#friend later on. he’s a pointy boy.

[roseatedramon]

people still say smokeshard looks like longtail a lot on the video with him and honestly I don’t really care that much at this point but one thing I always kind of thought when I saw that was “I get where they’re coming from but I would not design longtail like that. smokeshard is too friend shaped.”

so wanted to design longtail and put them side by side for comparison! longtail is a bit more muted color wise, and has more sharp and straight elements in his design versus smokeshard’s rounded features and spots

[english-history-trip]

Ever see a depiction of St. George and the Dragon? It's pretty fair to say if you've seen one, you've seen them all: Georgie on a horse stabbing a flailing dragon creature, princess piously kneeling in the background, vague landscape alluding to the homeland of the artist's patron.

The most varied part is the dragons. No one had a real definition for the thing, it seemed. For your pleasure and entertainment, I have ranked some medieval depictions based on how impressive George's feat seems once you see the dragon.

Paolo Uccello, 1456

This is a terrifying beast. The hell is that. Uccello was one of the first experimenters with perspective, so the thing also looks surreal, like it's taking place on Mars, or a Windows 95 screensaver. I would not want to fight that, I would not want to be tied to that. (Sometimes the princess is tied to the dragon for some reason.) 10/10

Horse thoughts: Maybe if I look at the ground it will be gone when I look up

Unknown artist, c. 1505

This is a rare change of form for the dragon; it's the only one I've seen actually flying (or at least falling with style). It doesn't look particularly deterred by the spear through its throat, either. Also, George looks appropriately nervous. On the other hand, it hasn't got teeth, it seems to be fuzzy rather than having scaly armor, and George is bolstered by his army of Henry VII and his children, most of whom definitely didn't actually die in infancy. Still, wouldn't want to fight it, wouldn't want my pet sheep near it. (Sometimes the princess has a pet sheep for some reason.) 9/10

Horse thoughts: I am so glad I wore my mightiest feather helmet for this

Raphael, 1505

We are coming to Dragons With Problems. This guy looks about comparable in size to George, and does have wings, but doesn't seem to be using these things to his advantage (and has he only got one wing?) And how does he deal with the neck? He does have a comically small head, but holding it up with such a twisty neck seems complicated at best. But most egregiously, he is doing the shitty superheroine pose where he is somehow simultaneously showcasing his chest and his butt, with its unnecessarily defined butthole (more on this later) (regrettably). 8/10 bc it's Raphael

Horse thoughts: AM I THE BESTEST BOI? AM I DOING SUCH A GOOD JOB? WE R DRAGON SLAYING BUDDIEZ

The Beauchamp Hours, c. 1401

We had a spirited debate about this one at work. Again, the dragon has gotten smaller, and this one hasn't got even one wing. He's basically a crocodile. So the debate became: would you want to fight a crocodile if you had a horse and a pointy stick? Would the horse trample the animal, who can't get on its hind legs, or freak out and throw its rider? Would the pointy stick be enough to pierce the croc's thick hide? In this case, George seems to be controlling his horse and putting his pointy stick in the dragon's weak spot, so we can be impressed by his skill and strategy. However, his hat is dumb. 7/10

Horse thoughts: Dehhhh

Book of Hours, c. 1480

Here we have the same kind of croco-dragon, but George's focus on his strategy has gone out the window. He's flailing around, not even looking at his target, he's about to lose his pointy stick, he hasn't got a hand on the reins, and his sword seems to only be poking the invisible dragon over his shoulder. All he's got going for him is that his hat is slightly less dumb. 6/10

Horse thoughts: Yay, new friend! Come play with me, new fr- what is happening

Final dragons put behind this Read More for your safety:

Rogier van der Weyden, c. 1432

I'm thinking this guy is at least semi-aquatic. Webbed feet, wings that seem more like fins, bipedal but top-heavy, jaws that seem more for scooping than biting. Maybe she's crawled up here from the nearby body of water to lay her eggs, and this is all a big misunderstanding. Moreover, George's dagged sleeves seem entirely impractical for the situation. 5/10

Horse thoughts: i got my hed stuk in a jar and now it is this way forever

Unknown artist, c. 15th century

I hate this. I hate everything about it. Why has it got human eyes and teeth. Why is its nose melting. Why has it got a dick on its face and balls under its chin. The fin/wings are back but they look even more useless. Also, George is shifty as hell, schlumped over in his saddle with his bowler hat thing over his eyes. The baby dragon at the bottom eating some hapless would-be rescuer is kind of metal. 4/10 at least the thing is gonna die

Horse thoughts: I Have Smoked So Much Crack

Book of Hours, c. 1450

Remember what I said about the buttholes? First, sorry. Second, yeah, we're back to that. I'll admit this one is less about the danger from the dragon itself than the very specific choices the artist has made. They didn't need to do that. It's a lizard. They don't even have. And it's like they had an orifice budget and they skipped an exit wound for the spear to focus. Elsewhere. It's so detailed. And George had an even dumber hat. 2/10 take it away

Horse thoughts: I Have Smoked So Much Weed

Book of Hours, c. 1415

This is just bullying. There isn't even a princess. That is clearly an infant. Look at that smug look on George's face as he swings his sword that's bigger than the whole little guy. This is the equivalent of when DJT Jr. hunted those sleeping endangered sheep. 1/10

Horse thoughts: ....yikes

And this is the previous one, but now the baby dragon is cute. He's chubby. He's got toe beans. He's Puff the Magic Dragon. His eyes have already gone white, implying that George is just kicking its corpse around for funsies. What's the difference between the dragon and the lamb in the background? That the dragon is dead, like our innocence. This George is truly deserving of the dumbest hat of all. 0/10 plus one more butthole for the road

Horse thoughts: Perhaps it is we who are the buttholes.

[gojoshooter]

hewoo! sorry for bothering u, but I'm just really into sukuita and humm... maybe u could write something about how sukuna loves to have his little brat yuuji sitting on his lap? just if u want of course! god I love those two so much😭💕

Suku-nii's Best Boy

an. with my returning sukuita fever i present you this lil hybrid fic ;) hope you like it @wukxon

Tiger!Cub Yuji in his big brother Tiger!Hybrid Suku-nii ’s lap, all sobby and snotty as he complains of his ongoing teething process.

-

The little Tiger!Cub Yuji had been found by his aniki on the kitchen floor, whines spilling out his tiny babbling mouth out of discomfort when Sukuna comes to check up on him.

Big brother Sukuna wasn't the type to hoist a little cub up on his hip and coo to lul him quite, instead just propping him up on his feet by his underarms so his little yuji stands in front of him instead. The action reduces the cub's sobbing into sniffling, as he peeps up at Suku-nii with big watery golden-brown eyes.

Sukuna bends his knees to come closer to his tiny brother's height, inspecting while pulling his cheek “Huh, what is it little snot?”

“...hurts” Yuji pouts, water brimming the brink of his doey eyes again when he projects baby arms towards his big brother, making grabby hands. “Chuku-nii... uwp” his pout too big for a more coherent sound.

Now—Tiger!Hybrid Sukuna knows he's a tough man, but he would rather die than not scoop his little brother Yuji who pleads his comfort so purely, which he does a moment and a sigh later. Sukuna saunters to the couch, bothered Yuji clutched to his side.

“Where does it hurt,” the little cub now seated in his lap, Sukuna wipes the tear streams off his little brother's fluffy-soft fat cheeks “tell me brat?” his tone softer than his words.

“Aa!!” Yuji opens his tiny mouth, an acusatory finger pointed towards his small buccal cavity. The bigger feline hums, taking the smaller one's face in his palms—thumbs pushing on the cheeks to pry open his mouth wider. Little pointy canines could be seen halfway out into joining the cub's set of teeth.

Sukuna frowns, gently pressing on one of the cub's canines causing Yuji to flinch away with an angry whine. The elder hums again in confirmation, cupping Yuji's sulky face and dragging it closer. He's teething—Sukuna concludes. The elder bounces his seated tiny body on his knees for distraction.

He brings a finger near the younger's mouth, pushing it slowly on the cub's lips for him to take. “We will get some toys for your sore jaw, 'dori.” he grins watching his troubled little Yuji who depends on him so much.

Tiger!Cub Yuji nibbles on his Aniki's finger, leaving small tents of his canines and droll on the skin. His tiny palm forgetting to loosen the grip to his Suku-nii's shirt.

Sukuna might have a hunch or so for why his little brother has gotten more attached to him rather than their any other relative or friend—who comprehensibly wanted Yuji's attention more than him,, but he never really understood.

Whatever the case... he has already grown affectionate to the stinkingly adorable and clingy brat in his lap for life is what he knows.

masterlist! sukuita hcs!

an. I LOVE THEM SO MUCH AAAAA😭 hope y'all like it, thank you for reading, likes & rbs are appreciated <333

tags. @anubisisthebomb @dianagracesworld @stellagrangerreads12 @momochina-sama @xxkay15xx @ruins-posts @dianagracesworld @pupkashi

[kurocamille]

❝maybe frat boys aren’t so bad (aka cars are meant for driving!)❞

Frat!Bakugou Katsuki x reader (except he’s not stereotypical and mean) mdni

part 2

4.1k+ words

you attend your first frat party and run into a familiar flirty face. he offers to drive you home from the party, the empty parking lot outside your dorm building definitely seems like the perfect place to get down and dirty…

warnings

part 1 of 2 (2 will have full smut..) 1 oc who’ll come into play later…., car sex, fingering, handjobs, heavy makeout, hickeys/neck kisses, dry humping/grinding kinda, female/afab reader, no pronouns used, inexperienced reader, “baby” as a pet name

It was your first time going to a college party, miraculously enough. This year, you had met a group of girls who had quickly invited you into their friend group. Somehow, despite you refusing over ten times, they had managed to drag you to a frat party.

After getting yourself a cup of mysterious red punch, you stand in the crowd of people. Bodies brush against you—intentionally or unintentionally, you don’t know. You’ve seen a few of your friends since arriving, but it seems like most of them are off doing God knows what with some drunken frat boy.

You can feel the beat of the music in your chest, as if it’s pumping your heart for you. The strobe lights flash around you. Sipping away at your drink, you go wandering in search of someone you know.

When you exit the common room, you float down a hallway with fewer people. Despite fewer people being there, the hallway is stuffy, and you can barely walk through without knocking shoulders with someone.

You aren’t watching where you’re going, and suddenly you trip on the bunched up carpet beneath your feet. The half-full soda cup goes flying, and so do you. It spills on the front of your shirt and down the back of a nearby couple who, until now, had been in the middle of making out,

“Ugh!” the girl shrieks, and you look up to see her glaring at you. She comes out from under the guy caging her, and you realize it’s the girl Mika from one of your classes. As always, her hair is perfectly coiffed, and she’s wearing a dress that barely covers her ass.

The girl shakes her hands of the sticky liquid that spilled on her, but seeing as she had previously been caged under that other guy, she had barely gotten wet. Meanwhile, the guy stands in a sopping wet shirt. You also recognize him; Bakugou Katsuki. He’s in another one of your classes, one of which you had been paired up for a partner project. Unlike Mika, he doesn’t look like he’s trying too hard. A white short-sleeved band t-shirt complements his black jeans, something you wouldn’t have expected a frat boy like him to wear.

Despite being in the same fraternity/sorority group, Mika and Bakugou could not be more different, and you can’t help but wonder how they ended up together. While Mika is extremely stereotypical and, if you might say, annoying, rude, and a bitch, Bakugou is really nice. That one project had taught you that not every frat boy is a shameless womanizer and prick. Although he’s a definite flirt, he’s always been respectful and acknowledged you as an equal—opposite of what Mika had done to your friends, and now you.

“I’m so sorry,” you say hastily.

“Don’t min-” Bakugou starts, but he’s cut off by Mika.

“You better be sorry!” she all but screeches at you. “This is a brand new set of nails. They’re completely ruined. You better repay me for this. It cost 10,000 yen, you know that? Can you even fucking afford that”

“Look, I’m sorry I did that, but I don’t know if I can repay tha-” you start. The look she gives you is incredulous as she snarls before interrupting you.

“I actually can’t believe you. You must be a dumb slut dying for Bakugou’s attention. Imagine sabotaging me just because he chose to be with me! And you’re so poor you can’t even afford to fix your mess… Ridiculous,” she huffs, pressing a pointy finger into your chest and probably expecting you to bow down and beg for forgiveness.

You try to apologize, but Bakugou steps in before you can say anything.

“Mika, who cares,” he sighs. He looks at you with a silent ‘I can’t deal with this face.’

The silence that follows feels like an eternity, but it really only elapses the half second before her hand makes contact with Bakugou’s face.

The sound from the slap resounds in the small hallway. You stare wide-eyed at the growing red spot with matching nail marks on Bakugou’s face.

“You should fucking care. We’ve been together for, like, a month already, and you still won’t stand up for me?! I’m done, don’t call me,” she seethes before pointing at you. “And you, you better hope we never see each other again.”

After that, Mika storms off in a fit of rage and disappears into the crowd.

“Dating on and off for a month, and she pulls that. Psychotic bitch,” he mutters before turning to you. “Hey, Sorry, I didn’t know you were coming, you should’ve told me.”

“I’m so sorry, for all of that. I’ll just get going and pretend I never saw that.” You turn on your heel to dash out, but a hand grips your shoulder and turns you around.

“No need to apologize, she gets crazy when she’s drunk, and I was planning on breaking up with her,” he shrugs. “Anyway, I’m just gonna head upstairs and shower this stuff off. You can come up too, if you want, Y/N.”

You raise a brow at his suggestion. “You want me to come shower with you?”

A look of confusion and surprise crosses his sharp features before a smirk breaks out. “There are multiple bathrooms up there, but you know, if they’re all taken, you can always join me.” He sends you the stupidest wink that still sends your stomach into frenzy.

“You bounce back too quickly,” you groan. “Whatever, I’m coming up, but not with you.”

Bakugou reverts to his uncaring self and has you follow him. You follow Bakugou, slowly making your way up the rickety house stairs. When you make it around the corner, Bakugou points you in the direction of an ensuite washroom, and disappears into the room across from you. “Just take a folded towel, and I’ll deal with it. If you need anything, just come and get me.”

In the quiet of the bedroom, you lock the door and undress. You make your way into the connected bathroom and strip down in the low light. The shower has terrible pressure and doesn’t heat up, but it does the job of cleansing the sticky punch off your skin.

You finish your shower within five minutes and step out to grab a towel. It’s surprisingly clean, but the pile of your clothes on the counter are still dripping with liquid. That means you’ll either have to walk around in a towel for the rest of the night or muster up the courage to ask Bakugou for some clothes.

You opt for the second option, seeing as you won’t have to walk through a drunken frat house in a towel that barely covers your “good bits.” So, you head back to the door where Bakugou was, rolling your clothes into a ball and tucking them under your arm. When you get there, the door is still closed, as you expected, but there is no sound of running water coming from the room.

“Bakugou, sorry, I need some extra clothes,” you say after knocking on the door.

As if it isn’t embarrassing enough, Bakugou takes his sweet time getting to the door. When it finally opens, he stares at you, his eyes unashamedly trailing up and down your body. He, similarly to you, looks to have just gotten out of the shower. Water droplets fall from his hair and fall down his hardened chest, which he doesn’t bother to clothe. The only thing keeping his from being stark naked in front of you is the towel sitting low on his hips, low enough that you can see his v-line drifting below.

“Clothes?” he asks after an awkward pause, and you flush.

“Yeah, anything will do, I just need it to get home in them,” you reply.

“Alright, come in.” He beckons you with his hand to follow him.

The first thing you notice when you enter is that his room is far different from the other one. While the first bedroom, whose you can only assume is his frat brother’s, is standard for a male college student—clothes strewn everywhere, an only half-made bed, and suspicious posters. Bakugou’s room is the opposite, the bed made, shelves tidy, and everything in order.

Bakugou coughs and breaks you out of the spell you’re under. He’s holding out a crumpled plastic bag, with some grocery store logo on it. “Here, for your wet clothes.”

You quickly snatch the bag and stuff your clothes into it. As you struggle to fit them inside, the towel hugging your body slips from its hold and drops below your nipples. From your peripheral vision, Bakugou freezes ever so slightly, and you hear an awfully loud swallow.

As soon as you notice him, however, he averts his eyes and pretends he had been looking for clothes the whole time. The outfit he chooses for you isn’t half bad, a hoodie and drawstring sweatpants, but they look so big they could drown you.

You take the two garments from him, accidentally brushing fingers in the process. He pulls away from you and heads back towards his ensuite bathroom. “Don’t worry, I’ll be in here. I won’t peek. You can get changed in the bedroom.”

With that, he closes the door and cements a divide between the two of you. Quickly, you change into the clothes he gave you, having to roll up the cuffs on them multiple times. You look like a blob of fabric, but it’ll have to do. Hopefully Bakugou won’t notice that you’re not wearing your bra and panties.

Knocking on the bathroom door, you meet face to face with Bakugou one last time. He’s fully clothed now and gives you a smile.

“Looks like it fits,” he says sarcastically.

“For sure,” you joke, flattening out the garments awkwardly. “I’m planning on heading out now, by the way. I think I’ll just catch an Uber, I’m pretty sober now, and my friends will probably be here for a while longer.”

“Don’t take an Uber,” he replies suddenly.

Rubbing the back of his neck, he corrects himself. “I mean, it’s not safe to take one right now. Let me drive you, I didn't drink tonight.”

“No way!” you retort. “I couldn’t bother you with that. I’ll be fine, anyway.”

However, Bakugou, being his stubborn self, does not relent until you agree to let him drive you all the way back to your dorms, only a stupid 30 minutes away.

Normally, you wouldn’t risk going with someone in his frat, but you have enough trust in Bakugou to keep civil. So, after a moment of contemplation, you accept his offer and follow him to the adjacent parking lot. Multiple people stare as you walk past them, but you pay them no mind, seeing as you’re practically unrecognizable in your new outfit.

“Yo, Bakubro, good for you!” a redhead yells from the doorway as you leave, whooping in a supportive, you suppose, manner.

“Ah, shut up, don’t spread any rumours, Shittyhair.” Bakugou groans, but you don’t miss the way his ears turn pink.

You’ll have to forget about that, though, because the lights of a black Jeep Wrangler flash on, and Bakugou escorts you to the passenger seat.

“I didn’t know you were this much of a gentleman, Bakugou,” you giggle in an embarrassingly girly way.

“I’m always a gentleman.” He winks and walks around to his side of the vehicle, leaving you feeling hot in the face.

He swings into the passenger seat, and puts the car in motion. You can’t help but notice the way his arms grip the steering wheel, the veins from his strong hands trailing up his forearms in a way that makes you unconsciously bite your lip.

“Put the address into the GPS,” Bakugou interrupts, and you notice his eyes force themselves away from your lips.

You deny whatever you just saw and punch your address into the screen. The machine takes only a second to bring up the route home, which, at this late hour, will actually only take 15 minutes.

After pulling out of the lot, Bakugou heads down the street following the indicated yellow line. He drives smoothly and professionally, as you expected he would. He maneuvers the car with expertise, and you can’t help but think he’s showing off when he steers with an open palm and an arm on the back of your seat.

For most of the ride, you guys are silent. Other than the faint whirring of the air conditioner, the only sounds to be heard are made by you and Bakugou. His by his slow, peaceful breathing, and yours by the beating of your heart—something which betrays you by getting louder and faster with every minute.

Luckily for you, the drive is soon over and Bakugou’s car is parked right outside of your dorm building. For the most part, the lot is empty, and the lights from the windows are off. It makes sense, most people in your extremely small building are out partying at 9 o’clock on a Friday, and the homebodies you’d normally associate with are already in bed.

Your specific block seems to be completely dark, seeing as you left your friends behind at that party… Whoops. It’s no matter, however, you’ll just be the first one in your complex to get back.

You unclick the belt from your waist, moving up on the seat to grab your things off the floor.

“This is you, right?” Bakugou questions.

“Yep! Thank you so much for driving me. I’ll text you later so you can have your clothes back.” You smile at him and go to open the door, but he lightly pulls you back.

“Wait. Y/N, you can keep them, actually. ” He chuckles, but it has an awkward tone to it. “You look better in them than I do”

Wait, what?

You always thought Bakugou was just flirty by nature, which to some extent he is, but you could see it now. Whatever you two had going on was certainly out of the ordinary. From what you could tell, Bakugou wasn’t half as teasing towards Mika as he was to you.

Ever since that one project, he had always made it a priority to sit next to you in class. You had assumed he was there for your notes, not that you minded, but could it actually have been for another reason altogether?

“Well, I would bet you look pretty good in these too, not that you don’t always look good,” you giggle, testing out the waters.

Bakugou’s eyes widen in surprise and soften under the pale light of his car. You stare at him fondly, accidentally letting your eyes flicker to his lips.

“Y/N, I-“ he starts but can’t seem to find the right words.

“I know you just broke up—literally tonight, but, Bakugou, gosh, I really want to kiss you right now,” you speak for him.

Maybe that punch was more potent than you thought. Good thing Bakugou drove you all the way here…

Instead of replying, Bakugou places a tender hand on your cheek and pulls you in. Soft lips meet your own, and you smile. You move to his lap where the seat has suddenly been rolled back.

Ah, it’s his frat boy car seat trick.

Your kisses continue slowly, and you can tell Bakugou wants to deepen the kiss when his tongue brushes against your lips. Upon first contact, you freeze in place. Before this you’d only ever been with one guy, one that you hadn’t even gone far with. In the moment now, you can only hope and pray that he won’t notice your inexperience.

However, you completely forget whatever worry you had when Bakugou starts to go into your mouth. His large hands pull you flush against his body, grabbing at the flesh right above your ass.

When you finally pull back, Bakugou’s eyes are blown wide, and he looks lost to lust. The lips that had previously been on yours now have a cute pout, having puffed up from your kisses.

Bakugou’s lips move down and pepper chaste kisses along your jawline. Even with his light and seemingly innocent pecks, you’re still softly moaning under his hold.

Bakugou switches focus to your neck, licking and sucking a hickey into your skin. After nipping at you for a while, Bakugou lifts off of you, and you can tell with his smirk that he left a massive bruise blooming on your skin.

“Bakugou, let me touch you,” you whisper as he moves to kiss the other side of your neck.

“Call me Katsuki… Please. “ He groans when you slightly grind against his groin.

You shift down on your hips and look down to see a thick boner growing in his pants. Curiously, you press it softly with your fingers and give it a light squeeze.

Katsuki looks down at you, his face quickly turning red. Silently, you reach into his pants, looking at his gorgeous ruby eyes for any sign of contestment. Katsuki stays quiet but gives you a small nod in approval.

Finally, you get to the moment you’ve been waiting for. You press your fingers under the waistband of his boxers, sliding your hand across the top of his cock. Then, with one movement, you free him from his confines, and his dick stands proudly in front of you.

Any expectations or preconceived notions about what Katsuki was packing were shattered. Painfully hard and dripping tiny amounts of precum, his cock is a beauty. The dark pink tip invites you in, begging you to give it one moment of reprieve.

When you nervously stroke the shaft, Katsuki’s reaction is instantaneous, his hips lurching up against yours.

“Fuck, keep going,” he hisses, his breath already laboured.

With more confidence you wrap your fingers around him and give his cock a few quick pumps. Your sudden change in tempo makes Bakugou’s cock twitch in your hold and release a bead of white precum. You remove your hand, and Katsuki’s eyes meet yours with a pleading look.

Carefully, you push your thumb against the slit of his dick and lubricate him with his own pre-cum. As you swirl the substance around the head, Katsuki buries his face in your shoulder.

“Oh my God, I’m about to cum,” he gasps. “Fuck, it’s like I’m a virgin again.”

Bakugou’s chest heaves as you work him to his high. With every light touch or squeeze of his dick you make, it twitches and throbs in reply. You decide to help him finish, doing the same fast strokes that make him groan lewdly in your ear.

Then, all of a sudden, Bakugou reaches out and stops your hand in the middle of its movements. You eye him, confused. “You into edging or something?”

“Not quite, I wanna get you off, too.” He surprisingly lets out a hearty laugh.

“Sit up, baby,.” You follow his instructions and he picks you up with ease.

Katsuki flips you over so you’re no longer sitting on top of him, rather lying caged underneath him. His body is so close to yours that you can’t look down to see what’s happening when you feel his hands moving against your clothed pussy.

“May I?” he asks, tugging at the edge of your panties.

“Still such a gentleman,” you giggle embarrassingly.

“Breaking the frat boy stereotypes as we go, I suppose.” He laughs with you, before turning his attention back to your body.

His adept fingers pull your soaked panties to the side, revealing your equally glistening cunt. Katsuki nimbly dips his fingers in your wetness with a soft hum.

“So wet, baby,” he grins, and you blush in embarrassment.

Bakugou skillfully captures your attention by pressing the pad of his thumb against your aching sex, as if to test the waters. When he hears your soft moan in response, he takes it as an invitation to keep going.

Slowly, Katsuki’s thumb plays with your throbbing clit, brushing it in teasing circles. A whine escapes your mouth, and he chuckles upon hearing it, knowing how needy you feel. “You want my fingers inside of you?”

You gasp out a ‘yes,’ and his fingers are immediately prodding at your entrance. Then, you feel the stretch your hole makes to accommodate his intruding finger. Although you’re not used to such a feeling, you easily adapt to the length of his digit, which pleasantly curls into your depths.

Bakugou starts fingering in and out of you, and the pleasure increases. Previously soft moans and whines turn into cries against his shoulder. Despite your embarrassment of being oversensitive, the flush on Bakugou’s face proves he’s just as affected, without you even touching him.

As Katsuki continues to slip inside your wetness, you feel the pressure building in your stomach, much differently than it ever has before. One more finger squeezes into your tight cunt and presses against your pleasure spot. You cry out, and his hands continue to brush against that sensitive place.

“Fuck, that feels good, please don’t stop,” you babble mindlessly, barely even registering Bakugou’s reply of, “Course not. Wouldn’t dream of it.’

To your blissed out surprise, the pleasure gets stronger. The sensation on your clit returns, and your body uncontrollably arches into Bakugou’s above you. With every calculated movement against your bundle of nerves, you’re worked closer to orgasm.

Then, all of a sudden, the angle of the thrusting fingers changes. Bakugou changes his position to be closer to you, somehow managing to reach further than before. With every new touch to your g-spot and clit, you feel yourself being pushed to your high.

In turn, you grasp a hold of Katsuki’s twitching cock. His hiss in reply shows you just how sensitive he is from before. Your hand moves up and down, matching the quick strokes of his fingers. Just as quickly as he had gotten you to the peak of your orgasm, his body convulses, signaling his is soon to come, as well.

Your moans crescendo and bounce off the walls of the car, and Bakugou can't help but be spurred on by them. The speed of his hand gets faster, still very much calculated in its movements, your hole fluttering around his digits.

After swiping your thumb across his leaking tip, Bakugou’s body seems even more sensitive, if it’s even possible. His cock violently throbs in your hand, begging to spill its seed. You oblige its wishes and continue your pumps up and down his hard length.

You can feel yourself almost cumming, on the brink of losing your mind. Similarly, Katsuki’s body, his higher-pitched moans, twitching shaft, and milky tip, tell you he’s extremely close.

Then, taking you by surprise, Bakugou cuts off your moans with a hot kiss. Immediately after you make contact, his tongue sweeps against yours in a passionate dance.

“I’m gonna cum!” Your voice gets muffled by the tongue pressing against your own.

The addition his mouth was to your pleasure plunges you right into orgasm. Your body convulses, pussy tightening uncontrollably, and you wail into his mouth. Anything you had ever expected of sex is automatically blown to bits when this atomic force hits you.

You feel your eyesight black out, as if you’ve been hit by a truck. You subconsciously grip harder around Katsuki’s dick, causing his orgasm to come shooting out of him. Long strings of his pearly cum cover the palm of your hand, his cock still moving to let out the last bits of his seed.

The bliss that follows is calming. Bakugou finally pulls out of you, his face coming off of yours to reveal his dazed eyes and flushed cheeks.

You doubt you look appealing, but Bakugou looks at you sweetly and more kindly than you can assume he does with anyone else.

“You did so well, baby,” he whispers to you after leaning down to your level.

You give him a quick peck on the cheek and slowly untangle your limbs from his. Bakugou helps you up and grabs your (borrowed) clothes that had previously been strewn across the other seats.

After dressing yourself and saying a quick goodbye to Bakugou, you slip out of his car and head back into your dorms.

You smile to yourself as you lay in bed alone. On your bedside table you notice you’ve received a new notification, a message from an unknown number. What you see makes you smile and blush.

‘That was such a great night, let’s do it again sometime. - Bakugou’

a/n: hi guys. i’m back for the holidays and i hope to put out part two soon (let’s be honest, i never write things on time). i tried writing something more plot heavy… hope you enjoyed🫶 also, sorry for the edging joke. i think i’m funny.

[tales-of-wocdes]

Tales of Wocdes: The Silver Protector

A WIP Twine game! The demo is now available (demo updated 27.10.2024, ~103 500 words with code inside text and different branches):

Tales of Wocdes: The Silver Protector is a high fantasy interactive fiction made in Twine. During the story, your protagonist will change from a helpless child to a Silver Protector, an elite warrior and protector. In time, you may wield powerful magic, or be a master of the blade.  

The game is in early development. All content is subject to change.

There is also now a kofi page.

Premise

Wocdes is a world full of magic, monsters, and secrets. No beings in this world embody all three better than the Ancients,  godlike in power and unbeatable in battle. Incredibly wise and compassionate. Incredibly terrible and cruel. Immortal and glorious. Petty and vengeful. Or so the stories go. 

Not that you know the stories. Why would you? You are a child kidnapped for unknown purposes.  You barely know anything about yourself. Your life is one of pain and suffering at the hands of people you do not know. 

In a moment of desperation, a plea leaves your lips. Or perhaps it is only in your mind. Unexpectedly something hears you and will never ignore a broken child alone in the dark asking for help. You are saved but you are permanently scarred by your experiences. Given into the care of the newly created Orphanage of Firgrat, here is where your journey truly begins. How will you cope with your past and current reality?  Can you survive the cruel world of Wocdes, the weight of your trauma? Can you help others survive?  Can you grow up, make friends, learn to love, and become a real person again?

What to look forward to

In this game, you will (eventually) be able to:

Customize your character, from their appearance and gender (male, female, non-binary) to their abilities and personality.

Admittedly, your characters emotional development has taken a bit of a hit due to recent events, leaving them a bit confused in general about... everything. 

You can add elements of fantasy races to your character's appearance, such as a tail, wings, pointy ears and many more.

Discover why you were kidnapped, eventually.

Protect those you feel deserve it, become stronger for yourself or to protect others.

Grow up alongside other orphans and kids from the city, journey through childhood at the orphanage and the surrounding city, to adulthood with responsibilities. 

Develop your relationships with your fellow orphans and other companions, maybe even get into a romance. 

Speaking of romance, the author aims to offer an option to be completely and utterly dense about romance, like completely oblivious to the degree people worry about you. Or maybe you will be a smoother operator.

Go on adventures and missions, both innocent and not, in an original fantasy world full of magic, wonder and cruelty.

Characters

Primary

The twins Atru (m) and Azha (f): The original inhabitants of the orphanage and the only children already there when you arrive. Both twins have short blond hair and green eyes. Atru is a seemingly silent emotionless boy who clings to his sister Azha. Azha is a little girl shaped ray of sunshine and well-meaning mischief. And chatter!

More characters will be filled out later.

Secondary

Havard (m): The head custodian of the Orphanage. A father figure to all the children. His duty is to guide the children, and it is a duty he takes very seriously.

Lexia (f): The Silver Protector in charge of you. Young, excitable and strong. One of the first to be chosen for the new elite order called the Silver Protectors.

Alessa (f): The custodian in charge of the twins. A sweet young somewhat shy woman who the twins adore, both in their own ways. 

Sandor (m): The Silver Protector in charge of the twins. A good-natured and somewhat shy young man often trailing after the twins with a fond look. 

The Ancients

RAFO (Read And Find Out). You might meet some. 

Disclaimer

This is a work of fiction! Any potential resemblance of appearances, names, or personalities of characters with people in real life, living or dead, is coincidental.

This story is meant for adults. The game contains depictions of violence, blood, gore, sexually suggestive content, black humor, explicit language etc. A more complete list can be found in game. Like everything else, this list is subject to change. 

The game contains dealing with traumatic events. The author is not a qualified medical professional, and the in game responses to trauma are not in any way encouraged.  If you are uncomfortable with what you are reading, please refrain from continuing until you feel better. Or drop the story entirely. None of this is worth your health.

[longdaytogo]

the boy in the portrait

@hotchnaur wrote a fic for this!

This is based off a little snippet I wrote which honestly isn't much (since I have absolutely no writing skills) but was more of a "I need to write this down before it disappears forever from my brain" kind of rush.

This takes place in an AU where Draco didn't make it out of the Fiendfyre, but the war is won and done. The Ministry has ordered a cleanup and seizes pureblood residences, namely Malfoy Manor, and Harry volunteers to inspect the property. He doesn't know why he did, but still apparates to the front gate, in a sort of trance since the Room of Requirement incident, not fully understanding why he's feeling so.

As he walks up the spiraled stairs and down the long corridors, it hits him that he's in the Malfoy ancestral home, the very place where Draco grew up. The eerie quiet is interrupted by the sound of a child crying and murmured shushes from a further corridor up the path. When he follows the sound, he's greeted by a long line of portraits, all old and dead, glaring at Harry before sharply turning and disappearing into their paintings.

He continues down the path until he gets to the very last portrait—a young boy crying, fisted hands covering his face. The other portraits tell him to "pipe down that noise" before vanishing, leaving only Harry and the young boy. When Harry approaches the smaller boy in the portrait to ask if he's alright, he stops dead in his tracks. It's Draco. A much younger Draco who looks to be around 6 or 7, much smaller than his first year at Hogwarts with his signature white blond hair and not-so-pointy chin.

Young Draco sniffles, wipes away his tears, and looks up at Harry, confused about who he is. He asks where his mother and father are and how lonely he is here. He explains how he "woke up" one day in this portrait and feels scared. How all the other portraits (namely Great Great Aunt Belvina and Grandfather Cygnus) won't answer his questions and only tell him to be quiet.

Harry stares at the younger Malfoy absentmindedly. He tells Draco he's here to stay for a while and asks if he has any messages for Lucius and Narcissa. "They're out right now but they'll be back shortly," he says, and young Draco's eyes light up. Draco finds a willing listener in Harry and tells him about how sad he is here, how delightfully boring it is, about his new toy dragon from Diagon Alley and about that one time Pansy and Theo fell face first in a puddle of mud as he and Blaise had watched, giggling while saying so.

Harry quietly listens, noticing he still points his nose up tauntingly while teasing and the way his haughty air or confidence seems to permeate the conversation. Harry tries to absorb all that he can, overlapping this young Draco with his Draco—noticing their similarities and difference where one is all childlike innocence and laughter, while the other only a mere husk of a boy towards his final days.

Young Draco tells Harry about his first flying lesson and his new broomstick when he suddenly asks if Harry knows "Harry Potter." Shocked, Harry asks how he knows the name when Draco, going a bit red in the ears, replies back how he's going to be Harry's best friend at Hogwarts ("once my letter arrives in a few years!") he says proudly. He tells Harry how he's made father buy out all the books on "Harry Potter" and how mother reads them to him nightly.

Draco makes Harry promise not to tell anyone, sharing that he only revealed it to so because he had shared so much already. Harry promises and, feeling a bit disheartened, says he needs to go, but he'll come back soon. Young Draco pouts and whines but understands, reminding Harry to pass along the message to Lucius and Narcissa. He waves goodbye, on the promises of "I'll see you later," and disappears into his portrait. Harry watches the boy vanish, then turns to leave down the corridor he came.

Walking down the stone path back to the gate, he recalls a boy with teary eyes surrounded by scorching flames and another boy dreaming of befriending the Boy Who Lived. He leaves Malfoy Manor feeling choked and a little worse than when he arrived.

[justsomewritingblog]

The Right Thing

Request:  Nope

Requested By:  Nobody

Prompt: "Don’t patronize me for something you were too scared to do!"

Pairing:  Draco Malfoy x Slytherin!OC/reader

Summary:  Hunt's best friend, Draco Malfoy, accepts the Dark Mark. She doesn't approve.

Warnings:  violence (battle), mentions of death, mentions of blood

A/N:  THIS IS SOOOO LATE. Holy moly, where does the time go?

Word Count:  12K+

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I walked through Hogwarts’ doors, looking up and marveling at the scale of the place.

“First years, follow me, please,” a woman- I assumed a witch- instructed before leading everyone up a staircase.  She wore a large pointy hat and green robes.

I followed her, grimacing as I bumped shoulders with a few other children.

“The sorting ceremony is your initiation at Hogwarts,” the woman explained, leading us through large double doors.

A big room with four long tables was revealed to us.  They were nearly full with teenagers.  Another table was at the end of the room, many adults sitting at it.  Candles floated in the air, casting a pleasant warm glow.

As we were led further into the room, I could see a stool with something sitting atop it in front of the adults’ table.

The witch turned to face us, gesturing to the space in front of her.  “Wait here, please.  Before we begin, Professor Dumbledore would like to say a few words.”

A man with long white hair and beard stood from his seat at the middle of the adult table.  “I have a few start-of-term notices I wish to announce.”  He paused.  “The first years, please note…that the Dark Forest is strictly forbidden to all students.  Also, our caretaker,” he gestured to the doors, “Mr. Filch, has asked me to remind you… that the third floor corridor on the right hand side is out of bounds to everyone that does not wish to die a most painful death.”

I cocked an eyebrow.

“Thank you.”  Dumbledore smiled before sitting back down.

The witch that led us in pulled out a scroll, opening it.  “Now, when I call your name, you will come forth… I shall place the Sorting Hat on your head,” she lifted the hat, “and you will be sorted into your houses.”  She looked down at the scroll she held in her right hand before looking back towards the crowd of first years.  “Hermione Granger.”

A girl near the front of the group slowly moved forward, sitting on the stool. The hat was placed on her bushy hair.  A few seconds later it shouted out “Gryffindor!”

One of the long tables erupted into cheers and applause.

I assumed that was the Gryffindor table.

Granger got off the stool, moving to sit at the table.

At the call of my name, I turned to the witch and eyed the hat in her hand before moving towards the stool, sitting down atop it.

“Ahh,” the hat said.  “What have we here?  Got a bit of bravery, a good deal of loyalty to your close friends…”

I looked up as best I could, trying to see the hat.

It went on.  “Smart, too.  I also see a great deal of passion and ambition.  You want things to go your way, and you’ll do much to get yourself there.”  The hat hummed.  “Do you have any preferences?”

“Wherever will benefit me the most,” I reasoned quietly, hoping that my parents would be proud no matter what house I was put in.

“Very well.  I will put you in…Slytherin!”

I let out a small breath of relief as the table by the right wall grew loud with claps. The hat was lifted off my head and I moved from the stool, making my way to the end table.  I slid down the empty end of the benches, sitting by another student before returning my attention to the ceremony.

The witch looked at her scroll again before lifting her head.  “Draco Malfoy.”

A boy near the front moved towards the stool, his hair the whitest blond I had ever seen.  He sat on the stool, turning to face the students.

The witch began to lower the hat.

“Slytherin!”

My table began clapping again.

I raised an eyebrow.  I didn’t think the hat even touched his head.

The boy walked over to the Slytherin table, sitting across from me.

“Susan Bones.”

A redheaded girl stepped forward to sit on the stool, a nervous look on her face.

“My name is Malfoy.  Draco Malfoy.”

I turned, looking at the boy addressing me.

His hand was outstretched.

I eyed it, extending my hand to shake it as I looked back into his grey eyes.  “I know.”

He cocked an intrigued eyebrow, his confident smirk growing as he returned his hand to his side.  “You’ve heard of me.”

“Most pureblood families know who the Malfoys are,” I reasoned, glancing back in time to see Bones walking towards a table.

It wasn’t the Gryffindor or Slytherin ones, but I couldn’t tell if it was Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw.

I turned back to the blond.  “Your name was also just announced.”

“Ronald Weasley.”

I looked back, seeing a redheaded boy move towards the seat.

The hat was placed on his head and shortly shouted out “Gryffindor”.

Weasley let out a sigh of relief, moving to the table and sitting amongst several other redheads.

“How many children does one family need?”

I turned to Malfoy, noting his displeased expression.

“Harry Potter.”

My eyes widened and I spun around.

A boy with dark hair and circular glasses moved out of the crowd, looking back briefly before settling on the stool.

The hat was placed on his head.  For many moments, it sat there.

Potter muttered something.

The hat finally yelled out “Gryffindor!”

Potter got off the seat and moved to the Gryffindor table as everyone greeted him with enthusiasm.

I heard a scoff and looked back at Malfoy.

“Precious Potter,” he said with a sneer.  “I’m surprised they didn’t have a parade for him.”

I smirked.  “The day’s not over, Malfoy.”

Malfoy’s frown turned into a mischievous smile.  “I think you and I can be great friends, Hunt.”

My smirk grew into a grin.  “I think so, too.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I stepped away from the display at the front of the bookshop, beginning to head towards the exit.

Gilderoy Lockhart was, unfortunately, selling the textbooks needed for the school year.

My parents walked behind me, talking to each other.

I lifted my gaze, seeing a mass of red hair.

Moving through the group of spectators, I approached them.  “Ah, the Weasleys,” I said, looking over at them.  “Fancy meeting you here.”

Some eyed me suspiciously, others in simple confusion.

“What do you want, Hunt?”

I turned to Ron.  “Nothing, Weasley.”  I cocked an eyebrow.  “I’m just here for my books.”  I looked between all of the children.  “I assume you’re here to do the same?”

Lockhart moved towards the group, grabbing Potter and pulling him up to the front, making some sort of remark about them being in the newspaper.

“Something like that,” Ron said coldly.

I raised an eyebrow.  “I’m not your enemy, Weasley.”

“Any friend of Malfoy is an enemy of mine,” he said, looking over at me.

I straightened, my clutch on my books tightening.  “I see.”  Turning around to face my parents, I nodded towards another area of the shop.  “I’m almost ready.  I just want to look at one more thing.”

“Alright,” my mother said, smiling down at me.

I moved to a different corner of the store, eyes raking over the bindings of the books.  I frowned. The book I was thinking about getting wasn’t there. I returned to my parents, nodding at them.  “I’m done.”

They nodded back and began to usher me towards the door.

The Weasleys and their crew had moved towards the exit, as well.

“-Potter.  You’ve got yourself a girlfriend.”

I smiled at the familiar voice.  Moving around the Weasleys, I made my way towards the blond.  “Draco,” I greeted with a smile.

Draco lifted his gaze to me before it was immediately drawn to his father’s cane that pushed on his shoulder to move him out of the way.

Mr. Malfoy began talking to Potter as I walked behind him, heading for Draco.

“Good to see you, Draco,” I said with a smile.

He gave a forced smile back before his gaze drifted over my shoulder to look at his father.

My smile dropped of its own accord, but I managed to keep it from falling completely into a frown.  Clearing my throat, I looked up at him.  “Did you get your books yet?”

“I got them earlier,” he replied distractedly, only glancing down at me for a brief moment.

“I see.”  Looking to the side, I huffed out a breath before looking back to the blond.  “I guess I’ll see you at school, Draco.”

He nodded, his eyes still on his father.

I frowned, returning to my parents.  “I’m ready to leave.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I looked around Platform Nine and Three Quarters, standing on the tips of my toes to see over people.  

Parents were saying goodbye to their children before they boarded the Hogwarts Express.

My gaze landed on a head of blond hair.  I smiled at the familiar shade.  Feet moving into action, I made my way over, the speed of my steps increasing as I got closer.  As I approached, his gaze scanned the area before landing on me.

A smile graced his sharpening features.  He turned and said something to Crabbe and Goyle, who both went inside the train, before striding towards me.

“Draco,” I greeted quietly as he approached me.  I met his gaze and let out a chuckle.  “I have to look up at you, now.”

He smirked down at me.  “Are you saying you haven’t always looked up to me?”

I rolled my eyes with a scoff.  “Hardly.” We made our way into the train. I followed behind Draco as he led me through the compartments.

He looked into each window before moving on.  He stopped, entering the box that Crabbe and Goyle were sitting in.

I followed, sitting opposite Goyle, Draco on my right.  Raising an eyebrow, I looked between the three.  “What nonsense do you think will go on at Hogwarts this year?”

Draco scoffed.  “Whatever it is, you can bet Potter and his friends will be at the center of it.”

I chuckled.  “Well, obviously.”  I adjusted in my seat.  “I swear those three look for trouble.”

The loud sound of the train’s breaks filled the air.

I winced, looking towards the window.  “We can’t be at Hogwarts yet.”  Turning to the door, I slid it open, sticking my head out to peer towards the front of the train.  I could see other students doing the same.

“The stupid thing probably broke down,” Draco sneered.

I drew my head back in, closing the door, as I turned to my housemates.

The lights went out.

“Oh, lovely,” I muttered.

The train jostled.

I gripped the edge of the bench to steady myself.  “What in the name of Salazar is going on here?”

A harsh chill fell over the room.

Ice began to form on the window.

The loud sounds of the rain hitting the still compartment filled my ears.

I reached towards the door, lowering the curtain.  Sliding backwards along the bench, I kept my eyes on the only entrance as I pulled out my wand.

A figure passed the compartment, casting a cloaked shadow on the curtain.

I held my breath.

Silence stretched on for a few moments.

My gaze stayed locked on the doorway, even as the lights came back on.

“What was that,” Crabbe asked after a few more beats of quiet.

The train began moving again.

I relaxed slightly, moving slightly away from Draco to look between the three of them.  “Nothing good.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“The Yule Ball has been a tradition of the Triwizard Tournament since its inception,” Professor McGonagall began, clasping her hands together as she began walking between the rows of seated students.  “On Christmas Eve night, we and our guests gather in the Great Hall for a night of well-mannered frivolity.”  She paused and looked around.  “As representatives of the host school I expect each and every one of you to put your best foot forward… and I mean this literally, because the Yule Ball is first and foremost… a dance.”

Whispers broke out among the students; excited sounds from the girls, irritated sounds from the boys.

I smirked.

Professor McGonagall held up her hands.  “Silence!”

The students quieted.

“The house of Godric Gryffindor has commanded the respect of the wizard world for nearly ten centuries.  I will not have you, in the course of a single evening, besmirching that name by behaving like a babbling, bumbling band of baboons.”  She smiled.  “Now, to dance is to let the body breathe.”  She turned towards us.  “Inside every girl, a secret swan slumbers, longing to burst forth and take flight.”

I shifted my gaze to Draco, who was sitting across the room.

His cool, grey eyes met mine.

I pointedly rolled my eyes before smirking.

He smirked back before wiping his expression, looking to the head of Gryffindor as she turned to them.

“Inside every boy, a lordly lion prepared to prance- Mister Weasley.”  Professor McGonagall walked towards him.

Ronald looked up at her, looking the most uncomfortable I’d ever seen him.  “Yes,” he asked quietly.

She reached her hand down.  “Will you join me please?”

Weasley got up silently as the rest of the boys laughed.

Potter gave his best friend a push, grinning at him.

The ginger met the Professor in the middle of the room.

She held up her arms.  “Now.  Place your right hand on my waist.”

He looked horrified.  “Where?”

“My waist.”

Weasley apprehensively placed his hand on his professor’s waist.

A wolf whistle sounded from the boy’s side of the room.

The redhead turned his head towards it, pulling his hand off.

Professor McGonagall grabbed it, putting it back.  “And extend your arm.”  She looked over her shoulder.  “Mr. Filch, if you please.”

Filch put the needle down on the gramophone.

Music filled the room.

Professor McGonagall looked back to Ron.  “One, two, three.  One, two, three.”  She began to lead him in dance steps.  “Everybody come together!”

The girls all stood in a hurry, moving onto the dance floor.

I sighed before pushing myself to my feet and joining them.

The boys sat further back in their chairs, seemingly trying to be swallowed by them.

“Boys!  On your feet!”

The boys all looked around at each other.

Longbottom finally stood, making his way towards us.

The rest of the group groaned before standing and walking over.

Professor McGonagall’s voice called above the noise.  “Everybody, Mister Malfoy!”

I stood on the tips of my toes, spotting the blond huff as he stood from his seat, slowly walking onto the dance floor.

His gaze raked the crowd.

I moved to make my way towards him when I bumped into someone.  “My apologies,” I said, looking up into the face of a Ravenclaw.

“It’s alright,” he assured with a small smile.

I paused, looking around him to see Draco.

“I guess we’re practicing…” the Ravenclaw said.  He looked down at me.  “Would you mind dancing with me?”

“Well, I was actually...” I looked to where Draco was, no longer seeing him.  My eyebrows furrowed.  I looked back up at the Ravenclaw.  “I’d… be delighted,” I said, forcing a practiced smile.

He grinned down at me, his white teeth standing out even more against his dark skin.  He placed his hands where they were supposed to go before beginning to move us along the floor.

I periodically looked around, trying to find my housemate.

“You’re very good.”

I looked back at the Ravenclaw.  “Thank you.  Knowing how to dance was a necessity with my family.”

“Have a lot of parties?”

I smiled.  “And things of similar nature.”

As soon as Professor McGonagall announced practice was over, I thanked my partner before stepping away, trying to find Draco.  Having no luck, I returned to the Slytherin Common Room.  “Pureblood,” I said distractedly before walking into the room.

The girls that were already there were excitedly discussing the upcoming dance.

I strode passed them, looking for the blond.

“Hunt!”

I turned around, looking at the group of girls.  “Yes?”

“Are you going to the ball?”

“Who was that man you were dancing with?”

I looked between my housemates.  “I don’t know, and I don’t know.”  I glanced to the side before turning back to them.  “Have any of you seen Draco?”

“I think he went up to the dorm rooms,” one of them said.

“Thank you.”  I moved towards the steps, grabbing Goyle’s sleeve, dragging him away from whatever he was doing, and pushed him up the stairs in front of me.

I was a little too old for slides.

Once at the top, I thanked him before turning to the dorm Draco was assigned.  I knocked on the door.

A few beats of silence followed before the sound of a quiet “it’s open” reached my ears.

I opened the door, stepped inside, and closed it behind me.

“What do you want,” Draco questioned, laying on his bed.  He was staring at the ceiling.

“Well, I wanted to dance with you, but you vanished.”

Draco snapped his head in my direction.  His surprised, and maybe even panicked, look quickly became masked by indifference.  “You were dancing with somebody else.”

I strode towards him, standing at the foot of his bed.  “I was trying to get to you,” I said, looking down at him.

He lifted his gaze to meet my eyes briefly before he lowered them again.  “Who were you dancing with, anyway?”

I shrugged.  “A Ravenclaw.  He’s nice.”

Draco’s eyes shifted to the side.

A few beats of silence passed.

My eyebrow quirked up for a split second.  “Are you going to the Yule Ball?”

“I don’t know.”

I hummed.  “Well, if you aren’t, I’m not.”

He finally moved his gaze back to my face.

I lifted a hand to gesture.  “Don’t let that affect your decision of course.  Just let me know what you choose.  I wouldn’t want to waste my time.”  I stepped away from his bed, moving towards the door.

“You aren’t going with that Ravenclaw?”

My steps halted.  “No.”  I turned around to face him.

A few more beats of silence passed.

“Did you want to go?”

I pursed my lips.  “I hadn’t decided.”

Another pause.

“I would only go if you did,” Draco said.  “You know how to dance, and I would never be seen with someone who would embarrass me,” he quickly tacked on.

I forced myself not to smile at his response.  “The choice is yours,” I said, moving towards the door.  I gripped the door handle before looking back at the blond.  “Goodnight, Draco.”

“Goodnight.”

I stepped out of his room, closing the door behind me.

~~~~~~~~~~

I made my way to the Great Hall.

Students were everywhere, standing in groups.

It was odd to see everyone dressed so nicely.

It was odd to be dressed so nicely at school.

Stopping by the steps, I ran my hand over my flowy skirt before reaching up and adjusting my hair.  Once I realized I had done the action I quickly dropped my hand to my side, chastising myself.

Why was I so nervous?

I fought the urge to fiddle with the jeweled silver necklace that rested at my collarbone.

Someone brushed my arm.

I turned to look at them.  “Oh, I-” I paused, seeing Potter and Weasley.  “Hello, boys.”  I silently eyed Weasley’s dress robes.

“Hunt,” Potter said tightly.

Weasley lowered his head.

I cleared my throat, looking over at the Boy Who Lived.  “Good job with the tournament so far, Potter.”

He forced a smile.  “Thanks.”

Two girls walked over.  “Hello, boys.”

The males lifted their heads, looking over at the pair.

Potter looked over at me.  “Excuse us.”

“Of course,” I said, gesturing at their dates.

The four of them moved a few steps away and began to converse.

“I see Potter managed to find a date.”

My head whipped around to the sound of the voice.

Draco’s head was turned towards Potter and Weasley, a grimace on his face.

My eyes traced his form in his dress robes appreciatively.  A twinge of horror ran through me, which I’m sure appeared on my face, before I forced the thoughts from my mind.  Clearing my throat, I followed his gaze.  “Yes.  I imagine it’s pretty easy when you’re as famous as he is.”

Draco scoffed.  “As if he wasn’t famous enough already.  Now he’s a part of the tourna-” Draco looked down at me, cutting himself off.  His eyes widened slightly.

I fought hard against fidgeting.  Instead, I raised a challenging eyebrow, hoping that if I ignored the red color growing on my cheeks, he wouldn’t notice it.  “Cat got your tongue, Malfoy?”  I smirked.

He met my gaze, an irritated look on his face, opening his mouth to reply.

“Ah, Mister Malfoy, Miss Hunt.”

Draco and I turned to the voice.

Professor McGonagall stood beside us.  “Please head inside the Great Hall.  The students are going to welcome the tournament champions and their dates.”

Draco’s face twitched in what I knew was him trying to not sneer.

I nodded.  “We will, Professor.”  Taking Draco’s arm, I pulled him towards the double doors.

We walked through, standing in one of the two lines along the entrance.

Music sounded and the champions walked in.

Fleur was first with her date, followed by Victor Krum and Granger.

Cedric Diggory and Chang followed them, Potter and his date taking up the rear.

I joined the others in clapping, noting that Draco’s clapping ceased once Krum had passed.

The champions and their dates began dancing.

Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall stepped onto the floor after a few minutes, beginning to dance as well.

Longbottom and Ginny Weasley followed.

Draco took my hand, pulling me onto the floor.  Turning to face me once he stopped, he took my hand in his, placing his other on my waist.

My heart jumped at the contact, and I fought to keep my expression from showing it, instead offering him a smile as I put my free hand on his shoulder.

We stepped in time with the music, effortlessly performing the familiar steps.

“Are you having fun yet?”

He looked down at me before his gaze drifted around the room.  “It could be worse,” he said as he lifted me into the air.

I smirked up at him as he set me back down, resuming our steps.  “Do I displease you that much?”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”  He looked around.  “It’s crowded.  And Potter-”

“Don’t think about Potter.”  I held his gaze, trying to get my earnestness across.  “Not tonight, Draco.  Relax and enjoy the festivities, food, and people.”

Draco scanned the room again.  “I doubt I’ll get much enjoyment out of the people.”

I squeezed his hand that held mine.  “Try.”

Draco sighed through his nose before nodding.

~~~~~~~~~~

“Thank you for coming, Draco.”  I smiled softly.  “I hope you enjoyed yourself, at least a little.”

He shrugged one shoulder, looking to the wall.  “It wasn’t totally awful.”

I hummed a chuckle.

Draco looked back at me.  His grey eyes shifted between mine before flickering to my lips for a brief moment.  He held my gaze.  “Goodnight, Hunt.”

I nodded.  “Goodnight.”

We each turned around, heading towards our dormitories.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Did you know that Professor Umbridge is looking for people for an inquisitor squad?”

I turned the page of the textbook laid out on the Common Room table.  “No, I didn’t,” I replied, eyes scanning over the title of the next chapter.

“I’m going to volunteer.”

My gaze lifted from the page I was studying to meet Draco’s.  “What will that get you?”

“Power.  Authority.”

I wrote down something I expected would come up on a test in the near future.  “Both temporary.”

“Maybe.”  Draco paused.  “I might even get a good reputation with the Ministry.”

My quill stilled.  

Now that was interesting.

Eyes darting back and forth, I pondered the thought.  Lifting my head to look at Draco, I ignored his smirk.

He knew he had me.

“How many people is she looking for,” I asked.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I stepped inside Malfoy Manor, falling into stride behind my parents.

“Lucius, Narcissa,” my father greeted, shaking their hands.  “It’s a pleasure to see you again.”

“And you,” Mrs. Malfoy replied, smiling.

“Have you…” Mr. Malfoy’s gaze shifted to me briefly, “informed her of the situation?”

“Not yet,” my mother said.

My eyebrows furrowed.  I opened my mouth to question them, but Mrs. Malfoy walked towards me, wrapping her arm around my shoulders.

“I imagine you want to see Draco, dear.”  She smiled down at me as she began to lead me towards their grand staircase.

“Mrs. Malfoy, what’s going on?”  I looked over at her as she walked with me up the steps.

“You’ll understand soon,” she assured, though her voice seemed off.

We reached the top of the steps.

“Draco,” Mrs. Malfoy called out.

I looked back down the steps, seeing Mr. Malfoy usher my parents into the dining area.

The sound of a door opening drew my attention back to the upstairs hallway.

Draco stepped out of his room, closing the door behind him.  He wore an entirely black suit, and when he turned to face his mother I could tell something was wrong.

My heart tugged and my stomach sank as I took in his furrowed eyebrows, dark circles under his eyes and prevalent frown on his face.

“-to see you, dear.”

Draco nodded, lowering his head as he cast his gaze at the floor.

Mrs. Malfoy placed her hand on Draco’s cheek for a few moments before walking back downstairs.

I waited with held breath.

Draco, without lifting his head, turned back around and went back inside his room.

The door was left ajar.

I waited a few moments, stuck in place, before forcing my feet to follow him.  Walking inside his room, I stared at his back, stopping just inside as I closed the door halfway.  Turning to him, I tried to fight against my nausea.  “Draco,” I called out quietly.  Taking a small step towards him, I asked “what’s wrong?”

He let out a shaky breath, one which I could see in his back and shoulders, and turned his head away from me slightly.

I took a couple more steps, lightly placing my hand on his shoulder.

He startled.

I moved around his right, trying to look at him, but he turned his head away further.  “Draco,” I said softly.

His jaw twitched.

“Look at me,” I whispered, my eyebrows pulling together.

He hesitated before turning his head towards me slightly.

I put my right hand on his cheek, bringing his head around to face me completely.

He still wouldn’t look me in the eyes.

“Draco.”

A few moments passed before he lifted his head.  His grey eyes were dim, filled with unshed tears.

My entire body got set on edge.  “Draco-”

He let out a short noise, similar to a sob, before crushing me in a hug.

I froze.

What in the world could get the Malfoy heir so upset?

I wrapped my arms around him.  “What’s wrong?”  I squeezed him.  “What happened?”

Nothing but muffled cries escaped him.

I tightened my hold, resting my head on his shoulder.  “Shhh.  It’s okay,” I tried to soothe.  Running my hand along his back, I reminded him to breathe.

“Children!”

My heart stopped.

Draco froze.

I lifted my head, turning to face the doorway.

“Come downstairs!”

My attention was drawn back to my best friend when I felt him pull away from me.

He stood up tall and straightened out his suit.

His eyes were red and wet.

I frowned.  “One moment,” I called back, not looking away from the boy before me.

He stared straight ahead, focused on the wall, as he wiped his eyes.

My frown deepened.

He moved around me, heading towards the door.

I quickly followed him out, needing to move fast to keep up with his purposeful steps.

Draco turned the corner, heading into the dining area.

I did the same, stopping dead in my tracks.

“Ah, Miss Hunt.”

My eyes widened.

The Dark Lord gestured at the free chairs at the table.  “Won’t you sit down?”

I looked to Voldemort’s right, seeing Mr. Malfoy.

Mrs. Malfoy sat on her husband’s other side, Draco sitting down beside her.

On Voldemort’s left… my parents.

As much as I wanted to sit by Draco, I reasoned with myself that sitting by my parents would be more professional.

Lowering myself into the seat beside my mother, I shifted my gaze briefly to Draco, who sat across from me, before looking back at Voldemort.

“Did you enjoy your visit with young Mister Malfoy?”

I blinked at the question, fighting to keep my expression neutral.

Not really.

“As much as could be expected,” I replied.

“Good.”  Voldemort nodded, grinning.  “I wanted to discuss business.”  He nodded his head towards my parents.  “Your parents have already accepted the Dark Mark, as have the Malfoys.”

I glanced at Draco, seeing his head still cast downward.  I looked back to the Dark Lord.

“The offer extends to you.”

All eyes turned on me, awaiting my decision.

I resisted the urge to shift in my seat.  “What do I get out of it?”

Voldemort laughed.

Everyone else looked baffled.

“What else?”  Voldemort grinned.  “Power.  The world will be yours.”

I nodded, sitting up straighter.  “And if I refuse?”

Everyone’s heads whipped around to face me.

They all looked horrified.

I saw a twinge of something flash across Voldemort’s face.

He chuckled.  “My dear Miss Hunt…” he clasped his hands on the table.  “If you are not with me… you are against me.”

The room fell silent.

“I see.”  I tilted my chin up.  “May I have some time to think it over?”

Voldemort’s expression fell for just a moment before he plastered a grin on his face.  “Certainly.  How long do you require?”

“A week.”

Voldemort nodded.  “Very well.  Until then.”  He nodded at me, but remained seated.

I stood.  “Thank you.”  Casting one last glance around the table at the people I grew up with, I walked out of the dining area.

~~~~~~~~~~~

I readjusted my grip on the bag I was carrying.  Stopping in front of my motel room, I pulled out the key and opened the door, closing and locking it behind me once inside.

It was getting late, and I wasn’t looking forward to the darkness that came with it.

Walking further into the room, I moved towards the kitchen before stopping in my tracks.

A figure was standing in the shadows.

I whipped out my wand.  “Stupe-”

“Expelliarmus!”

My wand flew out of my hand, hitting the floor several feet away.

I froze.

My heart skipped a beat and my stomach jumped to my throat.

Letting out a quiet sigh, I lowered my head, turning on the lightswitch.

The overhead lights illuminated the room.

I stared at a spot on the floor, not wanting to look my visitor in the eyes.  “What are you doing here?”

“I needed to see you.”

“Why?”  I lifted my head to look at him.  “How did you find me?”

Draco hesitated.  “They never lost you.”

I stared at him for a few moments before walking the few steps to retrieve my wand.  “So why are they only sending you now?”

“They didn’t send me.”

I turned to face him.  “Then why are you here?  If You-Know-Who knows where I am, why haven’t they come to kill me?”

His posture shifted.  “You ask a lot of questions.”

My eyes narrowed.  “Draco-”

“You’re safe.”  He paused.  “For now, at least.”

My eyes scanned him for a few moments, gaze settling on his sleeved arm.  “I could say the same to you.”  I looked up to meet his eyes.  “Getting the Dark Mark won’t protect you, Draco.  You’re smart enough to know he’s only going to use you until you’re no longer needed.”  I marched past him and put the bag of groceries on the kitchen counter.

“Don’t patronize me for something you were too scared to do!”

I turned around, seeing that Draco had taken a step towards me.

For the first time in the six years we’ve known each other, he was glaring at me.

I fought against the instinct to take a step backwards.

I looked him in the eyes, forcing my voice to be steady.  “I think we both know who acted out of fear.”

He held my gaze for a few moments before it dropped to the floor.

I sighed quietly, turning around again to put the food away.

A few moments of silence passed.

I closed the cabinet door.  “Do you want something to eat,” I asked, voice just above a whisper.

“I can’t stay.”

I frowned.  Realizing I was still tense, I forced my shoulders down.

More silence.

I closed a drawer.

“Why didn’t you accept the…”

“The offer?”  Without looking, I knew Draco was watching me.  “Truthfully?”  I turned around to face him.  “I don’t want to dominate the earth.  I have no desire to rule England or anything of the sort.”  I walked passed him, towards the couch.  “I don’t need to control a nation to get what I want in life.”

“What are your ambitions then?

My steps faltered.  “I…” I spun around to face him again, seeing that he had followed me.  “I would like to run a business.  Be successful.  Maybe get married…”

Draco’s eyes darted to the floor before looking back at me.

While his expression didn’t change much, I could see the surprise in his eyes and the slight twitch of his eyebrows.

“I don’t think ‘world dictator’ suits you, either,” I said.

“I don’t really have a choice,” he mumbled.

“Yes you do.”  I walked towards him, standing less than a foot away.  “Draco, this isn’t you.”

“I promised,” he said, his concerned eyes peering into mine.

“Promised?  Since when have you been concerned about keeping your promises?”

“Since they involved the Dark Lord,” he whispered, irises showing his fear.

My eyes shifted between his.  “Draco,” I reached down, taking his hands in mine, never pulling my gaze from his.  “Run away with me.  Leave this behind.  You can get what you want a different way-”

“I can’t.  They’re already tracking you, and I promised-”

“Draco, he’s going to kill you anyway,” I hissed.  Tears formed in my eyes.  “It’s only a matter of time.”

Draco’s eyes, growing wet as well, darted between my own.  “I have to protect you.”

It was so quiet and under-his-breath I barely heard it.

“Draco Lucius Malfoy, don’t you dare,” I muttered, the tears flowing from my eyes.  Reaching forward, I pulled him into a hug, wrapping both of my arms around him as tightly as I could.

He reciprocated, clinging to me as if I were a raft on the open sea.

We buried our faces into each other’s shoulders.

I hugged him tighter.

It felt like I couldn’t get close enough.

“Draco, don’t risk your life for me,” I whispered.

His breath stuttered.  His grip on me strengthened.  “I can’t let anything happen to you.”

“Well, how do you think I feel?”  I pulled away just enough to look at his face.  “If you die because of me-” I cut myself off, my voice breaking.

“As long as I do what he wants, I won’t.”

“You don’t know that,” I retorted sharply.

Draco’s eyes shifted between mine for a few beats.  “I should go.”

Panic bloomed in my chest.  I couldn’t bear the thought of-  “What if…. what if I never see you again?”

Draco stared down at me for a few tense moments.  Leaning forward, he placed a kiss on my lips.

It only lasted a few seconds, and I was too in-shock to reciprocate before he pulled away.

“Be careful,” he whispered.

I swallowed hard as I stared up at him.  “You, too.”

Draco nodded, pulling out his wand.

I blinked, and he was gone.

Almost as if he was never there in the first place.

My mind raced.

I was only alive because Draco promised Lord Voldemort something.  Once that thing is done, whatever it is, or if Draco fails…

I took in a shaky breath, looking over at the kitchen.

What would happen if I left?

If the Death Eaters were no longer able to find me, would they have anything over Draco?  Would Draco be free, or would he simply be killed?

My stomach churned.

The risk wasn’t worth it.

I forced my legs to move towards the kitchen.

I would just have to trust that Harry Potter would fulfill his role and end this, once and for all.

My steps paused.

Harry Potter.

Gripping my wand, I walked towards the doorway.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Getting to the Boy Who Lived turned out to be harder than I had initially imagined.

I had presumed that the Weasley family would take him to protect him.

But first, I had to get rid of my babysitter.

Diagon Alley, since the shocking news of Dumbledore’s death, had become far less crowded than it had been.

Voldemort was free to do whatever he wanted.

Rightfully, the streets were nearly abandoned.

Losing the Death Eater was going to be harder than I thought.

I turned through several alleyways, going into shops and leaving them through different doors, sneaking around as best as I could.

Swiping a coat from a store, I tugged it on, tucking my hair into a hat I grabbed.  I strode out, altering my walk, as I made my way into the broom shop.  I grimaced as I looked at all of them.

Such an uncivilized form of travel.

With a sigh, I grabbed one and paid for it, wrapping it before exiting the building.

I had already tried apparating to the Weasleys’, but it wasn’t letting me.

They must have put spells against it.

Potter was definitely there.

I made my way to an apparition point, quickly traveling to the middle of nowhere.

The field I stood on was vast, and the plants around me were only just starting to grow.

My gaze dropped to the broom in my hand.

Letting out a sigh, I unwrapped it and straddled the object.

My heart began to race.

I had never once been on a broom before.

I gently pulled up on the object and it rose into the air.

I wobbled and clutched the broom tighter, leaning down closer to it in an attempt to be more stable.

The broom shot forward.

I leaned down lower, gasping.

The broom sped up.

That was interesting.

With all of my willpower and bravery, I unattached myself from the broom handle, sitting upright and leaning back.

The broom stopped.

I held on tightly, grunting as I was almost thrown from the sudden action.

Heaving out breaths, I brushed some of the hair out of my face.

Sitting upright, I cleared my throat.

Time to find the Weasleys.

~~~~~~~~~~~

I slowed down the broom as the Weasleys’ house grew closer.

A flying, uninvited, object approaching them from the sky would probably not be welcome.

I lowered into the tall grass surrounding the building.  Getting off the broom, I let out a relieved breath and looked around for any threats.

The Weasleys’ home was incredibly tall and skinny, almost as if whoever made it was trying to fit the whole family in there but only had a limited space to do so.

I saw some people wandering around the outside of the house.  Creeping closer, I could make out Professor Lupin.  My gaze lifted to one of the windows, noticing Potter walk by it, ascending a staircase.

They really should have their curtains closed.

I waited a few beats to see if anyone else was with him before apparating, landing on my feet behind the boy.

He spun around, drawing his wand.

I raised my hands in surrender.  “I’m not your enemy, Potter.”

His eyes narrowed behind his glasses.  “How do I know that?”

“If I wanted you dead, I would have killed you already,” I said with fake confidence, knowing deep down that Potter was likely more proficient than me at dueling.

But he didn’t know that.

“Yeah,” he nodded his head to the side briefly, “maybe.”

Slowly lowering my hands, I kept my gaze on him as I shifted my right hand to my left arm.

He watched me carefully as I rolled up my sleeve.

My bare forearm was revealed to him.

He let out a quiet relieved breath and lowered his wand to his side.  “What do you want?”

“I want to help you end this.”  I pulled my sleeve back down.  “I want this war to be over.”  My jaw clenched.  “I want my friend back.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Harry, you can’t be serious,” Weasley breathed.

“She hasn’t exactly proven herself to be one of us,” Granger said in a near whisper.  “Are you sure you can trust her,” she asked, her eyes darting to me.

“Yes,” Potter looked over at me.  “She doesn’t have the Dark Mark, and I believe her motivations.”

“But she’s a Slytherin.”

I rolled my eyes.  “Thank you, Weasley, I think he already figured that part out.”  I glared over at him.  “The point is, I have an idea.”

They eyed me suspiciously.

Hermione raised an eyebrow.  “And that would be?”

“Missy!”

An elf appeared beside me.  “Yes, Mistress?”

Potter and Weasley startled backwards slightly.

Granger gasped.

I looked down at the creature by my side.  “I need you to go to Malfoy Manor.”  I took a deep breath before continuing.  “The Dark Lord is there with all of his followers.”

“Oh, Mistress-!”

“I need you to find out all you can,” I insisted.  “Everything depends on it.”

Granger scoffed.  “Of all the-!”

I ignored her.

Missy’s ears drooped.  “Yes, Mistress.”

“Don’t be seen or heard.  When you get information, come back here.”  I looked over at Potter.  “I’ll be staying for a little while.”

Harry glanced over at me and nodded once, his jaw clenching briefly.

I turned back to Missy.  “Be careful.”

She nodded, her gaze on the floor.  “Yes, Mistress.”

She vanished.

“You can’t be serious!”  Granger glared.  “Sending her to her death like that!  Why don’t you do it yourself!?  She’s not your slave!”

“Actually, she is,” I corrected, standing back to my full height and looking over at the Gryffindor.  “But the simple fact is, Missy would have a better chance of getting in and out without being noticed.”  I cocked an eyebrow, side-eyeing her.  “I didn’t hear you volunteering to go in her place.”

Granger glanced away.

“Alright.”  Potter cleared his throat awkwardly.  He turned to his friend.  “Ron, would you…?”

Weasley looked over at me.  “Yeah, I’ll tell Mum…”  Turning around, he walked out of the room.

Potter looked back at me.  “Well,” he glanced at Granger, “would you mind sharing your room, Hermione?”

“Don’t bother.”  I tilted my chin up slightly.  “I’ll sleep on the couch or the floor.”

They both shifted their gaze towards me, watching me for only a few moments before nodding.  “All right.  We’ll, uh……” Potter pursed his lips.  “We’ll see you later.”

They walked out.

I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding.  My posture sank slightly and I clenched and unclenched my fist, resisting the urge to run my hand along my face.

That wasn’t proper.

In an effort to distract myself, I looked around the room.

It was cluttered.

Pictures, books, and things filled every horizontal surface in the room.

Clothes and blankets were strewn about, and I assumed this is where the rest of Potter’s protectors slept.

I wondered if they rotated someone to stay up and keep watch.

The couch looked old and worn, and I was not looking forward to laying on it.

The pattern was also a crime against all things elegant.

“Uh…..”

I turned at the sound of the voice, seeing Weasley in the doorway.

He cleared his throat and shifted uncomfortably.

I raised an eyebrow.

He mumbled a very fast “supper will be ready soon.”

I nodded.  “Thank you.”

As he exited, I tilted my head to the ceiling.

Salazar, help me.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

I walked into the dining area as everyone began to sit down.

There were several chairs that clearly weren’t supposed to be there crowded around the table.

It was odd; to be sitting around the dining table and eating like a family in such a time of fear and chaos.

But maybe that’s why they did it.

My gaze raked the room, spotting the only empty chair.  I moved towards it, ignoring everyone’s stares.  Pulling the seat out, I sat between Professor Lupin and what I assumed to be another Weasley.

This one I didn’t recognize.

The room was extremely quiet and tense as people began to get food.

I waited until everyone was served before getting some, myself.

The silence stretched on.

I swallowed the food in my mouth.  “If you would prefer to talk with me out of the room, I’ll leave,” I said, not looking up from my plate as I cut some beef.

“We’re just surprised, is all.”

I looked to the head of the table at Mister Weasley.  “Because I’m a Slytherin, right?”  I shrugged one shoulder, looking around the room.  “You all just assume I’m here to spy for You-Know-Who, don’t you?  I’ve got news,” I raised an eyebrow, “not all Gryffindors are saints, either.”

Several beats passed.

I rolled my eyes, taking my napkin off my lap and dropping it on the table before awkwardly sliding my chair back away from the table.

It was so ridiculously tight in here.

Finally freed from the table, I stood up, marching out of the room and back upstairs.

I wasn’t hungry anyway.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bloody Gryffindors.

Just as prejudiced as they accuse Slytherins of being.

I sighed, placing my chin on my hands as my elbows rested on my knees.

Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all.

The hushed sounds of conversation- tense, but conversation- floated upstairs.

I fought tears.

It was scary to not belong.

Maybe I had become too used to belonging; too comfortable.

I always had a home to go to.  Loving parents.  A best friend.  My best friend’s home, when I didn’t feel like being at mine…

The sound of footsteps startled me from my thoughts.

I turned, looking up from my spot on the staircase.

The Weasley that was next to me for ‘supper’ approached, stopping at the bottom of the steps.

I resisted the urge to cross my arms, instead sitting up straighter and placing my hands on my knees.  I looked up at him.

It was silent for a few moments.

The Weasley cleared his throat and gestured vaguely before putting his hands in his pockets.  “Are you hungry?”

“I’m fine.”  I raised an eyebrow.  Truth be told, I was a little hungry, but I would rather not eat for a few days than experience whatever that was again.

He nodded, his fang earring jingling with the action.  He pursed his lips, his gaze fixed on the banister beside me.  “You can come back downstairs and eat, if you want.”

I let out a short, humorless laugh.  “No, thank you.  We’re all more comfortable if I don’t do that.  Besides,” I leaned back slightly, “if I’m up here, you all can discuss your plans without worrying about me hearing.”  I raised a challenging eyebrow.  “Although, I am surprised no one placed an Imperturbable charm.”

The Weasley nodded again, this time more slowly.  His gaze shifted towards me for a few seconds before he turned around and walked back out.

My eyebrows furrowed and I turned to look out the window.  What in the world-

The footsteps returned.

I whipped my head around.

The Weasley stopped by me again, handing me the plate I had earlier.  He looked at me for a few beats before exiting the room.

I stared at the doorway, dumbfounded.  Pulling myself from my shock, I looked down at my plate he had thrust into my hands.

I huffed a small chuckle.

He had forgotten the silverware.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Two days had passed since I first arrived at the Weasleys’ house; “the Burrow”, as they called it.

I had taken to referring to all of the redheads by their first names, at least when more than one was in the same room.

There were simply too many of them to all be called “Weasley”.

I marched up the stairs, pausing to look out the window.

No sign of anything.

A ‘pop’ sound filled my ears.

I spun around.  “Missy!”

The elf looked up at me with her giant eyes.  “Mistress!”

“Anything to report?”  I gazed down at her, hoping she would have discovered something- anything- useful.

Missy looked around, clutching her hands together at her chest.  She spoke in a whisper.  “Missy heard You-Know-Who say something about a cup in Lestrange’s bank vault.”

I looked down at the ground in thought, mouthing ‘her bank vault’ as my eyebrows furrowed.  Shaking my head, I shifted my gaze back to the elf.  “Anything else?”

“He spoke a lot about Harry Potter and the elder wand,” she said, her high-pitched voice quieting even further.

My eyes widened.  “The elder wand?”

Missy nodded.

“Oh dear.”  I took a deep breath.  “Is that everything?”

Missy paused, cocking her head as she tried to remember.  One of her long, pointy ears drooped.  “You-Know-Who wants to kill Harry Potter, himself.  It was very important to him.”  She fidgeted with her hands.  “I’m sorry Missy couldn’t find out more!”

I looked down at her.  “No, you did a wonderful job,” I said, somewhat distractedly.  “You should head back to my parents before they get suspicious.”

She nodded.

“Thank you, Missy.”

A smile appeared on her face.  Looking up at me, she snapped her fingers and vanished.

I stared at the now-vacant spot on the floor for a few seconds before turning around, hurrying to search the house.

Potter.  I had to find Potter.

I stepped into the dining room- which also happened to be the plotting area- the sound of my steps drawing everyone’s attention to me.  I ignored their confused looks as my eyes swept across the room.

He wasn’t here.

“Have any of you seen Potter,” I questioned.

“I think he’s with Ron,” Weasley- Bill- said.  His eyebrows furrowed.  “Everything alright?”

I looked over at him.

What an odd question at a time like this.

I placed my hand on the doorframe.  “Is anything?”  Pushing off, I spun around and ran to Ron’s room.

If my parents could see me running- to a boys’ room no less- they would have a coronary.

I frowned as I hurried up the steps, my feet heavy and loud against the wood.

They didn’t seem to care how I would react to them becoming Death Eaters.

Shaking my head, I rounded a corner and rapped assertively on Ron’s bedroom door.  I only had to wait a couple seconds for it to open.

Ron stood in the doorway, his hand still on the knob.  An eyebrow raised upon seeing me.

“Is Potter with you?”  I fought against the urge to try to see around the redhead’s form.  “I need to talk to him.”

Ron paused for a brief moment, looking me up and down- as if to inspect me- before nodding.  “Yeah, he’s in here.”  He took a step backwards, opening up the room for me.

“Thank you,” I said, striding in.  My eyes almost instantly landed on the boy sitting on the floor.  “Potter.”

“Hunt.”

I heard the door close behind me.  “I need to talk to you.”

The ‘Chosen One’ sat up straighter.

Ron moved towards us, standing between me and his friend, forming a small circle.

Potter glanced at the two of us before standing, himself.

I held his gaze intently.  “Missy came back.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Are you sure about this?”

I paused once I heard the voices, stopping before I rounded the corner.

“We have to look into it,” Potter said.  “There’s too much at risk to ignore.”

“What if it’s a trap,” Mister Weasley asked.

“I don’t think it is.”

“What if her elf was spotted and they let the information slip to lure you in?”

When a few beats of silence followed, I moved into view.

They both turned to look at me.

“Are you leaving, Potter?”

He nodded.  “The sooner this is taken care of, the better.”

Mister Weasley excused himself, walking out.

I nodded back to Potter.  “Be careful.”

“Thanks.”  Pausing briefly, his gaze dropped to the floor before looking back at me.  “What are you going to do?”

“Probably go back into hiding; see what else I can do from the shadows.”  I clasped my hands and pursed my lips, avoiding his gaze.

“Alright.  Are we doin this, or what?”

I turned at the sound of Ron’s voice.

He stood in the doorway, Granger by his side.

Potter straightened his posture.  “Right.”  He walked passed me, towards his friends.  “We’d…better say our goodbyes,” he said to them quietly.

They nodded.

Looking at me over his shoulder, Potter waved.  “Thanks for all your help.”  He paused.  “We appreciate it.”

“Oh, I didn’t do much,” I argued.  “But, you’re welcome.”

He let out a small sigh and turned to his companions.  “Alright, come on.”  He ushered them out of the doorway and out of sight.

I stared at the empty space where they had been standing, a sudden sinking feeling settling into the pit of my stomach.

For some reason I felt as though I’d sent them to their deaths.

~~~~~~~~~~

The night sky filled with a sudden bright light.

I looked up, squinting my now-sensitive eyes.  Moving around a tree to see better, I could make out whitish-bluish flashes, similar to fireworks.

Spells.

My gaze trailed down, seeing they sparked over Hogwarts.

Something was going down.

Something big.

I frowned, turning away.

Just look the other way, Hunt.  That’s not your battle, I told myself, resuming my walk to my hideout.

It was the smallest cave I had ever seen, barely big enough to fit me and a few necessities.

I sat down on the jacket I had laid on the stone ground, frowning.

I couldn’t live like this.

No one could.

But that’s how everyone would be living if Voldemort won.

My eyes narrowed.  Turning my head, I glanced back at the sky, barely able to still see the flashing from my location.

Allowing myself to sigh, I pushed myself to my feet, pulling out my wand.  I ran to a clearing, staring over at the school.

The school that held so many of my memories.

The blue shell around Hogwarts turned to orange and began to dissipate.

The shield was broken.

I tightened my grip on my wand.

Time to stop running.

~~~~~~~~~~

Everything was chaos.

I apparated from the shore to the school grounds, dodging a falling piece of wall.

“Get inside!”

I turned, seeing Professor McGonagall gesturing towards the castle.

People ran by me, too quickly and too numerous for me to make out any faces.

I winced as another explosion hit the wall.

She didn’t have to tell me twice.

Running with the crowd, I hurried inside, spinning around as I tried to find Potter.

Knowing him, he was going to do something incredibly stupid.

I spotted a flash of red hair and ran towards it.  “Ginny!”

She spun around, her eyebrows furrowed as she looked for the source of the voice.  Her gaze landed on me and her eyes widened.  “Hunt?”

“Have you seen Potter?”  I stopped next to her.  “I’m terribly afraid he’s going to do something foolish.”

“He ran that way.”  She pointed.  “But-”

“Thank you,” I called over my shoulder as I took off running.

He was probably faster than me, so I had to be extra fast to catch up, but not too fast to the point where I’d miss something.

“Potter!?”  I ran through the hallways, letting out a yell as I turned a corner and nearly tripped over a collapsed wall.

Debris lined this entire hallway.

I saw a figure disappear into the wall on the other side.

The Room of Requirement.

I apparated to the spot to avoid trying to climb over the rubble and jumped in just before the door closed.

Letting out a sharp exhale as I looked behind me at the closed door, I turned back to face the room.

It was extremely crowded, full of……things.  Random things like chairs and dishes, tables, cupboards, and more.

“Potter?”  I moved forward, looking around.

“Hunt?”

Turning my head to the right, I saw the boy by a stack of objects, looking at a box.  I walked over.

“What are you doing here?”

“I’m here to help,” I said, coming to a stop alongside him.

He nodded.  “It’s good to see you.”

I smiled.  “You, too.”  I looked around.  “What are you doing in here?”

Potter nodded down at the box.  “I came for this.”  Opening the lid, he picked up a crown from inside.  “Ravenclaw’s diadem.  A Horcrux.”

I blinked at him as he stared down at it.

He began stroking the object.

I backed away slightly, further behind a stack of nonsense, eyebrows furrowing.

“Well, well.”

I froze at the sound of the voice, ducking more out of sight.

Potter snapped out of his state, looking to the right.

“What brings you here, Potter?”

Harry moved slightly more into the open.  “I could ask you the same.”

“You have something of mine.”  A brief pause.  “I’d like it back.”

“Well, what’s wrong with the one you have,” Harry asked, gesturing vaguely.

“It’s my mother’s,” Draco answered.  “It’s powerful, but it’s…not the same.  Doesn’t quite…understand me.”  Another pause.  “Know what I mean?”

I frowned.

“Why didn’t you tell her?”  Potter stared ahead.  “Bellatrix.  You knew it was me.”  He shook his head slightly.  “You didn’t say anything.”

My head turned to look at Harry.

Draco did what?

I heard hushed whispers from where Draco was.

Potter reached for his wand.

I pulled mine out, ready to join the fight.

“Expelliarmus!”

Turning, I saw Granger with her wand pointed in Draco’s direction.

The sound of wood hitting the floor implied her spell was successful.

“Avada Kedavra!”

I recognized the voice of Goyle’s as a flash of green struck close to Granger.

“Stupefy!”

The diadem went flying into a couch atop one of the stacks.

Ron ran passed my hiding spot, his wand extended as he yelled.  “That’s my girlfriend, you numpties!”

I stepped out of my corner as Potter and Granger began climbing, the objects wobbling from their weight.  I lifted my wand.  “Accio couch!”

The couch lifted from its perch, floating down to the floor.

I reached in the cushion, pulling out the crown and holding it up.  “Is this what you’re looking for?”

Potter and Granger exchanged a look before climbing down.

I handed the Horcrux to Harry before turning, pointing my wand at the floor.  “Accio wand.”

Mrs. Malfoy’s wand flew to my hand.

I pocketed it.

A yell filled the room.

We all turned, seeing Ron running towards us, an orange glow behind him.

“Goyle set the bloody place on fire!”  He ran by, grabbing Granger and pulling her with him.

“The fool!”  I gestured at all the wooden furniture around.  “This place will go up in a matter of minutes!”

Potter and I both turned, seeing a snake made of fire slithering towards us.

My eyes widened.  “He set a Fiendfyre!?!”

“Let’s go!”  Potter turned around and began running, me on his heels.

We followed Ron and Granger, turning corners as we tried to avoid fire snakes, birds and tigers.

Granger and Ron slid to a halt, Potter and I running into their backs.

“We’re cornered!”  Granger yelled as fire rushed from the front.

Potter turned around, casting a shielding spell right as fire approached us.

The force of the collision sent us all backwards, Ron falling into flying brooms.

He picked them up, passing them out.

“Not again,” I muttered as I accepted one.

“Hope you know how to fly these things,” Ron said.

Granger climbed onto the broom behind him and they took off.

Potter and I followed suit.

“Come on, this way!”  Ron exclaimed, nodding his head to the side.

We flew passed a tall stack.

Two figures stood atop it.

“Wait; we can’t let them die,” I yelled, trying to be heard over the fire.

Ron looked at me in disbelief.  “You’re joking, right!?”

My eyes narrowed.  “You know me; the jokester.”  I turned around, leaning down as the broom sped towards them.

Draco and Blaise.

Using all of my courage, I let go with one hand, extending it down as I neared Draco.

He reached up.

I zipped passed him, fingers grazing his hand.  “No!”  I turned around as quickly as I could, seeing Potter grabbing Draco.  I breathed a sigh of relief, heading towards Blaise.  As I approached, I slowed my broom, helping him on.

“Let’s get out of here!”  Ron turned around, leading the way out.

We all dodged the flames, a gasp leaving my throat as some fire sparked up, closer than comfortable.

Granger shot a spell, clearing a path.

Zipping through it, we neared the door, an explosion behind us pushing us through it.

We all tumbled off our brooms.

The diadem hit the ground.

“Harry!”

Potter caught something that Granger tossed to him, stabbing the Horcrux.

Black mist erupted from it.

Ron rushed forward, kicking it back into the Room of Requirement, into the flames.

Three fiery Voldemort faces yelled, rushing towards the door before it closed.

We all sat on the floor, trying to catch our breath.

I turned.

Draco and Blaise were gone.

Scrambling to my feet, I looked around.

Where on earth…?

“I’ve gotta go,” I informed absentmindedly.  My eyes scanned the hallway.  “Be careful, guys.”  With nothing more than a sincere look at them from over my shoulder, I took off down the corridor.

They couldn’t have gotten far.

My steps slowed and I halted with a sigh.

Unless they apparated.

I spun in a circle, looking around.

They could be literally anywhere.

Okay, think, Hunt.  Where would Draco go?

Somewhere he felt safe.

I apparated to the Slytherin common room.

Draco whipped around at the sound of my apparation, pointing a wand at me.  His eyes widened and his poised arm lowered slightly as we made eye contact.  “You’re the last person I expected to see here,” he said hesitantly.

“I’m the last person who would have expected myself to be here.”  I dropped my gaze to his wand briefly before nodding at it.  “Who’s is that?”

“I don’t know.”  He answered quickly, with a bit of a shake in his voice.

“So you don’t know how it pairs with you…”

“I tested it.”  He looked at it for a moment before looking back at me.  “It’ll have to do.”

“Not necessarily.”  I reached into my pocket, pulling out his mother’s wand.

His eyes softened with recognition almost instantly.  He looked up at me.  “How do I know this isn’t a trick?”

My eyes narrowed in offense.  “Why would it be a trick?”

“You’re with Potter and his friends, now.  That means you’re…” he paused, his expression falling.  “You’re an enemy of mine.”

“I’m not here to fight you, Draco.”

“Yeah?  Then what are you here for?”

“I came to keep Potter safe.  I came to protect the school I grew up in.”  I frowned.  “I came to find you.”

“You still stand against the Dark Lord, then.”

“Of course.”

His bottom lip trembled and his jaw clenched.  “I’m sorry.”  He shot a stunning spell at me.

I lifted my wand, producing a shield.  My eyes widened as I stared at him in disbelief.

He took half a step backwards and sent another one.

I blocked it, but barely, almost too shocked to think.

He sent two more.

They were easily deflected.

Draco huffed.  “Fight back!”

“No.”  I frowned.  “I don’t want to hurt you.”

His eyes widened and his posture stiffened before deflating.  “If I don’t at least try to hurt you, they’re gonna kill me,” he hissed.

“Why are you on their side,” I hissed back.  “You know it’s wrong!  There’s more people than ever in one place that want to take Voldemort down!  This is our best opportunity at beating him!”  I frowned.  “It may be our last.”  My eyes narrowed.  “Do you want to be remembered as a cowardly Death Eater who went down with Voldemort?  Or do you want to be remembered as the boy who did the right thing?  The boy that defected when it mattered the most?”

A high pitched noise filled my ears.

I winced.

Based on Draco’s expression, he heard it, too.

The sound was followed by a voice in my head.

“You have fought…valiantly, but in vain.  I do not wish this: every drop of magical blood spilt is a terrible waste.  I therefore command my forces to retreat.  In their absence, dispose of your dead with dignity.  Harry Potter…I now speak directly to you.  On this night, you have allowed your friends to die for you rather than face me, yourself.  There is no greater dishonor.  Join me in the Forbidden Forest and confront your fate.  If you do not do this, I shall kill every last man, woman and child who tries to conceal you from me.”

Draco and I made eye contact.

The blond gestured, a snarl on his face.  “See?!  He’s going to kill you!”  His voice dropped as his expression softened.  “You can’t fight him.”

I stood up straighter, my eyes narrowing as I clenched my hand that was around my wand.  “I’d rather die against him than live for him.”  I turned to leave but paused.  Looking over my shoulder at him, I tossed him his mother’s wand before walking away, leaving my back exposed.

Only when I turned the corner did I break into a jog.

I had to find Potter.

Again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

I stopped, looking around the castle.

Where was everybody?

Stepping outside into the courtyard, I saw where everyone had gone.

Voldemort stood across from all the students, his Death Eaters behind him.  “Harry Potter….is dead!”

My eyes widened.

We failed.

“No!  No!!!”  Ginny rushed forward, but Arthur grabbed her shoulder, pulling her back.

“Silence!  Stupid girl.  Harry Potter…is dead.  From this day forth…you put your faith…in me.”  Voldemort turned around, walking towards his Death Eaters as he extended his arms.  “Harry Potter is dead!”

They all made various sounds of approval and excitement.

I spotted Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy at the front of the pack.

My parents weren’t far behind them.

Voldemort turned back around to face us, laughing.  “And now is the time to declare yourself.”  He extended his arms.  “Come forward and join us.”  His smile fell.  “Or die.”

Silence stretched on.

Mr. Malfoy shifted a little on his feet.  “Draco.”

All heads turned.

Draco was standing amongst the rest of the students, towards the back.  He looked around.

“Draco,” Mrs. Malfoy said softly.  “Come.”

The boy swallowed, his gaze darting around.  It settled on me.

My eyes silently pleaded with him.

Draco, please.

He began walking forward.

My eyes closed in disappointment as I fought tears.  A gasp left my throat as I felt a hand wrap around mine.  My eyes shot open, looking over at the culprit.

Draco tightened his hold on my hand, staring across the gap.  His eyes moved from his parents, to Voldemort, then back to his parents.  He swallowed nervously.  “I think I’ll stay right here.”

The students all looked over at Voldemort and the Death Eaters in shock, waiting to see what they would do.

“Draco,” Mr. Malfoy muttered, his eyes wide.

I had never seen Draco’s father look so unhealthy.

Dark circles under his eyes, unshaven, long blond hair stringy and unkempt, and paler than a ghost; he truly looked one step from death.

Voldemort pointed a long-nailed finger at Draco.  “I will deal with you later.”

I frowned, stepping slightly in front of the blond.

Voldemort turned to the rest of the students.  “Anyone who doesn’t want to die…”

Longbottom began limping forward.

Everyone stared on in shock.

“Well, I must say I hoped for better,” Voldemort said.

The Death Eaters all laughed.

Voldemort moved towards the Gryffindor.  “And who might you be, young man?”

“Neville Longbottom.”

More laughter.

Voldemort moved back slightly.  “Well, Neville, I’m sure we can find a place for you in our ranks-”

“I’d like to say somethin’.”

A few beats passed.

“Well, Neville, I’m sure we’d all be fascinated to hear what you have to say.”

“It doesn’t matter that Harry’s gone.”

“Stand down, Neville,” Seamus Finnigan urged.

Longbottom turned towards him.  “People die every day!  Friends…family.”  He paused.  “Yeah.  We lost Harry tonight.  But he’s still with us.”  He brought his free hand- what was he holding in the other one- up to his heart.  “In here.”  He looked around.  “So is Fred.”

My eyes widened in shock.

“Remus.  Tonks.  All of them.  But they didn’t die in vain!”  He hobbled back around to look at Voldemort.  “But you will!”

The Dark Lord started laughing.

Longbottom went on.  “Cause you’re wrong!  Harry’s heart did beat for us!  For all of us!”  He pulled a sword out of the object he was holding.  “It’s not over!”

Potter fell out of Hagrid’s grasp.

He stood up.

Everyone gasped.

I squeezed Draco’s hand.

Voldemort’s smile fell.

Potter shot a fireball at Voldemort’s snake.

The fire ricocheted off it.

Potter ran as Voldemort began casting fire spells at him.

Some of the Death Eaters vanished into smoke.

Potter hurried back towards the castle, ushering everyone inside.

I pulled Draco along behind me as Voldemort and the Death Eaters began approaching.

“We have to kill the snake,” Potter informed a little breathless.

Longbottom rushed forward.

Voldemort shot a spell at him, sending the Gryffindor flying backwards, before apparating away with his snake.

The Death Eaters kept approaching.

My eyes narrowed.  “Barricade the doors!”  Letting go of Draco’s hand, I rushed forward, grunting as I tried to close the doors.

Draco appeared on my left, helping to push them shut.

A few other students came forward to assist.

Once the doors were closed I flicked my wand at some of the tables, sending them flying towards the doors.

They piled up at the entrance, blocking it off.

More students aided in the action.

When all of the tables were set, everyone backed up, watching as the doors and the pile shook as the Death Eaters tried to get in.

The sound of breaking glass drew my attention to the windows.

Voldemort’s followers flew in as puffs of smoke before landing on the floor and beginning to cast spells.

Another fight broke out.

I produced spell after spell, barely thinking about what I was casting.

“No!!”

I froze at the sound of my father’s voice.  Turning around, I saw him kneeling on the floor.

He was clutching my mother to his chest.

My wand lowered and my shoulders slumped as I stared at the pair.

My father buried his head into my mother’s hair, sobbing.

I heard my name yelled.

I whipped around, seeing a shielding spell block an attack at me before my assailant was struck with another spell.  Turning to the left, I saw Draco approach.

“Are you alright,” he asked, stopping when he reached a foot away from me.

I blinked up at him with wide eyes, nodding slightly.

“Normally you’re more careful than tha-”  His eyes drifted over my shoulder and his sentence died in his throat.

I turned around, watching my father briefly.

“I’m sorry.”

I looked back to Draco as he lowered his gaze to meet mine.  My eyes narrowed as I looked away.  “They never should have gotten involved.”

“She-” Draco paused, “This could have happened even if they didn’t.”

“Not like this, at least.”  I looked back up at him.  “Where are your pare- look out!”  I pulled Draco with me to the ground, dodging a curse.  From the floor, I snarled as I shot a spell back.

It hit the target and the Death Eater collapsed.

Draco rolled off me to work on getting himself to his feet.  “I don’t know.”  He stood, wiping his hands on his already-dirty black slacks.  “I haven’t seen them.”  Reaching down, he helped me up.

We both winced as a blast hit the wall by us.

Looking at each other, I readjusted my grip on my wand.  “Be careful.”

“You, too.”

At my nod, Draco ran off to rejoin the fight.

I glanced back at my father before lifting my head higher and walking away.

~~~~~~~~~~

I let out a yell as I stunned another Death Eater.

He collapsed.

Gasping for air, I looked around.

Every student in the room was standing, catching their own breath.

The three Death Eaters that remained turned into smoke, speeding out of the windows and into the sky.

Silence stretched on and the dust seemed to settle.

I looked around at all the bodies on the floor.

Some of enemies.

Some of friends.

Letting out a sigh, I looked towards the blasted-open doors.

Even the courtyard was quiet.

Forcing my aching and battered body to move, I made my way outside.

Potter was standing in the middle, staring at the ground as he took in labored breaths.  He looked up at the sound of my footsteps.

“Are you alright, Potter?”

He nodded.  “Fine.  You?”

I shrugged one shoulder.  “Fine.”  My gaze dropped to the two wands he held; one in each hand.  “It’s over, then?”

He nodded, looking up into the sky and wincing at the slight sunlight peeking through the clouds.

“What happened?”

“Turned into ash…” Potter looked back at me.  “Drifted away.”

I pursed my lips and nodded, my eyebrows furrowing in slight confusion.

At the call of my name, I turned to the right, seeing Draco running- and what an odd sight it was- towards me.

I grinned- tiredly- as he approached.  “You’re okay.”  My eyes scanned his face, seeing his head had been bleeding, but it dried, and a couple bruises, burns and scratches.  Nothing more.  Or at least that was visible.

“So are you,” he bent down, wrapping me in a hug.

I winced in slight pain, but hugged him back.  Pulling away first, I adjusted my weight to be on my right leg a little less.

Draco looked down at me, raising a questioning eyebrow.

I nodded, waving a hand at him.

Draco nodded once in satisfaction before looking up at the Boy Who Lived.  “Thank you, Potter.”

It sounded slightly strained, but it was better than he usually gave.

Potter huffed a small laugh.  “Thank you.  For choosing to fight alongside me.”

Draco looked down at me.  “It wasn’t without convincing.”

I smiled up at him.

Potter cleared his throat.  “I’d better go check on everybody else.”  He pointed back to the castle before walking away.

I chuckled, turning slightly to watch him leave.

Once the boy was out of sight, Draco stepped around to my front.  He tucked some of my fallen stray hairs out of my face.  “It’s about time I did this properly.”

I raised an eyebrow.  “Oh?”

Draco reached his right hand forward, cupping the back of my neck.  His grey eyes shifted between mine.  Slowly leaning down, he pressed his lips to mine.

I closed my eyes, kissing him back with as much love as I could muster.

All of my memories from the past six years of my life came flooding back to me.  Meeting Draco, befriending him, growing up together, realizing our relationship was developing, the fear, the frustration, the betrayal, the hurt, and the pride.

It was almost too much to bear.

We pulled away.

Draco rested his forehead on mine.  “I love you.”

Tears that felt entirely unprompted slipped down my cheeks.

“I love you, too.”

Draco lifted his head, frowning as he noticed my tears.  Raising his hands, he swiped his thumbs over my cheeks, brushing the tears away.

I placed my hands on top of his.

“Are you going to be alright?”

I let out an exhale through my nose before nodding.  “As long as I have you.”

He smiled, lowering his hands and wrapping one around mine.  “I wouldn’t dream of going anywhere.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/n: 58 pages! Truly horrific! lol. Had a blast writing it, though. I also realize my 'sneak peak' out of context looked like an 'arranged marriage' story, but...it was too late.

I wanted to make Hunt clearly a Slytherin, with questionable Slytherin ideals, having grown up in a pureblooded Slytherin home, but I didn't want her to be evil. I tried to find a balance.

And I know McGonagall only taught the Gryffindors how to dance, but I thought I’d shake it up a little.

Just one note, I think:

- Hunt used some of her family’s wealth to go from motel room to motel room.  She used a different name each time in order to try to stay hidden.

[silverynight]

Hot spring

Shinobu knows Giyuu is hiding something; he used to avoid his own estate and now he spends the majority of his time (when he's not on a mission) there.

It's weird. She brings it up to the others before a meeting (because Giyuu is running late) and they don't seem to find it as fascinating as she does, until they see the water hashira in a good mood later that day. He even smiles at something Mitsuri says and that's when they start looking at each other with the same shocked expressions on their faces.

"We want to see your estate, it's been a while since we've been there," Tengen says suddenly, staring at the other hashira to see his reaction.

"No," Giyuu blurts out, then he realizes that his answer is odd, judging by the way Kyojuro's brows quirk up and he adds: "I mean... There's nothing interesting going on there. I don't see the point."

"We still want to go." Sanemi says, trying not to smirk at the obvious reluctance in the water hashira's face.

Perhaps he realizes that acting like that is getting the opposite effect of what he's trying to achieve, because after a couple of seconds, he nods.

"Alright, but don't say I didn't warn you. There's nothing interesting there."

***

Shinobu is so disappointed... Everything seems to be as usual in the estate. Nothing shocking... There's a few kakushi and some slayers walking around, some of them are training. But there's nothing going on.

The others look at her, Tengen rolls his eyes and even Gyomei sits on the ground to start meditating.

"Satisfied?" Giyuu asks, trying not to smile with amusement at them.

"No!" Mitsuri pouts, prompting Obanai to stare fondly at her. "At least let's go to the hot spring–"

"No," Giyuu cuts her off, drawing everyone's attention back to him. It's a mistake and he knows it. "It's not... ready."

"Let's go anyway," Muichiro says, already heading towards there.

Gyomei rises from the ground and Shinobu tries not to grin triumphantly because she knows she's about to find out the big secret.

When they get there, it seems like there's just a normal, boring hot spring, but suddenly they hear a splash and a beautiful boy comes out of the water. He doesn't get out completely so they only can see part of his shoulders.

"I'm glad you're back, Tomioka-san!" The redhead smiles in a way that makes everyone melt. Even Gyomei, but maybe it's because of the sound of his sweet voice. "Are they your friends? Hi! Nice to meet you, I'm Kamado Tanjirou!"

Of course, the hashira are pretty much charmed already, so they introduce themselves.

"Can we join you?" Kyojuro asks, eyes glimmering like they're on fire. Shinobu can tell he's quite taken with the redhead already. Well, all of them are.

"NO!" Giyuu yells at the same time Tanjirou nods: "Yes, of course!"

"But, Tanjirou..."

"It's alright, Tomioka-san. I can tell we can trust them."

That's when they notice the boy has pointy ears. They look cute, even though they're not–

And then there's another splash, Tanjirou moves and they realize there's a beautiful ruby fish tail... That's attached to his body.

"You're keeping a merman?" Obanai asks, turning around to look at Giyuu.

"How?"

"Why?"

"It's okay!" Tanjirou assures them. "He saved me a while ago and has allowed me to stay here, because a couple of demons are looking for me. He's been very kind to me."

At that Giyuu turns completely red in seconds and Shinobu just knows why he's been doing all of that for that sweet merman. But she doesn't blame him.

"Can I touch you?" Gyomei asks and Tanjirou immediately agrees before Giyuu can say anything against it.

The stone hashira is very gentle actually, but when he gets to Tanjirou's ears, the merman's cheeks turn slightly pink.

"We'll take care of you," Gyomei promises.

"There's no need–"

"That's an excellent idea!" Sanemi smirks mischievously, cutting Giyuu off. "We'll get rid of any demon who tries to harm you."

"That's very sweet of you."

Shinobu can tell Tanjirou is special because just with a few kind words he leaves the wind hashira speechless and very flustered.

"Would you also help me find my sister? I know she's still out there..."

"Anything for you, my boy!" Kyojuro promises with a huge grin on his face.

Giyuu is already grimacing like he's in pain because now he's not the only one who gets to spend time with Tanjirou. He knows already they'll be in his estate at every single opportunity they have.

"So... Can we get in the hot spring?" Mitsuri asks, face turning completely red in seconds.

"Of course!"

At least he's the only one planning to court him... right?

***

Patreon

[spaceofentropy]

Thank you, @ihni , for the baton! Without further ado, here's my contribution to the Harringrove Relay Race!

It's a little fic (that I'll post on ao3 later, when I'm awake and cosplaying as a functioning human) and that is very cleverly (not really) titled...

A Pirate's Life For Me

Billy's always known he wasn't lucky in life and this, right here, is the culmination of it all.

Not even two months at sea, working his ass off for a meager pay in the hopes of earning enough to exstinguish the debts his father and Chrissy's father put on their shoulders before dying, and his ship gets captured by pirates.

Worse: captured by the Dread Pirate Roberts, who has a reputation as a great swordman and a ruthless bastard who doesn't leave survivors.

Billy did his best in the fight, but he's just a farm boy turned deck swabber, his swordmanship goes very little further than "the handle goes into your hand, the pointy part goes inside the enemy". So now he's kneeling, hands raised, on the deck of the Panthaira, along with the rest of the surviving crew and passengers.

Well, with all the survivors except Captain Loman, who's huddled against the main mast. The Dread Pirate Roberts is crouched in front of the captain and talking to him in a low voice while the captain clearly draws his last breaths, shirt painted a vivid red with the blood gushing from the puncture wounds in his chest. Loman was a petty tyrant, so Billy is not exactly bawling his eyes out at the prospect of the captain being gone soon. It's just the principle of the thing that counts. The Panthaira has been captured, and, to put it mildly, Billy is fucked.

There are too many pirates keeping them under threat of more stabbing, and also no damn place to go even if he were able to escape the ship. They're in the middle of the ocean, nothing but water in every direction for hundred if not thousands of miles.

So Billy stays where he is.

And looks either at the back of the Dread Pirate Roberts or at the slow rising and falling of Loman's chest.

He waits and hates how his arms are getting heavier and heavier by the second. Soon, he'll be dead and, back home, Chrissy will have to mourn her best friend too, not just her parents.

Captain Loman's chest at last goes still and Roberts extends a careful, gloved hand to close the man's unseeing eyes, before turning towards his prisoners in one swift, elegant movement.

Robert's dressed all in black and wearing a mask, just like the stories say. He has long brown hair tied in a low pony tail, and dark eyes that sweep the crew and passengers of the Panthaira like he can weigh the wort of each of them with just one look.

Billy lets his hands fall down, tired of this charade. If he's gonna die anyway, what good comes from obeying? Might as well die with some feeling left in his arms.

Someone shouts at Billy to raise his hands again and he just ignores him. Roberts is walking their way, his steps slow and his attention pointedly fixed on cleaning blood off the blade of his sword.

Somewhere behind Billy, a woman starts weeping. One of the crew members pleads for his life. Another offers all the money he's got to be spared.

Bunch of cowards.

Roberts stops in front of Billy, ignores everyone else.

"You're not pleading," he says in such a voice and cold tone that the people around them fall silent, too scared of what's happening.

"I don't plead."

"Aren't you scared, boy?"

"To death."

Roberts grins. It makes the moles on his cheek dance.

"Should I bestow on you the sweet mercy of death, then, or not?"

Billy licks his lips and grins back.

"You should let me live, sir."

"And why should I make an exception?"

That's the true problem. Both Billy and Roberts know it, judging by the predatory look in his eyes.

Why, indeed.

"True love?" Billy tries.

Roberts laughs.

"She must be an exceptional lay, to make you believe someone will let you live only so that you'll be able to bed her again!"

"Wouldn't know, I've never wanted to fuck my best friend. Is there truest, purest love than the one that's never been tainted by lust or carnal needs?"

The Dread Pirate Roberts laughs even more and then shakes his head.

"Unbelievable," he says in a stage whisper. "What's your name, boy?"

"Billy."

"Well, Billy, I find myself in sudden need of a personal attendant." Roberts pauses for a beat, cocks his head to the side. Predatory is now an understatement for the look in those dark eyes. "Do a good job and one day you'll be able to return home to your best friend. Do a bad job, and your friend will never see you again. Are you interested in the position?"

Billy grits his teeth and never lets his gaze waver from Roberts.

The decision is so simple he doesn't even need to think about it. He nods and Roberts smiles.

Billy doesn't know what's in his future, but he'll do all he can to survive whatever Roberts throws his way and then return home. His best friend is waiting for him.

And with this, my installment of the race is done and it's time to head over to @liverditty in an hour for his contribution! I can't wait to see what he created for this beautiful event! In the mean time, thank you for reading, fair tumblr users, and thanks for organizing this, @harringrove-relay-race ! ❤️

[satureja13]

Rubyn is so glad the Boys are going to help Albaleyh - she ordered their uniforms right after she left. And the boxes already got delivered! That was fast! Luckily she has an instructor's license so she can officially teach them everything they need to know about space travels. And as soon as they passed all the tests, they can boldly go where no man has gone before! Or so ^^'

They all undressed to donne their new uniforms. Sai had to avert his gaze. Jeb is too hot to handle right now :3

Jeb opened the first box: "This is apparently the box with our pyjamas..." Kiyoshi spent enough time with Jack, the nerd, to know that: "These are no pyjamas. They're uniforms." They opened the other box. Vlad: "Is this a joke? I'm not going to wear the uniforms from the enemy!" Jack tried to pacify him: "Don't be upset, hm?"

But Vlad, who doesn't want to be pacified, shouted over to Rubyn, who was impatiently waiting for them in the yard: "Rubyn, they sent the wrong ones! We can't wear these!" Rubyn, on the verge of loosing her nerves with their whining and dawdling: "These are the right ones! Have you any idea how much a Star Wars™ instructor's license costs these days since Disney imbibed them? I had no choice! There are kids out there missing their father! Put your uniforms on and come over already so we can get your nagging asses off of this planet!"

Oh no! Rubyn is apparently a Starfleet instructor ö.ö' And she got them official Star Trek uniforms... The others think they are not exactly pretty, but they have no idea why Vlad is so upset. And Ji Ho thinks Kiyoshi looks quite dashing, which upsets Vlad only further ö.Ö'

Jeb: "Why are these the uniforms of 'the enemy'?" Jack: "These are Star Trek uniforms. We like Star Wars." Jeb: "What's the difference?" Sai was already googling: "There is absolutely no difference..."

Jack thinks it's better for Vlad's salvation if they stop this discussion before anyone gets hurt: "Let's go out and start our training ^^'"

Rubyn praised them: "Ah, how stunning you look! Nothing radiates distinctive authority like a Starfleet uniform! And Jack, I'm glad you choose Worf's uniform with the baldric! Suits you." Jack winced. Vlad can't believe what he just heard with his pointy ears: "You... you choose it? You knew? Why would you choose this?" And that was the moment where Vlad and Jack's eternal friendship was put to the ultimate test ö.ö Jack stiffened - but eventually straightened up: "Yes - I also like Star Trek and there's nothing wrong with it - I'm proud to be a Trekkie. So, I said it! And I also think Worf is as hot as the magma deep below Qo'noS! There you have it!"

Little Goat is proud of you, Jack :3 But Vlad's mouth became so dry, he has no more spit left to even hiss. And his fingers cramped - trying desperately not to shake and strangle Jack - to bring him to his senses... His best friend - a traitor! And he always thought the force was with him! (Vlad really was so, so upset all the time, omg! o.o)

Rubyn thought maybe it's the best to let Vlad work himself - and his anger - off. So he, Jeb and Kiyoshi started whith their combat training.

And the other group had to solve some of the easier Kobayashi Maru tests (= no win scenarios). Saiwa: "Ouf, this is hard. Shouldn't we start with a simulation on how to fly the ship?"

Jack: "I know how to fly a spaceship. I'll show you later. It's not that hard - and Albaleyh's ship has an advanced autopilot anyway." Saiwa: "Jack - you learned how to fly spaceships in your coma, that wasn't real..." Jack: "It was more real than a simulator."

Rubyn: "Concentrate now! I want you to be the bright new twinkling stars of the Starfleet!" (Their faces ^^')

And after everyone calmed down, they started a spaceship simulation ^^' Working together as teams/couples <3

Hahaha Sheldon, Raj and Leonard wearing their Star Trek uniforms ^^' (and Howard as Borg :)

Star Trek - The Next Generation Intro

From the Beginning 🔱 Underwater Love 🔱 Latest

Current Chapter: starts ▶️ here Last Chapter: 'Here comes the Sun' from the beginning ▶️ here

📚 Previous Chapters: Chapters: 1-6 ~ 7-12 ~ 13-16 ~ 23-28

[muchmossymess]

GUYS okay hear me out majoras mask boat boys au

I love legend of zelda I love boat boys this is like the ultimate combination of my interests you cannot understand the brainrot. Idk what to call it yet tho... majoras minecraft? Anyway prepare for an essay

OKAY so we have the Hero of Time, Etho, who stopped ganons plans before they started, and would be stuck in a child's body if not for the fact I think that'd be a lil weird for the more shippy aspects of this au that all the running through time aged his soul and his body followed suit (he's still got a young appearance, and the mask doesn't make him look older like he thinks). Same reason he has the scar over his eye (from the ganon fight); no matter how much the body may heal or rewind the mind will not forget.

Then navi (maybe bdubs?) left him, and he went with epona (maybe bdubs instead? (eponas a horse iydk)) and he sets out on a journey aka the beginning of mm:

Wandering through the woods on epona, gets jumped by skull kid. For those unaware, there is skull kid, a lonely lil sweetheart, and he wears the mask, an entity on its own. He also has two fairies, siblings tael and tatl.

So I was a little unsure about this for a while, but I think I've decided on grian for the skull kid and Jimmy for tael, grian bc watchers and Jimmy bc skull kid is not very nice to tael (bc of the mask) and like a listeners reference or smth blah blah blah

TATL. that's who's interesting. At the beginning she gets separated from her friends and becomes your companion. So naturally for this au she is our favourite joel smallishbeans. It works so well. Tatl is mean but cares, and that's joels dynamic with the bad boys and with etho, guys it's literally perfect idc what you say

I think it doesn't change much throughout like the story of the game, but just taking dialogue tatl says to link and its so perfect for a sassy joel to a "can't believe I'm dealing with this shit again" etho. Uh one thing different though; in hylian form etho doesn't have an ocarina but instead a mini marimba. Just because. I think it's cool, and for potential things later on.

Now, fairies in this au are just tiny glowing people shaped things with wings. The glow around them is their magic, and depending on emotions/energy the brightness changes (thats why they look like flying balls of light). Some fairies have the ability to make projections of themselves, more hylian sized in nature. This can be intimidation or distraction or w/e, but they cant do it for long periods of time bc its exhausting. These forms aren't physical. Just sized up light projections of their actual bodies.

So for a lot of their journey, joel is just a cute pocket sized ball of rage and sarcasm, who helps with ethos aim for fighting. Bc that's a game mechanic and also ethos like half blind. But like when joel calms down imagine him crawling into ethos hat and just dozing off. He can fit in the palm of your hand like guys it's so cute. But he is also capable of being worse than a mozzie

Oh probably a good point to put in what I imagine etho looks like. So it's typical link green (maybe a bit dampened?), weird pointy hat, short hair (white ofc), his shirt is more of a jacket with a fluffy cold weather collar, it's a bit too big for him but he knows he'll grow into it, he's all knobbly and thin (underfed a lil, boy was never taught how to care for himself beyond basic survival). His injured eye is red bc of ganon, and often gives him phantom pains. It can't be healed.

Anyway, at some point in their journey together, etho and joel learn a song that let's fairies have a larger physical form, no wings, sorta like the great fairies (who they learnt it from prolly). It isn't permanent, slowly draining ethos magic meter, the spell ends when you run out of magic. This is because I want them to actually be able to stand side by side or maybe hug, and also bc its hard to block a blow with your body when ur tennis ball sized.

Aaaaand, this ties back in with with marimba. What if ethos injured, or unconscious, and he obviously can't defend himself, so joel panics and plays the marimba in what he hopes is the right order to give himself a body. I imagine that being that small, you could not play an ocarina. And hey maybe joel carries etho away after that, and when the spell ends he has barely any light emitting from himself because he spent nearly all his magic (what he is made of) saving etho.

But this song isn't used much, because of its draining nature, and you can't really do any other magic things while it's going. So it's mostly just in the final fight (over and over) or tough moments or maybe joel wants to experience something like hoe hylians do. It's obviously inferior to how he experiences things as a fairy, of course, he's just curious thats all. He totally doesn't want etho to do it more.

Okay I think ill sorta stop here, I am NOT done, I will probably post some art I've done for this later lol, and I want help with who everyone else is (mumbo is the moon. You cannot stop me nor change my mind) with mcyts to npcs

[heylookomegas]

Som BG3 Boys and scenting

Yes this is an omegaverse blog, surprise!

Gale

Doesn’t want anyone except family or his alpha scenting him.

And even with his alpha he prefers minimal scenting until the relationship is official.

It’s not that he dislikes it, he just thinks of it as being something too intimate and important to be done at the drop of a pointy hat.

He sees it as a sexual act when done with his alpha so he greatly prefers privacy during the process. 

Once a committed relationship has been established, he takes pleasure in scenting during foreplay, having his mate drag their hands and wrists up and down his body and vice versa gets him hot in a way he feels embarrassed to articulate.

Wyll 

Can only stand scenting with his alpha. While his father has apologized and is trying to mend things, Wyll feels involuntarily sick every time his father tries to scent him.

He’s always been very sensitive to any sort of scenting and it’s concerningly easy to stress Wyll out during, the trust between him and his father is just too broken for them to properly bond again.

And he’s far too easily overwhelmed by it to accept scenting from friends, so that leaves his alpha as his only option.

He isn’t resentful towards his alpha for this, if anything he blames himself somehow. He just can’t figure out why this is so hard for him.

Wyll needs a decent amount of comfort leading up to scenting such as cuddling, kissing and soft verbal encouragement. Later in the relationship he’s happy to discover that scenting comes much easier and is even enjoyable directly after sex.

Post sex or not, it’s not unusual for him to cry after, not because he’s upset but because he finds the experience intense no matter the preparation. 

Astarion

He’s gut churningly nervous when his alpha is about to scent him the first time, he can’t for the proverbial life of him even vaguely remember the last time he was scented.

Obviously he was scented by his real family as a child but all those memories were wiped away when he became part of Cazador’s mockery of a pack.

As soon as his alpha’s chin meets the top of his head however, he’s shoulders deep in his new favorite addiction. He melts into it immediately and nearly purrs at the affection he’s receiving.

Astarion loves everything about it from being held and touched like something precious to being blanketed in pheromones that assure some long buried part of his instincts that he’s loved, that he is safe.

He practically starts demanding to be scented every day, he claims he can’t trance properly without it. 

Because he finds it so comforting he will often ask for it during sex to keep him in the moment and help him relax. And like Wyll, he also finds it especially satisfying to be scented after intimacy.

Rolan

The most comfortable being scented off the bat.

Since his siblings aren’t shy about following him around and cuddling up to him, he’s much more used to being regularly scented than other omegas on this list.

He’ll even accept scenting from friends if he’s in the mood.

He really doesn’t see scenting as something inherently sexual, just like hugs kisses on the cheek aren’t automatically romantic. 

He enjoys scenting as a relaxing bonding activity and show of care. His favorite way to be scented is to be snuggled up on his alpha’s lap with a book while they rub their chin gently against his neck.

He’ll even happily fall asleep during a scenting if he had a particularly long day.

[azure-tiamat]

Underfoot

Their (friendly, non-M.E.C.H.) human acquaintances, three kids and two adults, have claimed the old military base as much as the autobots have. Actually, the kids claimed them one way or another as well.

As a family and, apparently, as an indoor climbing challenge.

It's not unusual to see them on either Bumblebee or Bulkhead's, later Wheeljack's, shoulders or on top of their helmet -for which they've been repeatedly lectured on security risks by both Ratchet and Nurse Darby - and hitching a ride both indoors and outside.

They probably would've taken Arcee too if her shoulder blades weren't so pointy and sharp. Frankly, she would've allowed it, but she agrees with Ratchet that the security risk of slipping off would be higher on her shoulders, so she opts to carry them by hand when necessary. And they like to be carried, wether out of comfort or due to them travelling faster that way.

Rafael is mostly the only one Ratchet allows on his shoulders (the hypocrite), if at all, when working in silence on their respective projects and or inquiring each other's opinion. Miko isn't allowed for that exact reason and Jack is rather content working solo on the ground or distracting Miko with games in the meantime.

Optimus has jet to be taken as a perch in any sort of way, likely because he's either too tall -he is the biggest amongst all of them- or he respects his old friend's input and didn't allow it.

And, quite frankly, it was rather advantageous that the kids asked to be carried to other areas of the base, if only to not get under anyone's feet.

Lord knows that one time Miko was angrily stomping on the floor and Bee came into base,  shifted around in front of her and into his usual bi-pedal form. She'd almost been squashed by his turning gears! She hadn't cared for it much, still too upset about one thing or other that she'd just swatted Bee's leg away - the scout too startled that she hadn't stopped that he immediately lifted his pedes at the same time.

So yes, them being on any one of them, within optic range, was preferable than on the ground. Agent Fowler had even made a sign on the ground floor that was reminiscent of a flood warning for humans to get to higher space.

The oldest of the youth's, Jack, had understood the implied warning from Arcee and usually made his way to the human area after he was dropped off from school, so he didn't need to be told twice. If he wasn't there, then he took to the corner where his old unfinished school project was with Arcee in hopes to finish making his own motorbike from scraps. It was their quiet bonding time.

Miko, the sweet energetic rocker, well... she knew of the warning -they all did- but with her one usually knew where she was just by listening to her energetic voice or loud guitar. Bulkhead kept an extra sensor on her the moment more than three autobots were in the main hanger, just in case.

They didn't need to worry about Raf - like Jack, the boy usually didn't stray below the second level when he was at the base, conversing with Bumblebee or Ratchet, working on his computer or playing on the game console.

They knew all this, jet still - still they tested their limits for who knows what reason besides childish folly.

------

basically clips of the teens training their parkour skills with the autobots, running along their arms, jumping from their servos (hands) or helmets, swinging from their fingers-- when their Guardians shift into or out of alt mode they jump up, getting a slight bump-up to propel them, flip and then land in their guardian's - or anyone else's - awaiting servos/ seats.

Ratchet swears his spark nearly gave out the first time he witnessed it. The kids will be the reason he offlines, he knows it.

----

But their new-found gymnastic skills do have their own uses: the increase in stamina and agility being highlighted greatly as well as serving as a trust exercise - main points they've used to let Optimus allow them to continue this 'training'.

It was rather ridiculous when Miko just flashed a grin at Jack and Raf during their latest accompaniment on a mission that ended with them discovered whereas, instead of the usual cat-mouse game with the Decepticons, they made sure to put the fear of Scraplets into the Decepticons. Bee and Arcee vouch that their audio flaps had heard Starscream, well, screech in despair, disgust and fear. A good chunk of Vehicons had run amok when they caught sight of small, fast somethings everywhere on them or their comrade. Miko said they deserve a medal for that, and a scoreboard if they get more Cons than their partners. Considering the distraction that made, Fowler would be inclined to agree with the further idea, but Nurse Darby rather they stop now before they try it on a more dangerous foe. I.e. Megatron or a Predacon.

Admittedly, they didn't get a medal, but they used a sheet to keep score and didn't stop their free bungee jumping either.

[gxjosbaybee]

ᯓ★. CHAPTER THREE - Better luck next time.

Suguru took in a breath, rubbing a hand down the back of his neck. Purple eyes darted around the hallway as he made his way through the dozens of other students casually striding by between classes. He was searching out the familiar image of brown hair and pointy ears, and maybe green eyes if she was looking his way, too.

If he wasn't looking for someone specifically, he would’ve just turned back down the hall. If one more person came up to him and thanked him for the night he was willing to give them, he might actually go insane.

“I had such a great time last week.” “Last night was the best. My dorm later?”

 “When can I see you again?”

It was making him regret all his decisions up to date.

He wouldn’t stop though. It was an unhealthy coping habit for him. What else was he meant to do? Nothing else helped… at least this got his mind off of his unrequited affections.

“Dude, she’s totally into you,” Satoru would keep telling him. But he didn’t know Oliver like Suguru did. Oliver valued her education—anyone that thought they had a chance with her was always quickly put down by Oliver herself. Even if she so much as caught wind of a crush on her, she’d walk by and address it properly.

Romance has never been on her mind. She dated once, and that was in high school. The girl she dated ended up moving and so they broke up beforehand. They haven’t kept contact much since sophomore year.

So Suguru knew he had no chance with his best friend. He knew her better than anyone outside of her family did. That girl had other things on her mind away from other boys and girls. If Oliver liked someone, Suguru would be the first to know.

But she didn’t.

“Suguru!”

Ah, there she was.

The smile on Suguru’s face was infectious, and it was enough to make Oliver smile, too. Just the woman he was looking for. 

“Hey,” he greeted, turning around to wrap his arms around her. Everyone else in the hallway didn’t even exist anymore. Any girl that made a comment was quickly silenced by the sight of how Suguru held Oliver. It was so different from how he held them, they couldn't help but get a little jealous, even though they were well aware that they could only have Suguru for one night, and he’d never look their way again. He didn’t even give his number out, or respond to the people he did end up giving his number to. 

Oliver looked up at Suguru, closing her eyes as her chin pressed against his sternum. “Hi. You heard about the exams, right?” Suguru nodded, slowly unwrapping his arms from Oliver and moving his hands to the small of her back. “Yeah, of course I did. Satoru was beat up over it.” Oliver huffed. “Aren’t we all? Feels like we just had an exam.” “Right…”

Suguru bit his lip, his hands moving up Oliver’s sides and retracting to splay against her shoulders, pushing her back only a bit—enough so that he could look at her straightly. “Hey, speaking of exams… Do you mind if we-”

“Is that him? Suguru!”

Suguru bit the inside of his cheek, his smile dropping in an instant. He lowered his head and murmured under his breath. “Fuck.”

“Suguru!” The girl was running up to him now. She had red hair and red eyes, and was rather short. She had a grin on her face as she came up to Suguru—who forced himself to smile and turn to her to address her.

“Hey,” he said. “You’re…?”

“Vivienne!” “Ah, right… What is it?” “I just wanted to know if you wanted to study with me! I had a great time last week, and you seem like such a great guy outside of bed, too, if you catch my drift, haha!”

Ew.

Oliver was watching the whole exchange. She was frowning now, eyebrows furrowed as she took a step back. She was just reminded of why she’d never have a chance.

She’s so pretty, she thought. And lively.

Vivienne seemed to have noticed Oliver, and turned to her with an equal smile. “Oh, hi! I don’t think I know you?” Oliver flinched. Everyone who knew Suguru knew who she was.

“Ah… No one,” she said, surprising Suguru, who turned to her in confusion. “I was just leaving.” She looked up at Suguru and nudged his arm, offering a thin smile. “Ill see you later.” “Oliver, wait—” Suguuru tried to stop  her, but she was already shoving past him and Vivienne, walking down the hall in haste.

“Oh,” Vivienne watched her for a moment, before finally shrugging. “Oh well. Anyways, as I was—” When she turned back around, Suguru was walking away, too, down the opposite side of the hall. She huffed, rolling her eyes. She turned back to where Oliver walked, glared down the hallway, before finally leaving to mind her own.

Maybe next time.

ᯓ★. TAGLIST; @dabis-favorite-slut, @drxgonspine, @stitchyys-maiin, @scrumblewonk

[justafairytailofinnocence]

may i request a headcanon, imagine, or oneshot (whichever is easiest and best for you!) of will turner x male (or GN if it works better for you!) who’s like..a vampire. has super sharp + long canine teeth (and whatever the ‘bottom canine’ teeth are called), slightly pointy ears, heightened senses, sensitivity to sun, obviously the, y’know, drinks blood bit-

if you want more information, or just don’t want to do it at all, no worries! also, feel free to alter anything to your wishes! have a great day! :)

Will turner x m/gn vampire reader 🧛🌊

A/n: so, in this headcanon despite it being an x reader of male or gn, your nickname is Alucard.

The night was your life. The blood was your need, and death was an old friend. You were a creature of the night; a nosferatu, a demon, a monster who preyed on the weak—draining their blood when you were hungry.

In 1696, you were a living being with a beating heart—you were able to breathe life, and you were able to feel satisfied in hunger, thirst, and desire. You had outlived your predecessors. You were a product made not of god's creation.

You went by many names, but the most known being 'diavolul nopţii' or 'el diablo de la noche'. The devil of the night 🌙.

You had no recollections of your origin. It was many centuries ago. You recalled being born in 1462, the time of the great war between vlad the imapler, son of the dracul, and the Ottoman empire.

You were but a small child, too young to remember your parents. They had perhaps abandoned you during the time of the war to save their own skin or planned to use you as a sacrifice to save themselves from the deranged vlad or ottomans themselves.

You remembered seeing the whisps of flames surrounding the outside of your home. Scared and unkowning of what to do, you ran beneath the small, chiselled wooden dining table. You knew death was imitable. The flames growing by the second, and the black smoke clouding the rooms in a whole. Sooner or later, you'll be engulfed, seeing hell before you.

As your vision became blurry and your breath running thin. A shape you barely made out gripped you by the rags you wore, carrying your small body out from the burning building. Mayhaps it was the grace of God sparing you, a child, from a horrific death.

A tall man with a stout build covered in heavy silver armour dropped you from his shoulder. You were brought before a man with wide, green eyes, a long straight nose with a thin-reddish face.

It was him. You thought. It was—Prince Vlad tepes.

You spoke no words, you didn't know how to. All you could do was bow your head as Vlad sneered at you, assuming you were a peasant.

"Kill the boy/child—" His voice was raspy with a snide. Until the army man who saved you had holted the others. "Your grace, a symbol, look! On the boy's/child's arm."

Vlad, curious, narrowed his eyes, gripping the boy's arm with brute force and lifting his rag's sleeve. "A Diavol, my lord, a chosen sacrafice." The army man spoke out.

Vlad's eyes remained narrow, depicting a decision one could assume to kill or let live.

He waved a signal to his men, and immediately, you were bounded by rope, tossed on the back of the army man's white stallion, riding back toward the bran castle in the Transylvanian Alps, the southern Cartharpian mountains.

Through your childhood, you had been adopted as an apprentice to study in the black arts of magic and alchemy. Some say you were the adopted son of vlad, yet he was far from what you expected. You were dubbed Alucard. The son of the dracul'.

Many described you as clean in appearance, appearing with innocent eyes yet written with damage from the world's doing.

You read many books and history and learnt many skills that none had been able to achieve. You had a strong connection with the strigoi and moroi. Both blood sucking creatures that rose from the dead.

As you entered your teenage years, you had a fascination for blood, a fondness rather. Studying it, observing it from animals or others. You wanted to learn the science behind it, straying from the myths and lies the churches had been trying to explain.

Many feared you would turn into Vlad himself, a monster depraved of humanity.

Vlad hadn't always been the doting father figure, yet he was proud to say you were the closet thing to a son he ever had.

One day, in the village, you were arriving back from gathering ingredients to conjure your experiment. You met a young man, same as your age. He was different, though, in contrast to your appearance. He was more fuller in life. He had dark brown hair that reached his shoulders with brown eyes. He wore a light brown garb, and he carried a book with a familiar symbol.

"Speak your name, or you shall fall from the pits of grace," you sneered, the same way your father had once when he saw you.

"Forgive me, my name is avram," he pleaded.

The boy was far weaker and submissive compared to your stature.

You didn't think much of him yet, you later learnt he was the son of a Catholic man. He was kinder, not threatening you, which was foreign in your eyes.

"Your eyes, it's as if life has crumbled before you," avram nervously commented.

"What do you know of my life, you know nothing," you said with a hiss.

"I may not know you deeply, but I know lightness can be shed even in the darkest of man," he smiled softly.

You sneered, "Your foolish tongue shall be carved onto my silver platter."

Before you said anything more, he knelt down and offered you a plant—malva. He then placed it in your hand, curling your fingers. "I can teach you life. Healing is one of many things gifted from god's love. And everything around deserves life—even you."

You found yourself staring into his deep brown eyes. There was something about this boy you found different. Your cheeks turned to a slight tinge of red. You've never felt this way before. All you've known is darkness and evil, yet when he introduced you to light, you felt an odd sensation of warmth.

In the coming days, you tried to catch up with the avram, spending every hour speaking of amenities of healing and treatment. During the nights, you dreamt of him, desiring to lie in the sun by his son as he comforted you from the darkness.

You hadn't seen vlad in days, wondering if he was dead, but for now, it didn't matter. You had, for once in your life, felt a happiness you've yearned for.

Avram was the personafication of light.

On one summer eve, you both lay in the Cartharpian mountains forest, feeling the warmth on your faces. Your eyes lingered over to his hand, and with curiosity, you grabbed it. "I never told you my name. It's Alucard."

He smiled, a lightness emitting from within his words. "I will light the way through your darkness, Alucard, I'll guide the light through hell and heaven to save you".

Filled with emotions, both your hands cupped Avram's cheek, pulling him toward you into a kiss.

His lips were soft and wet, yours rough with a slight smoothness. You found love, and he was the love of your life.

Yet, that would soon change when you arrived back at the castle's gate. You saw blood trailed from the outer path. Curious, you followed it back inside until it led you to the castle's main entrance. Bodies—the bodies of the guards and armies men lay dead among the stone floors of the castle.

Creeping inside the castle, trailing along the blood along the stone floors. You stop, the blood trailed from the floor to the walls and—to the roof. You clenched your mouth in confusion and rage. Someone had trespassed into your home and slaughtered your father's allies. Soon, your thoughts turned to fear, fearing your father would be dead.

You dashed through the main room of the castle until you reached his chambers. From there, you opened the wooden door, entering slowly, seeing more blood trails running up the wall.

Something scurried behind you. You turned, yet a dark shadow had emerged. "My dear boy/child, oh how you've grown," two elongated fingers with sharp nails like claws grasped both your shoulders.

"Tată, what happened to you?" you said, backing slowly against the wall. The fear you felt was flashing back to when you were in your house as a child surrounded by fire.

"I've read your little book of necromancy, I've taken it upon myself to become a creature not of god's grace," he said with a hiss. You could feel a hint of two long canines poking your skin.

"A vampyre," his grip hardened as you winced.

Your eyes widened as you felt two long needle like canines pierce your neck with ease. Your body paralysed, and you could feel the burning sensation overtake your throat.

"I grant you the powers of a nosferatu." Your vision turned to black as the last thing you felt was the burning sensation of fire.

————

1728, the day of the commodore's promotion. Will was making a small sword decorated with tinges of gold in the hilt.

He was excited he completed such fine mastery, but more so, it's a chance to see Elizabeth.

He placed a black leather scabbard over the fine smallsword. The hilt stuck out and attached at the very end of the end of the pammel was a silver rope like tassel.

He began to head toward the manor to show Govener Swann the Commodore's sword.

Trailing along the docks of Port Royal, he noticed a mysterious figure. The figure wasn't like anyone he had met before. However, he didn't want to meddle and dally. He disregarded the stranger and kept trailing on toward the path of the manor.

The stranger locked eyes onto his; a young man/person in their early adulthood, around the same age. You stared deeply into Will's eyes. Your frontal canines were longer than any human he knew, and his ears were angular.

Your eyes were a deep crimson that had some alluring affect to them.

Will was baffled by the appearance yet pulled in by the appeal.

You wore a dark overcoat concealing your attire and a dark laced umbrella to protect yourself from the sun.

Your ears perked up, hearing his blood flow and light breaths. You knew he was curious about you.

Your thin snake like tongue licked your lips when your eyes laid upon his neck.

Will was strangely allured to you. Your elongated fingers stretched around Will's head. "Avram, my love, I've returned at last," he heard in a muttered husk.

Will perked up his neck as you leant forward, you shifted your height at will, and your canines grew more as your irises turned from red to black.

Yet, as you leaned down, the sunlight touched your wrist, causing you to feel slightly burning. You hissed back into the shadow of the building.

Will confused stumbled back. "What are you—".

You replied with a guttural lurking growl, "not of your kind."

Will, out of instinct, drew out the commodore's sword. "I warn you sir, I do not wish to fight you, I'm saving the day for when I use a sword, it'll be for a pirate—so I can kill it."

As he lunged forward, your body turned to a black mist, tempting him forward. He dropped the smallsword as you wrapped your hands around his. "Do. Not. Fear. Me" you say sternly.

"—Avram—come to me—come to the land of the living and the damned" your lips softly press against Will's.

Will was strangely paralysed, as if it was hypnosis, holting him from any movement.

He wondered, who Avram was? Why you called him so?

He gently called out, whispering "My n-name is Will Turner."

As he closed his eyes, you vanished, dropping his weight. He steadied himself looking around.

You were no where in sight.

He picked up the commodore's sword coming to his senses, trailing on—not wanting to find out what will come next.

Over the the next few days, you stalked him, keeping up with his sleeping patterns. Leaving gifts for him and gently enamouring him in your grasp.

Though, when you learnt of Elizabeth Swann, your mouth growled with a disdainful hiss. You fell in love with Will, you needed him, he was the only connection to Avram.

Only you hatched a plan to turn Will on a dead night. To make him your lover and live in the castle of wallachia—only problem—Dracula.

[soralinklokidottirofmirkwood]

A Girl from another world: the Hobbit x teen Genshin Impact reader part 2.

Reader Chan, Paimon, Mochi and the company are in Rivendell. The elves fall in love with the young mage since it's been so long since they've seen a child. Later after leaving Rivendell Reader Chan ends up in Goblin town then faces the pale orc for the first time.

Your POV:

It's been a few days maybe even months since the meeting in Bag end and boy have me, Paimon, Bilbo and Mochi gotten on Thorin's bad side.

By the archons that dwarf was hard to please and his pride wasn't helping ether but when Balin told us the story of Thorin losing his father, Grandfather and brother after Smaug took over Erebor I started understanding him, I mean I was separated from my siblings after all.

But he is still hard to please "He didn't even thanked Bilbo after he rescued us from the trolls." Mochi said sitting on my shoulder as we stared at the Troll statues with Paimon agreeing “Paimon agrees, he reminds Paimon of Diluc when we first met him.” Paimon whispered.

No one's POV:

Gandalf is leading you, Paimon, Mochi, Bilbo and the dwarves through a tunnel from creatures called the wargs.

As all of you ran out of the tunnel you are in complete awe of the scenery before you.

A gorgeous valley with waterfalls and a city with woodland surrounding it "welcome to Imladris." Mochi said "You speak the truth Mochi this vally is the last homely home of the elves it is known by many names but in the common tongue it is known as." spoke Gandalf "Rivendell." Bilbo said in awe but he didn't show it "This was your plan along! To seek-" You didn't hear what Thorin said you were to enhanced by Rivendell's beauty “This place reminds Paimon of Sangonomiya shrine, Right Y/N?” Paimon asked making you nod "If only Lumine and Aether could see this." You said to yourself "See our Hobbit, young mage, fairy and fox aren't making a fuss about it." You heard Gandalf say with a smirk.

You all walk down to the city and you found it more enchanting up close "Wow it's so gorgeous here." Paimon said in awe making you nod and Gandalf chuckle 'Elrond and the other elves are going to adore them.' Gandalf thinks to himself as you get closer to the city.

Your POV:

We finally made it to the city it was so gorgeous up close.

As we walked we see a very handsome man with pointy ears walk down the stairs to greet us "ohh that's an elf." Mochi said happily to you and Paimon.

Gandalf greeted the elf in a strange language "Ahh Lindir." He said to the elf I now know as Lindir.

I was so enhanced with the beauty of Rivendell I was pulled out of my trance by the company as they formed a protective circle around me, Paimon, Bilbo and Mochi I see a bunch of horses circling us with elves on them.

When they stopped one of them greeted Gandalf in the strange language and hugged him.

They continued speaking in the strange language until Gandalf introduced the company but Thorin being prideful and grudge holding had to be rude "OHH DO YOU HAVE TO BE SO RUDE?" Mochi asked making the elves eyes widen and you and Paimon to blush "Did that fox just talked?" Lindir asked in terror.

Inside Rivendell:

Your being lead to a room to bathe for the first time in months which was relieving for you, Paimon and Mochi since you haven't had a bath since leaving the Shire.

After Bathing yourself, Paimon and Mochi you get dressed in a F/C tunic, black leggings and boots that were laid out for you along with fresh undergarments with Paimon wearing a small white tunic, black leggings and booties.

After getting dressed you, Paimon and Mochi went to the dinning hall with help from Lindir whom you've instantly become friends with after making small talk on the way.

At the dinning hall you can only chuckle in embarrassment from the food fight the dwarves are having while hearing Thorin, Elrond and Gandalf talk! Mochi is sitting next to you on the floor while eating some salmon and Paimon is floating next to you eating soup.

Elrond was telling Gandalf and Thorin the names of their swords while you ate your salad “What about you Miss Y/N what is your weapon?” Elrond asked making you smile and summon your catalyst then use the five elements you know making the whole room gawk in awe.

The next day you, Paimon, Bilbo, Mochi and the dwarves left Rivendell early so the elves and Gandalf won't stop you "Gandalf is gonna pulverize us when he finds out we left without him." Mochi said fearfully “You said it Mochi, Paimon is scared that he’ll turn us into ash.” Paimon said fearfully as well.

In the misty mountains after the battle of the stone giants you, Paimon, Bilbo and Mochi had officially made Thorin hate you even more.

After Thorin said so many hurtful things non of you couldn't take it anymore and decided to just give up on the quest.

You, Paimon, Bilbo and Mochi decided to go back to Rivendell and head back to the Shire in a few days after recovering and getting supplies for the sake of your sanities, however Bofur stopped you before you and Bilbo could head back to Rivendell (with Mochi on your shoulder and Paimon floating besides you) and talked to you two and told you to give Thorin a bit more time.

You admitted you gave up to quickly and you knew that Lumine and Aether would be disappointed because you never gave up when you three traveled to other worlds.

As your in you're thoughts you saw the sand moving and before you knew it you, Paimon, Mochi, Bilbo and the dwarves are sliding down and slide in front of goblins who began dragging all of you to a huge and disgusting looking goblin that was singing a very disturbing song "Well look what we have here boys." The giant goblin said walking towards you "Thirteen dwarves, a halfling, a human girl and her pets." He said looking at you and the others until he spotted Thorin "Well if it isn't Thorin Okanshield. Son of Thrain, son of Thror. King of the Lonely mountain oh wait I forgot you don't have a mountain so that makes you... nobody." The giant creature said as he advanced towards you and the dwarves then he started speaking of the pale Orc Azog "I thought he died of his wound." You whispered in fear "You really think his defiling days are over? stupid girl." He said making you angry that he called you stupid "RAGING THUNDER." You said using electro shocking the goblin “THATS NO HUMAN, SHES A WITCH.” He said angrily making you, Bilbo and the dwarves start fighting them but in the battle you lost Bilbo and to make matters worst you were outnumbered and the Goblin king wants to start torturing the company starting with the youngest you.

But luckily Gandalf came right on time and rescued all of you from the torture that you were about to suffer from.

Outside of Goblin town Gandalf did a head Count "Y/N, Paimon and Mochi that's 17. Wait where's Bilbo, where is our hobbit?" Before you or Mochi could speak Thorin beat you two too it "I'll tell you where he is. He went back to his warm bed and hearth." You had enough of Thorin's stubbornness and got ready to retort when a familiar voice broke the upcoming argument.

You were relieved to see Bilbo alright but something wasn't right you couldn't put your finger on it but you felt a dark energy and you weren't sure what it was.

And you didn't want to know because right now you and the others are being chased by orcs and wargs into a forest.

You fearfully used Dendro to make vines that will restrain the wargs and orcs "LIFE." You said as the vines grew from the ground and wrapped around the monsters.

You and the others are fighting off orcs and wargs by throwing flaming pinecones at them and you using your catalyst but there was so many of them and to rub salt on the womb the pale orc, Azog was there and Thorin went to take him out but the orc was to strong, you saw Bilbo tackle the orc down and you ran to help "EARTHQUAKE." You said making an earthquake but you soon felt something pick you up, to yours, Paimon’s and Mochi's surprise you saw eagles swooping down and grabbing the other members of the company.

After flying you all finally land so Gandalf can heal Thorin "The Hobbit, mage, fairy and fox where are they?" He asked "They are right here." Gandalf said gesturing to you, Paimon and Bilbo while Mochi sat on your shoulder "You." He said waking towards you four "what were you doing? You've could have gotten yourselves killed." He said coming closer "Did I not say you would be a burden, that you will not survive in the wild?!" he said standing in front of you and Bilbo "That you have no place among us?" You can feel Mochi's fur fizzing up in terror and Paimon hiding behind you "Here we go." Mochi whispered in your ear as you’re prepared for being told off "I have never been so wrong in all my life." He whispered and hugged you, Paimon and Bilbo making Mochi's jaw drop "I'm sorry I've doubted you." He said "I would have doubted me to." Bilbo said "Me to." You said "Mochi three." Mochi said “Paimon fourth.” Paimon said bouncing in the air until the sound of Ravens cawing was heard.

Looking ahead you can see a mountain in the distance "Is that?" You asked "Erebor the great dwarven kingdom." Mochi said in awe "you are a wise fox Mochi." Gandalf said pleased "We are almost home." Kili said happily making you smile as well “It’s even prettier in person.” Paimon said excitedly.