasels @mandylove1000 @jeor @capricorngf @missdowntonabbey @nuvoleincielo @ssahotchnerr @bwbatta @roses-and-grasses @winqhster @the-falling-in-the-danger @iconicc @mangoberry43 @crazyshannonigans @ceceguajardo-blog @brittanymcsharry

[citydreamgrls]

a simple favour - part two

fred weasley x fem!reader

summary: it was all in her best interests, fred never meant to catch feelings for her. it had started as a simple favour.

words: 4,785

warnings: swearing , tw: stalking / stalker , smut in later parts (18+)

find part three here

“You did WHAT!” Ron was the first to respond to Fred’s confession. The rest weren’t far behind. Harry burst into a fit of nervous giggles, unable to truly contemplate it all George just switched up his facial expressions from confused to shocked to horrified over and over again. Hermione’s reaction was similar to Ron’s, as she threw herself into a flurry of telling Fred how mental he was, and asking him questions without waiting for answers.

All the while I sat in disbelief, unsure if I’d heard him correctly. I held my head upright, just a blank expression stuck on my face as I watched the wall, hoping that something would come to mind.

“YOU’RE FUCKING MENTAL FRED!’

“HAS SHE NOT GONE THROUGH ENOUGH?”

“GOD SHE’S ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS, THIS IS DISGUSTING.”

“Poor girl, you should be ashamed Fred.”

“And to think I ever looked up to you.”Ron huffed, setting Hermione off again.

“IS THIS YOUR IDEA OF A SICK JOKE?” She screeched, stopping everyone in their spiralling tracks, even making me look over to see what the twin would say.

“It- it just slipped out okay, but wait-” He stopped his brother from ripping his head off, “I think it might have done something.”

“Does he believe you?” I asked into the following silence, making him look at me with more of an apology than he had ever spoken aloud. “I can’t say for sure.. But he was definitely bothered by it.”

“And what if this is all he needs to get back at her, just a reason to hurt y/n?” Hermione asked.

Fred’s face dropped and he sighed with genuine regret, if what he was saying was true then it could go either way. Mclaggen could either get bored of seeing me with someone else and move on, or he could come after fuelled with jealousy.

“I’m sorry,” He finally spoke, looking over to me and keeping his eyes on mine as he carried on,“I know it isn’t ideal, but it could at least mean he isn’t as interested.”

“There isn’t much else we can do, is there?” My best friend replied, tying her hair up and sitting down in defeat.

“I suppose we better make him believe then.” I nodded, the words feeling heavy and wrong as they came from my throat. Nothing felt right about this, I felt bad for Fred having to lie for me and act as if he loved me just because some guy was being a creep.

Fred smiled weakly, he must have sensed my nerves. Or maybe I just wasn’t as good at hiding what I felt as I’d always presumed I was. Either way, he knew something about where my head was at. He was also right. This situation wasn’t ideal, but equally it was the only idea any of us had come up with that seemed to actually work in some way. Fred wasn’t malicious, he would only ever do this to help.

Now we just needed to pull it off properly.

-

None of us talked over it for long, no one really wanted to go into much detail of how soppy Fred and I needed to act around one another. No one less than Ron, who had a permanent scowl aimed at his brother as we discussed the plan. It all came down to what people outside of mine and Hermione’s room thought. It wasn’t just Cormac who we would be lying to, but everyone else in the school. If just one person caught wind that this was a set up, then it would be a wasted effort and I’d be stuck with a stalker for the rest of my time at Hogwarts.

“What about Ginny?” Harry asked, “Do we tell her?”

“She needs to believe it like everyone else,” Fred said. “If she thinks we’re together, then she’ll tell mum and dad straight away. Saves them hearing from anyone else, that would be more suspicious.”

“We can still tell her the truth,” Ron was still angry, finding every reason to disagree with people. “Even if she knows she can tell mum and dad.”

“She’s still young Ron, we can’t trust that she won’t let slip.” He argued back.

“She’s family you git, it isn’t fair to lie to her too!”

“Fred’s right.” Hermione put a hand on Ron’s, all of us nodding in agreement. “All of this stays between us, that’s all. We can trust one another, and that’s it. No one else.”

Ron reluctantly gave in, not quite agreeing, but nevertheless refraining from arguing the point any further. It all seemed quite futile to him, and something deep down made him wonder what his brother was up to. George coaxed everyone out, leaving Hermione and I to talk things over once again.

“One of us can watch the tower from the common room, that way he can’t get to you.” He explained once the boys were going down the stairs. I thanked him as he smiled and left, always the one to keep smiling despite the circumstances.

My best friend hugged me once again, refusing to let go as we tried to chat about anything other than Fred, which lasted about 2 minutes.

“What was he thinking?” She scoffed and I shrugged.

“It’s our only chance Mione,”

“And if it doesn’t work?”

“Then I’ll kill him.” My face was blank, probably pale and sickly. I felt sickly so it seemed right that I look the part.

“Who? Fred or Mclaggen?”

“Both,” I laughed, the tiniest glimmer of happiness stabbing its way through the dark. My friend’s wrapped round me more, unwilling to let go until she absolutely had to, her hands squeezed my sides comfortably. “Thank you, for stopping Mclaggen last night… and for looking after me so much.”

“I know you would do the same,” She smiled, stroking my hair with one hand.

“Were you scared too?” I asked, breathing deeply as I tried to repress that feeling I’d had seeing him standing in the middle of the room only a few steps away from my bed.

“A little bit,”

“You’re braver than me… what do you think he would hav-”

“Don’t think about it y/n, it’s over. Just focus on you and Fred.”

I sat up, her arms slipping away as I did so. She mimicked me, crossing her legs as I did mine and watched my mind whir as I thought about Fred over and over.

“There must have been other things he could’ve said.” I sighed, Hermione nodding.

“Probably..”

“Hell, he could’ve beaten him to the ground.” “So why didn’t he?” The girl asked, no answer coming to my mind but plenty inside hers. “I just think there’s a reason he lied to Mclaggen.”

“He said it slipped out,”

“Oh I believe that, but it’s what that means that’s confusing me.” She admitted, I frowned at her, not quite following.

“What do you mean?”

“Well,” She sat up onto her knees, looking me right in the eyes to make sure I understood what she was thinking. “For Fred, the guy who couldn't care less about girls, to suddenly pretend he has a girlfriend seems strange. But when he said it just slipped out to Cormac, I think he was thinking of you more than himself.”

She was right about Fred not being bothered with girls, he’d seen George mess around with enough of them that the aspect of a relationship probably seemed useless to him.

“Yeah I understand that, he was confronting him about me.”

“But… he could’ve said anything else. Why did Fred, think about you and his head immediately go to girlfriend?” She leant back now, satisfied with her theory. I hummed.

“Maybe you’re over-analysing it a bit?” Hermione did tend to after all.

“I have a gut feeling about this one.”

-

Harry came to check on me halfway through the day, telling us that Ron had been sulking all day despite Fred's attempts to apologise. Hermione went to spend some time in the library as I continued to hide away in our dorm, refusing to come out until dinner. Tomorrow would be a different day, I’d have classes all over again but luckily none with Mclaggen because he was in the year above. However, it meant I’d be matched with people asking questions, whether they knew about the night’s events or not. I now had a fake relationship to speak for, not to mention I needed to be somewhat happy about it too in order for things to go smoothly.

“Hi.” Fred said quietly, making Harry look up from his magazine. He got the idea and left us to it, shutting the door behind him.

“I’ll see you at dinner y/n.” He smiled sweetly, each step echoing down the stairs. The twin shuffled over to sit on Hermione’s bed to face me.

“How are you feeling?” He asked me, avoiding my empty eyes.

“Fine,” I smiled weakly, doing my best to lie. I didn’t want him to think I was nervous.

“I cannot apologise enough,” He started, hands moving slightly as if he wanted to reach out for mine. But they went back to his lap, fingers tightly crossed over one another, I watched him clench them until his knuckles went white.

I felt like a toddler that needed watching all the time, like he wasn’t sure what to do with me or how to talk.

“Fred don’t, just- it’s fine.” I stood up and walked across the room, desperately trying to find something to busy myself with. I folded some clean clothes, his eyes on my shaky form.

“You’re nervous?” He tried again, his voice scratching the air. I nodded, not daring to turn around and face him. I felt pathetic alone in his presence, vulnerable to his gaze as I clutched a jumper Ron had given me one Christmas between my fingers.

My thoughts were scrambled but they refused to come out to Fred. So we were alone in the silence.

“Everyone’s angry, aren’t they?” I said, at first to himself, but when I peered over he was waiting for me to tell him otherwise.

“I am grateful Fred,I know you were just looking out for me.” He smiled, having been given the reassurance he’d wanted.

“We all are.”

I swallowed once, feeling the spit slide down my throat with a disgusting taste. He meant that as a humbling comment, to show that everyone else cared as much as he did, but why was I disappointed. Had I really been holding out hope that he wanted this?

“Do you need any time before we go?” I nodded, suddenly realising how much of a state I must have been in from the night before.

“I should probably shower,” The words came out meekly, like I was too scared to speak any louder.

“Okay, you can use our bathroom.”

Hermione and I didn’t have a bathroom big enough for a shower in our dorm, subjected to walking halfway across the castle each morning before breakfast. Yet Fred and George had been lucky enough to bag a room with a bigger bathroom, giving them an annoyingly better deal than us.

He checked that the common room was empty before letting me walk through it to get to his dorm. I had never been inside, the twins rarely using their room for anything besides sleeping and washing. They did share it with another boy, Lee Jordan, but as Fred explained he was never really around either.

I showered quickly, enough time to enjoy the privacy of the warm water as I shivered beneath it. Fred was waiting outside, that I could tell from his light footsteps as he paced the room.

“Ready?” The boy stopped walking when I came out, fresh clothes on and my others in a small bundle in my arms. “I’ll put those in with my laundry if you want?” I smiled and dumped it in his little washing basket, taking a deep breath.

He gave me a sudden hug, making me jump slightly. Fred wasn’t one for complex emotions, generally sticking to the safety net that was happiness and anger. I certainly hadn’t seen him hug a single person before without being coerced. Maybe he saw me as such a basket case, that he didn't even know how to react.

“I’m fine Fred.” I laughed awkwardly, patting his back and letting him pull away. For a second I thought he hadn’t heard me, because he didn’t move away, but then he coughed himself back to normal and turned to leave. Me following behind, more confused than ever.

-

The noise of voices in the great hall boomed louder than ever before, even from down the hall. Fred had started holding my hand the second we’d left the common room, chatting casually to me as we walked through the castle, people giving us looks as we passed them. I too wouldn’t have understood his change in demeanor, he had never been overly affectionate to anyone. Yet here he was, acting as if I was the only person in this whole school. We didn’t stop to discuss anything, or reassure one another, before walking into the hall. I feared that if we had done so, then that slight slither of courage I had would’ve melted away quicker than wax.

Fred’s smile was so natural as I peered up to him, already looking over at George on the Gryffindor table. They were all at our usual spot, watching expectantly as I did my best to ignore the many turned heads and hushed murmurs of surprise. My eyes were fixated on Hermione, who seemed to express a great deal of pride. I hadn’t even noticed that we’d passed Mclaggen’s end of the table, Fred’s body blocking that side so I never even saw him.

When we sat down, I shuddered at the feeling of Fred’s arm around me, which I hope he hadn’t noticed. It was strange, having someone’s hands on me at all times, even worse when it was Fred's. I’d seen the boy fidget before, it was a normal occurrence, but to be the one on the receiving end of his restless fingers playing in my hand was weird.

It was as if he wasn’t necessarily paying attention to me, but yet he was letting me know I was still on his mind. All without a single word spoken. It was nice just to see a different side to the boy, but I needed to remember that all of this wasn’t real. None of these feelings were true to Fred.

Ron ate his food in silence, refraining from looking over at either me or his brother. I ate slowly, mostly speaking to Hermione and Harry and avoiding eye contact with anyone else in the hall, especially him. George and Fred were keeping themselves entertained, which made things much easier for me as I realised that I had no clue how to chat normally with Fred. A fact that became evident as we walked hand in hand through the halls.

Some people congratulated Fred as he took me to potions class, most just whispered about us as if they were invisible. I stayed quiet, the attention mostly on him thank god.

“You didn’t have to bring me,” I smiled as we stopped outside the classroom door “I’m sure people would still believe you.” I whispered.

“Y/n.” He frowned, like I was a naughty child.

“Sorry.” I became very aware of him flipping out. Not even one whole day, and he was already seemingly sick of pretending. The boy looked around, eyeing up a group of Ravenclaw’s hanging out at the other end of the hallway and sighed, turning back to me.

“I didn’t mean it like that, sorry.” He took my hand again, confusing me with a gentle smile.

It became apparent that Fred was a great liar, both to me and everyone else. He said goodbye, and I did my best to produce a fake smile, not that he would be able to tell the difference.

-

Fred watched her leave, noticing how uncomfortable her smile had been and wanting to punch himself in the face. Why was he acting like such an idiot around her? She was so easy to be happy around, but he repressed it, not enjoying the vulnerability she instilled in him.

He couldn’t deny himself the joy that came with the smiles, or when she held his hand so small inside his own. But he couldn’t let her know that, not ever. Because, when she looked up at him, those eyes so big and innocent, he wanted nothing more than to keep her safe from all the world’s evil. That was what made him weak to her.

She wasn’t ‘his’ in any sense of the word, not a possession like Cormac had described, but god why did he like showing her off to all the boys in her year. The same dirty guys that had confessed the things they wanted to do to her in the dark during a game of truth or dare. Thinking back on it made him mad, physically furious, he wanted to go back and kick them all in the mouths for ever defiling her that way.

It was wrong. Fred felt as though he was benefiting from something y/n had been so traumatised over, like he was her protector from Mclaggen and now she owed him the satisfaction of acting as his girlfriend. He had the nerve to revel in every fucking second of it too.

Fred felt as bad as her stalker. He felt as vulnerable to her as Cormac was, begging for her over and over until it drove him mad. He saw how easily love had turned his father obedient to his mother, and he’d watched Ron stumble over words whenever Hermione looked him straight in the eyes. Fred wasn’t like them, he didn’t need a relationship to belittle him as he’d watched it do to others. He needed to control himself, but it was so hard when he held her and felt what it was like to be under that trance.

She was most likely only being polite with him because he was just that little bit better than someone who broke into her dorm to do god knows what. He wished that she hated him, that she would scream and yell and tell him what a dick he was for making her do this. At least in that case, it would be easier to forget all that he wanted from her. It made him angry that she was so encaptivating, so furious that he felt the need to push her away.

That rage had gotten everyone into this mess to begin with, that anger had made him notice those desperate feelings for y/n that shouldn’t exist. Fred vowed to himself in that moment, he would do everything in his power to rid any attraction to the girl he merely owed a favour to.

-

Days went by, Fred and I agreeing that kissing one another on the cheek was far enough for people to still believe while not making things awkward between us. The boy, however, was becoming increasingly distant over the next few days. He seemed so calm and collected when we were around others, but the second we were alone he shut down.

His hands would drop mine as if I was the plague, no words exchanged. It hurt, knowing that it truly was all an act, contrary to Hermione’s theory. But nothing else had been hinted at from the start, he himself told all of us how much of a mistake it was. Now I had no choice but to believe him when he said that.

Each time he went silent, or grunted to me instead of talking, I was reminded of how many times he apologised. How quickly he regretted his actions, the second he’d told all of us that morning in my dorm. He never did it for me, I was just naive enough to think differently. Maybe it hurt because he was so convincing, he held me proudly and smiled as if I was the only person in the room. But I too was just someone else being fooled by a very good actor.

The only upside to it all was that Mcglaggen seemed to back off a bit, keeping the creepiness down to just stares across the great hall. It put me at ease again, knowing that I wouldn’t have to worry about walking into a room of flowers and gifts from someone I despised. At this point, he had to be yet another believer of mine and Fred’s fake relationship, thank god.

-

“I think he hates me,” I said into the darkness one night, unable to sleep and hoping my best friend would be the same.

“Who does?” She grumbled, drowsiness in her voice but not in her body.

“Fred.”

“Why do you say that?”

“You must’ve seen it too, he just ignores everything I say. Like he can’t even stand to be around me.” I huffed.

“Maybe he feels bad for you, he kind of forced it upon you.”

“It doesn't feel like pity… more like disgust.”

Hermione fell silent, searching her mind for a good response.

“Maybe there’s something else on his mind?” She explained.

“Maybe,” I rolled over and looked at the room from my bed, sighing and closing my eyes in another futile attempt to sleep.

-

I soon realised it was so incredibly stupid of me to ever think that Cormac would have backed off when I snuck off to the black lake one evening to have some time to myself. All I’d done for weeks on end was in the company of others, and it had started to suffocate me slightly. Hermione hadn’t mentioned our conversation about Fred, and his attitudes had only worsened over time, so I just decided to keep it all to myself. I’d snuck off while everyone was busy and walked to the water’s edge, watching the sunset.

It was peaceful, and refreshing to be alone. Finally, I could enjoy my own thoughts without someone interrupting them or the need to fill the silence between Fred and I. He had barely spoken to me all day, only putting on a smile at breakfast before going off to quidditch. Then he disappeared, not even turning up to dinner later on, which seemed to make some people talk as I prodded the food around my plate.

My mood’s were at an all time low, Fred’s constant rejection only pushing them deeper. I’d never needed his approval before, so why was I longing for it now? I hated that I wanted him to come and tell me he was sorry for being off with me. In reality, he probably enjoyed the one day without me around to bother him.

“All alone y/n?” His voice made me want to cry, the once bubbling anger had been conditioned into fear every time I heard him speak. I turned around, ready to leap up and run at any moment. Cormac stood smugly, arms crossed, as if he had finally gotten what he wanted. He had. Now I was all on my own, as he’d asked me already, and he could do whatever he’d wanted to since he’d laid eyes on me.

“What do you want?” I forced the words out shakily, only making him smile more.

He stepped forward and I scrambled to my feet clumsily, stepping back as he came closer.

“I want you to myself y/n, you’re wasting your time with Weasley.” I cringed at his words, if only he knew. I moved around him, trying to leave. But he would never give up that easy, he followed me up the hill with ease.  

“Stop it.” I begged.

“We’re meant to be together y/n,” He smiled, reaching for my hand but I just sped up. Making him jog after me. He wasn’t quite chasing me, neither of us moving fast enough for that, but it felt like a wolf closing in on me. “You can’t deny your feelings, can you?”

I stopped, for a split second pondering over the idea that he was talking about Fred. Then he smirked, that ugly god awful, gut-wrenching smile and I remembered that when Cormac spoke it was only ever in his own interest. So I kept walking, finally reaching the bridge to the courtyard.

“I’d love you so much more than he could y/n,” I didn’t dare respond, the tears pricking at my eyes. “He barely pays attention to you, I see it, there’s no spark with you two.” I hated that he was so right.

His words were impossible to ignore, even as we got into the castle with noises everywhere, Cormac’s rang out above them all. “Does Weasley ever touch you?” He asked me, that sick feeling increasing by the second.

Just the stairs to go, then I’d be inside the common room. Someone had to be there, and if not then Hermione was bound to be in the dorm. I prayed I wouldn’t be alone, I had no chance against Mclaggen if I needed to defend myself. I was fearing for the worst, his words unrelenting as he demanded to know intimate details.

“I want to be all over your body,” He whispered as I spoke the password, the painting swinging open. I’d never run inside so quickly, just to whip round to the boy following me closely. He seemed caught off guard, stumbling a little in his step.

“You’re a sick fucker, what will it take for you to understand that no one is ever gonna love you if you threaten them!” I screamed in his face, not giving him a chance to respond.

“I’m not something you can play about with, I’m a fucking person. Do everyone a favour Cormac and leave!”

I hadn’t spotted the three boys peering over at us, getting up in defense the second they saw who had followed me. Ron, Fred and George waited until I was done before coming to my side.

“There he is, your precious boyfriend.” I rolled my eyes at him and turned away again, not in any mood to deal with any of them.

“Leave her alone Mclaggen, she’s had enough of your shit.” Fred pushed the boy to the ground, towering over him with a foot pressed to his neck. He nodded, wanting to be let free and got up to rush off. I scoffed, but not at the pervert.

“I bet you’re so proud of yourself aren’t you,” I huffed, making Fred frown. He’d yet to see me mad, but it had been growing over time.

“What’s wrong?” His tone was dull, as if he couldn’t be bothered.

“You, you’re so full of yourself” I scoffed again.

Ron and George sloped off, deciding this was between the two of us alone.

“What did he say to you?” Fred tried to change the subject with a sudden gentle tone.

“Jesus why do you do that?”

“Do what?”

My face was blank with annoyance. He was so thick sometimes. He must know what he was doing, no one was that ignorant.

“You spend all day acting as if you hate me, out of nowhere, and then you do this. Play all protective and caring as if it’s normal. None of this IS NORMAL!” I was getting closer to him, trying my best to get him to understand from nearly half a foot shorter.

“I’m doing what we agreed, what’s the problem.”

“Do you hate me? Is that what it is, because tell me now and we can end this.” I laughed, wanting nothing more than to be far away from him.

“Y/n you’re mad over nothing.” He lied.

“I actually thought you could be half decent... but jokes on me eh?” I ranted, getting more and more furious by the second. I could see he was hurt, but my words were still riling him up and pissing him off. Fred took a deep breath to compose himself.

“It’s complicated y/n,” He tried his best to explain calmly, but I was too far gone.

“I get that I’m just charity work to you Fred.”

I went back out of the common room, passing Ron and George leant against a painting on my way down. They called after me, confused, as I raced down the stairs, but I didn’t dare stop. I needed to be away from them all, somewhere safe where I could hide from it all for a little while.

[durmstrange]

Switch - Fred Weasley

Hello and Happy Friday!  Hope you enjoy another Fred blurb!

Word count: 1,336

With a solemn look on your face, you kept your head in your hands and watched your sweet love from afar.  It felt so bitter and awful to only be able to see him like this, happy and seemingly in love, when it involved someone other than you.  It hurt, to say the least, but you wanted nothing more than for Fred to be happy.  

You shifted gently, hiking your long dress up around your ankles to reveal your intricate and sparkling heels, and crossed one leg over the other with a loud huff.  You were drawn fro your thoughts as George, your closest friend and twin to your crush, sat next to you with an equally annoyed look as your own.  “Hello,” he greeted and reached for your glass behind you.  He dripped into an inside pocket of his dress robes and fished out a small vial, pouring a bit into your drink and sipping it.  “Seems we are able having the same luck tonight,” George muttered as his eyes followed yours, leading to his brother.  “Probably should have mentioned to Freddie that I fancy Angelina before he asked her.” 

“Did you just spike my drink?”  You asked him without answering his own question.  

George smiled wildly.  “Don’t act like you don’t need a bit of a pick me up, doll,” he teased you and handed the drink back.  That was the nickname both twins always used for you, always making you smile.  

Smelling the rim of the glass, you smiled gently at the somewhat familiar scent of Firewhisky.  You sipped the glass and ignored George’s comment once more.  “Who’s your date tonight, George?”  You asked him, once again, without looking at him.  

“Some  a year below us,” he answered with a sigh.  “Unfortunately, she is currently snogging Dean Thomas in one of the carriages outside in the courtyard.”  He nodded towards the door and you giggled quietly.  “What about you?  Who’s your date?”  

With a slight blush, you fought your smile.  “Don’t laugh,” you warned, but George was already grinning.  “Cormac McLaggen,” you sighed and put your face in your hands to hide your embarrassment.  

George cackled, tilting his head back and all, only making you shake your head at him.  “What a dog!” 

“Listen, I turned down all the good dates waiting for your bloke of a brother to ask me, and when he asked Angelina, I had to take what I could get, or show up alone!”  You swatted at George’s arm.  “Besides, he went off to pout in the common room because I refused to kiss him.  So, I suppose I ended up alone after all.”  With another sigh, you sipped your drink and shook your head.  

“McLaggen!”  George was still laughing, and you joined in as well, fighting the embarrassed look on your face.  “We probably should have went together, given that neither of us could go with who we really wanted to.”   

You looked at George incredulously and shook your head.  “Why couldn’t we think of this before the ball?”  

George chuckled and took your drink from your hand, tipping it back.  After drinking a good half of it, he sighed as he, too, watched Fred and Angelina dancing.  “You know he is in love with you, right?”  George asked while handing the drink back.

“Bollocks,” you muttered in reply and finished the drink in a long swig. 

Your friend smirked.  “Such a term for a lady,” George scolded and bumped your shoulder.   “However, he absolutely does.  Told me himself, you see.  It's a shame that neither of you have proper bollocks to admit it.”  George paused, a thought coming into his head.  You were oddly intimidated by the look that formed on his face.  “We could try to make them jealous, you know.  Dancing and acting like we are having the time of our lives.” 

For a moment, you thought about it.  It was a viable option, prone to failure, but an option nonetheless.  “Let’s see what we can manage,” you agreed and reached into his inside pocket yourself, taking the tall vial and popping the cork before finishing the remaining Firewhisky.  

George laughed once more, standing on his feet.  “You’re going to be nice and cheerful now,” he teased and held his hand out to you.  You took it with a smile.    George led you onto the dance floor, spinning you and all, making you laugh loudly and tilt your head back, carefree.  

As a slow song came on, George brought you back close to him and led the way for you.  “You know what the most shameful part of this all is?”  You asked him as he raised an eyebrow.  “I even got this dress because it's his favorite color.” 

Brushing your hair over your shoulder for you, your best friend smiled sadly.  “Well, you look beautiful regardless, doll.”  

You returned the smile to George and leaned your head on his shoulder, swaying slowly to the music.  “Well, here he comes,” George mumbled in your ear.  “Don’t move.” 

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Fred approach with a slightly reddened face.  “Hello, (Y/N), mind if I snag my brother for a moment?”  Fred asked without so much as a true glance your way.  

George, tilting his head to the side, released his grip on your waist.  “All right,” you muttered and gave a sad glance to George before returning to the table you previously sat at.  Immediately, you put your elbows on your knees and your head in your hands and sighed heavily.  

After a few moments of remaining like that, there was a gentle tap on your shoulder.  “Care to dance?”  

When you looked up, you were surprised to see Fred standing there with a faint blush on his cheeks.  Your face remained blank, and you turned away from him.  “Last I checked, you have a date you should be dancing with,” you replied in a cool voice.  

Fred nodded gently, not that you could see, as you refused to look at him.  “Yeah, I did.  But she wasn’t the right date for me. I quite think you’d fit the part a lot better.”  You finally looked back at Fred with a blank, hurt face.  “Come on, now.  Just one dance,” he practically begged. 

Finally giving in, you placed your hand in his and stood.  “What did George say to get you to do this?”  You asked as he pulled you to the dance floor at the start of another slow song.  Your eyes wandered to George, who gave you a subtle thumbs up as he spun Angelina so effortlessly.  

Fred placed his hands on your waist, holding you gently as you wrap your arms around his shoulders, watching him carefully.  “Nothing that I didn’t already know.  You know, that I’m an idiot and awful for treating you the way I have, for not asking you to the ball, and for waiting so long to tell you how much I adore you.”  His eyes watched you carefully, as your eyebrows drew together and your shoulders sagged forward sadly.  

“Is this some kind of joke?”  

Swiftly, Fred leaned down, enveloping your lips in a sweet kiss.  It took a brief second for you to respond, but once you did, you kissed Fred back with all you had, leaning your body tight against his and knotting your fingers in his long hair.  He finally pulled away, lips slightly swollen and face reddened considerably, and gave you a small smile.  “Not a joke.”

With a blush on your own face, you fought the smile forming on your lips.  “Not a joke,” you confirmed softly. 

Fred licked his lips, just briefly, and began laughing.  “Firewhisky?” 

“George spiked my drink,” you explained and hid your face against his shoulder as you laughed.  

With a devious smirk, Fred patted his chest, where George’s inside pocket was.  “Well, love, if you want to get out of here, there is more where that comes from.” 

You smiled wildly and took Fred’s hand.  “Well, let’s go, then.”

[alwaysfeelingsaintlike]

Driving Me Mad [G.W] - Part 3

Series Description: You and George come up with a plan to pretend to date each other. But what happens when you actually start to catch feelings...

Pairing: George Weasley x Gryffindor fem!reader 

Word Count: 1.9k

Part 1

Part 2

Description: George joins you for breakfast and dazzles all of your friends.                                                           X 

Breakfast was awful. At this point, everyone knew about your split with Roger. And it seemed like everyone was studying you to see how you were handling it, but you wouldn’t give them the satisfaction. You had breakfast with Cho and Marietta at the Ravenclaw table and they were doing their best to comfort you, which wasn’t very effective. They made meaningless conversation at breakfast while you sat there and nibbled on your toast. 

You caught George’s eye across the hall and he gave you one of his infamous grins. You shook your head and smiled at the prospect of this scheme actually working. In all honesty, you were more excited to shock people than anything. It was kind of exciting to know that soon enough you would be the latest gossip of Hogwarts, topping Roger and Fleur. You made eye contact with George again and he tilted his head up in a head nod, signaling you should come over. You quickly excused yourself from your friends without many words and walked over to where George was sitting with Fred and Lee. 

“Morning boys,” you said sitting down across from George.

“Hey Y/N,” George smiled at you. Fred and Lee exchanged quick confused looks before greeting you. You sipped on your cup of tea as they continued eating.

“Okay, I’m going to say it. Is there a reason you’re here?” Lee asked.

“Not that we don’t love your company. It’s just…different,” Fred added.

“I don’t really know. I just needed a change of scenery from my usual crowd and I haven’t hung out with you guys in a while. Plus George and I bonded during our detention so I figured I’d say hi.”

“Ah, makes sense.”

“How’s the break up going?” Lee asked.

“Ugh, what a headache. I feel like I can’t go anywhere without people whispering about me. It doesn’t help that he’s prancing around with the perfect Fleur Delacour all the time. Very classy on his part.”

“Sorry to hear that,” George said.

“It’s fine, I can handle it. But how’ve you all been? Still getting into trouble?”

“Did you really just ask that?” Fred countered.

“Cut me some slack, okay! I’m trying to be personable. We haven’t talked or hung out in a while so I’m taking things slow.”

“Y/N, I’ve known you for 15 years and you’ve never been one to take anything slow,” Fred pointed out. 

“Should I just skip to the personal questions then?” you joked. They all lightly chuckled and you were happy you could make the jokers laugh. You glanced at the clock and noticed it was time to finish up breakfast. You had just about finished your grapefruit and you saw George was finished while Fred and Lee still had some food on their plate. 

“You finished?” you asked George. He glanced down at his plate and nodded. “Want to walk me to class?” you smiled and gave him a wink. This was the first step to reaching your end goal.

“Uh, sure.” His acting skills were perfect.

“What about us mate? Just gonna leave us here?” Lee said.

“Sorry boys. If you’re lucky one of you can escort me tomorrow,” you said with a wink.. 

“Tomorrow? You’re coming back tomorrow?”

“Play your cards right and I might be here all week.” You stood up from the table and walked away as George did the same on the opposite side of the table.

“God, that was brilliant,” George said as you met at the end of the table.

“Yeah? Like things never changed?” 

“Exactly like that. You’re one of the few people who can dish it back to Fred.”

“What can I say, I’ve basically been doing it my whole life.”

“It’s a good thing you fit in with them so easily. I imagine you’ll be spending a lot more time with Fred and Lee over the next few weeks.”

“Yeah, you’re right. But you’ll be spending some time with my friends too. I’ll try to keep it to the minimum since I know they can be a lot to handle, but we do need to make this believable.”

“So when do I get the big introduction?”

“Soon enough. Let’s just take things a day at a time.”

                                                          X 

“Alright mate, spill it,” Fred said to George, as he turned in for bed. They were just out in the common room, casually chatting with you as you attempted to get some homework done. Fred had left shortly after but George stayed and spent more time with you. Part of it was for this whole show you were putting on but he also genuinely liked spending time with you. It had been such a long time since you acted like friends and he forgot how great that felt. 

“What are you talking about?”

“Bloody hell, how dim do you think I am,” he said, hitting George’s arm with an outdated Daily Prophet that was rolled up. George merely shrugged and Fred added, “Since when do you hang out with Y/N?”

“Dunno…we sort of just reconnected recently. We spent hours together polishing trophies. It just gave us an opportunity to catch up.”

“George, don’t go down that road.”

“What?” he said, nonchalantly.

“It’s no secret that you’ve had a crush on her forever. And now she’s single and she’s suddenly taken an interest in you. If you even entertain this possibility, she’ll break your heart and I can’t let that happen to you. She’s bad news mate.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“She’s just looking for a rebound after Davies left her. You are a good person and you deserve better than that.”

“Fred, she’s been our friend for 15 years. If something was going to happen between us, it would’ve happened by now. But I’m not going to stop spending time with her.”

“Whatever you say. But just remember I told you so.” He jumped into his bed and turned off the light to get some sleep.

His doubt hurt. It hurt George that he didn’t see the good in you. And George didn’t appreciate the attack. Fred was so quick to assume he would fall under your spell that he couldn’t even entertain the fact that George might just want to be friends with you. It made him nervous for how Fred would react once you started “dating.” He thought about telling Fred about the plan but he didn’t think his reaction would be much better. It was hard to lie to him but you were adamant about keeping everything a secret. He would just have to wait until everything was said and done. 

George tucked himself in bed and tried to sleep, without much success. He had so many different thoughts whizzing around his head. He felt like things with you were good but Fred’s comments made him nervous. It’s not that it created doubt in his mind because he trusted you, but it gave him some more to think about. Fred was right in that he’s always had a crush on you. It was a passive crush, but present nonetheless. He liked spending time with you and that was all that mattered. 

                                                             X

“Hey you! Heading to breakfast?” you caught George just as he was leaving the common room.

“That is the plan.”

“Wanna eat with me and my friends today? No pressure if you don’t want to, just thought I’d throw the offer out there.”

“Uh, maybe…” he answered vaguely.

“Hey, no need to let me down easy. I can handle a declined offer.”

“Maybe isn’t no.”

“I mean, it sort of is. But seriously, it’s cool. We’ll catch up later.” You parted ways as you found a seat at the Ravenclaw table. Instead of facing the Gryffindor table like you usually did, you sat on the other side of the table today. You didn’t need to see George planning pranks with Fred and Lee. You were fine with him sitting with them, but you knew if you watched them you would become distracted, thinking about how exactly you would pull this scheme off. 

Cho and Marietta greeted you and you all chatted casually. Soon Cormac, Blaise and Cedric joined the table and the girl talk ended abruptly. 

“So Y/N, how’s the break up treating you?” Cedric piped up. The entire group turned to catch a peek at Roger and the flawless Fleur, cuddling up over breakfast, whispering sweet nothings. 

“Eh, obviously not ideal but I’ll be fine soon enough. I just wish they’d be a little more discreet about it.”

“I’m sure it’s not intentional. Fleur doesn’t seem to do anything discreet,” Cedric said.

“I’m just surprised you haven’t found a new boyfriend yet,” Cormac commented. 

“Careful mate. You may have spoken too soon,” Blaise said with a head nod in your direction. Everyone turned towards you and you followed their gazes, looking down the hall. A tall ginger made his way toward the table and gave you a playful smirk.

“Is this seat taken?” he said to you. You gave him a smile and replied, “It’s all yours.”

You turned back to the group to see delightfully surprised faces. As their conversations continued, you felt him lean close in and say, “See, maybe doesn’t always mean no…”

You hadn’t really thought that much about how George would assimilate into your group of friends, but it turned out you didn’t have to. It was effortless. He was cracking jokes and making fun of the guys while impressing the girls with his charming nature. You had to say it was quite impressive. Soon the table dissolved as everyone gathered their things for class. George received a few pats on the back as the guys left and some smiles from the girls. Soon you two were left on your own and you were speechless. 

“What just happened?” you managed to spit out.

“What d’you mean?”

“You just came over here and charmed all of them into loving you all while I didn’t have to lift a finger.”

“Didn’t think I could socialize, eh? Planning to hold my hand and guide me through the first introductions?”

“I…I just didn’t expect that. Is that why you didn’t give me a straight answer? You wanted to come over here and surprise me?”

“Truthfully I hadn’t planned on doing that. I sat down with Fred and Lee this morning and it was just like every other morning. And I wanted a change, so I came to eat with you and your friends.”

“What did you think of them?”

“They aren’t as bad as I expected. In fact they’re rather entertaining.”

“Well I think they loved you. Now I just have to work on getting in with Fred and Lee.”

“Fred and Lee like you!” he spoke, perhaps too quickly.

“You know, you really aren’t a good liar.”

George went to defend the accusation when you interrupted him, “I’m not dim. I know that I’m gonna have to work a little harder to charm the two of them. I’ve been out of the picture for so long it’s going to take time. But, I’ve known them forever so I hope they’ll warm up to me.”

“We’ll work on it. I’ll try and talk to Fred. I think things would really be easier if I could just tell him.”

“I know that you don’t want to keep secrets from him but I think telling him is too risky. I want things to appear natural and in a way, I think Fred’s feelings towards me helps our case a little bit.”

“Yeah, I understand. Whatever you think is best.”

“Regardless, good work today. Let’s go to class.”

[joonkorre]

They got a plan for (you)

@drarrymicrofic prompt: Dangerous by Big Data (ft. Joywave)

this song emits a very, hmm, being-in-the-middle-of-a-conspiracy vibe. so. here we are. enjoy. AO3

Harry knows the person standing in front of him. Or maybe he doesn't. If anyone else knows, well. They're not supposed to.

“Cormac McLaggen? Haven’t heard of him in years.”

“Of course you haven’t,” Ron replies, twirling his quill. Harry tries to copy it and gets ink on his face instead. “The bloke’s fucked off to the Mediterranean for some consultant work. He came in, I helped sorted out his paperwork, and he’s gone. It’s been, ah, five years, I think.”

“Right, right. Remember how he was back in Hogwarts?”

“A fucking nightmare.”

“I know,” Harry agrees. “The Sorting Hat should’ve put him in Slytherin— wait, maybe not. He and Malfoy would tear the school apart.”

Ron looks at him odd for a moment before snickering. “The things you say, mate…”

Harry stills. Has his sense of humor changed in some way for Ron to say that? And not just him, a few others of his friends have remarked along the same lines as well.

He sips his tea and grimaces. It’s gone cold.

“Anyway, hopefully his attitude’s improved somewhat.”

“Oh, it has to,” Ron says. “I mean, he’s assigned as your partner. Soon, you’ll be stuck with him here while I’m halfway across the building. So I’m not scared he’d do you in,” Ron points at Harry. “I’m scared you’d snap and end up in Azkaban within an hour.”

“Your trust in me is astounding, Jesus Christ, Ronald.”

There’s a knock on their office’s door. It swings open, revealing Head Auror Robards. Harry and Ron stand up in unison and bow.

“Good morning, gentlemen. I trust you both are working?” Robards taps his cane on the floor, and the door closes with a quiet clack. His bad leg is acting up, it seems.

“Yes, Sir.”

“Diligently?”

“There might have been a bit of discussion,” Ron says, his shoulders loosening, “all about work, I assure you.”

“Mhmm,” Robards says. As his retirement looms, he’s more like a grumpy grandpa than a boss these days. “Smart mouth. Potter.”

“Yes, Sir,” Harry straightens.

“You’ve gotten the news?”

“I have, Sir,” Harry says, slipping the document from a folder on his desk. “My new partner is Cormac McLaggen while Auror Weasley is transferred to admin.”

“Correct. How are your lungs doing, Weasley?”

“Ah,” Ron shrugs, but a sheen of sweat can still be seen on his forehead, “same old, same old, Sir. I can’t say I won’t miss fieldwork, though.”

“I know,” Robards nods, a rare sympathetic expression on his face, tapping his cane once more. “Your eye for detail and diplomatic abilities will serve everyone well. Just because you can’t jump all crazy and shit anymore doesn’t mean you’re useless, Weasley, remember that.”

Ron bows and start collecting the piles of paperwork he’s packed up on his desk. Harry reaches over and clasps him on the shoulder, getting a teary smile in return. For a moment, nothing is heard except the rustling of paper.

“Well, gentlemen.”

Harry retracts his hand and turns toward Robards.

“I’m just here to check in on you both. It appears that McLaggen’s encountered some trouble with his International Portkey, so unfortunately, he won’t be—”

There’s another knock on the door. “Excuse me, I was informed Head Auror Robards is currently here?”

Robards lets out an audible sigh of relief and twists the knob. Over his shoulders, Harry can see a head of blonde. Very, very fair blonde.

“Yes, I’m here. Apologies, I had some matters that need to be discussed in person with Mr. Weasley and Auror Potter, so I wasn’t in my office.”

“Oh, it’s no trouble at all. I was at fault, anyway. My Portkey was on the cheaper side, so there was a bit of malfunction. Thank Merlin I made it just in time. Your secretary— Miss Brown, is it?— was lovely. You ought to give her a raise.”

Robards laughs politely. “Everybody always says that about her. A hard worker, that woman, I’ll inform her of your commendation.”

He invites the man inside, and Harry feels his world roll upside down.

“Potter, here is Dr. McLaggen. He will be here as consultation, and with your upcoming case,” Robards peers at him over his thin glasses, “his expertise in Potions and International Law will help immensely.”

The man grins, all teeth, but completely non-threatening. His waistcoat fits him snugly, highlighting his tapered waist. The silvery specks in his eyes— not blue like they should be— glint in the summer sun, almost colorless, as he offers a hand toward Harry.

“Malfoy.”

Harry grips those long, pompously manicured fingers of Draco Malfoy tightly, barely registering the growl that rips out of his throat.

“Pardon?” Malfoy— not McLaggen, never McLaggen— tilts his head. His look of confusion is almost convincing.

Something sharp jabs Harry’s side. He doesn’t flinch, but he does drop Malfoy’s hand, who holds it with the other to his chest protectively.

“Mate, what is wrong with you?” Ron hisses in Harry’s ear. The latter whips his head to stare at him. Ron stares right back as if Harry is the one being insane here. “McLaggen was a douche, yeah, but he’s not even doing anything. Why’re you antagonizing him?”

“Antag— Ron,” Harry stresses, aware of a keen gaze flickering back and forth between him and Ron. “That’s literally Draco Malfoy standing in front of us. Tell me you’re not buying this.”

“What?” Ron strains his head back, eyes wide. Harry’s ears pound, and with the way Ron is shaking his head, he can tell he’s not going to like what’s coming out of Ron’s mouth.

“Who the fuck is Draco Malfoy?”

Harry tries and tries and tries. Tries to make sense of this. He fails.

All he can do is watch, numb in a detached sort of way, as Ron shakes Malfoy’s hesitant hand and apologizes for his best mate’s behavior, really, he’s been feeling ill these days, you know how the weather is. Malfoy lets a generous smile stretch across his cheeks, dimples deepening, and Harry hasn’t seen his face look like this before, hasn’t seen those dimples once in all the years he’s known and remembered Malfoy. It looks unnatural. Ron is sold.

Harry swivels to Robards, disbelieving. Robards has to know what’s going on. He’s too good to let someone like Draco Malfoy cast such a blatant Disfigurement Charm or whatever else he did to fool everyone. He can’t be falling for a criminal’s tricks. Yes, this must be a test, or a covert mission only a few are aware of.

Robards, who has been silent during the whole ordeal, catches Harry’s eyes. A presence pierces through his Occlumency shield, clean like a well-sharpened blade through unsuspecting flesh.

You will be dealt with, Auror Potter.

The presence leaves.

Robards says something dry and witty to the other two occupants in the room, and they laugh. With one final shake of hands with McLaggen—no, Malfoy— he wishes both Harry and his new partner a good day. Ron follows him out, a briefcase and a large box in his arms, desk now void of everything ‘Ron.’ He throws Harry a look, that signature ‘don’t do anything I wouldn’t do’ look, before closing the door behind him.

There’s no one else in the office but Harry and someone called Cormac McLaggen.

“I’m… sorry,” that person says, putting his briefcase on the surface of Ron’s desk gently. He tucks a messy strand of hair behind his ear, allowing Harry a better view of his face. “You must have mistaken me with, ah…”

“Yes. Draco Malfoy,” Harry says after a moment, putting his hands behind his back. A test. The person only blinks. “You’re both blonde and your facial structure is. Quite similar.”

“I see,” the person nods in understanding before sending a quick, warm smile at Harry. He looks honest. The past decade of Auror work clears out the fog in Harry’s brain, and he sees it; he really is honest. “It happens, don’t worry about it. Let’s just take a few moments to get to know each other, shall we?”

There’s no sign of recognition in the man’s eyes when he talks to Harry. Whoever did this to him, to everyone else, was sloppy. Arrogant. Harry makes a mental note to bring his backup wand from now on, especially in the event that he’s called to Robards’ office.

“Sure,” Harry sits down and gets comfortable, gesturing for Malfoy to do the same. Whatever is going on, he’d be damned if he won’t get to the bottom of it.

“Let’s.”

[cedricshearts]

Treat her well

Cedric Diggory x reader

(not my gif)

Pairings: Cedric x reader x cormac

Warnings: none, it’s just fluffy

Notice: some words may be spelled incorrectly

Word count: 1450

Request: Heya! Me again! So I was wondering if you could do another Cedric x Hufflepuff female reader where they have been best friends before hogwarts and she has a date with cormac but he’s just using her and he’s really rude etc. But as they are on there date Cedric is also there with Cho because well he can’t say no since he’s so kind but he witness his best friends date and it’s absolutely upset by how his best friend is being treated and treats her to a real date! Can’t wait to see it! :)

It was another beautiful day at hogwarts. The sun was shining brightly and it was really warm outside. Most of the students had thrown their robes to the drawer, but despite the warmness, you were wearing your hufflepuff robe. You were sitting outside with your best friend, cedric diggory. You have had a huge crush on him since the beginning of your school year. He didn’t know about your feelings towards him, because you thought it could ruin your friendship with him. You were reading a book about charms while cedric was talking to his friends next to you. It didn’t really bother you anymore, because he was probably the most popular guy in hogwarts at the time. You smiled and went back to reading. Cedric glanced at you few times even though he tried to hide his interest in you. You both were on your sixth year and everything was going just well, except your feelings were getting on the way when you were talking to him. You blushed bright red when he hugged you or even touched you. The butterflies you felt in your stomach didn’t want to go away. 

‘‘I’ve noticed that cormac is keeping his eyes on you, looks like he fancies you a lot’’ Cedric said and looked at you.

‘‘McLaggen? he is okay, i guess’‘ you said and sighed. Cormac was cute, but he seemed a little too excited everytime he saw you. Once he even ran away, because you stared at him for a little too long.

‘‘You two would make a cute couple’‘ He said back to you and gave you a tiny smile. Cedric was also falling for you, but didn’t want his feelings to be shown. It would crush him if you would reject him and the bond between you two would get weird. 

‘‘oh.. cool’‘ You smiled back at him and looked back at your book. Cedric was the only person you were really interested in. You noticed how he also got a lot of attention from the girls. You got really nervous when he leaned onto you and looked at the pages. His other arm was almost wrapped around you and his lips were almost touching your cheek. Just a touch made you nervous. You shook your head so the thoughts would go away and you placed your book back into your bag and stood up. He looked up at you confused while almost falling on the ground.

‘‘where are you going y/n?’‘ He raised his eyebrows and stoop up. You blushed and looked away so he wouldn’t see it. He placed his fingers underneath your chin and turned your face back to him. 

‘‘I’m going to the bathroom to... uhm’‘ you mumbled and looked straight into his grey eyes. He laughed a little and smiled. 

‘‘alright then, i’ll catch up with you later, okay?’‘ he said and turned his face to his friends. 

you walked back in and saw cormac staring at you once again. He kept his eyes on you and finally walked up to you. He had this wide smile on his face and he was almost smirking at you.

‘‘hey beautiful, how are you doing today on this beautiful day?’‘ cormac asked and looked into your eyes. 

‘‘uhm.. i’m doing fine’’ you blushed a little and looked down and then back up at him. 

‘‘i wondered would you like to go on a date with me?’‘ he asked and nervously scratched his neck. 

‘‘yeah.. i mean.. sure’‘ you replied and smiled at him. Little did he know that your feelings belonged to your own best friend.

‘‘wonderful, i’ll see you this evening? we could go get butterbeers in the three broomsticks’‘ cormac replied and finally his smile was back on his face.

‘‘sure, i’ll be there at 6′‘ you answered and gave him a smile.

after that, you walked away from him, while thinking of you and him. You and cormac, for now. You knew that cedric was most likely back in the common room, so you walked in there and saw him. He was reading, not sure about what.

‘‘hey ced, what are you reading?’‘ you walked behind him and messed up his hair. 

‘‘well hello, y/n. I was just reading..uhm.. this book’‘ he said and closed it up.

‘‘interesting.. you know what happened today?’‘ you continued and sat down next to him.

‘‘you.. learned a new spell?’’ he guessed and smiled at you.

‘‘nope, i got a date with cormac’‘ you replied and blushed a little while thinking about someone else..

‘‘oh really? that’s.. cool’‘ he replied and smiled a little. 

for a moment it was just silent. He nervously looked down and was silently in his thoughts. You were thinking about him, about cedric. It would be like a dream to go on a date with him. He would constantly tell you how beautiful you look and would also hold your hand while walking to another place. Just seeing his grey eyes or his beautiful dark hair made you weak on the knees, but you were good at hiding it. You’ve kept it a secret since the first year. 

‘‘i have it in few hours, so i’ll get ready and.. stuff’‘ you got up and looked back at him. He was still thinking. 

you walked to your dormitory and searched for your hairbrush. You brushed through your hair and decided to add a little bit of blush on your cheeks. You were ready to go. To be honest, it was a weird feeling you got. Not the same with cedric. With him, you felt butterflies in your stomach and you could feel your heart racing. At this moment, while walking to three broomsticks, you didn’t quite feel the same. It felt nice... a little bit. When you walked in, you saw cormac there waiting for you. He was dressed nicely and had clearly fixed his hair. When he saw you, a quick smile landed on his face and he walked up to you. 

‘‘wow.. great you’re here y/n’‘ cormac said and offered his hand to you.

you grabbed it and didn’t say a single word. after glancing over, you noticed that cedric was also there. not alone, he was there with a girl called cho chang. You didn’t know her well, but she was really popular. You looked back at cormac a little upset and sat down at the nearest table.

‘‘you look really nice today’‘ he looked at you and gave you a little smirk.

‘‘thank you, cormac’‘ you said and glanced at cedric once more.

‘‘you’re not going to say it back to me?’‘ he looked at you and raised his eyebrows.

‘‘uhm.. you look.. nice’‘ you replied a little confused.  

‘‘that’s right, anyways. I noticed you looking at me the other day. i know you have a big crush on me’‘ he said and grabbed your hand. You felt a little uncomfortable with that situation and you pulled your hand away.

‘‘i’m sorry.. i just..’‘ you shook your head a little and looked down. 

Cormac stood up a little angry and looked at you.

‘‘do not try to deny it! i know you like me, stop denying it!’‘ he said and looked straight into your eyes, a little cold.

You mumbled something and before you said anything, cedric walked over to you two. 

‘‘hey, i think it’s best for you to leave’’ Cedric said and glanced over at you, a little worried.

‘‘and who are you to say? It’s not like you’re her boyfriend anyways’‘ cormac said and walked away angry.

cedric blushed a little and looked down at you.

‘‘are you okay y/n?’‘ he asked a sat down next to you.

‘‘yeah i’m okay, you should go back to your date. I’ll just .. go back’‘ you placed your hand on your forehead and closed your eyes.

‘‘it’s really not like a date.. she asked me to come and i said yes.. really i just wanted to see you here’‘ cedric replied and looked down nervously.

‘‘really?’‘ You opened your eyes and stared at him while blushing again.

‘‘yes.. i’ve wanted to ask you something for a while now’‘ He said and looked back at you. His hands were shaking a bit and he was almost mumbling.

‘‘ask me ced, anything’‘ you placed your hand on top of his and smiled a little.

‘‘i wondered.. would you like to go on a date with me?’‘ he said and blushed. He couldn’t hide his feelings any longer. He had been in love with you for a while now, but never showed it. 

‘‘yes, absolutely’‘ you replied and smiled widely. 

He held your hand for a moment and finally he looked back into your eyes. He was also smiling and was coming closer to you. You felt like your heart wanted to make its way out of your chest. You leaned towards him and finally felt your lips against his.

sorry that this was a little shorter, but i hope you still enjoyed it.

[velvetthunder1999]

All the time on Earth

Part 6 - So Smart

Summary: George gets a bit jealous and Fred finds out you have crush on his brother

Warnings: None

Word count: 1.7K

George Weasley x Reader

Masterlist

Two weeks after the second task the amount of homework you had started to fill out every minute of your day. With the exams coming up you barely had any free time to care about anything other than your studies. Fred and George understood, of course, even if they hadn’t cared about their OWLs the year before. They tried to give you space to study but you could also feel how they were missing you when you weren’t with them.

It was raining outside, the sun was just about to go down. You were trying to focus on reading, but it was not so easy as you just enjoyed watching the susnet with all its beautiful colors; also, George sitting next to you was distracting enough on its own. He was focusing on some book about quidditch, causally leaning back, resting one arm behind your head on the couch. You tried not to look at him every once in a while, mostly because you knew he would notice. But it was really hard concentrating on anything, basically, when the boy you liked more and more every day was sitting so close to you.

You glanced at the sunset again. The sky was so beautiful it made your heart sting. The rain was also pouring heavily at this point, and the wonderful smell you had always liked was coming through an open window.

“What are you looking at?” asked George all of a sudden. You pointed at the sky.

“Look at that. Isn’t it beautiful?”

“Yeah — Yes, it is.” George smiled at you as you continued.

“You see that bright orange there in the corner? That’s my favorite color. When I see a sunset like this, I always feel both sad and happy at the same time.”

“Why?” he asked, curious.

You shrugged.

“I don’t know. I just do.”

He leaned closer, not taking his kind brown eyes off you.

“So are you feeling happy or sad right now?”

His face was so close you could see the freckles around his nose. You gulped; your throat felt incredibly dry. You had to force yourself not to look at his lips.

“I… I think I’m quite alright at the moment” you said, turning your head away before you do something stupid. You quickly continued, “But I like the smell of the rain, too. Reminds me of places I’ve never been at, but always wanted to. Does that make sense?”

“Of course” he nodded and leaned back. His face seemed almost disappointed, you had no idea why. Then his cheeky smile returned and he pointed at the book you were reading. “Any progress?”

“Not really” you answered, leaning back. “Maybe I’ll just finish it tomorrow. I’m really tired.”

“Let me see” he took the book, but when he was about to start reading it, the Fat Lady was opened and Cormac McLaggen stepped into the common room, calling your name.

“Y/N!” he walked over to you and sat down to your other side, completely ignoring George. “McGonagall gave us the list for the groupwork next month. You and I are gonna be a pair. We should really start doing it next week” he winked at you, which made you feel utterly uncomfortable. “And maybe I take you somewhere after. Just think about it, eh?”

And he walked away without even caring for your answer. You sat there, astonished at the fact how can a person be this egoistic. You decided not to say anything; you were just so sick and tired of McLaggen’s constant attempts to get a date from you. You were already hating on the groupwork you two had to do.

You turned back to George to ask him about the book, but he was not reading at all. He was eyeing McLaggen angrily, with narrowed eyes.

“You okay?” you asked, concerned. George finally looked at you and his expression  softened in a second.

“Sure. I didn’t know you had to work in groups” he added carefully.

“Yeah, in pairs for a homework essay” you rolled your eyes. “A bit annoying, really.”

“And McLaggen’s your pair?”

“I guess so” you answered, without being quite excited about it.

He casted down his eyes.

“Do you — Do you like him?”

“Eh, not really.”

“No, I mean — like that.”

You shot a sharp look at him, then grimaced.

“Ew, no way!” you laughed. “Do you really think so little of me?”

His smile was shy as he looked at you.

“I was just wondering.”

“Well, stop wondering cause he’s annoying me like hell.”

“He clearly likes you.”

“Yeah, it’s making me depressed” you laughed again. “He’s a git. Thinks he’s the best at everything but he’s incapable of acting like a decent human being.”

George seemed to be in a good mood after you finished talking. He placed your book in his lap when Fred joined you and sat down in an armchair opposite you.

“You two look like you’re having fun” he grinned at his brother who shot a sharp look at him in return. “Anything I need to know about? What are you reading, George?”

“George was about to help me with my homework.” you said. “I have to answer a bunch of questions for Binns but I don’t even know where to start.”

“Yes, so shut up Fred” said George to his brother in a sharp tone. Fred just grinned at him. You furrowed your brows in concern.

“Are you two fighting or something?”

“No” said the twins in perfect unison.

“Can I read?” asked George.

“Sure” you nodded.

While you were checking the questions on your parchment George was reading and Fred was cleaning his wand with his robes; you three were quiet. Then a minute later George pointed at a paragraph.

“Alright, so this might be easier than we thought. Do you wanna see the loophole?”

“You know I do.”

He smiled.

“So I’m guessing you have to write short answers about these people and the dates their conferences were held. So actually, here — see, here — these words are numbered. Which means they’re supposed to be at the end of the book, collected into a list with a short definition.”

He flipped the pages, then showed you the long list of names with their short description. Just as you needed.

“Holy shit” you said. “I didn’t know this existed!”

“You didn’t check the book before started reading it?”

“No, I’ve never used this stupid book for this stupid class before. But this is amazing. Thank you so much!

“You’re welcome” he smiled at you, quite proud of himself.

“Oh my God, George, you’re so smart!” you laughed happily, being freed from so much work. “You just saved my life.”

His eyes grew wide and his ears turned as red as a tomato. He cleared his throat and pointed at your parchment.

“Well — er — why don’t I read the information and you start writing what I say?”

“Yeah, that’s alright.”

“Great, give me a second.”

He started looking for the first name on your list, flipping the pages with great concentration. You were watching him, unable to wipe the smile off your face. He was so sweet while helping you with your homework, like he didn’t mind at all. You watched his hands, caressing the paper. Then you watched his beautiful eyes as he read the pages. You remembered how those eyes were looking at you when he asked about McLaggen. Why did he ask?

You turned away before George could notice that you were watching him. He didn’t, but someone else did. Fred was staring at you, and you saw on his face how he just put the pieces together. He opened his mouth but you shook your head in fear. Your heart dropped and the giddiness you felt a moment ago had passed.

Fred glanced at George and then back at you. He raised his eyebrows. You shook your head again. He nodded violently. Now you were shaking your head without stopping. Please, you were begging with your eyes, please don’t tell him.

Fred was taking aback but he stayed quiet. You were considering your options. Either you stayed here hoping Fred shuts his mouth, or you talk to him in private which might make George suspicious.

“What are you two doing?” George asked suddenly, looking at you concerned.

“I just need to talk to Fred for a second” you stood up and signed Fred to do the same.

“Oh, yes — er, I was just thinking that.”

You walked to the portrait without looking at George. You didn’t want to see the expression on his face, whatever it was.

You opened the Fat Lady and Fred followed you. When you reached a bench at the end of the corridor, you turned around and faced the brother of your crush.

“Well, well,” Fred said, grinning. “Will you look at that.”

“Please Fred, don’t say anything.”

“Oh, I really think I should.”

“No, you don’t understand, I’m begging you.”

“Why don’t you just tell him?” he asked with a mysterious smile. “You might be surprised.”

“No, that’s not an option.”

Fred closed his eyes and took a deep breath like he was internally struggling. He spoke in a tormented tone.

“Please, tell me why.”

“I — I don’t wanna tell him and then suffer the consequences. I don’t want it to be awkward between us. And it would be, believe me.”

“Y/N” Fred grabbed both your shoulders and shook you gently. “He clearly likes you, believe me.”

“Well, I’m really sorry, but I can’t. He doesn’t like me like that. And I rather enjoy being with him as friends than not being with him at all.”

“Oh my God” Fred exclaimed in agony. He rubbed his face in distraught. “You’re making me mad.”

“Can you promise not to tell him? Please.”

Fred stared at you for almost a minute and took a deep breath again.

“Sure. I promise not to tell anything. You should, though.”

“Let’s just… Let’s just forget it, okay?”

Fred rolled his eyes and turned back. You two started walking and he glanced at you.

“He’s really smart, though. You should really come up with a reason for wanting to talk to me before we get back.”

[ragingbookdragon]

Passing Notes

A Shay Cormac x Reader One-Shot

Word Count: 2,795 Warnings: Explicit Language

Author’s Note: This is the first time I’ve sat down and written without deleting everything after five minutes! Enjoy! -Thorne

If there was one thing that bored her more than long meetings, it was long meetings when someone other than the grandmaster, or anyone she actually enjoyed listening to, had the floor. And at the moment, Charles Lee had the floor, which in her mind, was the equivalent to having someone slam her head between the door and the doorframe until she stopped moving. The only solace she found was the occasional note she and Shay had managed to write and pass back between the two of them, rather sneakily. She drew her eyes to Lee as she opened the note silently, then dropped them the page, reading over the scribbles across it.

           S- How long is this going to last?

(Y/I)- With bootlicker talking? Probably another hour.

           S- Please tell me you’re joking. We’ve got better things to do than sit around and listen to him.

           (Y/I)- You’re preaching to the choir Shay. I can count the number of business deals that I’m going to have to reschedule because we’ve already gone over on time.

           S- You think Haytham is annoyed that he’s talking on and on?

           (Y/I)- Is he sitting with his elbow resting on the armchair and his pointer is pressed against the side of his head?

           S- Yes?

           (Y/I)- Then he’s absolutely annoyed.

           S- It’s rather endearing that you can read his moods like that. Sometimes I look at him and I can’t even begin to wonder what he’s thinking about.

           (Y/I)- He’s like an onion-he’s got layers-peel ‘em back one at a time and things will become clear.

           S- You are so full of shit.

           (Y/I)- No more than you are, Irish boy.

           S- Man. Irishman, thank you very much.

           (Y/I)- You don’t look much like a man from where I’m sitting.

           After Shay had read that, he turned to her with a look of full offense on his face, and Haytham had taken the quick second to snatch their letter and read it over. The two had gone completely silent as he shifted his steely gaze to the two of them as a teacher would disruptive students. After a moment of staring at them, he clicked the quill against the inkwell and scribbled his own message before folding it quietly to pass back. When Shay unfolded it and wrote his own message, he passed it to (Y/N), who fought to keep the grin hidden as she read.

           H- It is extremely unprofessional for the two of you to pass a note back and forth like children.

           S- You mean like you’re doing? Right now?

           (Y/I)- Pot meet the kettles. Haytham, you’re officially apart of the ‘Club of Unprofessionals’.

           H- I beg to differ. I am denouncing the two of you with what you are doing. Also, ‘unprofessionals’ isn’t a word.

           S- Denounce, he says. Still counts, we say.

           (Y/I)- Hayth, be real, this is the most fun you’ve had in the last two hours. TWO. HOURS.

           H- I do not like to be called that, you know that, and Charles does have some good points to make.

           S- Oh my god, you’re encouraging him, Haytham. And she calls you Hayth?

           (Y/I)- Only in private. The last time I called him that in public he got terribly upset with me.

           H- I did not.

           S- Did he?

           (Y/I)- His face got really red and he told me if I called him that in a public setting again, he’d set me on fire.

           H- I DID NOT SAY THAT. YOU ARE LYING.

           S- I don’t think she’s lying.

           (Y/I)- Well, he didn’t exactly ‘say’ it, but he gave me a look that told me so. Remember Shay, he’s an onion.

           H- I am not an onion.

           S- Can we get of here now? (Y/N) and I have a gang headquarters to overtake.

           (Y/I)- That’s actually a good question. Because if I have to sit here and listen to Lee speak any longer, I might actually commit murder. Also, I really do not want to listen to Johnson or Hickey start talking either. Because I will kill them too. Only Pitcairn. He’s interesting to talk to.

           H- You are not going to kill Charles, William, or Thomas.

           S- Actually, if she wants to just maim them, I don’t have a problem with that. Also, why only Pitcairn?

           (Y/I)- I’m seriously considering it.

           H- No.

           S- Hey you never answered my question.

           (Y/I)- Are you sure I can’t maim them just a little Hayth? Just a teensy-weensy bit?

           H- No. And she likes accents.

           S- Oh? (Y/N), is this the reason you spend so much time with me? Oh, this is good ammunition.

           When the note reached her once more, her eyes went wide with shock before she turned to look straight at Haytham with a look of pure hatred. He simply smiled at her in return before nodding at Charles, a silent gesture to pay attention. (Y/N) pursed her lips and nodded, writing his own secret down.

           (Y/I)- How dare you, Haytham Kenway, my most beloved best friend, betray one of my deepest secrets? You know what? You want to fight dirty? I’ll fight dirty, sweetheart. Shay, did you know that Haytham can’t compliment women to save his life. Don’t get me wrong, he knows how to be polite, but you put him in a situation where he has to sweettalk a woman and he can’t do jackshit.

           She tossed Haytham a smirk before passing the note to Shay, who, upon reading the note, had to clap a hand against the lower half of his face to avoid outright hysterical laugher from escaping him. She noted the subtle change in Haytham’s expression, enough to have gone from cool and collected to slightly unnerved and concerned. Shay scribbled down his own response before handing him the note, and (Y/N) watched a pure look of betrayal cross his face as he looked between her and the sheet of paper. She glanced at Shay and offered him a satisfied smile as the paper came back her way.

           S- You’re joking? The great Haytham Kenway can’t smooth talk women? The man who can make others piss themselves in pure fear with one dangerous look? The man who commands authority and expects respect when he steps into a room? The man who can take down a squad of soldiers singlehandedly? That man? He can’t talk to women? Jesus Christ Haytham, it’s not that hard.

           H- (Y/N) (L/N), I am docking your pay for two months. I cannot believe you just told that. I can talk to women. I talk to many women during the day.

           S- Well now it seems like you’re overselling it too much. You really can’t talk to women, can you Haytham?

           (Y/I)- Jokes on you, English boy, I make money outside of the templars, so kiss my ass.

           H- As you wish (Y/N), you are docked for the rest of the year.

           S- Ha. Looks like you’re going to be stuck with me to earn a living (Y/N). Me, my ship, and my lovely Irish accent.

           (Y/I)- You’re both dickheads and I hate the two of you.

           H- I guess you should have thought about this outcome before spilling secrets.

           S- Aw, lass, don’t hurt my feelings. I know you love me.

           (Y/I)- Up yours Kenway, you spilled first. And I do not love you.

           H- I simply answered a question.

           S- You spend all your time with me? Typically, when someone loves another person, they spend their time in said person’s company. Are you sure you don’t love me?

           (Y/I)- I spend time with you because you’re incompetent. I’ve watched you fall off rooftops and trip over nothing. You’re like a puppy that needs to be watched so it doesn’t piss on the carpet.

           H- While that is a rather descriptive analogy, Shay is not incompetent. He has taken a great deal of responsibility since moving into Fort Arsenal. But besides that, you do spend a majority of your time with him. Why is that?

           S- Yeah, what Haytham said. Why do you spend so much time with me? Is it my dashing good looks? Maybe my perfect marksmanship? It’s my good looks, isn’t it? Oh, you’ve fallen in love with me. Careful Haytham, I might sweep your right-hand woman from underneath you.

           (Y/I)- My god, who’s side are you on? You know what? I’m done. You’re both asses and I’m not talking to you two anymore. And Shay, I hope you fall off the pier.

           She passed them back the note before crossing her arms over her chest, turning her attention to Lee with an annoyed look. The longer she stared at the man, the harder she resisted the urge to snatch the letter that was still going between the two of them. When the meeting ended, she was one of the first out the door, intent to lose Haytham and Shay to find a bar to drink in.

A Few Hours Later:

           She slammed the tankard back on the bar, waving the bartender for another. He walked over and started filling the cup, but also asked, “Don’t you think you’ve had enough, miss?” (Y/N) drew her eyes up from the filling mug and glowered at him before slamming a few pounds on the bar.

           “How ‘bout you keep filling and I’ll keep paying?” He arched an eyebrow, but kept silent, swiping the money from the wooden counter, before walking off to another counter. Her eyes narrowed and she chugged the whiskey back until it was empty. When it was, she placed the tankard down, then placed her forehead on the bar, muttering, “Stupid best-friend. Stupid Irish sailor. Stupid cocky grin. Stupid accent. Stupid-” A certain accented voice cut her off, quipping,

           “Careful there lass, you might actually hurt my feelings.” (Y/N) pulled a face as she raised her head, watching Shay sit in the barstool next to her.

           “Good. I hope you drown in them.” The grin he gave her only served to irk her more as he nodded to her empty tankard.

           “Like you’re tryin’ to do with that liquor?” She grunted, but nodded and turned to the side, calling,

           “Speaking of liquor…bartender! I’m out!” He frowned as the man walked back over, then placed his hand over her cup.

           “I think you’ve had enough lass.” (Y/N) glared as she shoved his hand off, growling,

           “Unless you wanna lose that hand, don’t touch my cup.” Shay rolled his eyes at her and looked at the bartender, handing a few coins to him.

           “Last mug for her.” The man nodded and poured her last round, and Shay watched as she held the tankard to her chest. “Are you trying to nurse the mug lass?” (Y/N) took a swig then looked at him, hazy eyes still holding an edge as she bit out,

           “I might be inebriated, but don’t assume I can’t and won’t kick your ass.” She went back to her tankard, drinking the rest down before she placed it back on the counter, folding her arms across the bar as she laid on them. Shay sighed, murmuring,

           “You’re acting like a child (Y/N).” She frowned, burrowing the lower half of her face into her arms as she mumbled,

           “No, I’m acting like a woman who was and is embarrassed. There’s a difference.” Shay huffed a laugh, setting his elbow on the bar, propping his chin on his palm.

           “What are you even embarrassed about?” He let out another laugh, moving his chin to poke her with his hand. “Is it about earlier? Lass, you know Haytham and I were just teasing you?” (Y/N) glanced at him, before looking away, muttering,

           “It…it didn’t feel like teasing to me. It felt serious…it felt-” His jaw went slack and one look at his face had her scoffing as she rose from the bar. “Oh Jesus Christ. I am not doing this right now.” She turned on her heel and stumbled for the door but didn’t get far when someone bumped into her. The addition of the sudden force with her already clouded mind sent her tumbling to the floor, but before she could kiss it, a strong arm wrapped around her waist, yanking her back up. Her back met a strong chest and split second, she wanted to struggle against whoever had her by the waist when the familiar scent of sea salt and gunpowder reached her nose, followed by his voice.

           “Easy (Y/N)…I’ve got you.” She relaxed slightly, letting him lead her to the door, and as they stepped into the cool night, she grimaced and mumbled,

           “Sorry.” She couldn’t see his face, but one of his hands curled into hers as he led her, and he smiled,

           “It’s alright lass…everyone has nights like this.” (Y/N) felt the familiar warmth gather in her eyes and she shut them, shaking her head as she retorted,

           “I don’t have nights like these. I don’t need them.”

           “Lass, everyone needs a break. We’re all entitled to our feelings.”

           “Will you stop that!” The sudden shriek made him halt and she pulled away to stare at him as he questioned,

           “Stop what?” (Y/N) wildly waved her arms, yelling,

           “Stop treating me like a fragile doll! I’m a grown woman and I will not be treated as anything less!” Shay pursed his lips and nodded, crossing his arms across his chest as he countered,

           “Alright, you wanna be treated like a grown woman? Fine. I’ll treat you like one. You’re always the one giving the remarks that when the receiver turns around and gives you something you can’t handle, you don’t know what to do with it. When Haytham and I decided to give as good as we get, you didn’t know how to handle it besides pouting like a child. But it’s not the fact that you couldn’t handle being double teamed, because let’s be honest, I’ve seen you slap groups of people without laying a hand on ‘em.” He reached out, poking her in the chest. “It’s the fact that you had the truth written in front of you-literally-and you didn’t know how to process it.” He withdrew his hand and inquired, “Did I cover most of it?” (Y/N)’s mouth opened, but then she snapped it shut and nodded, then muttered,

           “…Yeah…that’s it…” She dropped her gaze to the ground, staring at her feet as she added, “I’m going to go home now…and…probably sleep for a whole day…hopefully forget this conversation.” She turned and took a step when his arms wound around her, pulling her backwards. Before she could ask, he murmured,

           “Home’s not that way, lass.” (Y/N)’s brows furrowed, and she questioned,

           “What are you talking about?” Warm breath fell next to her ear and he replied,

           “The Morrigan is on the other side of New York lass.” She huffed a laugh full of disbelief.

           “Is this a joke?” He spun her around, staring into her eyes as he grabbed her hand, placing it against his chest.

           “Does it feel like a joke?” (Y/N) frowned as she went quiet, feeling the rapid thump of his heart under his chest. He offered her a troubled smile. “I’ve heard it’s wrong to fall for your superiors, but I can’t help it.” Her eyes went wide, and she gaped at him as he added, “I’m not the greatest man ever (Y/N). I’ve got my regrets and troubles, and trouble finds me more than I solve it, but if there’s one thing I’m sure of, it’s that I know I love you.” He curled his hand around the one at his chest, squeezing tightly, but not enough to hurt as he breathed, “If you’ll have my heart…I’ll have yours as well…” Tears welled in her eyes and she began to nod, when a crooked grin crossed his lips and he quipped, “Well, I think I already do have yours.” (Y/N) barked a laugh that almost sounded like a scoff and withdrew her hand, walking past him towards the docks.

           “You absolute ass. Get all touchy-feely with me about your feelings and turn around and get cocky about it.” Shay chuckled as he spun around and hauled after her as he said,

           “Well am I gonna get a response?” (Y/N) smiled as she clasped her hand around a streetlamp, twirling around it, and retorted,

           “I’m heading home, am I not?” He matched her grin and caught her as she let go. Drawing her into his arms, he pressed his forehead to hers and expressed,

           “With you right here…it’s all the home I need.” She giggled at his words.

           “You’re a terrible flirt Shay Cormac.” He huffed a laugh, countering,

           “At least I’m better at it than Haytham.” (Y/N) gave him a smile and nodded.

           “That you are Shay.”

[x--daughters-of-darkness--x]

The Last Word: Shirley Manson on Fighting the Patriarchy and How Patti Smith Inspires Her

The Garbage singer also talks racial justice, living for now, and why legacy is an inherently masculine concern

Almost as soon as Garbage’s self-titled debut blew up overnight in 1995, their singer, Shirley Manson, became aware of the patriarchy running the music industry. Even though she was the group’s focal point — belting dusky electro-rock songs about making sense of depression (“Only Happy When It Rains”) and taking pride in nonconformity (“Queer”) — she was still a woman fronting a band of men, one of whom, Butch Vig, had produced Nirvana’s Nevermind. Almost immediately, she felt as though her role in the group was being devalued — not by the guys she worked with, but externally.

“There was a lot of stuff written about me in the music press, and that’s when I started to realize how I’m being diminished, how, in some cases, I’m being completely eradicated from the narrative because I’m female and not a man,” she says now. “I was talked over by lawyers; I was ignored by managers. The list goes on. It’s boring and tedious; there’s no point in me moaning about it now, but certainly, that was my awakening.”

That revelation emboldened her to speak out about equality and she quickly became a feminist icon, using her platform to bring attention to human rights, mental health, and the AIDS crisis. All the while, she wrote inclusive hit songs with Garbage about androgyny and reproductive rights (“Sex Is Not the Enemy”). On Garbage’s great new album, No Gods No Masters, she grapples with racial injustice, climate change, the patriarchy, and her own self-worth. But as weighty as the subject matter is, she approaches each song in her own uniquely uplifting way.

“I don’t think really the record is serious, per se,” the singer, 54, says, on an early May phone call. “I think it’s an indignant record. I think in indignance you can still carry humor with you, as well as softness, kindness, and love in your heart. I just felt it would be inauthentic to say anything other than what I was saying in my daily life across the dinner table from my friends and my family. I think as you get older as an artist, the challenge is, ‘How I can be my most authentic self?’ because that’s the most unique story I can tell. In an industry that’s just absolutely jam-packed to the rafters with ideas, opinions, melodies, and so on, you can’t afford to be anything other than your most authentic self. It won’t last.”

Authenticity and being true to herself are the qualities that have made Manson who she is. And those traits seem to guide her answers to Rolling Stone’s questions about philosophy, life lessons, and creature comforts for our Last Word interview.

What are the most important rules that you live by? I’m 54, which is ancient for the contemporary music industry. At this point, I feel like if it’s not fun, then I’m uninterested entirely. If somebody’s treating me poorly, I have to walk away. Life is so fricking short, and I’m three quarters of the way through mine already; I just want to have a good life, full of joy.

Who are your heroes and why? Patti Smith is a huge hero for me for a lot of different reasons. Most importantly, it’s because she’s a woman who has navigated her creative life so beautifully and so artfully, with such integrity and authenticity, and she has proven to me that a woman, an artist, does not have to subscribe to the rules of the contemporary music industry.

It’s very rare for other women to see examples of women actually working still in their seventies. That, to me, is really thrilling and really inspiring, and it fills me with hope. At times when you come up against the ageism, sexism, and misogyny that exists in our culture, I always try and picture Patti in my mind’s eye, and it always brings me back to center, like, “OK, adhere to your own rules. Design your own life. Be your own architect. You can continue to be an artist the rest of your life.” And to me, that’s life. That is a fully lived life.

You’re also a role model yourself. How do you handle that responsibility? I’m a bit speechless if the truth be told. I realize that I’ve now enjoyed a long career in music, and by default, I think people are inspired by that. I think whenever you see an artist, no matter who they are, when someone can endure, I think that’s exciting to everybody else, because it’s a message that says, “You too can get up when you think you’re done. You too can brush yourself off and try again.” By just continuing, you can help other people continue and fulfill themselves in ways that they thought they wouldn’t be able to.

I try to be a decent person. I make mistakes. I fuck people off. I say stupid shit. I’m not all-knowing; I am ignorant in so many ways. But I do try my best. I think that’s really all I can ask of myself.

How others perceive me is absolutely out of my control. There’s always going to be people who think I’m an arsehole, and that’s just part and parcel of being in the public eye. People are just going to hate on you, so I try not to take too much of it in; I don’t let it absorb me too much. I have gotten to that point in my life when I’m able to just go, “You know what? Fuck it. You can’t win them all.”

You once said that the idea of legacy was a masculine construct that you don’t believe in. Do you still feel that way? Yeah. I still very much believe in that. I know a lot of male artists who bang on about their legacy and their importance. Not to knock that if that’s what’s important to you but for me personally, what do I care? I’m going to be dead and gone and totally unconscious of any so-called legacy that I might leave behind. I want fun now. I want to have a good life now. I want to eat good food now and have great sex. It’s absolutely meaningless to me what happens after I’m gone. I want to use my time wisely, and that’s all that I really am concerned with, to be honest.

What is it about legacy that’s inherently masculine? This is armchair psychology, so please forgive me, but I’m sure it has something to do with how women have this uterus that can bear children. I think that’s profound. One of the few gifts that men have not been given is that ability to create with your body, and your blood, and your heat and all these nutrients from your body. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons why you don’t hear as many women banging on about the great legacy they’re going to leave behind. I think for women it’s their kids.

You’re Scottish. What is the most Scottish thing about you these days? I’ve got a lot of grit, and it’s served me really well in my career. I think that is a really Scottish trait. The Scottish people are tough, and they also have a good sense of humor. So, grit with humor. I should say “gritted with humor,” in the same way we grit roads.

As you were saying “grit,” it occurred to me that a lot of your songs are about survival and moving forward, going back to “Stupid Girl” or “Only Happy When It Rains.” They’re about perseverance. [Pauses] I think it’s funny you should say that because I’m just sort of like, “Wow, he might be right.” I do think that a huge theme for me is, “How do you overcome? How do we all overcome?” Things can be great for a while; things will not be great forever. And to every single life, these challenges appear. We all have to reconfigure ourselves in order to try to hurl ourselves over obstacles in order to have the kind of life we hope for. So I do think you’ve shocked me a little by discovering a theme for me. Yay, I feel thrilled. I have a theme. It’s exciting.

“Waiting for God” is one of my favorite songs on the album because of the way you address racial justice. How can we, as a society, fight white indifference? You know, that’s a question right there. It’s interesting that you use the words “white indifference,” because one of the things that shocked me so greatly is the ambivalence and the apathy of white people all over the world who are seeing what we’re seeing on our TVs and on the internet, and yet not having the moral courage to speak up. I think the most important thing we can do is pull back the carpet to see the mess on the floor in order for us to actually start cleaning it up.

If we could curtail some of the brutality of police against black people, that would be a good start. I think it’s going to be decades and decades and decades before we can start to really equalize our societies so that everyone is enjoying the spoils of Western wealth over in the developing world. It’s necessary that we try and help these countries that aren’t as powerful or as wealthy. It’s good for the whole world if we start to improve situations for everyone. Nobody will lose anything, and everyone has everything to gain.

But if I had the answers to how we go about fixing it, I would be in politics and not in music. I just know what I believe to be right, and I’m doing my best to use my voice to try and encourage my friends, my little ecosystem, to start with paying attention and supporting black businesses and elevating black voices and black talent.

What’s your favorite book? I have so many. The one that springs to mind would be American Pastoral by Philip Roth. I loved All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy. I loved The Collected Works of Billy the Kid by Michael Ondaatje. I loved Winnie the Pooh and Wuthering Heights. I’ve got so many that have really stuck with me that are classics.

My most favorite recent book that I’ve just finished reading is Dancer by Colum McCann about [Russian ballet dancer Rudolf] Nureyev. I was just absolutely mesmerized by it. It was just such a fantastic read, and he’s such a miraculous writer. He brought out Apeirogon last year about the struggle in between Palestine and Israel. He talks about this complicated mess with such clarity, kindness, and generosity. I couldn’t believe Apeirogon didn’t get more fuss made of it last year. Somehow it just seemed to get buried in the morass of other books, and of course the suffering that Covid had brought upon the earth.

What advice do you wish you could give your younger self? “Take up your space.” When I was growing up, to be a girl was to be told to minimize the space you took up: “Close your legs. Don’t be loud. Smile. Be cute. Be attractive. Be pleasing.” I inherently balked against that as a kid. I was a rebellious kid, and I wasn’t going to sit in the corner and be quiet. I’ve never been like that. However, looking back, I still notice some of the patterns of my own compliance. It’s not that I hate myself for it, but I just wish I could turn around and say to my young self, “Take your seat. If there’s not a seat there, drag a seat up to the table and sit down.”

I’m still really aware of the sexism and misogyny that I have had to battle throughout my career. I’m not crying, “Woe is me,” because I’ve obviously flourished in my career, and it obviously didn’t hold me back enough to hamper me in any way. But I feel for all the women who were unlike me, who didn’t have my forcefulness of personality, or my education, or my ability to articulate myself. I want that for all people, though; I want all people to stop trying to please, and accept that some people will like that, and some people won’t, and that’s OK. It’s OK that some people just don’t dig you.

On the topic of gender, I got a kick out of your song “Godhead,” where you ask if people would treat you differently “if I had a dick.” I’m really proud of that song, because I think it’s talking about something really serious, and it’s really fun. It’s about addressing the patriarchy, and how omnipresent it is. When I was young, I was so busy trying to make it, I didn’t see that there was a patriarchy in place. And it’s only as an adult, I start looking back going, “Oh, wow — when that A&R man told me to my face that he wanked over pictures of me, that was really uncool.” But at the time, you kind of laugh it off and just press on.

I was oblivious to it. In this song, I’m talking about how patriarchy bleeds into absolutely everything, specifically under organized religion. The “Godhead” is the male, and we are all under the godhead forever, and that’s unquestioned, and how crazy is that? Because a dude holds a higher position in society, because he’s got a dick and a pair of balls. Often, these balls are smaller than my own [laughs].

It just gets silly after a while, when you watch other men protect other men just for the sake of protecting the patriarchy. So few men are willing to speak up about bro culture and call into question the behavior of the men they are associated with. There’s just a reluctance by men to address this absolutely shocking, terrifying, depressing, pathetic assault by men of other people’s bodies.

In 1996, your bandmate Butch Vig said about you, “So many singers screamed to convey intensity, and she does the opposite. It just blew us away.” How did you come up with that approach? I don’t know. I’ve found that when people speak to me quietly, I feel the most threatened because I’m really comfortable with conflict. I thrive on conflict. It excites me in a funny way. When people are shouting, I don’t feel scared. I like to shout back; that’s just how my family were. We’d just start to shout at each other all the time. I’m not scared of elevated temper. For me, when people get really quiet, that’s when I know they’re really serious, because they’re in control of their rage, and that’s when they’re most deadly.

The last question I have is a shallow one. I love being cheap and superficial.

What’s the most indulgent purchase you’ve ever made? At the height of my success, I hired a person who would shop for me and then send everything in a big box to my hotel room. I would choose what I wanted and return anything else. One day, this beautiful pair of Italian leather boots arrived. I wore a pair very similar in the “Stupid Girl” video, and I thought, “Oh, yeah, these are really me. I’m going to keep these. These are amazing.” It was only when I got back from tour, I found out they cost $5,000. I can’t even laugh about it. It makes me so crazy. I still have these boots. I’d like to get rid of them just so that I never have to look at them again, but there they are every day, warning me of my own greed.

[cinlat]

A Tight Fit (Halloween Fic)

Characters: Fynta Wolfe, Balic Cormac, Aric Jorgan Rating: T Word Count: 958

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

Nar Shaddaa Residential Sector Apartment 215

“It’s too tight. You’re going to rip it.”

Aric Jorgan paused outside of his bedroom, trying to reason out why a man was in there. Once he’d placed the voice, he debated whether or not it would be wise to enter. Turning off the datapad on the latest sniper scopes, Jorgan kneaded the bridge of his nose and listened to the scuffle inside. He should be furious that Fynta would bring another man into their bedroom. The ship was one thing, but their apartment was sacred. Trust was the only thing that stayed Aric’s temper. Well, trust and an unhealthy dose of curiosity.

“I am not,” Cormac grunted. “Just need to wiggle it a little more, yeah, like that.”

Jorgan lifted his eyes to the ceiling, wondering if the two idiots inside had any idea what half of their conversations sounded like out of context. After years of living together as a squad, he’d come across too many instances where Fynta and Balic hatched some hair-brained plot behind a barely closed door. As if they took eavesdroppers as a challenge.

“Okay, big guy,” Fynta huffed, breath airy in a way that made Jorgan’s brow lift. “One inch at a time.”

“I’ve only got twenty minutes before Elara gets back. Slow and steady isn’t going to cut it.” Cormac growled, then yelped. “Damn it, woman. Easy on the goods.”

A low, evil chuckle preceded Fynta’s reply. “You said that you were in a hurry.”

Bracing himself, Jorgan pushed open the door to find Cormac lying on his back while Fynta stood over him, straddling his middle while she wrestled with what looked like bantha hide trousers. The big man cursed and snatched a poofy, white shirt over his bare torso with an embarrassed half-smile.

“Hey, riduur,” Fynta growled while she forced the fabric over Cormac’s upright leg. “How was the meeting?”

Though normally difficult to tell through his darker complexion, redness crept up Cormac’s neck and cheeks. It was impossible to flee with Fynta’s foot planted on his stomach for support, though Aric thought he might try. With a huff, she straightened. “Okay, maybe you’re not the same size as Blue.”

Cormac grunted when Fynta pushed off him. She’d managed to get his foot through, but the pants had barely been worked up to his knees. “Alright, you’re on your own for the rest.”

Fynta hopped down from the bed to rummage through her closet. Jorgan turned his back in an attempt to ignore Cormac’s grunts of protest while he worked the breeches further up his body.

Aric joined Fynta at her closet and leaned forward to see what she was doing. “Should I ask?”

“Surprise for Elara,” Fynta answered without turning from her goal. She let out a cheer, emerging with a dust-covered shoe box. Thankfully, Cormac had managed to get the pants up and was attempting to fasten them when Fynta dropped the box on the bed. “These should fit, at least. I know you wear the same size shoe.”

“Thanks, boss.” Balic let out a long breath when he finally secured the lower half of his outfit, then reached for the top. Jorgan pressed his lips into a tight line to avoid the smile trying to creep into place.

The sleeves that Fynta buttoned at Cormac’s wrists probably contained more fabric than the entire body of the shirt. They poofed out, made all the larger by the man’s ridiculous musculature, and cinched in around the waist to accent how uncomfortably tight those pants were. Jorgan cleared his throat and averted his gaze.

“Why do you have your old mentor’s clothes in your closet?” Jorgan asked, searching for anything to distract him from all the areas his mind shouldn’t go when it came to why Cormac needed such an outfit to surprise Elara. He'd always suspected that there had been something more than platonic about her relationship with the Chiss double agent, but neither had ever broached the topic.

When Fynta answered, Aric heard the grin in her voice.  “I stole them from his locker one night when he gave me perimeter detail as a punishment for something I probably shouldn’t have done in the first place." She patted Cormac's chest. "That should do it.”

Cormac sauntered up to the mirror with all the self-respect of a man who knew his worth. “Hey, this isn’t half bad.” Aric watched the man turn one way, then another while he examined the outcome of his and Fynta’s hard work. With a hearty laugh, he clapped his hands. “I owe you, boss, oh shit, I need to get going. You two have fun.”

Snatching his jacket, Cormac darted from the room. Jorgan heard the front door shut a moment later and turned to his wife. “I worry about you two.”

Fynta laughed and went to the other side of their bed. She vanished behind it, emerging a minute later with a box from the local dry cleaners. Aric moved closer, curious about what she’d thought important enough to make the trip across town instead of using the free one on base. The flash of blue in the overhead light made his stomach tighten, then an excited growl slipped through his teeth when Fynta pulled his favorite outfit from within. “I thought we might stay home tonight and...rekindle some old memories.”

It took effort to drag his gaze from the sequined strips of fabric that had haunted his dreams since their first trip to Nar Shaddaa years ago, but Jorgan managed. The heat in Fynta’s eyes made his knees weak. “So, what do you say?”

Closing the distance between them, Aric pulled his wife into a rough kiss. “You get dressed,” he breathed against her lips. “I’ll lock the door.”

[wreckofawriter]

Revenge

Pairing: Fred Weasley x reader

Word Count: 2,545

Request: Hi love, can I get 82 and 78 with Fred Weasley? I love your writing btw 💕💕💕

78: "This is illegal isnt it?"

82: "I will face god as I walk backward into hell."

Summary: After her boyfriend cheats on her Fred and George help reader get revenge

A/n: I am so sorry this is so late. My summer has been shit, my bestfriend started dating the guy I have liked for over a year, and my other friend is pissed at me rn sooo yeah life is great. Anyway, sorry again and I'll try to catch up on some writing. Hope u guys enjoy!

You woke up to a blinding light turning your eyelids from a dark peaceful space to a bloody red one. You groaned opening them slowly and painfully squinting against the sunlight filtering through the large windows in the common room. 

Groaning in confusion you began to gain your senses back, along with memories from the night before. You remembered winning the quidditch game by barely a second then the raging party afterwards, and the number of shots you had taken quickly and painlessly to celebrate your win. 

And now you were tangled in limbs with someone on a couch not daring to move because of the pounding in your head that felt like someone was hitting it with a hammer every other second.

Finally the sting slowed to a dull throb and you sat up trying to ignore the intensifying pain once again rising in your head. You looked around to find your legs wrapped around your best friend's. Your head had been in the crook of his arm and you had to push his other arm off your shoulder. 

You slid your legs off of Fred and stood up causing the red headed boy to stir but not wake. You then began to take in your soundings. 

The floor was littered with red plastic cups and garbage. There was red and gold confetti everywhere and red streamers across the balcony above. 

You sighed and headed up to your dorm pressing in on your temples. You quickly got changed at went down to the common room. You and Cormac were supposed to meet up for breakfast -you had agreed to do so before the match- but now he was probably passed out and hungover. 

You sighed and decided to go check. If he was asleep you would just wake up Fred to go with you. 

You headed up the stairs your headache fading away thanks to the healing potion you had downed upstairs.

You pushed open the door and was met with two pairs of eyes. One was the hazel of your boyfriend and the others were the deep brown of Katie Bell. 

You stumbled backwards at the sight in front of you. Your eyes became blurry with tears. Why was Katie here? Why was she half naked? And why was SHE ON TOP OF YOUR BOYFRIEND?!

"You asshole!" You spat out tears streaming down your cheeks. 

Cormac pushed Katie off of him and started towards you. 

"Shit y/n, I-I didn't mean for you to see that." 

"No shit." You gritted out fury and sadness budding inside you.

He tried to step towards you but you took a step back, "Y/n I-"

"Eight months," you scoffed the comfort you had seen in his eyes gone. "Eight fucking months!"

He flinched at your words as if each one was a slap to the face. 

"You threw away eight months to fuck a slut like Katie Bell?!" You screeched not caring that you had just woken a dozen hungover teenagers.

"Hey!" Katie yelled clearly offended. 

You turned to her with fury in your eyes that made her cower, "You don't get to speak."  You hissed. Katie shut her lips tight and retreated into the corner.

"Don't take this out on her." Cormac said.

"You're defending her!" Your words were sharp and haunted. 

"Your one to talk of being a slut when your sleeping with Weasley!" 

You let out a sour laugh, "Who? Fred?" 

"Yeah Fred, you're all over him!" 

"You know what McLaggen?" You scoffed. "I should have been with Fred."

"Yeah, you think you should have been with him?!" Cormac yelled taking a step toward you, "Then go! Go fuck Weasley!"

You looked up at him tears leaving shimmering trails down your cheeks. Your eyes filled with a dark fire, "Go fuck yourself McLaggen." You seethed before turning on your heels and darting down the stairs. 

You were met with 11 pairs of eyes each showed emotions ranging from anger to pity. The latter more common than the former. 

"Shows over." You murmured angrily. 

Most eyes darted away from you and you scoffed before walking towards the portrait hole. You were stopped by a hand catching g your wrist. 

It was Fred, he tried to pull you into a hug while murmuring comforting words but you pulled away angrily. You left tears dripping from your chin as your crimson robes billowed behind you.

It had been a week. A week of the glances and the whispers. A week of the pitying looks and pointed fingers. A week of anger and sadness.

Fred watched you suffer for a week and he was done. He couldn't stand watching you fall apart over a boy who you should've been with in the first place. He tried to comfort you but his attempts failed each time. So he decided you needed the next best thing. 

Revenge.

Fred and George had a special talent when it came to revenge. So when they found you drunk and alone on the dock to the Black Lake, they decided to take action.

It took the twins two days to come up with the perfect prank. They wanted something that would humiliate him to no end but not physically hurt him. 

Well, George to remind Fred of the last part more often than not when the older twin came up with ideas that could seriously injure their target. 

Finally they struck gold on a plan. 

You sat in the library trying to focus on your potions essay instead of the group of fourth years that were giggling behind their hands pointing at you every so often. You finally snapped whipping around to face the group. 

"You point at me one more time and I will cut that finger off." You threatened your voice low and menacing. 

The younger students flashed red, eyes widened before mumbling an apology and quickly exiting the library. 

"Well you scared the shit out of them." George laughed taking a seat next to you and snatching the quill from your hand. 

You sighed, "What do you what Weasley?"  

"This is about what you want, what you need." Fred stated sliding on your other side and throwing his arm around your shoulders. 

"What's that?" You grumbled visibly annoyed. 

"Revenge." Both twins voiced at the same time smirks taking over their pink lips. 

And for the first time in weeks you felt a smile across your lips, "Alright, what are we talking?" 

You stood in front of the portrait entrance watching as the twins set up the trip wire. 

You giggled, "This is illegal isn't it?" 

"Nah," Fred smiled back at you he had missed the sound of your laughter. 

"It does break about 30 different school rules though." George shrugged. 

"Good." You grinned flashing your white teeth. "That means it's going to be brilliant."

"That also means we need a getaway plan." Fred pointed out, sighing and backing away from his masterpiece. 

"We could make a run for the closet in the charms room." You suggested. 

"Good idea but all three of us won't fit." George explained. 

"Okay, we'll go there and you make a run for the astronomy tower." Fred offered smirking at his astounded brother. 

"What! Why do you get to go to the easy spot?" Goerge asked visibly annoyed. 

"Because I called it." Fred replied, clearly proud of himself.

"The only reason you want to hide in a closet with y/n is because-" George was cut by a particularly cold glare from his twin.

"Because what?" You asked looking back and forth from the boys. 

"Nothing." Goerge grumbled rolling his eyes.

You mimicked his actions and sighed, you weren't going to get an answer out of the two any time soon. 

"Ok so y/n your going to lead him out then we will let the magic happen. " Fred grind.

"This better work." You mumbled. 

"It'll work." George asherrd you. 

"Hey McLaggen, I want to talk to you." When those words left your mouth everyone in the common room snapped their attention to you, as usual they had nothing else to do but wait around like vaulters for something interesting to happen.

Cormac smirked looking up at you, "Alright sweetheart."

You almost slapped him, you managed to take a deep breath and force a smile on your face as you walked towards the exit with him. 

Just before you exited the portrait hole you looked straight up at him and punched him square in the jaw. Your fist connected with his face and he stumbled backwards clutching the spot where he had just been hit. 

Gasps were heard from behind you as some people stood up to get a better view of the scene unfolding in front of them.

"You bitch!" He shrieked, " Your gonna rot in Hell. Rot!" 

You sprinted away from him as he started after you. You were sure to step over the tripwire as you darted out of the way. 

You turned just as he tripped over the thin wire sprawling to the ground. 

"I will face god as I walk backward into hell!"  You yelled at him flipping him off as you walked backwards. 

You watched with a satisfied smile as the boy who had caused you so much pain was dumped in black ink. 

The second the rotten smelling ink covered him George cast a Bedazzling hex and seconds afterwards Fred cast a bat bogey hex and an Antler jinx. 

You burst into laughter watching as the boy stumbled around blindly covered in vomit scented ink growing antlers as his own mucus grew wings and attacked his face. 

"Come on y/n!" Fred yelled snatching your hand and darting towards the East wing. 

The two of you burst into the Charms classroom and darted for the closet. Fred shoved you inside before following and slamming the door behind him. 

You were still laughing the hilarious image of your ex-boyfriend dancing in your mind. 

Fred was smiling too, how could he not be happy when the sound of your laughter filled his ears? 

The two of you stood in the dark closet chests brushing for 4 minutes before your laughter died out, well was more cut off.

Fred heard voices and promptly slapped his hand over your mouth. Your laughter had still been to loud and as much as you tried to stop it you couldn't. So you did the next best thing. You buried your head deep into Fred's chest to muffle the sound. 

Fred had never been more thankful for the dark. He swore he was on fire when you had nuzzled into his sweatshirt, wrapping your arms around him. 

When you laughter finally did die you just stood there buried deep into his chest, hugging him tightly as you breathed in his sweet scent. 

"Thank you." You mumbled, voice barely audible.

"For what?" Fred asked face still hot. 

"For everything." You murmured, tried to snuggled deeper into Fred's soft sweatshirt. "You've done so much for me." 

"Y/n I would do anything for you." The red headed boy whispered wrapping his arms around you and burying his head into your y/h/c hair inhaling its signature floral scent. The scent he would recognize anywhere. "I love you y/n." 

The words tumbled from his lips before he could stop them. His eyes went wide as you pulled away from him in shock. 

You felt your breath speed up, "What!?" You cried attempting to back up only to hit a shelf directly behind you. 

Fred felt like his whole world just came crashing down on him. He stumbled over his words trying to recover only to realize there was no going back. 

"You love me?" You asked eyes wide, eyebrows knitted together as confusions etched itself onto your face. 

Fred sighed looking helplessly down at his hands. He finally looked back up at you and exhaled loudly. "Yes." 

You stumbled falling against the wall coving your face with your hands. This was too much too soon. Your boyfriend cheats on you and your best friend says he loves you all in one week. This was way too much. 

"Look y/n I'm really sorry to spring this on you but it's about time I tell you I've loved you for 4 years." Fred declared. 

"FOUR YEARS?" You gasped mouth dropping open, eyed the size of golf balls as you ran your hand through your hair. 

"Yeah but it's all your fault." Fred snapped suddenly feeling angry at the girl for putting him through years of unrequited love.

"My fault!?" You yelled anger conquering your features. 

"Yeah!" Fred scoffed, "Your the one who had to be all pretty and smart. It's not my fault your perfect! Your the one who made me fall in love with you!" 

"What could I have possibly done to make you fall in love with me?!"

Fred's mouth now dropped, "Are you kidding?" He scoffed. 

"Do I look like I'm kidding?!" You asked impatiently. 

"What made me fall in love with you? Well let's see, how about the fact that you stand up for yourself no matter what, or the fact that you are smarter than the rest of the kids in our year combined. Or maybe that you make the best jokes and you are clever and witty in the best possible way. Or the fact that you are so stupidly beautiful I can't even look at you without imagining what it would be like to run my hands over your-!" 

His ranting was cut off when your reached up and grabbed his tie, roughly slamming your lips onto his.

His eyes widened in surprise before shutting slowly as he leaned into the kiss. 

One of your hands found their way to the back of his neck while your other ran through his fiery red hair, tugging lightly making him moan. When his lips parted you slipped your tongue inside them tasting butterbeer and chocolate, rich and sweet. 

His hands found your waist and pulled you close for a second until you pulled away. 

The two of you stood in the dark panting for a few seconds before Fred spoke. 

"Why did you do that?" He gasped eyes wide from surprise. 

"I don't know!" You yelled, "I just really wanted to kiss you all of the sudden!" 

"Well it was good." Fred replied 

"Yeah it was." You breathed out. 

Another few seconds of silence past. 

"Can I do it again?" Fred asked hope inlayed into each word.

"Yeah." You nodded before your lips were connected.

The ginger pushed you against the wall kissing you desperately, his tongue running over your lips before you opened them, pulling him impossibly closer to you by the neck. He started to unbutton  your shirt when you were unfortunately interrupted. 

Light flooded the closet and you both turned to see a disgusted twin. 

"I'm proud of you Fred, but stop before I puke." George grimaced. 

"Sorry." You mumbled pulling away from the boy and straightening your shirt. 

George began to walk away mumbling "The coast is clear." 

Fred brushed past you to follow him but before he could pass you grabbed his hand turning him towards you. 

"Hey Fred?" You asked 

"Yeah?"

"I think I love you too."

Masterlist