#diary!tom is harry's evil ex

[corpium]

a future excerpt from By Any Means

Harry turns around, good mood vanishing. “Oh, would you fuck off already?” he asks Tom, who’s propped up against one of the trees like the bloody poser he is. Blood’s still smeared across his face from the roses’ thorns.

“Do you not want me here?” Tom asks. “I thought you missed me.”

Tensing, Harry shifts his weight. “I miss you like a hole in the head,” he says.

“Ouch.” Tom pushes off the tree and ambles toward him, hands in his pocket. “Such cruel words, Harry.”

Harry holds his ground, fists clenching. Awareness prickles at the edge of his senses. “It’s the least you deserve.”

Tom comes to a stop before him, a hand coming up towards Harry’s chin.

Harry slaps it away. “Don’t touch me,” he snarls.

Tom stills, assessing Harry with red, snakelike eyes. They jog something loose in Harry’s head. They aren’t supposed to look like that. Harry takes a step back; Tom takes one forward, eating up the space.

“I thought you liked it when I touched you,” Tom says.

Harry shores himself up again and plants his feet. “You disgust me,” he says.

“Do I?” With a clinical tilt of his head, Tom takes another step into Harry’s space. Harry stays in place, muscles practically vibrating with tension. Mere inches hold them apart. “And yet, you allow me so close.” His face tilts downward; his hands rise, one to Harry’s waist, the other up to Harry’s cheek—

Harry punches him in the gut. “Fuck you!” Even as Tom doubles over, Harry tackles him to the ground. He rains punches down on Tom’s face—he wants to ruin it. “You deluded twat!” he rants. “I hate you. I hate you, I—”

Tom’s shock wears off. His legs shift, his abdomen flexing—

He rolls Harry over, and the world rolls with him, and suddenly Harry’s not looking at Tom anymore. He’s looking up at Voldemort in all his snakelike glory.

“What,” Harry croaks, going still. The light’s changed, having darkened to that of an enclosed room lit by a crackling fire. He’s lying back on a bed—a very plush, comfortable bed. Voldemort’s hands are on his wrists. He leans over Harry, pinning him down like some unearthly demon.

“We’re in my dream now, Harry,” says Voldemort, grinning down at him with unholy avarice. “Do I still disgust you?”

Blinking, Harry swallows, the fog of his dream fading. Appease, appease, appease, his instincts scream, a holdover from his time with the Dursleys. “I—I thought you were just a dream.” But this is still a dream, isn’t it? Is this real?

Voldemort’s long fingers clench around Harry’s wrists. He does not move away. “And now you have decided that I am very much myself,” he surmises. “Are you certain?”

Harry inhales deeply, finding himself frozen. He observes his surroundings. There’s a wavering edge to the room, a soft lack of detail in the wood of the walls, an overly warm brightness to the fire. But Voldemort is real and solid above him, his grip much too present and his eyes far too keen. Harry nods, ever so slightly. “What do you want?” he whispers. He tries to think ahead, to plan, to remember what he shouldn’t be saying, but under the weight of Voldemort’s attention, his thoughts elude him.

Voldemort’s eyes drag downward, making heat rise under Harry’s skin. “Everything,” says Voldemort. “Everything that you are. I want it all.”

Wordless, Harry shakes his head in denial.

Miraculously, Voldemort pulls back. His weight on Harry’s legs makes Harry’s stomach twist. “All in good time,” he says, peering down at Harry in contemplation. “It intrigues me, Harry, to observe your reactions to my many faces. Why, I dare say, you may dislike my youthful visage more than I do.” He tilts his head, peering down at Harry. “Tell me, darling—”

The pet name sends a complicated array of emotions coursing through Harry. ‘Darling?’ he wants to yell, but at the same time, no, he really doesn’t. He wants away more than anything. Harry jerks up, legs twisting—

Voldemort pins him down once more by his wrists, nails digging in, his expression frighteningly impassive. It’s that eerie impassivity that stills Harry once again. “What did he do to you?” Voldemort asks quietly.

“He was a psychotic murderer,” Harry snarls. “You were—are—a psychotic murderer,” he adds, half to remind himself.

“That’s not quite it, is it?” Voldemort traces a thumb over Harry’s bare wrist. Harry suppresses a shiver. “No, your hatred runs deeper than that.”

“Stop it,” Harry snaps, squirming and failing to get away. “Stop—bloody guessing. You don’t know anything.”

“He was impetuous, I am certain,” Voldemort says. “Impatient. Too blinded by his need to escape the diary to see what a gift he beheld.”

“’A gift’?” Harry splutters.

Voldemort ignores him. He raises Harry’s wrists over his head and changes his grip to hold them together in one large hand. His other hand, warm to the touch against Harry’s death-chilled skin, trails down Harry’s gray arm, nails grazing the skin. It slides down Harry’s shirt, a fraying, threadbare thing, dirty from working in the garden.

“Hey—” Harry says, starting to squirm again as Voldemort’s touch slips under his shirt. Voldemort splays his fingers out and presses down, holding Harry in place, nails pricking threateningly into the delicate flesh of his abdomen.

Harry tests Voldemort’s hold on his wrists and finds no give.

“Did he charm you, Harry?” Voldemort’s robes drape over Harry, shifting softly as he presses closer. “Did he seduce you?”

The air feels thick. Harry looks away, grinding his teeth.

“Did he break your heart?”

Harry blinks rapidly. His breath shudders. “Shut. Up.”

Voldemort clicks his tongue. “I was quite foolish in my youth.” He strokes his thumb over Harry’s belly, sending a curl of unwelcome pleasure up Harry’s spine. He shifts lower, his face coming unbearably close. (If he looked like the Tom Harry had known, Harry would bite him. But he looks just different enough, otherworldly enough, to utterly baffle Harry’s impulses.) “Would you like me to apologize?” Voldemort murmurs.

“I would like you,” Harry finds himself saying, voice small, “to leave me alone.”

[stuckwith-harry]

I’m SO curious... how DO you think gender plays a role in Harry and Ginny’s respective interactions with Voldemort? I’d never thought of it, and now I’m fully invested🤩

i honestly wanna write a fucking academic paper with like, sources™, on this some day because there’s so much there. but i’m thrilled you asked so here are some thoughts to get us started:

(cw for gendered violence and abuse, nothing graphic)

so i picked out harry and ginny specifically because many of their peers only know voldemort as this far-away, larger-than-life villain: like, he’s the wizard fascist they read about in the daily prophet, whose goals and views they’re opposed to and which they might be personally affected by, yes (losing loved ones to fighting him, directly suffering under voldemort’s regime because they’re muggleborn etc.), but they don’t know that guy personally, and he doesn’t know them either. it’s been pointed out before, and it bears repeating here, that even ron and hermione don’t even lay eyes on the guy until book 7.

harry, being our protagonist, gets personally singled out thanks to the prophecy and the ensuing boy who lived / chosen one shenanigans. he gets to have his very own hero’s journey™, gets personally antagonised by voldemort and ultimately tasked with his defeat. this makes a larger-than-life figure out of harry as well, a symbol of hope and resistance, an opposing force to voldemort’s evil.

ginny also encounters voldemort as a personal evil, but that experience differs from harry and voldemort in some significant ways: that dynamic is well-known and witnessed by the public: he’s famous for his part in this ultimate fight of good vs evil, and he literally defeats voldemort in front of an audience and then goes down in history for it. the struggle of ginny vs tom goes almost entirely unnoticed and unwitnessed, except for a few close friends and family members, if it all. (yada yada yada lucky you.) we’re around for harry’s fight against voldemort from start to finish, the books are constructed around it, and hardly witness ginny’s. most of the diary stuff happens off-page and we don’t even find out until it’s too late to prevent it, and then again, too late to give her some sort of company in the aftermath.

(not to go on a whole tangent on the gendered dichotomy of (feminine) private and (masculine) public spheres in (for example) victorian literature but that's part of what i’m getting at here.)

(if it wasn’t glaringly obvious from this and also everything else i have ever posted on this blog, i’m a million times more interested in reading harry and ginny as two sides of the same coin than i am harry and malfoy. fuck that guy and get me more ginny meta)

ginny’s own villain actually isn’t voldemort: it’s very specifically a memory of riddle, and while voldemort makes no secret out of antagonising harry, the riddle in the diary uses ginny by pretending to be her friend. so ginny’s dynamic with riddle is full of themes of gaslighting, manipulation and loss of bodily autonomy (when she’s being possessed), and while none of that is exclusive to women, of course, being gaslit or manipulated by abusive or violent men, especially trusted men, is a familiar experience to a lot of women and often appears in tandem with patriarchal structures and misogyny. think about how women murdered by men tend to die at the hands of their partners or ex-partners, for example. even given that he isn’t one, riddle shares a lot of characteristics with a textbook abusive ex-boyfriend.

that’s not even getting into the gendered horror tropes, specifically, that surround ginny! like literally getting possessed! like the accusations of insanity that likely followed! oh my god! and that part is very interesting because harry actually also experiences that starting in ootp. let me comb through a dozen papers on the topic and get back to you later with conclusions, i’m just going to leave that here for now. separate dissertation on ginny as a horror protagonist, yes i absolutely have thoughts on that, will be saved for another time.

there’s absolutely more, but i’m leaving it at that for now and if i can’t help myself i’ll make a part two, but i’m also supposed to be writing a whole multichapter fic exploring all of this, so we’ll talk about this more in 2029, probably.

[limetimo]

RAB fics this week (11-17 April)

when you were in scrubs by anauro, battlehamster Them crazy, amazing fuckers just went and wrote a crossover of their fics. Recovering addict James who's dating doctor Regulus went into coma and dreamed up the When You Were Mine universe where they're married and he's a successful writer and Regulus is his trophy husband former criminal. Wig snatched, can't wait for more!

anywhere i want (just not home) by squide ugh so. good. The Black Brothers drift apart. The events of That Night (the night Sirius run away) are kept a mystery. Regulus runs away to live with Andromeda, gets a boyfriend, befriends Pan and couple more people,,, Jegulus also, and my favourite subplot is Peter's family being Irish Nacionalists. Go, my boy, go, inherit a mob from your grandpa ♥

Crepuscular by EmptySurface Fem!Harry (still named Harry) is badassing in the 1970s. She adopts 15yo Regulus but poor boy has so many issues from living with Orion and Walburga he misunderstands one of their conversations and thinks Harry is kicking him out and joins the DEs anyway. Harry needs a big nap!

Did You Miss Me? by Fantismal, Krethes Wolfstar and Jily are the focus but Regulus has a small but important presence!

Trials and Tribulations by lemon_drps Regulus is under a lot of pressure, gay and high and also a pretty shit person. I love him your honour

Diptych by pansysnarkinson Regulus is given the Tom Riddle Diary!

All The Lonely People by tinyscales ACCIDENTAL BABY ACQUISITION VIA ROOM OF REQUIREMENT also I don't say this often but fuck McGonagall, I know what she's trying to do but she's NOT being helpful.

movement by oceanicfeelings Regulus secretly worked with James on finding the Horcruxes but then got stuck in the cave in 1979 but James survived Voldy and found Regulus in like '83 and now htey're going to break out Sirius ad kidnap Harry and kill Voldy for good ♥

yours for the night by willowjh slowburn Remus/Regulus I enjoy them very much

Star Stepper by Ourania95 14yo Regulus runs away from home and putters around the muggle London I want to squish him ♥♥♥

nobody heard him by potterprongs everything's changing when Sirius starts Hogwarts, and even more when Regulus joins him there. idk how to describe this well but if you like baby faced Regulus you're going to enjoy this one!

In All Your Gorgeous Colours by AlexSW97 Regulus is outed as gay and runs away to the Potters. Very Sad but also very - just prepare some sweets and tissues.

Airplanes with the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black by rsbarelle Remus takes the Black Brothers on a muggle airplane. Instant regret. I laughed :D

Denebola Black by rsbarelle I'm gonna fucking cry guys. Black Brothers as seen by Denebola, Sirius teddybear he got from Andy when they were little. My. fucking. heart. Read it and cry.

Retribution by Kira_readsbooks James got hit by a Bludger and takes Regulus down with him. They're both really injured and about to spend a lot of time at the Hospital wing together. Also PAndalily!

The Blood In Your Mouth by moonysmirrorball homoerotic detective James x assassin for hire Regulus

when you were mine by battlehamster at this point needs no introducing. little shit Regulus, single dad James, let the magic happen ♥

My Jamie by Kira_readsbooks Marauders era, Regulus is a part of Order and leaves for a mission and James decides to go ring shopping! But will Regulus come back from the mission in one piece?!

From Moony to Dada to Horcrux Hunter by Look_A_User_Name uuh evil Dumbledore, Sirius and Regulus can do Mpreg and they DO do Mpreg (Sirius has a son with Remus (who didn't know it was his) and Regulus with Severus)... lots of shit happens, It's pretty good you should give it a go!

No Better Place To Be by britishgaychild James used to date Regulus and Barty and Evan but broke up with them when they joined Death Eaters. Now they're murdering Voldy and decided to invite their ex for the ride :D

[thejakeformerlyknownasprince]

Have you noticed the thing in fanfics of children's lit where the writer gives the protagonist new parent figures? The parent figures say things like "no child should have had to do x!". PF's don't prevent protagonist from doing heroism but might ground them for it after. Under their care, the protagonist is likely to get a job, often at the business of the PF. Seems less common for the Animorph (more in ATLA and Harry Potter), but if you have seen this, what's going on? Why do writers do this?

Why do writers do this?

Welcome to the fandom renaissance, Nonny!  My best stab as to what’s going on here is that we’re seeing fewer and fewer shipping wars due to a whole range of forces from “the average age of fandom is increasing” to “there’s an ongoing post-monogamy societal shift.”   BUT that there’s still a desire to see relationship-building fic go in the gaps where (for instance) Pro-Jacob Anti-Edward fic used to go.  So instead of writing about Edward and Bella’s romance, people are writing about Edward and Carlisle’s mentorship, or Leah and Rosalie’s friendship.

What’s going on?

Again, a stab in the dark: it’s a really fun story premise, one that can get away from the way ships are sometimes fraught with baggage.  Found Family is intensely cathartic, in the sense that it takes characters who are miserable and/or lonely in canon and allows them to build loving relationships with each other.  It also (IMHO) reflects that trend among Millennial Whippersnappers to move away from nuclear definitions of “family” and toward embracing everything from polyamory to sexless romance to adult adoption.

Not only that, but it’s awesome in that it lets writers play so much with foils.  Stranger Things obviously does this Up to Eleven (pun intended): Steve’s an arrogant jerk when he’s interacting with Nancy but a dorky sweetheart around Dustin, Hopper’s at his worst around Joyce but at his best around El, Billy’s evil to Max but might be redeemable around his mom, etcetera.  This premise gives fan writers the chance to get wildly different characters into a room together — what if the Tonks family adopted Neville Longbottom? — and start playing out the fun potential.

Why Avatar and Harry Potter (but not Animorphs)?

In a word: FOILS.  Both AtLA and Harry Potter are series filled with good, bad, and ugly mentors, and both series have contrasts between the good and the bad.  For AtLA, it’s no accident that Zuko finally reuniting with his father in S3E1 is intercut with the scene of Katara finally reuniting with her father.  Katara’s fam airs their grievances, talks things out, yells, cries, apologizes, forgives, hugs, and affirms their ongoing love.  Zuko’s fam deals with having 500 times as much baggage by... Zuko kowtowing silently on the floor while Ozai talks about everything but their problems with each other.  After that sequence, the desire to get Zuko into a room with Hakoda for some proper fathering is practically overwhelming, and many brilliant fan writers have obliged us by doing exactly that.

For Harry Potter, there’s no scene that’s as in-your-face with the contrast between healthy vs. unhealthy disagreement with one’s father, but there are still plenty of mentor foils.  Sirius and Petunia are probably the clearest examples.  Sirius is a raging mess who (on the surface) has nothing to offer Harry: he’s an ex-con with a drinking problem and untreated mental health issues who spends much of the series homeless.  Petunia has her shit together and (on the surface) is the perfect guardian for Harry: she’s a wealthy full-time parent who lives in a large suburban house, and is both his closest surviving relative and his legal guardian.  But of course all Harry needs from a parent is love and support, and Sirius offers that in spades while Petunia has none to spare.  Again, the desire to rip Harry away from the Dursleys and ship him off to go be a Black is overwhelming, and many beautiful works of fan fiction have done exactly that.

Animorphs... doesn’t have mentor characters.  Like, none.  Elfangor dies, Toby does her own thing, Erek can’t be trusted, neither Ax nor Jake wants to mentor, and all adults are possible controllers.  Eva’s the closest we get, but by the time she’s free, everyone (especially Eva) recognizes that the Animorphs are already more experienced than her.  We don’t even see a dynamic like the Teen Titans show where the villains mentor the heroes — Jake and Marco might occasionally parallel Visser Three and Visser One, but they don’t learn from the vissers the way that Robin does from Slade or Raven does from Trigon.  The kids just... find their own way.  So while people have written fic where Elfangor or Eva or Mertil or Tom mentors the team, there’s not this in-your-face missed opportunity for the kids to get the parenting they deserve in Animorphs the way there is with Harry Potter and Avatar.

Have you noticed the thing?

Personally, I love this trend.  I’m not much of a shipper — I’m not fond of “will they or won’t they” romantic premises, and actively dislike “they will because they’re soulmates” premises.  My favorite Ship Dynamics are all platonic.  Like, my faves include (but are not limited to):

Grubby Semi-Feral Mentee and Aloof Socially-Incompetent Mentor Bond with Alarming Speed Over Niche Magical Interest (see: Briar and Rosethorn in Circle of Magic, Boy 412 and Marcia in Septimus Heap, Jason and Bruce in Batman, Wart and Merlin in The Once and Future King)

Well-Intentioned Loving Parent Irretrievably Fucks Up Child, Copes with Fallout (see: John and Dean in Supernatural, Adam and Cal in East of Eden, Soichiro and Light in Death Note, Elaine and T.J. in Political Animals)

I’ve Only Known This Person With Extremely Specific Shared Trauma for 10 Minutes But If Anything Happened to Them I Would Kill Everyone (see: Toph and Zuko in AtLA, Luke and Annabeth in Demigod Diaries, Ax and Tobias in Animorphs, Spike and Angel in Angel, Parker and Eliot in Leverage, Johanna and Finnick in Catching Fire)

Saving the World Sucks But At Least My Ultra-Competent Siblings Are Suffering With Me (see: Edmund and Lucy in Chronicles of Narnia, Sam and Dean in Supernatural, the Hargreeveses in Umbrella Academy, the Crains in Haunting of Hill House)

Just Because I Tried to Kill You That One Time Doesn’t Mean I Won’t Help You Hide a Body, JFC We’re Still Family and I Don’t Know What You Take Me For (see: the Robins in Batman, Septimus and Simon in Septimus Heap, Kyle and Ian in The Host)

We Were the Weird Cousins At All the Family Reunions and We’ve Only Gotten Weirder Since (see: Kate and George in Story Time, Jake and Rachel in Animorphs, Po and Bitterblue in Graceling Realm)

[dalekofchaos]

Why Voldemort is a terrible villain and how I’d improve Voldemort as a villain

As much as I like Voldemort, when you look back on the books. Voldemort is a terrible villain. Yes he has the Horcruxes and has loyal followers...but that’s it. In this post I will be examining why Voldemort is a terrible villain in Harry Potter and how I would improve Voldemort as a villain.

Let’s look at Voldemort’s track record

No clear motivations. The movies do absolutely nothing to flesh out Voldemort, but that's understandable, they're the movies. But even in the books, there is no clear reason for Voldemort doing any of the things that he does. During the flashbacks in the Pensive, Tom is a disturbed child who has a tendency to torture animals, lure other children to creepy caves and steal stuff - all of this is bad, yes, but why? Why is Tom Riddle "evil"? I know the explanation that the canon somewhat provides: that Voldemort doesn't know love/friendship/connection because he was conceived under the trickery of a love potion, and his mother was abused But, even if you accept that explanation, that does not justify Tom Riddle being innately evil and monstrous. Why is he racist/supremacist? If he really is a natural genius with a detachment from human emotion, shouldn't he also be detached from things like blood supremacy, ancestry and mortality? Just because he's a sociopath doesn't mean he will automatically turn into Hitler.

Wages a Wizarding war, but couldn’t even conquer his own Wizarding Nation

He couldn’t become Minister Of Magic. Instead he dicked around in Borgins And Burkes and instead wanted to become Defense Against The Dark Arts Professor.....for reasons. He could’ve used his power as Minister Of Magic to gain followers, especially the fanatic pure blood families and the impressionable Slytherins and cover for his Horcrux murders. But nooo.

When Voldemort DOES take power by force during the second Wizarding War, he does barely anything with it. Voldemort owns the government and has an army of evil. Where does he plan to launch his attack on the world? At a god damn highschool. Yes I know he attacked Hogwarts because of the last Horcrux. Didn't need to get that far if he didn't act like the world's worst Bond villain and monologued for enough time to let Harry either escape or for the Deus ex machina to arrive on que. The first two times it happens, yeah I get it. You're a villain who is up himself, shit happens. But by book 5 when he is still doing dumb shit it's unforgivable. How hard is it to issue a kill on sight order to your hordes of evil? I mean FFS you have legit werewolves on your side, who can sniff out a drop of blood miles away and yet you do nothing with them? Not only do you fail to kill a defenseless baby but you can't evil kill the kid when he's locked up in your second in commands basement.

He isn't particularly charismatic or a decent leader. He does have tons of followers, for reasons. Seriously, except for fear and opportunism I can't understand why anybody would want to fight for him. I mean, I get that he is basically magic!Hitler, but actual Hitler could at least hold speeches. Actual Hitler had arguments why his rule would be good for the German people. Voldemort doesn't. Voldemort treats his followers like shit and tortures or kills them if they aren't useful any more.

He didn't do his homework and doesn't knows the magic lore good enough. He manages to kill himself two times because of lore he really should have known about. The first time he fails to see the magic love-charm, the second time he doesn't recognizes the arcane rules of wand ownership. Those are stupid, avoidable mistakes for somebody that is supposed to be the greatest dark mage of his time.

He isn't even a particularly good mage. He manages to get statemaled by Harry and defeated by Dumbledore. He never does anything truly remarkable with magic that we haven't seen other characters do the same or better (the cave in book six is pretty good, but that's already has best showing). All we see is “AVADA KEDAVA.” Cool, I’ve seen every damn villain use that stupid fucking spell and yes it is a terrible spell.

His plans are... well, they are shit. If your plans get permanently foiled by a bunch of meddeling kids, you should think about retirement, not world domination. The plan in "Goblet of fire" only works out because of dumb luck. "Orden of phoenix" works out because of Harrys incompetence. The plan to kill Dumbledore only worked cause Voldemort used logic and had one of his followers do the work for him. The rest of his plans fail gloriously.

Voldemort's goals. He... wants to be immortal, but why? Because he's afraid of death? Why is he afraid of death? He literally spent his childhood cutting open rabbits. He excelled in all fields of academia and is arguably very intelligent; intelligence tends to negate superstition. Okay, fine; let's assume he's afraid of death. But even if we look for another explanation: maybe he wants to live forever in order to stay in power.

Voldemort wants power...Why does he want power? Why does he want to, quite literally, take over the world? It makes no sense. He has no reason to care about any of that. Even if he's prejudiced against Muggles, what exactly gives him the willpower to actually gather followers, build a legion of darkdoom evil squad and kill everyone? His motivations are never explained, and he is introduced to the story as a 2-dimensional "bad guy". Even from the 4th book onward, Voldemort is never actually fleshed out. He simply goes from bad guy to "extremely bad guy/"super fucking evil". It's shallow. It's a bad character. He isn't even a character. He has no depth, nuance, relatability or layers to him. He's just a textbook douchebag who exists simply to give the protagonists something to do, because otherwise the stories would just be about magic school.

Let's look at the closest and most obvious reflection: Adolf Hitler. It's painfully obvious that Voldemort's movement is based on Nazism. But if you read Mein Kampf, Hitler actually believed what he was doing was justified, and provided reasons for it which he thought made sense. Even if it was objectively flawed, he believed it. That's what makes a good character in fiction; even if they're actually batshit fucking insane and critically evil, you can make them relatable if you go inside their head and show the audience why they're doing what they're doing. Even if the audience doesn't agree with the character, the audience understands why the character thinks this way. Unlike Hitler's diary, Voldemort has no level of self-introspection, no actual justifications. He's a walking plot device, and that's ridiculously bad for a 7-book-long story where he's the main antagonist. I don't remember a single interaction, scene or exchange where Voldemort is shown to have any degree of self-awareness. The youngest we ever see him is when Dumbledore visits him in the orphanage, and by that point he's already evil as balls, for seemingly no reason. Even when Harry is talking to him in their final fight, Voldemort only hisses and spits out superficial threats and a shallow understanding of the events around him, and actually has no idea who he is, or why he's doing what he does. . If he were a realistic character, this lack of self-awareness would build up over time, would create self-doubt in him, and he would go through a character arc where he "found himself" and learned what he really wanted. And then, maybe he comes back and does some crazy shit, but this time he does them with glorious conviction, and has no shame in admitting it. The audience knows him now, and he's a great villain. But that's not what we got. Remember the 13-odd years Voldemort spent floating around like a puff of gas, possessing rats and squatting in Quirrel's turban? Why did his character not develop? HE HAD THIRTEEN FUCKING YEARS TO REFLECT ON HIMSELF. He literally had nothing else to do. He could've become such a complex character. Think about it: a bland, textbook villain gets cucked into infinity and now can't actually do anything but bide his time. It would clearly affect his personality, especially if it lasts 13 goddamn years. But when Voldemort is revived in book 4, he's still just "look how evil I am.exe". He had literally no character arc of any kind. That's actually impossible. No sentient human being can have the same personality, goals and motivations after over a decade of exile. He's a badly-written villain, plain and simple.

It seems like a very poor decision to make the antagonist of 7 thick books this unrelatable and bland. It also makes no sense because Rowling has written consistently excellent characters throughout the series. Why not make Voldemort a real character?

So here is how I would improve Voldemort as a villain

Motivation. So since it's universally accepted that Salazar was against Muggleorns because he grew up in a time where Wizards and Witches were being burned at the stake. What if Voldemort had similar intentions cause he grew up in a time during WWII and the Cold War and saw how powerful and dangerous the Muggles were becoming with their nuclear weapons and wanted to protect magic kind from the Muggles and viewed the Muggles invading a possibility. So he became Lord Voldemort and formed the Death Eaters to finish Salazar Slytherin’s work to protect magic kind against Muggles and Muggleborns. It could’ve started out as noble, but turned racist and evil in the end.  

As Tom Riddle, he becomes the Minister Of Magic or given a position of power secondary to the Minister Of Magic. The Lord Of Magic. It’s important that prior to becoming Lord Voldemort, he should hold a position of political power within the Ministry Of Magic. In Hogwarts, it is said as a student Tom was charismatic, charming and a wolf in sheep’s clothing. So why not use all that for politics? He could use his charm and political power to turn the Ministry Of Magic against the Muggleborns and against the Muggles. He would write a book explaining in detail why he believes in what he believes and that gives him the following he needs. The Book in question would be called “Magic Is Might!” The old Pure Blood magical families and impressionable young Slytherins would follow him like moths to a flame.  He could use his newfound political power to research all forms of magic and even the dark arts. He could make Horcruxes in secret. As Voldemort he would gather allies who were rejected by society like Werewolves and Giants. But despite what the Horcruxes do to his face, he could use magic to keep up appearances. He wouldn’t just be seeking to wage war with the muggles and muggleborns. First Voldemort has to take over the Wizarding world. 

Treats his followers like allies. Voldemort does not use fear and the threat of death and torture on his most trusted allies. Tom Riddle’s the Knights of Walpurgis hold key positions in Tom Riddle’s administration and then the Death Eaters are born and Voldemort treats them with respect and admiration. In a sense, he treats the Death Eaters like family.

The First WIzarding War should have been about Voldemort waging war on the other Wizarding nations. This would truly show how terrifying and powerful Voldemort really is. Would also explain why the other nations did not interfere in the second war, cause they were that terrified of Voldemort. The Order Of Phoenix was barely able to win and drive Voldemort from power. 

Voldemort’s fall was because he was desperate. He was ousted from power and Dumbledore, the OOTP and Aurors are on his trail. His body is failing him, so he desperately needs to create a new Horcrux. So he kills The Potters. He fully knew that Lily used the love charm to shield Harry from him. So He saw a way out. Voldemort purposefully destroyed himself so he could gain a new Horcrux. 

Plus, we can have Voldemort hide the Horcruxes in the nations he conquered. So Voldemort can hide them in -Russia -Germany -America -Hogwarts -France Obviously Nagini would be by his side at all times and well Harry is the last one. For context of how Voldemort conquered these nations. Imperio, subterfuge, and mass hysteria. He took out the Wizarding governments and implanted them with his thrawls.

Make Voldemort as hated as Umbridge. Here’s how.

In my hypothetical scenario where Voldemort hides the Horcruxes in different Wizarding Nations, make 8 books. Book 7 ends with everyone graduating from Hogwarts and the fall of the Ministry. 

This way, after graduation, the Ministry has fallen and it ends with the Big Seven on the run. In Book 8 they are all on the hunt for the Horcruxes. Not just for Horcruxes, but international allies to unite the Wizarding world against Voldemort. It ends with the final confrontation being at the Ministry. Voldemort's endgame plan is not just to wipe out the Muggleborns, but wiping out the Muggles. He has the Magic equivalent to a Nuclear bomb. Voldemort wants to destroy the Muggles and recreate the world in his image. Magic Is Might! He plans on using it and Harry has to stop him before it's too late

Voldemort fails because the Horcruxes are failing him. It isn’t immortality, it is only temporarily longevity and every time one of his Horcruxes gets destroyed, his body breaks down and his soul is in an even worse shape.  When Nagini is destroyed, it is over. Voldemort thinks if he can kill Harry, he will live forever as the prophecy states “only one can live forever.” so he believes if he could just kill Harry, he can win. But Harry deflects his curses and sends it right back at him. Voldemort dies as he did in the book. Powerless, alone and human.

[notbecauseofvictories]

do you have any Thoughts on Tom Riddle and Ginny Weasley? bc I reread HP recently and I've been thinking about it A Lot

Even now you are not sure if it counts as a first kiss. If he was only some shard of a soul, an after-image pressed between the pages of an old diary like dried flowers, then no. No, of course not. But you remember the brush of his lips against yours, dry as paper, tasting of ink, and—

//

Something you don’t tell Harry: Tom Riddle came to you sometimes. In nightmares, in shadows you caught out the corner of your eye. Harry has seen memories in a Pensieve (he’ll tell you that, later) but when he starts talking about a dark-haired handsome boy, a charming smile and dead eyes, you are already nodding. It takes everything you have to bite your lip and not say: yes, I know. I saw him in every mirror, still water, and in dreams. 

(When you are living out of rooms of requirement, that exist because you need them; dodging ex-classmates and listening desperately to the wireless for any sign of life from the people you love….then you will wonder if He ever looked back. If there is any part of Tom—Voldemort—or his splintered, mangled soul, that remembers what it was to live in Ginny Weasley’s skin. If he avoids Hogwarts because of Harry or because of you, or some other, third reason. Maybe every lost, angry child comes to Hogwarts with that same frantic desire to protect it apart from all else. You wish you knew.)

You’d liked him, is the awful truth. Sometimes—in your less kind, less generous moments, which you aren’t willing to tell Harry about—you wonder if it would have been better to hate him. To look at Tom from the first and know that there was evil hiding behind a pretty mask; that the kindness was nothing but poisoned honey. Harry talks about Dumbledore’s surety, born of the first moment  meeting that sad, maniacal orphan, and you almost envy him.

As it stands, you were twelve and Tom Riddle at least pretended kindness, feigned listening, petted your hair even though he was a creation of ink and desperation and old dark magic. Trying to separate out those feelings from the monstrosity is hard. It is. You are not sure you ever accomplish it.

//

If you had been a boy, Tom Riddle said once, with a studied sort of disinterest, you would have been a seventh son of a seventh son. There’s power in that.

I know, you had answered, because you do. 

(You never told Tom—Tom with his feigned casualness and his artificial kindness, the cold, sharp gears of his mind turned over behind his eyes—that you had pictured him. Gerald Weasley, the seventh son of the seventh son. All the weaknesses he wouldn’t have to guess and second-guess, because they would be him instead of girlhood.

You didn’t think Tom, with his stern and handsome profile, heir of Slytherin who strode the length of your rooms with his chin stuck out, would understand.)

//

He said, open your eyes, so you did.

//

It’s Hermoine who asks, which you wouldn’t have guessed. For all her fearsome intellect, Hermoine strikes you as too much like Tom—a mind that’s all uncompromising edges, like a blade, everything unnecessary shed away. (According to Ron, Hermione once set Professor Snape’s robes on fire and never got in trouble for it. Fred and George wish.) But it’s Hermione, fourteen and awkward, not-quite-hips and uncontrollable hair as she gets ready for the Yule Ball, who meets your gaze in the mirror and asks:

Do you ever think about second year?

You swallow, try to smile. You are twelve and weedy, still—that transitional period between puppy fat and curves, where you look like an underfed plant grown in the dark, but with freckles. You feel strange in your body, which is….normal, supposedly, either because you are A Young Woman or because a couple years ago some nascent part of the Dark Lord took possession of your skin and tried to murder people with it. It’s not clear which.

Hermione is still looking at you in the mirror, her dark eyes shining.

Yes, you tell her. First year, for me. I think about it sometimes.

What do you think about?

Hermione is sincere, which even then you don’t know what to do with. You will never know what to do with her strange flashes of softness. When she breaks with that uncompromising straight line of logic. You spent too much time with Tom, maybe—you never learned what to do with a person who was a pitiless mind married to a tender heart. (He didn’t think they existed.)

I think about fruit, you tell Hermione. It has the benefit of being true. Then: He thought a lot about fruit.

Fruit? Hermione asks.

He didn’t have it, you say, reciting by rote at this point. This is a familiar refrain, as much a bedtime story as the Wizard and the Hopping Pot. They were—it was a war. Fruit was so rare, rationed—do you know what that means, ‘rationed’? They couldn’t get it, except sometimes or under special circumstances. He thought about oranges and lemons and even apples. He thought about—why are you looking at me that way? you ask.

Hermione shakes her head. She is very pale, almost grey. You’re telling a Muggle story, she says. This is a story about—

No, you answer, shaking your head even though it disturbs the careful straightness of your hair, the deliberate curls; Parvati worked so hard. This is a story about Lord Voldemort.

You stare at one another in the mirror until Katie Bell bursts in wailing about her flowers, and then the moment is broken.

//

He said, tilt your face up to me, and then he kissed your child’s mouth and made it something else, just by kissing it. His mouth tasted like parchment and the spill of an inkwell, and that was your first kiss. A book who was also a man who was the heart of evil kissed you. You are never the same afterwards—not a seventh son of a seventh son, but a daughter with a mouthful of printer’s ink, a girl with a steady longing for pears and limes and white sugar.

A hundred years later and maybe more, Harry says to you, He was—

and you finish: Yes. I know.

//

You have so many questions you would ask of him, if you could. 

(Not—the Dark Lord, not Voldemort, but Tom, who you suspect is somewhere within him, struggling to leap from his chest like a bird’s wings against a high window.)

You never get the chance.

[candyrosecupcakes-blog]

DH AU from Chapter 14

They were in the middle of the woods. Damp. Cold. No hope of returning to the surprising warmth of Grimmauld Place anymore. Ron was gravely injured and bleeding out. Hermione still pale with dried tear tracks running down her face. The morning felt like a lifetime ago. Had it really only been three hours since they had left Kreacher with promises of steak pie for dinner?

“So have you got it?” Harry turned to ask Hermione, breaking the topic of conversation away from the fate of the Cattermole family.

“Got it?” She asked distractedly, still fussing over Ron, “got what?”

His patience wearing thin he replied a little testily, “oh, I wonder what I’m talking about? Only the thing we went to the Ministry to get in the first place! The locket!”

Ron immediately began to struggle to sit upright, “you got the locket!” he exclaimed, “blimey, no one tells me anything! Lets see it then!”

Hermione was more preoccupied with ensuring Ron lay back down again than complying with his, or Harry’s, request. But, once she was satisfied that he was not going to further injure himself, she removed the locket from a pocket of her robes and handed it over.

It was about the size of an egg, gold with small green stones in the shape of a ’S’. It was an ornate looking thing and Harry thought it looked as hideous as the first time he had seen it, perhaps even more so now he knew the significance of it.

“And that’s definitely it?” Ron asked, “there’s not a chance the Horcrux has already been destroyed?”

Hermione took it back to inspect it, “there would be damage if it had been destroyed,” she turned to Harry, who had the most hands on experience with horcruxes, “right?”

Harry thought of the diary, stabbed with a basilisk fang, and the ring, cracked with whatever Dumbledore had used to destroy it. “Yeah,” he began, although he did not exactly like that he was apparently the leading expert on the subject, “I think we have to get it open before we can destroy it.”

Even though it seemed almost pointless the trio passed the locket between them for a little while, each trying their own way of getting it open. Brute strength failed. Various unlocking charms failed. Throwing it against the metal pole of the bunkbed yelling “open dammit” failed.

“Well, we never expected it to be easy,” Hermione said finally in her matter of fact tone.

Harry, who felt like, for once, they deserved to catch a break and something should just be easy, decided not to reply.

“Can you feel it though?” Ron said, holding the locket in a clenched fist.

“What do you mean?” Hermione asked, suddenly looking like this was a classroom experiment rather than a life or death mission.

“I don’t know,” Ron sighed, looking down at the locket, “I just always imagined a horcrux would feel…” he paused, searching for the right word, “evil.” That hadn’t been quite what he wanted to say. “Wrong even. This, this just feels cold.”

Harry took it back off him, holding it tightly in his own hands. “I don’t think any of us know what a horcrux is supposed to feel like.”

Hermione looked crestfallen. “You held the diary?” She suggested.

Harry shook his head, “I don’t remember. We all held it, didn’t we?” Once again he was struck by a wave of annoyance for Professor Dumbledore. Here they were, in a tent in the woods, trying to remember details about a book they had found in a toilet nearly five years ago.

“The only thing I remember mate,” Ron said with a slight laugh, “is how barmy you were to keep hold of it. It came out a toilet remember, I would have chucked it immediately.”

“Of course Ron!” Hermione cried delightedly, bestowing the bed bound boy with a wide grin. Ron blushed, but she was too distracted to notice. “You felt a compulsion to keep it Harry. To use it, didn’t you?”

Harry shrugged, “maybe?”

Hermione apparently wasn’t too concerned with Harry’s answer or lack there of, “The items probably all have heavy charms on them that act as protections. Like how even after Ginny knew there was something wrong with the diary, she kept using it.”

Harry winced at the mention of his ex-girlfriend. He had been steadfastly trying not to think of her all day. And he especially did not like to link his thoughts of her with thoughts of horcruxes. Ginny deserved so much better.

Ron had flinched too and muttered something about how they should have noticed something was off. Five years on and the guilt the Weasley brothers felt over their little sister’s encounter with Tom Riddle was strong as ever.

“So,” Harry said, guiding the topic away from her, “what do you think the locket is protected with?”

“I don’t know,” Hermione whispered, distraught in her lack of knowledge.

The words hung in the air.

“I’ll look into it though,” she began again hurriedly, “I’ll start doing some research. Maybe there’ll be something in Magical Protections and Charms-”

Harry cut her off, “I think we should get something to eat. And one of us should keep watch. Not you Ron!” He barked as his friend attempted to move from his bed. Slipping the locket around his neck before hiding it under his shirt, Harry took up position at the entrance of the tent, staring intently into the empty clearing beyond.

Hermione, after giving him detailed instructions in what to do if Ron started sweating or bleeding, or looking even slightly worse than current, eventually left to find a muggle shop where she could get some food. While her bag had basically everything she could think of inside, there was no food.

And that was how they found themselves for the rest of the day. Hermione returned and cooked something before swapping watch with Harry who then curled up back inside the tent listening to a snoring Ron break the silence.

They had gained a horcrux. On paper they had taken a step forwards. So why did it feel like it was actually two steps back?

[tabloidtoc]

Globe, August 17

You can buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Fox News sex scandal explodes 

Page 2: Up Front & Personal -- pregnant Bindi Irwin, Aubrey Plaza washes her car, Ray Liotta works out in Venice Beach 

Page 3: Sweaty Zachary Quinto, Piers Morgan in St. Tropez, Jennifer Garner snaps a shot of son Samuel Affleck who is neck-deep in sand as big sis Seraphina looks on 

Page 4: Fed-up Prince William and Duchess Kate Middleton -- our side of the story -- Will and Kate are not the bad guys in the royal war with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and they’re finally firing back 

Page 5: Prince Harry is being outwitted by his bossy bride Meghan Markle claims a British socialite who says the redheaded royal is much less intelligent than Meghan 

Page 6: Bisexual Brandi Glanville claims a sexy encounter with former reality show co-star Denise Richards left her feeling disgusted 

Page 7: Lisa Marie Presley and Priscilla Presley make peace -- they’re helping each other heal after Benjamin Keough’s devastating suicide 

Page 8: Cautious Kim Kardashian kept a diary dossier on husband Kanye West and she’ll use the ledger to take Kanye to the cleaners 

Page 9: Britney Spears is getting welcome support from ex-husband Kevin Federline who says he doesn’t think she’s too nutty to be around their kids 

Page 10: Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres is in hot water -- her media company bosses have launched an investigation into charges her show’s staff was abused and bullied 

Page 11: Pentagon studying crashed UFOs -- new government report blows lid off cover-up that began in Roswell 

Page 12: Celebrity Buzz -- Dolph Lundgren eating lunch in Beverly Hills (picture), Gwyneth Paltrow has spilled how Rob Lowe’s makeup artist wife Sheryl Berkoff schooled her on oral sex tricks when she was a teenager, Brooklyn Decker needs to use incontinence undies since birthing her two kids Hank and Stevie, Billy Eichner is playing legendary funnyman Paul Lynde in a bioflick of the barely closeted entertainer’s life, Lisa Rinna’s 19-year-old daughter Amelia Gray Hamlin has publicly accused her mom of forcing her to appear on RHOBH 

Page 13: Amber Rose (picture), Gavin Rossdale plays tennis (picture), Tori Spelling on the set of Celebrity Show-Off (picture)

Page 14: RHOA star Phaedra Parks who is a funeral director boasts business has never been better, Blake Lively still gets pretty frisky over Ryan Reynolds her husband of nearly eight years, Fashion Verdict -- Chrishell Stause 7/10, Saoirse Ronan 2/10, Adriana Lima 9/10, Carol Alt 1/10, Judith Light 8/10 

Page 16: Regis Philbin went to his grave deeply troubled over the many years he and longtime co-host Kelly Ripa barely spoke 

Page 17: The death of Gone with the Wind star Olivia de Havilland hammered the final nail into the longest and most bitter feud in Hollywood history between her and her sister Joan Fontaine, actor John Saxon took a series of bitter regrets to his grave including never having made it as a leading man and losing a real-life fight with martial arts superstar Bruce Lee 

Page 19: 10 things you don’t know about Tom Ellis, Dancing with the Stars judge Carrie Ann Inaba wept when she learned show hosts Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews had been axed, after dropping her new album Taylor Swift sent a special gift to a huge fan -- the late Kobe Bryant’s daughter Natalia 

Page 20: True Crime 

Page 23: Rod Stewart has revealed the secret behind writing his hit tunes -- boatloads of booze, creepy socialite Ghislaine Maxwell who was sex monster Jeffrey Epstein’s mistress and accused recruiter of underage girls secretly stashed away $20 million in 15 bank accounts and could lose it all if convicted of sex trafficking 

Page 24: Cover Story -- Fox News in crisis -- top stars rocked by new sex scandal after Roger Ailes and Bill O’Reilly gave network a black eye 

Page 26: Health Report -- thick thighs save lives 

Page 38: Real Life 

Page 40: Plastic surgery junkie Wendy Williams is getting a top-to-toe tune-up for her TV return

Page 45: Meyer Lansky’s lover squeals -- evil mobster behind 1000 murders was really a gentle soul 

Page 47: Hollywood Flashback -- The Oscar-winning pairing of Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman in the 1942 classic Casablanca almost didn’t happen because Ingrid was taller than Humphrey, Bizarre But True 

[thecharmedburrowspn-files]

Fic Promos

Some promos of my fics while I’m on break for NaNoWrimo.

What We Became: Anya’s family is tragically taken from her and her mother’s lies exposed. While Anya deals with the consequences of her mother’s actions, she keeps her own secrets that could destroy her remaining relationships but make her a key ally in the looming war.  Same universe, different/accelerated timeline. CedricXOFC.   Read on FF.NET      Read on AO3

Status: WIP (9 chapters posted)/On hiatus through November; updates will resume in December. 

OTHER HARRY POTTER FICS

Sight’s Journey (COMPLETE): Melissa exists to help Harry defeat Voldemort. But no one is allowed to know. Yet, she can't keep the secret from her inquisitive best friend Cedric, which sets off consequences even she can't foresee. In the end, will she do more harm than good? SlightAU. CedricXOFC Read on FF.NET

What I Want (COMPLETE): Tom had never needed anyone. Ever. But then things changed when she started hanging around. Now he has this odd need, even hunger, for her. Can she overlook what he is or not? Starts in first year, goes to 7th and beyond. TomRXOFC. Read on FF.NET

Children of Evil (COMPLETE): Sequel to 'What I Want.'Life was easy for Danielle and Alexander Riddle until Voldemort's return. Now they must decide who can be trusted, choose sides and try not to lose themselves in world that's slowly falling into chaos. Harry PotterXOFC. Read on FF.NET

THE VAMPIRE DIARIES FICS

Second Chances (COMPLETE): Death isn't as permanent as most think, Gwen knows this first hand. Maybe that's why the past can never stay in the past. Her quick trip to Mystic Falls soon spirals out of control when she runs into her ex: Damon Salvatore. Set in season 4. DamonOC. Read on FF.NET

Time’s Up (COMPLETE): Sequel to Second Chances: Damon and Gwen have been traveling the world for six years, staying clear of Mystic Falls. They're forced to return home when old enemies resurface and are after the Salvatore brothers and have a deathly vendetta against Gwen. Warning: Major character death but happy-ish ending. DamonXOC Steroline. Read on FF.NET

[ncfan-1]

ncfan listens to The Magnus Archives: S1 EP 004, ‘Page Turner’

Come to Jurgen-Leitner’s, where we have Necronomicons for every occasion and situation you could imagine! Necronomicons for summoning the dead! Necronomicons for revealing past transgressions! Necronomicons to drive the sanest man mad! Bring a friend, bring the whole family! Buy as much as you like, because you won’t be coming back! You’ll be dead or in a mental hospital with a melted brain before coming back passes your mind!

No spoilers, please!

- The evil book is a common theme in media. Books of arcane knowledge that corrupt the user in some form or another are commonplace, really, and in about half of those you will find some sort of sapient entity that may or may not interact directly with the reader. The Necronomicon of Lovecraft lore is probably the most notorious, along with Tom Riddle’s diary from the Harry Potter series; heck, the Restricted section of the Hogwarts library is full of books like this. You’ve also got ‘The King in Yellow,�� the play in book form of the similarly titled The King in Yellow. I think Evil Dead has one. The 2003 Teen Titans series has Raven come across a spell book that hosts an evil dragon pretending to be a good wizard. Eclipsa’s chapter of the Royal Book of Spells in Star vs. The Forces of Evil is this in miniature, though like many things in Svtfoe, it’s not what it seems at first glance. House of Leaves is a weird example of this, but it is an example. A Sith Holocron in Star Wars is a sci-fi equivalent. Even the Care Bears Movie had one of these.

What is it with our enduring fascination with Evil Books, anyways? The obsession seems to go beyond even Evil Books, anyways, because I can’t help but remember the way the Catholic Church reacted when people first started printing Bibles in their own vernacular. In that case, they likely came down so hard on translators like Wycliffe and Tyndale (well, Wycliffe was involved with the Lollard movement; I doubt that helped) because they knew their own power would wane if they couldn’t dictate religion to the masses, but we seem to have a Thing about books in general. Everybody’s obsessed with the Voynich Manuscript, too.

- And we’ve got Dominic insisting he’s not some crazy hobo, furthering our “mentally ill people are more vulnerable” theme; Dominic seems to understand it would work against him.

- “Probably calf, given how soft it was.” I do wonder how leather made from human skin feels to the touch. Is it, by any chance, soft?

- ‘Ex Altiorā’ is an interesting phrase, because it can mean a couple of very different things. ‘Ex’ is a preposition whose potential meanings include ‘out of’, ‘from within’, and ‘from.’ ‘Altiorā’ is the ablative case of the superlative form of the adjective ‘altus, -a, -um,’ which can mean either ‘high’ or ‘deep.’ So while it can mean ‘From/Out of the highest’, it can also mean ‘From/Out of the deepest.’

- So the book is a magic time sink?

- And after flipping through the book (one image of which was a mysteriously frighteningly night sky), Dominic is now picking up the smell of ozone.

- The pictures triggered Catherine’s vertigo? Given how affecting the night sky image is supposed to be, I’ll take that as a warning.

- Given that another Jurgen-Leitner book later shows up in Sanskrit, I wonder if the woodcut of a crooked tower with birds circling the summit represents the Tower of Babel.

- In real life, ‘Key of Solomon’ is a grimoire that was authored sometime in the 14th or 15th century in Italy. Though it is attributed to King Solomon, it was almost certainly not written by him as, again, it surfaced sometime in the 1300s-1400s. The book included incantations to summon and control the spirits of the dead and demons, how to find lost items, how to become invisible, etc. It also described the purifications the practitioner should undergo, how they should dress, how they should make the instruments used in their experiments, and what sort of animal sacrifices they’d have to make to the spirits. I got that info from Wikipedia, so take it with a grain of salt, but the last detail may potentially be important.

- “Something else there. Something I knew but… could not remember.” Wonderful.

- Mary Key sounds… creepy as hell.

- I wonder if dead Mary (I listen to these entries at least twice: the first time without making any notes, and at least once to make my notes) plays death metal music for a reason. Could it be, say, to block out the screams of dying animals?

- As to the picture of the eye, the eye is rich in symbolic meaning, but right now what I’m thinking of the most is the idea of God—or, if the story so intends, some other in-universe higher power—staring down on mankind and judging them.

- “Grant us the sight that we may not know. Grant us the scent that we may not catch. Grand us the sound that we may not call.” Well, we’ve got ozone so far—and something that will be revealed to us soon.

- So Mary Key’s Jurgen-Leitner book is a Jurgen-Leitner with no title, and the leather is in “better condition.” That’s great, that’s real great. Is it the copy of ‘Key of Solomon’ that was mentioned earlier on, because that might make some sense of what happens next.

- Mary’s book is in Sanskrit. If this is a copy of ‘Key of Solomon’, that might actually make sense as an attempt to pass ‘Key of Solomon’ off as actually having been written by Solomon. Sanskrit was in use in Southwest Asia (otherwise known as the Middle East), as there was trade between India and Southwest Asia; it’s actually believed that Sanskrit may have originated in what today is Iran.

- So you pass Mary’s book through shadows, and bent little animal bones fall out, “warped into shapes that bones should not form.” Interesting.

- Yeah, Mary’s been summoning demons. Or at least she was when she was alive.

- And when Dominic looks through his book—even without having to pass it through shadows—the woodcuts have changed. There are new lines in the picture, thick and dark and coming down from the sky like lightning.

- He sees the Lichtenberg Figure—grant us the sight that we may not know.

- The smell of ozone and cooking flesh—grant us the scent that we may not catch.

- The deafening lightning—grant us the sound that we may not call.

- So Mary messes with what is probably a copy of ‘Key of Solomon’, and possibly winds up being sacrificed the way she seems to have sacrificed animals. If Dominic had kept Ex Altiorā, would he have been struck by lightning?

- Jared sounds like he just wants to be done with all of this.

- So, as for Mary being in the bookstore when she was dead… Did Jared summon his mother’s spirit using her old book?

- Was… Was Jared going to use Mary’s skin as new pages for the book?

- Yeah, it was probably the grimoire that was deemed inadmissible.

- I wonder what Jared saw in Ex Altiorā, what it was that made him laugh.

- “My mother doesn’t always know what’s best for our family.” Well, alrighty then.

- So… It seems that Jurgen-Leitner makes books that are basically Necronomicon-grade tomes of forbidden knowledge fit to drive men mad. And the Magnus Institute has (or had, though it sounds like we’re going to be dealing in present tense again, now) an ongoing project devoted to dealing with his library after some incident in 1994. Well, I’m sure this will never come back in any way. Jonathan sounds so done.

- And Jonathan’s running assignment has just crossed over from “assignment that makes you rip all your hair out” to “assignment that makes you entertain fantasies about killing your boss for handing you this mess without even warning you about what you were walking into.” You can hear it in his voice. Though in this case, it sounds more like he’s entertaining fantasies of learning how to perform necromancy so he can resurrect Gertrude Robinson just to have the privilege of killing her again.

- That said, I’d say there’s more method to Gertrude’s madness than he’s willing to acknowledge right now.

- It’s possible that Dominic’s translation was off, and Martin was only looking for English translations. Because there is more than one possible translation.

[dr-tardis-who]

Angel of Music: Part Five

Harrison Osterfield x Reader

Summary: It’s the night of the gig, while you’re up on stage you notice a familiar groups of boys. Thank god Storm decided on your outfit for the night. Songs used Bubblegum bitch Marina and the diamonds, no good Kaleo

A/N: Very long chapter, because I’m evil and love you all

Warnings: Swearing, sexual tension, mention of abusive relationship

Y/n/n-your nickname

Tagging: @beardedsteveslut @cubedtriangle @wanderdreamer

Tonight was the night, you were doing a very big gig, and after your little run with the Holland family and Harrison. You were a little nervous, as you were stupid enough to tell Storm and the boys. Storm being, well Storm went into overload and wanted to hear every detail and immediately planned your outfit for the gig. Now here you are standing in front of the full length mirror staring at your reflection, you had to admit you didn’t recognise yourself, as you were wearing a rather revealing outfit, that was still tasteful.

“Don’t want any wardrobe malfunctions.’’ Storm said as he was dressing you, yes he was adamant, due to the fact that if he didn’t you would choose something a little more conservative. Your make up was done to perfection, complete with wings, false eyelashes and smoky eyes and ruby red lips. 

“Come on little minx, don’t want to keep that boy of yours waiting.’’ Storm calls from the other side of the door, with a sigh to try to be confident in your outfit as you walk out to the car with DJ, Alex, Storm and Andy, they do a few wolf whistles.

“Look at you, Y/n gonna get some tonight.’’ Andy teases, causing you to lightly punch his arm and roll your eyes.

“Fuck off.’’ You joke, the boys all laugh as you all get in the car. Just like last time you had gone to the venue earlier to set up most of the equipment, it was only your guitars and DJ’s keyboard that had to be set up.

“We mean it though Y/n/n, he would have to be a complete and utter div not to like you.’’ Andy says,

“Excuse me, where’s my praise after all who dressed her?” Storm asks from the passenger seat,

“Yes how can we forget our, beautiful fashion designer.’’ DJ jokes from beside you.

“Oh fuck you, you’re just jealous that you’ll never be my masterpiece, of beauty.’’ Storm says giving you a wink. Causing you to laugh from the back, this is what you loved about been with the guys, the jokes and banter always managed to bring a smile to her face.

“What are you thinking about?” Alex asks,

“Nothing.’’ You reply,

“You’re thinking about a certain blonde, aren’t you?” Storm teases,

“No, I’m just been sentimental.’’ You say looking out the window, watching the world whizz by.

*****************

“What are you boys all getting dressed up for?” Nikki asks, her sons, who were  all dressed in nice button up shirts and various jeans/pants.

“Y/n’s band are playing tonight.’’ Paddy says from his spot on the couch the only one not going.

“Oh how nice, we should all go.’’ Nikki says causing the three Holland boys to stop in their tracks,

“What?” Tom asks,

“We’ll all go, it’ll be nice.’’ She says,

“But mum, it’s not really your scene.’’ Harry says,

“Nonsense. It’s a pub.’’ She says, the boys knowing that there was no point arguing with their mum, unless they wanted to be grounded. And Tom didn’t want to go through the embarrassment of that. He sent a quick text to Harrison explaining the situation, and how they’ll have to alter their plan in order to get Y/n’s attention.

“Really mum, I don’t want to go anywhere just to see my brothers and Harrison make heart eyes at some girl.’’ Paddy says not moving from his spot on the couch.

“Hey, it’s Harrison that’s in love with her, we just wanted to get them together.’’ Tom blurts out in a rush only to be slapped on the back of the head by Sam, and Harry to roll his eyes.

“You’re trying to set Harrison up?” Nikki asks,

“He’s fancied her since the night we met her.’’ Harry admits.

“That’s very sweet of you boys.’’ Nikki says with a smile,

“We’re just doing it, he’ll stop acting like a crazy stalker on her social media.’’ Sam adds.

********************

To say that Harrison was mortified, would be an understatement. When he arrived at the Holland house to pick up the boys, he wasn’t aware that they had told Nikki everything, who had told Dom. Harrison shot a ‘really’ look at Tom who offered an apologetic smile, that looked more like a grimace.

“Really, you told your mum?” Harrison asks,

“It’s ok Harrison, I think it’s sweet. She seems like a sweet girl.’’ Nikki says that causes the four older boys to think ‘if you only saw her film clips’ simultaneously. 

“So we’re all going then, they start playing in ten minutes.’’ Dom says. With that they all file out of the house locking the door and piling into the car.

***************

You all got there a little early so with everything tuned and ready to go, you guys were able to enjoy a drink or two before starting. You weren’t planning on getting completely pissed (drunk) tonight, as you weren’t in the mood to party too hard tonight. Actually all you wanted was to curl up with your current book you had been reading, with a cup of tea and your headphones in. And maybe a cuddle with DJ, he gave the best hugs in the world. It’d been hard for you in the last few months as you broke up with your ex, as they had cheated on you five months ago. You didn’t do one night stands or rebounds, so you focused on your music and just being happy for a change. You weren’t bothered about getting into another relationship, that was until Harrison walked in. Yes after a few encounters you had found him very attractive, and fun to hang out with and all the boys liked him. And that was a big thing for you, as they were like family to you.

“Hey, Y/n/n get your head out of the clouds, we have a show to put on.’’ Andy pulls you out of your thoughts.

“Let’s kill it.’’ You smirk wickedly.

Getting up onto the stage you slip your electric guitar over your torso, in front of the microphone. The drums count you, Storm and DJ in as you begin to strum drawing attention to you and your fellow band mates. DJ starts to sing, he was opening tonight it made sense as he had the voice an angel and the range of Brendon Urie. You couldn’t help getting lost in the song as you played one of your favourite songs.

‘Kiss your baby goodbye, come on love it’s alright’

‘Won’t know unless you give it a try’

Unbeknownst to you a certain group were purely gazing at you as you played the guitar solo, a smile illuminating your face brighter than any highlighter.

“Thank you.’’ DJ says doing his little introduction, it wasn’t until you looked out into the bar properly that you noticed the certain blonde with his friends. Feeling a little braver and flirty tonight, you confidently begun your next song.

‘Oh dear diary, I met a boy, 

‘He took my dull heart, filled it joy,

‘Oh dear diary we fell apart, welcome to the life of electra heart’

‘Oh sugar pink, lick-a lips, fill me with your sweet love, steal me with a kiss’

‘I’m gonna be your bubblegum bitch’

When you ended the song, you were all applauded and, you got a few cat calls that you never, really worried about. You smiled brightly at your fellow band mates, Storm merely gave you a knowing wink noticing Harrison sitting completely in awe of you. His plan was working perfectly, so far.

********************

You guys take a break for about half an hour before your second set, you’re standing at the bar laughing at something Andy said as you help him carry the drinks you guys had ordered back to your table. When you both get back to the table you see Tom, his family and Harrison with your fellow band mates.

“What the hell did you get?” Alex asks you,

“A mojito.’’ You answer sipping your drink lazily,

“Shouldn’t you be drinking a beer or something?” Sam asks, the group laugh,

“She’ll have to be the only person I know that hates beer with a passion.’’ DJ explains,

“I drink anything but beer.’’ You say a little shy. A slight blush dusting over your cheeks, as you notice Harrison’s eyes on you. The boys tease you lightly for a minute or two.

“It’s ok Y/n beer isn’t for everyone.’’ Harrison says placing a comforting arm around your bare shoulders, a pleasant tingling sensation went down your spine as his fingers made contact with your smooth skin. The air between you both becoming a little thick, the others notice too.

“Come on Y/n/n, we have to get back up there.’’ DJ says pulling you both back into reality.

“Yeah, ok.’’ You reply.

********************

As you walk back towards the stage Harrison’s face falls a little, he wanted to hold you a little longer. 

“Come on mate, ask her out for fuck’s sake.’’ Tom nudges his friend, teasingly.

“And do you suppose I do that?” Harrison asks frustratedly, as they begin to play another song. Tom did answer his question but Harrison was to enthralled with hearing the beautiful and unique voice, up on stage. Ever since Harry had come across their Youtube, he had spent most of his lazy days watching almost every video they had made. 

It was safe to say now he really liked you, and not just because of your talent but because of your personality, how bright and refreshing you are. Not like the other girls that just want that five minutes of fame, to tell a good story. But because you were genuine and caring, not to mention you were gorgeous especially tonight. You outfit was seductive but your face and eyes still held a innocence to them.

***************

Packing up was always your least favourite thing to do, since everyone was way too drunk not to spill their drinks, and you been rather petite always had some drunken dumb-ass nearly falling on top you. With a huff you collect the cords from the microphones and place them in their correct containers.

“Hey Y/n?” You hear someone ask you, you turn to see Harrison looking a little tipsy, but not enough to worry you.

“Hey Harrison, enjoy the show?” You ask,

“Yeah it was awesome.’’ He replies,

“I’m glad you guys came.’’ You say with a smile,

“Yeah me too, hey do you need some help?” He asks,

“Are you sure you should be handling equipment in your state?” You question cocking an eyebrow with a slight smirk.

“I’m pretty good actually.’’ He retorts feigning hurt,

“Sure, I appreciate it.’’ You say handing some equipment that’s all ready to go, you pick up some as well. He follows you through the rowdy crowd of drunks, to the door where the cars are. You both continue to talk as you stop with the rest of the boys who are at the cars, watching the scene unfold before them.

“Look at them.’’ Storm sighs dramatically as if he were watching a romance film,

“They do look cute together.’’ Tom admits,

“It’s good to see her smile like that again.’’ DJ murmurs,

“What do you mean?” Nikki asks,

“Her last relationship....was...well shitty.’’ Alex explains.

“Shitty’s an understatement, borderline abuse is what it was.’’ Storm snaps, with malice dripping from every word.

“What?” Tom asks looking back at you and Harrison, in complete shock.

“Our friend is very innocent to a point, but her ex took advantage of her. Even to this day we don’t know the full story. But from what we do know it was borderline abusive.’’ Andy explains quietly. He took the news of your past relationship harder than anyone, he saw you as a little sister. Someone he needed to protect from all the evil in the world.

“But she’s so sweet and beautiful.’’ Nikki says feeling lost for words,

“Trust me, we know. Her ex cheating on her was actually a blessing in disguise, it’s also one of the reasons, we decided to bring her along. To get back the Y/n we know and love.’’ Storm says, smiling as you both approach the group.

“So you guys, leave me to do all the work?” You tease,

“Well we know how much you love packing up after a gig.’’ DJ says sarcastically, causing you to roll your eyes.

“At least Harrison’s more help, than you lot.’’ You retort causing the blonde to blush slightly.

“Hey, you’re not stealing my assistant.’’ Tom cuts in jokingly,

“Oh I don’t know, but I think your bro-mance is way too intense for me to get in the middle of.’’ You reply, causing Tom’s brothers to laugh.

“Hey are you guys going out afterwards?” Sam asks,

“We weren’t sure, it’s up to Y/n.’’ Andy says,

“Oh yeah great idea, let’s ask the most indecisive person on the planet to make a decision.’’ You answer.

“True.’’ Andy says, with a laugh.

“I personally wouldn’t mind a few quiet drinks.’’ Alex pipes up,

“That actually sounds nice.’’ You agree, you weren’t in the mood to let loose tonight, personally all you wanted was to go to bed with a good book and music in your ears.

“Really, never did I think I would see the day that Y/n L/n , would agree to a quiet drink.’’ DJ teases,

“Oh fuck off it’s been a long week.’’ You reply,

“I’m up for some drinks.’’ Tom says happily, the rest of the boys agreeing too, as well as Harrison. You couldn’t help the sense of Deja vu, filling you. You look as Harrison smiling softly.

******************

Andy ended up the designated driver with you all in the back as well as Harrison, Tom, Sam and Harry. You were leaning against Harrison who was sitting next to you, you had drunk way more you should of. And after that prick made a pass at you, Harrison had gotten all of you thrown out due to him, kindly telling random man to fuck off he didn’t listen. So you go between both men not wanting Harrison to get hurt, so you had taken the punch that was meant for Harrison, to the ribs. So now you were on your way to hospital, just to make sure there was no serious damage.

“That was still a stupid thing to do.’’ DJ mutters,

“What do you expect me to do, huh?” You ask your words slurred,

“Harrison’s a grown man he can take care of himself.’’ DJ counters,

“Doesn’t matter. You would do the same for me. Makes no difference.’’ You retort.

“Yes it does.’’ Harrison says, speaking for the first time, you look at him trying to focus your eyes due to your drunk state,

“What do you mean?” You ask,

“You could’ve gotten seriously hurt, or worse. Whether you like it or not, you’re a girl and it makes a difference.’’ Harrison says, his heart slightly breaking due to the look on your face.

“Yes I’m a girl, get the fuck over it, believe it or not I’m stronger than I look and am more than capable of defending myself.’’ You snap with anger.

*************

In the hospital was tense between you and Harrison as you waited for your scan to come back. You hadn’t spoken a word since you were in the car, you merely drank your small cup of water that the nurse gave you to sober up, slowly. Harrison sat in a chair on the other side of the room observing you, you were tense and upset, something was bothering you it was right on the edge of your lips you just couldn’t bring yourself to say it. You run your fingers through your hair swinging your legs over the edge of the bed, as your feet didn’t touch the ground. Yes you’re a child.

“Must you do that?” Storm asks,

“Yep.’’ Is all you reply with before going back to your own train of thought, for a moment Harrison thought he saw unshed tears in your eyes, but he didn’t want to upset you. He did feel guilty that he made you so upset, but he couldn’t help but voice his opinion. He was about to say something, when the doctor came into the small room.

“The good news is there’s no damage to your ribs, the bad news is that, there is slight bruising. My advice is not to do anything strenuous, for the next few days.’’ The doctor says kindly, you nod.

“Can I go home now?” You ask, your voice smaller than usual, Harrison thought it was to do with the fact that you’re tired.

“Of course.’’ The doctor says helping you off the bed, DJ wraps his arm around your shoulder protectively. As you all walk out of the hospital.

**************

Back in the car, you had fallen asleep almost as soon as DJ buckled you in, the car ride was quiet, none of the boys saying anything.

“She did just want to help.’’ Andy says quietly breaking the tense silence,

“She could of gotten herself hurt.’’ Storm counters,

“Yes, but we all know that she doesn’t care about her own safety, when it comes to helping others.’’ DJ adds,

“She’s going to be the death of us all. Even you mate.’’ Alex says nudging Harrison playfully, causing the blonde to blush madly.

“No point denying it mate, we all know you like her. And don’t worry she likes you too.’’ DJ reassures Harrison,

“Not after tonight.’’ Harrison murmurs,

“Give her time she’ll forgive you. Just say sorry.’’ Storm says,

“That’s it?” Harrison asks,

“Yep.’’ DJ answers with a nod.

[corpium]

Of Madness & Reason (Of Dragons & Chickens) muddled plot ideas that may or may not happen

Maybe I will finish this fic one day. Maybe I won't. Last time I took a one-year hiatus from a long fic I actually did come back to it. Buuut I know as a reader myself how frustrating and unresolved WIPs can be, so here's some semi-resolution for you in the form of a very loose timeline of events.

I will use the pronoun 'he' for this because of reasons I've previously expressed in the comments on the fic.

Full disclosure, SI and I as the writer Have a Plan, but I write the other characters off the cuff, and they often come in and fuck up my plans for the plot because I try to write them with as much agency as possible. This is how Snape became such a pivotal character despite me disliking him.

But I digress. Here are my rambling plans for this story.

Harry goes back to Hogwarts for Year 2 and Voldemort comes off REALLY strong in the first dream, so Harry manages somehow to get in and obliviate him. I'm guessing this happens by persuading Snape to let Harry see Quirrelmort to make sure he's still knocked out via Draught of Living Death, but Idk yet how difficult Snape makes it for HP.

Deciding that Voldemort far outmatches our SI, right after obliviating LV, Harry kills the diary Horcrux, which merges with our obliviated LV. In the next dream, Harry meets the now very confused 16y.o. TRJ and takes advantage of TRJ's vulnerability to legilimize him and learn all his secrets, mainly that of Horcrux creation.

Tom is very Not Thrilled about this and goes on the offensive. I'm not totally sure what this entails yet; perhaps he does the same and breaks into Harry's mind and learns all his secrets, including his SI history, which Riddle finds intriguing and very exploitable.

Harry inevitably tries to obliviate Quirrelmort again, but Snape makes it much more difficult. He might even bring Dumbledore into the picture. That, or Harry does because LV is getting too dangerous. Or maybe even Sirius does it. Either way, somehow Dumbledore gets involved, and lo and behold, despite all the Dumbledore bashing vibes, it turns out he is not evil, though he is very ambivalent towards Harry, who he has concerns about. Not sure if Harry tells Dumbledore just the 'I'm-a-seer' narrative or the whole SI deal. Might depend on how nosey/pushy Dumbledore is and if he tries his own legilimency.

One of the things that might turn Snape more towards Dumbledore is a beat I really want to happen - you know how Harry is starting to sorta kinda like SNape? Yeah that doesn't last. He finds Neville crying because Snape fed his toad one of his (Neville's) crappy potions and Neville panics because he thinks Trevor's dying. Harry LOSES HIS SHIT and confronts Snape about it. Snape silencios Harry, which Harry can't silently finite, so Harry sets some of Snape's papers on fire. End the scene with HArry being like, oh, yeah, this is why I hated you.

Either way, Harry ends up telling Dumbledore about the Ring Horcrux, and probably tells him not to put the ring on lest he wish to die a painful death. Not sure yet if Dumbledore caves to temptation or not.

With the ring Horcrux destroyed, somehow Harry gets ahold of it from Dumbledore (maybe Dumbledore knows the whole SI story and suggests this) and they use the ring for a little Deus Ex Machina to find out how SI became Harry. SI!Harry ends up summoning MOD!Harry from another universe who says he tried to go back in time to stop Voldemort, but he, being MOD, could not "fit" in baby Harry's mortal body, essentially shattering poor baby!Harry's soul, thus screwing with Fate itself. The universe, in an attempt to right itself, pulled the most compatible soul nearby into HArry's body. SI, having a shattered soul herself, and having died at the exact same moment, was the most convenient option. Basically, MOD!Harry fucked up and SI being SI!HArry was just a silly fluke of the universe.

MOD!Harry doesn't know if he approves of SI!Harry's methods, but basically says to go for it and do whatever you wanna do. This is just one universe of many and SI!Harry's life is his to do as he likes. This makes SI!Harry live a bit more guilt-free.

Scamander owls HArry to tell him he and Tina have successfully begun the creation of a sanctuary for the sea serpent and its young out in international waters, and Harry's like "Hey so now that you've done that, want to expand it for another crazy deadly serpent?"

Scamander ends up coming to Hogwarts and meets the basilisk. Dumbledore probably inserts himself into this meeting because he's the Headmaster and Newt's his friend. The Parseltongue translator he and Tina made for HArry partially works, enabling the Scamanders and Dumbledore to kinda talk to the basilisk. Dumbledore would have killed it otherwise, so thank god for that.

There's a moment when Harry convinces the basilisk to join Scamander where Harry's like "omg my plans are actually coming into fruition, i can't believe it but i actually i can believe it. fuck you voldemort i'm better than you" and remember Slytherin's sword hanging on the wall in the Chamber? It falls down with a clang and SCamander and Dumbledore (if he's there) are like "um? I guess this is yours?" and Dumbledore's all suspicious because oooo only a true Slytherin can pick up the sword and MC's just like "Lol Slytherin just really loved snakes :)"

Scamander takes the basilisk away to the sanctuary. Maybe this sanctuary gets more public recognition? Maybe it doesn't? Maybe people find out about the basilisk's existence and are like wtf? But Lucius and his crew are like "Oh it's a relic from the founders' era, let's give Scamander money and support to build that sanctuary" Idk. would have to get further into the weeds.

The Parseltongue translator becomes more functional over time and the SCamanders and their friends figure out how to duplicate it/make more. Suddenly PArseltongue has become a lot more accessible and Mundane. Voldemort probably finds out about this and is pissed because it was his Special Talent, which SI thinks is funny.

LV & HP's relationships is ever-evolving and threatening. LV is always trying to figure himself out and why this random Muggle chick is in "his" mind - or is he in her mind? It's like they're circling each other and for now, Harry just barely has the upper hand.

So far the Horcruxes that have been destroyed are: 1) the diadem, 2) the locket, 3) the diary, and 4) the ring. Nagini doesn't exist yet. The cup is still up in the air. Sirius may destroy it during second year while Harry's at Hogwarts, or I may decide to draw it out. I'm thinking I want to draw it out, but who knows.

The time before Hogwarts, Harry beefed up his Potions skill. The summer after first year, he beefed up his legilimency skill. The summer after second year, he focuses on learning the Animagus transfiguration and working with the Scamanders on their creature reserve.

Turns out, the basilisk and the sea serpent make up great "natural" defenses for the reservation. We got land and sea covered. Now all that's left is the sky. Enter the dragons. With Muggle drones and air travel becoming more prominent (I think, not sure when drones became such a big deal) the dragons are more at risk of being discovered. But guesssss what?

Newt's been talking to one species using the Parseltongue translator, which has opened the door to speaking with other dragon species. He, Tina, maybe some of their friends - maybe even Dumbledore??? - and now Harry work on expanding the unzoned/international Creature Reserve. SI!Harry may start to show some of the real Isekai OP tropes. He might be planning to create his own islands so he can finally live in the middle of nowhere with a bunch of chickens -- and also dragons. Depends. idk how over-powered I wanna get.

End the summer with Harry finally achieving his Animagus form: a coyote. American like SI - some nostalgia for their past self and their life experience, and an adaptable, clever creature with excellent survival skills. Also I love them and this fic is largely written out of self-indulgence.

Y3-? ----

Some plotlines:

Sirius Black and Harry recruit a leadership board to run their nonprofit, The Potter Black Foundation for Orphans and Troubled Children. The leadership board probably includes Molly Weasley for her experience with parenting and frugality and Narcissa Malfoy because money. Also probably a half-blood and/or Muggleborn adult OC (or named character with no background) to balance out the pureblood perspective.

Harry continues working on the Creature Reserve and makes it his own thing. Ends up going all Minecraft and building the skeleton of a city in his spare time "just in case". The place just keeps growing and growing. Multiple different islands with their own unique ecosystems and environments and every natural resource. Might decide the Fae mythology doesn't exist in this world, so Harry nicknames the place Underhill to be funny. But also maybe foreshadowing.

I'm not sure how long I want to draw out the LV & HP dance, but given the breakneck speed of the plot in this fic, it will probably happen sooner rather than later. LV legilimizes Harry back and finds out EVERYTHING. He's pissed. So pissed. But he also realizes he's trapped and at Harry's mercy -- and he knows HArry's a Horcrux. He tries coaxing, tempting, growing close, and using Harry's past as Kenzie to his advantage. It probably sorta kinda works. I love my villains, man, ok? Eventually, probably galvanized by the destruction of Hufflepuff's cup, aka the final Horcrux except for Harry, he ends up possessing Harry and releasing Quirrelmort/himself.

Realizing how badly he's fucked up, Harry races to remove the Horcrux in his head before Voldemort gets his body back, and, even after three+ years of research, and probably a couple failed attempts, the scar Horcrux is still firmly attached.

But remember how Harry legilimized TMR to learn how he created a Horcrux? Harry knows one surefire way to split off a piece of soul, and that's a Horcrux ritual, and Harry, as we have come to find out, is no stranger to death. He visits the Dursleys. They've outlived their use. (He makes sure Dudley's not there first.)

I'm not sure if I reveal the Horcrux ritual or not. Might be something super horrific I leave to the imagination. Or it's one of the theories I've read: the Horcrux creator legilimizes their victim as the victim dies and essentially commits ritual suicide. Harry uses this ritual on Vernon to split off the LV Horcrux into some relic or other, maybe a Black one or something cool from the Room of Lost Things, idk. In my headcanon, the object has to have sentimental and/or cultural value. Then Harry destroys that Horcrux - ha, take that, LV. Then, maybe on a whim, maybe now that creating a Horcrux has just made Harry a bit colder, Harry kills Petunia to make his own Horcrux with Slytherin's sword, because spite.

There are repercussions that Harry might realize right away or later. STill not sure what those are, maybe the loss of smell, or the loss of his emotional reaction to music. Maybe animals/nature/creatures don't bring him joy anymore. It depends on what I've planted/emphasized in the writing before.

Voldemort gets a body and confronts Harry to secure Harry and therefore the scar!Horcrux only to be horrified and enraged by its destruction. Harry's even more like "fuck you, asshole," which makes LV try to kill him. LV probably almost succeeds and disarms Harry, but psych, Harry's got not one, not two, but three wands. And maybe a gun as a callback to SI's prior Life Event with her ex. Not sure how crazy I wanna get. LV getting shot with a gun is a bit of a crack!trope. But this fic is constantly teetering on the line of crack so maybe I could make it work.

Anyway, LV dies, hurray! (Right? He didn't have enough time to make another Horcrux before killing Harry, right? Right?!?? Where did Dudley go? ;)

As an epilogue, maybe, or an end to this "book", LV comes back and kills Harry. But psych! HArry has the sword!Horcrux so is a floating spirit. Maybe he turns to Kreacher for help. Or Sirius, depending on how close the two got. Because Sirius would be hella pissed. But he might do it, idk. ANyway, whoever helps HArry come back to life, they're like "omg how are we gonna do this?" and Harry's like "Look in the xyz compartment of my satchel for a shiny red stone. That's the Philosopher's stone. Yeah, I stole it just in case. And look, just in case happened! Good job, past self."

The end.

OR maybe not.

HP graduates Hogwarts and retreats to the Creature Reserve. Goes ham with building it out. As tensions rise between wizards and "dark" creatures, as they might have done even without LV's involvement, Harry invites the more isolated werewolves to come live on one of the islands. This scene may happen before or after he and LV have their first showdown: Greyback tries to smooze and reveals some creepy shit with the kids, so Harry casts the killing curse for the first time, and it's successful. Harry's like "huh, I didn't know if that would work. Anyone else want to try it? No? Don't hurt kids if you want to live :)"

At the same time as this is happening, LV's back in action in the UK - but he can't go as himself or TMR because someone revealed his identity and tragic backstory to the entire wizarding world. (Fuck you, Harry Potter.) Also a lot of people have Parseltongue translators so he can't even use his --his-- language for secrecy and intimidation. (again, fuck you, Harry Potter.) He probably tries the more subtle politician route, maybe. Or a new terrorist identity, idk.

I'm very vague on the details now. Just how long do I wanna keep this going? Idk. But years, decades down the line, the Muggles begin to suspect. LV's rising to power and maybe Harry tries to stay out of it because he has Underhill, but characters like Sirius try (probably successfully) to pull him in because Britain is their home. Maybe there's a bit of a cold war between Underhill and magical Britain as both LV and HP build their forces. HP's pulled dark-ish creatures away from LV by offering each species their island - maybe he gets Hermione and other smarties to research the best, most sustainable government types in history. Point is, Underhill is growing.

(Harry reflects on Slytherin's sword and LV not getting it and, like the egotist he's becoming, he looks down on LV. Why put so much effort into forcefully reshaping the world when you can simply create your own?)

LV probably pisses off the Muggles or they find out on their own thanks to technology, and he goes to war with them. Underhill becomes a sort of magical asylum. Maybe they figure out how to use water as a shield to hide it from satellites like Atlantis. OR they declare it as a sovereign nation to Muggles and are like "we have magical weapons of mass destruction in the form of sea serpents, basilisks, and armies of dragons, don't fuck with us" and the Muggles are like "aight" grudgingly. Maybe SI encouraged Arthur Weasley & the twins to learn about and experiment with Muggle technology and we get a bit magical cyberpunky. Maybe Underhill's a bit isololationisty like Wakanda. Idk. Maybe they snatch Muggleborns and replace them with with Squibs to mirror Fae changling mythology. Maybe not. Idk. But they certainly try to incorporate muggleborns more than wizarding Britain does.

Maybe LV & HP grudgingly come to respectfully ignore each other. Maybe LV dies to Muggle warfare like he feared he would as a child. Who knows? Not me.

Honestly I don't think the fic will ever get this far because all of this would be like a million+ words and I want to put my writing efforts into other things. But you never know? :)

Also, sidenote: In an AU of this fic, Harry tries to feed Quirrelmort to a dementor and due to crazy soul magic, LV and the dementor fuse into an Eldritch abomination. Decided that simplified my villain too much and also was too dark.

[gay-gay-very-gay]

Masterlist

Other;

Dialogue(quote) Writing Prompts

Imagine Writing Prompts

Who do I write about?

Imagine making someone laugh  - Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16

Brendon Urie:

Imagine talking with Brendon over Face-time

Imagine Brendon being on radio and has been saying some stuff about you and you call in and he realize you heard it all

Imagine dating Brendon and him playing around and being all cute and funny

Jack Wilder(NYSM):

Imagine playing video games with Jack

Brooklyn Nine-Nine ;

Amy Santiago:

Imagine Amy’s reaction to her asking you out and you saying yes

Jake Peralta:

Imagine always joking around with Jake

Doctor Who;

The 9th Doctor (Christopher Eccleston):

Imagine The 9th Doctor hearing you talk bad about yourself

The 10th Doctor (David Tennant):

25“Please, don’t leave.” 28 “Hey, I’m with you, okay? Always.”

The 11th Doctor (Matt Smith):

Imagine telling you boyfriend, The Doctor, that you’re pregnant

Imagine inviting you boyfriend, The Doctor, to a dinner with your friends

Imagine the look on The Doctor’s face the first time he sees you

Imagine getting new glasses but you don’t think you look good in them so The Doctor helps you

Imagine trying to study and The Doctor encouraging you

53 & 17 with 11th Doctor x reader “I almost lost you.” “I will never apologize for saving your life, even if it costs me my own.”

Imagine dating The Doctor and getting mad when Amy kisses him

Gotham;

Jim Gordon:

Imagine Jim complimenting you

Grimm;

Nick Burkhardt:

Imagine cuddling with Nick on the sofa after a long day

Harry Potter;

Draco Malfoy:

Imagine being sassy to Draco and he likes it

Imagine Draco sending you notes in class

Drarry:

Drarry moments

Hermione Granger:

Imagine being jealous that Hermione is dating Ron because you like her

Imagine going on a date with Hermione

Justice League;

Wonder Woman (Diana Prince):

Imagine kissing Diana

Lucifer (fox);

Lucifer Morningstar:

Imagine Lucifer showing you his real eyes

Marvel;

Bucky Barnes (Winter Soldier):

Imagine going to homecoming with Bucky

Natasha Romanoff (Black Widow):

Imagine training with Nat for the first time and she’s flirting with you

Peter Parker (Spider-Man)(Tom Holland):

Imagine finding out that Peter is Spider-Man

Tony Stark (Iron Man):

Imagine Tony telling you he’s Iron Man

Merlin;

Arthur:

Imagine Gwaine showing off to you and Arthur gets jealous

Imagine seeing Arthur kiss Gwen even though he’s dating you

Gwaine:

Imagine Gwaine asking you out and you say yes

Imagine Gwaine being jealous

Leon:

Imagine dating Leon and being sassy to Gwaine

Merlin:

Imagine Merlin knowing that you love when he raises his eyebrows so he does it all the time

Imagine Merlin hearing that you got hurt

Imagine Arthur figuring out that Merlin likes you

Once Upon A Time;

Emma Swan:

Imagine Emma throwing you a surprise birthday party at Granny’s

Killian Jones/Hook:

Imagine Hook coming to your rescue when you’ve been kidnapped

Peter Pan:

Imagine Peter checking you out

Regina Mills/Evil Queen:

Imagine telling Regina that you like her… a lot

One Day At A Time;

Elena Alvarez:

Imagine going with Elena to homecoming

Scorpion;

Toby Curtis:

Imagine introducing Toby to your friends

Shadowhunters(TMi);

Izzy Lightwood:

Imagine Izzy telling Simon and Jace that she got your number after she heard them arguing about who was gonna ask you out

Sherlock;

Sherlock Holmes:

Imagine John finding out that Sherlock and you are dating

Supernatural;

Castiel:

Imagine you and Cas fighting and Cas gets sad

Dean Winchester:

Imagine Dean teasing you about how you look when you fangirl

Imagine wanting go with Dean on a hunt but he says no

Imagine Demon Dean having a soft spot for you

Imagine Dean getting jealous when someone flirts with you

18 with Dean x reader “Don’t panic but I think we might have accidentally gotten married…”

Gabriel:

Imagine Gabriel listening to you complaining about how bored you are

Jensen Ackles:

Imagine Jensen and Jared on set trying to make you laugh

Imagine making Jensen laugh while he’s on set

Imagine making Jensen laugh while he’s on set #2

Imagine Jensen flirting with you while on set

Lucifer:

Imagine telling Sam and Dean that you are dating Lucifer

Imagine Lucifer meeting you for the first time and instantly falling in love

Sam Winchester:

Imagine telling stupid jokes to Sam while he’s doing research

Imagine Sam asking you out

Teen Wolf;

Derek Hale:

Imagine Derek trying to tell Stiles you’re dating

Imagine Scott talking to you about Derek

Imagine having a movie night with Derek

Imagine Derek’s reaction the first time he meets you

Imagine yours and Derek’s first time

Imagine making Derek laugh and Stiles is very confused

Scott McCall:

Imagine telling Scott jokes in class

Sterek:

A conversation between Stiles and Scott

Stiles Stilinski:

Imagine Stiles asking you out on a date and you say yes

Imagine Stiles always complementing you because he knows you have low self-esteem

Imagine walking home late at night and texting Stiles

Imagine asking Stiles out on a date

Theo Raeken:

Imagine Theo flirting with you while you’re trying to help him study for a test

The Flash;

Barry Allen:

Imagine Barry being really protective over you

Grant Gustin:

Imagine Grant sending you snapchats

The Kissing Booth;

Noah Flynn:

Imagine Noah checking you out while you’re in the library reading

The Vampire Diaries;

Damon Salvatore:

Imagine Damon finding out you have a crush on him

Imagine buying kittens and Damon starts to cuddle with them

Imagine Stefan meeting you(Damon’s girlfriend) for the first time

Imagine Damon trying to ask you out

Jeremy Gilbert:

Imagine Elena finding out you’re dating her brother Jeremy

Imagine your older brother Damon finding out you’re dating Jeremy

Imagine your older brother Stefan finding out you’re dating Jeremy

The Originals;

Klaus Mikaelson:

Imagine Klaus flirting with you

Imagine taking a stroll in the city with your boyfriend Klaus

Rebekah Mikaelson:

Imagine going on a date with Rebekah

YouTube;

Dan Howell(Danisnotonfire):

Imagine Phil walking in on you and Dan in the bedroom

Imagine being on your period and Dan coming in and seeing you cry

Imagine trying to get Dan and Phil to wear flower crowns and they finally agree

Imagine Phil confronting Dan about liking you and Dan just laughs it off but Phil knows

Imagine Phil teasing Dan about his face when he sees you

Imagine bumping in to your ex on the street while shopping with Dan and him flirting with you, making Dan very jealous

Imagine Dan doing a live stream and noticing that you’re watching #1

Imagine Dan doing a live stream and noticing that you’re watching #2

Imagine making Dan laugh while he’s filming

Imagine Dan and Phil being out in public and Dan is goofing around and then he sees you

Imagine Dan doing a live stream and he hears you singing “Kiss me” by Ed Sheeran

Imagine Dan having a nightmare about you two breaking up and realizing that it wasn’t a dream

Imagine Dan trying to get you to bed

Imagine Dan hearing you talk about hot you think Draco is and he gets jealous and tries to look like him

Imagine going on a road trip with Dan, Phil and some other Youtubers

Imagine Dan always playfully flirting with you (even though he’s being completely serious)

Imagine being mad at Dan for something and he tries to cute his way out of it

Imagine laughing at a really stupid joke and heart-eyes Howell appears

Imagine you coming in while Dan’s talking to someone

Imagine being with Dan at Joe’s house while they film Youtuber Whispers 4

Imagine being with Dan at an interview

Imagine Dan and Phil filming PINOF 6 and Dan trying to make you laugh

Imagine talking to Phil about what you and Dan did last night and almost sharing a bit too much

Imagine skyping with Dan and him doing stupid stuff to make you laugh

Imagine telling really bad puns and jokes just to make Dan laugh

Imagine having a staring contest with Dan and making him laugh so you’ll win

Imagine Dan finally admitting to you that he likes you

Imagine Dan trying to deny to Phil that he likes you

Imagine Dan doing a live stream and getting asked if he thinks you’re hot and then him seeing you are watching

Imagine playing “Hello Internet” for Dan just to mess with him

Dan Seeing you for the first time vs. when you’ve been dating for a while

Imagine your text conversation with your best friend

Imagine skyping with Dan and friends and he falls in love instantly.

Imagine your first kiss with Dan

Imagine falling asleep in a Skype call with dan and him hearing you snore

Imagine your text conversation with Dan when he’s sleeping and you’re not

Imagine vlogging your day with Dan

Imagine celebrating Christmas with Dan

Phan:

Imagine Dan and Phil’s texting conversations #1

Imagine Dan and Phil’s texting conversations #2

Imagine Dan and Phil baking in private

Imagine walking in on Dan and Phil kissing

Imagine Dan and Phil introducing you to their new dog

Phil Lester(Amazingphil):

Imagine the advice Phil gives you when you’re mad at your friends

Imagine you and Phil kissing for the first time

Imagine Phil trying to cheer you up when you’re sad

Imagine Dan being Phil’s wingman

Imagine Phil sending snapchats to you while he’s filming

Imagine skyping with Phil and roasting him

Imagine Phil doing a live stream and talking about how you two met

Ethan Nestor(Crankgameplays):

Imagine acting jealous whenever Mark or Tyler does something to Ethan

Imagine watching Ethan play a game and he keeps dying

Imagine giving Ethan a flower crown

Imagine Ethan getting flustered every time someone mentions you

Imagine telling Ethan jokes

Imagine Facetiming with Ethan

Jacksepticeye(Anti):

Imagine Jack trying to encourage you to do homework. But when you ask for help he has no idea how

Imagine being a YouTuber and being best friends with Mark, Séan and Felix

Imagine Anti flirting with you

Imagine telling Jack jokes

Imagine playing games with Jack and killing him

Incorrect Jacksepticeye #1

Joe Sugg(Thatcherjoe):

Imagine watching Joe fix his hair before a video

Markiplier(Dark):

Imagine talking with Markiplier on Skype (when it’s actually Darkiplier)

Imagine being a dancer and Mark is always trying to show you he can dance too(even though he can’t)

Imagine playing games with Markiplier

Signe(Wiishu):

Imagine going out on adventure with Signe

Thomas Sanders:

Imagine doing Thomas’ makeup

Smosh;

Anthony Padilla:

Imagine being on a date with Anthony

Ian Hecox:

Imagine skyping with Ian

Smosh Games;

Damien Haas:

Imagine dating Damien and playing ‘Human: Fall flat’ with Smosh Games

Smosh squad;

Shayne Topp:

Imagine Shayne introducing his girlfriend

[eris-eveningstar]

Woooohooo let's keep on going.

a future excerpt from By Any Means

Harry turns around, good mood vanishing. “Oh, would you fuck off already?” he asks Tom, who’s propped up against one of the trees like the bloody poser he is. Blood’s still smeared across his face from the roses’ thorns.

“Do you not want me here?” Tom asks. “I thought you missed me.”

Tensing, Harry shifts his weight. “I miss you like a hole in the head,” he says.

“Ouch.” Tom pushes off the tree and ambles toward him, hands in his pocket. “Such cruel words, Harry.”

Harry holds his ground, fists clenching. Awareness prickles at the edge of his senses. “It’s the least you deserve.”

Tom comes to a stop before him, a hand coming up towards Harry’s chin.

Harry slaps it away. “Don’t touch me,” he snarls.

Tom stills, assessing Harry with red, snakelike eyes. They jog something loose in Harry’s head. They aren’t supposed to look like that. Harry takes a step back; Tom takes one forward, eating up the space.

“I thought you liked it when I touched you,” Tom says.

Harry shores himself up again and plants his feet. “You disgust me,” he says.

“Do I?” With a clinical tilt of his head, Tom takes another step into Harry’s space. Harry stays in place, muscles practically vibrating with tension. Mere inches hold them apart. “And yet, you allow me so close.” His face tilts downward; his hands rise, one to Harry’s waist, the other up to Harry’s cheek—

Harry punches him in the gut. “Fuck you!” Even as Tom doubles over, Harry tackles him to the ground. He rains punches down on Tom’s face—he wants to ruin it. “You deluded twat!” he rants. “I hate you. I hate you, I—”

Tom’s shock wears off. His legs shift, his abdomen flexing—

He rolls Harry over, and the world rolls with him, and suddenly Harry’s not looking at Tom anymore. He’s looking up at Voldemort in all his snakelike glory.

“What,” Harry croaks, going still. The light’s changed, having darkened to that of an enclosed room lit by a crackling fire. He’s lying back on a bed—a very plush, comfortable bed. Voldemort’s hands are on his wrists. He leans over Harry, pinning him down like some unearthly demon.

“We’re in my dream now, Harry,” says Voldemort, grinning down at him with unholy avarice. “Do I still disgust you?”

Blinking, Harry swallows, the fog of his dream fading. Appease, appease, appease, his instincts scream, a holdover from his time with the Dursleys. “I—I thought you were just a dream.” But this is still a dream, isn’t it? Is this real?

Voldemort’s long fingers clench around Harry’s wrists. He does not move away. “And now you have decided that I am very much myself,” he surmises. “Are you certain?”

Harry inhales deeply, finding himself frozen. He observes his surroundings. There’s a wavering edge to the room, a soft lack of detail in the wood of the walls, an overly warm brightness to the fire. But Voldemort is real and solid above him, his grip much too present and his eyes far too keen. Harry nods, ever so slightly. “What do you want?” he whispers. He tries to think ahead, to plan, to remember what he shouldn’t be saying, but under the weight of Voldemort’s attention, his thoughts elude him.

Voldemort’s eyes drag downward, making heat rise under Harry’s skin. “Everything,” says Voldemort. “Everything that you are. I want it all.”

Wordless, Harry shakes his head in denial.

Miraculously, Voldemort pulls back. His weight on Harry’s legs makes Harry’s stomach twist. “All in good time,” he says, peering down at Harry in contemplation. “It intrigues me, Harry, to observe your reactions to my many faces. Why, I dare say, you may dislike my youthful visage more than I do.” He tilts his head, peering down at Harry. “Tell me, darling—”

The pet name sends a complicated array of emotions coursing through Harry. ‘Darling?’ he wants to yell, but at the same time, no, he really doesn’t. He wants away more than anything. Harry jerks up, legs twisting—

Voldemort pins him down once more by his wrists, nails digging in, his expression frighteningly impassive. It’s that eerie impassivity that stills Harry once again. “What did he do to you?” Voldemort asks quietly.

“He was a psychotic murderer,” Harry snarls. “You were—are—a psychotic murderer,” he adds, half to remind himself.

“That’s not quite it, is it?” Voldemort traces a thumb over Harry’s bare wrist. Harry suppresses a shiver. “No, your hatred runs deeper than that.”

“Stop it,” Harry snaps, squirming and failing to get away. “Stop—bloody guessing. You don’t know anything.”

“He was impetuous, I am certain,” Voldemort says. “Impatient. Too blinded by his need to escape the diary to see what a gift he beheld.”

“’A gift’?” Harry splutters.

Voldemort ignores him. He raises Harry’s wrists over his head and changes his grip to hold them together in one large hand. His other hand, warm to the touch against Harry’s death-chilled skin, trails down Harry’s gray arm, nails grazing the skin. It slides down Harry’s shirt, a fraying, threadbare thing, dirty from working in the garden.

“Hey—” Harry says, starting to squirm again as Voldemort’s touch slips under his shirt. Voldemort splays his fingers out and presses down, holding Harry in place, nails pricking threateningly into the delicate flesh of his abdomen.

Harry tests Voldemort’s hold on his wrists and finds no give.

“Did he charm you, Harry?” Voldemort’s robes drape over Harry, shifting softly as he presses closer. “Did he seduce you?”

The air feels thick. Harry looks away, grinding his teeth.

“Did he break your heart?”

Harry blinks rapidly. His breath shudders. “Shut. Up.”

Voldemort clicks his tongue. “I was quite foolish in my youth.” He strokes his thumb over Harry’s belly, sending a curl of unwelcome pleasure up Harry’s spine. He shifts lower, his face coming unbearably close. (If he looked like the Tom Harry had known, Harry would bite him. But he looks just different enough, otherworldly enough, to utterly baffle Harry’s impulses.) “Would you like me to apologize?” Voldemort murmurs.

“I would like you,” Harry finds himself saying, voice small, “to leave me alone.”