#gave him antlers for James :(((

[galaxostars]

presque vu (almost seen): the intense feeling of being on the very brink of a powerful epiphany, insight, or revelation, without actually achieving the revelation

Sirius Black is born.

Sirius Black dies.

Everything in between is the unknown.

—from the fic Presque Vu by @starsworth

[touchlikethesun]

so james’ tattoos are obvs the antlers along his v-line, matching with sirius’ flower v-line tats, his gryffindor quidditch jersey number on his bicep, and then constellations across his chest for sirius and reg. regulus has stars tattooed around his moles, on his collarbone, arms, and back, all in slightly different styles, since some have been done by different artists and some have been done by his friends. he also has a sun over his heart with long rays reaching out across his body.

[iamgonnagetyouback]

james potter x cat animagus!reader who he picks up thinking as stray and lets in on a secret

James Potter was the kind of guy who could never ignore a creature in need, so when he found a little brown cat loitering around the Quidditch pitch during practice, his heart melted instantly. "Poor thing," he murmured, crouching down. “You’re probably cold and starving. Don’t worry, mate—I’ve got you.”

Before you could react, you were being scooped up in his strong arms. Not that you minded, really.

James carried you straight to the Gryffindor boys’ dormitory, setting you on his bed with all the care of a proud parent. “There you go. Home sweet home.”

You blinked at him, tail twitching in mild amusement.

“Right,” he said, flopping onto the bed beside you. “Let’s establish some ground rules. No scratching the furniture. No biting Sirius—actually, scratch that, feel free to bite Sirius. And no stealing my socks, got it?”

You gave him the look—your signature, unimpressed really, James? glare.

James narrowed his eyes at you. “Weird. You’ve got this very… familiar judgmental vibe. Kind of like—nah. I’m imagining it.” He grinned. “Anyway, since you’re new here and seem chill, I’ll let you in on a secret.”

You tilted your head, heart thumping nervously.

James puffed out his chest dramatically. “I’ve got a girlfriend.”

You twitched your ears.

“She’s amazing. Funny, smart, gorgeous.” He laughed, leaning back on the bed. “But Merlin, she’s terrifying sometimes. But, you know, in a hot way. Like, I kind of like it when she yells at me.”

You swished your tail sharply, earning a startled laugh from him.

“Oi, don’t judge! You don’t know what it’s like to be loved by a goddess,” he said, wagging a finger at you. “She’s got this look—like, when I say something dumb, she just stares at me. Kinda like the look you’re giving me right now.”

Your tail lashed harder, but James carried on, oblivious as he scratched the back of his neck. “Anyway, she’s amazing. Except sometimes, she’s so bossy. Always telling me to do my homework, stop sneaking chocolate into the library, quit messing up my hair—”

You hissed softly, and James blinked. “What? I’m just saying it’s endearing. Don’t get your whiskers in a twist.” He leaned in, narrowing his eyes.

“And the sass! She’s so sassy. Honestly, sometimes I think she loves making me squirm.” He sighed dreamily, resting his chin in his hands. “What a woman. You’d like her. Or maybe not. She’d probably call you ‘scruffy’ or something. Wait—you’re scruffy and judgy. Are you sure you’re not her Animagus form?”

You froze.

“Nah,” he said, shaking his head. “She’d have told me. I mean, I told her I’m a stag! She’s even touched my antlers. I think she’s got a thing for them, but she denies it. So, yeah, she’d totally tell me if she were a cat.”

You stared at him, doing your best to suppress a laugh.

The next day, the game was up.

“Wouldn’t want to be too bossy, now would I?” you said sharply, glaring at James in the common room.

James stopped dead in his tracks, eyes wide. “What?”

You raised an eyebrow.

“No,” he said, shaking his head like a wet dog. “No way. How do you—what—how do you know that?”

You just smirked.

James clutched his hair like a man on the verge of a breakdown. “Wait. Wait. Okay, no. There’s an explanation. Did Sirius tell you? No—he doesn’t even listen when I talk. Did Remus overhear and snitch? No, he’d lecture me about boundaries. Did… did you talk to the cat?!”

You snorted. “What?”

“Do you speak cat language?!” James demanded, looking genuinely alarmed. “Oh, Merlin, are you part Kneazle?!”

“James—”

“Or—or did you use Legilimency on the cat?!” He gasped, his hands flying to his hair. “Were you watching me somehow? Are you spying on me?!”

“James—”

“Oh my god.” His voice dropped to a whisper, eyes wild with panic. “You’re in cahoots with the cat, aren’t you?”

“James!”

He flailed dramatically. “Are you secret friends with a magical talking cat?”

“James Fleamont Potter!”

“What?!”

You crossed your arms, smirking. “I was the cat, you idiot.”

James blinked. Once. Twice. Then he pointed an accusatory finger at you. “You WHAT?!”

“I’m an Animagus,” you said, shrugging.

James stared at you like you’d just told him you were the heir of Merlin. “No. No way. You’re lying. You’re joking. Tell me you’re joking.”

You shrugged again. “Sorry, love. Not joking.”

He gasped, clutching his chest. “I LET YOU SLEEP IN MY BED.”

“Yeah, thanks for that.”

“I SCRATCHED BEHIND YOUR EARS.”

“Very kind of you.”

“I TOLD YOU MY SECRETS!”

“Well, you did think I was a stray.”

James stumbled backward, clutching at the table for support. “I—I let you see me in my pajamas! I let you cuddle with me! I—oh my god, I called you soft and—wait—” He glared at you, realization dawning. “You hissed at me when I called you bossy!”

You grinned. “Sure did.”

“And you glared at me! That was your glare! Oh, bloody hell, I should’ve known.” He groaned, collapsing onto the bed. “This is so embarrassing. Why didn’t you tell me?!”

You plopped down beside him, smirking. “I wanted to see how long it’d take you to figure it out.”

James buried his face in his hands. “I let you TOUCH MY ANTLERS.”

“And they’re very nice antlers,” you teased, poking his side.

He peeked at you through his fingers, pouting. “This is betrayal, you know. Pure betrayal.”

“James.”

“Nope. Betrayal.”

“James.”

He groaned. “Fine. But you owe me so much cuddling to make up for this.”

“Deal,” you said, pulling him into a hug.

“Wait,” he mumbled into your shoulder. “You do think my antlers are cool, right?”

You kissed his cheek. “The coolest, love.”

“Thought so.”

[wordsofwilderness]

Pleasure to meet you

Day 7: Masked Sex - Stranger Sex - Jegulus Kinktober - @jeguluskinktoberr - 654 words - Mature

From the moment James had stepped into the sparkling ballroom, he’d been intrigued by the man with a slender frame and a midnight blue mask speckled with silvery gems as if he wore the stars themselves. The annual masked balls were one of the few traditional pure-blood events the Potters still bothered attending. The anonymity of the enchanted masks gave the usually so uptight pure-bloods a much-needed opportunity to let loose without consequences. The dancing was wilder and the expensive wines flowed freely. There were even a few couples that had gone as far as to kiss in public—their identities sure to be the topic of the rumour mill for several weeks.

But where James usually entertained himself by watching the boundaries of formality slowly fall apart into an astonishing display of hypocritical behaviour, he was otherwise occupied tonight. They had spent the better part of the evening staring at each other across the dance floor, even as they both danced with other people. Inevitable, it had led to here, locked away safely in a small study far from the other partygoers.

Legs were hooked around James’ waist and locked behind his back as he sat the mysterious man down on the expensive-looking office desk. James grinned into his shoulder at the moans already escaping between them at the administration his tongue was doing there.

They pulled at each other clothes in a frenzy. “What can I call you, love?” James murmured as he rid himself of his shirt, “I need something to moan.”

His lover seemed to chew on it for a minute, shrugging out his trousers before providing, “Reg.” Something in the back of James’ mind tugged at him, but the magic of the mask smoothed it over.

“Perfect,” James groaned, catching Reg’s lips with his.

It wasn’t long before James was deep within him, moans ringing out too loudly, considering they really didn’t want to get caught. James’ hands griped the milky skin of Reg’s thighs, holding them up as he slammed into him again and again. The silvery eyes behind that mask swirled with sin, so close now, and James was all the more lost in them. Even as Reg came, and he followed, he couldn’t look away. It was truly cruel that the mask robbed him of the complete expression on Reg’s face as he reached his peak.

Skin sticky with sweat, James held them close together as they each came down from their high, catching their breath. “Can I see you? Please?” James asked, his fingers tracing the edge of Reg’s mask, “I’ll take mine off too.”

“You first,” Reg countered. The apprehension was fair enough, it wasn’t exactly acceptable to be queer within pure-blood circles.

James shrugged, before taking his mask off, a maroon thing with antler-like protrusions framing his eyes.

The man before him titled his head, lips pulled together in an annoyed line, probably at the lack of recognition. He kept his side of the deal, though, pulling his mask off too. The resemblance hit James like a brick wall, because he’d seen that face before in photos Sirius had shown him, off his brother. Older now, he’d grown into those sharp cheekbones, his eyes piercing instead of soft.

His voice coming out thinner than he’d have liked, James asked, “‘Reg’ doesn't happen to be short for ‘Regulus’, does it?”

“Why,” he bit with narrowed eyes. Oh, and still, James was attracted to him, he couldn’t deny it.

Deciding to make light of the situation, James stepped back. “James Potter,” he said, with a little mock bow, “Pleasure to finally meet you, Regulus.”

Regulus’ eyes went wide in realisation before a smirk grew on his lips. Eyes roaming over James’ still naked body, Regulus hummed, “I believe the pleasure is all mine.” By the wicket grin spread across Regulus’ face, James knew this would be far from the last time they saw each other.

[chlobliviate]

Wolfstar Microfics - Soulmates

Words: 824

@wolfstarmicrofic

***

It was a truth universally acknowledged by the sixth years that Sirius Black had a secret.

Until his seventeenth birthday, he would take any opportunity to strip down to his pants, or even less. But that suddenly changed. He'd even stopped getting changed in the dormitory, taking his clothes into the bathroom to dress each morning and evening.

Marlene was convinced he’d gotten a tattoo he was embarrassed about. Remus and James were more concerned about spell damage from his family. Sirius point blank refused to discuss it with any of them, and after a month, they eventually stopped pushing the matter.

On Lily’s birthday, something happened that made Remus panic more than the possibility of spell damage littering Sirius’ skin. He was finishing up prefect rounds when he heard a sniffle from the cosy alcove in the library. He poked his head around the corner and was startled to see Lily wiping her eyes furiously.

He was by her side in a second, “What happened?” She shook her head. “Lils. Is it Snape? Did he—“

“No, it’s not— it’s not that.” She sniffed, “Something appeared on my skin today and I have a feeling that I know what it means but…”

“A soul mark?”

“I think so. It’s on my fucking collarbone. At least Sirius’ is on his—“ She covered her mouth quickly. “Shit, you didn’t hear that.”

“Sirius has a soul mark? Fuck. That’s why he stopped getting his kit off twice a week?” Remus stared at her collarbone as if he expected to be able to see it through her robes. “Wait. He showed you?”

She shook her head, “I saw it by accident. Someone gave him the password to the prefects' bathroom.” She said pointedly.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Remus said with a smirk. “So, on your collarbone? Can I see?”

She sighed, undid the top couple of buttons on her shirt, and slid it aside, pushing her robes back. On her collarbone, several fine lines made up a pair of delicate antlers.

Remus pressed his lips together. “Remus Lupin, don’t you dare laugh at me.” She glared at him. “It’s ’Prongs’, right? That’s what Prongs means?”

He nodded, “Yeah. His patronus is a stag.”

“You all think everyone is so stupid and oblivious, I swear. There was a whole month last year where those three idiots claimed to have a lisp as a result of a potion gone wrong. You could very clearly see the mandrake leaf under their tongues the whole time. They’re unregistered animagi.” She did up her buttons slowly. “I’m guessing Pete is some kind of rodent and Sirius is a gross, mangy, little dog.”

“Who else knows?” Remus had frozen. “They were so sure that they wouldn’t be found out. Idiots.”

“Nobody that I know of. I wasn’t about to tell anyone, I figured it related to the moons.” She smiled at him. “Honestly, the day I figured it out was the day I thought ‘Huh, maybe Potter isn’t a complete tosser’. But if you tell him I said that, I’ll hex you so hard.”

“Your secret’s safe with me.”

“And yours with me, always.” She sighed again, “James’ birthday is in March, right?”

“Yeah, a couple of weeks after mine. Are you going to tell him?”

She hummed thoughtfully, “It’d probably be funnier to wake up and let him see it himself. But that means covering myself up for two months. I don’t want to get all obsessive and weird about it like Sirius.”

“Is it bad? Sirius’ mark?”

“I— It wouldn’t be fair to tell you about it.” Lily touched his shoulder gently. “He’ll tell you all when he’s ready.”

“Yeah, I hope you’re right.” He stood up. “Anyway, I believe there’s a bottle of Firewhiskey or two waiting back in our dorm. Marlene will be getting antsy.”

***

On Remus’ birthday, he awoke at 7:37 am to a very peculiar tingling sensation on his left bum cheek. He rushed to the bathroom, not checking to see if anyone else was awake yet. He twisted around, pulling down his boxers on one side, trying to look in the mirror, but it was too high. He tried twisting around again.

“It’s stars.” A quiet voice said from behind him. “Canis Major.”

Remus looked up into the mirror and made eye contact with Sirius, who lingered in the doorway. “And yours?”

“The moon phases.” He shrugged, lowering his pyjama bottoms slightly as if he hadn’t been shielding his body from scrutiny for almost six months.

Remus took a step toward Sirius, not taking his eyes off the nine small circles, but before he could say anything, James burst in, took in the scene of his two friends admiring one another’s arses, and quickly retreated.

“Pete, do not go in there!” They heard him shout from under his pillow.

Sirius started to chuckle as a smile tugged at Remus’ lips “Happy Birthday, Moons.”

[author’s note: idk if it’s because I’m currently on day 8 of a covid infection (send help) but the image of Remus trying to see his bum in the mirror and essentially chasing his tail like a dog has me laughing, coughing and wheezing so hard.]

[marlsswrites]

Safety and sweat

Ice skating AU, part 5!!

August 5th - words: 665

First part Previous part

“Great practice Regulus.” Effie praised. “I would stay to chat but I have to shoot, I think my sons outside-“

Regulus began to nod his head, kicking his skates from his feet while he held onto the barrier of the rink. But then the noise of rubber shoes squeaking on the floor, travelling towards Regulus and Effie next to him.

“Hi.” He pants, leaning over his legs before looking up with a smile.

It had been exactly a week since Regulus bumped into James, the cute man from the bookstore, and coincidentally his coaches son. He was wearing the same football shirt, it was awfully tight around his biceps - he tried to avert his gaze, he really did - but it was so tempting.

“Hi James.” Effie sighed out while Regulus failed to hide a small laugh under his breath at the look on James’ face.

“Hi.” Regulus copied, a smile tucked away into the hidden corners of his lips.

Effie looked between the two a few times before only shrugging and huffing out a breath. “Wait here James, I’m just going to pick my bag up from the lockers, see you tomorrow Regulus.” Smiling, she pointed to the direction of the lockers, leaving her son and Regulus staring clearly at each other.

“Sorry, I ran here from football practice.” The brunette chuckled, then he did the one thing Regulus was sure would cause his death.

Honestly he wouldn’t be complaining if that was the last thing he saw before he died, at least he’d be at peace.

The man lifted his shirt up and swiftly wiped the sweat from his forehead, and - god - was he doing this on purpose? He swore he could see the muscles move on his toned stomach, the way a black inky tattoo emerged from his sinfully low risen shorts - it looked like a pair of antlers.

“Why exactly?” Regulus cocked his eyebrow, turning away to hide the flush from his cheeks, god he hates feeling like this. Flustered, small, sappy and stupid.

“I don’t- uh.” James laughed, it set off a whole new crashing, cold, salty yet warm wave of emotions off in Regulus’ stomach. “I don’t really know.” He snorted.

“Wow.” Regulus chuckled along, rolling his eyes. “Solid answer.”

“Shut up.” The brunette snorted. “You look really familiar?” He said after a minute of silence, eyeing Regulus up and down like he was a new work of art in a museum, he couldn’t quite place how he felt about that.

Regulus turned his head to see James still piercing his eyes through his own grey ones. He tilted his head to the side, vision of James partially blocked by the black curl that fell into his eye. “Yeah, you look like my friend.”

“Sirius Black, per chance?”

“Yeah… do you-“ He narrowed his eyes, before letting out a light gasp and parted his lips. “You’re his ‘little brother Reggie’” James gaped. “I thought you were like, 10.”

“What the fuck?” Regulus hit his arm and gave a mock offended gasp.

James let out the sweetest little giggle. “I’m calling you Reggie from now on.”

“Potter I swear to god-“

“Cute little Reggie.”

He only groaned, hiding his head in his own black curls as he dropped his forehead into his arms that leant onto the barrier. The one thing he could hear was James’ laughs and teases as Regulus cursed at him, but of course he didn’t mean it.

Normally he would, that was the thing. Last time Barty called him ‘Reggie’ he tripped him up, mostly because that name was reserved for Sirius and Sirius only. But for some reason he… liked when James did it? Fuck, this is disgusting.

It really isn’t though, it’s just new, and Regulus hates new. Even when it could bring the best things into his life, he only feels the need to push them away and stay where he’s been stood for the past year.

Safe.

But what is safe anymore really?

[sorenphelps]

I just found out there’s a Sirius birthday week event hosted by @lilacella! I’m super late to the party but here are some of my HCs!

He loves puns and is annoyingly good at making them.

Despite being a dog himself, he is actually more of a cat person.

He became colorblind in Azkaban, and his colour vision has never fully recovered afterwards.

He got his growth spurt at 14, and had facial hair from the age of 16. Fleamont Potter taught him how to shave.

He is able to resist the Imperius curse.

He lost his virginity to Madam Rosmerta. He has a thing for older women. (Unresolved mommy issues mostly…)

His favourite subject was Ancient Runes. Everyone assumed that he is top tier at Astronomy, and while he was decent at it, he actually couldn’t care less about the subject.

He took a total of 9 N.E.W.T.s (DADA, Transfiguration, Charms, Alchemy, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Poitions, Care for magical creatures and Herbology), and got “Outstanding” on all except Herbology, which he passed with “Exceeding expectations”. He got an “Outstanding” in Poitions due to Slughorn’s blatant favoritism over his prestigious family, which annoys him a lot (one part because Snape is right about this accusation, and one part because he’d have preferred to be graded fairly).

He was never interested in Quidditch, but was up-to-date with it because of James.

His future profession of choice was curse breaker.

He used to bite his nails when stressed, he started to paint his nails to help him lose this bad habit. (He started to smoke instead.) Then kept both for aesthetic reasons.

He knew how to breath out smoke circles since he was a kid, and taught it to Remus in exchange of Remus teaching him how to whistle when they were 13.

He is tall, with broad shoulders and long legs. He is hairy. His eye colour is gray, but the shade can change a bit according to his mood. At first glance, his eyes can be mistaken for blue until compared side by side to Peter’s (who has cerulean).

He has a mole on his left cheek (every member of the Black family has a mole somewhere on their face). He also has one on his penis.

He has a resting bitch face, he either looks bored or annoyed, but his whole face and vibe changes drastically when he smiles. He is overall quite intimidating.

He has slightly East Asian features, with wide cheekbones, almond shaped eyes, a sharp jawline and thick jet black hair.

He can rock any haircut, and doesn’t care much about his hair by default.

His ears are pierced, and he wears a dog collar nonstop that he got from James when they made a blood pact with each other as teens. (It could be taken off him when he was sent to Azkaban, because the magical binding seemingly ceased to exist when the Potters died. Sirius later found the collar in Grimmauld Place, which gave him the idea to use the old blood pact with James to make Harry his own heir.)

He only wears black and shades of gray, as a teen because of aesthetic, as an adult because he can’t see colours. Beside black and gray, his “reference” colour is dark purple. (I have a palette for every character I draw.)

Prongs’ antlers scarred his left eyebrow during one of their first transformations. It could have been healed up perfectly, but Sirius decided to keep it as it is as a memento of their Big Achievement (and also aesthetic).

Also have a quick sketch of him to make up for the missed “prompts” of the event!

[sc0rpiflow3r]

✨ Prongsfoot Week 2024 - Day 2 ✨

New to Prongsfoot Week: What Headcanons do you have for this ship?

Loved this one!

The mirrors were James’s idea for Sirius’s fourteenth birthday, which started a competition to outdo each other’s birthday gifts.

On one of James’s birthdays, Sirius gave him a golden chain with the Potter's crest on it, and James never stopped wearing it after that.

James gifted Sirius his favorite leather jacket, as well as his precious bike (poor Euphemia had a meltdown seeing how crazy the two of them were on that bike).

Sirius liked Quidditch, but he only tried out for the team because of James (how could he stay away from his Jamie? Unthinkable).

James always knew Sirius was absolutely gorgeous, but he only realized his feelings were more than friendship after a very dirty dream. 😏

They don’t like studying in the library; they prefer studying in each other’s beds, cuddling, of course.

James kissed Sirius first, in a very impulsive way of his, and after that, they simply couldn’t stop kissing.

Sirius cleans James’s glasses.

James doesn’t like smoking cigarettes much, just joints, but sometimes he smokes just to stay in Sirius’s company.

Sirius gets jealous in a silent way (he gets all broody and quiet, with Walburga’s famous sneer), while James, when jealous, is much more visible — everyone can feel the daggers he throws at anyone looking at his precious Paddy.

James hates coffee, but he always serves a cup of black coffee with lots of sugar for Sirius.

Sirius loves drawing everything, but what he loves most is drawing James, in every possible way.

Sirius’s first tattoo was… Prongs’s antlers on his V line.

+18 — They are very intense during sex. James loves it when Sirius talks dirty in his ear, and they love marking each other’s bodies because they enjoy knowing they belong to each other.

I could go on forever — I love these two so much!

@prongsfootweekarchive

[euripidestrousers]

Microfic idea: how about one of them gets drunk and the other one has to put them to bed? 😁

Lemme just pick myself up off the floor - one of my favourite writers in this fandom gave me a prompt!!

And it's a good one too. Writing this little snippet was so much fun, thank you!

****

“I don't need an escort.”

“Of course not.”

“I was just having a good bloody time. If Lily didn't want to go to bed then-”

“Then you would have stayed up all night drinking with James, yes, I'm aware”, Remus smiles to himself as he adjusts his grip on Sirius’ arm slung over his shoulders. He forgets how heavy he is. Sirius always holds himself with such lofty grace that it's easy to forget he's rather solid - something Remus is frequently reacquainted with when Sirius rolls on top of him during the night. But watching Sirius and James singing cheerfully (and terribly) at each other as they danced around the fire tonight, made it easy to believe that Sirius weighed less than a feather.

“Too right”, Sirius growls, leaning heavily on Remus and ignoring the strained grunt that escapes, “We've earned it haven't we?”

Remus gets an unwelcome flash of a battlefield, the bridge where the Order had a standoff against Death Eaters meaning to sink the bridge and all the muggles on it before the Order had swept them away. It cost them a few of their own that day. Loss has become a constant companion, lying in bed between them every morning. 

Sirius had insisted James’ birthday be celebrated a week later. The hard line of his clenched jaw and hollow eyes had betrayed a motive other than celebration - a night to live again, defiantly, openly in the face of all the odds. A resistance worthy of Sirius Black and James Potter. And live they did tonight. 

“Yes, I think we've earned it a few times over”, Remus replies softly. 

Sirius grunts and Remus can feel him slipping into the dark, the melancholy which he succumbs to so easily without James’ brash voice and quick laughter. Remus used to feel a tinge of envy - he could share this man's bed but his soul is already shared between him and James. But Remus understands it now, has long come to terms with it. Who couldn't love James Potter with all their heart?

He pulls himself out of his musings, forcing some lightness into his tone, “What did you put in the fire? That smoke set me off laughing like I haven't done since Prongs walked into that tree antlers first.”

Sirius brightens a little, swaying rather than dragging his feet. “A little something for the nerves, my dear.” Sirius suddenly grins boastfully, “Haven't heard you sing since sixth year-”

“And not again for another few years I think”, Remus chuckles, pulling Sirius closer as he stumbles, both to steady him and to leech some of his endless warmth. It's supposed to be Spring but it's unusually cold, a chill blowing in from the coast and biting at the tips of his ears. Remus barely resists slipping a hand under Sirius’ shirt where he knows there's an endless source of heat. 

They've reached the front steps of their little town house and Remus concentrates on steadying himself to guide Sirius up the steps. 

Sirius is blissfully unaware of Remus’ struggles, his breath hot in Remus’ ear as he mumbles, “Moony, always such a gentleman. Insisting on walking me home-”

“We live together-”

“Gonna put me to bed?” Sirius grins lecherously, the effect ruined a little by the slurring, “Tuck me in? Big, bad, scary wolf you are.” He snorts rudely and Remus would be offended, except the fact that Sirius finds his lycanthropy being a source of irony rather than fear has become reassuring.

Remus shakes his head, about to tell him that he'd bet money on Sirius passing out as soon as his head hits the pillow, but then Sirius throws his head back and starts belting out a warbled but recognisable song, “Ooh, love, ooh, lover boy. What're you doing tonight? Hey, boy-”

“Shh, Sirius-”

“Set my alarm, turn on my charm-”

“Turn it back off-”

“That's because I'm a good old-fashioned lover boy”, Sirius throws his arm out as he makes a meal of the last word and Remus loses his balance, falling against Sirius and pinning him to the front door. Sirius’ laughter is warm against his cheek, his body burning beneath Remus’ hands, and he can't help but laugh with him, full of light and love. He feels it. The reason Sirius insisted on tonight being a night of laughter and celebration. He feels the spark of life thrumming in his veins, a renewed vigour for being alive. 

They stumble through the front door and Remus stops Sirius from swaying towards the shelf full of liquor - “Come on, have a nightcap”, “Bed. Now, Padfoot” - and successfully guides him towards the bedroom. Sirius is still humming the tune to the Queen song as he collapses onto the bed, leaving Remus to pull off his boots. 

When he starts unbuttoning Sirius’ belt, Sirius grins up at the ceiling, singing softly, “Say the word and your wish is my command-”

“I should be so lucky”, Remus mutters fondly, “Come on. Pants off.”

“Fancy a-”

“You are about to fall asleep”, Remus chides even as he admires the hard lines of Sirius’ shoulders and chest as he pulls off his jacket and shirt.

Sirius flops back on the bed in just his underwear and a content smile on his handsome face. Remus undresses himself to the peaceful tune Sirius hums, then crawls into bed next to him, nudging him to move over. 

“There's a hangover potion on your bedside”, Remus murmurs, closing his eyes. 

The bed dips and then he's squashed under a burning, heavy weight pinning him to the bed. He smiles, wrapping his arms around the dead weight, brushing black wavy locks off his face. 

“R'gonna win.”

“Hmm?” Remus hums in question, already thinking about what to make for breakfast in the morning. He pulls himself back to the present to listen to Sirius’ drunk mumbling.

“We're gonna win”, Sirius mumbles in the quiet, where the only other noise is the pipes groaning behind the walls, “This war.”

Remus hesitates, his heartbeat thudding in his ears and liquor swirling in his stomach.

“Of course we are”, he finally agrees softly with more conviction than he feels.

“You paused”, Sirius grunts, “Don't do that.”

Remus swallows, eyes wide and staring at the shadows on the ceiling. 

“Go to sleep”, he murmurs. 

It's a long time before he feels Sirius’ sleep twitches, signalling him falling into a deep sleep, and it's longer still before sleep creeps into the edges of Remus’ vision, held at bay by doubt and fear and the sense that if he closes his eyes, what he has will slip between his fingers.

[nerdinabook]

Marauders x muggleborn Reader (platonic)

- maybe slight nods to a Remus x Reader romance (I have a problem I know) but it doesn't have to be taken that way.

CW: panic attack, bad mental state, overwhelming feelings, death, grief.

I always make sure they boys are taken care of.

I make sure James remembers his schoolwork and his books before we go to class, he is very forgetful.

I know people from outside our circle often tease Peter about how he trails after the rest of the boys like a lost puppy, but I make sure he knows how loved and appreciated he is by both me and the rest of the boys.

I notice how Sirius draws away from the rest of the group before holidays and around his brothers birthday and I make sure I get him alone so he feels comfortable crying all he needs to without judgement or ridicule.

I know how Remus gets testy before the full moon so I know to try to tidy up the boys dorm, and restock his chocolate supply so he has less triggers because I know how guilty he feels after he snaps at the boys.

The point of all this being that I take care of them, watch them and make sure they take care of eachother when I'm not around so that for days like today when I simply can't bring myself to leave my dorm I know that they'll survive.

When Mary shook me awake this morning I had already decided to hibernate in my dorm all day. I brushed her off and made some excuse of it being that time of the month, which wasn't true as I finished my period last Monday, she gave me a look of disbelief but didn't push it and said she would check on me during lunch. I fell back asleep before I even heard the door close behind her.

Later I awoke to scratching on the outside of my door, confused I looked around and saw I was still alone in the dorm. I grab my wand and slowly move towards the door.

As I rip the door open with my wand out, the pit of fear in my stomach immediately leaves as I notice the familiar black dog named Padfoot outside my door.

"Merlin pads, give me a heartattack why don't ya" I keep the door open for him to enter while I return to my bed. I have known the boys we animagus since before they completed the task, them going on a month long 'silence strike' was as worrisome as a big indicator what they were doing. You see part of the procedure to become an animagus is to keep a mandrake leaf in your mouth for a month.

"Sorry it's just the only way we can get up the girls stairs without it turning to a slide" Sirius returns to his boisterous self as he fully enters the dorm room.

"Wait we?" I sit up alarmed and looking towards the door ready for the horror about to flood into the room.

Right on cue I hear the stomping of hooves up the stairs paired with the sharp breaths of some anxious person come up the stairs rapidly.

I watch in awe and horror as a deer enters my dorm room with a horrified Remus Lupin sat atop him holding a tiny rat in one hand and gripping one of Prongs' antlers in a death grip with the other.

"See I told you it would work!" Sirius exclaims as Remus quickly and awkwardly gets off Prongs' back and sets Wormtail on the floor.

Immediately after turning back into James he starts doubling over in laughter.

" Oh Merlin! That was the best thing ever! We definitely have to do it again" James eventually straightens up and plops himself next to me on my bed.

"Yeah no not happening" Remus says as he brushes imaginary dirt off his clothes.

"But Moonyy, what about next time we need to check up on our better fifth." Sirius wines out dramatically.

"There won't be a next time, why are you guys here shouldn't you be in class?" I move over in my bed to try and give more room for them, but in reality it could probably only hold 1 more person comfortably.

I guess Remus decided to be that person as he comes and sits next to me and James on the bed. "We couldn't let our best girl be all by herself" Remus rubs my leg in a comforting motion.

"Guys I promise I'm fi-" Peter cuts me off.

"Come off it, you know we know you better then that" Peter exclaims "I can see the circles under your eyes showing that you haven't slept"

"And the slight redness of your nose" James taps my nose as he speaks "in addition to the pile of tissues on your nightstand" my eyes dart to my nightside instinctively and see the tissues that I put there after my mental breakdown last night. "And the fact that you aren't showing signs are being ill and there is none of that muggle meditation out, points to the fact that you've been crying"

"Medication" I correct under my breath

" When Mary told us you were holed up in your dorm with girl problems, that was a dead give away somethings up because we know you love to pressure Moony to give up some of his chocolate when your on your period, which you did last week" Sirius moves to sit on the floor besides the bed as he speaks. "I may not be an expert in female autonomy but I know your period doesn't last 2 weeks"

"Dove," Remus takes my hand " you haven't even changed from what you were wearing last night" I look down and see he is right I am still wearing the sweats and band tee I was wearing last night as we were playing exploding snaps in the boys dorm.

I take the hand Remus is not holding and hold it up to cover my face as the emotions that were flooding through my body as the boys were talking all come to surface and a sob escapes my mouth.

"I-I jus-s-st" I stutter out through my sobs

"Hey hey, breathe, that's all you need to do right now, just breathe" James says as he pulls my arm from my face so I can match my breaths with his.

"That's right, just focus on your breaths don't want you hyperventilating" at some point through this Sirius must have gotten up from his place on the floor and took to rubbing my back.

Remus keeps a hold on my hand and when I started bringing my other hand up to scratch at my throat he grabbed it as well to stop me from inflicting red scratch marks on my neck.

The room seems to be moving in slow motion as all the boys are doing something to help me calm down my eyes locked with James as a grounding point as Remus holds my hands, Sirius rubs my back and shoulders, and Peter runs his hands through my probably very unruly hair.

The boys my boys unfortunately have experience helping eachother down from their own respective panic attacks so they know just what I need to calm down.

When it seems like I'm starting to calm down I lock eyes with Remus and break down again, and again when I see my pile of school work out of my peripheral, or feel Sirius' hands run over the back of my necklace. I'm just constantly going up and down, doing better then doing worse, it feels like a never ending cycle.

After a while I eventually just close my eyes and that helps things not be so triggering for me and I'm finally able to calm down.

Once I open them I see Peter standing besides me with a glass of water-I didn't even notice his hands leave the top of my head that's how out of it I was- I take it and drink it all down slowly as to not choke myself.

"There's our girl" Sirius says with his award winning grin, that does bring the tiniest upturn of my lips.

"Sorry you-" I start to apologize but Remus cuts me off.

"Nope no apologies, you've been there for us more then we count so its about time you let us be there for you" Remus smiles at me and hands me a tissue.

"What do you need?" Peter kneels down to be eye level with the rest of us " do you want to talk or just exist for a bit, maybe sleep some more?" He says with a gentle rub of my hand.

" I haven't heard from my parents in 2 months" I say while I rub my eyes clear of the liquid once enclosed in them. " 2 months with no letters, it's so unlike them, I'm so scared something- I inhale- with all the news I'm hearing of muggle families going missing in the prophet... and I can't even do anything, I'm just supposed to sit here and wait till I either hear something or go home for the holidays next week and find their bodies in my living room" I take more deep breaths as I feel my heart rate spiking again.

"Oh dove" Remus cradles his arms around my head and pulls me into a hug.

"I'm just so tired, and done" I sigh into his arms.

"We're here for you, you know that right" Peter says.

"Just like you've been there for us through our baggage, let us be there for you" Sirius says as he kneels down and outs his hand on my folded up knee.

I pull out from the hug with Remus and wipe the stray tear from the corner of my eye.

"Thanks guys" I give a half-hearted smile hoping they can in-fact tell how much it means to me.

[yallthemwitches]

Catch the Wind Ch. 15: All About Fundamentals

This chapter is NSFW for sexual situations~ AO3 Link Here!

There was no manual on how to greet someone who just turned into an animal in front of your eyes.The stag shifted it’s head side to side, eyeing her with anxious blinks. He lowered his head, careful not to hit her with the antlers that branched out around her. Lily lifted her hand and slowly guided it to the top of the stag’s head. The animal leaned into her touch, closing its eyes and making a soft humming noise. An ear twitched in contentment. 

“James?”

The stag’s eyes blinked open again, nuzzling her hand further around its snout before taking two steps backwards into the treeline. As quick as he had transformed, he was human again. 

It could have all been some sort of fever dream if James hadn’t now been standing nearly naked apart from a thin fur cloak which had matched the stag’s coat. His glasses laid near his feet, having been torn off during his transformation. Lily hadn’t realized that she had gone from standing, to kneeling, to sitting on the forest floor, staring in the direction of the many forms her boyfriend had taken in the last minute or so. 

“Ok, we can talk now.” He pulled the cloak tight, but Lily could tell it wasn’t the cold that was bothering him. His eyes, unclouded by glasses, quivered in her direction. She had seen James in many compromising positions, but this seemed to be the most raw of them all. She could feel his anticipation suffocating the space. 

“You’re—You’re brilliant.”

It wasn’t the response he had expected. His face went from addled, to shocked, to pure joy in the matter of seconds. He took a step towards her, unclear with how to compose himself. 

“How—” She looked everywhere. At the supposed fake sky of the room, at the brook that babbled a soundtrack into the space, at her boyfriend, her boyfriend who was—he was— 

“It’s all about fundamentals,” he made it sound nonchalant, “getting the actual animagus form just takes practice.”

There were a thousand questions. A thousand feelings running through her brain. Some stemming from the absolute insanity that he had mastered such a skill at a young age, others about the sheer danger, not to mention law breaking, he was creating by having such a talent. She felt herself drowning in it, in all of the many facets that led to James Potter being one of the most brilliant people she had ever met. 

“Do it again.”

James placed his hands on his hips, leaned his head back and gave a hearty laugh that frightened a group of birds perched in the nearby trees. 

“So I take it you aren’t angry with me?”

Lily swung her legs so they were now under her. The anxiety from James’ features was starting to melt and his cocky self was beginning to shine back into his face. 

“Depends. Are you going to show me again or not?”

James raised an eyebrow, then disappeared again, leaving the same stag from before in his place. This time, the animal had no hesitation, he walked up to the seated Lily and she immediately reached her hands to meet him. She caressed his face, ran her hands up his antlers, down his back, taking her time to feel and see that every inch of him was in fact pure animal. She could feel her mouth agape and she knew if James had the capability to laugh at her he would. After running her hands down his back a few more times, he stepped away again and James reappeared in human form, once again pulling his cloak against his naked body. 

“Gotta say, it's very weird to be pet—something I could really get used to.”

Lily was still too shocked to react to his quip. James sat down next to her, searching her face for any indication that she was ok. 

“I know you probably have so many things to say to me—and I promise to answer them. But I have solemnly sworn not to reveal a good bit until all of us can be together.”

All of us. 

Lily sat dumbfounded. She wished she knew what to say or how to say it, but every time she took a breath to speak, her vocal cords protested. Her mind felt like it was being thrown in a wind tunnel. Images of past conversations between Snape, between herself and any of the marauders passed through her mind. She racked her brain for signs, for how she could have possibly seen this coming. James sat by her quietly, leaning back on his hands and giving her space to think. She was almost about to give up, accept that she had been blindsided, until like a light in a far off tunnel, it all came to her. 

“Animals!” She exclaimed. Some birds chattered angrily at the noise. 

“Uhm, very good Evans. Animagus do turn into animals.” Even his cheekiness sounded unsure. 

“No, you git—of course I know that— I meant to say, werewolves don’t attack animals!”

James tensed up. His head snapped to look in front of him rather than at Lily and he began to feign an interest in the mountainside.

“Always the top student.” He said in a whisper. It was clear he knew the jig was up. How could he not? After seeing him cut to shreds in sixth year and her coming to sleep with him every full moon as a clear intent to check on him. Remus was right, she was no fool, they needed to stop treating her like one. 

“You did this for Remus.”

There was a pause, then he responded slowly. “We wanted to help him–and so far it’s been working.”

“How long have you—”

“We’ve known since second. Finally got our animagus forms in fifth.”

Lily pulled her knees to her chest and ran her hands through her hair. 

“Christ.”

If she was being honest, she didn’t know what she had expected, but it wasn’t this. 

“Lily?”

She didn’t respond. It was all too much. The writing on the quidditch pitch, her talk with Sirius, the confirmation that not only was one of her mates an actual werewolf, but her own boyfriend was using highly skilled magic to spend time with him, no, to help him. Emotions fought to be at the forefront of her mind, ranging from complete utter adoration to alarming anxiety. 

She must have been quiet for a while because when she finally became present again in the forest, he had already wrapped his arms around her and was cradling her head against his bare chest. Now back from her fugue state, she could smell earth mixed with James’ usual smell of spice. She knew it wasn’t the first time she had smelled it before. 

“Lily, I'm so sorry. For everything.” He began to ramble. About the words written on the quidditch pitch, about the secrets that he had been keeping, about the many whys and hows surrounding Remus and their animagus form, about overall how incredibly dumb and risky he was being for all of it. Lily listened, hearing more of his jagged heartbeat than his actual words. After he seemed to have spent all his voice, Lily took her chance to finally respond. She took his face in her hands, regarded the sharp hazel eyes that were rimmed with doubt, and closed the gap between their lips. 

The tension in his body dropped like a curtain. Her lips were soft and reassuring, giving a few lingering kisses on his lips before slowly moving around his face, kissing his cheeks, his nose, his eyelids. She moved like honey, treasuring the soft breaths he made, how his head tilted up towards her, how his eyes fluttered closed, like a child being lulled to sleep by the comfort of a perfectly balanced world. 

When she made it back to his mouth, his hands had curved around her. Cradling her back down onto the forest floor and hovering over her. With hands no longer attending to it, his cloak furrowed open, leaving him completely nude against her, the cloak like enormous wings that enveloped them both away from the autumn air. 

They had been more intimate than this many times before, but this time felt different. Instead of burning heat and the claw of desire, they both moved like they were submerged in water. His hand took its time to caress each spot of skin after unbuttoning a part of her blouse. Her hands slid down his bare chest, around his back, over his bum, still unable to comprehend how this form, this man, had been able to be something else entirely just moments ago. 

He kissed his way slowly down her middle. Now with her blouse open, her breasts stood taut against him and he made a lazy path down to her nipple, swirling his tongue around the swell before taking the flat tip into his mouth. He used his hand to caress the other and Lily braided her hands through his hair, holding him against her as he worked in a meticulous manner. 

She wanted him. Just like all of the other times, she wanted him badly. But the fire within her now was a radiating, glowing heat, not the fiery burn of lust. He was like the feel of the sun when winter was ending and the world was born anew. She wanted his breath to be hers, for their bodies to conjoin and remain together, a perfect completion of a severed soul. 

He must have felt it too, because once he serviced both of her breasts fully with his mouth, he hovered back over her lips, using his tongue to softly prod her mouth open. 

“If you will let me, I would like to be inside you.”

She opened her eyes to see him staring back, deep and wide. It came tumbling out.

“James, I love you.”

His body shook. The hand that was holding himself over her gave way and he faltered a bit. She watched how her words made his eyes go from wide to impossibly all-seeing, like he had watched the creation of a new star and was in awe of nature’s beauty. 

She grasped both sides of his face, keeping him steady in front of her. 

“I love you too, Lily.”

A dam broke in his mind. After saying it, all the energy that moved so lazily before picked up speed and intention. Words started pouring from his mouth, unable to control the river of emotion boiling up inside him. I love you I love you, oh merlin Lily I love you.

He was kissing her neck, her shoulders, running his hands around her body as though seeing it for the first time. Lily laughed, feeling slap-happy, like some sort of ethereal being who had just come to earth. She let James rediscover her body and held his close against hers. 

After a moment, she found his hands with hers and pulled them up to her heart, cradling them against her chest. James allowed it, looking at her quizzically, hungry to keep experiencing her body, now in love. 

“James–”

He nuzzled his nose against where her neck and collar met, opening his mouth and leaving little nips as he went. His hardness which had never left since they started, remained pressed to her thigh like a reminder.

“I would like you to be inside me now.”

He made a small hum of contentment, lifted his body back above hers and moved himself against her center. His eyes were fixed on hers, his cheeks ruddy with the autumn wind and the general high of being in love. Lily moved a hand to the back of his thigh, guiding his lower half to move forward and finally enter her. 

His first thrust was slow and deliberate, feeling every bit of her as he went until he was fully inside. He started to thrust back and forth, a hand resting on her neck while another hiked her thigh up and around his waist for a better angle. 

Lily’s head leaned back, mouth open and emitting noises she had only ever made for him. He started to speed up, taking the thigh that wasn’t wrapped around him and led it to do the same. She arched her back and he swooped down to take her nipple into his mouth once more. The sound of skin hitting skin reverberated through the forest around them. 

Lily could feel his thrusting start to get more erratic, his body clenched from inside her. Knowing what would come soon, she took hold of both of his forearms and pulled him in the direction of the ground. She wasn’t strong enough to sway him, and he slowed his movements and arched an eyebrow in question. 

“Let me ride you.”

He didn’t need any more explanation. With a low moan, he followed where her arms had been tugging him and laid himself onto the forest floor. Pulling herself off of him to switch positions, she took the opportunity to duck her head down and take his cock into her mouth for one long teasing lick from his base to the tip. Oh fuck, oh christ Lily. The unexpected sensation made him quiver underneath her. Lily released him with a pop of her mouth and giggled at his frazzled response. 

Impatient now, he grabbed her arms and ushered her to mount him. She nestled him into her folds, letting the wetness from her center glide over him while he threw his head back and continued to spew a string of expletives. 

“Lily–please.”

She arched an eyebrow, excited to have so much power over him for once. She hovered herself higher, no longer touching but allowing his tip to align with her entrance. Slowly, barely moving at all, she lowered herself until his tip stretched at her opening before pulling back off. James’ head whipped up, eyes now burning. He grabbed for her sides and she stopped him, placing a warning hand over his. 

She locked eyes with him as she lowered down again, just enough to tease his tip with her entrance before moving back up again. His mouth hung open, eyes now pleading. 

“Merlin, you’re killing me.”

She giggled again then leaned down, finally taking him all the way inside her. He made a sigh of relief, and started aiding her hips to move up and down on him. She leaned forward, letting him catch one of her breasts in his mouth while his other hand moved down in between them to rub her clit. She made a broken noise as his fingers kept rhythm with her thrusts.

 She could feel the burning in her stomach mounting, each thrust barrelling towards the pleasure locked in her very core. It snuck up on her and she trembled over him in release, crying his name as he continued thrusting upwards into her, holding her face so he could watch her eyes flood with climax. 

Her legs and hips were spent from their work riding him. James flipped them again, putting Lily back onto the ground without ever slipping out of her. His thrusts were harder now, more intentioned. The fingers that had been rubbing her clit earlier were still wet from her come, and she pulled the hand to her mouth, taking the affected fingers with her tongue. At the sight, James’ eyes dilated. She could feel his body twitch under hers, then with a strangled cry, she felt the rush of him releasing into her. 

He let his body fall to the ground, pulling her in to curl against his chest. His hand ran through her hair as both of their heartbeats slowed down. 

“I love you. I mean it.” 

She could feel him smile. 

“Say it again.”

Lily laughed. She pulled herself up out of his arms and looked down at him. He couldn’t contain his happiness and looked up at her in earnest. 

“I love you.”

His smile grew impossibly wider. His eyes glinted in the afternoon sun. 

“Again.”

She gave his chest a light smack and he caught her hand, bringing it up to his mouth to kiss. 

She fell back into his chest and he cradled her against him again. 

“I love you too. Merlin, fuck, do I love you. I’m going to be incorrigible now, you realize this?”

Lily just laughed into his chest. “When are you not?”

James pulled her tighter against him, his hand started to travel lower, curving around her bum. She could feel his erection start to return against her thigh. 

“Point taken.”

With a squeal he flipped her back over. Crawling his way down her body, until his tongue found the part of her which yearned for him most. 

********

Lily loved him. Not just found him bearable, not just liked him enough, she loved him. 

The words haunted him every second of the day. He would have to give up quidditch, have to explain to his parents why his notes were about to plummet from lack of care or focus. The world was now a spyglass and she was the only thing on the other side. Damn it all, she loved him. 

“I didn’t realize they could get worse.” He could hear Peter moan just off to their side. He didn’t give it a second thought. Lily’s hands were on him, lips opening under his. Oh Merlin, how did we even last an entire class apart?

“Honestly, if I knew that telling women about our animagus form would get me laid, I would’ve—”

“Don’t even joke about that, Pads.”

“What? It seems to work pretty handsomely for Prongs.”

Ignoring them was easy for James, but he could feel Lily become apprehensive underneath him. You would have thought that by the fourth time they had stopped for a snogging session before and after a class his thick-brained mates would have become desensitized. Didn’t they know that they were in love now? That had to count for something.

“Oi! Head boy, Head girl! I don’t think dry humping is on your list of duties!” Sirius yelled, turning the heads of some unsuspecting first years who would have otherwise walked by unnoticed. 

Lily groaned into James’ mouth. “I’m going to hex your stupid friends.”

James just continued to kiss her, taking her lower lip between his teeth and nibbling. From the corner of his eye he could see Sirius cover Peter’s eyes. 

“Please do. I’d love to watch.”

Lily laughed. The damage was already done. Lily pulled away and started to walk casually towards the great lake, allowing the rest of the boys to fall in step with them. 

Sirius wedged himself between the couple, wrapping his arms around both of their waists, eliciting a noise of dissent from both parties. 

“What? Jealous Black?” Lily snorted, cocking her eyebrow.

“Why Evans? You offering some compensation?” He nuzzled his face into Lily’s shoulder, making her swat at him while James whined a protective hey! at his best mate’s antics. Sirius just turned and repeated the nuzzling on James shoulder, which led to a lot of pushing and laughing.

He had to admit, it felt good. Of course, there was still so much to talk about: they had never really unpacked what the Slytherin’s wrote on the quidditch pitch, nor really went through the finer points of Marauder’s secrets, but she already knew enough to feel a part of the group. Despite the endless tormenting from Sirius and the embarrassed look of Peter everytime she joined them, it made him happy to see her meld with the only other people in his life he cared for more than her. 

They all walked down to the lake, stopping under a wide beech tree to throw their things down before sprawling out themselves. Lily sat up against the tree and James laid draped over her, head against her stomach with his arms encircling her waist. She idly played with his hair and he closed his eyes at the feeling. 

“So when am I going to be finally initiated into your little club? Is there some sort of secret handshake I’m gonna have to learn? Need to mix some sort of bodily fluids to prove my alliance?”

“Oh Evans, I think you’ve mixed enough bodily fluids—”

“Pads…” James warned, not even opening his eyes. 

James could hear Remus sigh, then the sound of a book closing. 

“Well what would you like to know? Or I guess I should say, what do you still not know at this point?” 

Lily’s hand stilled in his hair, and James blinked his eyes open. All of the rest of the boys had gotten very still besides Remus, who was looking at Lily with soft, calculating eyes. The two of them seemed to share a moment in silence, something that only years of building a trust would have allowed.

James took his cue to sit up, taking the hand that had been curling through his hair and softly caressing it with his thumb. Sirius did not change his lounging position on the ground, but his brows were furrowed in anticipation. Peter sat quite stiff, finding something down by the lakeside more interesting with ruddy cheeks.

“You’re all animagi.”

“Yep,” James and Sirius said in tandem. Peter’s eyes snapped back to the group and took a moment before nodding as well. 

“A-and you Remus are a…” She was struggling to say it. Remus gave her a pained, weak smile that James couldn’t quite read. 

“A werewolf.” Remus lowered his eyes. Sirius reached out and patted his leg in reassurance. 

Lily didn’t say anything. She got up from her spot from the tree and took a step towards Remus, then another, then collapsed down, grabbing hold of him in an embrace. Nobody expected it, even Remus’ eyes going wide before softening. Lily’s face was pushed into his shoulder, but her voice was trembling like she was on the verge of tears. 

“Oh, Remus.” He just tightened his grip on her. His eyes were watery, but his mouth was pulled up into a smile against her shoulder. 

Nobody moved to pull them apart. There was a part of James that wondered if he should feel jealous of such an intimate moment between his girlfriend and his mate, but the thought dissipated as quick as it came. It had been such a long time coming for them to have this moment, since before he ever even was close to her. In a way, it was anticlimactic. There was nothing Remus needed more in this world than more people on his side that understood him for what he truly was and loved him despite of it. He thought deep down they all knew Lily would be one of those people, but now it was just confirmed. 

Lily pulled back and they held each other at arm's length. Lily’s eyes were blurry, but when Remus started to laugh, she began to laugh with him.

“Oh, god, the amount of times I’ve complained about stupid rubbish to you—as though you didn’t have this to deal with.”

Remus just laughed harder. When all of their emotions settled, they continued. It turned out there was not much she didn’t already know. She had figured that one of them had some sort of invisibility cloak due to using it to sneak away on the train, then was hardly surprised to learn that the ruddy parchment she had seen them all carry at one point or another was able to track people’s whereabouts. 

James watched as Lily looked down at their handiwork with awe, every so often pushing at a teasing Sirius’ or looking expectantly at Remus for finer detail on certain aspects of the charm. Even Peter finally joined in, gloating about which passageways he had discovered on his own. She never looked more radiant than she did now, completing the picture in his heart of what a family should look like. 

“So, you’re telling me that you lot created a complex magical artifact just to…muck around?”

Remus snorted and nodded his head in agreement. Sirius let out a loud laugh, then poked Lily lightly on the cheek. 

“Don’t forget watching what your pretty arse was up to. Merlin knows how many days ole’ Prongsy over there laid awake watching your name on this thing.”

Lily snapped her head up. Her eyebrow cocked upwards, a twitch of her mouth betraying her otherwise angry facade. 

“Watching me?”

James felt a blush growing on his cheeks. 

“Er, I mean–”

Lily just raised her eyebrows higher in a way that said you’ll be answering to that later.

*******

“What’s the big deal, Potter’s favorite hobby is showing your relationship off. He will be a great date.”

“That’s exactly the problem—all of the Slytherin’s will be there..”

“Lils, I promise that the whole school is well aware of you both dating. All your little snogging sessions around the castle have made that abundantly clear.”

Lily groaned and put her face in her hands. Marlene continued to lean back, taking a drag of her cigarette.

“That’s not what I mean,” Lily hissed, “I mean Slughorn’s party will be the perfect place for those arseholes to comment on my blood status where I won’t be able to do anything about it—-and you know James won’t just take that sitting down.”

“And he shouldn’t—look Lil, I don’t even know why you still go to these Slug Club events, especially since Slughorn seems to have cold feet when taking sides these days. Why don’t you just write the whole thing off and—”

Lily flopped herself onto her bed, pushing her head into her pillow. 

“You know I can’t. I haven’t missed one since fourth year—plus it’s especially important since I’m Head girl ....”

Marlene snuffed out her cigarette on the post of her bed. “Well—at the very least you will get to rub it in Snape’s face. Bet he will piss himself when he sees you both.”

Lily hadn’t even thought about Snape. Honestly, he hadn’t even crossed her mind since the day that he cornered her in the classroom and Sirius came to get her. She realized she hadn’t seen James get into a duel with him either since they started dating, something that would’ve happened on a semi-regular basis in any other time in their lives. Sirius must have made good on his promise if things were staying so civil, but now being so open in front of him might set it off anew. 

She walked down to the common room to find James reading by the fireplace. His tie had somehow loosened to the point of hanging off to one side and his brow furrowed at the contents of the page. Lily hadn’t intended on disturbing him, but the moment she sat, he reached over and pulled her onto his lap, leaving his book for another time. 

While she knew that they shouldn’t be basking in as much public displays of affection as they were, it was hard for Lily not to revel in it. There was such a surge of joy every time they saw each other, like there was not enough time in the world to fully appreciate how much love they wanted to share. It was easy to get lost in his touches and kisses when he gave them so openly. She wondered if this was how all loving couples felt, or if they had just surpassed normalcy entirely.

James immediately brought his lips to hers and she willingly let him breathe into her. He made it impossible to focus. His hands were too inviting, his smell too cloying. They might as well retire as Head’s students because they were no longer ever going to get anything done. 

“James, I need to ask you something,” she tried to sound convincing, but he continued to kiss her, pulling his tongue against her lower lip while moving her legs to straddle his waist better. Lily opened her eyes and could see a group of poor second years trying not to stare. 

“James.” 

“I love it when you say my name, even when it is contradicting me,” he started to kiss behind her ear and she tried to stifle a moan. The second years were whispering now. 

“James,” she pushed at his chest, “really, it's important. Also, you’re scandalizing the lower classmen.” James turned to the second years and gave a little wave, making all of them flush.

He turned back to her with his glasses still askew and mouth swollen. “The answer is yes, as long as I can keep kissing you.”

He leaned back in but Lily kept him at an arm's length. “I wanted to see if you would go to Slughorn’s Halloween party with me.”

He blinked at her once, twice, then raised his eyebrows.

“Do you think that’s a good idea? I mean, all of those tosser Slytherins go to that.”

“You know that Slughorn expects me to go–” she trailed off. 

“Yes, let's appease the man who refused to take action on what was written on the quidditch pitch last week.”

Lily slid off his lap, resting on the couch beside him. She knew he had a point. They hadn’t really spoken about what happened the day of the quidditch game, but the effects were still there. McGonagall had tried to get the Slytherin team disqualified for the rest of the season, but Slughorn convinced Dumbledore otherwise—a move that James very vocally opposed in their last Heads’ meeting.

“I don’t want to row about it—I have to go whether you come or not—I’d prefer you did.”

James let out a dramatic groan and leaned his head back on the couch. 

“Fine, I’ll go.” Lily jumped back on his lap with delight and kissed his cheek. 

“But if anyone says anything nasty to you, you can’t be angry if I hex them.”

“Fine, of course.” Lily continued to kiss the other cheek. 

“---And you will pay me back by ravishing me well into the night—.”

“Ah, such conditions for such a silly party.”

“And you will need to make a deposit due immediately of said ravishing, so I know you won’t back out.”

His hands were snaking up her thighs, pushing her skirt dangerously high. Lily thanked Merlin that no one could see their laps at their vantage point. Between her skirt and James’ growing erection, they were not leading by the best example. 

“Take it or leave it Evans.”

Before Lily could finish nodding her head, James had stood up, carrying her in his arms up towards the boy’s dorms, leaving their younger colleagues to deduce the outcome for themselves. 

********

James was being unreasonably quiet. Worryingly so. They had walked in complete silence from the common room to the dungeons—a feat she thought was impossible for him. He even stayed quiet when she complimented him on his dress robes, expecting at the very least a polite compliment in return. Nothing. Instead, he averted his eyes, keeping his hands wedged inside his pockets like he had been hexed dumb. 

She started to worry that she was embarrassing him. Lily knew that when Slughorn said “Halloween Party” every year, he just meant a normal stuffy party, but Lily always liked to bring a little flair to the particular event. For a while she did it for fun, but as the conflict about blood status grew beyond the castle, Lily started to think it a point of pride to show off her muggleborn heritage, even in small gestures like wearing a costume. 

She had even been pleased with her choice this year. It was not too conspicuous, easily mistaken for an evening gown, but a costume all the same. The deep V neck showed off a bit of cleavage and the black velvet clung to her body. It was a power move for a Head Girl that needed to emit a lot of power. 

Normally, James would have been beside himself, afterall he was already a randy teenage boy on a regular day. Instead, he hardly even touched her, keeping a large gap between them as they walked the corridors together, something that just hours earlier would have been sacreligious in his eyes. 

When they reached the door to the party, Lily grabbed hold of the handle, already hearing the drone of boring conversations they were about to endure for the next couple hours. 

“James–you alright?” James continued to stare down at his shoes. “What’s wrong? I know you don’t want to be here, but I really need you to–”

She was thrown against the door. James’ hands were everywhere all at once, his mouth finding any place it could gain purchase, her exposed shoulders, her neck, the V of skin that peeked out from the dress.

“Evans, you are going to put me in an early grave. What am I supposed to do with you—like this?”

He was pulling at the dress now, running his hand up the high slit on her thigh to reach underneath. Behind her, she could still hear the party so ungodly close, but his touch was muddying her thoughts. It was too easy to give in to him.

The handle turned and James jumped away from her. Lily tried to smooth her hair as much as she could as Sluhorn popped his head out, eyebrows knitted together. Recognizing them, he swung open the door with a flourish of his hand.

“Ah! The Head boy and girl! I was wondering what all that racket was coming from. Come in, come in! Merlin’s Beard I never thought I’d see the day that I would get James Potter to one of my events–though I’ve certainly tried. Ms. Evans you must have done some serious convincing—”

Lily could feel James hand snake around her waist, giving her side a little pinch. Her skin still stung with phantom kisses.

“Oh, you have no idea Professor—It’s a pleasure really.” James painted on a smile that looked utterly saccharine. He pulled her body against his and she could feel him hard against her bum. Merlin help us. 

Tables were decorated with sparkling silver and students and guests alike mulled around with drinks and hors d'oeuvres, wearing their best dress robes and finest jewelry. At their arrival, many faces turned, sizing up the two as though they were prized cows at an auction. 

Lily tried not to focus on the bulge that was continuing to press into her as James fielded some light banter about Quidditch. It did not go unnoticed that even Slughorn’s eyes blinked down at the deep V cut in the velvet dress, before flashing back up to her face. 

“Well, professor, I think we are in need of a drink—will you excuse us?” James didn’t wait for Slughorn to respond, pulling Lily away from him and walking them both towards the bar. 

“I know our deal was to get through the party before I got my ravishing,” James hissed into her ear, “ but I think we are going to need to speed up this process. It seems I’m not the only one getting randy by your outfit.”

Lily made an exasperated sigh, taking a drink from the bar cart. She knew there was no escaping now that they had been spotted. They at least would have to make it through dinner before finding some reason to sneak away. 

From the other end of the room, a cluster of Slytherins talked in low voices. Lily could see the eyes of Avery and Mulciber gleamed over at them, then a familiar head turned to follow suit. Snape stood petrified, eyes locked on her and James. 

Brilliant. 

The dinner started with the normal pomp and circumstance. James and Lily were seated close to Slughorn. Being the esteemed Head boy and girl, they were expected to entertain all of the special guests that had come to appease the professor. While feigning his best behavior, James' hand slid up and down her thigh below the table, prompting Lily to jump every so often and James to break into a wider smile. 

“Mr. Potter! It’s been an awfully long time since I saw your parents! How are they doing?” 

Slughorn leaned over to the wizard next to him, sloshing his sherry. “The Potter’s are a very talented bunch, you know! Fleamont invented Sleekeazy’s Hair Potion, though unfortunately I don’t have much hair left to use it!”

Lily turned abruptly to James, who stalled his hand on her thigh. 

“What?” James just blinked at her.

“What, What?”

“Your Dad invented Sleekeazys? And your hair still looks like that.”

Slughorn burst into a laugh, chortling about Lily’s knack for being cheeky. James just leaned in until his lips were touching her ear.

“You don’t seem to have a problem with my hair when you pull on it while I’m–” but Lily pushed him away, knowing she was turning red in the face. Thankfully Slughorn didn't seem to notice, barrelling on with the conversation. 

“James, you must  extend an invitation to your parents next time I hold an event. It has been years since—” But James cut him off and there was a deliberate shift in the air.

 “That’s very kind of you Professor, but I’m afraid my parents will probably decline. You see, ever since we took in Sirius, they haven’t been very interested in rubbing elbows with the greater pureblood community.”

There was a deafening silence around the table. James’ smile didn’t falter, but Lily could tell he knew what chaos he was welcoming. He didn’t focus on Slughorn now, but at a smaller boy that was sitting across the table between Snape and Avery. Lily had never really thought much of Regulus Black before, but for someone so deep in the dark arts he had always been relatively civil to her. Now giving him a clear look, he really did look like his brother with deliberate mistakes. He stared back at James with an unreadable expression. 

Slughorn cleared his throat. “Ah yes, I heard about that—sad thing, family strife, but if they do change their mind, please let them know they are welcome.”

Slughorn tried to start up a conversation with one of the wizards sitting to his left but James took a sip of his wine and continued, making sure his voice was clear enough for the whole table to hear. 

“Actually Professor, since we are on the topic of family, I was curious about how you felt about the accusations written about myself and Ms. Evans on the quidditch pitch last week?  I was informed by Professor Dumbledore that you didn’t plan to take any action, which surprises me, seeing as you seem very invested in us otherwise.”

Lily looked at James, who continued to smile as though he wasn’t spewing fighting words out onto the table. His hand squeezed her thigh tightly, an act she couldn’t tell was reassuring or cautionary. From across the table, Snape’s eyes burned into her and she refused to look back, trying to focus anywhere but at the situation. 

“My boy, I think it’s hardly time to be discussing—”

“What? Why not? You all seem to love to talk about bloodlines and purity otherwise. Certainly seem interested in how mine is going, judging by the state of the quidditch pitch.”

“James,” Lily warned. James’ face had dropped it’s facade, now looking more angry by the second. 

“Lily we can’t just sit here and play tea party while half of these people—”

But Lily stood up, tugging at the back of James’ chair. 

“I’m not hungry anymore. It’s time to go.” She stared down at him, her expression completely dark. 

“Right.” James stood up. Years of rowing with Lily meant he knew when he had overstepped.

As they walked to the door, Avery pretended to whisper to Mulciber but made sure his voice would carry.

“Think he likes being whipped by a mudblood slut? I wouldn’t be surprised if blood traitors got off on—” but there was a cry and Avery’s head slammed into his plate. He struggled to lift out of his dinner, but it was as though his head was being held down. For a moment, he rose out of the now smashed remnants of his meal and sucked in a breath before an unknown force plunged his face violently back into the plate. 

“Sorry? Say something Avery?” Lily turned to watch as Mulciber scrambled to help his friend. James stared at her, undecided if he was in awe of her or utterly terrified. She made one last stern glance at James before pushing past him and out into the corridor. 

[kingstarkingslay]

DOMESTIC FULL MOONS ( vol 3 )

The full moon hung high over the Forbidden Forest, its silvery light filtering through the canopy and casting a serene glow over a small clearing. The night was peaceful, the usual clamor of the transformation softened by the calm of the moonlit surroundings.

Remus had just completed his metamorphosis into Moony, his fur gleaming like stardust. As he adjusted to his wolf form, he spotted Sirius , now Padfoot, sprawled comfortably on the grass nearby. The large black dog’s eyes sparkled with a mixture of affection and curiosity as he observed Moony’s next move.

James , in his animagus form as Prongs, stood watchful and gentle, his antlers casting elongated shadows across the ground. Peter, scurrying around as Wormtail , had already busied himself gathering fallen leaves and twigs.

Moony had a whimsical idea for the night. With a determined gleam in his eyes, he began to dig a small hole in the ground, carefully moving the dirt with his paws. It wasn’t just any hole; it was to be a cozy little nook, a special place where he and Padfoot could rest together under the moonlight.

Once the hole was deep enough and the edges smoothed out, Moony began to gather nearby leaves and twigs. His movements were methodical, almost artistic, as he arranged the leaves in a decorative pattern around the inside of the hole. Each leaf was placed with care, creating a natural and inviting nest.

Padfoot, ever the attentive and affectionate partner, rolled onto his side, watching with a mix of admiration and amusement. As the nook took shape, Moony’s attention turned to decorating Padfoot himself. With a playful nudge, he encouraged Padfoot to come closer. Padfoot complied, lying still as Moony began to adorn his black fur with leaves.

Moony placed the leaves carefully, creating a playful and whimsical effect. The leaves, in varying shades of green and gold, clung to Padfoot’s fur, giving him a charming, woodland look. Padfoot’s eyes twinkled with delight, and he gave a soft, contented bark as Moony worked.

After a while, Moony finished his work and lay down beside Padfoot in their newly created nook. The two of them curled up together, surrounded by the soft, leafy bed that Moony had crafted. The clearing was filled with a sense of tranquility, the soft glow of the moonlight adding to the serene atmosphere.

As the night wore on and dawn began to approach, Sirius slowly awoke. His eyes fluttered open, and he blinked in surprise at the gentle weight of leaves on his hair. As he stretched and shook himself awake, the leaves scattered gently, some falling around him and others clinging to his hair in an amusing array of patterns.

Remus, still lying comfortably beside Sirius, looked up with a soft, happy sigh. The sight of Sirius waking up with leaves in his hair was both endearing and amusing. Sirius, noticing Remus’s gaze, gave a playful huff and then a soft bark of amusement.

“Looks like I’m a walking nature exhibit,” Sirius said, his voice warm with affection. He nudged Remus gently, the leaves rustling as he did.

Remus responded with a happy, contented hum, nuzzling Sirius’s shoulder. “You look perfect,” he replied, his voice filled with warmth and love.

[eyeless-jeff666]

Runaways

Role swap AU in which Remus and Sirius run away together! Maybe Ill make a part two? Let me know! Angst, fleeing authority, hurt/comfort, mentions of murder and blood etc. Wordcount: 1208

The silence was painful on Sirius’ eardrums. The streets covered in crimson, leading up to the tall man leaning against the wall. Silent. Calm. Looking down at the antler piece in his blood-stained hand.

“Remus-“

He said, starting towards the other who raised his head ever so slowly. Such a calm gaze. Like someone satisfied to have gotten a job done. Sirius’ face was twitching between disbelief and nervous grinning. He wasn’t happy, of course. So even though he had been suspecting Remus… he knew the other wasn’t calm. Even if he looked like it. Seeming calm and calculative as ever but on the inside, Remus knew he was done for.

Sirius grabbed his hand.

“Stop it, Padfoot. They’re going to lock me up, you don’t have to… I don’t want you caught up in this. Go away. Before the Aurors are here.”

“I’m not going anywhere. Not without you, Crescent.”

Remus grunted, knowing the other wouldn’t give in so easily. Sirens sounded in the distance. Of course, a whole street blown up, thirteen corpses, would not go unnoticed. There was no time to argue but if he brought Sirius along and they got caught… there was no right way about this. The tattooed man’s hand only tightened around his own.

“A werewolf Sirius-”

“It’s not a full moon.”

“That doesn’t matter to them.”

Because it didn’t. Not in these times. If the authorities saw this blood bath and a werewolf among it, the oh-so-brave and amazing James Potter gone without a trace, a deer slaughtered with only a piece of antler left… the helpless but kind Peter Pettigrew murdered. Nothing would matter. No proof in the world. If they even gave him the chance to bring forth proof.

“You will probably never live normally again, Sirius, your reputation…”

“I couldn’t give any less of a damn.”

Before they even knew it, they were running. Faster even than they thought their feet could take them. Faster than they’d ever run from the quidditch pitch to the whomping willow. It was hard to breathe in the cold night air, the people and lights and everything around them a blur.

As they briefly stopped to decide on a direction, Remus locked eyes with someone; a man with a scarred face, more scarred even than his own. A staff almost the size of his body, grim looking. Alastor Moody. His face dropped but he heard the Auror’s faint voice:

“Nobody here, we’re looking elsewhere.”

Remus had never felt so relieved in his life, but he knew he had to pull Sirius further, pulling him away from where the authorities were. It was scary but also strangely freeing to run into the night like this. The only thing calming him was knowing that whether they’d run or not, the punishment would be the same. In Azkaban, it didn’t matter whether you were in for 25 years or a lifetime. You’d be insane beyond repair after just a few years either way.

“I know you hate the motorcycle but for once I’m going to need you to get on it.”

Sirius said. They’d been running for longer than it had felt like with the panic and had by now reached Grimmauld Place. There was no time to gather things, however, and so Remus rushed to climb onto the motorcycle behind the one whose trust he didn’t deserve.

“I’ve been thinking you were…”

“Quiet Remus. I did too. But it doesn’t matter now.”

It really didn’t. They both knew it was James who sold out Peter to Voldemort. They still didn’t know why an innocent, kind, imperfect but gentle soul had to die so gruesomely. Maybe there was more to it than the two of them knew. But they’d have time in hiding to think about it. For now, however, Remus was completely helpless. Holding onto Sirius tightly as the motorcycle lifted off the ground, a bit louder than beneficial. His head rested on the other’s shoulder, breathing in the soft scent of cinnamon:

“Tell me when you get too tired…”

“You can’t even drive this thing, love.”

He sighed, knowing Sirius was right. He was completely useless right now. As he had always been. He didn’t want Sirius risking his freedom for him like that, even if he was innocent, but he was utterly selfish for being unable to imagine living without him. Unable to imagine successfully sending him away to be free. God, he loved and needed him so much.

Somewhere over the ocean, Remus fell asleep. Sirius summoned strings from his wand to keep him from falling off, tied tightly to himself. He knew Remus’s fears, thoughts, and insecurities. But also, that none of them reflected reality. He loved the other, and he would not let him be taken away for even a moment. Running away? Hiding for however long it’d be necessary? Hell, if they got caught and kissed by the dementors together, at least he’d know he tried to save someone innocent. The thought brought a strange kind of smile to his lips.

“How about Germany, Moony? I heard they have beautiful old architecture in some places. We could get a beautiful old house for ourselves.”

A farmhouse, maybe. An abandoned one. It would be hard to hide without the protection of a Fidelius Charm. Impossible maybe. But if he could keep his crescent safe for even just a day, he would be more than happy. It was nice, in a way, to imagine learning German together and starting a new life, even if hidden and lonely. He was already thinking about a new hair color, a nice chestnut brown perhaps, to hide among the muggles. It would be harder for Remus for sure, he wasn’t an Animagus. He couldn’t just hide as a dog as he could. And his scars… they were so identifiable. A sigh escaped him as he tried to convince himself that they’d make it longer than a week, though he didn’t dare raise his hopes too high at the same time.

“Moody saw us.”

Remus suddenly muttered, half awake.

“Moody? Alastor Moody? The Auror?”

Sirius asked, in disbelief; why weren’t they already in Azkaban then?

“He told his colleagues nobody was there. He let us go.”

It seemed like a dream. Alastor Moody didn’t just let people go. He was known for catching everyone who needed to be caught. Why didn’t he just stop them?

“He thinks we’re innocent.”

Remus concluded cleverly, feeling as Sirius let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. Moody had power. Not the highest power, but still. If he thought they were innocent, and if he wanted to help them… then he’d be able to keep people off their track, even if just for a while.

“Where are we headed?”

“Germany.”

A kiss fell on his neck as Remus hummed in acknowledgment:

“Sounds lovely.”

And so, all they could do for now was fly high up in the clouds and look for a place to stay, knowing that at least one person had their back and they might even make it through a month or more. Sirius smiled as he realized this and allowed his hopes to climb just a little higher. Maybe they would be okay.

[star-struck-withantlers]

Jegulus headcanons cause I'm bored and why not

Regulus fell first and rather than telling James he loved him, he gave him his favourite ring. James has never taken it off.

James thinks he always has to be the perfect, cheery friend and take care of his friends. But sometimes it gets difficult. Regulus is the only person who has seen his panick attacks about not being good enough.

James and Regulus' special place is the astronomy tower. It's actually where their relationship started. James saw regulus up there alone on the map a few times and went to join him to keep him company. Regulus ignores him the first few times but slowly comes round and starts talking to him.

Regulus wears a necklace of two antlers with james' initials, hidden under his turtlenecks and shirts because it makes him feel safe.

James reads all of regulus' favourite books at the beginning of the astronomy tower just so they have something to talk about. Regulus finds James copies of the book and sees he has annotated them and almost faints.

[pickinglilahs]

Blackeclipse for the soul

AO3 link if you prefer to read there Part 16; Part 17; Part 18; Part 19; Part 20

As soon as they walked in the door, Remus wished he had stayed home.

Everyone was staring, pointing, whispering.

He had always gotten funny looks for the scars on his face. Hell, people in the wixen world tended to avoid him altogether.

This, though?

This was worse than normal.

Was it because he was holding James' hand? He unconsciously tried to let go, but James held on and leaned in to whisper, "It's your Mark, Moonbeam. They probably think you're a thug or something."

Regulus leaned in on his other side, "We can leave. Let Sunshine and Marleen shop."

Remus could tell Regulus' offer wasn't entirely altruistic, the clenched fists and tension in the other boy's shoulders spoke volumes.

James pulled them over to a wall not far from the entrance. Remus looked up at Regulus and took a deep breath, "I can if you can."

Regulus looked around at the people streaming in and out and around. He took a deep breath of his own before turning back. "I didn't get all dressed up for nothing."

Remus smiled and took his hand, squeezing gently. Before he could pull away, Regulus pulled Remus towards him. He wrapped his arm around the smaller boy and placed a kiss on the Mark on his cheek.

Remus could feel a blush creeping up his cheeks and the open display of affection. At the tenderness of it.

Regulus let him go and stepped aside so he was now beside James. "We're meeting back up for lunch?"

James nodded and looked to Marleen, "The food court? Say...11:30?"

Marleen nodded and grabbed Remus' arm, dragging him off into the crowd.

James turned to Regulus, "Alright, what kind of store are we stopping at for Remus' present?"

~~~

Remus decided to get James and Regulus' presents first. Marleen, who had already gotten James' present, took him to a sporting goods store.

He ended up getting James socks with antlers on them and Regulus a water bottle that said 'Muscle up buttercup and drink your water' on it. These would be from his Mam; he wanted to get them something more personal from himself.

Marleen ended up getting Regulus a workout shirt that had a lion on the front. She thought it was funny because he was Bonded with two Gryffindors. Remus wasn't about to contradict her.

Marleen then agreed to go to a clothing store so he could buy Regulus a jumper. Unable to find what he was looking for, they went to two more stores before he found the perfect one.

It was soft and warm with silver moons and suns patterned across it. Even Marleen had to admit that it was perfect.

Then they went to find James and Sirius a new pair of matching trainers. They conveniently found a pair of red and gold Converse in the first store they tried.

By the time they made it out of the shoe store, it was almost time to meet the other two in the food court, so they headed that way.

James was easy to spot among the sitting masses. He was standing, talking animatedly to a sitting Regulus. Both of them had shopping bags at their sides.

Remus and Marleen had almost made it to them when James spotted them. He managed to refrain from yelling, but gave a very big wave, almost smacking a woman in the face in the process.

Regulus dropped his face into his hands, hiding a smile and Remus slid into the chair beside him.

As it turned out, James had already ordered them all sandwiches and drinks. Remus hated when the boys paid for him, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he leaned over to kiss James' cheek in thanks, confident in James' ability to always get him food he liked, before turning to Regulus.

"Get a lot done?"

Regulus gave him a small smile. "Only a few left."

Remus sighed, "I've only just started."

Regulus shrugged, "We have all day. Besides, we'll need to go to Diagon tomorrow."

Remus nodded, "Yeah, there are a few things I need from there as well."

They finished eating and James instructed them to meet back by the doors they came in at 6. Remus and Regulus nodded and, just like that, James and Marleen took off.

They rolled their eyes and set off at a much more respectable pace. The two got quite a few looks, especially from older patrons of the mall. Comforted by each other, the two did their best to ignore it.

They went to a Christmas store and bought ornaments for James' parents. Regulus also got one for Remus' mam. They got a muggle photo album and craft paper for Peter. Then they got candy for Marleen, who would be coming over on Boxing Day with the rest of the boys.

Remus took Regulus to Spencer's to get Sirius' present. As soon as they stepped through the doors, Regulus flushed. Remus laughed and pulled him deeper into the store.

They spent a good hour wandering around the small store, looking at everything. Regulus ended up buying himself more jewelry and two shirts for his brother. Remus had to explain them to him, but he thought they were perfect.

One was long-sleeved; it had a motorcycle on the front and said 'Harley Davidson' down the sleeves. The other was a tank top that said 'Playboy' with the 'o' replaced with a bunny.

With over two hours left until they had to meet James and Marleen, they went into a bookstore.

This was a mistake.

Despite Remus' continued protests, Regulus held onto every book Remus so much as looked at and picked up his own along the way. He finally convinced Remus to cast a lightweight charm word and wandlessly, since that kind of magic was written off as accidental.

It was quarter after 6 before either of them thought to check the time. Regulus ended up spending well over £100. Remus almost cried, at the price and at how willing Regulus was to spend it on him.

At half past, they ran—literally—into James at the entrance to the bookstore. After James did a mandatory once-over of them both to ensure they were okay, he proceeded to lecture them all the way back to the entrance.

Marleen had been waiting at the entrance for them, just in case James had been wrong, or they passed each other as he went to check. She laughed at the look on all three of their faces and led the way to the car.

Thoroughly scolded, Remus and Regulus sat silently in the backseat the whole ride. As worried as James had been, he was also glad they had fun.

They finally made it back to Potter Manor. Marleen left the boys at the curb, driving down the road to her own house.

James saw the car sitting in the driveway and did his best to distract Remus. Regulus, who had been let in on the secret earlier, caught on quickly and helped. By the time they reached the door, Remus was highly suspicious, but none the wiser.

They took all of their gifts straight upstairs, making sure the others couldn't see anything they weren't supposed to. They had all just sat down on the floor when Maan called them all down for dinner.

Sighing and groaning, they all got back to their feet and filed down the stairs. When they reached the bottom, James deliberately walked in front of Remus, blocking his view.

When they made it to the dining room, James spun around. "Close your eyes."

Remus looked at him like he had grown another head. "What?"

"Just do it." James smiled as innocently as possible.

Remus sighed and closed his eyes. James took his hands and Regulus placed his hands on Remus' shoulders from behind. Together, they led Remus into the dining room.

James stepped out of the way saying, "Keep them closed."

Regulus removed his hands then, and Remus about opened his eyes.

But then he was embraced by a set of arms he would know anywhere. Tears immediately sprung to his eyes and his arms came up to hold just as tight.

"Nadolig Llawen, Cariad."

A sound bubbled out of Remus' throat, somewhere between a laugh and a sob.

"Mam."

@starchasersunseeker @poetrypirate @niad4827 @bradley-95147-blog @shyshadows430

[tiffanytoms]

Happy Halloween 👻

Obviously this is a very bittersweet (or maybe just tragic? Yeah, probably just tragic...) holiday for Jily fans, but I thought I'd post the epilogue from my story What Are You Doing to Me? which can also work as a traumatic one shot in honor of this night!

Enjoy! 😁🎃

Halloween Night, 1981

"Babe, we can't dress him up like a stag every year," Lily teased, flicking at her husband's fake antlers, currently perched lopsidedly atop his messy-as-always hair. They matched a tinier set that very adorably adorned her young son's head, making him even more of a carbon copy of his father than usual. It hadn't been all of five minutes after James had held his son for the first time, his eyes practically morphing into hearts, when a mischievous smirk had slid onto his face.

"What?" Lily had asked skeptically, utterly exhausted.

"Lils…"

"Yes?"

"Baby…"

"Yes?" Lily had been in no mood for banter.

He grinned down to Harry. "I knew I'd be right, but—" he held up Harry to face his mum, "— I didn't realize I'd be this right."

Lily had laughed, and then promptly yelled at James because laughing right now fucking hurt. 

Yeah, so it turned out their baby looked like James, but Lily was still holding out hope that perhaps he'd act more like her. Naturally, she ignored all contrary evidence — like that he seemed born ready to fly, already had infectious charm, a whole bunch of nerve, and, you know, the fact that there seemed to be a rather familiar swagger to his first little steps. But then again, Harry was just such a good, sweet baby; and sure, Lily hadn't been around for James' infancy, but there was no way that he could have been so well-behaved back then. (James had pointed out that she was the more likely out of the two of them to throw temper tantrums, but she ignored that too.)

"Why not?" James asked innocently with puppy eyes that rivaled Padfoot's. "They still fit him, and look how happy he is!"

"And they'll keep fitting him every year since you keep transforming them larger," Lily responded. However, she lacked any true opposition in her words, because Harry really did look so over the moon to be matching his dad, emerald eyes gleaming as he leaned back in his crib, clapping his hands. She couldn't help but gush over him.

James pulled out another pair of plushie adult antlers out of his back pocket and offered them to Lily. "Is someone perhaps jealous, and in need of her own pair?"

Lily shook her head, snatching the headband and jamming it over her hair. "When'd you make this?"

"Just now, on the couch."

She grabbed both of James' cheeks, smooshing his face before kissing him between every word. "You are such a dork."

James grinned as he wrapped his arms around his wife's hips, pulling her flush against him. "I'm pretty sure you meant adorkable."

Lily smiled as she tilted her head to the side and rested her forearms on his broad shoulders. She wasn't altogether too subtle about just how much she was checking him out in this sweater, but so what? James was her husband, and her husband was a whole damn meal.

"Pretty sure I meant I'm gonna need you to…" Lily leaned into his ear and whispered something that made him flush almost instantly.

James' jaw dropped, faux-scandalized as his fingers dug into her skin possessively. "Lily!" He shook his head and laughed. "Harry's first real sentence is going to be something filthy, and you'll have no one to blame but yourself."

Lily shrugged. "I don't know about that. We could always pin it on Padfoot."

James chuckled, leaning into her as his hands roamed her back and he swooped her down for a kiss. Lily giggled as he held her there for a moment, rubbing his nose against hers. "Mrs Potter, that is simply devious."

She gave him a fresh peck. "You love it."

"I do, oh, how I do…" Harry making strange gurgling noises had them come back to standing straight. "I know, Harry, I know." Harry continued making nonsensical squeaks that James pretended to understand perfectly. "Why yes, very astute observation, son. You should be wary of red-headed minxes trying to steal your heart."

"Oh hush, you," Lily reprimanded her husband as she took Harry in her arms. He immediately started playing with her hair as she cooed to him. "Happy Halloween, Harry, happy Halloween!" She tenderly pushed his wild hair off his forehead as she bounced him. "Next year we'll take you Trick-Or-Treating," she promised hollowly. Lily missed the sad look James gave them; after all, they'd never expected to spend a second Halloween in hiding. "Even if we have to do it from under your Dada's Invisibility Cloak." Lily looked up to James, who quickly cleared his face of melancholy. "Did Albus mention when he was bringing that back, by the way?"

James shook his head. "Nah, he didn't."

Lily balanced Harry on her hip and swayed them gently. "I still don't get it. I mean, I heard the man say he has the means to turn himself invisible with my own ears. So, why's he gotta take ours?"

James sighed. "I don't know, babe." The way he said it very much implied, 'When Albus Dumbledore asks you to do something, you just do it.' His eyes landed on the camera Padfoot had dropped off on his last visit, and he instantly jumped at the chance to brighten the mood. He picked it up and pointed it his family's way. "All right, my deers! Harry, Harry— look at Dada!" Harry tittered and did so. "Okay, on the count of three, we're gonna say 'Prongs,' okay? Okay Harry: one, two, three—"

"PWONGS!"

Lily gasped as James took the shot and then practically punched the air in excitement.

"Good job, Harry!" Lily encouraged.

"Yes, Harry, yes!" He stole Harry from Lily and made him fly across the room in his arms, one of his son's all-time favorite pastimes. Harry cheered and giggled as James continued to shout, "A genius! Babe! Our baby is a bloody genius!"

Lily watched the scene, heart melting with love, sweet, sweet love. She adored her family so friggin' much, and truly would do anything to protect it.

James flew Harry back to her and removed the bulky camera strap from off his neck, managing to one-handedly make it face them as he stood by Lily's side and clutched Harry to his chest. "Here, let's get one of the whole Pwongs family."

Lily laughed as she took Harry's tiny hand and leaned into her husband. He kissed her cheek right before the flash went off, completely taking her by surprise. "Sneak attack," he joked.

Lily couldn't wait to see how the photo developed. She thought it had the potential to be one for her nightstand.

Of course, she never found out.

Only a few seconds later, the sound of their front door being blasted apart downstairs echoed across the whole house. Lily and James both jumped, making three sets of plushie antlers and the camera fall to the floor, the lens cracking sounding like a death knoll.

Lily and James turned to each other and she saw her own sickening panic reflected right back at her. No, her brain short-circuited, it's rowdy trick-or-treaters. It's the neighbors. It's Tiger. It's not… it can't be…

But she knew who it was. She had always known who was coming for her, who was still fuming over her years of evading him, who was here. This time, she feared she wouldn't be able to get away. This time, she knew she was about to die.

James reanimated first, shoving Harry into Lily's arms as he pushed her to the window. She realized they both didn't have their wands. If she recalled correctly, hers was probably still on the kitchen counter, last having been used to clean up the mess of James' attempt to make shepherd's pie from scratch. "Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off—" Seeing his wife remain frozen, he opened the window himself, only to be greeted by a solid brick wall. He yelled out in frustration, punching it to see if it was really there. "Shit!"

Voldemort had magically trapped them inside, and they'd been having too precious of a moment to notice.

Downstairs, she heard Tiger let out an almighty hiss and Voldemort cry out as though he'd been brutally scratched. It was a small victory that ended too soon when she heard that horrid spell, followed immediately by a vivid green light making the carpet just below the nursery door glow. Tiger…

"No… no…" Lily cried, squeezing Harry to her chest.

James sunk to Lily's eye level, gripping her face right in front of his own. "Lils, baby, listen to me," he whispered urgently. "Listen to me." Her terrified darting eyes, frantically searching for a way out, any way out, finally focused on his. A small wave of completely unwarranted comfort washed over her, even though tears were fully streaming down her face. "You have to protect him. I know you can do it," he told her steadily.

What he was planning to do — go down and face Voldemort and buy her time to perform her shield magic — was slowly starting to sink in. "NO. No, James, don't go, please—" she pleaded, wildly gripping for his wrist. She was holding on to both her boys, her boys; why would anyone try to take them from her? Why? "Stay! I can protect you. I can protect both of you!"

Lily's vision was swimming, but she could still so clearly feel the pain in James' gaze. "We don't know that, Lils. It's never worked at protecting two people before." His hand quivered as his thumbs swiped at her cheeks. "Maybe the only reason it hasn't been activated yet is because I'm still here."

"No, baby, no…" Lily sobbed, leaning into his palm. She knew they were running out of time, but she couldn't lose him. Not like this. "Please, don't leave—"

James was holding back his own tears as he moved in to kiss her forehead and put his hand over her heart. "I'm right here. I'll always be right here." He bent to Harry and kissed the top of his head; their son, their precious little son, let out a little laugh with the action, truly having no idea what was going on. "Save Harry?" he asked determinedly as he stood tall.

Lily jutted out her chin, summoning every ounce of strength her body had left to answer him. Her husband needed her. Her son needed her. "Yes. I will." She felt her jaw twitching, but her conviction remained solid, I'll do whatever it takes. 

James shot her a wink. "That's my girl."

He turned to leave, but Lily wasn't ready. She wanted just one more moment, one more second with her man. That wink had brought her back to a time when the possibilities had been endless, and they weren't yet cursed — even if it had felt like they were at the time. She yanked James back to her and sunk her free hand into his silky hair, kissing him like they were 16 again and he'd just cornered her against a desk to try to get her to admit that she loved him back just as much as he loved her. Only now, they both already knew.

She could faintly hear the creak of the first step, alerting them to the fact that Voldemort had deduced that they were upstairs. They were out of time. She quickly tried to imprint the feel of James' lips into her mind forever, to memorize the love she felt with Harry sandwiched between them, delighted he was getting hugged by both his parents at once — but it was over too soon. "I love you, James Potter. I've always loved you." Her voice crackled and was water-logged, but he still understood.

Lily watched as a tear escaped from one of his gorgeous hazel eyes and rolled down his cheek, over his smattering of freckles, to where his dimple should have been, where it had been not minutes ago. He tried to smirk, but his lips didn't quite make it. "I know, Lily. I love you too. Until the very end."

He turned and walked out the door, and Lily knew it was the last time she'd ever see her husband again. She threw things in front of the door, barricading them in desperately, all while knowing it was no use. She just needed to do something with her hands to distract herself from James' suicide mission and the fact that she wasn't going after him. She was trying to find a way to not completely fall apart over the fact that she'd just let her heart walk out the door and she wasn't going to protect him — the man who had always been there for her was about to die, and she was doing nothing. 

Harry babbled at her chest, a string of Mamas and Dadas, and she looked down at him to try to stop from hyperventilating without James. He looked so very much like his father. "Mama loves you," she sobbed. "Dada loves you." Why wasn't the shield working yet? What more did she bloody need? She felt like she was losing her mind.

Then she heard it. After a few taunts from James and a high-pitched cackle, she heard the worst curse in the world and felt a body crumble to the floor, reverberating through her bones and sucking out her will to live.

She knew James was dead.

Lily screamed, feeling her heart ripping in two, or maybe it was her very soul; all she knew was that he was gone, her James was gone, and she didn't— no, she couldn't be here without him. Never again would she see his smile light up the hall when he waited for her after a class they didn't share. Never again would she wake up to his eager face, ready to tell her about all the games he and Harry had already played that morning. Never again would she feel his arms wrapped around her tightly when he inevitably fell asleep as they watched a Muggle movie together on the couch. Never again. 

But, Harry. Save Harry. Harry needs you. Since when had her inner monologue sounded like James? She looked at her son, emerald eyes wide and curious, wondering why his mum was screaming bloody murder. All she could see was love. This was her child, her baby with James, who looked just like him, who was a part of him — and she was going to save him.

She felt her heart pump out its final beats for herself before lurching and bursting forth its last protective bubble, straight into Harry who was still cradled against her chest. The filmy surface was a blood red, like the purest of love, but tinged with gold flecks, the same hue as those in his father's eyes. James is golden. James' love for his son would help to protect him too, even now.

When the bubble soaked into Harry's skin, he looked straight at Lily mesmerized. She knew that awe-inspired look. It was the same one he always gave her whenever she'd start singing him a lullaby before bed. After the attack at the talent show, Lily had never sang in public ever again, and James had never asked her to sing for him either, knowing how painful the memory was for her. But she still sang for Harry, if only to see the look he was giving her right now. She wondered if that's what her magic felt like to him — like his mum was softly rocking him to sleep whilst singing him the sweetest of songs.

(She never knew it, but James would have an almost identical look on his face whenever she sang, only he'd be on the other side of the nursery door, listening in. The Potter boys both just loved her voice that much.)

As her magic got absorbed, Lily let out a shaky sigh of relief. He'll be safe. She knew Harry would grow up, be the bravest kid in all the land just like both his parents before him, it just wouldn't be with them.