#how to catch snitches and get witches

[gloivy]

HOW TO CATCH SNITCHES AND GET WITCHES

Draco Malfoy’s face—as a rule—irritated Hermione. But Draco Malfoy’s face plastered all over her favourite book shop? Well, Hermione had not known rage like it in years.

In which Draco Malfoy publishes an autobiography, and Hermione Granger works to expose his lies.

CHAPTER 6: Hermione (and him too if you must)

READ NOW ON AO3

[theprenderelliepalace]

A Simple Christmas

°•°*°•°

James Potter x Reader

Tags: Enemies to lovers, friends to lovers, slow burn, Christmas fluff, unrequited love, angst/fluff, GRYFFINDOOR QUIDITCH Y'ALL

Summary: You and James Potter have been rivals since first year, but a Quidditch incident in your fourth year brings you closer. Spending Christmas at the Potter's, you realize your feelings for James might be more than just rivalry. With a little holiday magic, you discover that sometimes love is hidden in the most unexpected places

Warnings: Minor injury, mild language, slight angst (concerned reader), tensions...

Words: 2.7k

°•°*°•°

You started the tradition of Christams at the Potter's in fourth year.

It was an unlikely thing for you to agree to, seeing as you hated James Potter's guts from the moment you bumped into him on the Express in first year.

He was rude, loud, arrogant and the most devious 11 year-old you'd ever had the displeasure of meeting.

And then he grew up...

He and his gang of Mauraders were always the talk of the school, "Potter this- Potter that." "Oh,did you hear about Potter's latest prank? It was brilliant!" You began to detest him with even greater passion. It certainly didn't help, in third year when you both tried out for the Gryffindoor Quiditch team. He was a great Seeker- you'd give him that- yet, every time you won a match, you couldn't help the strange sensation of emotions that would fill your chest and cloud your eyes.

He was so, easy, everything was easy for James Potter. Talking, smiling, laughing. You started to notice everything about him and suddenly that became easy too. He would do something funny and outrageous and you'd catch yourself staring. He'd make a quip at you, you'd fire back and you'd find yourself laughing. Smiling even!

Then every day, you'd tell yourself, 'this has to stop.' Or, 'pull yourself together, Y/n! We hate him! He's a foul example of Gryffindoor overconfidence, he's a lousy classmate. He couldn't spell the word reliable with the help of the Imperious Curse!' And then you'd stop short and sigh, and watch the way he talked to her.

Lily Evans was beautiful, she was the "most talented witch of her age," Professor Dippet would praise after every assignment. She was smart, she was vibrant. Everything James Potter could want. In fact he did, he'd wanted her from the very moment he'd seen her on that train. He'd bumped into you to get to her.

Was that why you hated him? Because he'd chosen her over you? You shook your head at the thought. No. Of course not, you'd both made your beds with those very first insults on that train. That's how it was and how it would always be.

Until it wasn't...

°•°*°•°

It was the first match of the term in your fourth year. Tensions were high. Slytherin vs. Gryffindoor. Everyone was on edge to get one over on the other house. You had to admit, you were feeling strung pretty high to win this particular game. And it was not happening.

You groaned from your broom as you listened to Sirius Black narrate yet another goal for Slytherin over the loud speaker with slew of curses flying off as rapidly as he could come up with them. You caught a brief glance of the new Transfigurations teacher, Professor McGonagall, snatch the microphone from him and tell him off with such sterness, you could understand why the infamous trouble causer was cowering in the stands.

You stole yourself from the scene and focused on the task at hand. A fellow Gryffindoor Chaser was flying for you, fast, you steadied yourself on your broom and prepared to take the Quaffle. You snatched it at lightning speed, taking off to the other end of the pitch, the Slytherin Chasers caught in your dust. You scored. "10 points to Gryffindoor!" Black shouted.

Good, you were tied now. You spun around, you jumped as something hurtled past you and downwards to the field. You heard the roars of the crowd before you could make out what it was. "Potter's got the snitch!" Sirius bellowed. The Gryffindoors were chanting Potter's name before you could even steady your broom. You were smiling at him.

He was holding the snitch in his hand, waving it around in triumph. "Way to go Potter!" You called down to him. He looked up at you, grinning at you lopsidedly.

"That a compliment Y/l/n?" You shook your head at him playfully.

"Don't let it go to you'd head!" His grin widened.

"Not like that would-" You couldn't hear the rest of his sentence before you looked around to find a Slytherin Beater 30 feat away, her bat raised over her shoulder and the bludger she'd hit, flying straight at you. All you could comprehend was the searing pain in your head as it made impact. You slid off your broom ... it was all so hazy... someone caught you... someone was saying your name... and then came the darkness.

°•°*°•°

You woke up with a searing headache and foggy vision. -"concussion Mr Potter. You must leave my patient to recover."

"But it's been days Madame Pomfrey. Shouldn't she be awake?" You couldn't quite make out the owner of the voice, your ears were buzzing like a colony of pixies were fluttering around in there. You made a guess though and when you gingerly opened an eye, the first thing you saw was his shaggy mop of black hair cascading over his worried face.

Worried? Why should he be worried about you? He hated you, right. Right? Then you listened to his voice, the pleading tone and lilt of angst. It was so unlike the boy you'd spent four years getting to know that you were taken aback. You felt the urge to make fun of him by saying something clever, instead you just groaned and your smirk turned into a grimace. "Y/n!"

He was by your side in a flash, or perhaps you'd just blinked really slowly. While Madame Pomfrey fussed over you, you listened to him talk. -" and then, that skeevy brat, she had the gall to pretend to be sorry when the ref told her off. Of course, the Captain was furious and he spent an hour and a half trying to disqualify them from the whole season. It's a pity we've got a Slytherin flying coach this year, else he totally wouldn't have allowed them to play after you'd got hurt." James shook his head like the very notion disgusted him. "But, I think their Beater, Doldra Macconal, she'll find herself a nice little surprise tomorrow morning." He smiled devilishly. Perhaps it was the ointment that Madame Pomfrey had put over your bruises that turned your face bright red but suddenly you felt very hot.

Madame Pomfrey bustled away to fetch a clean cloth and this gave you time to think. "Wait, who caught me after I fell? I would've had a few more broken bones than this if I just fell off my broom." It was the first time you'd actually spoken, your voice sounded foreign in your throat and you jumped slightly. James looked at you sympathetically for a moment before your question sunk in. You watched him curiously as his cheeks pinkened and a bashful look fluttered over his face.

"Well, you just fell, like, clean off your broom. And- and I was right there, so..." He seemed much to embarrassed to continue. So you finished for him. He nodded sheepishly. You smiled at him, even though it hurt and asked, "What'dya mean Macconnel will find a surprise tomorrow morning?" You glared at him more sternly, "James, what did you do?" He gafawed at you.

"I think that's the first time you've called me by my name." You looked surprised at him, even he seemed surprised. Then you both burst into laughter.

You chatted for what seemed like hours after that, going back and forth between the match and the gossip around Hogwarts while you'd been out. But after a painstakingly short 20 minutes, Madame Pomfrey shooed James out of the hospital wing. He glanced back at you with a sad smile. You tried to smile back, it didn't go very well, but he got the message.

When you got out of the hospital that seemed to be it. You, James Potter and his Marauding gang became inseparable after that. It was like all you needed to do was talk to him and suddenly you were head over heels- no! No way!

°•°*°•°

The train was bustling with students all heading home for the holidays. You stood on the platform, proudly suiting your 6th year status and watching the first years fondly as they lept onto the train. "Watcha thinking 'bout Y/n/n?" You smiled at James as he came to stand beside you. He heaved his luggage in front of him with a disgruntled huff.

"Hmm, just when we started being friends. Hey, what did you actually do to Macconnel after she bludgered me? I never actually asked." James laughed his hearty laugh that you'd come to love. You shook your head, stop it, you scolded yourself.

"Oh Goddric,it was so great. But id forgotten 'bout it. We gave her a right scare." He smiled fondly at the memory.

"It's creepy that you think about it with that kind of smile on your face." You stepped onto the train, dragging your trunk after you.

"Oi! What's that? What's wrong with my face?" He followed after you.

"I think she means you look right ugly Prongsy." Came Sirius's lilting voice from a nearby cabin. You laughed as you shoved past him, the two of you exchanging mischievous glances.

"Listen to Pads, James. He has a point." You stuck your tongue out at him, deciding to drop the Macconnel story. He glowered back at you. He heaved his trunk onto the top shelf, turning to you and so naturally lifting yours up, taking it from your hands. Your stomach did summersaults as your fingers brushed. Sirius chuckled. You spun on him and did a wild shushing motion with your full upper body. This only made him fully laugh.

James turned. "Eh, what's funny now?" Sirius held his hands up in mock surrender at your furious glare.

"Nothing, nothing mate. Swear it." He slumped down onto the seat closest to the window, leaving just enough room for you and James to sit achingly close together on the opposite bench. You felt like hexing him, but you supposed James would notice and ask what all the fuss was about. He wasn't that dense.

You elected to change the subject. "Moony not coming this year?" James and Sirius sighed in unison.

"Nope. Burried his nose so deep in the library's books I'm worried he'll turn into one before we get back after the holidays." Sirius answered. You scoffed.

"Oh please, he's so prepared for our N.E.W.T.S next year, even McGonagall is telling him to give it a rest."

"I know!" Both the boys exclaimed in unison. "Where's Wormtail though?" James asked the reclining nuisance of a wizard taking up half the cabin. Sirius shrugged.

"Dunno. Says your mummy scares him. Decided to stay and 'keep Remus alive.' Whatever that means."

The train ride back to the Potter's was usually your favorite part of the holiday, but so close to Prongs, you might as well have burst into flames where you sat. "You okay, Y/n/n?" Your very oblivious crush asked.

"Yeah." You cleared your throat. "Yep, just fine Prongs." You squeaked. Black sniggered. You threw your shoe at him.

"Hey!"

°•°*°•°

It was an hour to midnight, an hour 'til Christmas and you were wandering the Potter house in the dead of night. The absence of sleep very obvious. You sighed as you found yourself, yet again, in the living room. You plodded over to the fireplace, where the dying embers crackled soothingly. You sank down with a thud and a heavy sigh, curling your blanket around you.

A dawning realization had struck you about 3 hours ago and it was churning your insides like sticky taffy, getting stuck in your every waking thought. You were in love with James Potter. This morning, mind you, you'd mearly thought you'd liked him and then he smiled at you- really smiled- and you knew.

And it was the most impossible thought you'd ever had. He loved someone else, someone much better than you. He maybe didn't deserve her, but he certainly had more of a shot with her than you did with him. He was your best friend! Loving him was like loving your pet Grindylow until it bites your hand off. You didn't want your friendship to be at stake, it was the last thing you wanted to think about, but here you were; thinking about it.

"Y/n?" Came his groggy voice from the stairs landing.

"Yeah Jamie?" Whoops, that just slipped out. Obviously he didn't notice because he came and sat beside you. You watched him rub the sleep from his eyes and yawn. He put his hands out in front of the fire and shuddered.

"It's bloody cold down here. Why're you still up?" You shrugged. Tucking a stray strand of hair behind his ear. The firelight made his cheeks look redder than usual.

"Lots to think about. Why're you still up?" You mimicked. He glanced away.

"I've been thinking; there's this girl-"

"Yeah, yeah, Prongsy, Lily, the light of your life. Let's assume I've probably heard it before." You felt your heart tug painfully.

"When have you heard me talk about Evans like that?" He accused.

"Uhm, all these long, harrowing years that I've known you?" You shot back.

"Harrowing. Huh." He huffed. Looking affronted. You smiled at him softly. Bumping your shoulder against his.

"Sorry Jamie." It happened again, but you didn't really mind.

"See there you go again!" He shouted, standing up. You were following him before you knew it. Your blanket falling to the floor.

"Shh! Shh!" You pointed to the ceiling, warning him about waking his parents. He shook his head.

"You're bossing me around and it's driving me crazy!" He whisper-yelled. "You're- you're calling me these sweet little nicknames. You're brushing my hair out of my face, you're worried about me when I get hurt on the Pitch. And Merlin Y/n, the way you look at me..." He softened now, "The way you look at me just makes me..."

"Crazy?" You finished. Your heart was beating out of your chest. There was a glimmer of something there, but you couldn't let it be hope. He was looking at you dazedly through his square glasses, his hair ruffled and his lips softly parted. You could imagine the feel of them against yours.

He gulped. "Something like that." And then it clicked.

"In- in fourth year, when I'd just woken up in the hospital wing. I asked you, I asked you if you liked me or something, because you were acting so strangely... I just thought... but it was a joke!" You were whisper-yelling now. Frantic. "You replied and, and I didn't hear you... but you said that. You said-"

"Or something." You were both staring at each other. The tension so thick you couldn't cut it with a knife.

You shook your head. "You're in love with Evans!" He took a slow step towards you. "I'm not her, I could never be her. I wouldn't want to be."

"Good." He said as he reached you, he put a tender hand to your cheek. "Because I haven't thought about Lily Evans even half as much as I've ever thought about you. She couldn't hold a floating candle to you Y/n. Not in my head." The look in his eyes was so soft, so beseeching, that you just had to ask:

"Jamie, kiss me already?" And suddenly he was on you. His lips colliding with yours, melding into you. He felt so perfect, a piece of a puzzle snapping into place. He prodded your lips with his tongue, you eagerly obliged, your lips parting.

You both groaned into the kiss as he deepend it. You wrapped your arms around his neck, he leveraged your legs in his hands, guiding you to jump up and wrap your legs around his waist. You were just about to take his glasses off when-

"Bout bloody time. You know lovebirds, I couldn't stand one more bloody Christmas with you two pining after each other. I think Moony was going to implode if we had to see one more honey-eyed-"

"Sirius!" You both shouted. James let you out of his grasp, but he kept you firmly pinned to his chest.

"Sod off, you prat. We're busy." James growled.Padfoot waved an absent hand and turned to head back upstairs.

"Off I go. But Merry Christmas to the happy couple." He snickered. "Ooo, this is the best Christmas present ever! Those two back at Hogwarts are gonna be so mad!" He said with a singsong cheeriness that was much too righteous for 12 am. The clock struck midnight.

"Happy Christmas Y/n." James smiled at you warmly.

You kissed him again, running your hands through his tussled hair. "Merry Christmas Jamie." He picked you up again and you giggled at him. "You know what I want my Christmas present to be?"

"What, princess?" He asked with a lovesick smile.

"Be my boyfriend?" He beamed at you.

"Ask and you shall receive!" He threw you onto the couch, you shrieked and giggled as he followed suit. He shushed you, but it would be many hours before either of you were actually quiet.

°•°*°•°

A/n Yes! Okay, I know it's cannon divergent but I thought it was cute (and yes, probably getting hit square in the head with a bludger would blow your brain up, but I'm allowed some creative and magical liberties).

Requests/asks are open

Masterlist

[itsyagurlchip]

ask: @snipersiniora If so can i please request for a rottmnt family platonic one-shot of little sister reader and her family? Reader is as the same age as Mikey.

Where reader admits she's been secretly dating a yokai or mutant boy for months and she not only admit to it but asks if he can meet her family to see if he's good or not.

If you want to know the boyfriend is a keeper (good guy) but how reader's family react and do in the meeting is up to you.

٠ ˚ ※ ๋࣭ ᯓ⚝ ⋆ .˚✰Snitch Tendencies ٠ ˚ ※ ๋࣭ ᯓ⚝ ⋆ .˚✰

✰⋆⁺warnings: goofy shi(!) cussing (idk i didn't look/count) (!) too many references (!) boyfriend is very much like mondo gecko(!)

✰⋆⁺lmao you didn't see that- no one did (💀💀😭🤚🏾) whatever you think you saw, you were hallucinating. yes....um, welp, enjoy! It's a mix of a one shot and head cannons, sorta like Picky Icky but, yk, with a different plot.

imma just leave this here- cuz i feel bad about not being able finish this correctly without it sounding like a brain fart. but the new one is currently in construction!

✰⋆⁺"How did they know? Could've sworn that I was subtle. But there was the snitch, should've known he was trouble" Me and you both SpongeBob. nah, nobody but you. You were always bad at lying afterall

You were slowly crawling into lair- perfectly unsuspecting, the quietest of ninja foot steps, no one would ever-

aaaand, the lights just came on.

dear cookie crumbles.

"and WHAT were YOU doing on the topside AFTER CURFEW YOUNG LADY????" There sat a tall ass foot turtle, which is my brother mind you, is tapping his foot sassily against the ground. He also wore a scowl, damned sharpie, with an eye twitch (which would have been funny, had I not been in this situation).

"EEK! a-i- ummm- welp, uhhh- hi DeeDee!" I cringed after flinching so aggressively, smiling in a forced manner. No wonder it all seemed so perfect, damn it Donnie.

"NUH UH!! you dont get to 'DEeDeE' me! What in PizzaSupreme™ were you doing out so late!???"

"i-"

"You've been missing Mikey's meditation practices for strudle's sake!! Do you wanna know what it's like when he pops into Dr Delicate mode???" Donnie was pacing in rectangles, his two fingers massaging the skin that surrounds his brain.

damn his head is big.

"And you guys are best friends!" I involuntarily flinched mentally and physically. "Imagine how he would feel when he finds out that you've been- WAIT! what have you even been sneaking out for?"

annnnnnnddd there's the question

aw pork dumplings. I sighed deeply before opening my mouth, before closing it. Pursing my lips, i did it again as sound began to stutter out of my mouth.

"Well- ummm" I actually didn't know what to say, which is a bit unnerving, because I always have 'somethin to say' per Splinter. "errrm- e-e-i- d-" I tried- but the dude wouldn't even let me speak!

"You're not sans, and quit opening and closing your mouth, it's making your survival rate lower by the second." Donnie impuded. His eyes narrowed lower at my silence.

Well, what the heck?

"I have a boyfriend....and he's yokai" Donnie quit his pacing, and turned fully towards me like a mobile roblox player in 1st pov. I simply rocked back and forth as i waited for his brain to catch up with what is happening.

Donnie couldn't even believe what his ear holes were registering.

You mean to tell him, his little poor, innocent, younger sister was out MINGLING in this universe's equivalent to the underground!

Was he even good enough? i better not be a bum, or worse, a chad.

What even was he?

Oh chewy macaroons, he hoped that you aren't dating a witch-

non of that magic nonsense! (he's still salty about being incorrect and less-than professional at witch town.)

Do you use the chart that he made for you?

Because if that- eugh -boy is going to, court, you, he has to be the one.

and ooohhh if he breaks your heart...

lets just say that the hidden city's ip addresses will have a simple look through.

"huh..." Donnie blinked. His face went through a plethora of emotions. and then he made a face- oh god-

"WAI-" I tried. But it was no use- Donnie pulled a notebook and pen out and started scribbling some more words only he could decipher.

"How tall is he? What's his species? What would you say his eye shape is? How big is-"

"Hey Donnie?"

"And then he could be a delinquent- Are you even into thugs? You didn't even tell me you were into yokai- better yet anyone!"

"DONNIE!!" I yelled. "How about he comes over and you cant meet him for yourself?" I offered. Despite whoever's efforts, i could still hear their footsteps. I was always considered the most in tune with my 5 senses, right next to Donnie.

('So why do I struggle with my mystics?' i questioned myself, but that's for later.)

"Who's Donnie gonna analyze now?" Leo walked in, grumbling with a grimace. Donnie flinched dramatically. I looked at the clock just to see it was 2:56 in the morning. Which meant i had been out for at least 6 hours. I winced again.

"Why don't you tell him? HUH? Oh DEAR little sister???!?!?" Okay now bro was getting on my damn nerves. I know he couldn't help it, but that doesn't mean he has to chuck me under that big yellow box full of sweaty children. (a bus)

Obviously that woke him up, even more than his insomnia has ever, with a lean against the wall.

"Is this about where they've been going? You do know you've missed at least 5 meditation sessions Mikey-" I held my hand up, stopping him from explaining further.

"Yea- i know, i feel bad about that as well." I started, "I've been going out to meet this boy..and we've been meeting up and dating for the past few weeks. He's a gecko mutant- He super nice and funny, he has this-"

"alright! alright! We dont need all of that gushy shit- plus, i suspected that anyway." Leo cut in. And honestly, Im not surprised.

"Yea.. figured as much" I sighed.

"YOU KNEW???"Donnie harshly whispered. Oh right, we're supposed to be quiet.

"No, i guessed. I mean, what else screams "im in love" better than a dopey smile, and kicks while screaming into a pillow- btw lil sis, you're super loud, keep the simpery down to a 3 mkay?" Leo said, just to end it with a wrist flip and a sassy finger pointing my way.

I rolled my eyes, but my faced betrayed my emotions with a bright blush.

"Whatever- we'll talk about it when everyone else is up." I backtraked. "I'll text him to come over Friday since its Tuesday. And ill tell April to come over too."

"So that's it!?" Donnie exclaimed, "No 'Look at you and ur silly crush' or 'sTinKY LiL sIs iS iN LoVe'?????" His hands were wildly waving around. "The fuck?"

"Im just better than you, besides, you were super duper sappy when you had your first date." I jested.

"Not really- well yes, but its also the fact that its now almost 4 at the ass crack of dawn and i couldn't care less right now."

"Oh- valid/That makes sense" You both said at the same time.

"Lets got to brd before Raph and Mikey wake up." Leo sat up from the wall, turning away. "Both of them being cranky isn't something I'd like to experience at the moment -" He finished, before walking towards his room.

"WELP! night night Dee! i hope you get toilet splashback <3"

"Okay then"

and you both went to your rooms. there. Despite already being awake for the whole night, you could only sleep for 3 hours before you had to get up again...great.

Speaking of, it was that morni

had to redo this bc the first one was absolutely brain fart

@kittykittyanon @radicallxser @oleander-nin @towomatos @thealphagirl @ziipzeepzop-eez @amorvincitomnia-14 @spongejuice @cyb3r-st4r. if you would like to be added, check my blog. if you would like to be added, check my blog. SEE? I SAID IT TWICE!!

@tmnt-shitposting you said you like little sister readers right?

[randomspagetti]

WatcherCao RoleSwap!Au

OKAY SO- I got really carried away so y'all are getting a lot of art and lore ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯. Here's a rehash of the story.

(Second Watcher is called Coffee Roll (CR sometimes for short))

Pre-Canon

Cacao, after realizing what happened to GCs kingdom, grows fearful of him kingdom and his citizens getting hurt because DE wants his souljam, so he goes missing for a century, hiding out on the DL until anyone who'd remember his face is dead.

He starts picking up jobs helping his kingdom, switching up where he works every two decades so nobody catches on. Around this time he's moved to the citadel as an upkeeper. He's in the lower staff when the witches give him his son. Because he's not flooded with work, and has more free time he's actually a good dad and Choco doesn't look for the cursed sword.

Choco is appointed first watcher and Coffee Roll is appointed king because the previous one croaked. (Being king is now a ranked position like the watchers) Time passes and Cacao is moved up to the higher upkeeper positions, Caramel, Choco, and Affo grow close, and Coffee Roll starts to realize there's more to his Upkeeper than meets the eye.

Woo big suprise Affo is a jerk who got close to the kings daughter (caramel) to be able to manipulate CR.

Broken Walls Arc

CR is becoming more pressured and stressed out by the amount of work he has. (affo making it worse so he's more temperamental) Cacao keeps trying to get through to him, realizing that affogato's intentions aren't as pure hearted as he presents. This puts strain on their relationship due to affogato painting Cao in a negative light to Coffee Roll.

Affo starts doing his usual shenanigans like turning away people who come to the citadel in need, pushing distrust in CR to the watchers. Caramel starts to notice exactly what her friend is doing, but it's too late for her to convince anyone of the truth. During this time, she finds being around her father intolerable because he refuses to listen. (Putting faith in the wrong person you bozo 😒)

This strengthens Caramel and Cacao's relationship, due to mutual understanding. Wooo to big day comes, the whole thing with COD takes place, and Coffee Roll is on the receiving end of a murder attempt by Affogato and a giant mf licorice monster. Cacao realizing that's something is going on at the wall rushes over and sees what's happening. Caramel helps protect the other watchers there while our boi Cao rushes to CRs aid. (Choco is on his way over, but he has quite a way to go)

Cacao, unarmed takes his souljam that Coffee Roll was wielding and with a glancing blow, knocks the licorice monster over the wall

At this point everyone is amazed and confused. "HOW TF DID HE DO THAT???!!" well you'll never guess who snitched; his souljam. Coffee Roll has noticed it randomly glowing at weird intervals for months now. ...almost like a compass?

Let's just leave it at Cacao has a damn lot to explain, Coffee Roll is both shocked, upset, and somewhat smitten, and Affo is going to be eating prison food for a while.

-

That's all I have so far! This au was really fun, here's some extra art!

I never got to coloring Caramel because I had one before that one and I hated it so I gave up

(before you ask "oh what about the gingerbrave group?" They found their way to the citadel, albeit a lot slower due to not having Caramel)

[nayatarot777]

{karma for your abusive mother} ~ oracle pac

• pile one •

cards:

procrastination

lioness ~ "you've earned all your stripes"

angel of alchemy ~ miracle

relinquish control

witch ~ healer

shelegiel ~ angel of snow

raziel ~ angel of mysteries

obsession

today for tomorrow

your mother could have some type of spell-work on her, and if so then i'm hearing that it's a "freezer spell" or something like that. something that is keeping her stuck in the same place. i'm also feeling a chronic sense of wasted potential coming from her. she won't feel satisfied with her life goals and achievements (or lack thereof), and as if she hasn't reached her full potential. maybe she tries to put pressure onto you to be ambitious and get perfect results in school or work because of how much failure she feels within herself, but she's not going to be able to run away from her own insecurities. i'm also seeing that her karma could be you detaching yourself from her. if that is the case, then she'll be forced to watch you be successful.

it seems like she will be codependent on someone else who is quite controlling. she will never be able to catch a break in her life in any capacity, because of her refusal to self-reflect and heal. her karma is to never find whatever it is that she's seeking. she could feel like she's running out of time with something (something that she feels would bring her good luck). the reason why is because she'll be tied down to something or someone. while you're living a better life than she is, she'll be forced to watch you heal and guide yourself to a much better future than she wants for you. when you find your freedom from her, she's going to feel iced out which will come as a shock to her. her karma is to see you grow into the person who you're meant to be, while you leave her behind, stuck in her ways. her karma is seeing you grow into your power and maybe even ice her out emotionally completely. i'm hearing that you're going to look back on all of the lies that your mother raised you to believe about yourself and life in general, and she's going to have to see you grow above that into a whole lot of success. clearing her out of your life will be the way that you heal yourself.

i'm seeing that your mother could be very codependent on you. despite scapegoating you and abusing you. you seem to be someone who she needs. and she's going to have to watch you clear her out of your life and grow your confidence and abundance for yourself afterwards. i'm hearing that people are going to become aware that she's keeping a secret or withholding valuable information. she could actually snitch on herself because i heard "truth serum". she's not going to feel protected, in the same way that she allowed you to feel unprotected too. things are going to be very cold and harsh in her platonic and romantic relationships - if she has any. and whoever she's around will be holding her back in life. i'm seeing her refusing to detach herself from these people, though. even if she could, she's going to feel stuck around them. and i'm hearing that this is because she tried to make you feel tied down to her so her karma is being stuck in a position to feel the same way.

she could develop an addiction to her phone - specifically to compare her own life with other people's or maybe even yours. she's never going to be happy with the way that she looks, her security, even her health. for some of you specifically, i'm seeing that she may have a health issue that she doesn't know about until it's too late. this could have something to do with her lungs or her heart. you standing up to her is also her karma, as well as anyone else who she might abuse and scapegoat. this will be something that she really never thought would've happened. secrets of her's are definitely being exposed - especially related to any addictions that she may keep hidden.

if this reading resonates, and you're interested in the extended reading to this pac, then find that on my patreon here :)

if you’d like a private reading, then please read my pinned post here

• pile two •

cards:

fated to suffer

sexuality

princess ~ "you can be your own knight"

amara the menehune ~ "aloha healing"

candles ~ magic

naked before the stars

binah ~ "left eye - knowledge"

gabriel ~ "angel of heralds"

listen to your guardian angel

is this me?

a lot of you in this pile could have mothers who prioritised promiscuity and partners over you. she could be extremely attention seeking, the type of mother to fear maturing and growing old, just wanting to stay in her "party girl" phase. if not, then she's just extremely immature. yeah, a lot of you have mothers who are emotionally and/or mentally stunted. she could've become a mother at a very young age and she doesn't think like a grown adult. because of this, she's fated to fall for the same types of people and situations again and again, causing her a lot of pain and suffering. her karma is that she's going to be forced into self maturing.

her physical looks could decrease in some way, therefore decreasing her dating options/partners. she could be the type of person who relies on her partners for money, or who relies on handouts while using her sexuality to her advantage. she could be a straight up gold digger. but she is being forced onto a healing journey. she could have deep rooted issues surrounding her self-value and her body, and she's going to be forced to heal her relationship with her sexuality. she could literally have a "coming to jesus" moment. and if so, i'm feeling that there's going to be something that she experiences that scares her or shows her a lot about herself. i'm really seeing an expansion of her awareness happening, and although painful, it'll be what's needed for her to question herself and who she is.

just like pile one, your mother could have some type of witchcraft on her - candle magic to be specific. or, for this pile, i'm picking up on the fact that your mother has caused a lot of chaos through candle magic or some other sort of energy manipulation and she's being forced to face all of the consequences of this. i feel like she could have been hit with a return to sender (which is basically just karma). she's going to be forced into looking for a lot more meaning to life than just having sex appeal, men, and money. this may be uncomfortable to hear, since this is your mother we're speaking about, but some sexually explicit content of your mother could be exposed. and if not, then she's going to be gossiped about in relation to who she's sleeping with. i feel like she will be facing a lot of judgement from this. but her karma overall is definitely being forced to gain complete independence for once in her life in a whole new lifestyle.

if this reading resonates, and you're interested in the extended reading to this pac, then find that on my patreon here :)

if you’d like a private reading, then please read my pinned post here

• pile three •

cards:

dreams

alone in the world

uriel - angel of flame

sword - "make the change"

unlock your heart

keter: the crown - spirituality

the three fates - "what comes around..."

addicted

beltane - fertility

from "the three fates" card, i'm hearing that her karma is definitely hitting her hard. this was a long time coming and she has really accumulated a lot of negative karma. spirit is saying that she was "idiotically confident" enough to believe that she’d be able to avoid this karma, but she’s being faced with a harsh reality.

your mother could have a lot of addictions that she has been stuck in cycles with. like with many people, your mother clings to these things as a way of suppressing pain (although this harms those around her) and her karma is that she’s going to be forced to make change in her life. drastic change too. she could be forced into some type of rehab or therapy. she could have tried to isolate you from the world, or keep you unnecessarily sheltered, and i'm seeing her ending up completely alone and maybe even "imprisoned" somewhere. this doesn't have to be prison (although it could be if your mother has a habit of getting into legal trouble) but this could also be some type of hospital or facility. your mother could be extremely delusional in some way, or just completely ungrounded and unrealistic in the way that she thinks. i'm also seeing that she could be a hot-head too, and if so, she's going to be forced to take something like anger management classes.

i'm also seeing that for those of you with mothers who struggle with alcoholism in particular, her alcoholism is going to affect her health. and it'll most likely be her reproductive system that's impacted. she could also be forced into making some type of change for the sake of her children. if she has a relationship with someone who she claims to want to have more children with, i feel like this person is going to force her get help. otherwise she's going to lose her dream of having more children due to her partner refusing to bring more kids into her life when she can't even look after herself properly. this could also be related to being given an ultimatum to get anger management or lose someone/something, for those of you who have mothers with anger issues. but for some reason, i'm feeling like she's really going to hit rock bottom in some way. in the sense of being forced into a time of isolation where she has to really reflect on how she got herself there in the first place, as well as the ways in which she needs to heal.

tigers could be significant to you guys. they symbolise healing, discipline, and cleansing toxins from the environment and the body. your mother's karma is going to be her being forced to get clean. whether that's from drugs, alcohol, anger, codependency in relationships - whatever her poison is. and with this, i'm hearing that you will be able to clear your energy and space from her if you haven't already. when you feel lonely, call upon your guides. because i'm seeing that you have one guide who is constantly around you. especially in your dream state. don't allow your mother to convince you that you're alone.

if this reading resonates, and you're interested in the extended reading to this pac, then find that on my patreon here :)

if you’d like a private reading, then please read my pinned post here

[hed-romancer]

the owl house is about being in fandom

i watched all of the owl house recently with a friend who isn't/has never been really in fandom and hasn't read fanfiction. and their reactions really made me realize, the owl house as a show is about being in fandom. it's about a fangirl and made for people in fandom and can't be fully understood if you aren't involved in fan culture.

from the start, our main-pov character luz is so obviously a fangirl. she loves azura, gets extremely into making her book report on it accurate, and refers to the boiling isles as being "not a g-rated fantasy world". she keeps referring to things as though they were from a story, which would come across as breaking the fourth wall if it weren't how any fan would be speaking in her shoes.

but then, not only does luz refer to the boiling isles like how she'd refer to fictional story, but the owl house itself clearly references other fictional fantasy worlds. Hexside references Hogwarts and winning a grudgy match is done by catching a "rusty smidge" (clearly parodying a golden snitch). Hooty's Moving Hassle is a direct play off of Howl's Moving Castle.

The show also deconstructs tropes in these other fantastical fictional worlds. In season 1 episode 2, Luz falls for a chosen one scam, and learns that destiny isn't something that can just be given, it has to be chosen. In the finale, Luz ends up dead/in-between worlds and is asked by the Titan whether she chooses herself to be the one to defeat Philip. This is the moral of the show- that no one is destined to do anything, that you just have to choose to do the right thing when you have the option to.

TOH also gets into some of the more social aspects of being a teenage fangirl. In episode one, Katya is imprisoned because she writes fanfiction about food falling in love, and that's not accepted by the rigid emperor, so she's sent to the conformatorium (and isn't that how it is- you write something fun that you enjoy and doesn't hurt anyone, and people call you weird and expect you to conform to what they think you should be?). Luz herself is also expected to conform when she's sent away to Reality Check Summer Camp.

Contrasting to that, at one point in season 2's Yesterday's Lie, Luz becomes worried as Vee goes up to other teenagers, afraid that she's going to get mocked for being strange, only to find out that Vee is friends with these kids and these kids are strange themselves. On one hand, Luz ditching summer camp and going to the boiling isles is how she finds friends; on the other, vee going to camp and interacting with other people who were also sent to camp is how she finds friends. (it reminds me of how in high school, i befriended all the other weirdos even when we were weird about completely different things, but when i went to college i found people who were more specifically like me, and both are amazing!)

to conclude, luz is a very amazing example of fangirl joy. she starts out the show as a fangirl, and ends the show as a fangirl with friends, and more family than she had before. she starts out falling for being called a chosen one, and ends up choosing herself. she starts preforming a monologue as the good witch azura, warrior of peace, and finishes with proclaiming herself the good witch luz, warrior of peace, and customizing the dialogue to fit her. still a fangirl through and through.

[pooks]

If someone were to ask Percy what his mental picture of a big sister figure was, he would answer with one name.

Cassidy Mercury.

He didn't meet her officially until he was in his second year, when Bill and Charlie introduced him to their friend. She was a new prefect, like Charlie, and she was probably the prettiest girl he had ever seen.

Her hair was styled in a short haircut with parted bangs and golden like sunshine. The eyes were green as ripe pears and her skin was fair, decorated with a calm yet reassuring smile.

There was just something about her that kept his nerves calm, as if she was telling him "everything will be alright because I am here" in a non-verbal way. And the first thing she had said when he told his name and his life ambitions in one go was...

"Sounds like you have your whole life planned out."

No teasing or mocking, like his brothers tended to do. No laughing at his extremely high standards of a successful life. No, she listened and respected him. That was the first thing that won him over.

Secondly, she proved to be an excellent and talented student. Cassidy was really good at academics and as he later found out, one of the best Chasers on the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

He had originally come to see Charlie, and his dorm mate Oliver Wood, play on the first Quidditch match of the year. He had already known that Charlie was a great Seeker and Oliver was a raw talent as a Keeper, but Cassidy...

She was magnificent in the air, flying on her Comet and stealing the Quaffle with ease, evading her opponents like how a fly avoids being hit by a slipper and making goals with a strong left arm. And how the stands filled with Gryffindors screamed in loud cheers for her.

Charlie may be the Quidditch Captain, but Cassidy Mercury was their star! Even when Oliver was down, getting hit in the head by a Bludger (and nearly gave him a heart attack!), Cassidy became their savior by making so many goals and with Charlie catching the Snitch, earning them 150 points more...they had saved the match.

It has been a long time since Percy believed in heroes. Yes, he knew there were war heroes from the War, but he didn't know them and in his simple opinion, heroes was something that belonged in fairy tales or fictional stories.

But when the school was in danger by the Cursed Vaults...when students and even school staff were being attack by these curses...when Rakepick proved to be a Dark witch and especially, when his life was at mortal danger...

Cassidy Mercury was there to save the day.

She was his hero.

[queerlyhalloween]

Bloodborne bosses ranked by how fun they'd be to smoke a blunt with:

Father Gascoigne: 7/10, will usually respectfully decline but if he does smoke you bet your ass he'll chuckle heartily for the rest of the evening

Cleric beast: 2/10, scared of the flame

Vicar amelia: 6/10, her incense helps to mask the smell but if you pass her the joint you are NOT getting it back

Witches of hemwick: 9/10, barely moves as it is, brings her own buds

Darkbeast paarl: 0/10, yeah... you can't pass a joint to that thing

Bloodstarved beast: 2/10, scared of the flame (wet)

Shadows of yharnam: 5/10, good if you like an extremely quiet smoke...and snakes

Lady maria: 8/10, great if you like an extremely quiet smoke and a suffocating air of guilt, could smoke you under the table

Rom the vacuous spider: 8/10, she struggles to smoke on account of her extremely tiny limbs but if you take the time to put it in her mouth then her vibes are impeccable

Celestrial emissary: 2/10, no mouth, 40 feet tall

Lawrence: 10/10, "forgot your lighter? No problem ;)"

The one reborn: 1/10, if your dream blunt rotation consists of a whole damned village and plenty of vomiting then this baby great one's your new favourite smoking buddy...

Micolash: -2/10, he PROMISED he'd be cool this time but it's 3am and he's AWOOOing away because he coughed after one puff, master wilhem is gonna catch us dude, chill out

Amygdala: 4/10, no mouth, 100 feet tall, but willing to grab you snacks from the other side of yharnam... or just grab you

Mergo's wetnurse: 0/10, you've heard of no mouth now get ready for no anything, also she takes her babysitting job WAY too seriously, will probably snitch on you to beings that are all-seeing anyway

Moon presence: 3/10, talks a big game but when you get around to it doesn't actually partake

Living failures: 0/10, once again lacking mouths

Ludwig, the holy blade: 5/10, cool enough guy but weed makes him chatty and he won't stop talking about "the good old days of the church"

Ludwig, the accursed: 5/10, pick a mouth any mouth, GREAT guy to invite to the sesh if you want people to leave your home immediately

Djura (technically not a boss but he WILL fight you) 10/10, will tell you cool beast facts and stories about the powder kegs, what do you think he was doing on the clocktower before you opened the door to old yharnam?

Martyr logarious: 0/10 no lungs 😔

Gehrman: 1/10, tolerance isn't much stronger than micolash's, keeps crying

Ebretas, daughter of the cosmos: 15/10, please take the time to picture her with a joint in each of those little macaroni, yes i know those probably aren't her mouths but just do it

Orphan of kos: 0/10, born today, doesn't know what weed is, could have 6 joints and would probably still maim you

[that-ari-blogger]

A World Of Their Own

The Owl House thrives on archetypal storytelling. Essentially, it makes a beeline for the closest trope and twists it into a new direction. It's a story about how expectations and reality clash.

Up until now, the series has given a take on the concepts of prom, quests, magic schools, amongst others, and has been steadily working its way through the enemies to lovers trope.

And so, along comes Wing It Like Witches to tackle the Sport Story genre, and throw some serious shade on certain other stories while it is at it.

Let me explain.

SPOILERS AHEAD (The Owl House, Harry Potter 1-6)

When writing a satire, it is broadly useful to have an understanding of the thing you wish to satirise. In the case of a piece of media, this includes understanding the writer, text, and audience. Specifically what parts of the text matter, what the text is trying to say, and exactly where it succeeds and falls short.

The episode after this serves as a turning point in the series, the moment when the stakes escalate from school drama to world threatening, and so Wing It Like Witches serves as a last hurrah for the small things, and the moral of the episode is "focus on the elements of life that matter."

What better way to emphasise that is with sport?

Now, I don't think it will come as a shock to many people that sport isn't real life. As in, it's artificial by nature, it's fair. The winner of WWI wasn't the team that scored the most home runs.

The significance of this is that sport usually has a point system, allowing certain areas to have a specific, value that doesn't exist anywhere else in the world. You can win a story based on flags, for example.

In a fictional world, you can make up the sport, and so you can place your points on anything that you want. You can artificially inflate the significance of specific items.

The Owl House calls attention to this in a moment that I think comes as close to breaking the fourth wall as it ever gets.

"While you were celebrating your victory, I caught [the Rusty Smidge]. It means we automatically win. All magic sports are like this." "That just invalidates all our efforts! If catching that thing is so important, why do anything else? There's no reason to watch any of the other players! That's such a stupid rule!"

I think this is a reference to something, my reference senses are tingling. But I just can't work it out. It must be too subtle or something.

In all seriousness, this is actually a really interesting discussion about how stories as a whole work.

There is a pervading idea in a substantial amount of storytelling of protagonist significance. The idea that the protagonist enters a wide spanning conflict and single handedly ends it, rendering the rest of the cast onlookers and cannon fodder.

The Rusty Smidge is a neat microcosm of this idea. What is the point of the rest of the game when one person can win it? But there is a small change to the rules that I think is important.

You see, in Quidditch, for those who haven't heard of it, there is the role of the "seeker", a player who's job it is to find the golden snitch. The game ends when the orb is caught, and the team that catches it is awarded 150 points.

The two main differences are this: The snitch doesn't automatically win the game, and the only player who can catch it is the seeker.

So, what does this mean? Firstly, it means that the player who can catch the snitch is automatically the most important player on the field, so it means that the audience knows who to follow. It is an artificial significance put on a specific, chosen, one character. It specifically tells all the other characters that they don't matter.

However, the seeker doesn't win the game, they just score a collection of points. So that must be fair, right?

I would argue that this distinction is kind of irrelevant. There is exactly one instance in the series when a team who doesn't catch the snitch wins the game, and they are professionals. In a school game, there is no way that a team would be 16 goals ahead of the other.

The points attributed to the snitch gives the veneer of significance to the other players on the field, but when it is brought into question, it is extremely unlikely that they will have an effect on the story.

So, The Owl House satirises this in two ways. It directly calls out the superficiality of the game by taking away the point system, but it also takes away the chosen one aspect. Anyone in this game can win it, the rest of the story is secondary.

I would argue that there are two ideas presented in this story. The first through the game and the second through everything else. The rules of the game suggest that you should stop focusing on the things that don't matter (points) and look at the big picture, while the story suggests that you should stop focusing on the things that don't matter (Bosha) and look at what makes you happy.

The exchange above gets a ton of attention because it is funny, but for my money, the line immediately after it has more significance:

"Well, we beat them and proved our social dominance. All is right in the hierarchy."

The sport didn't matter at all. It was all for another game, with artificial stakes and no real point or prize. Bosha is an incredibly shallow person who has no better use for her time than following around those she doesn't like.

But the story does matter, because of what the Hex Squad earns at the end. They earn the respect of Skara, Amelia, and Cat, Bosha's teammates. They play well and they have fun and, end result be damned, they did their best. That's kinda what sport is about.

Now, a quick bit of credit needs to be given to the side stories of this episode, because they are great. First up is the blossoming romance between Luz and Amity that nobody bats an eyelid at. Amity waltzes up to Willow and gives the single most chaotic monologue in the entire series, and Willow's reaction is essentially "this is normal", which is hilarios.

I particularly like this shot, and the exchange that accompanies it:

"You just destroyed your social life." "Nah, I think I made it better"

Look how small Bosha is here. She's insignificant in the big scheme of things. Amity has finally realised that status doesn't matter, and so the emblem of that status, Bosha, is framed with less power in the scene than the kid in the "I have the power of G-d and anime on my side" vine (Google it).

But the thing with Eda is Lilith's last resort. She has been trying to bring Eda into the Emperor's Coven peacefully up until now. You could say she is playing by the rules. But she still loses, because the rules are against her. She is forced to resort to violence.

Final Thoughts

I'm going to level with you, I do not get the sport story genre at all. I don't understand it's appeal, I don't find it compelling, it just isn't for me.

Now, that isn't to say this genre isn't important, and doesn't have its place in media as a whole. Rocky, A League of Their Own, and Bend It Like Beckham make that point for me exactly. I am simply not the target audience of this genre.

All this is to say that I struggled to analyse this episode from the framework it was presenting me. I couldn't comment on how well the training montage worked, or what the speeches were reminiscent of, so I wrote what I knew.

Next week, I am covering Agony Of A Witch, the point at which the tone of the series shifts dramatically and permanently. So, stick around if that interests you.

Previous - Next

[simplifiedemotions]

A List Of Plenty

Hermione Granger had always liked to make lists.

Lists for the books she’d like to buy. Lists for potions ingredients she needed to perfect a brew.

Over the years, the lists became more dangerous: supplies necessary for a Horcrux hunt; how to mediate between two blustering and foolish teenage boys.

After the war, her lists became more unorthodox: how to survive the trauma of war; how to turn down a boy that used to make her stomach flutter; how to centre herself against the ghosts of memories in a once-comforting castle.

But most surprising of all was a list for how she could help Draco Malfoy: a multi-page spread, as it turned out.

How she could help as a former enemy: as she sat with him at his lone table in the library when others would cringe away.

How she could help him as a friend, four months later, breaching the borders of their tentative friendship when she found him having a panic attack in front of what once was the Room of Requirement: taking him into her arms, tightening her hold as he tried to pull away and saying nothing as he finally hung his head and cried onto her shoulder.

They were overall simple lists. A friendship by bullet points.

Then Draco Malfoy had gone and ruined it when he told her near the end of spring term that he was in love with her.

She didn’t need a list of pros and cons to know she felt the same shivering feelings towards him.

She stood leaning against the wall of the Astronomy tower, glimpsing the streaking green colours as the Slytherin team practised drills for tomorrow’s game against Ravenclaw.

She mentally scrapped several ideas on how she could support Draco tomorrow. She could wear a green ribbon, or even wear his jersey to the match.

He’d certainly enjoyed her wearing it that very morning as she came down the stairs of their shared heads dorm.

She shifted, thinking of another idea, though it made her flush from the top of her head and down to her toes. It wasn’t that daring, but she found that with Draco, pretty much anything could make her feel embarrassed.

The sound of a whistle brought Hermione’s mind back from its musings, and she gazed over to see Draco flying down the pitch, a bright smile lighting up his entire face.

She sighed, then with a smile and a tap of her witch’s hat, she turned around and went back to her room, in search of some empty parchment and a self-inking quill.

—

Hermione was buzzing with nervous energy as the end of the game drew near. The Ravenclaw team was twenty points ahead, and the last remaining minutes of the match were counting down much too close for comfort.

Her latest list had read as follows: ways to support your boyfriend with his quidditch hobby:

Wear the right colour of knickers.

Though Hermione was often bored to tears with Quidditch, her heart was beating a frenzied beat in her chest, not unlike the flying snitch that was mockingly making its rounds across the field, as Draco and the Ravenclaw seeker tried to rear a direct line of contact to catch the tiny golden ball.

Though she knew that logically Draco was more than adept with his broom, and that he was likely almost as good if not as good as Harry, her heart plunged whenever Draco took too steep of a decline down, only just getting himself back up in the air at the last second.

As if on cue, Draco lunged for the fickle snitch as it buzzed its way right in the middle of the field. He redirected his broom just a half second earlier than the other seeker, but it was all he needed to press the advantage.

Hermione, along with everyone in the house parapets, stood and leant over the aisles to watch Draco as he moved forwards, balancing on the tip of his broom and reaching as far as he could to grab the snitch.

He was leaning too far. Hermione’s breath hitched.

He almost had it.

Twenty-five feet from the ground.

Everyone stood.

Twenty feet.

He strained his arm as far as it could reach, and Hermione was shocked he hadn’t over-extended a muscle yet.

Ten feet.

Cheers of Draco’s name thundered over the cacophony in Hermione’s chest.

Five, four, three…

He bared his teeth and lunged as far as he could.

He caught the snitch.

Hermione’s heart stopped and started again.

There was cheering all around her, as the Slytherins boomed and screamed at their victory.

Draco nearly collided with the grass but his lithe body retracted at the last moment and he was able to halt his broom enough that he could hop off and jump to his feet.

He bent over for a moment, hands on his knees, then he straightened and looked up at the Slytherin stands, a grin on his face as he caught Hermione glaring at him, before he lifted the snitch in the air and let out a call of triumph.

Go down to the stands and sit right where he might see you.

The air itself was vibrating with jubilation as Hermione exited the stands, thankful that she’d stood near a corner and could descend before everyone else.

No sooner had her feet touched the grass than strong hands swept her from her feet, Draco’s arms wrapping around the backs of Hermione’s knees as he turned her around and laughed, his smile lively and beautiful and doing something ruinous to Hermione’s heart.

Hermione started laughing along with him, ignorant of anyone else who might be around them. She was incandescently happy in that moment, with the most unlikely of boys.

“Oi, Draco!” called a voice, and Hermione saw Zabini smirking over from his perch on one of the stands.

“I would turn Granger around if you don’t want others to see her green knickers flashing out.”

Hermione turned red. Her breath caught nervously in her throat, and she swallowed tightly. Draco’s entire body tensed and he swiftly moved them around so that Hermione’s back was facing the fenced off area. He turned his head, giving Hermione an appraising smile, and she scowled at him.

“Did you wear those for me?” he asked in a low voice.

Hermione didn’t answer.

He set her down with a light hand and placed his hands on her shoulders, staring down at her with a calculating look.

“Green?”

Hermione flushed even further. “Mm-hmm.”

“Any reason for that particular colour, Granger?”

“It was laundry day,” she said primly.

He wrapped his arms around Hermione’s waist, drawing her closer so that their chests touched. Bending, he whispered into her ear, “You can show me in the heads’ bath.”

Let boyfriend slide knickers off you, and smirk in self-satisfaction when his face becomes as red as a cherry tomato.

[gloivy]

HOW TO CATCH SNITCHES AND GET WITCHES

Draco Malfoy’s face—as a rule—irritated Hermione. But Draco Malfoy’s face plastered all over her favourite book shop? Well, Hermione had not known rage like it in years.

Chapter 5: Hermoaning Into The Pasta

AO3

[hd-wireless]

📻🎶 H/D WIRELESS 2023 - WEEKLY WRAP-UP #3

The third week of posting has come to an end! Enjoy catching up with this week's selection of wonderful works. 

There's a work for everyone in this fest (and if you haven't found what you're looking for yet, we're far from done with posting).

As always you can listen to the prompted songs for the works we post on two playlists:  

Click here for Spotify (many thanks to @evaeleanor for helping us out there) ❤️

And here for the YouTube playlist.

Please enjoy this week’s entries below the cut:

🎶 H/D Wireless Art 🎶

📻 Your Heart's a Mess [G, Pencil & Copic markers]

🎵 Song Prompt: 'Hearts A Mess' by 'Gotye' 🎵 Summary: Hogwarts eighth year. Malfoy, visibly scarred (from Sectumsempra? from the war? from his treatment by the Ministry?) and visibly heavy-hearted (from regret? from his father's imprisonment? from how the other students torment him?) has driven Harry to distraction. It's 6th year all over again: he was rapidly becoming obsessed with Draco Malfoy. How he wishes the feeling was mutual.

🎶 H/D Wireless Fic and Art 🎶

📻 Waking Up Slow [E, 21,886, Digital Art]

🎵 Song Prompt: 'The Christmas Song' by 'The Raveonettes' 🎵 Summary: 'Twas the night before Christmas, although it’s July, Draco’s a shopkeeper, no-one knows why, There’s hiking and witch caves, freak snowfalls and more, Bad Christmas jumpers, nosy neighbours galore, Narcissa’s here too, but… something’s amiss, And what’s in those chocolates that’s making them kiss?

🎶 H/D Wireless Fic 🎶

📻 Burst of Love [E, 3,805]

🎵 Song Prompt: Jealous by Nick Jonas 🎵 Summary: The year after the War is both the worst and best one in Harry and Draco's lives. Draco somehow becomes one of the most requested influencer on Instagram, Harry is finally free and discovers he has quite...a passion inside himself. We all know how this is going to end.

📻 Rich Friend [E, 1,130]

🎵 Song Prompt: Rich Friends by Portugal. The Man 🎵 Summary: As far as Harry can tell, Draco Malfoy is still rich as hell. He’s just not a wizard anymore. Featuring: Draco Malfoy trying to make it as a Muggle pop star, Harry Potter as our confused and horny hero, bad driving, good music, and the mysterious magic of falling for someone.

📻 Seven Days, Seven Memories [E, 25,668]

🎵 Song Prompt: Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want by The Smiths 🎵 Summary: In a universe somewhere, deep down in the Department of Mysteries, behind Door 13, Unspeakable Draco Malfoy, can be usually found. Except Malfoy is nowhere to be found when Harry goes looking for him. What he finds instead is a Pensieve and a box full of memories

📻 so scarlet it was [E, 19,932]

🎵 Song Prompt: Maroon - Taylor Swift 🎵 Summary: Draco’s back for his Eighth Year as part of his parole. He’s doing his best not to annoy any war heroes and avoid Harry Potter as if his life depends on it. Too bad Harry has other ideas. 

📻 A Pureblood's Guide to Driving and Apostasy [E, 9,218]

🎵 Song Prompt: I'm On Fire by Bruce Springsteen 🎵 Summary: Draco Malfoy should be happy - he's engaged to a suitable young lady, chosen by his father, and on the way to restoring the family name. Except he isn't happy at all. That is, until Pansy (or is it fate?) brings him to a magical garage where his whole worldview is set on fire.

📻 Snitches & Sitches [T, 4,565]

🎵 Song Prompt: 'Once Upon a December' by 'Liz Callaway' 🎵 Summary: After a Quidditch accident, Harry's life turns upside down when he suffers a case of retrograde amnesia. Surrounded by people and places he should remember, Harry must cope with his slow recovery, all the while feeling like there's something very familiar about the blond with gray eyes who keeps wistfully staring at him.

📻 Can't Get You Out of My Head [E, 26,343]

🎵 Song Prompt: Can't Get You Out of My Head by Kylie Minogue 🎵 Summary: Draco was quite fine with his own company, thank you very much. So, when a potions’ accident left him unable to rid his head of Harry Potter’s infernal internal monologue, Draco was less than thrilled. He was, however, an internationally educated Potioneer; he could find an antidote without having to admit to Potter the access he’d had to his thoughts…actions…personal life…personal time…right?

📻 Sod Off Potter [T, 1,787]

🎵 Song Prompt: Sod Off Potter by Rattlebones 🎵 Summary: So sod off Potter Will you say what you want? Sod off Potter Will you say what you want is me? Potter please ↳ Sod Off Potter - Rattlebones Draco regretted the decision to return to Hogwarts after the war. Why couldn't bloody Potter just leave him alone? It wouldn't be so bad if Draco hadn't been harboring a secret crush on Harry for years.

🎶 H/D Wireless Podfic 🎶

📻 [Podfic] You Are Not Alone [, 1:49:56]

🖋️ Original author: Juh_Nunes 🎵 Song Prompt: Sorry - Halsey 🎵 Summary: Orginal Summary: Draco dreaded going back to Hogwarts after the war. He was sure this would be his worst year yet: the school hated him, the Slytherins have abandoned him, and his dorm was overrun with Gyffindors. There was no way anything good could come out of this mess, right?

[dhr-deleted]

If you have more complete versions to share please send them my way.

A kind follower has sent me a bunch of deleted fics. I was already feeling overwhelmed with the amount of fic to add -- now I am really drowning in it.

I'm half-way through Raffy's smut vault, and I already have a pile of fics to made epubs for it.

2024 March - Uploaded

AnEmptyPromise - Perfection, Pull Me Away, Time Is A Fickle Thing, Spider's Web

BareWithMeHoney - The Argument, Guilt(y), Ritual, Song of Seven Deaths

DMHP2014 - Inescapable

Fictionismyescape - Beautiful Life, Beautiful Mess, The Beginning of Something Special, Black Velvet Dreams, Bleed for Her, Broken Arrow, Broken Road, Changing Times, He Knew, In the Dark, It All Started with a Drink, It's a Beautiful Ride, Little Moments, Lunch Break, Matter of Time, The One with All the Stories, Pieces of Me, Praise Me, Priority One, Since We’re Both Here, Stairs, Chairs and Broom Closets, Stolen World, Way Down We Go

Flossiewrites - Delicious Desires

gillianeliza - Mon Couteau Aiguise (My Sharp Knife)

gloivy - Draco Malfoy Must Not Die, How to Catch Snitches and Get Witches, The Light on a Starless Night

honeysweetcutie (starlightwriting) - Golden Lines

LaRoseNoire - The Mating Dance, Lessons and Revelations

Leviosaaa - Sleeps The Crimson Petal

LitheLies - Threadbare

peanutbrittles123 - devotion

Secret Nom de Plume - Catalyst, Illusion of Happiness, The Third Time is the Charm, We'll Be Together

thebrightcity - An Inconvenience, Between Us Flows the Nile

TurquoiseMonkey - Splinched

Trixie_d - You Bastard

WaitTilMyFatherHearsAboutThis (BuckMeBarnes) - Harry, The Survivors

wassco (ScoutCassidy) - Drabbles, Generosity, The Inquisitors

[enchantedchocolatebars]

The Rock🪨

Story inspired by this ask.

"Pip, catch!" Caleb happily exclaims, tossing the grey pebble he had to his little brother who stood across from him.

The two boys were outside playing their third favorite game - catch.

When Philip catches the small stone, he hops up and down in glee. "I caught it!" The brunette exults to the blonde.

"Good job!" Caleb beams, the older boy raising his opened hands in the air. "Now throw it back, but not too far. Okay?"

Philip nods. He's got this. He sticks his tongue out in concentration.

Cocking his arm back, Pip throws the pebble with all his might past Caleb. Both boys watch as the rock disappears into the woods.

The corners of Pip's mouth instantly draw downwards.

"Aww," He starts off with a sad coo. "It's gone now." His small shoulders slouch in disappointment.

How was he and Caleb going to continue their game now?

"Don't worry!" Caleb reassures his little bro, a look of confidence crossing his face. "I'll get it back! I promise. Wait here!" He then rushes into the woods to retrieve their rock.

...

Meanwhile, Belos, without his mask, was wandering aimlessly around in the same woods, his eyes taking in the earthly environment.

The green trees and blue skies said it all - he was back in the human realm. Back in Gravesfield, he assumed, due to the forest feeling familiar.

Home at last, he thought.

But how?

Suddenly, something small and round strikes him on the head.

"Ow!" he yelps, gently rubbing the spot that was hit.

He growls in pure annoyance.

That hurt!

What in heaven's even was that?

Bringing his attention to the brown ground, he spots a pebble and picks it up.

He begins examining it.

Looks like he found his answer, but who was the culprit?

In an instant, his cut ears pick up on the sound of twigs being crunched under feet.

He looks forward.

Someone was approaching.

But who?

Perhaps another human?

When Caleb appeared, he froze. He didn't dare take another step. His eyes widened at what he saw. A witch! A really old one. He looked to be a thousand. Maybe even older.

The blonde couldn't believe it.

The employer's eyes copy Caleb's. Before him was his little big brother. He looked to be about twelve. His shock soon shifts to anger at the boy. Caleb! The name alone made his blood boil. That traitor! That witch lover! How he hated him so.

Belos felt like morphing his arm into something sharp and shoving it through him, but he refrains from doing so. The action remains a thought. This version of his brother hasn't betrayed him yet. The one that did was dead.

Though, that didn't stop the tyrant from sending a glare at the young elder.

As Caleb was deciding in his head to fight or flight, he spots his rock in the witch's hand.

He points a finger at him.

"H-Hey!" he shouts, his voice terribly shaky. Despite his fear, the boy was trying his best to sound brave. He was a witch hunter after all. "That's mine! G-Give it back, you witch!"

Witch? Tch! Philip rolled his eyes.

"This is yours?" Belos asked, holding the pebble up in irritation. Looks like he found his culprit.

"Yes! N-Now give it back right now o-or else!"

Or else? Philip raised a brow at this. Arms are then crossed as chapped lips curl up in a smirk.

This could be fun.

"Or else what?"

Not a word was spoken.

Belos smugly chuckles at this.

"Well, I'm waiting."

Terrible man.

"I'll... I'll... I'll..." Caleb was stumped. What would he do? Could he do anything? As he thinks, the answer suddenly hits him. Aha! >:D He gives the witch a cute, cocky smile.

"I'll snitch by yelling. My screams will get the attention of someone in town. Maybe even a mob. They'll flock in droves here. Once they see you, they'll tie you up and you'll get taken to--"

"The gallows?" Belos rudely interrupts, his smirk spreading. He knows he's right.

Caleb shakes his head. "Not there. You'll probably be tossed in the pyre."

"Pyre?" Philip had to laugh. "Please. Don't be ridiculous. The people of Gravesfield are far too smart to burn their witch hunter general alive."

Witch hunter general? Now it was Caleb's turn to laugh. "Witch hunter generals don't have pointy witch ears," The little elder informs. "They have normal round ears like mine."

Looking at both his ears, Belos begins to realize something. Caleb was right. He goes back to glaring at him.

"Not so funny now, is it?" Caleb snickers, crossing his arms.

Philip narrows his eyes. "You wouldn't dare..."

This only made Caleb's grin grow.

As he's about to scream, a goopy, green hand lunges forth and grabs him.

He squeaks.

When he's brought over to Belos, he felt frightened. Being face-to-face with a witch made the small blonde tremble.

Philip took note of his terrified expression, it looking all too familiar.

...

"Please, Philip, you can't! You mustn't do this!" An adult Caleb begged his little brother as he stood across from him, a knife in hand.

The two were facing off inside a fiery cave as the flames burned strongly, smoke drifting into the atmosphere.

A beyond vexed Philip starts to slowly approach Caleb, his grip tight on his dagger.

He was ready to strike.

The blonde begins to take a step back, his brown eyes filling with tears.

"Please, don't do this..."

...

A sigh at the past memory, pain and grief swelling inside his chest. His grip slowly loosens. When Caleb was released, he was surprised to see the old witch look so... hollow. Like he was lacking something. Someone? Did he... have a family? Nonsense. Witches can't feel sadness, or have families. They weren't human. Was this witch... different? Only one way to find out.

"Mr. Witch, what's wrong?" Caleb would go on to ask, concern in his voice.

"Nothing," Philip grumbles, trying not to tear up.

"Are you sad because you're all alone in the woods? And you're old? And you... smell funny?"

A gasp emits. Belos took great offense at that blatant lie Caleb had said at the end. "I smell just fine!" He shouts, defending his "amazing" scent.

"...You mustn't yell to get your point across. I always tell my brother that," Caleb notifies the senior.

A groan came from Belos. He couldn't believe he of all people was being lectured by a child.

A child who was technically his older brother, but still a child.

"Perhaps you're disheartened because you lost your family." Caleb takes the old man's hand as if he were a child far younger than him. A little brother almost. "Shall we go look for them?"

Belos immediately pulls his hand away. "No," He refuses in a stern, authoritative voice. He was still the adult here. "I don't need some snot-nosed little..." His arm suddenly morphs into slime and falls off. A pressed sigh passes his lips. How fun.

A second squeak left Little Caleb as he saw the limb lying down on the forest floor.

He directs a pointer finger at it.

"I-Is that normal for you!?"

"Unfortunately," Belos murmurs, bending down to pick up his own arm with his free hand. When he fixes it back on, it falls again.

The emperor frowns in frustration at this.

"Looks like you could use a hand." Or rather, an arm in this situation. Caleb was willing to offer just that. He picks up the upper limb. "Hold still," He instructs Belos, who does just that.

Standing on his tippy toes, the blonde sticks the arm back onto the shoulder joint.

The limb manages to reattach, green goo forming back into human skin.

With his upper arm connected, Belos was already begining to feel better. "Thank you," He mumbles, scratching the back of his head as he looks away in slight embarrassment.

This causes Caleb to give him a sunny smile.

"You're welcome! I think you might need to sit down after all that." Coincidentally, the blonde spots two side-by-side stumps close by.

Sitting down on the first stump, Caleb looks to Belos and happily pats the second one.

It was quite obvious what he wanted the old man to do.

As Belos takes a seat beside him on the other stump, he can't but help raise a suspicious brow at the boy.

"I thought you said I smelled funny."

Caleb chuckles before giving an honest answer. "You do."

Philip gave the child a glare. This younger Caleb was being a thorn in his side. One more crass comment about his scent, just one more, and he'll--

"But you also seem harmless. I'm not sure if you're a good witch or a bad witch, but you haven't used your powers to hurt or curse me or take my soul, so... thank you."

His words were genuine as he continued. He then holds out a hand for the old witch to shake. "My name is Caleb," he'd go on to say. "Caleb Wittebane. What's yours?"

Blue eyes glance at Caleb's hand before looking back at him. Belos was reluctant to shake hands and share his real name. His guilt wouldn't allow it.

Instead, he pulls out Caleb's pebble, holding it between his forefinger and thumb.

"Take your rock and leave."

Caleb shakes his head, smiling again. "Actually, you can keep it. Who knows, you might find someone to play catch with... if you're nice enough," he chuckles.

"CALEB, HURRY UP!" A young, impatient voice yells from out of the woods.

The blonde knew who it belonged to. He rose from his seat, turning to Belos. "That was my little brother. I have to go now." Before Little Caleb leaves, he wraps his small arms around the witch.

Eyes closed, he clings to him fondly.

The sudden embrace catches Philip off guard, his eyes wide.

...

Adult Caleb's eyes were closed as he continued to hug the dark figure that was his baby brother, a gentle smile on his face.

"Oh Philip, I'm so happy to see you again..."

...

Letting go, Caleb bids Belos a farewell. "Bye!" The boy beams as he rushes off, leaving the old fart flabbergasted.

...

"There you are!" Little Philip watched as Caleb came back to him safe and sound. "What took you so long? Did you find our rock?"

Caleb gives him a head shake. "Sorry," He says. Despite the white lie, his apology was sincere.

Seeing the sad puppy look appear on Pip's face, the blonde lifts a hand above his head, gently patting it. "Aww, don't be sad."

He shined his sibling a sympathetic smile.

"How about I take you to the pond? They'll be plenty of rocks there. We can even skip a few in the water. Would you like that?"

Such a suggestion greatly excites Philip, his blue eyes gleaming in delight. He liked the sound of that! Quickly nodding his head, Caleb chuckles, taking his hand. "Let's go then."

...

As the two were on their way to Pious Pond, a thought crossed Caleb's mind. The witch. He thought about the hug he gave him. It felt instinctive for some reason.

Would the two ever meet again?

Only time would tell.

...

Inside the Emperor's bedroom, the ruler awoke from his slumber.

He let out a neutral sigh.

It was all just a dream.

[growling]

There was eleven of us, we lived in the lake... For breakfast, mother cut wind, I didn't know my father, as he perished of liver cancer, when he died in a tragic car accident, after self-immolation at uncle Eugeniusz's name day party. Uncle Eugeniusz was taken by the NKVD in '59. No one complained.

We were all part of hordes and plundered the area. Konin, Szczecin and Oslo were in flames. We also played in construction sites. Sometimes one of us got hit with a reinforced slab, sometimes not. Whenever our foot got impaled with a stray nail, mother cut it off and said with a smile, "you, kurna, got another one, yeah?" She didn't tremble with fear that we're gonna kill each other like that. She knew that we're all going to die eventually. No one complained.

Seasonal diseases were fought by grandma. To combat tuberculosis, scurvy, tumors and polio, we used urine and moss. The doctor visited us, unless at grandma's - for the moss and urine. We went to the woods whenever we wanted. We ate berries, which were previously pissed on by foxes and roe deer. We ate death caps, which were defecated on by rabid bisons and martens. We didn't have hamburgers - we ate wolves. We didn't have chips - we ate ants. There wasn't coca-cola back then, there was bear saliva. There was frog period blood. No one complained.

Whenever our neighbor caught us stealing apples, he punished us himself. Lime pit, knife, hunting rifle - it varied. The neighbor didn't get offended over the stolen apples, and neither did father over replacement in parenting duties. Father and the neighbor drank beer in the evening - as always. Then father came back home, and on his way he took another child. Children then were littered everywhere. On lawns, in drainage ditches, by bus stops, under trees. Just like how today are littered candy bar wrappers. There weren't candy bars back then, but children were laying everywhere. No one complained.

During summer, we climbed on top of the skyscrapers, and weren't monitored by adults. We jumped. Nobody, however, got splattered on the pavement. Everyone could fly and no one needed any special lessons in order to learn this skill. No one also complained.

During winter, some father arranged us a sleigh ride with his old fiat, and always sped up during turns. Sometimes the sleds got caught against the trees or fences. Then we fell. Sometimes that moment a jelcz or star drove by. Then we died. No one complained.

Bruises and scrapes were a normal occurence. Just like knocked out teeth, ripped open stomachs, sudden lack of an eye or amateur amputations. The school pedagogue didn't send us to the family psychologist because of that. Nobody informed us how to dial a number to the police (then MO) to snitch on our parents. The belt was then a teaching aid, and from aid, nobody had yet died from. Aunt Janinka repeated, "better a spanking than breakfast". No one complained.

We made ourselves soups from mazut, asbestos and Ludwik. We also ate crack, fingernails of strangers, animal remains, sandpaper, chemical fertilizers, thistles, aphids, cow fetuses, fish feces, kogel-mogel. When somebody got stung by a bee, they drank 2 glasses of milk and pressed it with a cold frying pan. When somebody choked, they drank 3 glasses of milk and pressed it with a heated frying pan. No one complained.

Nobody went to the dentist every month. Cavities are tasty. Whenever someone swole from an aching tooth, we played catch with their head. We had one dental filling for the eleven of us. Everyone wore it for 2-3 days in a month. No one complained.

We were young and tough. We refused car rides. We just ran after it. Our dog was tied to the trailer hitch with a steel stable and ran next to us. And no one was bothered by it. No one complained.

We were raised by gamekeepers, old witches, escaped prisoners, collegues from juvie, janitors and priests. Our mothers birthed our siblings normally - at work, in reedbeds or at the balcony. Almost all of us survived, only some of us didn't go to prison. No one finished studies, but everyone found work. Some of them started their own families and are raising their children according to psychologists' recommendations. That's sad. Currently, there is more candy bars than children.

We, the children from our lake, love our parents for how they then didn't yet know how to "properly" raise us. It is thanks to them that we spent our childhood without sweets, respect, a warm dinner, sense, and some - limbs.

No one complained.

[lifeofkaze]

Moving On

A/N: This story was written for the January prompt of @hp-12monthsofmagic challenge

Bringing friends to the Burrow during the summer break was somewhat of a habit for the Weasley children, and yet, Charlie Weasley had never really been one to invite people over. That wasn’t because he didn’t have any people to bring, he simply preferred sticking to a small but eclectic circle of friends. 

Lizzie Jameson was one of the exceptions. She was one of Charlie’s few regular guests at his home near Ottery St Catchpole, and Charlie would’ve been hard-pressed trying to think of a time when he wasn’t excited about his best friend’s stay. 

This year, however, things were different. He had been looking forward to Lizzie’s arrival, he really had, but when the lively Hufflepuff girl Apparated into the Burrow’s front yard, Charlie wasn’t the one to greet her first. Before he had even risen from his chair in the kitchen, his mother had rushed past him, pulling a bashfully smiling Lizzie into a smothering hug. 

“I haven’t seen you in forever, dear,” Molly Weasley cried out, cupping Lizzie’s face with both her hands and squeezing it ever so slightly. “Won’t you look at that, what a beautiful young witch you have become! And what a nice tan you got yourself! You must tell me all about your trip, Charlie was so frugal with the details. Did you get my birthday gift? I really hope you liked the chocolate Quaffle.”

Over his mother’s incessant stream of chatter, Lizzie raised an eyebrow at Charlie.

“I thought you made that one?” she mouthed, to which Charlie responded with a shrug.

“I came up with the idea.”

He was happy that he and Lizzie would finally get to spend some time together. At school, catching her alone was tricky; they were in different houses, and Lizzie had a plethora of friends and other extra-curricular activities to occupy her time. They saw each other during classes and their work for Professor Kettleburn, but even those Lizzie had come to leave in a rush more often than not.

Charlie knew the reason for it, of course. Lizzie now had a boyfriend, after all. 

He felt his excitement fade as he listened to his mother and his younger brothers, who had stormed into the kitchen upon hearing Lizzie’s voice, interrogating her on her boyfriend Orion’s shiny new career as rookie Chaser for the Montrose Magpies. Lizzie answered all of their questions patiently and with a proud smile on her face; for some reason, she seemed unable to even stop gushing about his new jersey.  

“The old ones were so boring, but this season, they’re stunning. Trust me, you’ll love them.”

Charlie raised his eyebrows fractionally. “I thought you were a Catapults gal, Snidget.”

Lizzie responded with a laugh. “They’ll have to share my love with the Magpies now, I guess.”

“So much for loyalty,” Charlie muttered to himself. He was surprised at how snappy he sounded, but a strange sort of irritation had taken hold of him ever since the topic had turned to Quidditch. Lizzie seemed to share the notion; her brows knit together in a frown, but before she could reply, Charlie’s younger brother Fred drew her attention.

“Don’t listen to him,” he smirked, his brown eyes flashing. “He’s just jealous he only gets to handle dragons instead of Snitches.”

“Others chase undying fame, Charlie only scary lizards,” Fred’s identical twin George sniggered. 

“Chasing scary lizards is a perfectly acceptable career choice if you ask me,” Lizzie jumped to Charlie’s defence with a stern look at them both. “And it’s not like Charlie isn’t his own kind of famous either. I have a lot of friends who are quite partial to him, actually.”

Knowing where this was headed, Charlie motioned for Lizzie to stop, but it was too late. His mother leaned closer with sparkling eyes.

“What kind of friends? Girls?”

“Mum…”

Not minding him, Lizzie giggled in reply. “Yes, actually. There’s Janet, and Alexa, Elle, Madison, Rose, Millie… oh, and Ava.” 

At that, Charlie frowned. “Who’s Ava?” 

“I’m not sure you know her. I only met her properly last year.”

“What house is she in?”

“Ravenclaw. You might know her from Potions, actually. She’s rather petite, blonde, wickedly clever. She’s top of… well, almost all classes, really.”

“Does she like dragons and Quidditch?” the twins asked innocently, elbowing each other in the sides.

“Sadly, no and no.”

Charlie thought all of this rather odd. “And she told you she wanted to meet me?”

A faint dusting of colour rose to Lizzie’s cheeks. “She didn’t exactly say it, but I think the two of you would get along well. I can introduce you if you like?”

“Thanks, no need,” Charlie said abruptly and rose to his feet. He left behind a stunned silence as he walked through the kitchen door into the garden. 

As he crossed the garden towards the hedge separating the Burrow from the fields beyond, his thoughts circled around Lizzie and how strangely angry her behaviour made him. Was it too much to ask to not talk about her relationship for more than five minutes? Or his lack thereof, for that matter? There was more to life than dating and all the other things that seemed to consume all of Lizzie’s waking thoughts lately. When had she changed so much? 

When he reached the broom shed on the edge of the Burrow’s grounds, he unlocked the door and stepped inside. The dark, dry heat hit him like a Bludger to the face. He looked around. There were gardening tools, discarded furniture, and old plant pots littering the shelves and floors, and in a rack by the wall, the ragged broomsticks of the Weasley family were stored. Charlie took one of them out and put it back again, sitting down on a dusty sunchair instead. 

He was annoyed with Lizzie, and his mother, and Fred and George, but mostly, he was annoyed with himself. It wasn’t Lizzie’s fault that he was irritable, and she had only meant well. 

But what was so wrong about wanting to pursue his passion? Why did everyone always question him? His internship with the dragonologists in Wales during the first half of the summer was the first step to the career of his dreams, but instead of support, all Charlie received from his family and friends were patronising remarks.

The door creaked open, and a shadow blocked the light streaming into the shed. Convinced it was Lizzie, Charlie sullenly said, “If you want to play Quidditch, I’m sorry. I can’t provide you with balancing and broom surfing.”

“Oh, neither can I,” said the voice of his older brother Bill. “I’d break something even trying.”

Charlie’s shoulders relaxed as Bill sat on an upturned cauldron across from him. “What do you want?”

“I heard you stormed out on Mum. Do you want to tell me what happened?”

“Nothing,” Charlie shook his head. When Bill didn’t reply, the words suddenly came tumbling from his mouth. He told him about Lizzie, her repeated attempts at pitching him to various of her friends, and how strangely disappointed Charlie had been from the moment she had set foot into the Burrow’s kitchen.

“I don’t know,�� he finished with a helpless shrug. “I just don’t understand why she’s changed so much.” 

“You have gotten older since you first met. People change when they grow up, and so do their friendships.”

“That’s not it,” Charlie insisted. “It only started after she got with Orion.” 

Bill made a contemplative humming sound. “Is that why you’re so upset? Because Lizzie has a boyfriend now?”

“Why would I?”

“You’re not jealous then?”

“Absolutely not,” Charlie said vehemently. He paused. “Should I be?”

“Well, is there anything on your part?” 

“Why does everybody keep asking me that?”

“You’ve always been close. More than close, even.” Bill shrugged. “You wouldn’t be the first person to fall in love with their best friend. It happens. I mean, you even kissed.”

“We… wait, how do you know that?”

Bill’s lips curved into a knowing smile. “There’s no secrets at the Burrow.”

“Okay, but even if we kissed, it doesn’t change anything. I don’t have feelings for Lizzie,” Charlie insisted stubbornly. More quietly, he added, “Or at least, that’s what I thought.”

“You don’t think that anymore?”

“I don’t know,” Charlie said, frowning to himself. “Everybody thinks there’s more to us, so what if they’re right? What if there is?” 

Bill was silent for a long time. “Do you remember the plush Erumpent I got for Christmas when we were small?”

“No.”

“Mum and Dad got me an Erumpent and you a dragon. You loved that dragon. You took it with you anywhere.”

“Sounds about right.”

“People liked the Erumpent better, though. They kept asking you if you weren’t sad that it was way cuter than your dragon, and eventually, you believed them.” He paused. “Do you see where I’m going with this?”

“No, because dragons clearly are superior to Erumpents.”

“You changed your mind after people told you how to feel often enough.” Bill’s voice softened. “I know you want to please everyone, but you shouldn’t let that decide how you feel about something. That’s for you to decide, and only you. And if someone’s not happy about it, that’s their problem, not yours.”

“If anyone thinks Erumpents are better than dragons, they have enough of a problem as it is.”

With a laugh, Bill rose to his feet. “Think about it. Mum says dinner’s at six.”

Charlie stayed in the broom shed long after Bill had left. Their conversation ran through his mind over and over again. Bill suggesting that he was jealous was ridiculous. Why would he be jealous? 

Jealous. He let the thought sit with him, gave it a little room to breathe. It felt strange.

He remembered when he and Lizzie had come into this same broom shed during their Christmas break a couple of years ago. They had hidden from the twins and had found themselves under a mistletoe in the doorway. It was the only time they had ever kissed, but it had been Charlie’s first; both their firsts, in fact. Looking back, he wasn’t sure if the memory felt good or awkward. 

Bill’s words kept Charlie occupied over the next couple of days. He spent his time with Lizzie and his family, trying to put his issues aside, but they never quite left him alone.

By the end of the week, Charlie still didn’t know how to feel. Was he jealous of Lizzie’s relationship with Orion? Wasn’t he? The idea felt foreign to him, as if his mind refused to wrap around the concept of Lizzie being anything but his friend. 

The summer in Devon was kind, and the Weasley children made the best of it, spending their days in the garden from early in the morning. A pleasant breeze stirred the leaves of the trees in the orchard, and the scent of grass and honeysuckle hung heavy in the air. Charlie sat on the steps in front of the kitchen door, watching Lizzie playing tag with Ron and Ginny, an affectionate smile playing around his lips. 

Maybe he and Lizzie could have been more, he thought to himself. Maybe, if things had been different. If she hadn’t fallen in love with Orion, or if Charlie had known what he wanted from her when there had still been a chance. 

Ultimately, it was what it was. And that, Charlie decided, was perfectly fine. 

Further out in the garden, Ron and Ginny had left Lizzie to her own devices. She sat in the shadow of an old honeysuckle tree and was reading the letter she had received from Orion the other day. A soft smile formed on her features, the happiness radiating off her so strong that Charlie thought he could feel its warmth even from where he was sitting. It was then that something within him settled. If Lizzie smiled like that, he was satisfied, no matter who or what was the cause of it.

“Would you look at that, George?” Fred grinned as he slumped on the stairs next to Charlie. 

“Someone’s in love,” George sang, suddenly appearing on Charlie’s other side. In unison, the twins added, “Go on, make your move!”

Charlie stifled a sigh. “I’m not in love.”

“Then why are you staring?”

“I’m not staring.”

“You are staring,” Fred and George sniggered, fluttering their eyelashes and making kissing noises.

Ignoring the twins’ wolf whistling, Charlie rose to his feet and made his way over to Lizzie, who looked up from her letter with an apologetic expression.

“Sorry about them,” she glared in the direction of Charlie’s cackling brothers. “I told them to knock it off, but you know how they are.”

“It’s fine,” Charlie waved her off. He nodded at the parchment in Lizzie’s hands. “How’s Orion?”

“Are you polite, or do you really want to know?”

“Why wouldn’t I want to know?”

Lizzie suddenly looked sheepish. “I never thought you cared much.”

“Don’t take it personally, Puffskein. I had a lot on my mind.” 

“Do you want to talk about it?” 

“It’s fine.”

Lizzie tilted her head. “You know you can talk to me, right?”

A smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, Charlie nodded. “I do.”

Slowly, the smile returned to Lizzie’s face as she tucked her letter away and told him about Orion’s first days in Montrose. Her eyes were flashing with excitement, and the dappled light falling through the canopy above them made her hair look like dark honey. She did look pretty, smiling like that, and Charlie wondered whether there really wasn’t more to the thought.

The simple answer was no, there wasn’t. Lizzie was happy, and that was all he needed to know.

“Say, that friend of yours,” he said when she was done with her recount, “the one you mentioned the other day. Tell me about her.”

A knowing smile formed on Lizzie’s features. “Which one?”

Charlie searched his brain for any of the names she had mentioned and said the first that came to his mind.

“Uhm, Ada.”

“You mean Ava?”

“Yeah, Ava. Tell me about Ava.”