#ins: lucius

[cerisearan]

Quotes describe my OCs internally: (Part 1)

Astell

Lucius

[unravellingsilencehq]

“Oh, Merlin, tell me, does THE NONCONFORMIST get what she deserves?” She is NEUTRAL & OPEN to finding out.“

— she walks through the world as ;  

name → cordelia davis pronouns → she/her identification → cis-female year of birth → september 1953 - september 1954 face claim → adelaide kane blood status → pure-blood sexual orientation → up to applicant occupation → healer on the ‘dangerous' dai llewellyn ward: for serious bites at st mungo's hospital future information → aunt of ernest macmillan, aunt of tracey davis

— she is best described as ;

The scent of ELEGANT PERFUME as it lingers down a STERILE HALL. She is the MILLION DOLLAR SMILE that BREAKS HEARTS and the BRAVERY to face ADVERSARY & LEAP into the UNKNOWN. HEADSTRONG enough to face life other than how it was intended for her, a lone GILDED BOAT on UNEASY OPEN WATERS.

— her story starts with ;

tw: death, tw: blood

Every first born will say the same thing. Expectation sits squarely on your shoulders. Born the future head of the Davis family, Cordelia Davis was to all who knew her, the perfect pure-blood daughter. The Davis family were an old pure-blood wizarding family from Kerry in Ireland who came over in the 1920s to set up Moribund’s an exclusive members only club, with a strict wealthy, pure-blood and anti-blood traitor policy. Interwoven with the usual lessons taught to children like Cordelia, were things like how to manage a business and extensive background on the wizarding families in Britain, including who were paying members of Moribund’s and which of their children would be in her academic year. Groomed to one day take over Moribund’s, Cordelia never had a moment to consider if she might want to choose another life other than the one that was being set out for her. Her siblings were not subject to the same level of conditioning as Cordelia, though her younger brother AJAX DAVIS [brother] was forced to sit in on some of her lessons. 

Their family had clear idas. Cordelia would run the business and her brother to marry into The Twenty-Eight and further strengthen the Davis line. Her youngest sibling ROSALINE DAVIS [sister] was their loose cannon, too difficult for her parents to wrangle when there was no need to do so. The Davis family weren’t in the Sacred Twenty-Eight, but Moribund’s made them just as good as. Sorted into Slytherin, she was fortunate enough to be in the same year group and house as LUCIUS MALFOY [former close friend], DECIUS FLINT [former partner/former close friend], EVAN ROSIER [former close friend] and ALFHILD ROWLE [former close friend] who were all paying pure-blood members of Moribund’s. Cordelia was a good fit for their group of friends, as was EMMA VANITY [former best friend] and INES MORENO [former best friend], whose families also paid their hefty club fees. Cordelia quickly rose in ranks at school, she looked exquisite in a ballgown and could take your money at poker. 

She didn’t have any friends who were even half-bloods, let alone muggle-borns and believed wholeheartedly that she was born into a position of power because as a result of good breeding. It was this way of thinking that landed her on the arm of Decius Flint. A very respectable member of the Twenty-Eight. Cordelia doted on him and loved him with all her heart and soul. It wasn’t just his title or family line that she was interested in, Decius longed to give her exactly what she wanted, a happy life filled with marriage and children who would one day inherit Moribund’s. Graduating a slug club member, a prefect, head girl and with a boyfriend most parents longed to secure for their own child, Cordelia was the envy of every debutant the year she came out. She sparkled amongst them and smirked privately as she read her name in the scandal sheets and considered how far she’d managed to advance her family reputation even in such a short while. Had the killings not began in London, Cordelia might have achieved the gilded life she’d always dreamed of. 

The day BOOKER BAGNOLD [person of interest] fell to his death in the fountain, she was only a few feet away. But that wasn’t the end of it. Although Cordelia wanted to assume the role as wife and mother in her later years, her younger years would be spent with a hands-on approach at Moribund’s, training the ideal staff and knowing the business inside and out before she let it run itself. Missing persons posters plastered the alleyway, with bodies found not too far from the club. The world had begun to make Cordelia feel nervous. Knowing this, Ines traded in her late night favourite spot at The Grave Affair to drink with Cordelia and keep her company. She loved her for it and although they had often sparred for popularity points in the past, in adulthood Ines was her very best friend. Her loss was of great pain to Cordelia. Just outside the club, Cordelia tried to stop the bleeding, holding on to Ines’ neck which now had giant claw marks running down it. Ines died in her arms that night and Cordelia’s life changed. 

Once a sociable witch, Cordelia became a prisoner inside the Flint family home. Her relationship with Decius came to an end when he told her he’d been sleeping with ANASTASIA SIMINOVA [adversary], blaming her disinterest in him and her lack of understanding for the reason. Home in her childhood bed, Cordelia considered how meaningless it all was. She’d spent her entire life working towards something that would never happen. Her relationship or her best friend couldn’t be saved and something had taken it from her. Cordelia’s decision to break with her family was not instantaneous, in fact the final straw came over dinner when Cordelia let her thoughts on blood purity be known. Though it was something she had once held in the highest regard, it was clear to her how little it mattered. It hadn’t spared Ines’ life and Decius had willingly left her for a half-blood. The world had changed and things like certain people liking you, or having pretty babies with someone who could leave you in an instant or you were expected to ignore their wandering eye, did not seem like a valuable way to spend her life. 

Her statements shocked her parents but Cordelia no longer cared. She wasn’t devoting her life to an institution she didn’t believe in and her parents had two more children anyhow. Taking her inheritance, she answered a spare room ad in The Daily Prophet and moved in with follow healers SAMUEL WAINSCOTT [close friend/housemate] and POPPY POMFREY [close friend/housemate] and Poppy’s younger sister PRIMROSE POMFREY [close friend/housemate]. Everyone from her old life wasn’t interested in associating with her anymore except for her brother and sister, although that was also away from prying eyes due to the reputation of Moribund’s. Cordelia’s life was different but she was happy. For once in her life she had a purpose she’d chosen for herself and that was to try and save victims in a silent war she already knew was being fought. Cordelia was drawn to the Dangerous' Dai Llewellyn Ward, tending after multiple bite and scratch victims all at the hands of a wolf. Times have grown darker and Cordelia is sure that the creatures are in some way playing a part. Although her friends think she’s crazy, Cordelia is sure she’s on to something and will stop at nothing to prove she’s right.

— she is a LEVEL 7 WITCH & readied for war ;

[fieriframes]

[-We have a brioche bun. -What kind of cheese is that? -A New York white cheddar. -Is it always two or eler: Rhetorician who taught both Marcus and Lucius VERUS? It's always two. There you go! Little finishing salt.]

[unleashed-fest]

UNLEASHED FEST: REVEALS!!!

It's time, reveals are finally here!

A massive thank you to all our gorgeous creators who poured their hearts and soul into their works, please shower them with love!

And to all the readers and commenters, who have been so supportive throughout. This fest has been such a joy again and we can't wait to see you all next year!

🐾 FIC

Nectar by @jtimu (Draco/Harry, T, 1.9k) Draco's first Animagus transformation doesn't go as planned.

Gym Rats and Whippet Pats by @ViridianRynn (Dudley/Millicent, T, 6.8k) When his longtime girlfriend Milli adopts a dog, Dudley wants nothing to do with him. He's never had a dog and he's never wanted one.

His avoidance of taking care of the new pup is tested when Milli goes on a business trip for two weeks and leaves the dog in his care. Will he be able to step up to the task, or will his inability to connect with the dog endanger his relationship?

A fluffy little romp in which Dudley gets a crash course in pet ownership and learns that it isn't easy to keep a furry companion out of your heart.

Little Menace by @annanother-thing (Draco/Harry, M, 3k) Draco wants to make his mother happy. Narcissa wants everyone to get along. Harry wants to call Leonora Leo. Lucius wants his son to break up with his boyfriend and marry a good pureblood woman.

And Leonora? Well, she's quite happy playing with all the toys she can find...

The Cat-astrophe by @thetacowrites (Draco/Harry, E, 4.3) Harry Potter can't sleep. Grimmauld Place is being haunted by a vicious ghost of a cat who inflicts a magical injury onto Harry and the Ministry of Magic sends one of its Junior Unspeakables to investigate. The unspeakable in question being Draco Lucius Malfoy.

The Selkie's Secret by @midnightstargazer (Neville/Pansy, T, 5.1) A series of encounters by the lakeside in seventh year lead Neville to discover a different side to Pansy Parkinson. Despite the war going on, the two form an unexpected bond. Can it be strong enough to survive the Battle of Hogwarts?

Run, Rabbit, Run by @dracopetal (Draco/Harry, E, 46k) Harry finds an injured rabbit in the Forbidden Forest.

Which Came First, the Phoenix or the Flame? by @astridastrolabe (Luna/Draco/Ron, M, 18k) It's a tale as old as time: the darkest night of the soul– and taking that one.more.breath.anyway. The hero(ine)'s journey.

Just as Ron is truly having a final, wrackspurt-induced, alcohol-inflamed psychotic break, he finds that there are forces far beyond his control that have a very different path for him. Namely those forces of the Great Houses Lovegood, Bulstrode and Malfoy. Ron and his pet cockatoo, Sturgil, cross a threshold of more than one level of reality. Polyamory, adults doing their best, recovery story, lots of inner narration. Complex!Ron POV. Buckle up.

Creature Comforts by IzRoan (Draco/Harry, M, 86k) When Draco is turned into a werewolf, he does not expect to be given a postbellum bedroom in Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, nor does he expect to find a whole new set of friends.

When Harry is turned into a werewolf, he does not expect to make a whole new set of friends. He could have anticipated, however, falling even harder in love with the stubborn, acerbic, workaholic prat who’s been hovering at the fringes of his life for the past seven years.

This is exactly what happens.

Raising Kids by nicolawritesdrh (The Other Kind) (Pansy/Neville, E. 4.8k) "Pansy exhaled deeply. “Neville,” she said slowly, “When I suggested we get a pet, I meant a cat or a dog. I never mentioned a fucking goat.”"

When Pansy suggested they get a pet to practice their parenting skills before trying for a baby, she hadn't expected Neville to walk in the door with the world's worst behaved goat.

The Cat that got the Créme (de la Potter) by @youhavemyswordandmybow and @aniimamundi (Draco/Harry, E, 22.6k) Draco's doing fine after the war. No, really! He's a repentant, industrious employee by day and a gorgeous, vigilante cat by night. So what if he's been disowned by his parents (father)? Life's great!

And, when he gets into a spot of trouble? Pffft … he's going to save himself! Easy peasy. The Chosen One is not actually required. He just happens to be there. It's not like Draco went looking for him … or anything.

Ripped Apart by @dittanyanddreams (Draco/Harry, E, 4.3k) Following his father’s failings in the war, nobody in the Wizarding World knew of Draco’s affliction - his father’s punishment being his son handed over to Greyback to do with as he pleased. Somehow Draco had managed to claw his way back - pun intended - into some form of acceptance in society again, although he knew there were those out there who thought he should be in Azkaban - or dead. He’d also fallen in love, with none other that Harry fucking Potter. If they know we’re dating, it will only be worse for him, Draco thought as he walked through Knockturn Alley on the way to the apothecary. Draco couldn’t know at that moment how wrong this thought was.

Scales and Sorcery by Splashstar01 (Draco/Harry, E, 13.9k) As toddlers, Harry Potter and Draco’s lives change when they befriend each other on James Potter’s Romanian dragon reserve, where Draco is hatched as a rare shape-shifting Hungarian Horntail. The two quickly become inseparable, and as they grow up together, their bond deepens into something truly magical and unbreakable.

Follow them on this unique coming-of-age journey of self-discovery and first love, where Harry finds his soulmate in the most unexpected of creatures.

Kaleidoscope by @dyke3vader (Harry/Ron/Hermione, E, 39k) Dear Mooney and Padfoot,

It’s been months, and I’m sorry.

Harry discovers old letters written by his father, and uncles, while organizing Hogwarts' archives. Desperate for any type of connection to the dwindling memories of his parents, he embarks on a journey to become an Animagus with Ron and Hermione - Leaving his job, his emotions, and his fiancée by the wayside. Maybe if he digs around in the past for an answer, the universe would be kind enough to help him out… Unless said universe was sick and tired of Harry Potter looking backwards instead of forwards.

Wherever He Leads Me by @dodgerkedavra (Draco/Harry, E, 11.2k) Draco never knows when a certain someone’s stag Patronus will block his path as he’s trying to sneak out of a memorial or leap on his pelvis during yoga class.

He doesn’t even know if Harry Potter is sending frantic messages via stag on purpose.

But he does know that whenever the stag appears, he’ll follow it.

No matter where it leads.

🐾 FIC AND ART

Every Glade With You by @blackseatwenty (Luna/Theo, G, 2.8) Luna wasn't surprised by the growing number of sightings; she was prepared to save the creatures to help those who didn't believe her, but she was taken aback when Theo decided to join her on the journey.

🐾 PODFIC

Draco Malfoy and the Crupnapperby Oakstone730 by @cailynwrites(Draco/Harry, E, 4 hours) Life as a night shift creature keeper is scarcely the life Draco once imagined for himself, but ten years after the death of Voldemort he’s accepted his fate. Until the day Harry Potter forces his way back into Draco’s world and everything turns upside down.

Trevor the Escape Artist by DrPansyParkinson by @lumosatnight (Pansy/Neville, G, 30-35min) Trevor the Master of Escape feels his reputation being ruined because a certain someone keeps successfully locating him and bringing him back to his owner. Trevor is often found in bathrooms because he likes humidity.

[wellpresseddaisy]

That Moment of Reckoning part 2

Part 1 here

Lucius frowned as he stepped neatly through the Floo at the current Potter cottage. He should not have been able to enter at all if it were properly protected. His frown deepened as he moved from the entry hall to a corridor. What were they playing at, leaving anyone with a passcode wandering about their home? This, clearly, is what happened when you left Potter and Black in charge of security. What was that word his nurse used the one time?

Ah, malarkey. That was it. As was this travesty of home security. He would certainly have words with Sirius, once he found him. The carelessness of it galled him. Narcissa would have something to say, as well, at a later date. Unaccountably, she still cared for her younger cousin despite his political leanings.

Lucius found a sitting room that looked lived in and waited by the fireplace, leaning against the mantle (Elizabethan, possibly original, and placed for a good view of the entire room and hall). The furniture looked worn, but the unmistakeable scent of furniture polish underscored the flower arrangement on a side table. He appreciated the cleanliness of the space even as he decided that the furnishings would never even grace the nursery of his home. Some families gave children furniture they deemed too worn for other spaces but still serviceable. Lucius thought children deserved more than serviceable. He remembered longing for glimpses of the pretty things outside the nursery floor. Why should children have to beg and sneak to have a bit of beauty in their lives? Draco would never want for it. Children should have beautiful spaces in which to grow. He had little doubt that early years spent with scuffed floorboards and skirting boards and down-at-the-heels furniture left an indelible mark on a child’s character. Perhaps the elder Potters felt Potter and Black couldn’t be trusted with anything nicer?

He supposed, for a cottage, the room held an air of charming comfort. The—

“What the bloody hell are you doing here?” Sirius interrupted his musing, entering the sitting room with an infant in his arms. He wore those revolting jeans and a loose shirt, untucked, with rolled up sleeves and the collar open.

For the love of Merlin, he had bare feet. Bare, in January!

“Are you even carrying your wand?” Lucius drew himself up to his full height and glowered. He’d just have to ignore Sirius’ sartorial crimes.

“Wh—I’m ho-visiting if it’s any of your business, Malfoy. And I’m carrying a baby.”

Sirius tried drawing himself up as well. It gratified Lucius to see he still topped the other man by a fair few inches.

“And cursing in front of him. I wish I were shocked at your lack of conduct.” He’d forgotten how much fun it could be, winding Sirius up.

“I must be going mad.” Sirius addressed himself to the infant. “That’s the only explanation, snidget, Pa-Uncle Sirius is hallucinating peacocks.”

The baby giggled and waved his hands.

“You are not going mad. You grandfather wishes you attend him, immediately. I was asked to see that you went directly to Buckingham House.” Asked…ordered by one’s wife…same thing, really.

“I can’t bring Harry there.” Sirius sounded scandalized. “He’s too tiny to go by Floo or apparition.”

“Which is why I shall be here, with him. I have a message for the Potters, as well.”

Sirius stared at him for a long moment.

“I’m meant to leave a baby in your care?” he sneered.

“I do have one of my own, you know,” Lucius answered drily. “I am not wholly incompetent.”

And if he’d practiced holding off intruders while holding an infant (stand-ins used, mostly a small sack of flour or a more cooperative cat), he’d keep his own counsel on that front.

“I know who you follow,” Sirius spoke quietly.

“Do you? Gracious, I hadn’t realized the Blacks had Seer blood.” He affected a scandalized tone of voice.

“We—you—you utter bastard.”

“If the baby’s first word is vulgar, I shall let Mrs. Potter know who is to blame.” Prefecting apparently died hard. Unfortunately, he couldn’t give Sirius a note for it.  

Sirius, sadly, did not rise to that bit of bait.

“I don’t trust you.”

“I don’t expect you do. His Grace does not enjoy when…what was it? Oh yes, young rapscallions keep him waiting. Do you enjoy him venting his spleen?”

Sirius twitched, likely at memories of the old reprobate ringing a peal over him.

“You have my word that no harm will come to the child at my hand. Nor will I remove him from this house or allow another to harm him. I will hand him back as soon as his parents return.” He’d make it an official oath if Sirius pressed.

“I’ve never known you to go back on your word,” Sirius replied slowly.

“And Narcissa would be most displeased with me, should I allow any to harm the boy. He is her kin.”

Sirius left the room abruptly at that and came back only a moment later with his feet stuffed haphazardly into house slippers. Lucius stifled a sigh. He’d hoped Sirius would at least tuck in his shirt and put on proper shoes. His funeral, Lucius supposed. Arcturus Black hated ‘muggleish fashions’ as much as he hated tardiness. Sirius could count himself lucky if he came back not having been bashed over the head with his own slipper.

Lucius accepted the child and held him close as Sirius located Floo powder and prepared to leave.

“Harry’s been fed and changed, so he should be fine until Lily and James get back. They should only be another few minutes. Just…keep him safe.”

“I will.”

And with that, Sirius tossed the powder into the fire and stepped through.

Lucius looked down at the baby in his arms and smiled, “Aren’t you a darling little one? Do you think the rocker is structurally sound? Hmm?”

Harry babbled back at him.

“You do? Well, I suppose I should bow to your expertise, Mr. Potter. You have the experience, don’t you?” He sat carefully and set the rocker going. “You really did get the best of all your parents, didn’t you? Oh yes, silly Papa thinking he could get one over on me. I’ve known him too long for that! I remember what he looked like as a baby, you know.”

Harry giggled and reached for the lock of his hair that trailed over his shoulder. He didn’t yank as Draco was wont to do, but patted gently.

“What a nice baby you are. Would you like to hear about your Dada and Papa getting in trouble at school? They were so terribly naughty as children. Your Mama was much better behaved!”

Harry babbled back at him.

“You would? Wonderful! Now, I’m a few years older than they are, and I was a prefect when they were just little firsties, so I got to hear all the stories from Gryffindor. The Gryffindor prefects were not terribly circumspect, you understand. Why don’t I tell you about the potion in the Charms corridor inkwells? That was normal school naughtiness and, between us, actually funny.”

Harry blinked up at him, smiling a sleepy baby smile.

“Yes, that should send you right off to sleep. I have a feeling I interrupted preparations for a nap. Now, many, many years ago, your Dada and Papa were just little firsties intent on making a name for themselves as prankers at school…”

He rocked slowly as he played out the tale, pitching his voice lower add lower until Harry’s eyes closed and he went lax in sleep.

-----------------------------

“What the bloody hell are you doing in my house with my child?” James Potter demanded from the doorway.

Harry woke with a start and a wail at the angry tone.

“There, darling boy, no worries. Dada is just being fussy,” Lucius soothed. “I hope you didn’t inherit his foul temper, no, not you.”

Harry calmed slightly, but big tears rolled down his cheeks and his breath hitched heartrendingly. Lucius bounced him a bit. Potter made an incoherent expression of rage from the doorway. At least both Potters had their wands out and trained on him. He stood and walked slowly toward them.

“Sirius was called away to speak with His Grace. I stayed with your child,” he explained, holding Harry out to his parents. “I have a message for you, as well, from the Black Paterfamilias.”

Mrs. Potter booted her grumbling husband in the ankle, tucked her wand away, and took the baby. Harry snuggled in, gently grasping a lock of her long hair and worrying it between tiny fingers.

“James,” she said firmly. “Is going to go make tea and get ahold of himself. Would you sit, Mr. Malfoy?” she turned back to Potter.

“I’m not leaving you with—” Potter hissed.

“Am I incapable of self defense?” Mrs. Potter asked mildly.

“No, but—”

“But nothing. If Sirius left Harry with him then he made some assurance of our safety. It isn’t as if he stops in for afternoon tea.”

They weren’t nearly as quiet as they thought they were. And, shockingly, certain Dark Lords did enjoy afternoon tea, or at least the social obligation of treating him as a treasured guest. He always ate all the muffins.  

Lucius settled for an armchair of dubious age, spelling the dog hair off it before he sat. They would be soppy enough to let the pets up on the furniture. James Potter stomped off toward the back of the cottage, muttering what were no doubt obscenities. For a moment, Lucius longed to be a Slytherin prefect again. Potter could use a good clip round the ear. Mrs. Potter joined him in the sitting room.

“Now that he’s out of earshot and can’t spend the next forty minutes escalating, what’s the message?” Mrs. Potter eyed him shrewdly.

By the sounds emanating from the back of the cottage, Potter made tea with the help of Bombarda.

“You are to be packed and ready to leave by this evening. His Grace is arranging a safe house on the continent. I don’t know where; it’s safer that way. Sirius will know when he returns. He…he will have been sealed as Lord Buckingham by that time.”

“Sirius refused it. He’s refused it every single time—”

“Because he’s an idiot.” Lucius cut her off. “I apologize for my intemperate words, Mrs. Potter. Sirius’ refusal to take his proper place in the family has long grieved my wife. Accepting is part of keeping this family safe. He’ll do it.”

“Why are you…what do you get out of this?”

He wondered if the rumors that she’d been offered Slytherin were true.

“Several months of panic, possibly ulcers, and then, hopefully, freedom. Choices were made for me that I find I do not enjoy. There are times when one comes to…a moment of reckoning, as it were. One must, of course, make one’s own way.”

“So you’re content to play errand boy?”

Lucius smirked at the sharp question. “Sirius has long been used to minding me and my wife, both in and out of school. Mrs. Malfoy is not yet strong enough to both petition her grandfather and argue with Sirius in one day.”

“This sounds like you’re setting up some third front.”

At that moment Potter blundered back in with a sloshing tea tray. Had Potter pulled a Severus and found all the most chipped mugs? Honestly, as if he would drink out of that assortment of oddities.

“His nibs had better like Assam, strong,” Potter bit out, setting the tray down with more force than necessary.

Mrs. Potter sighed and tidied up the dripping tray with a spell.

“I was just taking my leave. Mrs. Potter, a pleasure. Potter…you have tea all down your trouser leg.”

On that note, he rose and stalked out of the room, only pausing to say,

“Your child is a delight. Do keep him that way.”

before he made for the Floo. He did so enjoy getting the last word.

[amelikos]

Some character notes and episode notes for HZ073, writing them down for future reference.

The episode starts with Liko and the others going deeper in the mountain to find Basagiri. Along the way, Dot finds a rock shard which comes from Basagiri's axe, indicating that he is closer. Basagiri eventually comes out of hiding and shows himself to the group. Lapras comes out of its Pokeball, seemingly angered at Basagiri's sight. Liko realizes that the scars on Lapras look the same as the gouges Basagiri left behind for them to find, which means Basagiri is the one who gave Lapras those scars. Basagiri and Lapras start battling and everyone runs to hide in order to avoid getting caught up in the fight. They quickly stop battling, as it was their way of greeting each other as friends. Liko then starts talking to Basagiri and explains that she is looking for Rakua alongside Terapagos and everyone else and that she wants him to join them. Basagiri looks pensive and leaves. Dot wonders if that means he is not interested in joining them, but Roy says that they can't know that yet. Liko wants to know for sure how Basagiri really feels, so they all decide to go after him.

They go through a cave hidden behind a waterfall. On their way, they find more gouges, which makes Friede suspect that Basagiri kept training to polish his moves. Friede and Sazare eventually get separated from Liko, Roy and Dot so the three of them go on ahead to look for the exit, which they eventually find. Basagiri was waiting for them and challenges to a battle to test their strength.

I won't go over the battle in full detail but: Liko, Roy and Dot were initially overwhelmed by Basagiri's strength but quickly came up with strategies on the spot and used the environment to their advantage to throw Basagiri off focus. They all used Terastal when it became clear that they made feel Basagiri feel cornered enough for him to use his best move. They managed to make Basagiri falter, though he had the upper hand against them and defeated them.

After the battle, Basagiri invites Liko and the others to follow him to show them a beautiful landscape. Afterwards, a memory from the past shows what appears to be Lucius's first meeting with Basagiri. Lucius was defending Basagiri against villagers who tied him up. Lucius freed Basagiri, telling him to live as he saw fit and to stay away from the village. Basagiri was about to attack Lucius as soon as he was freed, but Lapras came out to protect Lucius. Lucius apologizes to Lapras as it got hurt in his place and asks Basagiri if he's ever wanted to test his strength. Lucius explains that he is seeking an undiscovered paradise and asks Basagiri to come with him. Basagiri accepts and Lucius addresses someone named Rystal as he prepares to leave, which is when the past memory ends. Liko and the others ponder on what they just saw, while Basagiri goes back in his ancient Pokeball as he acknowledged Liko and the others and accepts to come with them. Friede says that Basagiri may have been waiting all this time to use his strength for someone he could trust. Afterwards, Sazare thanks the group for giving her an opportunity to take interesting pictures and promises she will not publish photos of Basagiri and Terapagos. Sazare bids everyone goodbye and hopes to see them again someday. The following day, Liko receives a visit from Diana's Ikirinko, indicating that Diana is back.

--

First of all.. Sazare promising that she wouldn't share pictures of Terapagos and Basagiri with anyone.. magical girl anime moment, just like in my Precure when they don't want their secret to be found out ("I won't tell anyone about you [being magical girls]"... as usual, Horizons is really a magical girl show and that moment made me think of that).

Another thing I found interesting is the use of the word "rampage" by Lucius ("Haven't finished your rampage yet..." when he talked to Basagiri). It reminded me of when Spinel used that word too, in two different instances. The first one being HZ044 if I recall correctly, when he told Friede he wouldn't be able to use Terastal in a confined space ("Nor a Terastallized rampage"). And the second one was in HZ064 ("Blacky, rampage to your heart's content"). Anyway, it stands out to me because it's a word with quite agressive connotations, so the fact that a heroic character used it wasn't something I expected. The fact that such a word was associated with the Terastal phenomenon was something I found interesting when Spinel said it the first time.

Lapras and Basagiri's relationship was Very Good (to me). It's the way Basagiri's memory of Lucius is the first time they met, while the memory Lapras remembered back in HZ032 was the last time they all presumably saw Lucius before he disappeared. The way Basagiri is a loner, contrasting to Lapras' tendancy to befriend others. The way Lapras took the hit for Lucius and now wears scars from Basagiri forever and yet doesn't seem to resent Basagiri for it. The way Lapras is the only one who came out of the Ancient Pokeball to greet Basagiri and seemed sadly understanding when Basagiri left, yet quietly went back inside the Pokeball and didn't push the issue further and let Liko and the others handle Basagiri.. the way they have their own kind of language and greeting.. etc. I think they made something really good right there. For the most part, we haven't seen much of how the Six Heroes interact among themselves (Oliva, Galar Fire and Lapras seem to be on the same wavelength from what we've seen so far when they come out of their Pokeballs), so I liked getting insight on a specific dynamics this time.

Basagiri was very cool, and I also liked his personality. The past Heroes we've met usually showed strong emotions (Oliva showed anger, Galar Fire's grief was also heavy, Lapras wasn't easily approachable) and they all cried over Lucius, so the fact that Basagiri felt so calm in comparison to all of them was a nice change. Basagiri clearly values Lucius for the way he gave him a chance when no one else did, and waited for someone who would do the same thing again. The way Basagiri tested the kids' strength was also cool. They all manage to hold on their own against the Heroes but aren't yet at the level of completely defeating them in a battle, which feels realistic. Yet, they managed to make Basagiri falter and corner him enough to the point he pulled out his best move. It clearly shows progress on their part. I wonder how Liko and the others will fare in a battle against the next Hero.

The flashback with Lucius infers many things. Lucius being willing to go against the "norm" of his time (defending a Pokemon against villagers) might imply that he would be going against the "norm" in other ways. Believing in fairy tales that no one believes in? Such as the Scarlet Book with Paradox Pokemon? Rakua? I wonder where Lucius heard of Rakua because he told Basagiri that he is seeking it, which means that he hasn't found it yet at that point and that it's something he is actively looking for. The other thing that this flashback made me think about is that Lucius probably surrounded himself with people he shared values with, etc.. which, in turn, makes me think about Gibeon and how he was probably someone Lucius trusted and shared his love for Pokemon with. Which really contrasts with the current Gibeon who was cold enough to dismiss his own grandson. Yet, that same Gibeon was friends with Lucius who is an aspirational figure in the story for our main characters. All these implications are really interesting to think about.

[ivory--raven]

Izzy's Knee

Before season two came out, I saw the trailer. I saw that Izzy had a prosthetic leg. I assumed he had lost his leg due to infection, which has been established as a danger leading to amputation with Lucius's finger and to a lesser extent, with the Swede's illness (scurvy) leading to irreversible bodily harm ('the teeth don't go back in').

And to some extent Izzy's amputation confirms this established pattern. At the time of amputation his leg is rotten, that's the reason given in the text for its necessity, and the reason given by Izzy when he likens Ed to his 'rotten leg.'

But Izzy didn't lose his leg because of an infection due to the toe amputation in season one. Izzy lost his leg because Ed shot him in the knee. After slicing off at least two more of his toes. The shooting wasn't necessary for Izzy to lose his leg. As established with Lucius and Swede, Izzy's toe injury could logically lead to losing his leg. The shooting was a reference to the historical Izzy Hands' story of being shot in the knee by Blackbeard. From the Wikipedia article on Israel Hands,

Captain Charles Johnson wrote that Hands was shot in the knee when Teach fired at another of his crew, missing him but striking Hands. Hands asked Teach for his reasons, whereupon Teach remarked that, "if he did not now and then kill one of them, they would forget who he was."

In OFMD, Ed shoots Izzy when Izzy sticks up for the crew. He says the atmosphere has become toxic - and he says this because he has just been below decks with the traumatized crew. They are too afraid to say something, so Izzy does. In his own word, he "must." Ed shoots Izzy because Izzy has forgotten that Ed is not to be questioned. Izzy has forgotten that Ed is the Kraken, is Blackbeard, not Edward. And it's one of the historical touches DJ adds. Stede's leaving his wife and kids, sailing with Ed, the destruction of the Republic of Pirates, Izzy being shot in the knee. He follows the broad strokes of history here and there, although not in order and the further along in season two, the more abstract the historical tie ins have to be to make that plot work. But they still must be there. Ostensibly this is a pirate show.

From the moment Izzy lost his toe he was legibly disabled. He was able to hide it, at the beginning of season two - he wasn't using his crutch - but once he had become disabled there was no going back. His amputation made his disability legible again. Metaphorically, Izzy's disability can be read as symbolizing his growing apart from the Blackbeard myth. Izzy's uncomfortable smile when he was first maimed in season one, to his verbally confronting Ed and being shot for it. This is a man who has made a mistake, who comes to see that and learns to separate himself from the Blackbeard myth over the course of season two.

Izzy's disability is also just that: a disability. In readings of disability it's important not to lose sight of the real disability for the metaphor. Piracy is a dangerous career, and though in season one, most of the violence is cartoon violence played for comic effect, Izzy brings in a lot of the real violence, real danger. Perhaps he was doomed from the moment he said death was the only retirement for pirates. Izzy has been called the only human in a muppet show - perhaps it makes sense, storywise, then, that the violence he faces should be real violence.

Izzy had to lose a toe because Ed's downward spiral at the end of season one had to be made tangible. Izzy was a part of the Blackbeard myth - he had to physically be transformed by the myth's transformation. And once Izzy had lost a toe, his disability had to remain visible. His toe was no longer 'enough' disability. And as the situation on the Revenge got worse, Izzy, metaphorically representing that situation, also had to get more legibly impaired - something that could be read as 'worse' though I'm hesitant to give disability a hierarchy and I don't think it's fair to do so.

[zo1nkss]

Rewatching s1 and I just can't help thinking about Wee John sitting there and explaining rhe ins and outs of sewing to a ship full of pirates all on the verge of mutiny 💀💀💀

Also, Lucius mouthing "I...Mean...It" when Stede tells him to stop writing made me giggle

[whatstruthgottodowithit]

The Only Evans Girl [A Change of Circumstance]

Fandom: Harry Potter [Marauder’s Era]

Pairing: Sirius Black x Original Female Character, Sirius Black x Daisy Evans, James Potter x Lily Evans

Characters: Sirius Black, Original Female Character, Daisy Evans, Lily Evans, Remus Lupin, James Potter, Harry Potter, Severus Snape, Minerva McGonagall, Alice Fortescue, Frank Longbottom, Marlene McKinnon, Albus Dumbledore, Voldemort, Peter Pettigrew, Lucius Malfoy, Bellatrix LeStrange, Walburga Black, Orion Black, Jasper Thicknesse, Barty Crouch Jr, Mulciber, Walden McNair, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Molly Weasley, Arthur Weasley

Word Count: 5571

Rating: Teen

Notes: Only a couple of chapters left of this <3

LINK TO AO3 // LINK TO PINTEREST // LINK TO ALL PARTS

It was quiet as Daisy unlocked the door, the eerie silence lingering down the long hallway as she listened for signs of life. When she heard nothing she sighed and closed it gently behind her before she headed down to the kitchen. It was deserted which didn’t surprise her considering she’d been the one to ban everyone from headquarters for twenty-four hours. It was Halloween and she had been anticipating tensions to be running high and therefore pop ins from order members, Snape in particular, were not going to be welcome. She barely had patience for him at the best of times but definitely not today.

As her stomach gurgled she went to the fridge though as she scanned the shelves she found them mostly bare and with another sigh she decided to have some toast if only to line her stomach for the bottle of red wine she’d bought at the corner shop on the way home.

Her day had gone as it usually did, visiting Marlene’s grave and then Alice and Frank at the hospital. When she’d gone back to St Mungoes she had still stuck to her once-a-year visit, still finding it hard to bear, but since the pressures of war had started to mount she’d found herself dropping by the memory ward more often. Alice had always been a good sounding board and even now when she couldn’t offer solutions Daisy found it comforting to have someone listen to all of her problems. After all, it wasn't like she had anyone else. Order members wanted to speak about order business and she didn’t dare lay her burdens on Harry. Remus had been sequestered away for the past few weeks on a mission involving members of Greyback's pack so the normal comfort she had on this day had been cruelly snatched away from her.

The only person she had was Sirius and to be honest she had been looking forward to having him close today. It was their first anniversary together, their first chance to share in their grief.

Or it would’ve been if he dared to come out of his room.

Daisy wasn’t surprised. When she had first landed at Grimmauld place they’d been overjoyed to see each other, their longing finally satiated after months of only being able to speak by phone. Even with the stress of Harry’s trial they’d made the best of things and Daisy had been so happy just being with the pair of them she’d managed to push the worries she’d been having from her mind most of the time. Only when Harry had returned to school and the Weasley’s had moved back to the Burrow things had started to take a turn. Order pressures had started to mount and now that it was just the three of them living there it was easy to feel the absence of one person. And Sirius had started to become sullen and moody. Daisy tried to believe it wasn’t her, that he was frustrated with not being able to help, especially when he was subjected to being mocked by Snape at order meetings or having to hear how Dumbledore was forcing Harry to be under his tutelage, but as time went on she started to worry it was more than that.

Because when Remus was around he made himself present. He came out of his room and joined them, sometimes it was even like they were teenagers again. Sometimes they'd spend the evening in the drawing room, Remus reading by the fire and Daisy and Sirius chatting quietly as the gramophone echoed quietly through the air. But when Remus was out he barely surfaced. Since he had been away on this mission she’d seen him a handful of times and each time he’d looked as though he couldn’t wait to get out of her presence, every reply he gave her was quiet and curt.

In recent days she had taken to not saying anything at all whenever he appeared which was just as well considering once he’d noticed she was in the room he’d made some flippant excuse and left. It was agonising and she felt utterly alone.

As her toast popped up from the toaster she found tears slipping down her face and she was forced to brush them aside so that she could butter it. She ate it over the sink. It tasted bland and it didn’t pair well with the large glass of red wine she’d made herself but it stopped the alcohol from rushing to her head too quickly which she figured was wise seeing as it was the first thing she’d eaten all day.

Once done and the wine bottle and glass in each hand she headed upstairs to her room. Or rather Regulus’ room. Sirius had picked it out the night she had arrived. It was at the very top of the house and he had cited it being a prime location seeing as the Weasley clan were soon to descend and it would be out of the way of everyone. She had pretended not to realise that it just so happened to have the benefit of being just across the way from his own room because in the start that had been a good thing, she felt happy to know he was nearby, that he was safe. But now it was torture, to have him so close and yet so far away.

As she got to the top stair she hesitated, leaning to see if she could hear him knocking around in his room but it was deathly silent. She wondered if he was downstairs with Buckbeak, the only other place he could be found these days, but she hadn't heard him in there as she had passed either. For all she knew he was standing stock still to ensure he didn’t lure her in, like he was a gazelle and she was a lion ready to attack. Daisy sighed and headed into her room, pushing the door too.

The room wasn’t overly large but the ceilings were high which made it feel grand and luxurious as did the green canopied four poster and dark wooden furniture that made up the décor. Green seemed to be the chosen colour scheme though it wasn’t the emerald of Slytherin house as she might expect from a teens bedroom, rather a dark forest colour. It felt dower and depressing. And as Daisy sunk down onto the floor Daisy felt for its former inhabitant. Had it had this effect on him, a teenager stuck in this dark and gloomy room?

Was this how Sirius felt? It wasn’t as though the rest of the house was bright and cheery despite all the restorations they'd been doing. Did he feel boxed in? From one prison to another?

But if so why pull away? What good was that surely he would know that she could help him, that she would want to help him? Didn’t he trust her? Or had he realised that without Harry here he didn’t feel the way he thought he did.

The thoughts were suffocating, swirling around her brain without landing and yet still managing to make the wine and toast she had downed churn around inside her. So she decided to clear her head. With music. 

When she had moved in she had brought her CD player with her and since then had been trying to jinx it into paying without electricity. It had been difficult but soon enough she had managed to get it up and running and so she flipped up the lid and slotted in a new CD she’d picked up at the market the other day.

It was the muggle band Oasis. She liked them though admittedly her penchant for following music had dwindled since she’d got rid of the shop. But their lyrics were good and the beat was loud enough to get the questions out of her head which she couldn’t turn her nose up at. Instead she allowed the songs to take hold, resting back against the bed frame and closing her eyes as she tried to calm herself. Not that that happened.

She didn’t know why she had thought it would. Music had always been a release for her, of both happy and sad emotions, and given the upheaval she had been feeling for the past few days, or rather weeks, she wasn’t surprised when it all became too much and tears started to pour from her eyes. She let them come, not even bothering to wipe where they gathered under her chin. In fact she only opened her reddened eyes as the song started to skip, the words becoming warbled as they played through the air. When it didn’t stop she pushed herself up with a groan, wiping her face with her shirt before she attempted to fix the problem. But not even a wipe of the disc or blowing into the player itself could make the track stop skipping, the scratches mocking her every time she pressed the play button. 

‘Oh come on you stupid thing,’ she grunted, hitting play once more only to be taunted by a screech and click, the Gallagher brothers voices garbled as they tried to sing.

‘Just play it!’ she snapped, smacking the CD player hard though that only caused it to stutter more before it ceased playing any music at all. At that Daisy lost her temper, hastily pressing the eject button before she yanked the CD from where it was still spinning and launched it across the room. It hit the painted wall with a dull crack before bouncing onto the wooden floor, mocking her still as it spun on its edges before landing.

As she had flopped back onto the floor Daisy had been watching it intently so when she looked up she was surprised to find she wasn’t alone with Sirius standing in the door frame looking awkward.

‘What are you doing?” she snapped, feeling her cheeks tinge red once she realised he’d seen her entire outburst. Sirius looked just as awkward as she felt, loitering by the door as if he didn’t know whether to come in or flee as he answered, ‘I, er, I heard the noise, I thought there was something wrong.’

‘It’s the CD player,’ she explained pointing at the now abandoned hunk of plastic in the corner angrily, ‘it doesn’t like magic.’

‘Oh,’ Sirius said, looking at the machine as if he didn’t know what it was.

‘It plays music,’ Daisy said, ‘I just, I just wanted to listen to some songs but well it has other ideas.’

‘Well you can always use my record player if you want,’ Sirius said though as she looked surprised he cleared his throat and said, ‘I mean it's in my room so you couldn’t listen in here so I understand if you don't want to.’

‘I do,’ Daisy said, finding the answer coming quicker than she had expected.

‘Right then,’ Sirius said awkwardly before he disappeared from the door and across the hall.

Daisy stifled a sigh and climbed up from the floor before she padded across the hall and to his room. He was dumping some pillows onto the floor when she entered, gesturing for her to sit amongst them next to the table which held the record player. She took a seat on one of the red velvet cushions and leant back against the chest of drawers, watching him as he moved around. He was rifling under the bed, for what she didn’t know, so she soon lost interest, her gaze moving his room. When they’d been more communicative he’d stayed out of his room so she’d rarely been in here but her surprise at just how much it contrasted Regulus’ always got to her. Of course it still had the staples of black décor in ebony furnishings and drab grey wallpaper but the extras were all light. Rich scarlet bedding, tapestries in Gryffindor colours, posters of muggle rock bands and quidditch teams glued to the wall indefinitely. Rebellion, brightness, warmth. Teenage Sirius was built into every inch of this room. And as he turned to her on his knees she looked up at him. His eyes were dull today, dark grey with even darker circles underneath them. Eyes that didn’t match the décor of this room but rather his brother’s. 

She was so busy watching him she hadn't even noticed he was holding a small stack of records until he cleared his throat self-consciously, clocking her gaze boring into his face as he said, ‘I don’t have much of a collection anymore.’

Daisy looked at the five or so albums in his tattooed hands, ‘Mum chucked whatever she got her hands on but I have these if there’s one you want-’

‘Queen,’ Daisy said looking back at him with a smile. He’d been handing them over for her to peruse so they were stacked against one another but she could see the album she wanted sticking out. She couldn’t even see the entire cover but she knew what it was, she’d listened to it enough times. Mostly with Sirius, in their little London flat.

‘You sure?’ Sirius asked, leaning back onto his heels as he thumbed the record out the stack.

‘Yeah,’ Daisy said, ‘it's been a while since I’ve listened to that album.’

Of course she’d listened to it since she’d left their little flat. Owning a record shop kind of meant it was hard to avoid listening to the songs they’d used to enjoy together though admittedly she tended to skirt around certain eras of her favourite bands, keeping up with their new stuff just enough of a link to her past that didn’t overwhelm her with grief. As Sirius moved to set up the record player she felt her eyes wandering, to his pile of dirty washing on a chair in the corner, to the stack of plates on the desk next to it. To the whiskey bottle on his bedside table sitting there half empty. 

As the hammering of piano keys started to echo around the room Sirius sat back, closing his eyes as the screeching of guitars started to fill his mind, removing every last thought from it as he focused on the music. The song was cutting and sharp, venom laced into each word. It was good. It scratched an itch in his brain, the sadness that had been pooling in his chest all day switching to anger and only ebbing as he heard Daisy speak.

When he opened his eyes she was watching him, then again it felt as though she was always watching him these days, but this was more than normal, it was expectant and Sirius realised whatever she had spoken he’d missed and so he asked, ‘huh?’

‘I said you’ve been drinking,’ she said, jutting her head to the whiskey bottle on his bedside table. Sirius watched her, wondering how to gauge his answer. The booze in his system was urging him to say something sarcastic and cutting, like how observant she was, but the way she was looking at him didn’t feel the way he expected it to. It wasn’t judgemental or worried, it was understanding.

‘Yeah,’ he said non-committally.

‘Can I have some?’ she asked.

‘Sure,’ Sirius said, grabbing the bottle and handing it to her.

Daisy pulled the top off in haste before she placed the bottle to her lips and chugged. It was sour and it burned her throat as it rushed to her stomach but it was enough to silence the thoughts in her head for a moment. Because even though she was here, in Sirius’ room, listening to records like they were so accustomed to doing it still all felt odd. Foreign. The silence felt unnerving and strange. It made her feel as though she needed to fill each gap when years ago they would’ve happily sat in silence just near one another. So she needed something to stop that urge. Especially if he wasn’t going to do much talking.

When she was done she wiped the back of her mouth with her sleeve before recapping it and placing the bottle by her knee where her legs crossed. Sirius was watching her, a smile twitching at his lips.

‘What?’ she asked self-consciously.

‘I was going to ask if you wanted me to conjure you a glass but that’s my answer I guess,’ he ribbed.

‘What can I say it’s been a long day,’ Daisy replied teasingly only as she said it the spark that had been growing in his eyes seemed to dim, as if the thoughts that had been shut out by the music had flooded back in, reminding him why he had the bottle by his bed in the first place. Sirius shifted and said, ‘you went out right?’

‘Yeah,’ she said quietly.

‘Order business?’ he asked.

‘Oh, uh, no…personal,’ Daisy said, feeling her cheeks heat up even more so Sirius offered nothing more than a nod. Daisy grabbed the bottle and took another long swig hoping he’d try and divert the conversation away from this sticking point but he didn’t, he just watched her instead so by the time she’d brought the bottle away from her mouth she found the awkwardness too much to bear and the words fell out of her mouth before she could stop them, ‘it's Halloween.’

‘Yeah I know,’ Sirius said quietly.

‘I…I erm,’ Daisy shifted the weight of his gaze crippling, ‘I sort of have a process.’

‘A process?’ he questioned, his brows knitting together.

‘A ritual I guess,’ she said, her throat thick with spittle, ‘I visit them. All of them.’

Sirius said nothing but watched her, she was picking at the skin around her nails, something she did when she was nervous which he could tell by the fast way in which she spoke as if she needed to tell him everything as if he couldn’t understand, ‘Mar’s grave, Alice and Frank at the hospital, Godric’s Hollow…’

He was quiet, watching as she tucked golden locks behind her ear, ‘used to visit Pete too, his grave, but in the past couple of years I’ve knocked that on the head.’

‘Wonder why,’ Sirius said sarcastically. She offered him a weak smile and then busied herself with taking another swig. Sirius thought about it. About her diligently visiting all those they'd lost as though cold stone would make the grief feel any better. As if it wouldn’t consume her the way it did him most days. But he was curious. His grieving had always been done alone, he’d never had the chance to do something like that, in fact he wondered if he hadn't gone to prison would they have gone together, and as curiosity struck he found himself asking, ‘you do it every year?’

‘Yeah,’ she said, ‘me and Moony. It’s the first one he’s missed actually.’

‘Why?’ he asked, a tad more sardonic than he intended but Daisy didn’t seem to get embarrassed but rather indignant as she said, ‘it was my escape.’

‘Escape?’ Sirius asked.

‘Yeah,’ she said firmly, ‘I was a muggle. Fifty-one weeks of the year I lived as boring old Daisy Evans. Me and Harry lived in our boring little town with no contact to our world. For most of the year I had to tell lies, misremember my family and my friends so that Harry wouldn’t get suspicious. And I did. But I allowed myself a week. One week to be me, to remember, to feel.’

‘But you’re back in our world now. Why carry on?’ he probed. Daisy sighed.

‘I don’t know. When Harry went to school I thought I'd stop but I didn’t…it felt right. Actually the only time I thought I wouldn’t was this year,’ she admitted, picking at the foil around the top of the bottle with her nail.

‘But you still went today,’ Sirius challenged.

‘Yeah,’ she said, looking up at him, ‘I guess I needed to not feel alone today.’

Sirius got what she meant, what she’d been expecting. When she’d come to live at Grimmauld place he’d been hoping things would be different too, they’d been building their relationship back up for over a year, but now faced with being near her he was struggling. With Harry with them it wasn’t as hard. Around other people he could be himself, he felt more himself or rather what they expected from him. Harry expected that fun uncle, his dad’s best friend, the stories he’d heard. Even Remus was easy to fall into routine around because he just let him be. 

But Daisy, Daisy he couldn’t fool. Daisy he couldn’t have an off day around or feel out of sorts because she’d know, she’d always know. And what was worse she would want to help, to fix it when he wasn't sure he could ever be fixed. That was why he'd been avoiding her, pulling away and hoping she wouldn’t get too close. But he missed her. And he hated the thought of her feeling alone as much as he hated to be alone himself.

‘Todays not easy for me Dais,’ he said gently, hoping to make her see that he hadn't withdrawn to be spiteful.

‘And it is for me?’ Daisy scoffed.

‘I didn’t say that,’ he sighed.

‘This is our first one together,’ she said, ‘I thought we could-‘

‘What sit and cry and look at how our lives when to shit?’ he said, anger bubbling within him though not at her but at himself, ‘how I fucked everything up?’

‘You didn’t,’ she mumbled.

‘We both know that’s not true,’ he scoffed, ‘and I’ve had years of going over it. Every year, every day for twelve years. So forgive me if I don’t want to do it all over again.’

‘But it helps!’ she protested.

‘It helps you. It doesn’t help me,’ he countered, stormy grey eyes watching her face fall as she asked, ‘is that why you’re avoiding me? Holed up away in here.’

‘Dais,’ he sighed.

‘Is that why you don’t want to speak to me?’ she pressed.

‘Can we not,’ he snapped, his jaw tightening. He knew it wasn’t her fault, that she was bound to have her own way of coping and that it wasn’t unreasonable for her to want to grieve with him now that they had the chance. But talking about it only reminded him of what he’d ruined, how it had gone from bad to worse. How he’d let her down when she needed him. In fact that was something he’d been thinking about a lot recently. Whenever she met him with a happy smile or sounded excited to speak to him, he wondered how she didn’t hate him for leaving her like he did. Leaving when they needed each other.  

Actually it was better when she was angry at him, like she was now, a scowl on her face and her arms folded across her as she said, ‘fine.’

Sirius fell quiet, closing his eyes as he rested his head back against the bed. Daisy looked away, still scowling. She could feel her eyes stinging with tears; at being pushed away or snapped at she didn’t know. She felt as though she didn’t know anything when it came to him anymore though that couldn’t have been true because the beginning hadn't been like this. He hadn't been hesitant with her when they’d been calling on another every week. He hadn't been reserved from being himself when they were in front of Harry and even with a million people in the house they'd started to feel like a proper family unit. So why was he pushing her away? It wasn’t as though she didn’t know he was hurting, that he’d been hurting for the past decade, but so had she. And now they had a chance to heal that hurting, to have a somewhat happy ending, or at least she had hoped for that. Though now it just seemed like a pipe dream.

As the end of ‘I’m In Love With My Car’ started to play, the revving of engines bouncing off the grey papered wall Daisy listened as the needle continued to move to allow the next song to play. It was the only thing that could be heard besides their breathing which was probably why it felt like a knife to the gut as those familiar notes started to play. It was ‘You’re My Best Friend,’ hands down her favourite Queen song if only because of the memories it gave her, two kids singing at the top of their lungs at a gig or dancing away in their flat. It almost felt mocking, to have words of adoration of longstanding love shoved in her face when the pair of them had never felt further away from each other whilst in the same room.

In fact as the chorus started to play she rolled her eyes and huffed a laugh which grew as she found Sirius watching her curiously. Soon enough she was laughing away to herself and before he could stop himself he found himself joining in, her giggling infectious. When it died down he leant up, gesturing for her to give him the bottle which she did, watching as he down a deep glug, barely wincing at the burn as it ran down his throat.

Then he leant forward, watching her closely. Daisy dropped her gaze feeling awkward, seeing as she thought he was going to offer up something deep and meaningful but he didn’t, merely saying, ‘we could play a game.’

‘A game?’ Daisy asked, her head snapping up as she looked at him confused.

‘Yeah a game,’ Sirius replied.

‘Why?’ she said incredulously.

‘Why not?’ he shrugged, leaning back against the bed.

‘What game?’ Daisy asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. Sirius looked as though he was thinking but it took him all of two seconds before replied, ‘truth or dare.’

‘Truth or dare?’ she scoffed.

‘We have booze,’ he countered by offering up the half-drunk bottle.

‘And we can get drunk without going through the rigmarole of it all,’ she said, yanking it from his hands, ’besides it’s pointless.’

‘Is not,’ he retorted.

‘You always pick dare,’ she countered.

‘And you always pick truth,’ he replied as if he’d proven his point. When Daisy rolled her eyes he said, ‘oh come on what else are we going to do? Sit here and be maudlin?’

Daisy didn’t particularly feel up to answering silly questions or doing ridiculous dares in fact she was pretty sure that silly little dares were only able to be thought up in the brains of teenage boys and that they would both struggle to even come up with anything but she was still irritated by being snapped at and didn’t want to prove his point about wallowing. 

‘Fine,’ she grumbled, ‘but I’m going first because I can’t think of a dare yet.’

‘Okay, truth or dare?’ Sirius asked.

‘Truth,’ Daisy said, earning a smug smile as she confirmed the cliché. Sirius thought for a minute, tapping his finger on his chin exaggeratedly and making her roll her eyes.

‘Oh I’ve got one,’ he said amusedly, Daisy braced herself wondering what could put such a glint in his eye, ‘do you think Snivellys ever…y’know?’

‘What are you twelve?’ Daisy chuckled at the way he gestured the insinuation.

‘It’s a fair question,’ Sirius said proudly.

‘I don’t know,’ she said honestly.

‘But do you think? I mean I thought age might have improved him but the way he still stalks into order meetings I doubt he’d have much pull,’ Sirius reasoned, as if he’d been thinking about it more than anticipated. She supposed she didn’t blame him, Snape was rather cutting in every interaction they had, pointing out how Sirius couldn’t do much of anything to help out with the order whilst he was sitting pretty beside Dumbledore.

‘I don’t know but I suppose it must’ve happened at some point,’ she reasoned. Of course she’d never known him to have someone, in fact she wasn’t entirely sure he hadn't still held a candle for Lily well into her marriage, but that didn’t mean it couldn’t. After all, sometimes loneliness was just too much, she was sure Sirius could understand that, she did.

‘Poor girl,’ Sirius chuckled.

‘There’s a lid for every pot as my mum used to say,’ she chuckled but as she said it a thought popped into her head and she said, ‘okay your turn?’

‘Truth,’ Sirius replied, smiling at her surprise.

‘Okay, speaking of lids and pots…do you think Moony has realised Tonks is gaga over him?’ she asked. Sirius laughed loudly.

‘Oh not a chance!’ he laughed.

‘You should tell him,’ Daisy giggled.

‘And get my head bitten off?’ Sirius laughed, ‘no thanks

‘You should! They make a good couple,’ Daisy reasoned, ‘besides it’d be payback for all the grief he gave us two.’

As soon as the words came out of her mouth she wished she could take them back because Sirius seemed to freeze, it was miniscule but she sensed it all the same. And again that knife to the gut was back, a sadness that he seemed to be unable to face the happy memories along with the sad ones. Daisy watched as he busied himself with taking another drink before she looked away only looking back as she heard him say, ‘your turn. Truth or dare?’ 

‘Truth,’ she murmured.

‘Has there, I mean I can see how Snivellys never but you’re hardly,’ Sirius said, stumbling over his word in a manner unlike him before he looked at her properly and said, ‘has there been anyone, anyone else?’

‘No, not really,’ she said quietly, hastening to explain as he looked confused, ‘I mean I’m not going to say I’ve been a nun but there’s never been anyone like…that, like us.’

‘Why not?’ he asked, his voice so deeply curious she thought she might cry.

‘It’s not exactly easy when you’ve no babysitters about,’ she joked.

‘Right, yeah,’ he said flatly.

‘But I suppose that was only a small part of it,’ she added, ‘most of it was that I didn’t want it…if it wasn’t us. I mean call it delusion but I guess I figured love like that was one and done. Didn’t really see the point at trying to find cheap imitations.’

Sirius nodded but said nothing and now that there were now words in her throat she felt the urge to replace their weight with alcohol, taking another deep swig from the bottle. They were teetering on the edge of sharing, admittedly more on her that she would've liked and whether they'd become more comfortable or the alcohol was heightening her confidence she decided to change that one sidedness.

‘Can I ask you a question?’ she probed gently, her nail scratching at the foil again with nerves.

‘Yeah,’ Sirius replied quietly.

‘Did you hate me?’ she asked tentatively.

‘Hate you?’ Sirius frowned.

‘For not believing you,’ she explained.

‘No,’ Sirius said firmly and one look in his eyes made her believe him.

‘But I knew,’ she said thickly, ‘I knew there was no way you could have and I didn’t fight.’

‘You did what you had to to keep Harry,’ Sirius said.

‘Yeah you know that now but then?’ she said looking at him as if he was mad to be at peace with it, ‘you're telling me you weren’t angry that you were rotting in that prison? That it doesn’t bother you I was out with Harry. That I could have fought but chose to stay out-’

‘I wasn’t angry at you,’ Sirius said firmly, ‘I was angry at myself. I was angry for not thinking, for rushing into some stupid vengeance without thinking of you. I was angry at Pettigrew. But the moment I was caught I knew I only had myself to blame. And that’s why I can't spend my time hashing it all out. I can't spend days agonising over everything because at the end of the day I brought it on myself.’

‘That’s not true,’ Daisy said angrily.

‘I trusted him!’ Sirius reasoned.

‘We all did!’ she replied.

‘I made him secret keeper!’ he said, bouncing her argument back.

‘James and Lily did that,’ she said firmly, holding up a hand to silence him as she continued, ‘we all trusted him, Pads. And one rash decision shouldn’t have cost you everything.’

‘I should’ve thought about you and Harry,’ Sirius said sadly.

‘It’s easy to think that,’ she said, moving till she was sitting beside him. They were no longer facing one another but they didn’t really need to, the way she interlaced her fingers through his speaking loud and clear.

‘But we don’t know what we’re going to do in the moment. How grief will make us feel. I mean you stopped me running into that house wandless and distraught,’ she said, trying not to the think of the decimated home she’d arrived at all those Halloweens ago even though she was sure she could still smell that stench of burning wood and death, ‘you did think. You thought about me and Harry but you were angry, understandably so.’

‘If I had just told you-’

‘But that’s done. We can't change that and punishing yourself isn’t helping anyone,’ she said.

‘Punishing myself?’ he asked. She could feel him looking at her and as she looked up at him his brows were fused together in confusion.

‘Squirrelling yourself away in here-’

‘I’m not punishing myself,’ he said quietly.

‘Oh,’ Daisy said. Though as the words settled in embarrassment started to flood through her, her cheeks christening pink as she realised their hands were still intertwined, ‘oh.’

‘What?’ Sirius asked, muddled as he felt her unlace her hand from his and watched as she pushed herself up from where she had been sitting.

‘Nothing,’ Daisy lied, smoothing out her outfit as she stood though admittedly the height she was now at made the booze in her body rush to her head causing the room to spin.

‘Dais what is it?’ he asked worriedly. She could have ignored him, spared herself the embarrassment but she found her words coming out, sad and pathetic as she said, ‘then it’s me isn’t it?’

‘What do you mean?’ he asked, standing himself as he could see how flustered she was becoming. Her hair was all over the place from where she’d brushed it away, her cheeks red and her eyes glossy from the threat of oncoming tears.

‘This, you avoiding me,’ she said, gesturing at him vaguely, ‘I thought it was because you were upset about order stuff but it’s me innit. The reason you’re staying out the way.’

‘Dais,’ Sirius said sadly.

‘I thought after the last year we might,’ she sniffled, ‘but you don’t…you didn’t want to tell me right?’

‘Dais it’s not-’

‘I’ve got the wrong end of the stick right?’ she whispered, hiccupping a sob as he looked at her sadly, ‘oh god! And here's me thinking we could have another go. I mean I didn’t think it would be easy but I thought we could try-’

‘It’s not that I don’t want to,’ he said, placing a hand on her arm reassuringly, begging for those green eyes to look at him.

‘It’s not you it’s me right?’ she scoffed, shaking her head.

‘As a matter of fact, yeah,’ he said angrily, finally making glassy green eyes look his way. Sirius swallowed, willing himself to be brave enough to explain, ‘Dais it's not that I don’t want…that okay. I just…I don’t know if I know how to anymore. I thought I would, after last year with us getting reacquainted I just figured it’d be like falling back into place but it’s not. It feels clunky and weird.’

‘But not around Moony?’ she challenged.

‘He helps for some reason,’ Sirius admitted, ‘like there’s no pressure to get it right with him.’

‘And here is with me?’ she said.

‘Sometimes but not because you pressure me,’ he said honestly, his hand going to her jaw so that he could sweep his thumb along it, ‘Moony has his own problems. Harry is just learning who I am so he doesn’t expect anything. But you, you know me Dais, better than anyone else. The only problem is I don’t feel like I know me anymore. Everyday it’s like I have to try and remember who I am and when it’s just us I always feel like I’m mis stepping, like we’re in a conversation and I’m speaking a different language or something. And that’s not us. And it scares me.’

‘So let me help you,’ she pleaded. Sirius dropped his gaze.

‘What if I’m not…what if I’m not the person you remember,’ he asked.

‘I’m not asking you to be,’ she said, moving his chin to make him look at her, ‘you think I’m chasing that twenty-year-old but I’m not. I know you, the real you and yeah there might be differences now but that bit, in here that’s not changed.’

Her hand was over his heart now and he clasped at it, holding her to him as it started to thump against his ribs.

‘We’re both different Pads,’ she said, ‘but I’m not asking for you to fit into some old role. For us to play parts we used to because newsflash, I’m not some twenty-year-old either. We’re both different. We knew that when you came back but did you really think I wouldn’t want you?’

‘Dais,’ he said, unsure of what he was asking from her.

‘We’ve missed years Pads and I don’t want to put off any more,’ she said firmly.

‘I know but what if it doesn’t work out? What if we can't be what we want? What if-’

‘All we can do is try. I’d rather try and fail than not try at all,’ she whispered, pulling him down until his forehead rested against hers, ‘because I know what it’s like to love you Sirius Black and I refuse to deny myself that privilege.’

‘Yeah?’ he whispered.

But she didn’t answer him, instead her lips brushed against his tentatively as if seeking agreement which he returned with gusto, pulling her flush against him as they kissed. The restraint lasted all of two seconds before want and need took over, Sirius moving them to the bed. Daisy flopped down on it, never letting go of his shirt so that he was pulled with her, their movements clunky as he landed haphazardly on top of her.

Daisy giggled and pushed him off, moving herself up the bed as he returned in an instant, lying beside her and looking down on her with a beaming smile.

‘Hi,’ she said, her fingers trailing along stubbled skin.

‘Hi,’ he replied, turning his face to kiss her palm.

‘So…’ she said.

‘So,’ he replied.

‘We’re trying?’ she asked tentatively, her finger dipping into the creases of his eyes as he smiled.

‘We’re trying,’ he confirmed before leaning down to kiss her once more.

SIRIUS BLACK/SERIES TAGS

@mysteriouslydelicateface @caitlin1996 @imthebadguyyy @maeisafangirl

[cerisearan]

"Can I ask you something, Lucius?"

"Anything, My Lady."

"What if one day I am no longer in this world?"

"Then I shall go with you."

[lucius-morningstar]

What I may have planned?

Hey everyone, I am honestly super glad a lot of you are enjoying Lucius and his little run ins with the hotel gang. (And others) While the current time line is on hold for a bit I assure you I have not stopped. But I do have an idea on if you all would be interested. The next snippets I am making will indulge in the earlier life of Lucius. So you'll see interactions with him and Lilith, Charlie and a few other denizens of hell. Who I have planned too incorporate into the younger time line. Should this interest you. Seviathan, Helsa, Rosie, Vox, and of course some of Lucius's friends and flings. You'll get to see his life in a small time line to see how he went from who he use to be to who he was. While it doesn't seem like he has any personality change I assure you it's there. if those of you are interested then please let me know. I really do want to explore a little outside the main cast, hence why Common Ground 2 kinda ended on a story telling basis. If you're interested I'd love to know.

[the-geek-librarian]

Have some low-effort Paladine Wolrd leaders designs bc I was bored in class lol

Asta-The Tyrant beloved baby boy

Yuno- The Cardinal he is a lil sassy man we love to see it

Mars- The Exocusoner he is a lil man let him have his wife pls. I don't really like how he turned out bc I didn't have that much space in my sketchbook, so I will redo him

Ichika- The General, the lesbian of the group she also would like to have her girls back, I'm not sure abt the shoulder armor but we will see also GIVE HER 2 SWORD TABATA YOU COWERD

Lolopechka- The Diplomat, she is Girllbossing, Gaslighting and Manipulating everything and everyone along with Yuno and she is having the time of her life. Not much to say abt this one I really like it bc yk I'm a bitch for Lolo but I might change the hair idk

They are innocent babus they have never done anything wrong *Looks over at the long ass list of crimes that would have Damantio give them the death penalty just by the length of it*

Also the idea of them dressing in Black and white is just so perfect, black represents both evil but also knowledge, were as white represents good but also the lack of knowledge. So by having the black be underneath the white you are indicating to the reader 2 things:

Something that was very commonly used in Helen for Troy was είναι και φαινεσθαι, ειναι meaning "is" and in this context being used to repersent something that is true/ fact and φαινεσθαι meaning "it seams" with it being meant to represent something that is false/ not true more or less being used to imply that things are not as they seem to be. This works well with the black and white thing bc with the black (evil in this context ) being under the white it means that tho the WL may appear to be the good guys by trying bearing true pace to the world they are doing more harm than good.

Now in the case that Black and white are used as stand-ins for Knowledge and the lack of knowledge by having the Black (knowledge ) be under the white (lack of knowledge ) you are showing that the WL are drowning in there own ignores refusing to even consider the idea that they are in the wrong and are just as bad as Lucius.

Also an other thing that can be used with all of the WL is Tragic irony, with Asta it's very apparent. He unironically became the thing he hated the most, a man like Lucius

(pssss @cosmichorrorsarestillnicerthanme, I'm so sorry for tagging you again but I think you will find this really interesting, I don't mean to spam you so again sorry)

[unleashed-fest]

UNLEASHED FEST: WEEK ONE

Week one is done and what a week it was! We're bringing you the round-up and giving you the weekend to catch up on everything before we dive into week two!

🐾

🐾 FIC

Nectar (Draco/Harry, T, 1.9k) Draco's first Animagus transformation doesn't go as planned.

Gym Rats and Whippet Pats (Dudley/Millicent, T, 6.8k) When his longtime girlfriend Milli adopts a dog, Dudley wants nothing to do with him. He's never had a dog and he's never wanted one.

His avoidance of taking care of the new pup is tested when Milli goes on a business trip for two weeks and leaves the dog in his care. Will he be able to step up to the task, or will his inability to connect with the dog endanger his relationship?

A fluffy little romp in which Dudley gets a crash course in pet ownership and learns that it isn't easy to keep a furry companion out of your heart.

Little Menace (Draco/Harry, M, 3k) Draco wants to make his mother happy. Narcissa wants everyone to get along. Harry wants to call Leonora Leo. Lucius wants his son to break up with his boyfriend and marry a good pureblood woman.

And Leonora? Well, she's quite happy playing with all the toys she can find...

The Cat-astrophe (Draco/Harry, E, 4.3) Harry Potter can't sleep. Grimmauld Place is being haunted by a vicious ghost of a cat who inflicts a magical injury onto Harry and the Ministry of Magic sends one of its Junior Unspeakables to investigate. The unspeakable in question being Draco Lucius Malfoy.

The Selkie's Secret (Neville/Pansy, T, 5.1) A series of encounters by the lakeside in seventh year lead Neville to discover a different side to Pansy Parkinson. Despite the war going on, the two form an unexpected bond. Can it be strong enough to survive the Battle of Hogwarts?

Run, Rabbit, Run (Draco/Harry, E, 46k) Harry finds an injured rabbit in the Forbidden Forest.

Which Came First, the Phoenix or the Flame? (Luna/Draco/Ron, M, 18k) It's a tale as old as time: the darkest night of the soul– and taking that one.more.breath.anyway. The hero(ine)'s journey.

Just as Ron is truly having a final, wrackspurt-induced, alcohol-inflamed psychotic break, he finds that there are forces far beyond his control that have a very different path for him. Namely those forces of the Great Houses Lovegood, Bulstrode and Malfoy. Ron and his pet cockatoo, Sturgil, cross a threshold of more than one level of reality. Polyamory, adults doing their best, recovery story, lots of inner narration. Complex!Ron POV. Buckle up.

🐾 FIC AND ART

Every Glade With You (Luna/Theo, G, 2.8) Luna wasn't surprised by the growing number of sightings; she was prepared to save the creatures to help those who didn't believe her, but she was taken aback when Theo decided to join her on the journey.

🐾 PODFIC

Draco Malfoy and the Crupnapper (Draco/Harry, E, 4 hours) Life as a night shift creature keeper is scarcely the life Draco once imagined for himself, but ten years after the death of Voldemort he’s accepted his fate. Until the day Harry Potter forces his way back into Draco’s world and everything turns upside down.

[luciuspax]

Und jetzt ins Kittchen

Lucius Pax : 2023 29 : acrylic on paper : 105 x 75 cm

[malf-oy]

📝Share a snippet of an unposted WIP, with or without context.

ok i choose no context >:)

The letter comes in a blood red envelope and Lucius knows what it will say before he even opens it. 

There is no name signed at the bottom of the single page within, no return address on the letter, but Lucius knows. 

Crow’s Nest, 11pm, at the bar. 

Lucius reads the single line once before incinerating the thing.

That evening he goes to where he’s been called. The man is not at the bar, not yet. He would always be fashionably late, Lucius knows this too well. 

He takes his seat, resisting the urge to sneer at the common, Muggle furnishing, the sticky residue coating the scuffed bartop, the sports game playing on the big flat screen that captivates every patron. He orders a brandy and waits, holding himself still and stoic as he casts a cautious glance around the room. 

“Lucius, my old friend!”

Lucius stands at the sound of the booming voice echoing across the bar. The man that approaches is tall and broad shouldered with a thick head of hair, more salt than pepper, and a finely groomed beard. He’s dressed in a tailored suit with a blood red tie and matching pocket square, and his eyes are obscured behind dark lenses despite the dim lighting. He looks the same as he's always looked. 

When Lucius first met this man twenty five years ago, the man had seemed older. Now, he looks to be Lucius’ age, undisturbed by time. It had taken some time for Lucius to notice, but notice he did. The man is unchanged.

Not once in twenty five years had the man given his name. Lucius knew better than to ask. 

Lucius extends a hand to shake, but the Old Man laughs and pulls him into a hug, slapping him on the back three times, rattling his bones with every good natured blow. 

“How the hell are ya’?” The Old Man asks, sounding so dreadfully American. 

“Well. And you?”

“Can’t complain! What are we drinking? Brandy? Ehyuck,” the Old Man scoffs. He snaps his fingers and a bottle of Scotch appears on the bartop with two glasses, a shameless display of magic in the Muggle dwelling. “Come, my friend. Sit, drink with me. It’s been too long.”

Lucius takes his seat again, watching as the Old Man pours them each a glass. The bartender pays them no mind as if blind to the both of them, which was likely to be the case. 

“My son—“

“Ah, come on. There’s time for that later. Tell me about this law you’ve been working on, something about the werewolves, right? How’s that going?”

Lucius’ brow twitches at the interruption, but there is nothing he can say. He takes the glass that the Old Man slides to him and takes a sip before answering, “We’re met with some resistance. The public, it seems, is opposed to the idea on principle. It has led to a modicum of unrest.”

“Yeah, what can you do?” The Old Man shrugs. “The Public always has something to say, but they can’t stop it, can they?”

“No, they cannot. The deal has been made, Chief Warlock Abignale has accepted your generous donation,” Lucius confirms. “Though it would be easier to pass off if there were not daily sit-ins occurring in the Ministry atrium.”

“Let ‘em work off the energy. They’ll move onto the next cause soon enough.”

“Yes.”

There is a beat of silence while both men drink. 

“I’ve got another job for you now,” the Old Man says, setting his glass down. His fingers are heavy with golden rings, coarse hair curling over the sides, they clink against the glass every time he picks it up.

“What will you have me do?”

“No need to go so pale, it’s nothing terrible, I just need some information, that’s all.”

“Information?” He’d ask Lucius to complete social obligations, form the correct connections, pass the right laws through the Wizengamot. He had others for information. 

“That’s right. Information. I’m looking to learn something new about the famous Harry Potter. You are familiar with Harry Potter, are you not?”

“I am, however—“

“Seems to me there’s a thing or two about that guy the public isn’t aware of. I’m not looking for the published biography, I want to know who that really guy is.”

Lucius takes a small sip before setting his glass down. “Very well. I shall see what I can find. However, I think it worth noting that there was a time when my son was a veritable expert on Mr. Potter.”

“Let’s leave Draco out of this one, shall we?”

Lucius would rather leave Draco out of it all entirely, but that was simply out of his hands for the time being.  

“And how is Draco?” Lucius is careful in posing the question, hoping not to come off as too eager. 

“He is doing just fine.”

“It has been some time since he has come to call.”

“You know how he is,” the Old Man smiles salaciously. “He just got home from Santorini, think he’s still resting.”

Draco is most certainly not home, Lucius thinks though he does not say the words aloud. “And will he–”

“Don’t go hurting my feelings now, Lucius. You’ll have me thinking you’re only here for news of your son.”

“Of course.” Lucius finishes his Scotch so he has little reason to linger much longer. “I shall commence in gathering intel on Mr. Potter. I understand he lives a rather nomadic life. Shall I supply you with his whereabouts?”

The Old Man refills Lucius’ glass. “I know where he is. I want to know who he is. Something we ain’t heard before.”

Lucius stares at the now full glass. This is all too familiar. Why Harry Potter? What has that man done to deserve the ire of every powerful mad man in the world? Lucius has never thought very much of him. Potter was simply always in the right place at the right time, or rather the wrong places at the right times, depending on how one should choose to view it. 

He runs his finger along the rim of the glass. “And if I find nothing?”

“You’ll find something. Go on, drink up. The night’s still young!"

[makethatelevenrings]

For All the Light I Shut Out - FIVE

Chapter Warnings: panic attack

Masterlist (mobile WIP)

“-and I said they were the best damn cookies next to my Ma’s.”

“‘Cause you’re a fuckin’ suck-up.”

“Well, now she won’t stop bringin’ me those damn oatmeal cookies! It’s like she’s got a central line to the fucking Quaker guy.”

Lily stifled her laugh as she passed Sal and Marnie, two of the administrative assistants for the HR and accounting floors. Fawn from the HR department crowed that she had the greatest cookies of all time and insisted on feeding everyone who would talk to her. Most folks learned quickly to avoid her sugary bricks, but it appeared that Sal was her new target.

“Amapola! Get your cute little tush over here.” A hand waved over the heads of the crowd seated in the Wayne Enterprises cafeteria and Lily followed it to find Gloria, Teddy, and Malcolm in their usual seats. Lily set her tray down and slid into her seat, immediately slapping Teddy’s hand away from her slice of pie.

“I’ll beat your ass and you know I will,” she warned. Teddy offered her a sheepish grin which Lily responded with an eye roll.

The administrative assistants tried to get lunch everyday together. It gave them a chance to get away from their bosses and gossip about what was happening on their floors. Lily rarely had something to contribute but she soaked up every bit of information that was offered. She would then help out Lucius by keeping him up to date on office politics. Who was cheating on their spouse, who was possibly embezzling funds, etc.

Assistants saw and heard everything. People forgot that they were present or assumed that they weren’t intelligent enough to understand what was being discussed. Lily had been underestimated and patronized her whole life. She learned to use that to her advantage.

“Hot topic of the day,” Gloria declared. “Bruce Wayne is back and hot as ever.”

“He passed me in the hall earlier and I nearly swooned,” Malcolm gasped. “What do you think his workout routine is?”

“More like, who is…”

“I’m losing my appetite over here,” Lily grumbled. In fact, she didn’t really have an appetite in the first place. For a Fortune 100 company who raked in billions every year, Wayne Enterprises’ employee cafeteria had awful food options. It was free, so she shouldn’t complain, and it was better than when she dug through trash cans for scraps, but still. Was the gray slop on her tray even edible?

“You look like shit,” Gloria observed. “Which is surprising since you average about four hours of sleep a night and still look fresh as a daisy, so what’s up?”

She shrugged and pushed some of the puce-shaded meatloaf across her tray. “Long night.”

Lily could offer up an anecdote about her run-ins with Wayne. She could tell them about how she almost got mugged -- and worse -- last night. She could talk about how her little sister was now in medical school after over a decade of Lily doing everything in her power just to keep Nadia alive.

But she instead deflected.

“Has anyone seen Kallie?”

Kalliope Marks was the only non-assistant allowed in their little group. Where Lily was the science, Kallie was the math. She was a whizz at calculations and quickly became one of the company’s top accountants. But she was a quiet figure who hated being the center of attention. When Gloria asked if she could bring along someone to lunch and Kallie joined them, Lily took one look at the shy woman and decided that they would be best friends.

Gloria grimaced. “Last I heard, Vandeer was chewing her out over a late report.”

James Vandeer, also known as the head of accounting and the biggest asshole of the company. Lily shot out of her seat and tossed the supposed food into the trash. She threw her tray onto the stack growing by the doors and headed for the elevator. Swiping her ID, Lily slammed on the up button repeatedly until the door opened.

The ride to the fortieth floor was agonizingly slow and Lily internally cursed every single dollar that went into the construction of this building. Again, billions of dollars and they couldn’t fund a faster elevator?

The floor was almost silent when Lily stepped out of the elevator. The accounting department occupied two floors and the majority of employees were either in the cafeteria or out at lunch. She swung by Kallie’s cubicle first and swore when she found it empty.

Bathroom, maybe?

Kallie was sweet, but she was also a doormat. She wasn’t a Gotham native, but instead came from Central City after she was offered a job here. Lily’s protective streak ran a mile wide and so when she found out that Kallie wasn’t used to the rough and tumble ways of the city, she took her under her wing. Vandeer yelling at her was bound to make her cry.

Quiet voices in the hallway to the left caught her attention and Lily headed that way. She paused at the sight before her and anger flared in her chest. Bruce fucking Wayne was towering over a shaking, sobbing Kallie. Lily saw red.

She didn’t give a flying fuck if he was her boss or her boss’s boss. As far as she was concerned, he was just a rich trust fund bitch baby who was about to learn a few new insults.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she snarled as she approached them. Lily placed herself directly between them and glared up at Bruce, her dark eyes flashing something fierce. He blinked in surprise and held his hands up to show his innocence. Lily jabbed her finger in his chest, her rage superseding her rationality.

“I don’t know what they teach you rich fucks at Yale and shit, but where I come from, we don’t terrorize innocent people.”

A hand tugged on the hem of her skirt and Lily looked down into the wide, tear filled eyes of her best friend. “He was helping me, Lils. It’s okay. I…I’m just not feeling that great.”

Her hand fell from where she was currently poking Bruce Wayne in the tie and Lily glanced between them. She didn’t have time to feel embarrassed before she kneeled down next to Kallie.

“What’s going on? Gloria told me about Vandeer. Is it okay if I touch you?” At Kallie’s nod, Lily started to rub her back.

“Mac broke up with me this morning and kicked me out of the apartment,” Kallie whispered. Lily’s jaw tightened and she sucked in a tight breath. She hated Kallie’s shitty boyfriend and this was a clear example why. Mac would come crawling back tomorrow, begging for Kallie to come back, and the rose-colored glasses would go right back on. Lily had been urging her to leave him for months now.

“I can key his car,” Lily offered, earning a watery laugh. “I’m not kidding.”

“Should we really be discussing you committing a felony in front of our boss?”

Lily glanced up at Mr. Wayne and found him looking at them with an almost amused smile on his lips. She shrugged and turned back to her friend. “It’s more of a misdemeanor, really.”

“Oh my god, that’s not the point.” The tears had stopped flowing and Lily grinned, wiping off some moisture from Kallie’s cheek with the edge of her sleeve.

“The breakup, Vandeer being a dick as per usual, and being homeless for the day all came bubbling up, huh?”

“Yeah. Mr. Wayne found me sitting here like an idiot trying to do my breathing exercises. It’s so stupid. I had a panic attack over work. I like my job, I swear!” Kallie’s breathing picked up again when she realized who exactly she had been interacting with.

And then Bruce fucking Wayne surprised the hell out of Lily by crouching down in his Armani suit and offering Kallie a charming smile.

“If I’m being honest…some days I don’t like work either. And it sounds like you’ve been dealt a bad hand today. Why don’t you take the rest of the day off? I’ll let Vandeer and Fox know that you’ll be gone for the day because you’re running an errand for me. Miss Amapola can be excused as well.”

Mr. Wayne reached into his pocket and extracted a wallet. He flipped it open, pulled out a crisp hundred, and handed it to Lily who grasped it gingerly, as if it might spontaneously combust when her fingers touched it.

“Use that to buy some lunch,” he explained.

“I’ll leave the change with Ernie at the front desk tomorrow morning,” Lily replied. He met her gaze with an unreadable expression in his blue eyes.

“Keep it. It’s yours to do with what you want.”

“Thank you, sir,” Kallie murmured.

“Feel better, Miss Marks. Wayne Enterprises is lucky to have you and we want to make sure you enjoy your time here.” Mr. Wayne stood and began to walk away, but Lily darted after him and grabbed his arm with the hand not currently occupied with the biggest bill she’s ever held in her life.

“I’m sorry, sir. For assuming.”

He flashed that charming, tabloid ready smile and waved her off. “It’s fine, Miss Amapola. It’s good to see that my company is protected by strong individuals.”

“I was out of line and I really hope it doesn’t reflect poorly on Mr. Fox or Kallie. I was just conc-”

“Miss Amapola.” He held her gaze and Lily felt herself freeze. There was something about his stare that locked her in place, something that didn’t exist for the cameras. “People rarely go toe to toe with me and tell me what to do.”

Her mouth went dry and Lily shut her eyes, praying that he didn’t fire her. She needed rent money for this month.

“It was refreshing and I hope you don’t start to censor yourself because of me. Sometimes I need to be put in my place.”

She opened her eyes and felt her lips curl into a hint of a smile. Mr. Wayne stepped back from her and nodded in farewell before departing for the elevator. Lily turned back to face Kallie and held out her hand for her friend to pull herself up with.

“You got some bags at your desk? C’mon, let’s grab them and you’ll stay with me for a bit. What do you want for lunch? We’re about to make somebody’s day with the size of this tip.”