#i ship draco with a therapist

[just-antithings]

just saw an anti post about adults making x readers for harry potter characters and like. oh my fucking god. do you have no joy? is your head just three beans of disgust rattling about and occasionally smacking together to override logic?

harry potter is a) really not the best fandom to try and bring ‘problematic’ into. ignoring the pinnacle of bigotry that is jkr and the mess of navigating in such a way we avoid giving her money, problematic ships have been around this fandom for longer than we both have been alive (directed at anti). what right do you have to complain about the adults who have probably been making x reader since they were younger than the characters? we would have no fandom if it weren’t for them!

and b) they aren’t real children???? draco isn’t going to need a therapist to get over the women thirsting for his fictional backside he isn’t tangible. and as a character he can’t age even though many of the people that grew up with him did. x readers are the basis of this fandom and they always have been, the whole point of fandom is joy and cringe and a lot of the time that means putting yourself or an insert in the fantasy to experience the world you love. don’t let your disgust tamper someone else’s harmless joy ffs.

x reader makes me uncomfortable for personal reasons but you don’t see me making posts about how it’s weird and bad and nyeh nyeh nyeh for people to be shipping themselves with fictional characters, because it’s none of my fucking business and not anywhere near an actual concern. it’s just some strangers having fun in a way i don’t find fun in their own space, so i stay out of it and stick to mine and do things i do enjoy like making fanart. block the tags like a normal person and stick to being very liberal with the block button, leave the rest of the fandom alone.

.

[sitp-recs]

Happy Friday, friends! I’ve never done monthly wrap ups before but since Wireless pulled me back from a brief hiatus, I thought it would be cool to share some things I’ve been reading, that could use more love. 10 fics both old and new, Drarry and rare pairs, Wireless treats; pick your poison and have fun! 🙌

Drarry

Muscle Memory by @corvuscrowned (E, 7k) - brilliant concept perfectly executed, I’m so here for curse-breaking colleagues who fuck at the job to pass time and then forget about it every time 🤌🏼 genius and intriguing and captivating as per crow’s usual

There's something just beneath the surface, just at the periphery of Harry's mind. They've been here before — they've done this before. If only he could remember it.

And Embers at Your Lips by @nametheshadows (T, 15k) - sequel to one of my all-time favorite 8th year fics with insomniac roommates just as soft and healing as LLAYF. Gorgeous prose and all the kissing. Highly rec this series for A+ comfort food!

The sequel to Like Lightning at Your Fingertips: the kissing montage. And there’s that thing with Potter’s magic.

Rich Friend, Anon (E, 18k) - one of my faves from Wireless, pop star!Draco never gets old and both the pacing and the romance are perfectly developed! I live for Harry’s horny yearning and for their road trip together, kudos to casual Harry/Neville as a side ship!

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.

Waking Up Slow, Anon (E, 22k) - this ode to advent Drarry fics took my breath away with a charming Draco, fun dynamics, an enchanting Christmas shop and one of the sexiest smut scenes I’ve read this year, 10/10 recommend for hot & sweet magical vibes and lots of references as an homage to the classics!

'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?

We Are Legend by Vaysh (E, 38k) - happy to report to @romaine2424 that I have finally read this epic apocalypse AU and am shooketh with its originality and serious tone. One of the most creative takes I’ve seen on animagus Draco, a poignant and devastating war story.

Eighty years into the future, Voldemort won. Harry Potter is a renegade wizard, Portkeying Muggles out of London to Hogwarts, last sanctuary in a Britain ruled by the Dark Lord. On a mission he encounters a powerful phoenix Animagus fighting on the Death Eaters' side. He recognises Draco Malfoy whom he thought long dead. But the differences between them are perhaps even greater than before. Cw: MCD

LA, Who Am I To Love You?, Anon (E, 42k) - I cannot believe this beauty was written for my lil Wireless prompt ♥️ perfect LA vibes, gorgeous aesthetics, horny ust and a fascinating take on both down and out bi Harry and out and proud bi Draco, we love to see it! Couldn’t have asked for a better story to fill my prompt, ty anon!

Harry’s summer in LA is not going as expected. Pansy Parkinson keeps inviting him to parties in the Hollywood Hills and harassing him to finally go to the physical therapist, Blaise Zabini keeps slipping new strains of his company’s magical weed into Harry’s pockets in hopes of an endorsement, and Draco Malfoy keeps having sex with everyone but Harry.

Rare Pairs

A Different Tune by November Snowflake (M, 8k) - very nice Dron get together, short & sweet with an undercurrent melancholy that I love, just what I needed before bed

Working in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office has led Ron to many strange encounters--but none more unexpected than this one. Cw: Harry’s dead

The Years Between by brummell (M, 14k) - another rare pair fave, this Rarry fic told from Ron’s smitten and jealous pov as he helps Harry recover from a coma is so deliciously raw and angsty. Gorgeous slow burn, the feels!

For both Harry and Ron, a wake-up call is just the beginning.

Things Remembered by avioleta (E, 17k) - best Snarry fic I’ve read this year, I’m low key obsessed with this hitmen + amnesia concept and how the romance develops so organically while they’re on the run. Intriguing plot, sexy ust and super scorching smut that made me salivate jfc 🔥

Harry wakes up in an unfamiliar bed, in an unfamiliar hotel room, and with absolutely no idea who he is. The man he’s in bed with has no memories either. But they think, maybe, they’re assassins, because they seem to be very good at killing people.

A Dress with Pockets by PacificRimbaud (E, 25k) - a Panville classic recced by anon (ty!!), what a sexy and vibrant read! I LOVED Neville and their dynamics are brilliant and so funny, I just couldn’t get enough of these characters. 100% sold on this ship pls and thank

Pansy Parkinson needed a drink. And a shag. She didn't care in which order. Enter: Neville fucking Longbottom and his rolled up sleeves.

[saintsenara]

I don't know if you are still doing the ship game. What do you think about Drarry? I apologise if you have already answered it- I tried to see if someone else has asked but I may have missed your response. It's a very popular ship and there are lots of well written fics by incredibly talented authors that I have enjoyed. But when I take that aside and look at the pairing just on its own, I struggle to articulate my thoughts on what I actually think about the pairing.

thank you for the ask @sarafina-sincerity!

i do read drarry, but i think it's probably fair to say that i don't read drarry because i expect it to make sense.

i like it fluffy and stupid, to be enjoyed after a hard day at work when i want something which is crammed full of fuck-buddies-to-oh-wait-this-is-serious tropes which doesn't require too much effort to engage with.

and so the fics i tend to read aren't drarry which really grapples with exactly how difficult it can be to make harry and draco work as a stable couple while still feeling true to their canon characters.

[they're not fics which dive into how they would be as an unstable couple either, which is - frankly - because i prefer to see harry in toxic messes with other people.]

i like a bit of of out-of-character nonsense - i love to tune into a fic in which draco is assertive and witty and sophisticated [even though in the books he's an insecure little bitch whose jokes always flop] and harry is passive, preternaturally adoring, and speaks like a therapist [even though in the books he's a reckless feral cat with the emotional awareness of cardboard], or ron and hermione come around to it really quickly. i think they're fun!

but arguing that drarry could make sense as a happy relationship when the characters are as they are in canon is difficult. indeed - with my apologies to drarry-is-canon nation - i think that it's even more difficult than making many of the completely implausible-sounding harry-centric pairings work [and, indeed, draco-centric pairings, taco nation rise up]. and i think it's worth dissecting why.

the first reason is that, much as umbridge is often the villain that readers have the most visceral reaction to [and much as the thing about snape which seems to most upset readers is that he's a horrible teacher], the fact that draco is just some guy at school actually makes the pairing harder. unlike something like snarry - in which a semi-mystical connection between the two is set up by the narrative - or tomarry - in which an overtly mystical connection is - drarry is just two lads who don’t really get on.

indeed, despite a tendency to explain their vibe in the books as sexual tension, harry gives no indication of particularly caring about draco as a person while they're at school. he thinks he’s annoying, pretentious, rude, and cowardly, but - outside of half-blood prince - he's not ever actually shown to escalate those feelings into being particularly obsessed with him. harry doesn't watch draco constantly, or follow him around, or devote a huge amount of time to thinking about him when they're not together for reasons which aren't directly connected to his perception of draco as a bigot whom he loathes. the reason why he remembers so many details about him is because he wants to see him and his father punished, not because he finds him compelling.

even in half-blood prince, harry's obsession with draco is broadly external to the man himself - it's rooted in his attempts to block out his grief over sirius, his anger at the death eaters who killed his godfather [lucius malfoy among them], his suspicion of snape, and the things he's learning about tom riddle.

draco, though, is obsessed with him. harry spends seven years living rent free in his head: he tracks his movements, he can barely make it through the day without seeking him out to try and get some attention from him, and he clearly talks about him all the time [he needs no prompting from "crabbe" and "goyle" to bring him up during the polyjuice scene in chamber of secrets, for example].

he also obviously has some level of respect for harry - he acknowledges, even if it's through complaining to his father, that he's a good quidditch player, for instance - and, by the end of the series, he clearly does regard harry as brave. whereas, when it comes to more positive emotions, harry pities draco, but he never seems to like or admire him.

[and it's striking that - since i see a lot the idea that drarry is more plausible than hinny as a pairing - harry takes exactly the same view of draco's relationship to voldemort as he does to ginny's. he regards draco as someone who should be protected from voldemort, but doesn't regard him as someone who could fight back or who should be acknowledged as talented in his own right. despite the fact that, for example, he knows draco's a competent occlumens.]

as a result, i always prefer drarry in which draco is the more feral one, but the default dynamic seems to have harry chasing him, rather than the other way round. i would also like to see more authors work with how likely draco would be to put up for long with having such an obvious interest in a man who is likely to be paternalistic towards him in return

[and also a man who's quite likely to expect to become his partner's priority, rather than the other way round. one issue with a lot of harry’s relationships, whether his canonical one with ginny or a fanon alternative, is that the role he occupies in the story means that he tends to relate to people he knows not as equals but either as people he needs to protect or people he needs to protect others from. in a relationship with draco, he is likely to pivot from the latter to the former, and i can't imagine that draco - who thinks of himself as a protector as well, especially in his relationship with his mother - is going to particularly enjoy this. this is why i like middle-aged, have had decades to calm down, widowed or divorced drarry - it feels like it has more chance of being equal than the school-age or immediately post-war stuff.]

harry's indifference-bordering-on-dislike towards draco does stand in contrast to how he thinks about other male characters that he's frequently paired with. to return to snarry and tomarry, harry is shown to admire snape at numerous points prior to the end of half-blood prince, his interest in the prince's textbook reveals that he and snape have a shared intellectual compatibility, and - above all - harry understands and empathises with snape's background and experiences. similarly, harry is shown to admire voldemort at numerous points, the narrative sets them up as being very similar, and - above all - harry understands and empathises with voldemort's background and experiences.

[harry is also obviously physically attracted to tom riddle, while draco isn't - although this is, of course, not an insurmountable issue - obviously his type. the men harry finds attractive in canon are all tall, thin, and dark-haired, and draco is always described by the narrative in terms which suggest that harry thinks he's ugly (the frequent description of him as "sleek" or "gleaming" is an insult in context). the same is true for lucius malfoy.]

i think that one explanation for the above is that a lack of shared background is one of the major stumbling blocks to drarry which doesn't exist in the other two pairings.

i love an auror partners trope-fic as much as any other girl, but - in reality - draco never needs to work and never gives the impression of being career-minded or finding career ambition valuable. harry is certainly rich enough not to need to work - and the fact that he has a pureblood name and resembles his pureblood father gives him an amount of class protection in the wizarding world which means that drarry is nowhere near as socially unequal as something like dramione - but he evidently finds the idea of working valuable, not least because he wants to achieve recognition for something other than being the boy-who-lived.

but draco - who likes being thought special on the basis of unearned things like his family name - would struggle to understand this. and, in return, harry would struggle to understand how draco's adult life - something i suspect he would see as one of tedious luxury - is driven by a sense of conformist duty to his family and his peers. after all, harry believes in the value of found family and earned loyalty, and loathes any expectation that he should be deferential to people just because of who they are.

of course, i don't think this would prevent them being together. it would just cause a tension which would either see everything crash and burn [hot] or which would require growth from both characters which takes a certain lightness of touch to pull off. there are lots of drarry authors who do one or both of these in their works, of course. but those authors are very rarely trying to portray harry and draco as [to begin with, at least] a good or healthy couple…

but with this said, i also think that some common criticisms of drarry wouldn't actually be a big deal to either harry or draco.

the most significant of these is the fact that harry is morally righteous - yes - but this manifests itself in an expectation of loyalty from other people, but not an expectation of purity.

in post-war drarry, i think it's entirely reasonable to say that harry's belief that the malfoys turned against voldemort because of loyalty to each other [something he finds valuable, and clearly considers to be the appropriate way for a family unit to behave - look at what he thinks of percy weasley, for example], as well as lucius malfoy's extra-canonical willingness to help harry and the ministry by informing on all his former associates [which, according to jkr, results in him being spared azkaban and harry thinking that's fine] enables him to let go of draco's past, and to have a relationship without the weight of that history hanging over them. i don't think he ever becomes fond of lucius - although i think he is likely to feel slightly more warmth towards narcissa - but i also don't think he would expect draco to estrange himself from his family or completely change as a person in order to consider him worthy of his affection.

[this is, for what it's worth, something which makes dramione much more implausible for me - even if draco is capable of redemption (which, like everyone, he is), i don't think she's ever forgiving him or considering him changed enough to be worthy of her, and i don't think she should have to.]

draco may not, however, consider this acceptance to be as much of a gift as harry might - above all because i believe sincerely that harry would never feel bad about the sectumsempra incident. draco is clearly someone who holds grudges, and i think that this would always be in quite profound tension with harry's remarkable [but also entirely self-interested] ability to decide he's going to let things go.

i also think that harry is going to be able to handle draco's more negative characteristics better than he’s sometimes given credit for, since all of them - especially his tendency towards jealousy, self-aggrandisement, and moping - are things he shares with ron. and, like ron, i think draco is going to be surprisingly good at dealing with harry's impulsivity, his tendency to brood, and tendency to form knee-jerk judgements. these seemingly opposing personality traits are actually quite nicely balanced.

and, of course, the big one: love is strange and unpredictable; forgiveness can be easy just as often as it can be difficult; everyone is capable of redemption; people can choose to be together despite significant odds against them; choice is much more interesting than fate; and fluffy drarry is unbelievably entertaining.

my final statement, though? people are sleeping on dron. ron and draco have all the right ingredients - above all, the fact that they're narrative mirrors - which makes things like snack bang. the potential for drama and intrigue and destabilising love is right there. harry simply cannot compete.

[galaxostars]

☾ Fic masterlist 𖤓

Hi, I’m Iris, I mostly write about HP and rare pairs :)

In this house we hate JK Rowling with a burning passion, and love everyone part of the LGBTQ+ community. It’s a loving and judgment free zone ! No ship/kink bashing either <3

+18 | mdni

general ao3 link: main account & dead dove account

Main

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ✧･ﾟ: *✧

All of you : one shot, 5k, E, drarry smut ft small cock Draco and body worship from Harry

Lights up : 3/3, 28k, written for the Transfest, E, Sirius' journey with gender, featuring ftm Remus, non-binary Teddy raised by wolfstar

Show me your teeth : one shot, 25.9 k, E, a jegulus meet cute at a costume party in which they have sex, and discover each other’s identities in the morning. Featuring some black brother angst, Jame’s nipple piercing and funny banter.

Stitches undone : one shot, 30k, written for the TTPD fest, E, Lily isn't over her first love when she falls for someone a second time, and Regulus is still carrying the weight of his heartbreak when he meets someone new. Little do they know, the name they're running from may just be the very person they need.

The most beautiful part of me (is you) : one shot, 14.6 k, E, a prongsfoot one shot in which James comforts Sirius struggling to cope with his guilt post Prank. HAE but mind the tags !

Fuck. Me. Up. : one shot, 4k with art, E, rosekiller smut with fan art by Steffi

Take me for a ride : one shot, 7k, E, Sirius teases Remus, finally convincing him to go on a ride (or, me satisfying my bike kink)

"You love a good ride, don't you?" : one shot, 6.6k, E, James fucks his bike and Regulus gets jealous (or, me satisfying my bike kink... again)

Like stars, we'll burn ourselves out : wip 3/8, 31k, E, a Remus/James slowburn featuring the roommate trope

Lonely hearts : one shot, 31k, E, Teddy Lupin works as a massage therapist and is in for a surprise when his new client turns out to be none other than his estranged godfather (Heddy ft grief, touch starved werewolf Teddy and second chances)

Locked Longings : one shot, 8.3k, written for the TTPD fest, E, Sirius fantasizes about Monty, based on the song "Guilty as Sin"

Untamed desires : one shot, 12.5k, E, Draco pines over Charlie and Harry (shameless smut)

Trip, Switch : one shot, 15.8k, E, five times Krum made Ron blush and one time Ron got his revenge

Scars sparkle in the moonlight : one shot, 3.6 k, E, collective work, Pandora and Xeno find Remus during the full moon and proceed to help him through it (or, a soulmate AU) 

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ✧･ﾟ: *✧

Dead Dove

Written in the stars : one shot, 11k, E, prongsfoot but if sirius was adopted by the Potters

Rotten love : one shot, 7k, E, starcest inferi cannibalism smut

Haunted breaths : one shot, 5k, E, ghost regulus sees himself in Draco... in more ways than one

Sweet promises : one shot, 7k, E, Alphirius cockwarming smut

Deadly flowers and their happy side effects : one shot, 4.5 k, E, starcestbucks and sex pollen

Bathroom discoveries : one shot, 1.6 k, E, microfic for @microcest : starcest sharing a bathroom

Un amour lunaire : one shot, 6.4 k, E, underage, starcest ft Sirius comforting his brother after a nightmare

Dinner treats : one shot, 2.1k, M, testing how affectionate they can act in public ft Sirius/Alphard

Lovesick : one shot, 14.3 k, E, starcestbucks featuring the "there was only one bed" trope

[riddlesmoon]

being part of a few hermione fanfic groups on fb has been quite enlightening bc i get to see the kind of ships and dynamics that primarily cishet older women hp fans like. especially since i get to contrast it with, say, tomarry and drarry fans (mostly on twt, but some on tumblr too) and most interesting of all, cn fans. which, granted, are also mostly tomarry and drarry because, well, i also ship them so thats the kinda content im seeking out yk.

so whats interesting about it? well, to start with, i am putting this under the cut because holy shit my ass can YAPPPPP and no one actually gives a fuck but i wanna get it out even if no one reads it! Also an ever important DISCLAIMER that this is my personal opinion and is highly subject to bias and only seeing a certain sphere of people and i dont know what im talking about so please dont @ me im stupid.

as i said, theyre older (many married or with kids! they even sometimes talk to their husbands about said fics, which is... sweet), and... probably mostly het. so i would say (though i have no stats) the rough popularity of hermiones partners (in those groups specifically) are draco >>> sirius > snape, tom > rarer pairs like lucius theo dolohov viktor cedric >>> harry > ron and femslash (i will come back to this). maybe i could compare with ao3 stats later to see how well i pegged it but for now im mostly just going off popularity of certain posts and how often i see "please share fic recs of X ship")

i feel like millenial/younger hp fans would balk at the idea of sirius, snape, lucius, and dolohov, but i do think this can be chalked up to them being older and thus more interested in "adult" characters. and rarely do they talk about fics set in canon timelines, more often i see recs with time travel (which effectively solves many of the age gap problems), or otherwise set in the future, where age gap becomes less remarkable as theyre adults. marriage law or pregnancy are also common tropes...

i did wonder for a while if this was a yume/selfship phenomenon and that perhaps older western women just didnt know or use that term? after all, hermione is the most prominent female character in hp, and obviously can be very relatable since, like the reader, she is from the muggle world discovering the magical world, and a bookworm, which has a 70% chance of being true if you are a girl reading a book i think. so i was like, ah, shes can be kind of a good way to self insert into the hp universe or at least a good way find a vast amount of ship fic since shes so popular.

however i dont think this is the case—im not 100% sure of course, i asked one (1) time but it appears most of them are genuinely invested in hermione as a character and arent using her as a self insert board. not that either is bad or worse, im not passing judgement!!! though i do think it makes sense, since, from my view, the self insert phenomenon is often seen in younger fans who are less secure in their self image and want their fav to reassure them without fear of rejection soooo yk (and what does that say abt me who has a yume harem? well youre not my therapist so we dont have to talk about it)

aaaaanyway. this fucking long ass post is mostly just because i remember getting culture shock'd twice while looking thru cn comments. for example, i was surprised to see romione viewed so positively, because holy shit do those hermione fic fans fucking hate romione. and harmony next, but it isnt as bad as romione. any post asking for fic recs inevitably ends in "no romione", but cn fans think theyre kinda cute.

i have some theories. for one, they think ron is extremely unromantic. this is exacerbated by the yule ball incident, but in all honesty at no point in the books does ron really do anything romantic for hermione and in fact treats her pretty badly. the kiss at the end was, in my personal opinion, a bit random, but i dont think its an unpopular view that what ron does doesnt make up for the past years especially since the very cause he is advocating for (the house-elves) is one he has disparaged before.

of course you can argue the same for all of the other candidates, that they dont do anything romantic for her either, but i think there is a difference, because for all those candidates they dont have a "chance" in canon to pursue her (save viktor) because theyre not viewing each other as potential partners, but ron is in that position and goes about it pretty badly. for everyone else, writers can make up whatever they want! for ron, well, you have to work with (or against) what canon gave you.

next, i think a lot of them really like when hermiones prowess is appreciated. a lot of fic recs have her being quite badass or kind of holding things together (to be fair, she does this for the trio a lot) and her partner usually acknowledges her power while being on an equal or better level. so i guess that turns a lot of them off romione since he spends a lot of time in canon brushing her off while using her brains etc... being praised hits different when its a dunderhead who needs ur help vs someone just as brilliant ykyk. its not looking good.

side note on harmony: i think this suffers from a similar phenomenon in that canon gives us their friendship tgt and people have already seen that together, sparks dont fly. ofc people can make up whatever they want but when one char canonically says "i see her as a sister" you kind of have to overwrite that in your head and not everyone is willing to do that.

Sorry wtf was i talking about. uh. cn. right. so why doesnt cn have this problem? well for one i think they may be younger than this western group, which makes sense since the series is originally english so it hit foreign audiences a bit later. that and i wonder how many cn fans actually read the books vs the movies (which dilutes the aforementioned problems a lot)? the movies are def more accessible for non english fans i think. but yea i think those women, being older, are more no-nonsense and less fairytale daydream-y about their potential partner. thinking more realistically about who theyd settle down with versus younger fans who are like its fine if theyre hes silly and stupid theyre young. btw this also applies to jily which i see cn (and jp. all this applies to jp for similar non english reasons) post about more frequently; whereas in english sphere i FEEL LIKE (i must again emphasise this is all subject to bias) of the marauders i mostly only see wolfstar discussion. dgmw theres plenty of wolfstar in cn spheres!! i just also see jily where i dont in en)

And of course you can throw everything i said out the window because its not like i have a particularly extensive or wide range of sample data. very little actually. i just. noticed stuff. and was surprised. and want to TALK. Arugh

[zenertia]

THE VOID RANT

OK, so I guess we're doing this now because of the last post 👏

VOID was originally a gender-swapped NULL (hence the name) but as I fleshed out the idea, I realized that she had some potential as her own character.

I originally made VOID with a wolfcut bob, trying to come up with a semi-modest haircut to mirror NULL's mini updo.

HOWEVER, roughly around the same time I pulled this idea out of my ass, NULL hit the public domain after mystman's BB+ ARG was solved (THAT WAS WILD, I NEVER EXPECTED THE REWARD TO BE THE PUBLIC DOMAIN RIGHTS TO NULL, HOLY SHIT, THAT MAN IS ON ANOTHER LEVEL), making me think "HMMMM 🤔 NULL&VOID would be a cute ship dynamic", so I went ahead and humored the idea of them being a couple for a little bit, instead of VOID just being a vanilla NULL swap.

Finding myself completely enamored by the idea, they eventually turned into a tragic couple (I'll get to that at a later date), even turning into a social commentary of sorts about something I face myself (I'll also get deeper into this as production goes on, cuz it's a pretty sensitive topic for me and this is already probably gonna be a pretty long post). It became a bit of a comfort ship for me to help me work through this issue via my art.

Now, since NULL was public domain, I was already planning on adding him into a comic I was developing; MOUSE (no doubt you'll be hearing more about that too since these two idiots are a part of it now).

I'd been writing it since 2007 on and off, but lacked the amount story beats I felt necessary to turn it into a fully-fledged series. But with these two being 'glitched' characters, they fit the vibe perfectly, offering the perfect opportunity to 'immortalize' them in the pages of this story while also adding a bit more content to a story that so desperately needed it.

God willing, I can only hope I do them, as well as my message, justice.

I'll no doubt be speaking more about this in the future, along with my other original content (like, non-BBIEAL stuff, if yinz're interested—and even if you're not interested, because my therapist told me to stfu and do it already cuz I have good ideas (??) and I should try it sometime cuz it'll help with my self-esteem or some shit)

Draco Noir will be a fun one, holy crap, hahaha

I made that one upsetting on PURPOSE; I... Am SO SCARED about how people will react to it, cuz it'll either be super edgy and everyone (who reads it) will love it, or everyone will take it the absolute wrong way and cancel me for it, but just know that it's SUPPOSED to be an uncomfortable read in advance, okay? Okay. Cool, please don't curbstomp me if it makes it to print 😭🙏

tldr; it's a gritty, grimdark crime drama about a dragon detective.

So lemme know if you're into that shit, too.

Also, there's a Baldi reference character in one of the volumes I have planned (because of course there is) but it begins and ends with his name being 'Professor B' and the way he's designed. Everything else is completely original, although I'll probably end up sprinkling in a few subtle references to the game and fandom lore with him.

But idk, this has nothing to do with VOID, asdgfkl—

See ya guys later

[beloved-child-of-the-house]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Thanks for the tag @skeptiquewrites i love these games! this got very long so answers below the cut!

How many works do you have on ao3?

123 total but 22 HP fics

2. what's your total ao3 word count?

886,281

3. What fandoms do you write for?

i'm writing HP/drarry pretty exclusively at the moment and i've written the second largest number of fics for this fandom. but i've written like 69 sherlock holmes and/or bbcs fics and i think 16 good omens fics

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

they're all good omens fics in the 2k-3k range. none of my other fics even come close. my most popular drarry fic is Propinquity which makes sense it has a fun premise

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

yes! i respond to comments when i have the time and energy and usually i do it in batches shortly after i've published something new

6. What is a fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

i don't rlly write angsty endings. in the bbcs fandom i wrote an infidelity fic series where they're in a very unsustainable situation and i intended to write a final installment with a happy ending but i was so disenchanted by the last season of the show that i just never did. i've never written an angsty ending to a drarry fic. i find angst kinda boring tbh :p

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

almost every single fic i've ever written has a happy ending but the drarry fic i've written where the pov character has the most to cope with before he's happy is probably either propinquity or moonrise. they're also my youngest dracos, which probably has something to do with it. they've had less time to recover and grow. i think i have to give the edge to moonrise, actually because he's soooo sad and lonely at the beginning, and he develops this bond not only with harry but with ginny (they give each other stupid nicknames) and hermione (they have a very special scene toward the end of the series)

8. Do you get hate on fics?

i didn't used to, but i've gotten a bit since i started writing drarry! there are a lot of polarizing characters and relationships, and people will sometimes tell me they didn't approve of how i handled something or other. i was too soft on dumbledore i was too hard on draco. oh well. no refund.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

yes! for me, smut is an important part of demonstrating the trust and intimacy between my leads as well as like. joy and playfulness. consequently my smut tends to be silly and jokey but also very romantic and sort of idealized.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

i wrote a fleabag/bbcs crossover once where fleabag picks up john watson at her therapists' office but it's the only one i've ever written and it was sort of to tease of friend of mine

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

not that i'm aware of

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes, a handful! mostly my good omens fics

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

no but i'd love to write one with @clytemenestras

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

i am not rlly a favorites kind of person but obviously drarry is doing something special for me rn. they are both Me and pushing their faces together and making them kiss is an act of self love <3

15. What's a wip you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

i NEVER publish WIPs but i do have this 8th year WIP that i'm rlly struggling with and put it on the back burner. i think i'm just trying to do too many things with it and i get stuck and unsure of where to go first when i open the document. originally it was supposed to be a theater kids fic because i loved the idea of draco as a theater kid. but the version of draco that unrolls when i write is so exhausted and burned out and also he's kind of being shunned. he just isn't embodying the flamboyant joy i was imagining when i came up with the idea.

16. What are your writing strengths?

i'm very good at depicting relationships. my dialogue is good and my characters develop all these inside jokes and references that make them feel like real people.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

my fic tends not to be very plotty but idk if i consider that a weakness. i'm not trying and failing to write plot. i write what i intend to write. i guess i write pretty slowly, but i'm okay with that too.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

draco often speaks french in my fic, and now that i think about it, it's usually to show his closeness with people who are not harry. i guess i have this idea that it's easy to reduce him to his interactions with harry, but he has social relationships outside of that. he's like. capable of pleasantries. he's chatting with his cousins he's chatting with madame maxime. it's a fun little way to make him a bit mysterious. that's one of the things harry likes about him, isn't it? what's that draco malfoy up to? what's he saying? it's fun!

19. First fandom you wrote for?

bbc sherlock

20. Favorite fic you've written?

it's hard to compare fics across fandoms and even within drarry it's hard to compare fics that are attempting such different things! i think maybe the relationship in A Gift of True Esteem is my favorite because they develop this really strong partnership and their respect for each other is so clear! i also get to drop in a lot of wizarding culture, like draco gives harry some books that i got to make up titles for, they go shopping together and out to dinner (i think i was inspired by the antiquing scene early in @tackytigerfic's Modern Love; it rlly stuck with me). they go to a museum run by goblins, they talk about how much hogwarts has changed and changes they still want to make. and i got to make up some homework assignments, which was fun too! Strangely enough this is also the fic i've gotten the most hate on! i rlly didn't think i had made any controversial choices when i was writing it but oh well lol. i love getting to look at how they might move through the world as adults. how they have changed and how the world has changed, and i just had a lot of fun with this one.

genuinely do not know who has already played so i tag @oflights, @thehoneybeet, and @vukovich if you want to <3

[indigo-scarf]

Hii 💖🫶🏻 I have a question. Who’s worse, Draco Malfoy, James Potter or Sirius Black?

Hi :)

I love this question, because those 3 characters are very significant to me.

Back when I couldn't accept the gospel of Drarry, I settled for Wolfstar and took Sirius as my blorbo. He is just like me fr in that he has an aggressively abusive racist family; he did destructive, impulsive things; and he has the conflict of wanting to reject his family but having to wonder if he is just like them. So Sirius's violent streak is very much relatable.

Draco was always my #1 blorbo since I first read the books (it just sucked that I didn't like any of the popular ships with him). He is also just like me fr in that he's an attention whore and a spiteful little bitch when he doesn't get attention and praise, especially if someone else steals the spotlight. Plus, now that I do like Drarry, and even see one-sided Drarry as one possible version of canon, there is also the relatability of being toxic as hell to your crush because you want to interact with them but they don't like you back and you don't know how/hate to be vulnerable. Plus, I find his whole dramatic and self-centered privileged boi personality both hilarious and endearing.

(why do I only bond with characters through negative things idk haha ask my therapist)

And then there's James, who is possibly my least favourite character in the entire series. It's surprising, because I usually like bullies and bad people in general in fiction — see how I like Draco — so why does James squick me? Well, now I feel like maybe writing a whole post about it someday when I can articulate it better, but for now:

I think it's the mix of his offences involving creepy male heterosexuality and him being portrayed and accepted by much of the fandom as a good person overall — there's much there to repel me and nothing for me to relate to or enjoy.

Misogynistic fictional fuckboy behaviour to me is like, I could actually be into him if he were portrayed and seen as a predator who harasses women because he's such a sick and twisted tortured soul (fic recs welcome); but he's potrayed and seen as a righteous wholesome hero who just made a few mistakes as a teen, and I really do not vibe with that, when the mistakes include being a sex creep to a woman.

I'm not shaming anyone for being James fans, people can be impacted differently or give different subjective weight to different traits of a fictional character (I literally just said my fave is the racist). It's just that to me personally James's flaws outweigh everything else about him, so I could only like him if he were a villain, but then I don't usually see him be framed that way.

[w4t3rgun2]

hi! No idea if this blog is still open but can I request Winston loomis with daughter reader (FAMILIAL NOT ROMANTIC) with either it pronouns or fem ones whichever’s easier! Or dr Albert Krueger x reader (romantic) same pronouns!! I love your blog theme btw

Hello! I hope you're well, anon! And thank you!! :∆ my blog is always open for asks!! ^^ so sorry I am doing this late!!!

✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯

(I'm doing this in a different format! Hope it's cool!)

Type: Familial + Romantic!

Ship(s): Winston Loomis + daughter! Reader / Albert Krueger x Reader

Pronouns: It/Its & She/Her (I flipped between the two) for Reader | He/Him for Loomis | They/He for Albert | 🎉3rd person🎉

Owner information: I'm doing this headcanon style, if you want it changed; I will! ^^ And also might be OOC (out of character) due to me not returning to the fandom/writing in so long lol

CW?// "It" (as in the accidents and experiments), Myer (Yes that is a content warning), Albert Krueger in general, eyes small mention, OOC

Winston Loomis' daughter / (Y/N) Loomis!

This is a certainly interesting situation. A very quiet man with a child, unexpected! (Positively speaking of course)

It would probably depend on its age

If she's a kid; He'd definitely try to make time from his work to hang out. After all, kids need attention!

He'd probably also take her to work (before "it" started) with Myer's consent

While Myer isn't a big fan of kids, it is basically Myer's favorite in the workplace

and sometimes will take it to his office to let it just do whatever as Winston takes care of business.

Sometimes Myer makes Victor take of it as well.

Victor has tried to give it alcohol on multiple occasions; with Vincent stopping him. (Husbands /hj)

But after "it" started, he'd definitely have someone such as Draco take care of her. Winston doesn't want for his daughter to see what he's done.

Tbh, Winston might've also made a system for Draco in which Draco acts like a second parent for it!

But if she was to be a teen/older; He'd definitely let her come along to his work (with Myer's permission of course) and teach it about the work place

Also, note that He's not much of an affectionate, touchy or showy person. He stays quiet (he usually coughs) but with his daughter; he's definitely more talkative

If it decides to work alongside with Winston, he'd definitely be proud and show it the way

Especially if it's in the robotic industry; Winston will let it use Draco as practice (Sorry Draco)

I headcanon that Winston does sign language so his daughter might also have to learn it and they can have conversations

Winston would definitely get into whatever it is into; especially if it's technology related

Loomis the single parent👍

He's trying and he definitely tries whatever he can to make it happy and healthy

Albert Krueger x Reader (Romantically💞)

Oh my dear Atlantis. (- sincerely an Albert Krueger fickin /hj)

Let's start off with the dates between the two lovebirds;

Albert loves ocean life. So if it takes them to anything ocean related, they're head over heals for it already. (/Hj)

But Albert definitely goes to aquariums, holding its hand and ranting about all of the different animals (I hope you have patience)

But otherwise, Albert is definitely not into PDA. They love reserved hand holding and such.

Holding hands while deeply breathing together is something he loves much

He seems like to be the small spoon and say that he's a knife (he's not.)

Oh definitely plushie and blanket castles. Only it is allowed in

But also; free therapy! Like genuine therapy not .... (That)

It will occasionally find eyes in his room. Don't panic; it's just his ... Collection

He sometimes works later than usual so he'll definitely quickly call and say that

Since he's a dream therapist; he'll definitely try to make sure it doesn't have any bad dreams or nightmares or whatever

But if it does happy, comfort all night long!

Definitely drawing her on his papers and paperwork whenever he doesn't want to do it

Every patient knows a bit about her; not in a creepy way but they know of her existence and wondering why Albert

Albert loves playing games, wether it'd be card or cup and ball; he'll play it.

He gets very competitive in card games.

And when I say competitive; I MEAN IT.

THERE IS A REASON WHY IT HAD TO BAN SCRABBLE IN THE HOUSE. ALBERT FLIPPED THE TABLE.

Also definitely bought it one of those messager boxes and all and he sends cute little photos via it

He takes photos of dates and has them on repeat on his computer (like a slide background), it helps him get through the day

Overall; weird boyfriend but he's cute <3

Thank you for the request!! I had fun and feel free to ask me to do more/to change something/to remake!! <333/p

[theschizotypalsolilquy]

So besides Jikook, I'm addicted to Dramione. So I'm gonna start sharing some of those too, just in case anyone else ships those two together, or are just looking to read fantastic love stories.

A rule, though. I don't allow ship shaming on my blog. So if you've got a problem with the fact that I love me some Draco and Hermione together, kindly keep it to yourself. I'm also a sucker for Dreomione, which is Draco/Hermione/Theo, a powerhouse magical triad. And yes, also Tomione, which is Tom Riddle and Hermione.

Don't come at me. Tomione has some of the best dark romances out there. And it's not Voldemort. It's his young, human self.

So, the first Dramione I shall share is a classic and one of my top five.

This is a post-war healing fic. They are all adults here, and are all on friendly terms.

After the war, Draco got addicted to potions to numb the pain. He is now sober, and sees a therapist weekly. For the past few years he has gotten morning coffee at a cafe in muggle London because he enjoys the anonymity of it.

Imagine his surprise when he sees one Hermione Granger getting coffee there one day too. He tries to steer clear of her because he knows she probably hates him, but that comes to a head when he catches her sitting at his table.

Needless to say, he makes an ass of himself, then is confused when Hermione is nice to him.

Thus starts their friendship that slowly turns to romance. Both are struggling with PTSD, and the expectations put on them simply because of who they were during the war.

This is one of my favorite Draco. He is flawed, and second guesses his own value a lot. Luckily with enough patience, Hermione shows him that he deserves to be loved and happy.

[satan-saturn]

Oh we sharing Puyo ships? Then please consider the following:

- Amisig (iconic)

- Ex x Accord (dilf X milf solidary)

- um. Ringo is kissing both Maguro and Tee but it's not poly. They exist in two different universes

- if Ringo is kissing Tee then Maguro is kissing Ess

- also. Group therapy. They all should see a therapist

- not a ship but. Draco and Satan are siblings by proxy. And by proxy I mean Lidelle proxy

Yeeeeeeess

Personally I like Ayaccord once Aya gets its own body but that's not bad either

Sounds poly to me?????

Yees

Absolutely

You have seen the light here, found family by nymph child

[kingkat12]

fanfic ask!! 10, 15 and 29 😘🫶🏻💗

hey sweets, thanks for this!!🥹🌸

10: Is there a character or ship that you'd love to write for, but haven't yet?

hmmm tbh I'm dying to delve into writing for Draco Malfoy😭 I had an idea about a month ago but I never rlly properly started it because it was in the middle of exams:( other than that... I'd love to write something for Daemon Targaryen, I love HotD and would love to use my extensive knowledge of High Valyrian to write something cool!🙈

15: Does anyone you know in real life know that you write fanfiction?

yep💀 my closest friend irl knows, and my MOM(????) although she doesn't know the extent of it ofc because she will no way in hell get me to tell her about the SMUT😭 ahahah other than that I tell people that I write, but I just drop the fanfiction aspect of it oop... OH and my therapist knows lol but that man thinks it's rlly cool so that's... cool?🥹

29: How many times do you usually revise your fic/chapter before posting?

WAY TOO MANY TIMES AGHHH💀 usually after I've written a part of the chapter, I read through it and then go on to the next part. aaand then when all the parts of the chapters are finished, I do one huge and detailed read-through before I post it!<333

[usamironpa]

My opinion on Fictional Incest

Incest is a relationship with any people related by blood, (parent/child, cousin/cousin, sibling/sibling) and people ship fictional characters in this position. Such as, Lucifer x Draco from Harry Potter, Charlie x Lucifer from Hazbin Hotel and many others. In real life, it’s messed up.

Science has proved that if 2 family members have a baby due to their relationship, the genes will mess up, having an unusual result. People do point out if the incest has consent from both sides, it’s fine. Yet, it’s still a big hush topic and serious one, as the people share the same blood in their genes. It’s socially unacceptable as there’s 9 billion people in the world, yet someone chooses a blood relative to have a a romantic/sexual relationship and (might) share body fluids.

Incest can also be a form of abuse. When family members prey on other family members, more likely younger ones. Many people that have been SA’ed have been assaulted by one of their own family members, making the situation complicated and difficult to get Justice for the crimes. It’s a serious topic with mention of abuse of all sorts, assault and crime, as many people have been forced to have incest.

Yet, fictional characters are different right? Many people have different opinions. People say characters have chemistry and the writers of the characters even gave the characters a romantic moment. People get confused about the lines of Romantic and Platonic. And since many people might be confused on the lines, they might think a daughter and father bonding moment have sexual tension when the father acts like a parent, (saving the daughter from danger). This includes any pairing of family members. Or people completely know when the lines are drawn, but uses the scene and twist it into their favour, changing the truth, shoving their opinion into people’s faces and saying it’s the truth, when it’s not.

Some people say it’s boredom, saying it’s the only way so they won’t inflict harm on others or themselves. This is where people use self harm/mental and physical harm on others as an excuse, knowing full well so many people suffer from those problems. If a silly fictional pair where a daughter and father simply fuck, is the only thing saving you from the urges to harm, that person is mentally unstable. I would suggest therapy and discussing these thoughts to your therapist in full detail. The whole situation, no leaving stuff out or sugar coating it so you look like a saint.

People might say to mind your own business and that is a valid reason. Yet for example, so many other people can speak up about anyone’s opinions but not yours? You can speak up about your own opinions but the moment we question yours, we are the shitty people here.

Conclusion, incest is incest. No matter if it includes fictional characters or people in real life. The idea of family members fucking each other and sharing body fluids is socially inappropriate to talk in person, so why say it online where the entire world can see it. If so many people disagree with you, maybe you might be the one in the wrong. Incest is serious as so many people have been through SA in the form of their own family members sexually/romantically doing things to them without consent.

If your mad at people saying the truth about your kinky thoughts, then why say it online. Of course you have free speech, but we all also have that right. If you can’t handle the backlash, don’t say it in the first place and stop throwing excuses in our faces against the truth. Ask your family members about incest. How would they act? Probably what we’re saying right now. If you want to see family members to fuck each other, do it in real life and face the consequences. If you wouldn’t do it in real life, why do it online.

Prove me wrong or not. Argue your faces off. Throw little fits that we’re doing right now. Keep feeding the fire. Show me real proof that it’s socially acceptable to fuck and love your family members romantically.

[seductresses-temple]

Nine Months Brings Forth New Life

Okay! So, @rose-grangerweasleyisbae just recently had a birthday and she is honestly one of the sweetest followers ever. She always says the most beautiful, heart warming, smile inducing things so I wrote something really random for her birthday 🎂 🎁 🍰 by random I mean, I honestly opened a google doc and started writing lol. I wanted to write something...full of possibilities, I guess?

Trigger warning: Mental Health mentions and mentions of self mutilation

________________________________________

Draco sighed, plopping down ungracefully, un-Malfoy-like, into the all too familiar leather chaise. He shifted around for a moment until he deemed himself comfortable enough before lolling his head over to the side to look at Clara who was gazing at him with her typical, bemused expression. He smiled at her tiredly, even he could feel that it didn’t quite reach his eyes, but at least he was trying.

“Hello, Draco,” Clara said after a moment “nice to see that you’re punctual as always. You look a bit tired, still having trouble sleeping?”

Draco nodded, locks of hair falling over his eyes. “Another nightmare, some days I feel like they’re getting out of control since I stopped taking the Dreamless Sleep.”

Clara nodded, jotting the information down in a small leather bound pad she kept practically glued to her lap. “Would you like to talk about the nightmare? Was it about the war again, or your father?”

Lucius. Draco could appreciate that Clara never said his name anymore. It brought Draco too many emotions to keep under control. Ever since the war had ended, Draco’s relationship with his father had been non-existent. It was his father’s fault that he and his mother had gotten dragged into the whole ‘serving the Dark Lord’ nonsense. It had been his father’s fault that they’d had to house a blood-thirsty lunatic in their home. Draco’s stomach began to churn just thinking of all the things he’d born witness to while the Dark Lord haunted the halls of Malfoy Manor. To make matters worse, Draco and his mother had nearly been carted off to Azkaban thanks to trying to keep their heads above water in the situation his father had put them in. If it hadn’t been for Potter...Draco was afraid to think what would have happened if it hadn’t been for Potter…

“Draco?” Clara’s voice pulled Draco out of his thoughts. He did that a lot now. Spaced out. Got inside of his head and drifted away from the outside world. It was something he and Clara were trying to work on. Seeing a Mind Healer was part of the terms and conditions involved that kept him and his mother out of Azkaban. One of many conditions.

“It was about my father,” Draco sighed, running a shaky hand through his hair. He’d cut it when his father -ragged and screaming like a raving lunatic- denounced both he and his mother as he was carted off to Azakan with a life-long sentence. It had started with the left side, then the right. Now he’d taken to keeping the sides shaved, the middle long -down to his jaw- and streaked with various shades of light blue. His father had a conniption the first time he saw it. It was so feminine, so queer, so very un-Malfoy. Draco loved it and he loved how much his father hated it.

“What about your father?” Clara had such a soothing voice. Draco loved it. He confessed after a few months of seeing her that her voice reminded him of his mother. Clara was gentle and patient and seemed genuinely concerned about his welfare. The wizarding world spit upon the name Malfoy, it was nice to feel cared for.

“I came out to him. It was such an odd dream. We were in a muggle coffee shop, of all places, my father hates both coffee and muggles so it all seemed surreal and out of place. I sat down in front of my father and watched him sneer at my hair and my clothes and my coffee and I just sort of blurted it out…” Draco fidgeted with the hem of his shirt, frowning.

“You can say it Draco. This is a safe space. I think it would be healthy for you to be able to say the words aloud. They aren’t bad words, you just have a negative association to them because that’s what you were raised to think. Your father raised you to believe they’re something to be ashamed of, Draco, but we’ve talked about this. You don’t have to live your life by his definitions anymore, you’re free to live life on your own terms.” Clara stared at him, her yellow eyes watching him carefully like a hawk. Draco was vaguely reminded of Madam Hooch, her eyes trained to the sky, protective and alert, making sure to catch any of the first years should they fall off their broom. There was a safety in that, something rooted so deeply in Draco that he barely understood it. It made him feel safe, brought him back to a point in his life before his world got blown apart.

“I told my father I’m gay,” he whispered. If he weren’t so bloody tired he most likely would have cringed at how small and insignificant he sounded. He sounded like a child sharing a secret that, well..wasn’t a secret. Pretty much everyone knew. His father certainly knew long before Draco did. His father had always done his best to snuff out that side of him.

A black wardrobe. No color. No life. No expression. End of story.

A lack of affection from his father. No love. No smiles. No hugs. No warmth between men because that would be wrong. End of story.

His father drove him to quidditch. A manly sport. Something physical because he’d kill them both before he had a dancer for a son. If Narcissa took Draco to one more ballet, he was shipping Draco off to Durmstrang. End of story.

His father had taken control of his narrative, at least that’s how Clara put it. Draco quite liked that analogy. He liked reading, liked thinking about his life as a book that wasn’t quite finished yet. His father had written the first half but Draco, well, he could write the second half however he wanted. He liked that.

“What happened after that? How did your father react?”

“He mutated.”

“E-Excuse me?” Clara leaned forward a little, making sure she heard Draco correctly.

“He mutated, the dreamscape changed and suddenly I wasn’t in a muggle cafe with my father anymore, I was in the Hogwarts Great Hall surrounded by the rest of my ‘peers’ and they were...being very vocal about my new appearance,” Draco gestured down to his outfit; black wingtips, tailored, royal purple pants with a matching button down, a grey marled sweater vest, and plum, purple, grey, and black, paisley bow tie.

“So they resorted to name-calling?” Clara raised an eyebrow at him, an expectant, maternal look on her face. She was a stickler for not allowing Draco to get away with vague answers.

“No.”

“Draco,” Clara sighed ever so quietly, glancing at the clock “it’s your hour, Draco, and I understand these things are hard to talk about. Examining our emotions and coming to terms with things that go against what we’ve known and been taught our entire lives is no easy feat. However, you’ve been making such tremendous progress lately, you honestly have, if you’d rather table this discussion for the moment and move on to something else, I support that decision but with you leaving for Hogwarts in a few days, I think this is something we should try to tackle. I’m going to go put the kettle on, would you like a cup of tea?”

“Sure,” Draco murmured, nodded absently. He was already lost in thought by the time Clara left the room. He knew she was right, not that he particularly wanted to admit it. She was so like his mother in that way, speaking logic and reasoning into him even when it wasn’t what he wanted to hear. Draco was afraid to go back to Hogwarts. He didn’t want to admit that either. They all hated him and rightfully so. What was the point of going back? It wasn’t like anyone in the wizarding world would higher him all because he sat for his N.E.W.T.S. He was still a Malfoy, for now anyhow, until his father found out he wouldn’t be carrying on the Malfoy name. Not with a woman at least. He sighed, sinking further into the chaise. He didn’t hear Clara come back into the room until the familiar chink of china on wood snapped him back into reality.

“Thank you,” he sat up just enough to take his cup, running a finger over the rim “I’m…” he refused to say scared. “I’m worried about returning to Hogwarts, worried that they’ll all see how much I’ve changed, worried they’ll be able to tell that I’m...gay.” He took a careful, steady sip from his tea, staring down into the cup to avoid Clara. He didn’t want anyone at Hogwarts to know he was gay. They knew too much about him already. Draco sodding Malfoy, ex-death eater, co-conspirator to the death of Dumbledore, prime suspect of the near-deaths of Katie Bell and Ronald Weasley, pompous git, Slytherin Ice King, and the cold-hearted carbon copy of ruthless murder Lucius Malfoy. Parents were already complaining as it. Death Eater children back roaming the halls of Hogwarts? Preposterous! It was bad enough the Ministry was forcing them back to Hogwarts as part of their ‘rehabilitation’ into society, Draco could only imagine what the parents would do if they found out a queer ex-death eater was in their mists.

“I don’t think it would be so bad if they saw you’ve changed, Draco,” Clara took a sip of her tea, giving him that maternal, expectant stare as if he were a small child struggling to discern that two plus two does indeed equal four.

“Wasn’t it you who said, and I quote ‘changing into the man I’ve always felt I should be without my father lurking over every decision I make is one of the best things to ever happen to me?’ or do you no longer feel that way?” Clara continued to stare over the rim of her cup.

Draco remembered that session. Vividly. It was shortly after he had dyed his hair, not too long after his breakdown that had landed him in Mungos for two weeks. Draco learned the hard way that slicing your Dark Mark off landed you in a very cozy room in St.Mungos that just so happened to have white padded walls. “I did say that,” Draco murmured, glancing down at his arm.

“You have changed so much, Draco, made so much progress and have blossomed into a completely different person than the young man I met nine months ago. I think there can be some symbolism in that, nine months, women carry their children to term for nine months and then they birth a new life into the world. You, Draco, carried your trauma for the past nine months and you birthed a new version of yourself into the world. Going back to Hogwarts is your opportunity to foster that new life. It doesn’t have to be a death sentence.”

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

“You look dashing, sweetheart,” Narcissa smiled sweetly, coming over to Draco and running her fingers through his hair, mussing it up a tiny bit.

“Thank you, mother,” Draco tried to smile but only managed a twitch of the lips. He bent down to grab his school trunk. He’d have to carry it as he wasn’t allowed a wand again until he was on school property. His mother had been kind enough to cast a wandless lightening charming on it.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to go with you, Draco? Between the reporters, the students, the other students, I-” Draco held up a hand to stop her.

“I know you’re worried, mother, but I’ll be fine. They don’t need to put us both in the paper. I’ll write the moment I’m able and at least once a week after. Clara has spoken to Headmistress McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey and its been arranged for me to have my sessions at Hogwarts each week. I’ll…”he kissed her forehead tenderly “I’ll be alright, mother.”

Narcissa nodded, blonde curls bobbing softly. She stared at him, long and imploringly, her blue eyes searching for something. What, Draco wasn’t entirely sure, but he felt small and incredibly young under her gaze. “I love you so,” she whispered, clasping onto his arm, over the spot where his Dark Mark once stood “if you need anything, anything at all, just write home and I’ll come running.” She pulled him into a nearly bone crushing hug, kissing his cheek before letting him leave out the door.

“I love you too, Mother. Everything will be fine,” Draco wasn’t sure if he was trying to convince her or himself. All he knew was the night he sliced the Dark Mark off his arm had left them both changed people. It was scary, leaving the comfort of their little bubble, but they would both be better for it. That’s what their Mind Healers kept telling them. By the time Draco came back at Christmas the Manor would be renovated, cleansed, completely different. He hoped he’d return in much the same condition; renovated, cleansed, different.

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

Kings Cross Station brought about everything Draco had been expecting. He’d been hexed...twice, booed at, spat at, and the vultures from the Daily Prophet had a field day with the drama his mere presence had caused. The only sanctuary he had within it all was that no one wanted to sit with him so he’d managed to find an empty compartment and settle into it. People glared and sneered as they passed by but once the train began moving he felt as though he was finally able to exhale. Pansy, Blaise, and Theo were all headed to Hogwarts by other means which meant he’d be alone the entire trip. Draco wasn’t sure whether to panic or find solace in that but he had to deal with it all the same. He set his robes on the seat next to him and pulled out a muggle book he’d begun reading and curled up in his seat, praying beyond hope that at least the train ride could be uneventful before he spent the next year surrounded by people who’d much prefer if he were dead.

“Malfoy,” Draco wanted to curse, recognizing the voice instantly. He slid his bookmark in to hold his place and looked up into shockingly bright emerald eyes.

“Potter,” he greeted, taking a concentrated effort to keep his voice low and level.

“Do you mind if I sit?” Potter gestured toward the empty seat across from him.

Draco eyed Potter, taking in his appearance. He’d changed in the past nine months. His hair had gotten longer, long enough to completely cover his scar and long enough for him to have a long, thick plait that sat over his shoulder. Apparently Potter had a sense of fashion now. Draco took note of the dragon hide boots and fitted black trousers, the leather jacket that seemed far too big for him but in a devil-may-care sort of way. He wasn’t wearing his glasses anymore either. “Suit yourself,” Draco couldn’t help but feel his curiosity being piqued by this Potter. There was something about him that Draco couldn’t place. An energy that seemed to crackle around him, pulling Draco in, and he felt helpless to stop it.

“I’ve a question for you, Malfoy, this thing that’s just burning in my mind for far too long.”

Draco quirked an eyebrow at him. Since when did Potter speak so openly with him? They had never been friendly. Draco had gone out of his way to make the other boy miserable for far too long. “So you get...clarity of some sort and I?” Draco trailed off, making a flippant gesture with his hand. Old habits died hard with Potter, apparently. However, much to Draco’s surprise, the git had the nerve to smile. Not just smile, but to throw his head back and laugh.

“I thought you might say that,” Potter grinned at him, eyes twinkling in a way that was insufferable reminiscent of Dumbledore. He reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out an incredibly thin, long box. It could only be one thing and Draco felt his heart clutch painfully in his chest. Potter still had his wand after all this time...He’d managed to convince himself that Potter must have thrown it out, broke it, set it on fire, the scenario was different in his head every time.

“What is it you want to know?” Draco’s voice came out in barely a whisper.

Potter held the box with both hands, leaning forward, whispering conspiratorially “You knew it was me. Why?”

Draco’s breath hitched in his throat. He never thought he’d be confronted with this. He never anticipated Potter wanting to know why. It was something he had only ever spoken to Clara about and even that hadn’t come easily. He swallowed thickly, staring at his wand in Potter’s hands. He was cradling it gently as if it were something precious. It was precious to Draco but he didn’t know if it was worth spilling one of his biggest secrets. He stared at Potter, into those same green eyes that had stopped him in his track that night. “Because I’m in love with you,” he whispered breathlessly, the words rushing out his mouth before he could think about how incredibly stupid it was to say so.

“Oh, bugger off, Malfoy,” Potter laughed, a big bark of a laugh that seemed to make the entire compartment brighter. He shook his head, his braid swinging on his shoulder. “Fine, don’t tell me, but I’m not letting this go.” Potter stood up, using the box containing Draco’s wand to give him a little salute before marching out the door.

Draco sat there in stunned silence. He opened his mouth, closed it, opened it again, and then snapped it shut. He’d just told Potter he loved him. What in Merlin’s name was wrong with him? As if his life wasn’t difficult enough. He took a deep breath, trying to calm the erratic, hyperactive thump of his heart.

“Oh buggering fuck, kill me now,” Draco whispered to the empty compartment. He’d just confessed feelings he’d kept buried for four years and he hadn’t even gotten to Hogwarts yet. It was going to be an incredibly long year. A long year full of Potter and his nonsense and his...green eyes…”buggering fuck,” Draco groaned. It was going to be a long, long year.

[seductresses-temple]

I completely forgot about this when I wrote “Nine Months Brings Forth New Life” now I feel like I have to write a completely separate fic. Cause there are definitely some plot holes that I missed when I first wrote this at like 4am but I’m already mentally working them out.

Draco losing Astoria during a stray Death Eater Attack as punishment for her family remaining neurtral during the war plus speculation got around that Draco’s mother knew Harry was alive the entire time. The Aurors got there but not in enough time to save Astoria.

Draco is left to raise five year old Scorpius on his own

The attack triggers Draco’s PTSD and his nightmares flare up again

So Draco decides to seek out therapy

The random Death Eater attacks (because of course there are some of those slippery fuckers that have still evaded capture post-war) have made people nervous and Mind Healers at St.Mungos are openly trying to pass the buck on taking Draco on as a new patient. It’s against the rules, obviously, but the Malfoy name still makes certain people skittish

Hermione still has some unprocessed trauma surrounding Draco but she’s a Healer damnnit, she took an oath for Merlin’s sake so even though she should really defer Draco to another Mind Healer, she knows the man just had his wife literally blown up

Hermione takes him on as a patient and compartmentalizes so she can do what she does best, her job cause this is definitely a BAMF!Hermione fic

I need Draco telling Hermione all the tea about his father and how Lucius constantly made him strive for perfection

How Draco got caught at the receiving end of his father’s wand every time Hermione bested Draco in academics

I need Draco confessing that he sent Dobby to protect Harry

I need Draco’s she’ll shocked horror when he recounts the raid during the World Cup in Forth year

The panic he felt when the Dark Lord returned at the end of Forth year and he knew his life would begin to change rapidly

Draco admitting the joy he felt in fifth year when his father was sent to Azkaban and how he desperately tried to convince his mother to flee the country

Draco coming UNDONE over sixth year

Draco being SHATTERED over the war and ALL of this leading into him feeling like Astoria’s death is HIS fault, it’s his fault his son has no mother, will never know what a brilliant woman she was all because Draco and his family made terrible, terrible choices

Hermione helping Draco work through ALL OF THIS EMOTIONAL BAGGAGE BY TAKING ON MOMENT AT A TIME

Draco apologizing profusely for Bellatrix’s crimes against Hermione and being complicit in her abuse

After several sessions of talking things out from Draco’s childhood to help him understand that the choices he made in the past don’t have to define his future, Hermione starts realizing that Draco somehow manages to bring Harry up a LOT when talking about his past

Hermione puts it together that Draco has been in love with Harry for years like the genius she is

Harry winds up seeing Draco coming out of Hermione’s office one day when he’s stopping by to drop off something

Harry then does what he does BEST....becomes obsessed with Draco Malfoy

i ship draco malfoy with seeing a therapist

[water-in-the-wind]

What I should have done: gone to bed at 10PM like an adult since I’ve got work in the morning.

What I did instead: stayed up until 2:45AM reading Drarry fics because I can’t like things in a chill way.