#curiosity-at-its-finnest

[women-inthe-sequel]

Scarred Hearts (Jily)

JILY CHALLENGE | @women-inthe-sequel vs @curiosity-at-its-finnest angst +  prompt: After 5 happy months together, Lily dumps James for his own safety from blood purists who were hurting him because they were together. After begging her for a reason, Lily lies and tells him, "I just don't love you anymore, James," and it hits him right in the gut. But, it hits her worse because she knows it's so far from the truth. 

read on ao3

--

Sticks and stones may break my bones, her mother always said, but words will never hurt me.

From the time Lily was young, however, she knew that words had power.

Witch, they would call her where she came from, if they knew where she went for several months a year. Freak, her sister declared when the letter came. Mudblood, a former friend sneered, revealing what everyone else already saw.

The words etch themselves in her mind, even when she outwardly assures everyone else that they don’t matter.

New rumors shouldn’t get to her, but there is something different about these ones. From across the hall, she can hear every word that is meant for or about her.

“Yeah, that’s her. It’s sick, if you ask me.”

Lily determinedly faces away from the table at the other end of the hall. She tries to look like nothing rattles her and eats breakfast, as if sordid tales about what she was doing during the last Hogsmeade visit isn’t the topic of choice this morning.

“Heard they caught Evans with her hand down a girl’s skirt.”

Jamie squeezes her hand under the table. Ordinarily, it might make her heart skip or at least get Lily to smile. Now, it feels like a weight on her chest.

“In the alley, is what I heard.”

Setting her fork down noisily, Lily moves as if she’s going to try to leave. Jamie’s hand is insistent in hers when hazel and green eyes meet. “We don’t have anything to be ashamed of,” she whispers, and Lily almost believes her.

“They’re idiots,” Sirius adds from across the table. The fact that he says it through a mouthful of toast actually makes it feel more genuine.

“Mudblood whores like her will take anything they can get!”

At this, Lily snaps to attention. The word goes through her like a bolt of lightning, charring the branch of hope Jamie’s words inspired.

She’s aware suddenly that a hand is no longer in hers.

Lily whips her head around in time to see the star Gryffindor chaser running across the Great Hall. Her dark hair is going in every direction. There’s intent clear in her eyes, her tie is half undone as always, and damn it, Lily has never seen anyone so heartbreakingly beautiful.

Even when she’s being held back by two professors, shouting threats and vowing to do a whole lot worse than a punch.

Mulciber is on the ground for a few seconds, but he comes up snarling. Professor McGonagall casts a shield between them before there can be more blood.

Lily is out of her seat and by Jamie’s side in an instant, trying to evaluate what went so horribly wrong so quickly.

“Evans,” her Head of House says, relief clear in her voice at the sight of the generally more reasonable of the two Head Girls, “please escort Miss Potter to the Hospital Wing.”

She nods, not trusting herself to speak.

The visible struggle goes out of Jamie when Lily touches her arm, but she levels another threat toward the laughing group of Slytherins by the table. “I’m not finished with you!”

“That will be enough, Miss Potter! Another ten points from Gryffindor.”

Lily tugs on her arm urgently, desperate to get away from any prying questions and curious eyes. Thankfully, Jamie knows when to follow and does so now.

The Entrance Hall is quiet compared to the commotion of the Great Hall. It feels even quieter, because, for once, Jamie doesn’t try to fill the silence with noise. Lily doesn’t try to say anything until they’re in an empty corridor and behind a tapestry, safely tucked in a spot only known to four particular mapmakers and Lily.

The light hasn’t gone from Jamie’s eyes, though it has changed. Only a few minutes ago, it was something desperate and vicious. Now, it’s the more common kind of spark, as if this morning was some grand adventure she planned from the start.

“Did you see me, Evans? Defending your honor and all that?”

“Was that what that was?” Lily counters, voice fragile.

Jamie shrugs the same way she does when she gets caught in the middle of some prank. Like the whole world is a joke and she’s the only one who gets it. Like she’ll get another detention on her record and move on, learning another way to not get caught next time.

“‘Course,” she answers. “I’m not going to let them talk about you like that. Don’t girls like it when their boyfriends defend their honor?” A brief look of confusion momentarily crosses her face, but Jamie takes a step closer to Lily, her hands finding a familiar place on her waist. “I’m not exactly your boyfriend, but I thought you’d be happy.”

“You’re bleeding, and I’m supposed to be happy?”

Jamie’s gaze drops to her hand for the first time. “This?” She holds her split knuckles up to the light. “It’s nothing.”

“It’s not nothing.” Lily shakes her head, the wall behind her back keeping her in Jamie’s hold. “You punched him. You never think about what you’re doing, and it’s going to -”

Jamie cuts Lily off by pressing her lips against hers.

It’s heaven and every lovely thing in the world and how she wants to spend the rest of her life. Lily melts against her, and Jamie pulls closer so more parts of them are touching. For a few seconds, nothing else matters except never letting this feeling disappear.

When she remembers what happened at breakfast, Lily makes herself push Jamie away. Even now, she can’t make herself take her hands off her shoulders. Touching her somewhere is better than nothing.

“You can’t just kiss me and make this go away, Potter.”

“And why not?”

“We can’t. They don’t even want purebloods like you talking to people like me. If they knew -”

Jamie doesn’t let her finish. “I don’t care, Lily!” She can hear the note of anger in Jamie’s voice, and Lily doesn’t think it’s only directed at the Slytherins.

“We have to care! It’s not that easy, Jamie. Don’t you know what they’re capable of? They could hurt you, they could...”

Hands are in her hair, and she doesn’t have the energy to pull away. She doesn’t want to pull away. She wants things to be as easy as the other girl thinks they can be. She wants to hug herself close and forget about everything else.

Softly, Jamie pressed a kiss to her forehead. Lily lets herself release a sob when words don’t work and buries her face in Jamie’s neck. The arms around her don’t make everything go away, but they do make her feel better.

Slowly, she pulls away and wipes her face with the back of her hand. Jamie runs her thumb over Lily’s cheeks, brushing away tear tracks.

Before either of them can say anything else, Lily pulls Jamie down, fits her body against hers, and kisses her.

--

Although Jamie let her clean the worst of it and wrap her knuckles with a bandage, Lily wonders if it was the best thing to do. The whole school knew about the fight McGonagall stopped, so she doesn’t really see the logic in not going to Madame Pomfrey. Jamie insists, though, and Lily doesn’t have the heart to enforce something that might not matter.

One night, with their legs tangled in the covers of Lily’s bed and the curtains pulled shut to keep everyone else out, Lily adds Jamie’s arm to the list of places she seeks to memorize with her mouth. She isn’t deterred from her mission when her lips brush across Jamie’s pulse point and make her giggle.

Jamie’s hand closes abruptly, however, when Lily’s mouth makes it to the back of her hand.

“You think it’s going to scar?”

Lily drops a row of kisses across Jamie’s knuckles and nods. “Yeah. Probably.”

“Good.” Lily looks up and sees a familiar half smirk that she can draw from memory. “Reminder to everyone not to mess with my girl.”

In the moment, Lily rolls her eyes, decides to leave the memorization of her hand for another day, and presses Jamie into the mattress.

Now, she can’t stop thinking about the fact that she’s the cause of an actual scar, something permanent, something forever.

Jamie may think it’s nothing, but Lily is used to her dismissing every injury as if it’s a papercut. When she’s nearly knocked off her broom in the middle of a Quidditch match, she insists that it was only for dramatic effect. When a prank goes slightly awry and she comes back to the Common Room with a black eye, she calls it nothing more than a laugh.

For days, she carries the guilt inside of her.

To avoid it, Lily starts kissing her in increasingly dangerous places. Breaks between classes are chances to sneak away and forget about everything except Jamie’s mouth and hands. Any time that isn’t taken by schoolwork or mandatory responsibilities is spent memorizing each other. In the middle of rounds, Lily hooks her leg around Jamie’s hip and dares her to make her scream.

When they’re alone, it feels like it can be all right.

As soon as they’re back, however, she wonders if she’s making it worse. This path can lead to exactly what scares her. Rumors can become confirmed fact, and the new scar on Jamie’s hand will look like child’s play.

And what does Jamie think about Lily’s inability to keep her hands off of her?

Jamie grins crookedly at her over breakfast, and Lily almost breaks.

So, it’s her only choice. She has to end this while her heart will be the one that’s permanently broken.

She lets herself watch for a second from the edge of the room. Jamie is laughing with her friends and running a hand through her hair in that maddeningly charming way. Anyone could fall in love with her bravery, her humor, her.

For just a little while, Lily got to be that anyone.

Relying on a small dose of courage, Lily pulls Jamie aside with nothing more than a tap on her shoulder when she passes. Almost instantly, she drops the essay she’s pretending to work on and follows Lily out of the portrait hole.

Then, it’s all happening too fast because they’re in a secluded alcove that has seen far more pleasant times between them.

Jamie tries to kiss her neck, but Lily holds her hands up.

The other girl’s brow knits, and her hand rests on Lily’s hip. “All right, Evans?”

Lily forces it out before she loses her nerve.

“I can’t do this anymore.”

Jamie’s face immediately falls. “What?”

“This.” She gestures between them and feels Jamie’s grip on her hip tighten. “I can’t… We can’t do this - us - anymore.” Lily makes herself hold her gaze, even though she can swear that she hears her own heart breaking in her chest.

She has to do it now. Waiting will only make it worse. Waiting is the cowardly option. Waiting will hurt her more.

“You’re breaking up with me?” Jamie’s voice sounds the way Lily would never describe her - weak.

Lily nods. “It’s better for both of us if -”

“I don’t care about any of that nonsense.” The temporary weakness in Jamie’s tone is replaced with something more common. Anger. “We’re happy. You’re happy. I know you are, Lily, so you don’t mean that.”

“I - I do mean it,” she answers quickly, unable to hide the waver in her voice.

“No, there’s some…” Jamie’s hand moves to her shoulder, urgency written across her entire body. “What did they say to you?”

“Nothing,” Lily says. “No one said anything.” Her voice already has an edge of hoarseness from swallowing back tears. This is the lie she’s practiced until she can almost fool herself. “I just don’t love you anymore.”

As quickly as the anger came, it disappears. Jamie’s hand falls from her shoulder. Her glasses slide down her nose, but she doesn't notice. She doesn’t seem to notice anything when Lily’s worst words hit their target.

Lily wraps her arms around her middle to prevent herself from reaching out to comfort the person she wants to protect from all pain. She’s the cause of it now, she knows, but this is temporary. It’s saving Jamie from future pain, from worse pain. It’s what she has to do.

Jamie will marry a nice, pureblood man and have nice, pureblood children and make her nice, pureblood mother cry tears of joy. Jamie has a whole life in front of her, and there’s no room in it for mudbloods with dirt on their knees and in their blood.

Before Jamie can see her cry, Lily slips past her and back to the Gryffindor dormitory to hide under the covers of her lonely bed.

--

Keeping to herself is the easiest solution. Lily wakes up before everyone else, pulls the curtains closed around her bed before anyone comes upstairs, and specifically avoids the gazes of four particular Gryffindors.

When she walks into Potions class, though, she isn’t prepared. Her usual chair, right next to Jamie, is open. She’s halfway there before she realizes that it was where she was headed.

Lily looks up, meeting Jamie’s eyes for the first time since she broke everything.

They aren’t filled with the light that made her pulse dance. Instead, dark circles mirror the ones that reflect back to Lily in the mirror each morning. She can only stomach it for a few seconds before she casts her eyes down and then across the room, searching for anywhere else to go.

Slowly, Lily makes her way to the back of the classroom and drops her bag by a chair. It’s the only spot that isn’t next to a Slytherin or her heartbreak. She can handle Potions without a partner better than trying to pretend that everything is okay in front of people who don’t know why it isn’t.

Sirius turns around in his chair to face her, his eyes piercing. Lily remembers when that stare was used to protect Jamie and her. She swallows and looks down at her parchment.

Once she’s seated, Lily really notices the fumes wafting from the cauldron in the front of the room. They reach her, even in the back row.

Peanut butter cups. Fresh air.

A familiar mix of fresh cut grass and faint perfume.

But no, she forces her brain to insist, despite the obvious. It’s just a breeze that sent the scent her way from the girl a few rows ahead of her. Forget that they’re in a dungeon with no windows to allow in a stray wind. She’s so used to smelling it near her and on her sheets that it’s following her. It has to be.

Professor Slughorn’s handwriting on the board, however, doesn’t lie. Amortentia.

Lily freezes. When they were sneaking into each other’s beds every other night, the scent started to linger, even when Jamie was gone. Since breaking it off, she’s pressed her face against her pillow, trying to catch any leftover trace of the other person who used to be there.

She would know it anywhere.

The only movement she registers is a dark head of hair in front of her, twisting to see the back of the room. Lily refuses to look anywhere near her eyes. She stares determinedly ahead at the board, seeing nothing and not letting her eyes drift.

As soon as Slughorn dismisses them, Lily is out of the room like a shot. She’s still stuffing a book in her bag as she walks, determined to let nothing disrupt her path.

Sitting in class is hard enough, even without Jamie’s smell surrounding her. Attending one might have taken all of her strength for the day. Maybe it won’t matter if she misses the next one. If she can make it to the girls’ bathroom on the second floor, they’ll mistake her tears for Myrtle.

A hand grabs her arm and stops her. Lily’s book hits the floor.

They’re already away from the noise of dismissed students, since she set a furious pace, but someone pushes her into an empty hallway.

Her back is against the wall and that scent is everywhere. Lily can barely think when she is so close, her hands on Lily’s shoulders and body only inches from hers.

“I know what you smelled in there,” Jamie whispers, since they’re close enough to do so.

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

“The Quidditch Pitch. Treacle tart. You. That’s what I smelled.”

Lily shakes her head, still determined to avoid Jamie’s eyes. If she doesn’t look up, if she can just slip away… It’s hard now, and it’s going to be hard for the rest of her life, but Jamie has a chance to move on, a chance to get out before the war takes her too.

“You lied,” Jamie says, voice louder this time. “I know you love me. Like I love you, Lily. I love you.”

“Don’t,” Lily answers, feeling heat behind her eyes that she can’t stop. She isn’t in the bathroom or behind her four poster curtains. She can’t let anyone see her break, and now she’s about to break in front of the person who she needs to hide from the most.

“Don’t what? Love you? It’s too late for that, Evans.”

Fingers under Lily’s chin make her look up. It’s a command, but the touch isn’t rough. It’s still gentle, even when power is radiating from Jamie in waves. Even when she is pressed between Jamie and a wall, she doesn’t feel unsafe. Even when she knows this is one of the most dangerous places to be, her body wants to find its place against Jamie.

Lily finally meets Jamie’s eyes and a sob catches in her throat. “Someone is going to see.”

“Let them.”

“Jamie, they’ll hurt you, they’ll -”

Their foreheads touch, and Lily wishes she could see a way forward. She wants to forget about the war and slip her fingers under Jamie’s shirt. She wants how they feel about each other, how they make each other feel, to be the only things that matter.

“Then we’ll fight. Together.”

Lily shakes her head. How doesn’t she understand? How can Lily ask her to give up safety just to be with someone, just to be with her? “I can’t do that to you. I can’t make you choose.”

Jamie shrugs, the trace of a familiar smile at the corner of her mouth. “Too late, Evans.”

“It’s not a joke, Potter.”

“I’m not joking. Not about this.”

The flicker of light is back in Jamie’s eyes. It’s the way she eyes at the goal posts at the end of the Quidditch Pitch when she formulates her next play. It’s the way she looks at Lily before tackling her on the bed and making her giggle.

It’s the way Jamie makes her feel. Like anything is possible and they’re capable of fighting the world because they have the nerve to try.

“You,” Jamie says, closing the distance between them to kiss her nose, “are worth fighting for. More than worth it.”

Before she can let fear drive her again, Lily tangles her fingers in Jamie’s permanently mussed hair and rises to meet her.

[read-a-jily-fic]

Jily one-shots

Feb 2021 Part 1

I had an anon just ask me for some of my favourite one-shots, and honestly this is probably one of the most difficult lists to make because I love reading one-shots especially as they are something I can easily fit in to reading in my day.

I would urge anyone who reads these fics to read everything else these wonderfully talented people have done. This is a mere fraction of the excellent work out there and I am constantly having a mild panic that I might have missed someone.

I read just about as much wolfstar and hinny as I do jily so I could probably make lists of those too.

message sent with confetti by @abby10fanfic

the amazing Spiderman by @alrightginger

watch me unwind by @maraudersftw

bookmarked by @sunaprincess7

about time by @jilyss

When the rain came crashing by @curiosity-at-its-finnest

lessons in lesson planning by @fetchalgernon

pumpkin wars by @scaredofrobots

Rumour has it by @punkaspadfoot

In sickness and in Sparta by @alrightginger & @frustratedpoetwrites

all that is known by @women-inthe-sequel

hard copy by @alrightginger

whiskey business by @elanev91

flora and fauna by @women-inthe-sequel

foam hearts by @sleepinghookah 

butterfly garden by @thejilyship

on a scale from one to ten @authorpetalstosarah

Jack of hearts by @orderofthepygmypuff

The Rise and Fall of the Extraordinary Jilysanschilly: Including Excerpts of their Best Collected Works by @elanev91

[blitheringmcgonagall]

Waaait, have you answered any yet? 👀 I, U, Z!😊

@jamesandthedog thanks love 😘😘😘!!!

I -Any guilty pleasure? Not really! I mean I sometimes read Jegulus and enjoy it, but I just prefer Jily (also because I am basically Jily...)

U- 3 favourite fic writers??

Ugh, so hard!!!! I already tried to do this and it was impossible!!! So here’s some more:

@elanev91 @moonllotus @jencala @captofthesswolfstar @marlenemckinn @chromat1cs @of-stars-and-moon @ashes-and-ashes-dust-and-dust @confunded-gryffindor @alrightginger @myloveluna @maraudersftw @moonawrites @wolfdogstar @aimforthedogstar @yumenouveau @wolfstargarden @maraudererasmut @jilyss @jamesandthedog (yes definitely you!!) @araniaexumae @curiosity-at-its-finnest @lovesickjily @magic-girl-in-a-muggle-world @youreyesinstarsabove @raissassampaio @abby10fanfic @frustratedpoetwrites @women-inthe-sequel @elemtee @ghost-of-bambi @inakindofdaydream @thatsmyverb @chierafied @legally-gryffindor @spinning-in-the-win @mischiefmanagedwrites @decaffeinatedmouse @munarloth @itssoweirdyoureher @shining-jul-of-hope @ofmermaidsandmarauders @orderofthepygmypuff @a-collection-of-nonsense @gryffindormischief 

Ok I know I’m missing loads of wonderful writers and I am so sorry!!! I am extremely addicted to reading marauders/wolfstar/jily fics so the list is a bit too massive and my memory too shit...

Z - Major character death - Have I written it?  Well in It's Not the Cold that Seeps into his Bones it’s just after 31st October 1981 and Sirius Black’s first day in AZkaban, so... but I try to avoid it usually (says person writing canon marauders... wtf???)

[jilyarchive]

Hi! Do you have any recommendations for any darker "If they survived" fics? I've recently read petals-to-fish's fade (the potters and longbottoms fates are switched) and And the Wolves All Cry and I've been trying to find darker/angst fics with the similar concepts with no success. Thank you!!!!

These are angsty to varying degrees and may not end with everyone alive (including both halves of Jily) but it’s AU like you’ve described:

Title: The future’s not ours to liveAuthor: headstudentsRating: UnratedGenre(s): Angst, DramaChapters: 1Word Count: ~Summary: @jilychallenge “ prompt –  “who are you?” “so this is gonna sound really weird right now but i made a deal with dumbledore to save you and harry but at the cost of all of your memories of us together and i’m acting like i’m not bothered but i’m dying inside” | OBLIVIATED AU

Title: Just Stay Here TonightAuthor: monroeslittleRating: MGenre(s): RomanceChapters: 1Word Count: 38,077Summary: Lily Evans isn’t a witch.

Title: Sugar We’re Going Down SwingingAuthor: twilightstargazerRating: K+Genre(s): Angst, FamilyChapters: 1Word Count: 3,090Summary: “Damn you,“ he said, echoing her sentiments from earlier as he pressed his lips to her forehead. “Damn you for making me love you.”

Title: Sunshine in My EyesAuthor: monroeslittleRating: MGenre(s): Romance, AngstChapters: 7Word Count: 93,329Summary: Mr. and Mrs. Evans are killed when Lily’s only a girl, and she’s supposed to go to a home with her sister. Instead, a relative they didn’t know they had comes to collect them, and introduces Lily to manners, magic, and a life that’s just the slightest bit different from the life she was supposed to live.

Title: Against All OddsAuthor: ladyoftheknightley Rating: TGenre(s): Romance, DramaChapters: 1Word Count: 4,810Summary: It’s 1st November 1981, and Lily and James Potter are still alive. That doesn’t mean they’re safe, though. Yet. [AU]

Title: Time After TimeAuthor: Chie (Chierafied)Rating: Teen & UpGenre(s): Drama, AngstChapters: 1Word Count: 1,491Summary: The scream was still on her lips, the high cold laughter echoing in her ears, when she jolted awake. Lily’s heart raced in her chest even though she had felt it stop when the flash of green had hit her just some moments earlier.Then James was there, wrapping his arms around her shaking shoulders.“Shhhh,” he whispered in her ear. “Shhh, it was just a bad dream.”

Title: Future UnknownAuthor: Chie (Chierafied)Rating: Teen & UpGenre(s): Drama, AngstChapters: 1Word Count: 1,491Summary: A sequel for the oneshot Time After Time

Title:  To Live NoblyAuthor: cgner Rating: TGenre(s): Romance, AngstChapters: 1Word Count: 5,929 Summary: It doesn’t feel like he’s living. In a world ruled by the Dark Lord, he’s miserable, but not because of the government. A chance meeting wakes him up, but there’s something familiar about her that he can’t quite put his finger on…

Title:  your scent passes with the windAuthor: lovesickjily Rating: TGenre(s): Romance, AngstChapters: 1Word Count: 5,534Summary: AU where James leaves one night to keep Lily safe and is assumed dead but returns to her when the war is over to find she is ‘engaged’ to someone else.

Title: How To live a LifetimeAuthor: curiosity-at-its-finnest Rating: GGenre(s): Romance, AngstChapters: 1Word Count: 3,792Summary: Prompt: James and Lily had to get out of Godric’s hollow as soon as possible and lily just managed to apparate them and harry before the door was bashed in but “oh no James no you’ve been splinched please don’t die on me oh God please don’t die on me stay with me look at me look at me I’m right here you’re gonna be fine oh God please don’t die on me” au

[sunaprincess7]

7-7-7

Go to your current WIP. Find the 7th line on the 7th page and post 7 sentences below that line. Then tag 7 other writers.

Thanks for the tag @elanev91 😘😘 this is from a piece I’m currently working on - not sure when it’ll appear but fingers crossed it’s soon!

“It’s alright,” Lily said, very nicely and stopping James in his tracks, although her cheeks had gone a bit pink, “I don’t mind. I’m not married, Mr Potter,” she replied, obviously addressing the answer to his dad quite carefully, “I’ve always said if had got married you would’ve been at the wedding.”

“Oh, yes…” Fleamont responded, seeming to genuinely recognise a memory in what Lily was saying, “you did tell me that before. When was that?”

“A few months ago, I believe,” she told him delicately, “but my marital status still hasn’t changed, you see,” she smiled, gesturing to her left hand.

“The young men around here are very strange,” Fleamont observed, looking down at her hand through his spectacles, “and it seems the young women in London are very odd too.”

I’m tagging @alrightginger @curiosity-at-its-finnest @limeslarkesandswans (sorry for not tagging 7!)

[maraudersftw]

21 Questions

I’ve been tagged by @siriuslygreyeyed (thank you so very much for the tag, lovely!)

Rules: answer these 21 questions, then tag 21 people you want to get to know better.

Nickname: Rue (like Rue from the hunger games, yes)

Height: 173.5 cm (5'8.3")

Last Movie I Saw: Don’t remember lol, but last one I can remember is Passengers (nope, not for the first time)

Last Thing I Googled: “James Potter fanart” <3

Favorite Muscian: Too many. I’ll go with Taylor Swift, Charlie Puth and Selena Gomez 

Song Stuck in my Head: The Feeling by Justin Bieber, because my roommate was playing it out loud while showering

Other Blogs: none

Do I Get Asks: From my very lovely friends, yes!

Following: 180 atm

Amount of Sleep: A good 7-8 hours usually

Lucky Number: Don’t have one I guess, but I like 19 simply because it’s my birthday and also 2 because I find the number aesthetic.

What I’m Wearing: Night suit (grey top with a Panda, and it reads “I can’t bear Mondays”).

Dream Job: Head of content management at a top fmcg firm

Dream Trip: Bora bora/Switzerland

Favorite Food: Impossible to answer ahhhh, I’m a huge foodie. But I love Biryani, cupcakes, flan and grilled chicken with mashed potatoes.

Play an Instrument: Nope, but I sing!

Languages: I speak Bengali, Hindi, English, and little bit of Tamil and French (like really very little). I can also write Malayalam.

Favorite Songs: The Feeling by Justin Beiber, My Gospel by Charlie Puth, Do I Wanna Know by Arctic Monkeys, the whole Red and 1989 album by Taylor Swift lol

Random Fact: I’m a mad animal-lover

Describe Yourself as Aesthetic Things: books, coffee, rain, clouds, fireplace, hot chocolate, butterflies, black trench coats, orange lilies

I’m further tagging @myloveluna @blitheringmcgonagall @moonawrites @lovesickjily @thejilyship @nobothersgiventoday @magic-girl-in-a-muggle-world @chierafied @curiosity-at-its-finnest @writingwitchly @women-inthe-sequel @elanev91 @all-perks-of-not-being-me @reggieblck @wonder-witch-weasley and @thatsmyverb to do this! 

Tagging 21 people is too much, yikes

[hi-itsminaya]

How To live a Lifetime

JILY CHALLENGE OCTOBER 2018 || @curiosity-at-its-finnest​ vs @women-inthe-sequel

@jilychallenge​ - prompt - James and Lily had to get out of Godric's hollow as soon as possible and lily just managed to apparate them and harry before the door was bashed in but "oh no James no you've been splinched please don't die on me oh God please don’t die on me stay with me look at me look at me I’m right here you’re gonna be fine oh God please don’t die on me" au

Warning: Mild cussing

Read on AO3

Jane looks at him from across the grounds where she’s cheering with her fellow Marauders.  They did it; they graduated. For a brief moment, all the fear and panic left them and was replaced with an incredible feeling of pride.

She is hoisted up into the air, laughing as Liam spins her around in delight. When he sets her back down, it’s Serena’s turn to throw herself at Jane, screaming with absolute joy.

Jane doesn’t notice the small box Liam pulls out of his pocket, nor does she notice him getting down on one knee. It is only when Serena screams like a mad woman and spins her around that she looks at Liam and gasp.

“Jane, will you-”

“YES!”

She throws her arms around him and buries her face in the crook his neck, a smile threatening to split her face in half. She feels Liam's arms wrap around her, once again picking her up and spinning her around. Out of the corner of her eye, Jane could see her friends, her sisters with tears in their eyes as they watch the proposal play out.

________________________________________________

They join the Order the day after graduation.

McGonagall is the first to protest, claiming that children shouldn’t be allowed to participate in this kind of thing. But they aren’t children. Not anymore. They have a war to win now, whether they like it or not.

Missions start soon after that and they’re all separated. Well, except for Black and Potter.  Dumbledore sends the two on missions more frequently than any other members of the Order, much to Liam’s dismay. Even the Death Eaters have to acknowledge that their powers combined are terrifying.

One particular mission drives Liam over the edge with worry. Jane and Serena are sent to investigate an abandoned warehouse where there has been rumour of Death Eater activity. When they manage to sneak in, the whole building is swallowed by flames with no way of escaping. It takes the Order hours to find them due to the amount of wreckage and magical defences the Death Eaters left behind. When they do manage to pull them through the rubble of brick, neither is conscious and their bodies look lifeless.

________________________________________________

They are in St. Mungo's when she finally wakes up.

Liam refuses to leave her side, despite the Healer threatening to call the Aurors on him. Serena wakes up shortly before Jane does. Honestly, it scares him how the two are connected together, as if they share the same mind.

“Liam?”

He shoots out of his chair and begins to kiss every inch of her face, wrapping his arms around her thin frame. Jane doesn’t say anything. She just wipes the tears off his cheeks and lets him hold onto her for a bit until Patty comes in, screaming with worry and ‘get well soon’ cupcakes.

________________________________________________

They decide to move the wedding up, only inviting the most crucial people. Neither Jane nor Liam care for any fancy stuff. They just want to be wed to one another. The wedding is small and quaint, nothing extravagant. They hold the ceremony in the field near Godric’s Hollow, where Jane’s parents used to live so that she can feel as though they are with her. Liam’s brother Philip never shows up, but a small part of Liam is happy he doesn’t.

Serena walks her down the aisle because she’ll be damned if anyone else gets to do it.

The look Liam is giving her is beyond anything look he's ever given her before. It’s pure love, and Jane can’t help her heart skipping a few beats.

Before the ceremony conductor can even begin, Serena whispers not so quietly, “You better take good care of my girl, Evans.”

Everyone laughs and Liam promises he’ll take incredible care of Jane, just as she will with him. The ceremony goes by with minimal trouble. Liam forgets how words work just seconds before his vows, but other than that, the wedding is perfect. They say their vows, promising to love each other until death do them part, and place the rings on each other’s fingers.

The crowd cheers when they kiss, sealing their marriage. The after party and dinner are perfect. At the end of the night, Liam manages to steal his wife away from her friends and whisks her home.

________________________________________________

Jane and Liam leave for a short honeymoon, which means the Order is without two of its finest members. Serena calls Jane via mirror about twice a day, to the point that Remy has to physically take it from her. Although, she understands that Serena is simply worrying for her sister's safety.   

Padfoot’s nerves get worse and worse with every day, to the point of barricading herself in her flat, not even Patty’s firewhiskey cookies could get her to come out. Others say she's being overdramatic, simply craving attention, but Remy and Patty recognize her behaviour all too well.

When Jane went home for the two weeks of Christmas break back in first year, Remy stayed at the castle with Serena, as neither really felt like going home. Serena was so depressed in those two weeks, Moony could barely recognize her friend.

When Jane did eventually come back, Serena was back to her old self in seconds, practically fusing herself with Jane the moment she arrived.

And just as before, the second Jane and Liam came back one week later, Serena is the first to welcome Jane back, refusing to leave her side for more than a few seconds.

________________________________________________

Everything starts going downhill a few weeks later. Death Eater attacks become more frequent and less predictable. More people, both muggle and magical, disappear every day.

The Ministry starts to collapse.

The Order is losing members fast. First the Prewett brothers, who died fighting like knights. Then, it was the Mckinnons. The entire family is whipped out, not a single person carrying the name nor bloodline is left alive.

As if things couldn't get any worse, Liam is sent way to Merlin knows where leaving Jane with no knowledge of his whereabouts or whether or not he’s even alive.

And as always, it’s Serena that seems to find her in her states of panic. Jane is on the bathroom floor, absolutely sobbing. Remy is doing Dumbledore a favour, no one knows what it is. Patty is taking care of her mum, something she’s been doing more and more frequently so it’s just Jane and Serena left to figure it out.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay. What’s wrong? Are you hurt? Jane, my love, what's wrong? Please don't cry. It’s going to be okay. Liam is okay.” She’s trying to comfort her, trying to be strong, but her own lover is missing as well and she’s not sure for how long she can keep up her charade of ‘I’m fine.’

As for Jane, she can’t speak. Her throat feels as though there are a million shards of glass in it. Every word, every sound she makes hurt. Her mind hurts, her body hurts, everything hurts.

She’s nineteen, for shit’s sake.

She grabs her wand from where it’s rolled next to the tub and performs the spell one more time.

Serena is left speechless as watches the soft blue light glow from the tip of Jane’s wand when she points it to her stomach, the echo of Jane's sobs surrounding the room.

“I CALL BEING GODMOTHER!!” she screams, not out of anger or fear or panic, but out of pure joy.

Jane looks at her as though she’s crazy. Honestly, knowing Serena, she probably was. Out of all the reactions she could have gotten from her sister, this was by far the best one.

________________________________________________

She tells Liam over dinner one night and he chokes.

“You’re what!?”

“I’m pregnant.”

It’s silent for a moment, Jane doesn’t know what to say to Liam and Liam to Jane.

Then, “Okay.”

They don’t talk about until they’re both tucked in bed, Jane curling into Liam’s back. He turns around suddenly and wraps her up in his arms, pressing his lips all over her face until they’re both drunk on kisses.

“You’re pregnant,” he whispers over and over again, holding his wife closer.

Jane doesn't really know what to do or say. She just looks up at him and whispers a soft, ‘Yeah.’

“We’re going to be parents.”

“Mmhmm.”

“There’s a war…”

“I know.”

Once again, silence engulfs the room, only this time, it isn’t threatening nor depressing but a soft, gentle silence that reassures both of them.

“We’re going to be the best bloody parents ever,” Liam says, grinning from ear to ear.

She can’t help but smile as well, feeling immense relief that he wants to be a part of this family, that she won’t have to do it alone.

Serena’s words from the previous week come crashing back to her. Her sister had smacked her when she mentioned that she thought Liam would leave her when she told him of the pregnancy.

“How can you not see how much that idiot loves you?! I know you're as blind as a bat without your glasses Prongs but seriously open your eyes a bit damnit!”

________________________________________________

They don’t go into hiding just yet but they stop participating in missions.

Jane doesn’t like it at first, her constant needs to be active is slowly being limited every day with her growing belly and Liam isn't helping the situation either. She understands that he’s nervous about the baby but she’s able to wash her own dishes for shit sakes!

Cravings start, hormones go haywire and Liam is calling Serena, Remy and Patty at least twice a day because Jane is bloody terrifying when she pregnant and he needs help. Serena always ends up cuddling Jane, stealing whatever snack she has.  Patty is cooking up a storm in the kitchen to satisfy whatever odd craving Jane gets. Remy either joins in on the cuddles or help Liam with whatever he’s doing.

At one point or another, Dumbledore needs Liam for an emergency mission, something about brewing potion? He leaves for what feels like years, promising to be back as soon as he can. It’s not soon enough though because Jane goes into labour and he still isn’t back and she’s panicking because she can’t floo or apparate to St-Mungos due to the new security. Serena isn’t answering the mirror, Remy has once again disappeared and no one is there to help her deliver a freaking baby.

But then McGonagall is at her side helping her get on her feet.

“M-Minnie? How-?”

“Liam desperately wanted someone to come check on you, thank goodness I did.”

She gets Jane to lie down on the sofa and starts to prepare for the delivery. McGonagall had helped Euphemia and Fleamont deliver Jane into the world so she knew what she was doing. It breaks her heart to know that they can’t be here to witness their own baby giving birth.

She pushes the feelings and memories aside and begins performing the proper sanitation spells, there is a time and place for those memories and now certainly isn’t the time.

Jane cringes as the contractions begin and the next thing she remembers is Liam at her side holding onto her hand for dear life. She hears Remy somewhere in the room as well as Serena and Patty. An immense wave of pain hits her full force and she can’t contain her screams.

“Almost there Jane!”

She’s pretty sure Liam’s hand is now broken but she doesn’t care. He’s the reason she is in so much pain and she’ll be damned if he’s ever allowed to look at her again, let alone touch her.

All at once, all the voice in the room go quiet and there is this tiny little ball of black hair wrapped in a blanket crying his little lungs out. McGonagall hands him to Serena, expecting her to hand him over to Jane while she tidies up. Instead, Serena ends up hogging him for a solid ten minutes until Jane finally says;

“Hey Padfoot, think I’ll ever get the chance to hold my baby, you know since I spent the last 17 hours getting him here.”

“Ya… ya sure” She’s in a daze, a complete daze. Serena slowly hands her godson to her sister and the smile on Jane’s face when she holds her boy for the first time is blinding. Liam cuddles next to her, admiring his son who’s making the cutest little noises.

“We made him.” Jane says, she still can’t believe it, that they actually made his tiny human out of practically nothing, and now they get to watch him grow and learn and discover. They’ll see him off on the train to Hogwarts and he’ll come home for holidays, raving about all his adventures.

________________________________________________

“There is a prophecy”

Jane and Liam sit in Dumbledore’s office, listening as he explains that one of the new members of staff, Sybill Trelawney, foresaw a prophecy.

“A member of Voldemort inner circle… heard a part of the prophecy and has delivered the message to Voldemort.” Dumbledore continued, looking at the young parents with worry. “They believe this prophecy is about-”

“Harry” Jane whispers. She isn't sure what to feel, rage, panic, fear, all of the above. She doesn’t realize she’s shaking until Liam slips his hand in hers and whisper sweet things in her ear.

But sweets words won’t protect their son. Sweet words won’t protect them from that maniac.

“Do you know the name of the Death Eater that heard the prophecy?” Liam asks, he wants to know, he needs to know. Even though he feels like he already knows exactly who reported back to Voldemort, a little part of him is praying it wasn’t her.

“I do not find it wise to-”

“It was Snape, wasn’t it?”

The room goes silent. Dumbledore looks at Liam for a moment then lowers his eyes.

“Yes, Severa Snape was the Death Eater that reported back to Voldemort.”

________________________________________________

They go into hiding immediately after there conversation with Dumbledore. The fidelius charms is installed on their house and they make Serena the secret keeper. It’s hard at first, they’re used to taking Harry out in the garden to play or taking walks as a family, now they can’t even open their front door without feeling threatened.  

They do have a few memorable moments thought, more than a few, like when Harry first learned how to walk.

“LIAM!! GET IN HERE! HARRY’S WALKING!! HE WALKING!!”

“WHAT!?”

And so Liam comes running into the living room, hyperventilating, wearing an apron that says ‘kiss the cook’ while holding a baby mash covered whisk.

God, parenting does some weird things to people.

Harry finds his dad absolutely to amusing and tumbles back on his bottom, giggling and laughing like a little baby should.

“Oh my sweet baby, is daddy being silly” Jane is laughing with Harry and Liam can’t help the smile that stretches across his face when he looks at them. He makes eye contact with Jane and she walks over to him to place a sweet kiss on his lips. Neither are aware of Harry standing up nor do they see him struggling to balance on his feet. It’s only when Harry makes a noise of uncertainty do the parents turn around and scream.

“That’s it, Harry!! Come to mummy!! Come here, Harry!” Jane shouts and crouches down on her knees, stretching her arms out. Liam crouches next to her and tries bribing Harry with the whisk covered in baby food.

“That’s it Harry! Come here baby boy!”

And just like that Harry takes his first step. Then one more, and one more before he stumbles forward into his mother’s arms. Jane picks him up and twirls him around, laughing, smiling, living. Liam joins in as well and they just enjoy the moment as a happy family, life in a small cottage, hiding from a mad man.

But they make it work.

________________________________________________

Someone is pounding on their door and they have half a mind to call Dumbledore, only to have Serena barge in dragging Patty who, bless her soul, looks absolutely thrilled to see Jane and Liam again.

“Serena what’s-”

“We need to switch secret keeper” Serena cuts Jane off, “They know Jane, I know they know, it-s it’s t-t-oo obvious!”

She explain to them that while she was walking home, a group of Death Eaters had ambushed her, she was able to escape in the end but not before they mocked her on how easy it would be to find the Potters, that it was so obvious that Serena Black would be Jane Potter’s secret keeper.

“Merlin beard Serena, why on earth were you walking home!?” Jane says, ignoring everything her sister had previously said.

“I...I w-was. I was walking home from the bar and I wasn’t thinking-”

“Why were you walking home from a bloody bar!?!”

“... Remy broke up with me”

Jane takes Serena into another room while Liam makes tea for Patty. He expect Jane put a muffliato spell so they could have a little more privacy, or because Serena hates appearing weak in front of others. Once the pair do finally come out, they preform the switch to Patty and Jane later explains to Liam what happened.

“They got into a really big fight, Serena wanted to know where Remy kept disappearing to. Remy got mad because she thought Padfoot didn’t trust her, which, not going to lie, is true. They lost that trust a long time ago when Remy started going on ‘secret missions’. Anyway, they both lost their temper and one thing led to another and Moony kicked Siri out of their flat.”

He can tell she’s trying really hard not to panic, or cry. Two of her best friends were now turned against each other. They went from loving each other more than anything in the world to not being able to be in the same room as one another.

“Where’s Serena going to stay now?”

“I told her to say here but you know how stubborn she is, she wants to be independent, or at least have some time away from all this… rubbish? I don’t know” Jane hides her face in her hands, she so incredibly tired and is losing hope more and more everyday. She wants nothing more then to be back at Hogwarts, where they were all safe and happy and…

“It’s going to be okay.” Liam whispers in her ear, holding her close.

“I hope so.”

________________________________________________

Harry’s first birthday goes off with a bang. Even though they are under extreme house arrest and can’t invite anyone to celebrate, they still receive plenty of well wishes and gifts from friends. Serena specifically, who sends Harry a toddler broom he can’t get enough of it. All he wants to do all the time is fly around the living room and give the cat a heart attack.

Liam writes to her, thanking her for the gift and voicing his concern about Jane. She’s becoming more and more distance and snappy. Liam suspects it’s the fact that she is constantly enclosed in the small cottage, no freedom to fly outside or run in the woods and explore. She’s going crazy cooped up in here.

Dear Padfoot…

________________________________________________

On the 31st of October, 1981 …

Patty came screaming at their door, crying, sobbing, wailing. She was in hysteria.

“I’m sorry! I’M SORRY!! I never meant to! He was so much stronger than me Jane and I’m sorry! Jane, please forgive me! Jane PLEASE!”

“Merlin Patty! What are you talking about!?”

But then the front door is blown off it’s hinges and there are Death Eaters running inside followed by…

“Wormy… y-you… why”

“JANE RUN! TAKE LIAM AND HARRY! JUST RUN! I’LL HOLD HIM OFF!” It’s Patty, she’s screaming curses and hexes Jane had never even heard off, eliminating Death Eaters with each curse until;

“Avada Kedavra!!” Voldemort shouts, waving his wand and hitting Patty scare in the chest.

“PATTY!!”

It’s the last word that leaves her lips until Liam grabs her from behind and apparates way with Harry, but Jane is struggling against him, she wants to help her friend.

Her sister.

She isn't focusing on where she’s going or even who she’s with. She trying to get back to Patty.

Patty, Patty, Patty

“JANE!!”

It isn’t Patty, or Serena or Remy… who is it?

“JANE PLEASE!!”

Liam?

She doesn’t know where she is, only knows that she’s in a lot of pain, more pain then she’s ever felt before.

“Jane you’re splinched!”

She could vaguely hear Harry crying but she didn't know where. She couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe. She felt as though someone just cast the cruciatis curse but one million times worse.

“Fuck-fuck-fuck FUCK! Jane just- hang in there okay, I’ve got some dittany somewhere in here, just-just don’t close your eyes!”

Liam is trying desperately to make sure Harry is okay as well as heal Jane, he’s frantically looking in the small emergency bag the had packed in advance in case something went wrong for a bottle of Dittany.

“Oh for the love of- ACCIO DITTANY!!”

The small bottle comes shooting in his hands and he quickly makes use of it. She was splinched all around the right shoulder down her chest and down her right arm, she was twitching like mad and was mumbling incoherently.

“Jane don’t you fucking dare close your eyes! Don’t you dare! Jane please, please, please don’t close your eyes, just stay with me! S-stay with m-me.”

He pours the dittany directly where the wound is and it made a sizzling sound causing Jane to scream and Harry to cry even more.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry Jane, it’s going to hurt but it will help, it will help I promise. Just please, don’t close your eyes… don’t-don’t close your e-eyes.”

She was trying, she was trying really hard to listen to Liam. To focus on something other than sleeping but she was so tired and her eyelid felt ridiculously heavy. She tries focusing on Liam's voice, on Harry’s crying, on the anything but falling asleep.

But it becomes harder and harder and the dittany isn’t working fast enough for the amount of blood she is losing. She could feel something at the back of her mind pulling her away from reality, away from her family and no amount of struggling to stay awake is helping.

The last thing she remembers is hearing the sound of her beloved husband crying, as he holds her limp body in his arms and her beautiful baby boy who screaming is desperation for his mother before sleep consumes her.

Note:

It was my first time participating in the Jily Challenge and I’m already excited for the next one! I had a great time writing and ranting with @women-inthe-sequel (thank you for putting up with me for a full month!!) I've had so much fun talking to you the past month, you've been so kind and encouraging and I couldn't have asked for a better partner in this challenge!! Go follow her!! she's amazing!! AO3: womeninthesequel Tumblr: @women-inthe-sequel 

[frustratedpoetwrites]

Last Line Tag

Okaay I think I can post this without any spoilers as I just checked. Thanks to @women-inthe-sequel You know I love you babe. 😉 I ‘m still not giving away any hints. This is from Dancing in the dark.

“Okay you get first pick, but I get to chose the two after that.”

I have no idea who has or has not been tagged already. Going to tag @blitheringmcgonagall @curiosity-at-its-finnest @sweetbutimsalty @elanev91 @petalsandfishes @siriusblackfoot

[liteready]

Top 10 fave movies

As tagged by @curiosity-at-its-finnest

Here goes nothin'

I tag: @poundland-twoface @my-little-hedgehog

[blitheringmcgonagall]

@curiosity-at-its-finnest please do your magic!!!!!! 😍😍😍😍!!!!

i’m always a slut for a christmas au 

“i know we hate each other but it’s christmas eve and your flight was cancelled please come inside”

“i got you for secret santa so i got you this really expensive but sentimental gift that you’ve always wanted, hoping you’ll never find out it’s from me - and that i’ve been in love with you 1234567 years” SNOWBALL FIGHTS

“hi we’re neighbours and omg are you alright i could smell cooking burning - whoaaa now that’s just embarrassing? step aside i’ll handle this”

person a seducing person b into taking a few steps back/backing them against the wall (”oh look, how did that mistletoe get right there????”)

“you’re in the hospital for the holidays so i came in while you were sleeping to decorate your room i love you merry christmas”

“YES I BOOBY TRAPPED THE PRESENTS BECAUSE YOU DO THIS EVERY FUCKING YEAR”

“i live below you and i was minding my own business watching the snowfall out the window WHEN I SAW A BODY FALL ARE YOU REALLY PUTTING UP CHRISTMAS LIGHTS NOW”

I KNITTED YOU A JUMPER

MY MOM KNITTED YOU A JUMPER

“we’re strictly ‘platonic’ but we’re snowed in omg we’re gonna have to repopulate the earth”

“i slipped on ice outside your house and you ran out barefoot to help me quick let’s get inside under a blanket”

“’it’s a wonderful life’ aww it sounds so cute babe sure we can watch it! *30 mins later* “YOU MONSTER”

“we were playing in the snow and you suddenly tackled me to the ground and now…we’re just…staring… at each other…”

“YOU DON’T LIKE MARSHMALLOWS IN YOUR HOT CHOCOLATE? WHY DO YOU HATE LOVE”

TREE DECORATING (bonus points if one of them is doing it completely wrong omg why am i in love with you) 

“we took our kids to santa’s workshop and they both wished we would get together” FRIENDS AU - “our christmas party turned into a tropical theme because the radiator is broken and it’s hotter than hell in here - damn you look good without a shirt i never noticed before asgdhfjgkhl” 

“we’re co workers who hate each other but you had too much to drink at the staff christmas party and admitted your love for me i don’t know how to act around you now” 

DRUNKEN CAROLLING (”that’s not a thing” “oh yes it is”) 

TEACH ME HOW TO SKI (lol jk i know how you’re just so fucking cute)

“there’s a storm and omg i’m losing signal are you okay?? hold on let me drive 489432 miles to get you the night before christmas” 

PULLING YOU IN FOR A KISS WITH A SCARF 

“i did that annoying thing where i put loads of smaller boxes inside one big box and you’re getting really mad but you don’t know that the ring is in the smallest box and i can’t wait to see your face”

[women-inthe-sequel]

THIS IS NOT A DRILL. LISTEN TO THIS NOW.

IMPORTANT FOR @alrightginger, @a-collection-of-nonsense, @dreamersruletheworld, @curiosity-at-its-finnest, & EVERYONE.

[read-a-jily-fic]

Jily Fic writers

Go find a new fave.

So I started to make a list of all the writers I know who have written jily. Yeah it’s a pretty big list, I’m sure there are amazingly talented people missing from it and I’m sorry about that. If I have missed someone you love please message me so I can add them.

@jamesandthedog

@orderofthepygmypuff

@women-inthe-sequel

@a-collection-of-nonsense

@sunaprincess7

@curiosity-at-its-finnest

@sweetbutimsalty

@blitheringmcgonagall

@inakindofdaydream

@alrightginger

@elanev91

@raissassampaio

@ofmermaidsandmarauders

@frustratedpoetwrites

@ghost-of-bambi

@petals-to-fish

@gryffindormischief

@shining-jul-of-hope

@jinxedseries

@darlingpotter

@siriuslysnuffles

@tsunnychan

@spilling-wineinthebathtub

@tadasgay

@fetchalgernon

@moonawrites

@elliehigginbottom

@thejilyship

@notdeadjily

@scaredofrobots

@jilyss

@chierafied

@oodlyenough

@argyledpenguin

@magic-girl-in-a-muggle-world

@lilyevaxs

@chelseaapproved

@legally-gryffindor

@mlw10

@elemtee

@lovesickjily

@es-bee

@sunshinedaisieswindmills-writes

@mollyraesly

@snapslikethis

@bcdaily

@jilyydied

@itssoweirdyoureher

@beks21

@maraudersftw

@liylpetal

[blitheringmcgonagall]

@ashes-and-ashes-dust-and-dust and @of-stars-and-moon tagged me to say what your fav fic writers were. They are Wolfstar fans so I started off with Wolfstar but tumblr wouldn’t let me post this many so here is a separate Jily list!!!

Everyone on the Jily discord basically (I’m subscribed to all of you and sorry if I leave you out you are all brilliantly gorgeous!!!) and you guys:

@elanev91 @petals-to-fish @alrightginger @beaubcxton @lovesickjily @myloveluna @curiosity-at-its-finnest @bcdaily @ghost-of-bambi @maraudersftw @araniaexumae @magic-girl-in-a-muggle-world @raissassampaio @women-inthe-sequel @all-perks-of-not-being-me @shining-jul-of-hope @ofmermaidsandmarauders @thatsmyverb @moonawrites @a-collection-of-nonsense @chierafied @frustratedpoetwrites @sheripper-fanficer @gryffindormischief @itssoweirdyoureher @jilyss @legally-gryffindor @snapslikethis @wonder-witch-weasley @mischiefmanagedwrites @write-geek-love @decaffeinatedmouse @prongsno @munarloth @uhohspagittios @oyevans @bedknobsand @scaredofrobots

(In no particular order!!)

And these ao3 writers: managingmischief,padnprong,Itwasprongs , evotter,

and Natalie.ana on ff.net (what’s your tumblr???)

You are all incredibly talented!!!

[blitheringmcgonagall]

@beaubcxton 😭❤️!!!!! That’s like 💯 % you though???????????? And please tag me if you’re posting new fics!!!!!!!! I can say the EXACT same thing about you!

Seeing as you are being a ray of ☀️ here, let me try to do the same! For starters, @rosielupin literally keeps me going 😉😘😍!!!!! Also @myloveluna @thefeartakeshold @araniaexumae @jencala @magic-girl-in-a-muggle-world @thatmarauderer @raissassampaio @wolfdogstar @jamesandthedog @sheripper-fanficer @maraudersftw @lovesickjily @curiosity-at-its-finnest @shessocold @confunded-gryffindor @ashes-and-ashes-dust-and-dust @inakindofdaydream @aimforthedogstar @marauuders @abby10fanfic @nobothersgiventoday @yumenouveau @comaraudery @nisargasinha every one of you has at various stages over the past few months been incredibly encouraging and kind and your generous /hilarious comments or just reblogs/ encouraging words have completely made my day 😉😍❤️!!! THANK YOU!!!!! (And @petals-to-fish of course who gonna read some wcbh like ???? 😭❤️!!)

Let’s spread some happy ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Never underestimate the power of a little positive feedback on another writer’s work. You could be the difference that convinces them to keep going or inspires them to write that next chapter. Spread positivity and support other writers ❤

[sunaprincess7]

Okay so I just need to say that if anyone is nervous or shy about posting fics here (like I was for ages), the Jily fandom is the sweetest, nicest and most supportive group of people you will ever speak to & you needn’t be nervous at all!

I’m talking particularly about @alrightginger @elanev91 @ofmermaidsandmarauders @blitheringmcgonagall @curiosity-at-its-finnest , @read-a-jily-fic @hypergalacticcannibalism & @frustratedpoet1979 who are amazing as well as amazing talented 💛💛💛💛 you guys make me smile every single day 💕

[hi-itsminaya]

“Timeless” chapter 2 by curiosity-at-its-finnest

(yes I put two ‘nn’ at finest intentionally, leave me alone) 

Read on Ao3 

3h03 am

James woke up to his 2-year-old daughter climbing on his bed for the 3rd time that night. Harriet was at the age where she was able to escape the toddler barriers he put up on her nursery door to stop her from getting up at night, which was a small problem for James. She absolutely hated sleeping without her dad and would throw the biggest fits when it came to bedtime without him. 

Signing, James rolled over on his back just in time to see a mop of curly black hair identical to his poke out from the edge of the bed. He chuckled slightly when she finally managed to climb up and crawled her way to sit on his chest.

“Daddy!” Harriet cheered, happy to have found her dad in the mess of pillows and blankets.

“Hello there my little Troublemaker, what are you doing out of bed?” He smiled, he wasn’t mad at her, not at all, he was more exasperated with himself for making such a stubborn little girl.

“I stay Daddy!” she said, curling up in her usual spot on his chest, right under his chin.

“You’re going to stay with me tonight? But I thought big girls slept in their big girl bed” James tried. Usually, the statement worked the first couple times, but after a while, Harriet stopped caring about being a “big girl” and instead chose to stay with James. 

“Stay!” Harriet cried and stubbornly clung to her dad.

“Alright Trouble” He whispered, running his hand through her curls and giving her a quick kiss on her forehead. 

5h55 am

“Play!”

James groaned as he was once again awoken by his daughter's demands.

“In a minute Trouble, daddy wants to sleep a little more” He mumbled in his pillow, trying to block out the morning sun.

“Daddy play!” 

“Daddy doesn't want to play right now pumpkin” He tried negotiating, but if his daughter was as stubborn as he was (and she was) then he knew there was no point in it. 

He felt Harry shift around in the covers until it was silent. For some reason, he assumed his hyperactive 2-year-old just fell back asleep. So he closed his eyes and started dozing off again until he smacked in the head with a pillow.

“Prongsyyy”

“Daddy!”

“Go away” James said stubbornly and tried to hide in his covers. 

“Well, that’s not a very nice to say, isn't that right Prongslet?” Sirus asked, looking down at his goddaughter who was curiously staring at the lump of covers James was hiding in.  

“Play! I want play!” Harriet cried, climbing up on the bed (with some help from Uncle Siri) and sat on the lump of human known as her father.

“I don’t think you’re going to win this one mate, she seems pretty determined to get you up” Sirius laughed flopping onto the bed, purposefully landing on James.

“Get off me you fat mutt!” said, pocking his head out from under the covers. He really shouldn’t have done. The first thing he saw was a pair of big, green emerald eyes practically staring into his soul. 

‘Ah shit’ James thought  

“Hello there Princess,” he said, ruffling her hair to make it stick out even more “I heard you want to play?” 

“Ya! Play! Daddy come play!” There was an undeniable spark in the little girl's eyes and James couldn’t find it in himself to say no.

So he got up despite his body screaming in protest and let himself be dragged away by Harriet into the nursery with a sniggering Sirius behind him.

“Hey sweety, I think Uncle Padfoot wants to play too!” If James was going down he was dragging Sirius with him. 

“Padfoot play!” By now Harriet was beyond excited, two of her favourite people were willing to play with her! 

Sirus, of course, practically being a child himself, didn’t mind one bit playing with his precious goddaughter. He got play with Harriet and take the complete piss out of a sleep-deprived James, what better way to start the day?

8h20

When Remus woke up that morning he was expecting to find his sleep obsessed boyfriend next to him but was surprised to see no one else in the room. 

‘Oh god’ Remus thought ‘what kind of trouble is he creating’

The only time Sirius Black/Potter ever got up before 10h00 was to either help James with Harriet or to go wreak havoc in the lives of innocent locals. He assumed it was the later since he didn’t hear Harriet’s laugh echo in the flat. 

Sighing, Remus rolled out of bed and made his way to the kitchen hoping someone had already started the kettle but not before stopping in front of Harriet nursery. He could hear odd snickering from behind the door, what in blazing hell...

“Sirius?”

“Shhh you’ll wake him”

“What are you- Oh god.”

Remus looked down to where Harriet was sitting next to her sleeping father, happily drawing all over his face with whatever marker Sirius had given her. Probably permanent by the smell of it. He looked to Sirius in hopes of an explanation only to find him filming the whole thing with a huge shit eating grin on his face.

“Someone looks pleased with themselves” Just as he said that Harriet giggled and clapped her hands, finishing her artwork.

“Moony you don’t understand! This is Prongslet’s first official prank! Someone needs to be filming this historical moment! And since James is passed out and you just woke up, who else was going to do it?!” Sirius exclaimed, holding up his phone capturing the moment forever.

Remus didn’t feel like replying, it was too early for human interaction, instead, he just flopped on the floor and curled into Sirius’ side, watching the unavoidable chaos unfold before him.

“You are aware he’s going to kill you for giving her those markers, right? Remus asked, looking up to his boyfriend.

“I know, oh look!! He’s waking up!”

8h24

Harriet’s giggling is what woke James from his nap and even before opening his eyes, he knew he was in trouble. After two years of living his little troublemaker, he was able to distinguish which laughs were of amusement, excitement, confusion and other. While some differences were faint, James could hear them, and the laugh she was giving him right now was something he was far too familiar with. 

That was a laugh of pure and undeniable mischief.

Groaning, James sat up and patted around for his glasses on the soft carpet. When he could finally see again, the first thing he saw was his little Troublemaker holding some crayon with an incredibly proud smile on her face. 

“Good morning Trouble, what kind of mischief have you been making” James asked, picking her up and setting her down on his lap.

“I dw-aw Daddy! I dw-aw!” Harriet exclaimed, showing him the marker.

“You drew? Oh that lovely sweetheart, show Daddy what you drew”

“I dw-aw Daddy!”

It wasn’t until James noticed the type marker she was holding and the fact that there was no paper with any drawings around him that he understood the meaning of her words. Now that he was a bit more awake, he could smell the permanent marker surrounding the nursery and see that his nose was now a green-purple colour.

“Right,” he said, looking at Remus and Sirius who were practically pissing themselves laughing in the corner “Who gave Harry the permanent marker”

Neither of them were able to reply, to busy laughing themselves silly until Sirius managed to wheeze out something that sounded vaguely like “Marlene”.

“Sirius, Marley isn’t even here right now!”

“Uncle Padfoot!” Harriet suddenly chirped, getting up from James’ lap and waddled over to Sirius. 

“Noooo! Nugget, no, it was Uncle Moony who gave you the marker, remember?” Sirus said, scooting away when the toddler tried to give back the marker.

Remus and James lost it when Sirius got up and started running around the room, laughing like maniacs while Padfoot was trying to avoid the toddler. Jame ended up tackling Sirius and pinning his legs down while Remus got his arms. 

“Harriet, I think uncle Padfoot wants you to give him a mustache!” 

9h12 am

After Harriet finished her masterpiece on Sirius, she felt that Uncle Moony needed to join in on the fun too. So she chased Remus around, laughing in delight the entire time knowing her three favorite people loved her so much to play games with her. After she found everyone was thoroughly covered in marker, James decided it was probably time to feed Harriet. He was really surprised that she hadn’t been asking for food yet, what with being awake for a solid 3 hours, so he picked her up airplane style and ‘flew’ her over to the kitchen.

“Alright, what would Harriet like for breakfast thing morning,” James asked, placing her in her high chair and looking around the cupboard for some food. 

“Cupcake!” She answered excitedly, uncle Padfoot had brought home cupcakes last night and she had absolutely loved them. 

“Sorry Pumpkins, cupcakes are for evening treats, not breakfast”

“Cupcakes for breakfast!” Sirius shouted, running into the kitchen like an excited toddler would when seeing an ice cream truck. 

“Remus! Control your boyfriend!”

“James! Control your brother!” 

Groaning, James got Harriet breakfast ready, making sure she didn't make a mess of the cereal and began making breakfast for Remus, Sirius and him. (Because apparently out of the three adults living in this flat, he was the only one who actually knew how to cook) 

“I’m HEREEEE!” The front door slammed open and in came Marlene dragging a very tired looking Lily with her. “And I brought Lily!!”

“Lilykins! You’re back from your trip!” Sirius shouted from the kitchen, rushing to the door and attacking her in a great bear hug.

“Hello Sirius” Lily said, obviously tired but still putting on a smile, “Do I even want to know why all three of you are covered in marker?”

“Harriet pulled her first prank today! I got the whole thing on video! Come, I’ll show you” He said excitedly, dashing out of the entrance hall and ran to the nursery to get his phone. 

“JAMIEEEE darling” Marlene shouted in a sweet voice walking, into the dining area  “JayJay, my favourite cousin in the whole world, I’ve missed you so-”

“Yes Marley, I’ll make you breakfast” James signed, already knowing what she wanted; after all his cooking was probably the only reason she ever actually visited… Oh and Harriet of course.

“You’re the best! Now, where’s my little Harriet?” She asked, spotting Harry reaching out to her in the high chair and making a move to pick her up.

“Oh no you don’t Mckinnon! She’s my goddaughter!” Sirius rushed into the room, picked up Harriet and made a dash for the lounge, Marlene hot on his heels.

“She’s my goddaughter to you bloody dog!”

“Sirius, I swear to all that is good if you drop my kid again!”

“So Lily, how was your trip?”

Lily turned to Remus who was vigorously rubbing his face with a wet cloth, trying to get the marker off. 

“Oh it was absolutely beautiful, I got so many pictures of the Palmengarten flower garden. The only thing is Marlene kept me up most of last night to fill me in on what I missed, so I didn’t get much sleep.”

After the “James and Lily surprise encounter” as Marlene liked to call it, Lily realized just how much she was missing while away on her trips. She was so focused on her work that she didn’t really bother updating herself on the big changes in other people lives. Now, she asked Marlene to fully update her on everything she missed while away on her work trips, but Marlene’s need to give excessive detail drove the conversation late into the night and often left Lily with little sleep. 

Remus seemed to have noticed this, fetching some tea and a couple of painkillers for her.

“Thank you” Lily smiled kindly, taking the tea and medicine.

“No problem, you’re going to need them if you plan on staying a while”

Just as he said that Sirius came back, bursting in the kitchen, Harriet on his shoulders who was giggling madly, while trying to escape Marlene.

“Let me hold her, you bleeding–“

“MARLEY!” 

“Donkey! I was going to say donkey!”

Lily continued to watch Sirius, Harriet and Marlene run around the flat while Remus set off to help James with breakfast. Speaking of James, their relationship had been.... complicated? If there even was a relationship to begin with. They had set up a ‘date’ a few days after she had called but surprisingly things hadn’t taken off as well as Lily expected. The date itself was a huge hit, it’s what came after that made things a little rockier. Lily’s boss had sent her on a 2 week trip to France to interview some Uni students with a couple other coworkers. In those two weeks, she was stomped with so much work that she hadn’t managed to call James once to make plans for another date. While she felt bad at first, Remus told her that James was also flooded with work as well, so much so that he had barely seen any sign of life from him other than when he was playing with Harriet. 

There was also the fact that James still wasn’t over the “crazy ex” situation. She didn't blame him, not at all, after Marlene had told her the story Lily understood she may have to take things slow with James. He had bigger priorities to take care of, like a daughter, that he had to consider before fully jumping into a relationship and Lily admired that about him. 

“BREAKFAST IS READY” James hollered from the small kitchen and in an instant, everyone was up getting their plates ready. Harriet was in Marlene's arms, laughing with her godmother happily until she got whiff of Lily.

Harriet doesn’t like Lily much.

The second Harriet saw Lily her smile immediately vanished and she started calling for James. 

“Marley, what did you do to my kid?" James asked jokingly, picking up with daughter and cradling her in his chest. 

“I didn't do anything! I just walked in and she got all fussy!” Marlene protested, handing over Harriet to James the second she started fussing, there was no way in hell she was dealing with a Potter Tantrum at this hour. 

“It’s cause she saw Lily was here, she doesn’t like it when she has to fight for James’ attention,” Sirius said, shoving his mouth with food. 

James winced slightly, he knew Harriet didn't like Lily very much, always holding an attitude with her whenever she came by the flat with Marley but he would have thought she’d get over it. Apparently, he underestimated just how stubborn Harry could be. 

“It’s not that she doesn’t like you, Lily, it's just that she needs to get used to you” James tried to explain, it was true, Harriet typically didn’t like being around new people but she had known Lily for more than a year! 

“James, you’re not fooling anyone, I know Harriet isn’t exactly fond of me, there no reason to beat around the bush” Lily had known about Harriet’s distaste for her since the moment she arrived at James’ flat for their date. James had left Harriet in the care of Remus and Sirius but she wasn’t having any of it. The moment James stepped foot outside the flat she began crying, screaming, wailing, whatever you want to call, Lily had never heard a baby cry so loudly. Not to mention they weren’t able to find Harriet’s pacifier, so she just kept wailing until James gave in and picked her up.

From that moment on Harriet seem to hate Lily, not wanting her to take her dad away from her. 

“Well, she’s going to have to get used to being apart from James anyway, she’s going to start daycare soon isn't she?” Marlene said, not seeing the look of absolute horror on James' face.

“Daycare!?!” Harriet looked up started at her dad after his outburst, wondering if the odd red-haired lady said something to upset him.

Lily and Marlene both gave him odd looks while Remus and Sirius just rolled their eyes, they had already dealt with this type of situation and they didn’t feel like having to deal with ‘overdramatic James’ again. 

“Yes James, daycare, you know, that place you send your child during the day so you can go to work.” Malene rolled her eyes, she had tried talking James into sending Harriet to daycare once and the results weren’t the prettiest. 

“Why on earth would I send her to daycare when there are plenty of people who would love to watch her during the day!” When Jame was first learning how to take care of Harriet, he had more help and support from his friends and family than he ever could have asked for. Remus and Sirius were more than happy to take some days off from work to watch Harriet, same with Regulus. His parents were probably the biggest help though, they were at the flat every other day helping him learn how to be a proper parent and babysat for him whenever he needed someone to look after Harry.  

“James, I am very aware that Harriet’s cuteness has gotten her more than enough babysitter, I should know, I’m one of them, but don’t you think she should learn to interact with other kids her age?”

“What do you mean? She’s perfectly capable of playing with kids her age! In fact, just the other day Sirius, mum and I took her to the park and she was more then Happy to play with the other kids.” He remembered it had been his mother suggested to let Harriet get some fresh air and the 3 of them though it appropriate weather for a quick picnic.

“James, she ran off with Sirius to go play in the structure and came back crying 2 minutes later when a kid asked what her name was.” By now Marlene was exasperated, looking to the others for support but they were all too busy eating their breakfast, traitors.

“A very good skill to have! She knows not to talk to strangers!” By now James was hugging Harriet protectively as if Marlene would steal her a whisk her off to daycare, He knew she had a point but he wasn’t willing to let some random stranger watch over his daughter. 

“James the kid was probably no more than 3! He just wanted to play! Listen, if you want to be stubborn then fine, but for Harriet’s sake James, just consider it, please?” Marlene knew it was hard for James to let go of Harriet but she wasn’t going to stay little forever.

James looked down to where Harriet was happily drooling on his shirt, giggling at the feeling of his hands running through her hair. She was still so little, there was no way she was ready for something as big as daycare! 

“I’ll think about it” 

1h44 pm 

James had been mentally battling himself all day and he was starting to get a headache. While he knew there was some truth to Marlene's words, James just couldn’t find it in himself to let his precious little nugget go. As much as he tried to convince himself that Harriet wasn’t ready for daycare, he knew deep down that wasn't the case. In reality, it was the fact that James refuses to accept Harriet was growing, first daycare, then reception and in the blink of an eye she’ll have graduated and be off to Uni on the other side of the world and leave him foreve-

“James? Are you alright?” Lily asked, peeking her head through the door. She hadn’t seen any sign of him since breakfast. At first, she assumed he was working but now she was getting a bit worried, he had an odd look on his face as if he was in pain without anyone physically touching him.

“Lily! I- um- Ya! I’m fine, Great in fact!” His hand immediately jumped to his hair, whether because he was anxious or because of Lily Evans, he wasn’t sure yet. “Oh! Look at the time! I should probably go put Harriet down for her nap”

He got up in one swift motion and was about to make a dash for the door when Lily stopped him.

“James, Sirius put Harriet in her crib 30 minutes ago for her nap, what’s got you all jumpy like this?” It took Lily a while to get used to nervous James vs cocky arrogant James, the transition in her head seemed almost impossible but experiencing it first hand was a different story. “Is it about what Marlene said? At breakfast?”

“I-No, it’s not... Okay maybe a little” He flopped back on the bed. James knew there was no point in lying, if Lily felt that he was acting odd then she probably would have told the others and the four of them combined would definitely have been able to squeeze the answer out of him. 

“You know she didn’t mean it in a bad way, she was just making a point. Harriet’s going to have to start school at some point, this will just get her used to being away for the day.” Lily sat next to him on the bed trying her best to point out the positives in sending Harriet to daycare.

“I know it’s just- On one hand I want her to learn to play with other kids and get along with them, but on the other hand I want to keep her locked away from all danger by keeping her safe in my arms forever.” He said in one breath, running both hands through his hair as if he was about to pull it out.

“I’m pretty sure those are normal things to feel when being a parent, James. Besides, no ones forcing you to put her in daycare, if you want to wait a little longer then that’s fine, all Marlene was saying, or suggesting, is that you consider it.” Lily knew sugar-coating an unavoidable situation probably wasn’t the best idea but she believed it’s what James needed right now. “What if you asked your parents for some advice? We both know they’d be more than thrilled to help you.”

“I did. Talked to them for a bit over the phone earlier, it did help I will admit, they told me they felt the same on my first day of school, the only difference is my first day of school happened when I was eleven.” He still remembers it so clearly, his father was trying so hard not to cry while his mother physically restrained him in hugs so he wouldn’t get on the train. 

“Wait, what? You didn't go to any type of public or private school before Hogwarts?” I guess you learn something new every day, Lily thought.

“Mum and dad hired personals tutors so I could be schooled from home. Dad say’s it was because that’s what his parents did to him as a boy and the education proved beneficial but really he was the one teaching me half the time. Mum said it’s because she couldn’t be bothered to answers all the call or letter she would receive when I misbehave.” He laughed, his parents took the meaning ‘overprotective’ to a whole other level and he loved it. 

“Right, so maybe that’s not the best example to take from” Lily laughed with him, she knew Mr and Mrs Potter quite well and that does seem like something they would do. 

“Ya but I understand why they did it, primarily it’s because they didn’t trust anyone but themselves and people they knew to take care of me or teach me. Dad did mostly the sciences, chemistry specifically since he was best at it. Mum did English, literature, everything having to do with reading, writing, and all that other stuff. I had a few other people teach me other things like, Minnie came over to the manor when she could and did some math with me-”

“Wait, Minnie? As in Professor McGonagall?”

“Ya, she and mum were good friends, still are, she asked auntie Minnie if she was willing to teach me a bit. She regret saying ‘yes’ two days later. Drove her mad, I did, worse bit is she didn't even get rid of me until graduation.” 

“Auntie Minnie?” She gave him an amused look “Bet it didn’t take long for Sirius to jump on that train” 

James barked out a laugh and whipped his eyes under his glasses “Great gods you should have seen the look on her face the first time he called her Minnie, bloody hilarious it was, obviously she blamed me for it so we both got in trouble but it was worth it. “

James and Lily continued to talk about memories from Hogwarts and whatnot, simply laughing at the fun things they forgot in the mess that came after graduation and James realized how incredibly calming Lily’s presence was to him. He didn’t feel nervous or jittery with her sitting next to him. His Hogwarts self would probably be pissing himself with happiness at the thought of Lily Evans enjoying a conversation with him. Guess that just proves how much things can change in the course on only a few years and that maybe ‘change’ isn’t as bad as he thought. 

3h41 pm

The rest of the day was simply spent watching movies and relaxing at the flat. Everything seemed so busy in the outside world that they all agreed a quiet afternoon wouldn’t hurt. By the time they picked out the third movie, Harriet woke up from her and began calling for James. 

“Well, that’s my cue,” James said, untangling his legs from Lily’s and walking over to the nursery. It was common knowledge that most toddlers woke up cranky, whether it was from a nap of a full night’s sleep and Harriet was no exception. If James wasn’t the first person she saw waking up she would lose it, crying and screaming for her dad. 

When he walked into the nursery he saw Harriet sitting in her crib, sucking on her dummy, hair sticking out in every direction possible with a tired/confused look on her face. James couldn’t help the smile stretching across his face; he didn’t know what it was but just looking at his little Troublemaker made his hear swell.

“Hello there baby girl,” James smiled, laughing when she giggled back at him, showing him her little dimples. “did you have a good nap?”

Wrapping her up in her blanket, he picked her up and sat down on the rocking chair. He really hoped that as she got older, they would still be able to have this type of cuddle time. Where they could both just relax and enjoy some quiet time together. As much as James didn’t want to accept the fact that his little girl was growing up, she was and rather quickly at that.

Harriet started gurgling in his arms, her dummy was stopping her from saying full words but he knew better than to take it out of her mouth without her permission.

“Princess, do papa a favour and stay little forever, yes? Good.” Harriet didn’t have the slightest idea what her dad was talking about, she was just giggling at the fleeing of him playing with her hair. She absolutely loved moments like this, when it was just the two of them and she had all James’ attention. Although she didn’t understand what he was saying, his chest was making a funny rumblings sound which made her laugh. 

“Daddy! I low-ve Daddy!” Harry cheered quietly, the dummy falling our of her mouth. 

James froze completely and immediately stopped rocking the cair. Had she just said that? Or did he just imagine? Was he going crazy? Honestly, considering the people he hung out with, he wouldn’t be surprised.

“What was that Trouble? Can you say that again?” 

“I lowve you, Daddy!” Harriet said again and James' heart soared. It was the first time Harry had ever said she loved him and while he knew she did without her having to say it, hearing it was enough to make him cry. 

“I love you too my little Troublemaker,” James murmured in her hair quietly, not bothering to stop the flow of tears streaming down his cheeks “More than life itself my darling.” 

Because I couldn’t get enough of baby Harriet and James, in the next chapter I’ll probably have some Lily/Harry bonding time.