#got that copy of 'rudely interrupted' for my friend in england...... and also because seeing eric and alan on the front there........

[hide-your-bugs-away]

Probably the wildest record haul I have ever been bestowed... after my dentist appointment, no less.

I FINALLY HAVE A VINTAGE COPY OF ANIMALIZATION aaAAAAAA MY COLLECTION OF U.S. ANIMALS VINYLS IS AT LAST COMPLETE ‼️🐾✨️ All from local record stores as well!

[malfoys-demigod]

Mistletoe

Draco Malfoy x Reader 

Summary: After 5 years in America, the reader comes back home to enjoy a party hosted by the Potters/Weasleys and maybe... a mistletoe surprise?

A/N: Merry Christmas, everyone! I’ve been busy but I’ve also been wanting to do a Draco fic. Enjoy and happy holidays (whichever event you celebrate!) It’s not the best but I hope you like it. 

Word Count: 1.7k

Taglist @the--queen-of-hell @bbeauttyybbx

“Would you like a cup of tea with your frosted cupcake, madam?” asked the house elf. 

She shook her head, smiling politely, “I’d love a fresh cup of joe instead, thank you.”

The elf tilted his head, narrowing his confused eyes, “Pardon me, madam, but what exactly is a cup of joe?” 

Embarrassment started filling up the oxygen she was breathing as her eyes started growing bigger with realization that the term was not widely known in British soils. She chuckled to herself awkwardly, “Oh-”

“It’s a fresh cup of coffee, Hokey,” a voice from behind said, “I believe it’s an American saying.”

Hokey nodded, going back to his work as he started brewing Y/N’s coffee. While this was going on, she turned around, to meet the owner of the voice from behind. It turned out to be Draco Lucius Malfoy, who seemed to be casually smirking, placing both his hands on the pockets of his trousers, looking at her from top to bottom. 

“Well, well, well,” he happily said, “If it isn’t Y/N Y/L/N.”

“Hello to you too, Draco Malfoy,” she nonchalantly greeted him, copying his gesture of calling you by her first and last name. “And how were you aware of this American slang?” she asked, crossing your arms. 

Draco’s smirk only got wider, when he took her cupcake, getting a small, smooth bite from it. “And why should I tell you?”

“Because I’d like to thank you, for saving me from utter embarrassment with my American customs.” she lied, as she just wanted to know how he could translate such an American saying for it was different in England. 

Draco leaned in, seeming as if he was actually going to tell her. She peered in as he said, “I have a better way for you to thank me.” Her utter disappointment in his reply resulted in her leaning back, slapping his arm forcefully. “Douche,” she muttered. As Draco winced in pain, laughing lightly, she took her coffee and made a bee-line to the other side of the room. 

She found familiar faces such as the hosts, Ginny and Harry Potter, with their best friends, Hermione and Ron Weasley. A wave of relief flushed on her face as she walked straight to them. “Hello, everyone,” she greeted relievingly. 

The group turned to Y/N, hugging her out, as they smiled at her merrily. “Enjoying the party, Y/N? It’s probably not the same as you do it in America, but it’s lovely, ain’t it?” Ron asked politely. 

“Nothing beats a traditional English party like having English turkey on Christmas Day, Ron.” she confidently replied, cheering her coffee mug with his. “Although I thought there would be more gentlemen in this part of the world.” she muttered loudly, giving them a confused face. 

“What exactly do you mean by that, Y/N?” Harry asked. 

Y/N shook her body, gesturing that she was shaking off bad vibes from her system. “Nothing much, only that Malfoy came up to me just a few minutes ago. Same old flirt to all, am I right?” 

There was a mix of emotional replies from the group, causing Y/N to get puzzled. Harry and Ron shook their heads at each other, smiling cheekily while Hermione and Ginny let out a small laugh with each other. 

Y/N narrowed her eyebrows, “I don’t understand. Is it really that funny?”

“Heavens no,” Hermione said, “You’re wrong, Y/N!” 

“Wrong?” the staggered girl asked, “What do you mean?”

“Go on, Harry,” Ron prompted his best friend, “Tell her!”

Harry nodded, looking at you, smiling cheerfully, “Ever since you’ve left for America, Draco slightly changed.”

You walked forward, interested in what Harry was saying, “Uh-huh, go on, Potter.”

“Well, he hasn’t been the same old flirt to many ever since YOU left.” Harry grinned. 

Despite not understanding what they were trying to tell her, she nodded confusingly, “Right,” she said, “Did something happen to him? Did he lose his memory? His charisma? Because earlier he seemed quite-”

“Goodness, Y/N!” Hermione exclaimed tiredly, “How could you possibly not get it?”

“Get what?” Y/N asked, surprised at Hermione’s tone of voice. 

“Can’t you tell that the reason he hasn’t been the same old flirst was because he only had eyes for you?” Ginny questioned her. 

“Catching a job in MACUSA meant catching an American boy from his point of view too,” Harry backed Ginny up. 

“You do have an American suitor, or not, Y/N?” Ron asked curiously. 

The flooding of information got Y/N to shake her head madly, as she waved off everything with her hands. “Not that I know of,” she teased lightly. Although, she wanted to go back to the topic the others seemed to be serious about. “But could you elaborate more on what you were talking about?” she asked, looking back at the rest. 

Hermione, tired of this play, rolled her eyes, “He’s only had eyes for you Y/N!” 

Y/N shook her head lightly with denial, “That’s absurd,” she chuckled lightly to herself, “That can’t be right.”

“How so?” Harry wondered. 

“I-I just never caught any visible signs,” she shrugged, her tone going higher. “He usually teased and flirted but I never really thought it would lead to any signs. And when he asked me to the Yule Ball? I thought he was joking!”

“That was bloody embarrassing on his end. Going with Parkinson while she went with who’s-his-face.” Ron muttered to Harry, who seemed to nod in agreement. 

Ginny shook her head, grinning at Y/N’s blind self, “Oh, Y/N, the things you made Malfoy go through.” Like a light-bulb that sparked on top of her head, she immediately grinned more, looking at Y/N. “Y/N, have you ever fancied him? You can’t just go around, letting him tease and flirt with you all those years without feeling something, right?”

Y/N looked down at the ground, quickly contemplating on her answer. She gulped, looking back up at the whole group, Ginny in particular. “Well, perhaps once or twice. But I always thought that it the idea of him and I wouldn’t happen. So, I never really went on about feeling something towards him.” 

“Well, we’re really glad you haven’t found yourself an American suitor during your five years at MACUSA. Malfoy’s changed, in a good way, and you two deserve each other.” Ron stated proudly. 

“Yeah?” Y/N asked, causing herself to smile. 

“Yeah,” Harry said, as the rest nodded. “You should probably head back to him. He’s by the drinks booth.” he nodded, motioning Y/N to turn and check that Draco was exactly where she left him. 

Y/N took a deep breath and started making her way back to Hokey’s booth, passing through the wave of many other familiar faces, who were filling up the whole floor. Draco was quietly drinking something from his cup, facing Hokey, who seemed to be busy to even bother ask if Draco wanted a refill of his drink. 

“Two glasses of your best champagne please, Hokey.” Y/N announced herself, leaning at the bar. This caught Draco’s attention, as his face was now livelier since Y/N was back. It was her turn to start the conversation with Draco, although he was quicker in terms of opening his mouth. 

“So,” he spoke, “I see you’re having a grand time but are you sure you can drink two glasses at once?” 

“I can’t,” she chuckled, “That’s why the other one is for you.” she reached for the glass Hokey served, giving it to Draco, who muttered a small thanks. 

“Also, I realized something.” she pointed out. 

“And what is that, dear Y/N?” he asked casually, looking at Y/N with such fascination. 

Y/N gulped quickly, knowing it was now or never. “Well I realized I was rude during our first encounter earlier.” 

“Rude?” he wondered, but chuckling. 

“Well yes!” she justified herself, “It’s highly assumptious that you were expressing a crude joke, which is something that you normally express and since I haven’t been used to that in sometime since I was in America, I may or may not have taken it in lightly and I called you a douche which I’m quite sorry-”

“Hang on, darling, take a breather first, you’re rambling.” Draco stopped her, placing his hands on her shoulders with a confused smile. 

Y/N stopped as requested, looking at him with a tilted, uneasy head. 

Draco continued the minute he saw that she was cooling down. “Right,” he said, “Crude joke?” he highlighted the phrase she was rambling about. 

Y/N slowly nodded with a raised eyebrow. 

“I honestly don’t see what’s so crude about a mistletoe opportunity.” he thought, shaking his head. 

Y/N shook her head as well, but in confusion. “M-mistletoe opportunity?” 

“Yeah,” he laughed, pointing up at the ceiling. 

Y/N nervously looked up to see a hanging mistletoe, shining above the two. Hearing a small chuckle from Draco, she looked back at him, chuckling embarrassing as she stroked her hair. “Oh.” she said. “Draco I’m-”

Her apology was interrupted when Draco placed his hands on Y/N’s face, cupping her cheeks as he pulled in for a deep, passionate kiss as he took advantage of the mistletoe moment. 

Y/N’s uneasy figure started relaxing as she started kissing Draco back, wrapping her arms around his neck tightly. 

Draco pulled back, grinning politely, looking at her soft, sweet eyes. “Thank goodness for the mistletoe or I wouldn’t have had the chance to do that.” 

“What a shame you couldn’t have planted one in our Hogwarts years while you were immensely head over heels for me as an adolescent.” she smirked, looking at his now-red cheeks. 

He looked down, smiling still, but shyly. “It’s a shame you couldn’t see how head over heels I was as an adolescent.” he chuckled, “I take it either the Weasley’s or Potter’s have told you?” he looked at her. 

Y/N nodded, giggling. “I guess it was never too late, right?” 

“Never.” he agreed, brushing back a strand of her hair back into the back of her ear. 

Y/N placed her hand on Draco’s forearm, which he brought down for her, now holding his hand. She looked down at his hand, squeezing it tight. When she looked up, she smiled. “Happy holiday’s, Draco.” 

“Happy holiday’s, Y/N and welcome back home. I missed you dearly.” he greeted, placing a kiss on her forehead. 

[theawkwardterrier]

things left behind and the things that are ahead, ch. 9

AO3 link here

I am the first person in my class to be in a wedding. Joanie Merrill went to her neighbor’s wedding last year, but that is not the same thing at all. Being in a wedding is very different and much better.

I have known about my special job for six months, which is almost a year, and I kept it a secret for one whole month before Patty Fucci said to me in a mean way in the play yard that I should stop talking about the wedding because it was not so special and I counted to ten like Daddy taught me and said in a very nice voice, “Well, I am going to be an important participant, so I need time to plan and practice so I can make it perfect, Patty, and maybe you don’t understand that but so there.”

Then I maybe stomped on her foot, but only a little.

(Daddy told me that maybe I need to go back to counting to twenty, but he just doesn’t understand how it is in the third grade. It is very hard, and you need to Stand Up For Yourself and have A Strategy, like Mumma tells me when we play chess.)

On the morning of the wedding, I wake up Mumma and Daddy early, which is another Important Job, so I gave it to myself. I tiptoe into their room when it is still dark-dark out and I am going to whisper good morning, but Daddy sits up very fast and yells out, “What’s wrong?” before I even say anything. (He always does this, and it always makes me jump but also I like it because it means that if something is wrong, like when I threw up in the night, Daddy is ready to help me right away.)

“Nothing is wrong,” I say, and because now he is awake I go and jump onto the bed and crawl over him to the warm place in the middle. Daddy makes a big groaning sound from my knees and elbows poking him but I know it is pretend because I am small and he is very strong and my elbows are only a little sharp. “But we should start getting ready if we don’t want to be late - Uncle Bucky’s wedding is going to start very soon.”

“Not for another nine hours, it isn’t,” says Mumma into her pillow.

Daddy is sitting up a little, rubbing his eyes and yawning. “Rosie,” he says, “what time did we say was okay to get up today?”

“Six o’clock.” We talked about it for a long time when I was going to bed last night.

“And what time is it now?”

“Three o’clock.”

“So why are you here?”

“Because six o’clock was too late and it meant that we would be late to the wedding and I did not want you to be embarrassed.” I snuggle under their blanket. “I was helping you. You always say helping is important!”

“You have a different helping job,” Daddy reminds me. “Maybe think about that instead.”

So I do for a while and I guess I forget how very important the Getting Up Early job is because I seem to fall asleep for a little bit. When I wake up again, Daddy is not in the room and it is not dark-dark out anymore, it is very bright. So I do the fast sitting up now and say, “What’s happening?”

“It’s just after eight o’clock,” Mumma says. She is over at the closet, making sure all of our wedding clothes look nice. “We’ll leave at nine, so you have some time to eat breakfast before then.”

I almost don’t eat breakfast to show that I’m angry that they didn’t listen to me and that they let me sleep, but eating is important to stay healthy and strong and do a good job. And since it’s very important that I do a good job today (and I am also maybe a little hungry), I go downstairs. In the kitchen, Daddy says, “Good morning, Rosie,” is a happy voice, but I say it back in a grumpy way to show him my Real and Honest Mood.

“What was that?” he says in the way where he pretends not to hear when I am rude, even though Daddy has extremely very good hearing.

So I do a big sigh and say, “Good morning, Daddy” in a nicer voice, and he says, “Thank you,” and gives me a plate with toast cut in triangles and a boiled egg in my special egg cup, which is yellow with red shoes painted on the feet and it says “Eggs on Legs” on the middle. Just when I finish eating, Mumma comes in with Emma and says it is almost time to go, so I run to get dressed in my car clothes and then I run around making sure everything is ready, until Mumma says that she double checked and we have the car all packed and if we don’t go now we will Really Be Late, so all there is to do is get in the backseat and do signing with Emma about the wedding until she falls asleep because she is still little and driving in the car makes her take naps.

Everyone is getting ready in the same place, and when we get there, it is already busy busy busy. I go into the kitchen first, because I have manners, and also because Mumma makes me, following behind me holding Emma by the hand while Daddy takes his suit and goes to find Uncle Bucky.

“Hi Nana,” I say, hoping that if I talk fast, Nana Barnes will do it too and won’t keep me for too long.

“Hello, Rose,” she says, and her voice is extra slow, like she knows what I was trying to do, but she does not use my middle name so I know that I am not in Any Actual Trouble.

Nana Barnes is not 100% my grandma (she is Uncle Bucky’s mother, and because Uncle Bucky is like my daddy’s brother, she is sort of like Daddy’s mother too) but Mumma and Daddy once weren’t my parents either, so I am An Expert about how families can be all different.

I go over to the stove and stand on my tiptoes to see while I ask, “What are you making, Nana?” and she says, “Oh, lots of things, for the dinner today,” because everyone is going to come back here to have a party after the Real and Actual Wedding.

“The cake looks lovely,” says Mumma, and I see where she is pointing in the shadowy corner of the counter and say, “Ooooh.” The cake has lots of layers, and so much frosting I think I could lick some off and no one would notice (which I would not do because I am not an animal or a baby, even if the frosting looks very delicious and so pretty, made into flowers like my name).

“Thank you, dear.” Nana shuts off the stove and turns all the way around to give me a hug, but then she sees Emmy, who is looking around at the kitchen. Nana puts out her hands and says, “Let me see that sweet girl,” and she picks Emma up, even though she is three now and really too big for that.

She does the sign for “grandma” over and over, and Emma copies her and gives a big smile and does signing back, and while they are all busy, I go to start my Big Job.

I have never been in Uncle Bucky’s old bedroom before, only his by himself apartment, but I know where it is, so I go knock on the door.

I hoped that Daddy would answer, but instead one eye peeks out and a voice says, “What’s the password, kid?”

I know it is Mr. Howard Stark, who I am supposed to call Uncle Howard but I Do Not Do That because of the time when I first met him. I was much littler and he came to get Mumma to come help him with something for work, and while we were waiting for Daddy to get home to stay with me, I had An Incidence Of Temper, and instead of being polite about it, Mr. Howard Stark said, “Jeez, Peggy, can’t you get that kid to pipe down?” Which made Mumma say, “If you must be you, I’ll ask you to do it elsewhere,” and she told him to go sit in the kitchen.

“If you must be you, I’ll ask you to do it elsewhere,” I tell him now, trying to sound as much like Mumma as I can, and he laughs and says, “Well, she’s yours, alright,” and I hear Daddy laughing from inside too.

“Is that my helper out there?” Uncle Bucky asks. “Let her in, Howard.”

Inside, it is even more crowded than the rest of the house. Mr. Jim is there, all the way from California, and he winks at me to let me know that he has my movie magazines - everyone knows that it’s better to get them from close to where the movie stars live. Mr. James from England is there, and he tips his hat at me so I curtsy to him. Mr. Jacques has the window open and is holding his cigarette outside, which means that he doesn’t want to get in trouble, so I won’t tell. Mr. Gabe is there, trying to read a book in the corner because he wants to take the test to be a teacher, but Mr. Hat keeps interrupting him. (I made that name for him, because he wanted me to call him Mr. Dum Dum, which is mean and I did not want to do that.)

Daddy is standing against the wall looking at everybody and smiling. I know it’s because they’re his friends and he misses them sometimes. Daddy and Uncle Bucky and everyone were soldiers in the big war, and Mumma was their boss. Now they live far away from each other, which is sad, but they like it when they can see each other for special things like this. (The only one Daddy and Uncle Bucky usually get to see is Mr. Howard Stark, which is Too Bad For Them.)

Daddy is all dressed up already, but I know what he looks like in his suit, because he did a fashion show for me and Mumma after he got it fixed by the sewing man. (Emma was already asleep because she is still little.) I told him he looked handsome, but Mumma didn’t say anything, so I said, “Doesn’t Daddy look handsome?” and she said, “Yes, he certainly does,” in a strange kind of voice that I guess was okay because it made Daddy smile. Then Mumma said, “It’s been quite a long time since I saw you in a suit,” and Daddy said, “Well we’ve been a little busy. Don’t worry, I’m sure you won’t be seeing me in it for long,” and Mumma said, “You might be right about that,” and then they said the fashion show was over and it was my bedtime.

“Hi, Rosie Posie,” says Uncle Bucky from where he is sitting on the bed. He is wearing the pants and the shirt from his suit, but not his jacket.

I do not let just anybody call me Rosie Posie, but Uncle Bucky is one of my favorites so I go over to him and say, “Happy wedding!”

“Thanks, Rosie,” he says with one of those special smiles that looks teensy but actually means that he is very, very happy. “Are you ready to help with your big job?”

I stand up very straight and say, “Yes!” in a Very Loud Voice, which makes Mr. Howard Stark laugh while he is pretending to cough. I will kick him for that later and tell him that He Knows What He Did. (Mumma sometimes says that it’s her job to keep Mr. Howard Stark in line, but it’s nice to help people, even people who are very good at their jobs like Mumma.)

Uncle Bucky reaches over to the little table next to the bed and picks up the most fancy and beautiful box: it is shiny silver and just the right size for me to hold. I reach to grab it, but Uncle Bucky picks it up high and says, “Hold on, now.” He makes his face very serious and says, “Are you absolutely certain you’re ready for this?”

I put my hands on my hips and say, “It was my idea, Uncle Bucky!” which is true. First he asked me if I wanted to do the flowers, but I said I did not want to do that because then I would have to share that job and I wanted my own, and also doing the flowers is boring and all you have to do is walk. So instead I said that I would be the ring girl - the rings are very interesting, but also very important and they will be around for much longer than flowers, probably forever.

“Oh, is there an inventor in the room? Am I speaking to the world’s first ring girl?” Uncle Bucky says, pretending, still holding the box too high, which almost makes me stamp my foot and grab for it. But then instead I take a big breath and say very calmly, “Yes, you are, so please give me my special ring carrying box.” And he does.

It feels just perfect in my hands, but I don’t even have a chance to open it before Daddy says, “Rosie, why don’t you take your box over to the other bedroom? I think it’s time for you to get dressed.” And he is right, it is much too late for me to still be in my regular clothes, so I go over and find the right room and knock there.

“Come in, Rose!” Mumma calls, and I open the door just enough for me to come inside.

This room smells very pretty and perfumey, and I take a big breath that makes me sneeze and everyone laughs. They are all in matching dresses, silvery blue with pretty floaty skirts: Mumma and Aunt Becca and Aunt Josie and Miss Violet (that is Aunt Josie’s Best Friend In The World and they also live together; I would like to live with my best friend, who is Bella Solomon, because it would be like having a sleepover all the time, but when I told Daddy that, he just looked a little sad and said, “Someday, if you want, Rosie girl”) and two ladies I don’t know and also Miss Layla, who looks absolutely extremely beautiful in her wedding dress.

I have seen pictures of Mumma at her and Daddy’s wedding, but it is my first time seeing a bride in real life and I say, “Oooh,” out loud and everyone laughs again.

“You can touch it, if you’d like,” says Miss Layla, and I make sure to walk over instead of running because it is crowded and also I am very mature. Once I am in front of her, I very carefully feel her sleeve with my fingers: it is so smooth where there is silk and so fancy where there is lace and it is so white that her skin looks very dark and beautiful.

“Do you like it?” she asks.

“I want one just like it when I grow up,” I tell her. Then I whisper to her, “And I looked at the weather in the newspaper, and it is not supposed to be windy, so you will not have to worry about your big skirt flying up and showing everyone your underpants.” Miss Layla looks a little surprised that I am telling her this, but probably also thankful. Weather Checker is also a very important job, so I added it to my other very important jobs. But then thinking about Miss Layla’s underwear makes me forget about weather checking and also about being quiet, because I say, “Are you wearing fancy underpants too, like your dress?” out loud and Mumma covers her face.

I have probably embarrassed everyone. They are probably going to make me go live in the woods so they do not have to be embarrassed of me anymore - and we do not even have a lot of woods near here, so it will probably be far far from here. Maybe I should run away so they cannot send me away first!

But I do not do that. Instead, I take a big breath and make myself say, “Sorry, Miss Layla.”

“That’s alright, Rosie. It’s all family here.” She rubs her chin. “In fact, since I’ll be married to your Uncle Bucky in just a few hours, why don’t you start calling me Aunt Layla?”

“Really?”

She smiles. Her teeth look about as white as her dress! “Really.”

I never got to meet Mumma’s brother, or hers and Daddy’s parents, so I always like when I get more family. Now I have so many aunts and uncles, and it’s almost like I have cousins too because of Aunt Becca’s kids. There are the boys - Jimmy, who is ten and Too Old For Fun, and Billy, who is only four - and then there is Barbara, who everyone has called her Baby since she was born and who is almost just my age.

“Where is Baby—I mean Bebe?” Now that she is older, she wants to have a different nickname. She was going to try Bobbi, but I said that Bebe was like Baby in French, which is fancy.

“She’s getting ready at our apartment with her father and her brothers. They’ll meet us there when it’s time.” Aunt Becca checks her watch. “Speaking of which…”

“You’re absolutely right,” says Mumma, and then she helps me put on my special dress, which is silvery blue like everyone else’s but is shorter and more of a kid dress. I am about to mention that I would be able to wear A Grownup Dress when Mumma says, “Hush please, Rose,” and one of the grownup ladies I don’t know says, “That really suits you, Rosie,” and Nana Barnes pokes her head in and says, “It’s time, girls!”

Daddy and Uncle Bucky and their friends are already gone, and now it is time for everyone else to line up to get out of the house. We are going to drive over to the City Hall for the wedding. When I asked why they were not going to have their wedding in a church - there is a church near our house and it feels like every week I see people going to get married inside and I am never invited - Mumma said it was because Miss Layla—I mean Aunt Layla and Uncle Bucky come from families who go to different kinds of churches from each other, so City Hall was A Compromise. When I asked what that meant, she said, “It’s something your father and I worked hard to learn,” which doesn’t make any sense because City Hall has nothing to do with figuring out not to feed Emma mushy bananas because they make her throw up everywhere.

But I knew what she meant about their families, because of the time when Uncle Bucky came home with Aunt Layla and they said that they were going to get married and Nana Barnes got a strange look on her face so Mumma and Daddy told me to go play somewhere else but I stood outside and listened with my Spying Ears. Then I heard Nana Barnes say, “Is this really a good idea?” and “You’re very different from each other...You come from different worlds,” and “Think of what the neighbors will say!” And Uncle Bucky said, “I don’t give a rat’s—” but Aunt Layla said in a very soft and pretty voice, “No, James, it’s fine. I understand that your mother is concerned that a PhD in chemical engineering might not have much to talk about with someone who has a master’s in mechanical. And I thank her for considering that I might have a hard time reconciling myself to marrying someone who’s such a new American citizen: after all, when your grandparents were still first considering getting on the boat over from Ireland, mine had already been ten years out of Babe Ruth.” (Later I asked Mumma and after she said I shouldn’t listen at doors, she told me that it was actually Beirut, but I still like mine better.) “And, of course, there’s the idea of a Boston girl marrying a New York boy, which is cause for a war itself. But I do love you, James, and it’s rather convenient to marry someone who works in the same place, as you can visit the cafeteria together. So I suppose I’ll persevere through all that.”

Everyone was quiet and I held my breath until my eyes got so big I thought they would maybe pop out of my head, but then Nana Barnes said, “Well, with a tongue like that I suppose you’ll fit in with the family,” and Uncle Bucky said, “Is it any wonder I’m marrying her?” Then Daddy said, “You’re damn lucky she even agreed to have you, Buck,” and Uncle Bucky said, “I’m no PhD, but even I know that,” and everyone laughed.

Now Nana is actually friends with Mrs. Adele, who is Aunt Layla’s mother. They are at the back of everybody, telling Aunt Layla and all the ladies to, “Come on now, girls, get into the cars!” There’s a big line of cars on the street. I go in between Aunt Josie and Miss Violet, because Mama went back to make sure that Daddy took Emma’s other clothes when he took Emma.

I hold my special shiny box that matches my special dress in my lap. Aunt Josie and Miss Violet are talking about how many people are going to come to the party this afternoon. I take sneaky looks to both sides, pretending to be watching out the window: everyone knows that I love to see where my daddy lived when he was my age, even though he says it looks different now. But I am not really doing that, I am checking to see if anyone is paying attention to me. They aren’t.

I open the box just a little bit, but I do not see the rings. So I open it a little more, and then a little more, until it is all the way open, but I still do not see the rings. I turn it over and shake the box, but nothing happens. I scream a long scream inside my head.

I have lost the rings.

Uncle Bucky and Aunt Layla need the rings to get married.

I have ruined the wedding.

“Rose?” Aunt Josie asks me. “Is everything alright?” She is a teacher, so she says she knows a little about Being A Young Person, but she works at high school so she does not know about being exactly my age. (Miss Violet is a teacher also, but Aunt Josie teaches English and Miss Violet teaches science and I think you can tell.)

“Everything is fine,” I say, because I know what Mumma would do now, which is be Strong And Brave and fix everything. But we are farther and farther away from the house where I must have lost the rings, so I am just a bit confused about how I can fix this.

Baby—I mean Bebe comes over to me right away as our car pulls up and I get out. “Hi Rosie!” she says, and I say, “Hi,” but very quietly. I am thinking about if anyone would notice if I tried to walk back to the house. But I did not go to Girl Scouts like my friend Chrissy Parker and so I cannot read maps and I would probably get lost forever. But maybe everyone would like that to happen now that I am the Wedding Ruiner.

“Maybe we can borrow her dress after the wedding and play Bride,” says Bebe, who does not seem to notice at all that I am Having A Crisis. She is still holding her flowers, and I cannot believe that it will be Bebe who is perfect while I have ruined my Very Important Job before the wedding has even started.

But it is too late to come up with a plan, because Aunt Layla comes out of her car and starts walking with her family up the steps. I try to hide at the back, but Mumma sees me and says, “Rose, why are you dawdling?” and takes me by the hand.

City Hall is very big and very beautiful. It feels like I am going to meet the president, except if I met the president, he would probably take one look at me and Put Me Right In Jail.

I think about how they would have to make little prison clothes just for me and I hate that so much that I decide that it is time to give up fixing things by myself. “Mumma,” I say, very quiet, so no one else can hear. But I guess it is too quiet, because she doesn’t hear me either. We walk up all the stairs, and at the top I see everyone in a huge group waiting outside a big room. I pull on her hand. “Mumma!”

“What is it, Rose?” For just one second, I think that I will tell her and she will fix everything so everyone will not Hate Me Forever, but then she looks away from me and says, “Oh, there’s your father and your sister.”

Daddy gives us a big smile when we go over to where he’s standing by Uncle Bucky and their friends. “It’s almost time,” he says. I take a big breath and start to talk, but Mumma is looking at Emma and saying, “Oh, she fell asleep again? Honestly, I think simply looking at a car has her closing her eyes. Here, let me take her.” And just because she’s taking sleepy Emma, they have to kiss, which is something Mumma and Daddy do All The Time.

“Some things never change, huh, Cap?” says Mr. Hat, which I don’t understand because Daddy’s name is Grant or sometimes Steve like my name is sometimes Rose and sometimes Rosie. “You spent the whole of the war looking to do that with Carter.”

“Pipe down, you loudmouth,” says Uncle Bucky in a strict voice I’ve only heard once before, but it just makes everyone laugh, and Mr. Jim says, “Guess that hasn’t changed either.”

And then, before I can even say anything, the tall doors are opening and a man who is bald and wearing a special, shiny black dress (I guess he did not want to be left out when everyone was So Fancy) says, “Are you all here for the Barnes-Mansour wedding?” And Nana Barnes says, “Yes, we are. Are you ready for us?”

“I guess that’s our cue, Rose,” says Daddy and he starts to bring me inside with him. He is too busy whispering to Uncle Bucky to hear it when I say his name the first time, and is helping Aunt Layla’s grandma through the door the next time I try to make him pay attention, so it is Perfectly Understandable that what I do is shout very loudly, “DADDY, I HAVE LOST THE RINGS SO I WILL GO RIGHT TO JAIL IF YOU TELL ME TO AND YOU CAN HAVE ALL THE MONEY FROM MY PORKY PIGGY BANK TO BUY NEW ONES.”

Everyone is quiet and staring at me, except for Emma who is still sleeping. I look down at the floor and stay very still. "I'm sorry," I say and hope that Uncle Bucky and Aunt Layla will hear me and know that I am Absolutely Ashamed Of Myself for what I have done.

But then Daddy says in a quiet voice, "You never had the rings, Rose."

That makes me look up at him. "But you gave me the box," I say, and shake it in front of him. Daddy usually has a good memory, but sometimes I have to remind him of things, like that he said that we would "have a discussion" about getting a puppy.

"Yes, but we were going to put the rings in once we had actually gotten here, remember? We talked about it last night." Now that he is mentioning it, I do think I recall something about that part, but I was very focused before bed on all of my important jobs that I might have not been really paying attention to this one tiny detail.

He puts his hand in his pocket and takes out two little velvety boxes. "Here. I'm sorry, Rosie. I should have reminded you."

Uncle Bucky bends next to me. "He's always been like this. Half the time he forgets to tell people the most important things."

"Next time, I'm sure he'll be more clear," says Mumma, who is leaning down to me even while still holding snoozy Emma.

And then Aunt Layla is there too, and she says, "I wasn't planning on there being a next time. In fact, I'd like to get the first and only time started." She takes her father's arm, then says, "If you could get up front, please, James."

After that, everything goes Just Perfectly. Bebe takes her flowers and I have my ring box and we go up to the front with Daddy and Uncle Bucky and Aunt Layla and her friend named Camille, and everyone else sits. The man in the black dress, who is the judge, says big words that sound important, and Uncle Bucky and Aunt Layla both answer him with big smiles, and then I open my box for them. Uncle Bucky has one arm which is metal from Things That Happened To Him In The War, so he wears his ring on the other hand, and he keeps touching it and smiling as the judge says it is time for a kiss.

(I guess Mumma and Daddy are contagious.)

Nana Barnes is crying during the wedding - I ask Daddy about it later, and he says that part of it is happy crying because she loves Uncle Bucky and is glad for his special day, and part of it is sad crying because she misses Uncle Bucky's father and his little sister, who are both dead and are not here to celebrate - but then she wipes her eyes all up and tells everyone to come back to the house for the special party and we all do.

It is even more crowded than it was this morning, and people are standing in almost every single spot, talking and laughing and eating all of my nana's good food. Bebe and I get big pieces of the cake and make a song about the wedding that I decide we will perform for everyone later, but before we can get up and announce ourselves, Uncle Bucky and Aunt Layla come over.

Uncle Bucky is not wearing his jacket anymore, and he has his arm wrapped around Aunt Layla's shoulders. They are both a little sweaty because it is Hot In Here, and also they found a little place to dance and all of their friends brought different records to play.

They hug Bebe first, and that is fair, because Bebe is not the one who was A True Embarrassment at the wedding. But then they hug me too, and say thank you for helping us get married and I look at the floor and say, "I don't remember it that way," and Uncle Bucky says, "Rosie, you made our wedding so special that everyone is going to remember it forever. And look." He shows me his ring and Aunt Layla's which are next to each other because they are holding hands. "You did your job just perfectly. Got the rings right where they needed to be."

"I guess that's true," I say, and start to make little traces on the floor with my shoe, but then stop because Mumma is always telling me, "Don't Scuff, Please, Rose."

"It's absolutely true," Aunt Layla says. "You've been a big help all day long. In fact," she looks over at Uncle Bucky with a tiny, tricky sort of smile on her face. "I don't think I answered your question from this morning."

I try to think back. "What question?"

"After you told me about the weather.” She leans close to me. “You see, I am wearing special underwear today."

"You know," says Uncle Bucky in a loud voice, "I think it's probably time to wrap this party up." But I just laugh at him.

"It's not even dark yet!" I tell him, and he makes a face at me. Then Bebe grabs my hand and says, "Let's go dance," and I run with her to where Mumma and Daddy are dancing to a fast song. They are very good, and I almost start to show off my dancing that I learned from them, but then I decide that this will just be dancing to Unwind After A Long Day.

I was a particularly excellent helper today, after all.

More chapters here

[mysteryartisticwriter]

Hogwarts Newbie // Stefan X Reader X Colin AU

A/N: Back on my bullshit again lmao. So this is actually a requested AU of Bandersnatch that I think needs more attention and to be seen because this is an amazing AU!! I’m actually surprised there’s not more stuff about it.

Also! I’m so sorry this is late!! My mom and I got into a disagreement and now she took my phone so I won’t have it for a while. I would make a whole rant on how I’ve been but I won’t do it now.

HARRY POTTER AU (MAURADER’S ERA)

REQUESTS ARE OPEN BTW

Requested: Yes // Can you write stefan and/or colin in Harry Potter AU?

Warnings: Not much, probably some cussing here and there but nothing serious tbh

Not my gif!! (Please tell me if you, the owner, would like me to take the gif down!)

“God damnit...” You hissed to yourself as you struggled to make your way through the crowd of people in the big station. It didn’t help you were carrying all of your luggage on a huge and heavy cart.

You knew exactly why all of these people were here, as they were here for the exact same reason as you; they were trying to find their train. But while others eventually found their station, yours was a bit more difficult to find.

Platform 9 3/4 was written on the letter you were sent.

Your parents had already left, saying they needed to head to work. They both wished you luck, said their goodbyes and left you on your own. A 13 year old trapped in the middle of the train station not knowing where to go. It wasn’t the first time this happened, so you weren’t really bothered by it.

This was your first official year at the well known magical school, Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. While it was your first year at Hogwarts, it was actually your third year of studying the wizarding arts.

You were from America, and at 11 years old, your parents decided to send you off to Ilvermorny, the American school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. But in the last year, your parents enrolled you at Hogwarts in the UK, where they had their new jobs.

The only problem was, you couldn’t find where the train station to Hogwarts was. There was no given instructions by your parents or on the letter saying anything. But none the less, you continued to search for it anyway.

“Excuse me? Do you know where I can find Platform 9 3/4?” You asked a man holding a suitcase, passing by.

The man scoffed at you.

“What do I look like? A fool? Bugger off.” The man barked at you. Then he walked off into the lost crowd.

Huffing in annoyance, you turned on your feet and continued to look.

“Hello uh...Miss?” You heard a voice from behind you. 

When you turned around, you noticed a boy around your age with pure white, blond hair. They were spiked upwards and his bright, sea blue eyes were covered with thin framed glasses. The blond boy wore a light blue polo shirt, with a plain white shirt underneath. His blue jeans were pulled up so you could see the red and crazed colored socks he wore with his black converse shoes. The boy was quite handsome for his age.

Behind the blond male was another boy, who seemed to be cowering behind him. He had dark brown and curly hair that seemed to stick out in all places, to which you found adorable. The boy’s eyes were like a hazel color that were so mesmerizing that you almost got lost in them. He was wearing a dark green jumper with a black collar and black trousers. The brown haired boy didn’t look so bad himself, although he seemed to be shy.

“Yes?” You tilted your head at the boys.

“We couldn’t help but notice you seemed to be having some trouble looking for Platform 9 3/4. We also happened to be heading there as well, so we,” the blond boy gestured to the shy male behind him, who waved shyly. “We thought you would fancy some help?” He finished, showing off his clear British accent.

Your mouth formed into a grin and you smiled brightly at the two.

“Yes! Thank you so much! You’re going to Hogwarts, correct?” You questioned him, as the two males pulled their luggage with him and gestured for you to follow them.

“Mhm, I’m taking a guess to say that you’re new.” You nodded.

“This is my first year at Hogwarts. I used to go to Ilvermorny.” Before the blue eyed male could answer, the brown haired boy spoke up.

“The wizarding school from America?!”

Suddenly embarrassed by his outburst, the shy boy quickly looked back at the ground in shame. You laughed a bit and smiled at him.

“Well that would clearly explain the American accent.” The blond teen pointed out. 

“Yup. But my parents decided that Hogwarts would fit me better, seeing as they got jobs in England.” You replied.

Your smile made the boy seem a bit more comfortable with you, emitting a petit smile back from him. After following the two for a few more minutes, you stopped in front of a plain brick wall. Confused, you turned to the males.

“Um, what are we doing at a brick wall?” You questioned.

“We’re here. Come on!” Taking his luggage cart with him, the blond boy raced right into the brick wall.

You were about to yell out to stop him before you noticed that the boy was gone. It was as if his body went straight into the pillar and disappeared. You’ve seen a lot of stuff at Ilvermorny, but this was something else. The shy brown haired boy grabbed his cart and pointed towards the wall.

“J-just follow me.” Then ran into the wall, copying his friend before.

Still in a bit of shock, you hesitated before letting out a deep breath, and raced into the wall. You were expecting to crash, but instead you were led into what seemed to be like another side of the station you were in.

Trying to sustain yourself, your eyes wandered over to the boys who helped you. The blond wore a smirk while the hazel eyed boy smiled a bit.

“Taking a wild guess that Ilvermorny didn’t have this?” The accented boy questioned, the sly smirk still planted on his face.

With a giant grin you answered, “Nope. This is...amazing!”

“Welcome to Platform 9 3/4, love.” 

After getting all of your luggage onto the train and finding a train cabin that wasn’t already occupied, you and the two boys managed to relax and take a seat while the train started to move.

You stared out the window as the train passed by many fields of the outside world. It was a very beautiful sight to see. Finally turning your gaze away from the train window, you switched it over to the two boys who sat across from you in the cabin.

“By the way, I never got your names.” First, the blond one spoke.

“I’m Colin, yeah? Colin Ritman.” He said. You smiled at him and then fixed your sight to the brown haired boy, who shyly spoke up.

“B-Butler...St-Stefan Butler.” You could barely hold in your squeals at his adorableness.

“I’m (Y/n).” You greeted with a smile.

“So, tell me about Hogwarts. What makes it the “best” wizarding school out there?” You teased them, leaning forward in your seat.

Colin smirked and leaned back in his seat, while Stefan sat next to him, sitting the closest to the cabin doors and leaned against the wall.

“Of course it’s the best, why wouldn’t it be?” You laughed at his cockiness.

“Welp, to get started, there are four houses at Hogwarts, which I presumed you already figured?” You nodded.

You used to be in the Thunderbird house at Ilvermorny, so you already knew there would be houses at Hogwarts, but different ones.

“The best one is Slytherin—“ Just then, Stefan interrupted.

“A-Actually, the best house is Ravenclaw. Don’t mind him, he just likes to brag about being in the most annoying house at Hogwarts.” The once shy boy rolled his eyes, to which you giggled at.

 You were pretty sure that Colin was in Slytherin and Stefan was in Ravenclaw.

“As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted, there are four houses; Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. Slytherin are cunning and loyal, but we’re not the most kindest people. Ravenclaw are smart and wise, Gryffindors are brave and daring, which makes most of them pretty dumb if you ask me...”

Stefan elbowed Colin in the stomach a bit, causing the blond teen to laugh and cry out in pain at the same time. You continued to listen closely.

“And the last one is Hufflepuff, it’s not one of the most known ones but it’s nice I guess. They’re kind, friendly, patient, and they value their hard work. It’s not as good as the others but it’s an okay house.” Your eyebrow furrowed at his words.

“An okay house?”

“Yes, what about it?”

“Nothing.” You leaned back in your seat and stared out the window.

“It sounds like a very nice house, I think I would like to be in Hufflepuff. Being a Hufflepuff sounds like the best thing in the world.” Stefan grinned at you, while the edge’s of Colin’s lips rose a bit.

“I think you would make a great Hufflepuff. Sounds a bit like you. But Hogwarts is a big place, so don’t be too overwhelmed by it.”

Looking over to the two boys, you smiled.

“Don’t worry, I think I’m going to like Hogwarts.”

A/N: I lost inspiration at the end lmao

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