#no-one ever let Marls live that down

[badhotdog03]

Marlene: Anyone seen my top?

Marlene: It's the one with the red on it.

Dorcas *Wearing Marlene's red leather jacket*: Right here, my darling...

Mary:

Lily:

Alice:

Pandora:

Marlene:

Dorcas:

Dorcas: I said that out loud, didn't I?

[randomwriting]

Love Letters I Won’t Send

Pairing: James Potter x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 1.1K

Summary: In the midst of summertime heat and breakdowns, you find yourself falling in love with all the people around you. (some, more than others.)

A/N 💌: I intend to make this a series, haven’t decided if I should make it fully Poly!Marauders x Reader or not yet, so let me know what you think!

Also this is my first fic ever so kindness & reblogs are sincerely appreciated 💕

Beneath the annoyance permeating the halls of Hogwarts, and infesting every common room but the ones conveniently hidden under wonderfully cool lakes, (an amenity you were not jealous of at all), there was an amazingly rare heat wave sweeping over the entirety of scotland. You had to admit, the timing could not have been worse.

The unrelenting heat was the worst in the Gryffindor dorms, where some of the residents had begun looking an awful lot like one of their house colors. This unexpected side effect meant that dorms were essentially uninhabitable, and swarms of students had taken to the courtyard, the common room, or the halls, in refuge. And since hiding from your lingering feelings in your dorm was no longer a viable option, Lily, Marlene, and Dorcas had been forced to drag you out into an open space where you were far too susceptible to seeing the three boys you had been avoiding like the plague.

“You are going to bloody fucking kill yourself if you do not get out of that room.” Marlene practically shouted at you, after yet another failed attempt to free you from the boiling temperatures of your bedroom. Her exasperation with you, general fury with the world, and hatred of the weather was a dangerous combination. One you couldn't entirely fault her for.

“I'd sooner die than have to face those men, marls.” you heard her grumble something along the lines of “Merlins fucking beard” at your response.

“Look, I know this whole thing is complicated and whatnot, but you are driving yourself mad, holed up in a ridiculously hot room, overthinking about James, Sirius and Remus, when you should be swimming, or living, or fucking someone else to get over them!”

“I agree. You are too pretty and smart and funny and frankly too fucking hot to be sitting here moping.” Lily chimes in, smiling at you, unrelenting in her beliefs, you take a second, in the midst of the chaos, to admire her smile. The ridiculously engaging quality of her shiny teeth, the perfection of her skin and the red hair that floats around her in the sun, too much like a halo for you not to take note. It is so easy to love her. All of them, really. You only wish, quietly, that it was so easy for you to be loved. The way everyone knows Mary loves Lily, the palpable way you all can feel how Marlene loves Dorcas. It radiates under the surface of the whole group and flows further out into the school, they radiate love, and you feel it, in that brief and wondrous moment before you have to face the world, you ask yourself how on earth you got so lucky, that they might tolerate you enough to allow you this close to the masterpiece of their friendships and lives.

“Okay.” You relent, soft yet reluctant, as you come back to the present, a feeling of inadequacy settling heavily on your shoulders and in your lungs, “I'll leave the room but I'm bringing a book, and I insist on snacks and enormous amounts of lemonade if I'm being forced out into the wild.” You allow them to pull you up and out of the sweltering room, only because you’re not entirely convinced you won’t be able to simply meander away into some obscure hallway, cooled by the touch of the century old stone in refuge, the moment Dorcas and Marlene begin to notice just how little clothing there is between the two of them due to the immense heat. You stare ahead as you walk down through the common room, shoulders tense with something indescribable. Lily notices it, she also noticed the soft, odd look on your face earlier, and just like Lily Evans does, she files it away in a neat folder in her mind with your name written on it, one new thing to figure out about you, where exactly it is you go when your eyes get foggy and you drift off.

“Why are you avoiding the boys?” Dorcas asks suddenly, and you feel marlene and lily stop, to turn and look at her the same way you do.

“It’s just easier, if I don’t see them.” You tell her this half truth slowly, as you all continue to walk down the stairs, you don’t miss the dry look you get from Marlene.

“Easier? You were miserable earlier and I can’t imagine they’re thrilled at the prospect of one of their best friends disappearing without explanation.” She somehow manages to be blunt and soft and so uniquely wise.

“I have to move on, because we are just friends. That’s easier to do when I’m not constantly overwhelmed by Remus reading to me, and Sirius’ relentless flirting, and James calling me-”

“Angel! There you are.” A sweaty James Potter practically yells from across the courtyard as he sees you. Your heart stops, the sun is on his face and bouncing off of his glasses, his hair has never looked this good, ever. It’s damp and sideswept and you just know Sirius has been somewhere near it, because it looks particularly soft. You aren’t sure he isn’t actually an angel of some kind as he jogs over to you and the girls in his white tank top and shorts, positively beaming.

“Nice to see you too, potter.” Marlene snarks with a grin as James enters your personal space.

“Oh come on Marls, you know I’m always positively thrilled to see you.” His smile unwavering as he looks over at her, you take that moment of freedom from his gaze to wipe the sweat that formed away from your brow, and to start a silent conversation with lily, which really only pertains you mouthing “help” and her grinning at you happily, thrilled with the confrontation. She hated when you hid from things, from yourself.

“Did you put on sunblock? Sirius has plenty, if you haven't.” James asks you softly as he leads the small group to the tree where he had come running from, you can just make out Sirius and Remus under it, Sirius sprawled out on the grass, head in remus’ lap, who’s back is against the tree as he reads. You’re struck with fondness yet again as you look at them, finding it all too easy to fall back into that habit of loving them from afar.

“I did. Lily made me.”

You answer, with a playful glare at your favorite redhead. James’ smile grows somehow larger at the playfulness. You watch Lily sling her arm over Dorcas, you laugh as Marlene shoves it off, grumbling playfully about how she should go find Mary if she wanted to get all lovey dovey. Despite the tension you can feel, always present it seems, since you fell for James, there is an easiness. Perhaps because of the warmth and the abundance that comes with this time of year, or maybe just because you have found yourself living here, with people who you feel if you didn't already have magic coursing through your veins, would make you believe in its existence. They were just that wonderful.

[stubz]

"Human Max?"

"Mmyesh?"

"Why'd you ruffle my feathers?"

"Oh, I used to do that to your sister when she came here. I won't do it anymore if you don't like it though."

"No. I liked it. It was kinda like when Mom and Dad clean my feathers. Tickly and scratchy."

"Well that's good."

"...Human Max?"

"Yes?"

"Why did you ruffle Salia's feathers?"

"Hmmmm, Iiiiiii don't know. I just did it without thinking."

"Why?"

"Maybe because my family did that to me when I was a kid and so I wanted to continue that with you kids."

"Why?"

"Why I wanted to continue it or why my family did that to me?"

"Both!"

"Emira why do you do this to me. Oookay! Lemme think for a sec" they said while thinking of an answer to hopefully prevent the why apocalypse.

"Uhhh-I think it's because humans just like physical touch from people we like, love and care about...Yeah! In fact, if we don't get enough we get touch-starved."

"This sounds like a trick."

"Would I ever trick you?"

"Yes, you said that humans will die from loudness to keep us from screaming too much."

"...you got me there but I promise you I am not lying."

"...you really get 'starved' if you don't get touched enough?"

"Erm, by 'touched' I mean hugged, high-fived, hand-holding, head pats, stuff like that. Not something that sounds like the start of a dirty joke..."

Few days later~~~

"Max! Get in here! Now!

"What?! Did someone get hurt?! Did Qiqi eat glue again???"

"Look."

Max finally came around the corner and saw the other human trapped in the most adorable way ever imaginable. Younglings hugged and clung to Kim like they were a lifesaver in a terrible storm. Legs were trapped and sat on, weighted to the ground by children. Waist and torso were covered by living backpacks/frontpacks. Arms shaking while trying to hold the younglings in their arms while steadying the ones clambering on their shoulders.

"Help. Me."

"Let me get my phone I need this as my new wallpaper."

"Max! I'm seriously about to crush like 10 kids with my fat arse if I don't stand properly in the next 10 seconds."

"Got it, can't have you manslaughter children. Hug time's over kids, off of Kim."

"But Maxie if we do then Kim will die!"

"Marl for the 5th time I'm not dying."

"But your starving!"

"Sweetheart please, I am most defiantly not starving."

"Emira said so tho!"

"Yeah! You were stuck in your room for days with no one to hug you! And Max told me that if humans don't get enough hugs or pats you'll starve!!" her beak quivered, eyes starting to get glassy.

"Oooh, Emira, kids, Kim is fine. Yes no one was there to give Kim hugs but she's fine. For a human to starve for hugs will take some time, and Kim wasn't gone for that long."

"Really?"

"Really, besides I was there to give her soup and high-fives so she wouldn't get lonely."

"...can we still hug you for a bit longer?"

"Of course, but let me sit down so I don't fall down."

The younglings clamber of her and allow the human to sit and then climb back ontop her. Noting how not everyone got to hug Kim, Max came in and together the humans were trapped by a mesh of children clinging tightly to their favorite humans.

"Max."

"Yeah Kim."

"As punishment for what happened your buying lunch...and carrying me to lunch cause my legs are in a coma right now."

"Fair enough."

[luveline]

so first I would just like to say I love your writing and if it's alright I have a request Sirius x reader who comes off as confident and flirty but the moment Sirius does anything about it they just shut down and their face goes red

thanks for reading and your request!! ♡ late 90s AU,

cw reader can physically blush ! 

"See you later, handsome," you say cheerfully, hand on the doorway, head poking into the living room. 

Sirius looks up from his hand of cards, knowing you're talking to him, and glares. "Where do you think you're going?" 

"I have work in the morning, I have to go sleep. I know you'll miss me, Siri, but these things come to pass." 

James snorts a laugh and Remus reaches out to steady his drink seconds before Sirius knocks the table standing up. Dark hair falling into his eyes, Sirius climbs over his friends' knees and meets you at the door. "Come on, I'll walk you to your car," he says. 

Your pulse jumps in response to his sudden closeness, but thankfully you retain your cool. Together, you walk out of Lily's flat, down the metal steps, footsteps grinding rust and popping puddles. You'd hoped he'd speak first, but Sirius seems content to walk in the quiet with you. 

"Did you like the CD?" you ask. 

"I did. Hey, the girls… well, Marl said you had to do that on a computer, and it must've taken you ages." 

You burned him a playlist of love songs, some subtle, most less so. It was a joke, sure, but a joke that took hours and hours of time and a lorry load of patience. You'd drawn hearts all over the slip cover, and wrote his name in perfect font on the CD itself. 

"It didn't take that long. I'm great with technology," you brag. 

Sirius smiles at you. "I know you are, dove." 

Your foot slips off of the pavement. Strong hands are quick to save you, curling around your arms bruisingly tight and pulling you back up again on proper footing. "Careful," he murmurs, sounding tender. 

You feel your heart again, the contiguities you share burning hot and the space between you impossibly small. You look up into his face, Sirius looking down, the perfect curve of his bottom lip like a siren call that pulls you in, yanks you near enough, your brain begging you to ask him even as you begin to melt. 

Sirius frowns. "What, did you hurt yourself?" 

"I– no," you explain, a mumbled stammer you know you will never, ever live down. 

Sirius turns smug slowly. You watch it happen in horror, the inching of his eyebrows, the way his chin tilts ever so slightly upward. He looks down his nose at you, his hands relaxing where they'd been melding the soft fat of your upper arms, fingertips meandering down the length of your arm to your cold hand. 

"You aren't embarrassed, are you? You only tripped."

You shake your head uselessly, unable to speak. There's flirtation, and then there's this, the reality that Sirius could kiss you, that you want him to, and that he might want it more. 

"You're blushing," he says. 

"Am I?" you ask morosely. 

He raises a hand to your cheek, feeling the heat of your flushed skin in his palm with the practised ease of someone who's pictured doing it a hundred times before. 

"And you're awfully quiet." 

A breath shudders out of you without permission, eyebrows lightly creased. You're waiting to see what he'll do. 

"Relax," he says finally, the intense cadence of his voice replaced by a sweeter concern, "it's alright. I didn't mean to make you so nervous, dove. I was teasing, but… I think I might've gone too far."

You shake your head. His hand slides down to your neck. 

"No? Good. Let's get you back to your car in one piece, yeah? It's a good thing I came, really, or the next time I thought about kissing you I might have to picture you with two missing front teeth." 

Your laugh comes out choked. Sirius sighs fondly, nudging you in the direction of your car. 

"Come on. I won't tell anyone you're a fraud, by the way." His hand settles at the small of your back. "Your secret is safe with me." 

You'd say thanks if you had the wherewithal, but his constant touching distracts any sense. 

[thedvilsinthedetails]

rosekiller band au microfic pt4

heyyy guys pt4 is hereeeee

ok so this one is a bit shorter bc I’m a bit tired today but I rlly wanted to write it anyway so I did lol but it’s not been edited like at all so there may be typos pls point them out if u spot them so I can fix them tyyyy

yayyyyy I love this one

Ok ppl who wanted to be tagged/wanted the next part: @good-oldfashioned-lover-girl @picklerab23 @nikholascrow @always-reading @weirdtinkerbellversion @lady-stardust-incarnate @depressedtheatrekiddo @y0url0verb0y @idk-what-to-put-here-123 @lulublack90 (as always pls lmk if u want to be added to the taglist/don’t want to be tagged x)

link to part one

link to prev part

(EDIT: link to next part)

***

Barty’s stomach flipped as Evan looked at him, stunned and stunning. Then the moment was broken and Evan turned his head to look at Dorcas who seemed to be fighting back a laugh. This was stupid fuck this was stupid.

“Did you know about this?”

Evan asked Dorcas who shook her head.

“First time I’ve heard about it.”

Stupid, STUPID. You’re so stupid Barty why would you go and say that. You should have said no when Marls suggested it, should have said no straight away.

“It’s um- to make a statement. Kiss on the stage to piss of Riddle but it’s fine you don’t have to-“

“It’s a good idea.”

Evan said quickly.

“Oh, yeah it was Marls’. Wouldn’t want to um…steal the credit.”

Wouldn’t want you to think that the idea of kissing you plays on repeat in my mind every second I’m awake. 

“Yeah. I um- I want to. I think it would be good-“

Brilliant actually it would be fucking brilliant Rosier.

Barty amended Evan’s statement.

“To make a big statement.”

“Yeah.”

Yeah. Yeah what other reason would there be Barty? What were you hoping for? Pathetic isn’t it. The way you would gladly lick the crumbs left on his plate if he asked you to. He doesn’t want to kiss you, he wants to piss of homophobes. Don’t forget that.

It was in fact too late for Barty to not forget that because all that was ringing in his ears was ‘I want to. I want to.’ Because honestly Barty was going to kiss Evan. Maybe for the only time ever in his life. But he was going to. He’d never even thought it a possibility before. 

•••

I figured out that this modern world is turning the wrong way round

There’s something about the way our bedsheets turn religion upside down

So we just have sex to solve all our problems

Let’s do it again

It had been Pandora’s idea for the kiss to happen during ‘cotton candy’ and everyone had immediately agreed. It was a stroke of genius really. Barty had originally thought it should take place in a love song, but that wasn’t what this kiss was about. This kiss was about the freedom, the liberation everyone deserved to be who they were, to test their limits and experiment and not be judged for being queer or straight or promiscuous or prudish. Cotton candy was just that. A call for sexual liberation, a call to stop demonising young people for living their lives.

And I wanna get stuck between your teeth like cotton candy

So you remember me darlin’

Barty turned his head to look at Evan. Their microphones were too far apart on separate sides of the stage, everyone hated it. He felt uncomfortable so far from Evan, they just performed better when they were up close together. The crowd had actually been pretty annoyed when they saw it at first. Still when he looked he saw Evan staring back at him. He cocked his head sideways, a silent, last minute ‘are you ready?’ Evan nodded. 

Im losing myself in you 

In you 

In you

In you 

In you

I know

Evan stopped playing the guitar and let it just hang around his neck as he took the microphone out of the stand. Barty watched him before taking his own mic out the stand too.

I’m losing myself in you

In you 

In you

In you 

In you

I know

They turned to face each other and Barty began to walk.

Leave me in the morning, although

I don’t wanna be on my own

They met somewhere in the middle of the stage and suddenly the scream of the crowd dulled and the music stopped and for a moment there was nothing except Evan. Evan Evan Evan. His eyes staring straight into Barty’s. The hushed sound of their soft harmonies. The warmth of his breath dusting Barty’s face as they pressed their foreheads together.

I’m losing myself in you

In you

In you 

In you 

In you 

I know.

And they kissed. The crowd screamed. And suddenly the world was filled with colour even though Barty had his eyes screwed shut. Kissing Evan was like…fuck Barty was no wordsmith, Regulus and Pandora wrote their songs. But kissing Evan was everything. He tasted sweet and minty like the gum he’d chewed right before the show. His hand was warm and calloused and currently threaded through the hair at the base of Barty’s neck, tilting his head up just so.

The instrumental was over, they’d missed their cue. Barty didn’t care. They kept on kissing till the song faded to a close and even then kept going till the clap of the crowd died down. They softly broke away but Barty couldn’t hide the grin that broke onto his face. Evan just grinned right back.

***

AHHH YAY OK I LOVE THIS SONG CAN I JUST START BY SAYING THAT

Watch the music video for this song (cotton candy by YUNGBLUD)

LOOK AT THE SKIRT HE WEARS AND TELL ME BARTY WOULDNT WEAR THAT

Also what do we thinkkkkk they finally kissed!!!!!!

Ayyyyyy

ok stay tuned for the FIFTH and FINAL part (probs gonna be released tmrw hehe)

Also I’m probably gonna put this on ao3 btw, not gonna change it bc I don’t have the patience to properly lengthen it (at least rn, ig u never rlly know) but it’s just like if ppl want to bookmark it or reread or whatever it’ll probs be easier

ANYWAY LMK WHAT U THOUGHT

😘BYEEEEE

[areyoudreaminof]

Dreams That Answer: A Feysand Playlist

Happy @officialfeysandweek2023! Day 1!

Would any of us be here were it not for Feysand? Would we be goofing around in this fandom if we didn’t love Feyre from the moment she took down the wolf? Would we be such simps if we hadn’t ever read, “Hello Feyre, darling.”? I love them. I love their journey and their growth. I love their blunders and mistakes. The very best kind of epic love story is the one that takes the most time and struggle, but defies all odds. Feyre and Rhys forever, baby! This is especially dedicated to the queen of all Feysand's @the-lonelybarricade.

If my initial character playlists for Feyre and Rhysand represent them as individuals before they meet each other, this playlist is when they come together. I wanted to show their strong bond and love for one another. So LISTEN HERE, and come on behind the cut for lyrics!

After Hours-The Weeknd

Thought I almost died in my dream again Fightin' for my life, I couldn't breathe again I'm fallin' in too deep Without you, I can't sleep 'Cause my heart belongs to you I'll risk it all for you I want you next to me This time, I'll never leave

Arabesque-Coldplay

I could be you, you could be me Two raindrops in the same sea You could be me, I could be you Two angles of the same view And we share the same blood

Holiest-Glass Animals & Tei Shi

Climb until you're getting high Be a part of the scene like you're living your dream Walk the room like you're on fire Like your chasing the truth, gripping tight to your youth

But you're the holiest thing I know Yes, you're the holiest thing, holiest thing I know

Eavesdrop-The Civil Wars

Let’s let the stars watch, let them stare Let the wind eavesdrop, I don’t care For all that we’ve got, don’t let go Just hold me I can’t pull you closer than this It’s just you and the moon on my skin Oh, who says it ever has to end?

Fade Into You-Mazzy Star

I wanna take the breath that's true I look to you and I see nothing I look to you to see the truth You live your life, you go in shadows You'll come apart and you'll go blind Some kind of night into your darkness Colored your eyes with what's not there

Night Terror-Laura Marling

If I look back and he is screaming I'd left him dreaming; a dangerous feat And I'll run back and shake him tightly And scream, "If they want him, oh, they're gonna have to fight me Oh, fight me"

Starry Eyed-Ellie Goulding

So we burst into colors, colors and carousels Fall head first like paper planes and playground games

Next thing, we're touching You look at me, it's like you hit me with lightning Oh, everybody's starry-eyed And everybody glows

Empire-Of Monsters and Men

I find comfort in the sound and the shape of the heart How it echoes through the chest from under the ground As the hills turn into holes, I fill them with gold Heavy stones fear no weather And from the rain Comes a river running wild that will create An empire for you Illuminate There's a river running wild that will create An empire for you

But You-Alexandra Savior

Speak soft, speak slight now, honey It feels a little empty in the night now, honey Drift back, drift right down on me I know that you can feel it 'Cause nobody else can heal it but you

Hold Back The River-James Bay

Lonely water, lonely water won't you let us wander? Let us hold each other Hold back the river, let me look in your eyes Hold back the river so I Can stop for a minute and be by your side Hold back the river, hold back

Only In My Dreams-The Maria's

Baby stay here The whispers in the trees Are getting near You're everything I need To bare this fear The demons in my bed They're always here It's only just a dream

Lips-Marian Hill

Overwhelmed, hazy eyes Staring at tinted skies And I like, what we do Running wild, just us two

Can't Deny My Love-Brandon Flowers

What's going on in your head now? Maybe something I said? I know that you've been living in the past

Locked up in your room is there any room for me? In the spoils of your mercy In the reverence of your bed In the cradle of the morning What was it that you said?

telepatia-Kali Uchis (please note, much of this song is in Spanish)

You know that I can see right through you I can read your mind, I can read your mind What you wanna do? It's written all over your face, times two 'Cause I can read your mind, I can read your mind I can hear your thoughts like a melody

Wild Green-Foals

Spring is on its way now, lilac April rain Mayfly spreads its wings at the end of a day Let me fold myself in the corner of a day Never leave, never leave, let me stay Let me lay my head down, let me while away Holding back the hours, I'll keep them all at bay Let me fold myself in the corner of a day Before the rain comes and washes us away

Sea of Love-Cat Power

Come with me, my love To the sea The sea of love I want to tell you How much I love you

Ultralife-Oh Wonder

Days passed slowly, lost and low You gave me hope and now there's only Blood running in my veins I've never been here before And I got love falling like the rain I never could've asked for more I got so much soul inside my bones Take a look at me now I'm young, forever in the sun

Cosmic Love-Florence + the Machine

I took the stars from our eyes, and then I made a map And knew that somehow I could find my way back Then I heard your heart beating, you were in the darkness too So I stayed in the darkness with you

taglist: @wilde-knight @c-e-d-dreamer @climb-the-mountian @damedechance @eyllweambassador @gaeleria @itsthedoodle @kataravimes-of-the-shire @krem-does-stuff @kingofsummer93 @lidiacervos @labellefleur-sauvage @lucienarcheron @octobers-veryown @popjunkie42-blog @reverie-tales @rosanna-writer @spell-cleavers @separatist-apologist @thesistersarcheron @ultadverb @asnowfern @ablogofsapphicpanic @vulpes-fennec @velidewrites @melting-houses-of-gold @wittyrejoinder @bagelfyre @xtaketwox @brieq @thelovelymadone

[eccentrcks]

gone through time ; the prelude

Chapter Title: "The Prelude" Word Count: 4k Synopsis: Nearly tortured to death and just almost at death’s doorstep when she was recuperating. Marlene regained her determination and to continue on living just to ensure that her loved ones are safe, unable to bear if they were to die on her watch. Yet thrown back in time, five decades behind, and found herself in an undesirable situation that leaves Marlene unsure if she’s able to go back home while meeting unlikely allies and enemies in beginning of her new journey. Author's Note: I might cross-post this on Ao3 and Wattpad eventually in the future. I don't know, we'll see. This is a different take than I genuinely anticipated, but my brain had been scrambling for another approach to this series and I followed my gut. Glad I did a lot of improvisations for the first part of the series. Comment to be tagged on, or removed from the taglist if you want! Have a lovely day and night. Taglist: @revnah1406, @welldonekhushi, @alypink, @littlemissclandestine, @walder-138.

“We made it, kid! Just hold on!”

“Tell my mom that… I’m sorry and I never meant what I said.”

“Oh no, no, no! NO! Marlene! MARLENE! NO! Don’t die on me!”

“If you knew it all then? Would you do it again?”

“Where am I?”

“I promise… I didn’t do it.”

“They would’ve been disappointed in you right now.”

“... Just like them to you as well…”

“Hey. You’re a goddamn survivor, kid. Just like your mama. Four times and going. No one with guts like yours could’ve done what you did. Let alone endure the ridiculous shit you’ve been put through. Think about it. You’ve lost and learnt, but it’s all about perseverance in the end.”

“I wish you were my dad...”

“Don’t do it, Marl. You don’t want to end this way.”

…

…

…

The consideration of ending it all had always been in her thoughts ever since losing Anthony. She was just nineteen years old at the time. Her bestest friend, her better half, her soulmate. Her breathing had hitched when she looked down from the window, placed in one of the top floors after getting liberated, with the breezy winds hitting her face.

Until the base had been attacked by an unknown group of operators who definitely knew their shit due to the lack of casualties on their side while she was getting dragged off by Phillip and covered by David with the other Shadows after they jumped out of the floor to the bottom when a grenade was thrown at them.

Lucky or not, she’d survived the impact, sprawled on the floor with the inability to pull herself together. Her breathing was so weak despite having an adrenaline rush. Marlene couldn’t even comprehend her surroundings. The helplessness was there all over again, she couldn’t help herself, or the others, to get out of the danger zone.

It felt like Marlene was slowly dying in the midst of destruction- or so she’d hoped. They didn’t want her to give up so soon, but she held no resistance for the darkness that's consuming her blurred vision. Incoherently mumbling apologies and weakly leaning on Phillip’s shoulder before getting laid down somewhere. Leaving a large amount of blood trails behind them.

They needed to leave her and she desperately pleaded for them to go, which sounded like a wheezy whisper, before she eventually fell into the deep slumber with her heartbeat decreasing by each second. She felt one of them shaking her limp form, shouting her name, and felt their anguished grief. It pained her numbed soul so much, especially when her unmoving face was buried onto someone’s neck while they cradled her in their grasp.

Marlene can’t let anyone else die on her watch. At this moment, she’d die this time for good. Even if it meant without saying properly goodbye to everyone else, although the mere thought of seeing him again to wherever he was brought some little hope to her broken self.

She imagined seeing his stupid, goofy ass dimpled smile. The beautiful light in those vibrant brown eyes that held so much life. The curls at ends of his perfectly brushed short dark hair just bouncing whilst he happily greets her. Nostalgia painfully hits her hard. Remembering she would bury her tearstained face onto his shoulder when they were together, when he was alive, inhaling his soft fragrance, and tightly clinging onto her better half as if he were gonna vanish.

Anthony… I’m coming…

…

…

…

Then her heartbeat was beating once again. Instead of being embraced with death as expected, she was met with the feeling of a long syringe plunging deep into her thigh. Monotonous and disembodied voices were heard with machineries whirring.

Someone mumbled something about her vitals becoming more steady now and got off their knees to walk off after getting called over to assist the others. It sounded like they needed her alive more than dead, otherwise she wouldn’t be slowly waking back up right now.

Her breathing slowly went from shallow to normal, or at least close to what normal as it gets, as Marlene felt like she was laid onto the cold floor, her limbs sprawled, with the ability to move around slowly coming back to her. Regaining and stabilizing her senses too.

Groaning softly and her eyes fluttering open just to see herself in the garage of the overruned base. Largely spacious with crates scattered all over and a group of numerous operators moving around to activate some sort of device. Barely noticing her regaining consciousness and busied with whatever they were doing.

Marlene’s fingers twitched as she struggled to push herself off the floor with a soft grunt. Leaning against a nearby crate after managing to crawl on all fours, without making a single sound, so she can hide behind one of them.

What the hell happened? Why aren't I dead? Why am I still alive? These thoughts ran through her distorted mind as the young woman readjusted her brown jacket over her shaky form and peered over her shoulder to search for a way out.

Unable to understand why and how she is still alive, Marlene knew better than to sit around and wait before something bad happened to her, so her instincts were telling her to evade and think later when it's safe. Just like her mom always says.

Marlene quickly picked at the corner of the crate and yanked some of it, without getting any splinters, although she did chipped a couple nails and didn’t really care about it, to make a handmade weapon. It was the size of her hand, but it was more than alright. Using her nails to make a sharp end and inspected it in her hand after she was done.

Perfect.

Thankfully no one noticed her disappearance and she peeked over to see most of them were still busy. Marlene grunted under her breath when she quietly walked around the shadows while crouching, despite her injuries aching badly, before stopping behind a black bronco.

“Detonation will be ready in five and we have the target subdued,” She hears one of them announce to the radio. “Do you copy? Over.”

The radio cackled in response before another voice was heard. “Copy. We’ll be there in three. We lost visual contact on the other targets, but it doesn't matter, we got the girl. So we’ll be there with the commander. Over.” Someone monotonously answered.

“Copy that. Over.”

Then Marlene noticed one of the operators that was keeping guard, far away from the group, walking towards her area. They wandered closer to her range before pausing in mid-step after hearing a little rustling sound.

Stepping closer to the source of the sound, they cautiously peeked over the hood of the bronco and saw nobody there at all. Straightening up and just stood there for less than a minute before they shrugged it off.

“Huh…” They shook their head, assuming they were just hearing things, or maybe it was a rat, and turned around just to have a wooden weapon shoved right in their jugular and slicing across the throat as they gagged and choked hard before Marlene quietly laid them on the floor so no sound was made.

Breathing heavily as she let them bleed to death before yanking their weapon off them. Heckler & Koch KH94A3. Checking the safety and ammunition. Safety on and magazine full, just what I actually need, thank fuck. She also unstrapped their knife, holstering it at the back of her jeans, before limping off in a crouching position still.

Whatever they injected in me with… I’m not completely immobile compared to before… She considered just leaving before her situation could get any worse, but then they’ll just come after her- or worse, after the ones who she cares about too. I don’t know if they made it out or not…

Marlene decided to take a stand and not yield to these assholes. Hurrying to the other side after hiding and disposing of the body, she mustered whatever strength induced into her, and regained through one's will, they weren’t gonna get away with this. Her morality bar got low a long time ago anyways, she isn’t opposed to taking down whoever is responsible for attacking them.

Mom would do the same thing… She thought grimly before cocking the weapon in her hands.

One of them went to check on her before realizing that she wasn’t laying there unconscious anymore as Marlene rushed up to the unfortunate soul and shoved the end of her weapon below their chin and pulled the trigger.

The gunshot startled the others as blood and clumps of brain splattered on her clothes down to the floor. She couldn’t care less and began creating carnage among them with whatever energy she had left.

Using the crates and unignited vehicles for cover, they didn’t last much due to their weapons and group of numbers, occasionally grabbing onto one of them to use as a meatshield before blowing their head off and dumping them aside, as Marlene didn’t waste a single bullet.

Taking the dead ones discarded guns with the magazines to replace her current empty one. Heckler & Koch MP7A2. Quietly crawling fast underneath an obstacle to sneak up behind another to stab the back of their right calf before using her submachine gun to take them down.

“She’s over there!” One of them shouted to their teammates- which ended with a few bullets through their visor of the helmet, dropping dead as she sprinted, her bad leg making her stumble a little, as Marlene tackled an unsuspecting operator from behind and plunged the knife through the back of their neck. Twisting it roughly before pulling it out. Snatching a flash grenade from the vest and tossing it over with a clicking sound towards a group of seven.

“Goddamnit!” One of them snapped in frustration while removing his helmet, carelessly dropping it aside on the ground, to rub his eyes so he could try to recover from the temporary blindness. “Don’t kill her! We need the target alive!” Squinting and looking around for her whereabouts. She wasn’t nowhere to be seen, much to his displeasure.

Until the sound of an engine being ignited, headlights getting flashed upon them, caught him off guard once most of them were rammed by a bronco. Dropping almost like dominoes and most of them succumbed from the impact.

“... I should’ve known why we were selected for this operation.” The incapacitated operator groaned in discomfort and slowly rolled to his side to try to stand back up on his feet. Just hearing the vehicle’s door opening and slammed shut with the sound of staggering footsteps coming towards him. He looked up at her, seeing the gun barrel aimed at his face, as his target just stared down at him apathetically. No remorse for her actions. He actually has a good amount of respect for that.

Her mother raised a killing machine for sure… He internally commented to himself.

“Before I blow your brains out from your skull. All I wanna know is… Why?” Marlene asked with her hand trembling a bit. Looking down at him, he is a caucasian male seemingly in his late-twenties, short messy dirty blonde hair, grayish blue eyes, and looked like shit from what she just did to him not too long ago.

He remained unresponsive just for a minute before giving her a serious look. “We’re just following orders here, kid. This was just bound to happen sooner or later.” The operator gave a cryptic response instead of a direct one.

This answer barely made her happy at all. This just irritated her and she wanted nothing more than to tear his throat apart with a bullet through his skull. Marlene bit the tip of her tongue in frustration and looked aside to see some sort of heavy looking device, but what caught her attention was that it had a timer on it.

Fifty-nine seconds left.

It looked like it could take the entire building down with that amount of explosives on it. Someone clearly wanted to get rid of any evidence of this attack on this base. Although she was quite unfamiliar with a blue glowy, bioluminescent-looking substance inside some glass tubes tied between wires and whatever you’d need for a bomb.

Shit… Marlene blinked owlishly and turned her head to look down at the man.

As if reading her mind, the nameless man just gave her a blank stare in return. “There’s no point. You won’t be able to disarm it – even if you tried.” He grunted when she kicked him right on the sternum before dropping back down onto his back on the floor when he tried getting up.

“I’d ask who the hell are you, or who are you working for, but I'm not gonna waste anymore of my precious time when you clearly aren’t gonna give me straight answers.” Marlene said coldly and just turned around right after shooting his left thigh and right ankle, he screamed and writhed in pain, as she pushed herself towards the exit. “You can just die here for all I care…” She mumbled under her breath.

I need to make sure they’re still alive… I can’t live with myself if something happens to them… not again… I can’t go through this again...

Just before Marlene can reach for the door handles, it suddenly bursts open, making her stagger backwards slightly, as she is met with an intimidating, masked and heavily armed individual who raises their gloved fist and swiftly pounded it against her face.

Her mouth opened in a silent shriek from the sudden punch as she fell on her backside onto the floor. Ignoring the pain coming from her face. Hastily pushing herself back up with a grunt, looking back up to see her attacker marching towards her, whipping out some sort of electric baton from their thigh holster.

Marlene shouted in pain when they managed to lunge forward to swing the weapon and hit right onto her gut. Almost stumbling on her feet like a newborn fawn, she turned and began running around the garage to avoid the hits while trying to steady her breath at the same time.

“I literally don’t have time for this bullshit!” She can already feel the adrenaline leaving her. This wasn’t good at all. Marlene needed to get the hell out before this place imploded in less than a minute. Unable to think properly while getting chased, she simply found a barrel filled with gasoline ahead of herself, raising her weapon to shoot at it just in time, running past it as being pursued at the same time.

Getting ungracefully flung forward onto the floor, with her attacker flailing to the side, roughly landing against the wall and crates. Their weight crushed them as they laid limp in the pile, meanwhile Marlene sighed in exhaustion against the cold floor, unbothered by the heat against her backside, and pushed herself off the floor to on her knees.

Barely able to fully stabilize herself in a short span of time. Marlene felt her wrist getting toughly tugged by the same operator she’d just incapacitated not too long ago. He yanked her closer and slapped some sort of device, or whatever weird looking watch it was, onto her wrist. She winced when the sharp feeling pierced into her flesh. Recoiling away as the young woman felt like writhing right there when the device triggered something within her.

A gasp slipped from her lips once the device imploded. Flashes of a blinding whitish, bluish hues filled her vision as it felt like gravity became nonexistent.

Then everything became black.

-

It was all bright and everything happened so fast. She could barely comprehend and wondered if she was actually dead this time, or somewhat survived, because this was getting ridiculous for her.

Marlene felt the left side of her face just numbingly cold and wet. It’s snow, she’d know the feeling. Breezy winds hitting the exposed side of her face as she softly groans, slowly pushing herself up, and those brown eyes fluttering open just to see she was in the middle of nowhere.

She felt fine- which shouldn’t be fine. Marlene was painfully aware that she wasn’t born normal like other people, her mom had tended to constantly remind her that since she was young girl, but this hasn’t happened to her once before.

However her head was throbbing real bad with the nauseous feeling hitting her. She couldn’t barely recall the last time she’d felt this whiplashed. Now Marlene could barely recall the entire event that just happened before literally landing here. It’s like recalling bits of scenes of a broken film or something.

And Marlene wasn’t entirely sure if her attire would keep her warm long enough to seek refuge. Her brown jacket wouldn’t be enough against the snow just as her blue hoodie underneath it.

“Whatever, at least I’m not half naked.” She muttered to herself and dragged herself through the thick snow. “I can keep whatever is left of my dignity.” Snorting in disbelief to herself after saying that.

“I need to wait this weather out somewhere warm in the meantime. Something tells me that I’m definitely not in Alaska or Wisconsin.” Marlene sighed, slightly annoyed due to her circumstances, and trudged along into the blizzard. Her boots weren’t suited for winter as well. She can already feel the snow going into them.

The temperature was bringing back some bad foggy memories and she was just glad that nobody was pouring steaming hot water on her at the same time.

~

Marlene shivered and her teeth chattered, wrists twitching against the leather binds, as she was barely able to recover from the bucket of cold water with ice in them getting poured right on her before the bucket of hot water after that.

Dissociation was her friend in this moment as she zoned out while muting out their voices.

Biting onto her tongue and cheek from the inside of her mouth to prevent herself from screaming when the process was repeated. Soon pneumonia would catch up to her if they don’t use the blowtorch on her later.

“Bluebird, tree frog, ladybug… bluebird, tree frog, ladybug…” Marlene kept repeating those words under her hoarse breath and rocked herself at the same time. It helps her pass the time, soon she’ll be back in her claustrophobically small cell, and a few hours of peace will be granted to her before they bring her back out of there again.

~

How long can this go? It felt longer than ten minutes since she’d been walking in this cold hellhole. Huffing and almost wheezing as Marlene pushed her legs forward while rubbing her arms. On the bright side… At least this isn’t the desert where I could've passed out from a deadly heat stroke by now… She tried to be optimistic about this, really, she did.

The device on her wrist wasn’t helping either.

Something sharp that felt like needles was digging deep into her wrist whenever she tried to yank at it, or make an attempt to take it off, but her attempts were futile for now as it remained on her. Chopping her hand off wasn’t an option.

“Bluebird, tree frog, ladybug, bluebird, tree frog, ladybug, bluebird, tree frog, ladybug…” Marlene repeated and continued on as pausing in mid step once she heard sounds of a helicopter, or more than one, above her. “Oh, I don’t like that.” She muttered and shook her head before increasing the pace throughout the thick snow.

Something caught her eye from the right above as a figure moved through the trees with such speed. Barely able to react and just kept going faster so she could find some civilization with someplace warm to recuperate for the meantime.

Hearing someone yell from the distance with some gunfire as it lasted for about a minute before it abruptly stopped. Quite unsettling for her, but Marlene had to keep her cool, no pun intended, and decided to check it out by changing her direction.

Snow got lower and easier for her to move around. Hopping once Marlene got onto the solid ground and practically jogged towards the source of noise until she ungracefully slipped on the unnoticed ice beneath her, grunting in pain when she landed on her bad side, and went to get back up before stopping when droplets of blood dropped next her to hand.

“Huh?” Looking up and almost slipping again once Marlene immediately noticed a dangling corpse, what appears to be a soviet uniform, or what's left of the body, hanging from a tree with a black wire wrapped around their mangled neck. Her breathing stopped there for a moment.

“What in the- oh, what the actual fucking hell!” Cursing when realizing the blood was getting on her clothes and hastily got back on her feet. Messily wiping it off her sleeve and regulating her breathing pattern before a panic attack hits her.

Furrowing her eyebrows and inspecting the mess noticing the necessities, which is a pistol with ammunition, a few grenades, and a small medkit onto the body. Marlene thought about this for a minute and due to her condition being on the thread right now, her moral compass was completely gray at this very point.

… This is so wrong, but I’m gonna need those… Sighing to herself and reluctantly grabbed a long branch after looking around for a second and began climbing onto the nearby tree with ease. Then jumping onto the same branch that held onto the hanging body, her body ached, but ignored it, she began hitting the pistol off. It took some hits for the weapon to fall off as it landed on the ground.

Letting go of the branch and landing on her feet, well, onto her knees due to staggering slightly. She reached down for the weapon and checked if it was full, which it was, before looking back up to aim for the wire after turning the safety off.

It dropped once she shot it loose as Marlene looked around cautiously before kneeling down next to the corpse to take what she needed. “I’m sorry…” Mumbling under her breath and standing back up right after just looting a dead body.

Somebody would've done the same if they were in my position…

Grimacing when the blood continued flowing and the red liquid almost surrounded the body in the snow. Then Marlene made a move on and kept a wary eye over her shoulder just after that, knowing she likely wasn’t alone out here. It wasn’t safe for anyone like her to be roaming around in the snowy woods.

Jesus… How long will it take for me to get to a nearby town? Marlene was sure enough that she might have to take camp for the night sooner than later or else a wild animal will have her for dinner.

“It would be un-bear-able for me if I got wolf-ed down… heh…” She chuckled dryly to herself for making such a wildlife joke, it was good in her personal opinion, when nobody else was around to hear it.

“Bluebird, tree frog, ladybug, bluebird, tree frog, ladybug, bluebird, tree frog, ladybug…” Marlene continued with the mantra and climbed over a log, wincing with everything in her entire body and began to ache again, as she was mentally and physically overwhelmed.

It wasn’t long before she crumbled down onto the ground with a pained sound. One of the most painful headaches pounded at her head as well. The gun slipped from her shivering hands, she could barely move a limp without feeling like she was back in that dark hole again, getting tortured all over, and it only hurt more when she tried moving.

Tears swelled up in those brown eyes as she eventually stopped writhing with her breathing becoming shallow and black dots blocking her blurred vision.

The last thing that she heard was snow crunching nearby with branches moving as a pair of boots stood in front of her limp form.

[carooosa]

Shadows and Strings

Summary: After waking up from a nightmare, you and your party set out on a side quest. You heal Astarion with your magic, but instead of coming from a spell, it comes from the music you play. Word Count: 4k

Tags: AstarionxTav, AstarionxReader, Astarionxbard!Tav, Astarionxsorcerer!Tav

A/N: This is my first fanfic so please be nice. I have many more chapters planned. I plan on this being a slow burn.

For as long as you remember, music came naturally to you. When you were a child, you would hum along with the wind and birds while doing chores. Every mundane task became a pleasant one as you would create symphonies in your mind. While life wasn’t always easy, it was bearable with a melody. Your fondest memories always had some type of music involved…

With the rain as your percussion, you prepared dinner with your mother as your father worked at a nearby inn. The steady rolling boil of the stew that simmered in front of you created a beat with each pop of a bubble; your mother’s quick mincing of vegetables filling out the beat. The sweet smell of citrus and herbs filled the room. As you started to toss the cut vegetables into the pot, you began to hum a tune.

A simple, smooth melody that came from your heart intertwined with the aroma of the stew, filling all of your senses. You made your way over to the spice rack to grab a handful of Balsam, adding a flourish in your tune when the herb fell into the pot. As your mother chopped the last carrot, you finished your impromptu song with a sigh.

“You always know how to add extra flavor to whatever we’re doing, pumpkin,” your mother said while smiling at you with endearment in her eyes.

“You always tell me to find the joys in the small things, and music always brings me joy, so why not add music to the small things?” you reply before quickly tasting your creation. “Perfect” you think as you go to grab some bowls for serving.

As if a practiced routine, your father runs inside right as you place the last bowl on the table, drenched from the rain and out of breath. After setting aside his coat to dry, he turns to you and warmth fills his eyes.

“Don’t tell me the two most beautiful people in my life made my favorite meal,” he asks while quickly making his way over to the table. “This is exactly what I need after a long day of work and an even longer walk home.” Although your father never expressly said it, you notice the tiredness in his eyes and body. Ever since your family had left Elturel in search of a healer for your mother, life has presented you with more struggles. 

Since your family never stayed in one town for more than a couple of months, it was hard for your father to get a well paying job. A trip that would normally take no more than two weeks had become one that was taking well over a couple of years. Your mother wasn’t able to travel far before needing at least a month of recovery, during which your father would find a job and replenish your savings. You had already been at this current town for 4 months, which was the longest rest stop so far.

Your mother had been helping around the house more this past week. Late at night as you slept in the secluded area that was deemed the bedroom, you would hear your parents whisper to each other about leaving.

“We can’t leave just yet, Marls. We barely have enough money to pay for our current living situation, let alone enough for supplies,” your father said in a soft, hushed tone. “I know we need to take advantage of you feeling well enough to move around, I just need to stay with this job for a couple of more weeks and then we can go.”

You didn’t hear your mother’s reply, instead hearing your parents’ footsteps approaching the bedroom. You quickly feigned sleep as your parents laid down on their bedroll. Although they’ve been having more disagreements lately, they never went to bed angry at each other.

When you awoke the next morning, your father was already gone for work. Making your way to the main room, your mother was also gone. As panic started to work its way up to your throat from your stomach, the door to your home swung open. Your mother leaned against the frame with an excited smile on her face, her hands behind her back hiding something.

“Pumpkin,” she wheezed, “I know you love music. I know that you would love to be able to see a performance, I would, too.” The words came out of your mother’s mouth in a flurry. “And I need to make sure you know just how much your father and I appreciate your help. You are so mature and never ask for much. Which is not right. You’re my kid, you should be asking me for toys and treats and whatever the hells you want.”

Your mother looked down at the ground for a second before taking a deep breath and pushing herself off of the door frame. “I’ve been telling the druid that’s been helping me with my condition about how talented you are. How you can make songs out of nothing. How I feel awful for not being able to help you pursue this talent,” she paused, revealing the instrument she had hidden behind her back. “She told me to stop my fretting, and to give you this.”

In your mother’s hands lay a lute. It wasn’t brand new, and it had chips in the wooden neck. One of the strings was too loose. Even still, it was the most beautiful instrument that you’ve ever seen.

“Now, pumpkin, this lute isn’t free,” your mother said as she handed you the well-loved instrument, “there is a price that you specifically will need to pay. The druid will be coming over later to show your father how to help aid me, and she said that she would love to hear you play.”

“But I don’t know how!” you exclaimed quickly, hugging the lute to your chest for comfort.

“Oh sweetheart, I see the talent in you. I know that you’re capable.” Your mother said as she sat down at the table. 

Without saying anything else, you ran to the bedroom and started to practice. It was weird, at first, figuring out how to place your fingers on the neck of the lute, determining how much pressure to put on the strings in order to change the note. But as the hours passed, you became more confident. Certain notes were definitely easier than others, and with the few you felt comfortable with you were able to create a soothing tune.

You could hear your father come through the front door with the voice of another woman. You ran out of the bedroom to see the woman giving your mother a hug before her eyes snapped to you. “This must be the musical prodigy I’ve heard so much about!”

“Come here darling,” your mother says as she pulls out a chair, “this is Shiela, the druid I told you about.”

The evening begins the same as it always does, with small talk and dinner, except this time with a guest awaiting entertainment. You quickly finish your meal and then sit in your chair, fidgeting anxiously. When your father and the druid, Shiela, finish eating, she begins to teach your father about balms and salves that would help your mother in certain situations.

As Shiela finished her lesson, your mother urged you to go and get your recent gift. After retrieving the lute, you came back to see the dining table chairs arranged in a row, like an audience, and one chair facing them. Nerves hit your chest sharply as you made your way to the makeshift stage. Your father had his arm wrapped around your mother, the tiredness gone from his eyes, instead replaced with anticipation. The druid sat on the other side of your mother and looked at you with a knowing look in her eyes.

Your mother sat on the edge of her seat, a wide smile spread across her face. Slowly, you set your fingers to the first note of the tune you had played earlier, your other hand preparing to strum the strings. The nerves in your chest had grown, threatening to suffocate you with the thickness they created in your throat. Your mother began anxiously tapping her foot against the floor, and while your father’s face flashed with annoyance, the rhythmic beat gave you the encouragement you needed to strum.

Although the tempo was faster than you had briefly practiced, your fingers were able to keep up. Your father looked at you in astonishment, your mother’s eyes started to tear, and the druid was waving her hands when a burst of blue light came out from her fingertips and began to dance around you. With the new visual sensation, you began to vocalize. Your father began to clap his hands to the beat you had set. The nerves from earlier had faded and instead turned into something new, something refreshing. While the feeling before left you gasping for air, this new sensation felt like the first breath you ever took. 

You stood up and started to move around the room, unable to sit still as the music filled your heart. Your father lifted your mother up and began to dance with her, the druid taking over the job of clapping to the beat. As your song came to an end, a new color of dancing light appeared: a bright orange. You looked at the druid, and all that she gave you was a wink.

When you looked back to the orange light, it had turned into a fire. A fire that began to frantically spin around the room. You turned back around and tried to find your parents and the druid, but they were gone. The fire had grown now, creating a wall of flames around you that slowly closed inwards. The smell of sulfur and burnt wood filled your nose and throat as you screamed.

“Aw shit, I did it again! Why do eggs burn so easily,” the red tiefling barbarian who was known to set things on fire asked.

“Chtk. If these eggs are too fragile to withstand some mere heat, then they are not worthy to be eaten,” the githyanki who sat on a nearby log replied.

As the wizard who was the designated chef quickly put out the fire with a frost bolt, you regained your senses and remembered where you were. It had been a week since the nautiloid ship had crashed, leaving you and your five companions with tadpoles inside your heads. You had each been taken from your lives and imprisoned on the ship, a mind flayer putting tadpoles in your brains in order to convert you into one as well. While it wasn’t a conventional team, you guys had decided that it would be better to try and remove the tadpoles with allies as opposed to by yourselves.

“Thank gods I don’t have to eat whatever that is,” Astarion, the rogue who turned out to be a vampire, said while shooting you a quick glance from his book. Three days ago you had awoken to the vampire hovering over you with snarled teeth. After a short explanation, you had agreed to let him drink from you. It had taken him by surprise, but he didn’t argue as he repositioned himself to sink his teeth into your neck. While you may have come off as eager, you didn’t mind as you were excited to have your skin broken.

Before the nautiloid you had been an object of entertainment, kept away from the hands of others in order to prevent you from being tainted. Your hands quickly reached up to the two pinpricks on your neck. After the first night Astarion fed on you, you told him that he could feed on you every night, if need be. He suggested changing the feeding spots each time in order to avoid scarring, but you had assured him that it would be better to do it in the same spot. You didn’t tell him, but you wanted the bite to scar.

Unfortunately for you, there were side effects to having your blood drained each night. There was always a dull pain in the crook of your neck, and you had begun to get sloppy in your fighting. You could tell your companions were beginning to get frustrated with you, especially after you had convinced them to traverse the Sunlit Wetlands in order to find proof of Kagha’s betrayal. 

You didn’t necessarily want to get involved in whatever drama was going on in the grove, but you did hear of a special amulet that would cure your bloodlessness and get your strength back to what it was before you had come to whatever strange arrangement you had with Astarion. The only problem was that with all the uneasiness in the grove, and the fact that you were a tiefling, you were unable to search for the amulet without eyes following you around. And you didn’t exactly want to explain to random people who already looked down on you why you were looking for this piece of jewelry.

You got up from your bedroll, making sure to avoid Astarion’s gaze, and made your way over to the campfire, offering your help with whatever you could.

“Unless you have a song that can unfreeze and unburn this egg, I don’t think there’s much that can be done at this point,” Gale said with a sigh, regretting that he agreed to Karlach making breakfast. The red tiefling noticed this and began to shift uneasily beside him.

“Unfortunately I do not, but I can whip up a song to mourn the sacrifice this egg made,” you joked. Gale’s face lightened up as he chuckled, prompting Karlach to loosen up and join in as well.

“While it may have ended up in a few inedible eggs,” she said while tossing the burnt food into a pile of other burnt food, “at least I had fun. Thanks, Gale, I know how much you care about cooking.”

You admittedly weren’t the best fighter, but you were always able to ease the tension in your camp. You weren’t able to end fights, but you could at least prevent them sometimes.

As your group packed the supplies and began to determine the best route to the wetlands, you looked at the hastily written note you had found in the hidden corner of the druid’s library. Kagha. Swamp-docks. Tree. Meet me. Alone. -Olodan it read. You weren’t entirely sure what this note meant, or if it could even help you with what was going on in the grove, but you decided that this was the best bet you had at getting that amulet.

You joined the rest of the group and pointed out the directions you had. You had already made it into the beginning of the Wetlands yesterday, not before running into a skirmish between an elderly woman you had met in the grove and two men who claimed she stole their sister. You told the two that they were on their own as your group had other pressing matters. After they left, Shadowheart came up to you.

“I’ve got to say that I’m honestly quite surprised that you didn’t want to help them. Not that I disagree, we do have more ‘pressing matters at hand’,” she said while mimicking your mannerisms, “I can’t help but wonder why we’re going out of our way to help the grove then.”

It was a valid question. You had originally convinced the group that it was the right and just thing to do, to help those in need. And now you were blatantly telling someone in need that you were too busy to help them.

“Nettie mentioned a powerful Druid named Halsin. He might be able to get rid of these things in our head.”

Astarion was quick to question you again. “So then why aren’t we going to save him from those dreadful goblins?”

You shot him a glare that he met with a raised eyebrow. “I don’t think that the grove will be able to maintain peace by the time we get to Halsin and back.” Your answer seemed reasonable, so you thought.

“Who cares about the grove? Once we get to Halsin, we can have him remove the tadpoles right then and there, before he knows what’s happening in his beloved grove.” Astarion shot back.

“Trust me, Astarion,” you sneered his name, “I know how druids are. They will always take care of what they hold dear first before helping others. The best chance we have at getting him to help us is to take care of the grove problem before we see him.” That had been enough to convince the group to follow your lead into the wetlands, although whether it be for your rationale or for the harsh tone and sharp glare you gave Astarion, they wouldn’t say. 

Now here you were the next day, leading everyone further into the uncharacteristically beautiful swamp. As you spotted what appeared to be docks, you heard an all too familiar whine from behind you. “Are you actually going to make me ruin my clothes in all this mud instead of doing the reasonable thing and finding that druid?”

You chose to ignore Astarion’s remark, instead turning to everyone. “As soon as we find… whatever it is we’re looking for, we’ll go back to the grove. I promise that it’ll be worth it. You guys can just stay here, I won’t be gone long.” While you went on your way, the rest of the party all looked at Astarion. There had been a silent agreement made between everyone that someone would always have to go with you whenever you went off somewhere, as you were known to get distracted or fall into a fight fairly often.

“What are you all looking at me for? Tav is a perfectly capable being who can handle their own problems,” Astarion said while crossing his arms and positioning himself to face away from the group.

“We’ve all been taking our turns looking after them, it’s about time that you start being useful around here,” Wyll spat. “Besides, if it weren’t for Tav, I would’ve slain you as soon as I learnt of your undead nature.”

With a scoff and an eye roll, Astarion started to follow you, mumbling under his breath about the whole party being wild beasts who don’t care about their hygiene. As you walked along the docks, carefully jumping over larger patches of mud, a mud mephit buzzed past your face. Without thinking, you grabbed the shortsword that hung on your hip, quickly killing it. The mephit exploded as your sword slashed it, spraying thick mud onto you and your silent stalker behind you.

“You have got to be kidding me,” Astarion groaned, causing you to turn around and point your weapon towards him. Before you could say anything, your attention was taken away when the gurgling and bubbling of the mud puddle left behind from the dead mephit morphed into a new one.

You knew in an instant that you had, yet again, bit off more than you could chew. Everytime you would kill one of these creatures, one to two could spawn from its place. You needed to find whatever it was that was near that tree and leave as soon as possible. The only problem was that the person who was most likely to evade these creatures was the one who had been the most resistant to pursue this little side quest.

“Astarion, you need to go to that tree and find the evidence while I take care of the swarm,” you commanded as you cast a spell that froze some of the enemies.

“Me? Why can’t you do it?” He asked, shocked and quite offended that you would even consider asking him to ruin his clothes further.. 

“Just go, Astarion!” The frozen mephits were beginning to thaw. “It’s the least you could do,” the words after I’ve let you drink my blood the past few nights left unsaid as you prepared another spell.

He groaned once more before sidestepping past you and running through the swarm of mephits. As he got closer to the tree, his eyes began to frantically scan the bark for any hint of something out of place before finding a groove in the wood that held a small pouch, a crumpled piece of paper inside. He hoped this was the piece of evidence you were looking for, as he was not going to spend one more second in the squelching mud.

While Astarion was grabbing the evidence, you cast cloud of knives into the heart of the swarm. It instantly killed two of the creatures, which upon exploding killed three more. The victory was short lived as seven new mephits started to emerge from the mud.

“Really, Tav? Was that the smartest idea?” Astarion yelled at you as he dashed through the growing swarm. As he made his way back to the docks, a mephit attacked, slashing his side. He faltered for a moment before continuing towards you, one hand clutched to the stinging wound.

You both ran into the wetlands until you were sure you were out of sight, breathing heavily as you regained your composure. As you supported yourself against a tree, you noticed Astarion wincing as he moved his hand from his wound, a greenish sludge mixed in with his blood. “Here, let me heal you,” you said while picking up your lute from behind you.

“I don’t need your help, thanks,” he spat at you, “I’ll just have Shadowheart heal me like she always does.” He began to walk away, stopping when he heard the strings of the lute being plucked. He chuckled, “Now darling, while I do appreciate the sentiment behind ‘music healing the soul’, now really isn’t the time for a serena-” his words stopped in his mouth as he noticed a faint orange glow around the instrument.

The lute seemed to emanate a soft, otherworldly glow, its strings bathed in ethereal light. Golden trails of light followed your fingers as you concentrated on the hymn. Astarion took a step towards you, entranced by the soothing melody and dancing lights. The trail of light from your fingers began to grow as it reached up towards him, circling around his waist until it seeped into his open cut. As you finished the song, the light left your fingers and continued along the trail up to Astarion’s wound before disappearing completely. You opened your eyes to find the vampire staring at you with an open mouth.

“What was that?” he asked.

Unable to answer, you changed the subject. “Did you find anything?”

“Yes, this pouch with a piece of trash in it – but don’t change the subject; what was that you just did? I feel…” he paused, taking in the warmth that had seeped into his skin from the song you had played, “... refreshed,” he said, his voice tinged with curiosity.

“It’s just something that I learned when I was younger,” you said quietly before pushing yourself off the tree and grabbing the pouch in his hands. Not wanting to talk about it, you began walking back towards the voices of your group.

“Well, I must say that whatever it was, was more rejuvenating than Shadowheart’s healing spells. Not as much as your delicious blood,” he said, voice thick with flirtation, “but beggars can’t be choosers, as they say.”

Your response was a brief nod and a grunt, and the two of you returned to the group in silence.

[futurewriter2000]

Conversations - pt. 3

A/N: This is somehow the best and the worst thing to write for me because ugh- it resonates so much with me but I need to put these weird feelings somewhere and to be honest, it goes here. Also... is this good because I feel like I can make it better. Maybe in the next part. 

XX

You haven’t been really able to focus much on your responsibilities lately, but you also haven’t been one to care about them until the very last minute. To your calculations, you always had time to do anything until you hadn’t. 

You have decided to start this day anew, nothing bugging your mind except that one night. Flashbacks kept flying over your head, but you shook them off. You seemed to be quite a character to push down your emotions and other conflicting thoughts. It was how you grew up. You were always cold towards your family. You didn’t let them know they hurt you, but you did let them know that you could hurt them quite easily with your own sharp tongue. Your mother always did call you that you are more dangerous than you look and that people should always be aware of that. 

But you didn’t mind. You were proud of your deadly silence, proud that no emotion, no person could ever reach you, despite all the demons you had- and you had a lot. However, you hid them and you hid them well. You ignored them, as they weren’t there, as their existence was as fleeting as time. You didn’t realise that all of those supressed memories, emotions and feelings were affecting your whole personality. 

That was until you met him- until that day that the two of you kissed up on the bleachers, until you couldn’t help yourself to smile as widely as possible. You didn’t want to be with him in that sense though. You felt as if the two of you were from completely different worlds- him from a perfect family, you from a more complicated  one. He was all about his studies and succeeding in the world and you were just about the mere enjoyment the world has to offer you in this little span of life. He agreed, of course he did. He didn’t want a relationship at the moment, he wanted to focus on his studies this year- the final exams that were coming up. You were a year younger so you didn’t much care about it but you wanted him to succeed as much as any person could. 

You haven’t had much people around you throughout your life but those that you did, realised your change of personality. You were lighter, happier and so much more open to other peoples heart. Your roommate was bewildered and your cousin, which whom you grew up, knew that something was up. You hated hugs and now... now you were hugging her. 

“You’re making me worry, (y/n).” she said as you smiled and jumped over to her. 

“Why am I making you worry?” you said in a more cheery voice. 

“I don’t know- something about... it’s like in the past month you changed so much.” she said.

“Well, Marls, I just realised life is too short to be serious all the time.” you scrunched your nose at her and giggled. 

Yes, Marlene McKinnon was your cousin. Your older cousin, who always babysat you and practically raised you. Her parents were always travelling a lot and your mother was furious with her sister to not give Marlene a more stable life, so she offered to let her live with you for a while. Now, Marlene was much more of your older sister than a cousin. The two of you fought like sisters, shared things like sisters and despite the fact you didn’t want to admit, you looked up to her as a younger sister would. Her favorite colour was yellow, so was yours. She liked this one specific band, you liked that band. She had good grades... well, with that you tried but couldn’t really be as good as her. 

She was protective over you and both you and James knew that, so whatever the two of you had, you kept it hidden. It was your little secret and you loved it. 

The two of you had a secret spot where you would meet up. It was usually under the bleachers but today there was sun and the two of you went deeper in the woods, under the fairytale trees and right next to the lake. 

He wasn’t really the most beautiful man in the world but to you he might as well had been because he had the most gorgeous eyes when he looked at you lustfully as he did. You never felt so wanted until you met him. He held your feet on his lap- just as you always did because with him, you could be your upmost self. He held you by your ankles and rubbed his thumb over them.

“Marls is getting sceptical a bit.” you laughed as you were looking at him with the most adoring eyes you didn’t know you could muster. 

He loved that you looked at him like that. It was something he never experienced in life- to have somebody so perfect by his side and being adored as much as he was. He was adored- by his peers, by his family and friends but there was something about the way you looked at him that just made everything around him more magical than it is. It was magic... just the different kind.

“Did you tell her?” he asked.

“No, of course not.” you leaned back on your arms. “I don’t trust her- throughout our lives, whatever I told her, she would tell my parents.” 

“A little tattle tale, isn’t she?” he chuchkled. 

“She’s completely different with me than she is with you.” you said in despair. “And I can’t really explain that because nobody would ever believe me.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I don’t know... she has a massive influence on my life... like sisters do even though she is my cousin, it never felt like that but it’s like she can be so rude and manipulative towards me but with all of you she’s super nice and fun and this amazing angel Marlene.” you let out, trying to find words that just didn’t make sense when you said it. 

“She is an angel.” he mocked, watching for your reaction to which you gave him an ugly stare. He leaned forward to you. “And you’re the devil and she is perfect lil angel...” he continued to mock and the smile that you tried to supress started to burst into the surface as he continued to get closer to you. 

“Here I am telling you my deepest, darkest wounds and you’re making fun of me.” you replied, moving away from his lips but holding his head near you because as much as the two of you teased and mocked each other, you couldn’t stay away. 

He would lay you down on the ground and climb over you. The two of you never crossed the line- the line that would end the two of you completely naked and gasping for air in the sheets of his bed. At least not yet but whenever he would kiss you, those deep and slow kisses that you poured your soul into- felt his lust of wanting you more by more and his little gasps for air- that was what wanted you to cross the line. You wanted to, with him you wanted everything as soon as his lips touched yours. His hand would always slip under your shirt and up your breasts and you would want him like you haven’t wanted a thing in your entire life. At that moment, it felt like the dumbest idea, but whatever you would do to have him deeper and closer to you, you would have gone to every lenghts of the world. 

He made you go crazy. He made you delusional and there were times where you didn’t see yourself for a week that made you go hilariously crazy but whenever the two of you did see each other- then it seemed that a week of nothingness was gone forever. You would go a billions of weeks for him if it meant to spend another second because you have never felt the way you did for anybody like this... he?  Well, you didn’t really know what he thought or felt but he told you a lot of an honest truth. He told you his deepest wounds, fears and everything else. To be honest, he was quite the asshole when you saw his way of thinking but somehow, you were the same and the two of you just understood each other in the way nobody else could. 

Yet there was something after the kissing and the touching that always bugged your mind. 

His guilt. 

“Are you okay?” he asked as the two of you were lying on the ground, your head resting on his chest. 

“Yeah.” you laughed. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You’re quiet.” he replied. 

You shrugged. “I’m comfortable.” you said and pulled yourself up, closer to him. “What are you thinking?” you said, placing your hand on top of his cheek and caressing him. 

His eyes were closed, then he slowly opened them. They were different. So different from what you were used to. Sad? Guilty? “Are you okay with this?” 

“Why wouldn’t I be?” you asked, furrowing your eyebrows. 

“I don’t know... but... uh... we’re friends, right?” he said and you felt something go from the begginning of your throat, down to the pit of your stomach. 

“Yeah... friends.” you forced a smile, than laid your head back onto his chest, letting the smile disappear. 

“Okay, good.” he said. “And you’re okay with that?” 

“Uh-hum.” you hummed in agreement though all the comfort and the calmness flew away and the fog appeared in your head. 

“And even if you do find somebody else-” he didn’t stop. “-I will have the memories of you in my heart forever and I will look on them with fondness and-”

“Yeah.” you cut him off and stood up. You felt an emotion you couldn’t really identify but you knew one thing; whatever he was saying right now didn’t make you feel good. It made you sad and angry at the same time. Why would he say that? Why would he ever think this would be over in the future- I mean, it wouldn’t be or it would have to be... it’s not like you love him... or feel anything towards him... or do you? - No, he’s a friend... the two of you said you would stay friends and the worlds you both come from are so different... it would never work out...

Your thoughts wandered off and your eyebrows furrowed to the reaction of them. You looked at him to say something but oh- how beautiful this boy was. 

And the thoughts went away. 

And the sad-anger went away. 

The questions went away...

...because look at how beautiful this boy is...

[annabellelupin]

a short angsty dorlene fic id title if i could come up with one and didn't suck so much at doing so

imma bout to make some of yall cry (hopefully)

tw: blood, character death

As much as she tried, the salty tears wouldn't stop flowing down Dorcas's face. She covered her mouth to stiffle the sound of the sobbing, but the others surrounding her could still hear her pain. The room was silent other than the sound of sniffles and cries. No one dared speak a word, not that the shock would let them.

Crimson blood stained the white carpet beneath her, still sticky and wet. Dorcas couldn't have cared in the slightest in that moment of the red substance now covering her palms and knees. It was much more tame compared to what laid in front of her.

Marlene was still, her deep blue eyes usually so bright and full of life now milky. Just below her collarbone, red blood stained her torn shirt, yet to dry just as the blood carpet beneath her.

'This- this has to be a dream- some nightmare! This isn't happening, this isn't happening-' Dorcas thought to herself. 'It wasn't supposed to end like this.'

The others with her silently agreed to give Dorcas some time alone, and one by one, exited the small home, leaving her time to grieve alone.

Now given some privacy, Dorcas bent over her lover's body in agony. All of Marlene's beautiful features Dorcas loved so much about her all seemed so dull and corrupt. Her soft lips, her blonde hair, her usually bright and blushing cheeks all now had a dreary look to them.

Slowly, Dorcas lowered her face to her Marlene's, and placed a soft, melancholy kiss upon her lips. There was no fire, no passion, no joy behind the kiss, but instead there was regret, disbelief, and most of all, rage and sadness.

To think the two had just been laughing and smiling while planning their perfect little future together a few days before. A future that would now never happen.

Dorcas sat back up and let out a sniffle. As much as it hurt, she gently closed her lover's eyes. She would never see the beautiful, sky blue of those eyes ever again.

As the tears slowed and her vision became a bit more clear, Dorcas noticed that Marlene's right hand was strangely still clenched into a fist. With care, she took the hand into her own and inched open the closed fist.

One sight of what was inside had her uncontrollably sobbing again.

Two matching silver rings were tucked inside of a hastily written note. Each ring had five words etched on their inner side: "Dorky Dorca and Mischief Marls" The nicknames stinged more than they ever had before.

Dorcas examined the rings closely, her recently growing suspicions all but confirmed. Gently, she sat them down on her lap and unfolded the rest of the note they were hidden in.

The sight of the rings wouldn't hurt nearly as much as the words on the paper.

My proposal to Dorca

Is this a proposal? Probably not when I really think about it. Proposals usually refer to when you're asking to marry someone, and well, that's not exaclty what I'm doing here is it? Not that I don't want to, it's just...

Dorcas Meadowes, I love you more than anyone else on this damned Earth. I love you more than I thought I could ever love anyone. I love you more than I could ever put into words! And I know you love me too. You make me feel loved in everything you do. Your words, your smiles, even those little annoyed looks you give me after I've done something stupid. It's not hard to tell you care so much about me.

If I could marry you, I would without any second thoughts or regret. Hell, I'd marry you every single day of each week for the rest of our lives just to prove how much I love you if I could. Unfortunately the world's a fucked up place and we're constantly being told it's wrong for us to love each other. Constantly being told who to love. I promise you if we could, we'd have a little wedding in the forest with all of our friends and close family. I promise you one of us would take the other's last name, or we'd combined our last names to show the world we're together and madly in love. If we could.

I might not be able to offer you some piece of paper saying we're married or a little wedding... or even a name change for that matter, but I can promise I will love you for the rest of my life. I can promise- no I will promise that I will be by yourside during it all, the happy, the sad, the good, and the bad, I will love you through it all. I promise that I will love you to the die that I die.

Dorcas Meadowes, will you spend the rest of our lives with me?

Once finished reading the note, Dorcas quickly noticed that there was something else written on the back of the paper. She fliped it over to find words barely visible, surrounded by drops of blood. The words were messy, clearly quickly written.

Dorcas, I know I said that I wanted to spend the rest of our lives together, but I hadn't realized that that time might be much shorter than I had hoped. Some rat gave away my family's hiding place and Death Eaters are everywhere. My brothers sadly didn't manage to get away. For now, I'm hiding in a closet (ironic isn't it). I'd apparate to safety if I could, but one of the bastards stabbed me, and I really don't have the energy to (nor do I currently have the strength to fight). Dorca, if I don't make it out of this one, just know that I meant it when I said I'd love you until the day I died- no, until the moment I die. Even at death, I will always love you.

Nothing could have prepared her for that.

The tears were coming as quick as they had when Dorcas first saw Marlene lying lifeless on the floor. There are no words strong enough to even begin to express how she felt in that moment.

Dorcas was only certain of one thing now:

She'd make the people that did this to her beloved Marlene pay for their actions, as well as that damned Voldemort. No one, no one whatsoever, was going to do such a thing to her Marls and get away with it. And she would gladly die trying. The thought of her own death honeslty sounded like a blessing to her right about now.

Dorcas had only one thing on her mind: revenge.

And the only decipherable emotions she had were sadness, angry, and regret.

No one was about to stop her.

[neaverse]

hi hi!! i am curious about the art class fic and the regulus birthday fic if you wanna talk about either or both of those!

Omg hi, thank you!! I'll gladly talk about both of them because they're so ridiculous and I love them😭

The Art class fic is such a silly fic that I came up with one night and I truly want to finish it. It's partially a texting fic— well, there's a lot of texting but it's also just a regular fic set in a modern, muggle world.

Basically, James spontaneously decides to sign up for an art class after seeing an ad online. James is not an artistic person at all, but it looked fun, so why not? He doesn't expect much, but he certainly doesn't expect to see Sirius’ little brother sat behind a desk as soon as he walks through the door.

Here's an excerpt:

James thinks, bitterly, as he comes to a harsh stop in the doorway to the classroom, that the universe is out to get him. There is no bloody way that this is happening. No, Regulus Black is not taking the same art class as him. He is just not.

Regulus is supposed to be in France, drinking and shopping and partying his way across the country with Barty and Evan, if his Instagram stories and posts are anything to go by, that is. So, imagine James’ surprise when his best friend's little brother— whom he hasn’t seen in three years— is not only back in England, but taking the same art class as James. At the same time as him. In the same building.

James contemplates the idea of running out of the building and not showing up to a single class because of this. Regulus has yet to notice him, sitting in the back with his headphones on and eyes plastered on his phone screen. He thinks that his chances of making a quiet exit without ever letting Regulus know that he was there are quite good.

Aaaand another one:

James: DONT YOU DARE LILY

James: I TOLD YOU THIS IN SECRET

Sirius: You told her but not me???

Sirius: What kind of best friend are you??

Lils: The kind that wants to fuck your brother

Sirius: WHAT

Mary: OH MY GOD

Marls: NO YOU DIDNT JAMES

Marls: DID YOU FUCK HIS BROTHER???

James: NO I SWEAR I DIDNT

Remus: Prongs…

James: Yes…?

Remus: little advice. don’t come over tonight

Remus: actually, you should probably start running

Remus: if you want to live

James: Sirius?

Sirius: Best listen to Moony.

James: It was good knowing you all!!

James: And thank you Lils. I hate you

Lils: Hate you too<3

Marls: this is like watching a movie. Where’s the popcorn?

Pete: 🍿🍿🍿

The Regulus birthday fic was actually written on my own birthday. I was having a hard time and thought I would project all of my feelings towards turning older —and my birthday in general— onto Regulus, and this fic was born. It's a muggle au and it basically follows Regulus during his birthday (no shit) and how he tries to avoid having to celebrate it. He pretends he doesn't care, that it's just another day, but deep down he wishes someone (his brother) would care enough to message him. So, in good old Regulus fashion, he shuts everyone out and ends up having a depressive ass birthday. Yay!

Here's an excerpt:

A perfect birthday, in Regulus' mind, is to pretend that it's just another day. No, nothing special about this date, just another boring, tiresome day of the week.

The problem, however, is his friends. They love birthdays. And despite knowing Regulus' hatred towards his own, they always plan something.

So, naturally, he has turned off his phone, locked the door to his flat and drawn the curtains shut, because it won't happen this year. He refuses to have them barging in with cake and wide grins on their faces. He refuses to watch Barty and Evan humiliate the fuck out of him as they start singing happy birthday out of tune in a packed restaurant. He refuses to have Pandora look at him with sympathy when he inevitably picks up his phone, waiting for a message from his brother that will never come. He refuses to have Dorcas beg him to go out for the night and get shitfaced drunk.

He also doesn't want to deal with his parents today, but there's so much to unpack about all of that so let's just… Not.

He's twenty as of today. Well, he's been twenty for eleven hours already. It doesn't feel real, very… anticlimactic, to say the least. It should be a milestone, but Regulus is all alone in his dark flat.

[postalninja]

I think I missed the sleepover asks but oh well! Gonna ask anyway heh

Top 3 rarepairs... and feel free to Go Off talking about what drew you to them 😉

The sleepover continues into the week! :D (aka I'm bad at answering asks in a timely manner) Well. This certainly is the question now, isn't it? Considering that pretty much every pairing I ship is a rarepair, I can't include them all, so I will stick with the top three that live in my heart *Right Now.* 1. H'aanberic. Always H'aanberic. They continue to be my most beloved OTP, my inspiration for fanfic and art, my hit-me-in-the-feels they-are-so-precious-to-me blorbos! *weeps* I'll literally never get over them, your honor. 2. Magus/Marle. Ever since reading Saint & Martyrs I have been slain by these two. I've always had a thing for Magus, but hadn't really thought about pairing him and Marle until reading that fic. But, man, the possibilities, the dynamic! He's so closed-off and guarded, she's naive and cheerful, and pairing them up and watching them help each other grow is simply delicious. I love seeing Marle becoming more mature and serious, and Magus letting down his walls for her. And of course I love a good enemies-to-lovers arc, so you can't go wrong with that! 3. Auron/Lulu. So tragic. So sexy. So perfect for each other. And so rare!! (forever salty that more people don't see the potential here) I think these two are the best example of my "type" - the perfect combination of mature and serious so that when you tempt them with one another they resist so hard until they simply *can't* anymore and then give in unreservedly like god intended. A++

[adh-james-version]

Years (ALICE x LILY)

Okay to preface this I see them with like a Riley/Val Dynamic

Its in the 70s (roughly) 

- - -

"Mary shes so pretty, I want to talk to her so bad." Lily said looking over at Alice who was sitting with her friends not to far in the courtyard.

"Then talk to her."

"But don't forget she's a fifth year, and we're third years."

"Age doesn't matter when I want to be her friend." Lily said as she turned back to her friends before craning her neck backwards to look towards Alice again.

Mary and Marlene exchanged a look before Marlene smirked.

"Ay, Fortescue!"

Lily turned beet red and turned her head away so fast her hair couldn't keep up.

"Yeah?" Alice replied turning her head slightly.

"Say something Lils" Mary whispered as she and Marlene held in laughter.

Alice turned away recognizing the game the girls were playing. As both girls friends laughed at them Lily made note to kill her friends and Alice made note to talk to the girl just to be nice.

One Year Later

"Hey Little Red"

"Hi Alice!"

"You trying out for Quidditch this year?"

"Oh GOD no, I'm gonna be a Mathlete though."

"Oh that's cute" Alice laughed, "You know if you ever DID want to play quidditch, I know the captain."

"We get it you're dating Frank." Lily said rolling her eyes

Alice's face screwed up, "DATING!?", she fake gagged, "No. Way. Frank is my best friend, actually no he's my brother at that."

"Really? Everyone keeps telling me that you guys are dating."

"No, trust me, we are not  dating."

"Okay, well I'm headed to the library if you want to come with?"

"Sure."

The two headed to the library and as they sat down Alice couldn't help herself from borderline staring at the redhead in front of her. 

Wait, what? No. Shes fourteen, I'm sixteen, that's not okay. It's just a little sister feeling nothing serious, yeah lets leave it like that. That makes senses

 One Year Later

Lily woke up to a knocking sound on her door. Lily groggily stood up and unlocked the front door, grabbing the flowers off of the floor and placing them on the dorm living room table she glanced at the note, "To Lily Evans" Dorcas probably sent Marls some- wait what."

"Huh?"

Lily opened the letter attached to the flowers.

---

Dear Lily,

You don't know who sent you these or maybe you do  because you're clever, it's one of the many reasons I love you, although you don't know that. I love you're smile and how it brightens up my day and any room you walk into. I love your hair and how pretty and silky smooth it is, especially when you tie it up in a bun and use a pencil to hold it up. I love your bubbly but nonsense attitude and I love the way that you  are the only one who scares James and Sirius (and me if I'm honest). I love the ways that you are compassionate and I love how you are always there to listen and help anyone who needs it, even if what they need is the stone cold truth.

This is all just to say that I love you, Lily Evans, and we can't be together even if you love me back because I am too old for you right now. And I just wanted to get it off my chest even if you won't know who I am. I sincerely hope we find each other later in life. 

With Love

---

Lily was in shock and had tears in her eyes, who could this be? She scanned through the letter again looking for clues to who it was, but she came up with nothing. She grabbed the flowers smelling them. It was a mix of Lilies and a flower that Lily recognized quickly, Pink climbing flowers otherwise know as...

Oh.

Alice Roses.

Lilies tears were let loose now, there was nothing she could do, the semester ended two weeks ago and Alice had already left. Lily had no way of knowing where she was, only knowing that she was somewhere in Britain. Lily potted the flowers in her room as the tears kept flowing. Alice admitted her love and now she'd never see her again.

She knew she probably wouldn't see Alice again when term ended but this was too much to bear. She could've at least told her how she felt and now she'd lost her last chance. The tears stained her face as she locked her room door. Her pillow was soaked as she laid back down, one thing repeating over and over in her head.

She'd lost her chance.

Six Years Later

Interning at a News Station was educating for sure but it was definitely tiring.  But luckily the Station (for some reason) gave her a day off and she was taking advantage. As she walked to her favorite Coffee shop she basked in the lack of stress the day has brought. She walked in and walked up to the counter and placed her order. She turned around and walked in to a frame slightly taller than her but not by much. "Oh I'm...sorry....." 

"Little Red...? Well I guess you're not so little now."

[jamiedc-they-them]

Reflection on Past and Future (Platonic) (OC: Marle Skywalker)

Summary: The war is over - at least for now, and Marle has a moment to think about things. The future, especially, is something that they never thought about before. Rey, meanwhile, fears looking backwards.

Post TROS lil fic with Rey and my OC Marle both struggling to process everything that happened over the ST, and attempting to find some way through.

Marle had meditated before. It helped calm them during the moments where the war and life and their mind all got too much, and jumbled all together into one giant mess. Despite not being force sensitive - or, at least, not enough to fully tap into it, if what Poe said about the force and how it flows through all things meaning that everyone had it to varying degrees - Rey still helped them meditate. It, usually, helped. Didn’t do the trick all the time, but either way, they were in a less stressed state than they were before the activity.

This moment in time, however, was different. There was no war. Not anymore. Instead, there were the beginnings of peace - or some kind of it anyway. The First Order were down (even if cells of it always survived; that was one of the things Finn had said they needed to watch out for, how those cells could grow into something bigger.) and the Emperor had been destroyed by himself. The Jedi survived, even with Rey creating new things for it. Continuing the legacy, but also building on it to make sure another Anakin Skywalker never happened again - in all senses; chosen one and all.

That was the problem for Marle, there was no action. Only stillness. On Jakku, stillness was never completely allowed. There were always creeks in the distance of Star Destroyers; always the sounds of winds hallowing; sometimes even screams in the night or blaster fire to match it. Despite the planet being almost barren to the eye, it wasn’t.

Marle had learned from a young age to never fully let your guard down. Always be ready. Prepared at the drop of a hat to spring into action.

That wouldn’t be happening for a while, or maybe even ever again.

They didn’t know how to process it. Marle was glad, don’t get them wrong. The victory was what they wanted, both for themselves and their family - but also for the galaxy at large. For people to be able to make choices and be themselves with no real fear.

Marle’s fears, however, never left them.

They knew it wouldn’t be an instant thing. The trauma they went through over the past year wouldn’t just go at the click of some fingers - though the pained look Rey sometimes gave them made her wish there could be such a thing. They all had to process it in their ways. Rey trained a lot, meditated, and then spoke to someone. Poe and Rose especially did that a lot with the same person, just at different times. Finn was slowly opening up to that idea. He, himself, started to do that as well with captured First Order people, and other Resistance fighters. He was a natural at it. A kind soul. Marle smiled at the thought of their brother.

That smile soon dropped when it came back to themselves. They were meditating too. Why wasn’t it working?

“Marle?” A gentle voice asked. Marle looked up. Rey had come for them. She didn’t look worried. Her features were more relaxed. She had a small smile on her face as she looked at them. Marle mirrored it with a small one of their own. Rey’s one dimmed a bit.

One thing about being in each other’s lives for so long and in desperate situations of life and death? They could see what other people couldn’t: the true emotion of the other.

“What’s wrong?” The older sister asked. While reading people wasn’t always the younger Skywalker’s best quality, Rey’s soft tone continuing seemed to say that it was ok if they didn’t want to say for now.

When Rey didn’t receive an answer, she instead sat down, legs crossed like Marle had done. Marle shut their eyes again, but Rey kept her’s open.

Some silence went by, but Rey still felt the disturbance within her sibling. Something wasn’t sitting right with them. She always knew that sisterly instinct within her wanted to solve it. But, she also knew that Marle would want a chance to do it themselves. They weren’t different people per se now, but - Rey especially - instead saw different sides to each other. Their appreciation for each other had grown deeper, as well as their understanding of the other. Rey saw Marle’s ability to adapt and keep fighting; Marle saw how far Rey fully goes for those she loves, alongside letting her walls down with other people and letting herself love others and be loved. Those sides were always there, this…journey was what brought it out of them. Both were thankful for that part of it, at least.

“How did you do it?” Marle asked. Rey felt, and even saw by their stance alone, something shift within them.

“How did I do what, sorry?” She watched her sibling carefully here, trying to detect any more shifts as they opened up.

They opened their eyes again, a sigh leaving them. Not one of frustration at Rey, but more so one about their inability to describe it.

“How did you get better?”

While Rey appreciated the bluntness, it did also take her back a bit.

“I don’t think I am. Not fully, anyway.”

“Oh…”

“I - I think I’m better than I was then, for sure,” Rey said, hoping that these were the magic words she needed to get things back on a more positive track.

“But like…how did you know that?”

“Well,” Rey repositioned herself slightly, getting more comfortable as she took a moment to genuinely think about it - the whole process was new to her; and, according to the person she was talking to, there was a lot to process.

“To be honest,” she continued, “it felt like a weight being lifted. A metaphorical one, but a weight nonetheless. I asked Poe about that feeling too, if that helps.”

Marle smiled a bit. Siblings in a lot of ways it seemed, and not fully knowing how to cope was one of those things apparently.

“Do you think I ever will get to be like that?”

Rey’s heart clenched. Marle saw the internal flinch, and their eyes softened.

“Sorry…”

“Don’t,” Rey was firmer with tone this time, “don’t be sorry. It’s a question that is on your mind and — has it been for a long time?”

Marle nodded. Rey did too, even if it were slower and more weighted.

“Everyone has different timelines with it and —“

Marle stood up, and looked to the water on Ajan Kloss. The jungle took their breath away at first, then the water did for real. For Marle, it was too much for them. They flinched at it all of the way. They couldn’t go very far in, but no one blamed them for it.

Rey stood up, and moved next to Marle.

“Marle it…there’s no one way to this. Some things work for some people, but some things don’t for everyone. But, there will be a day when —“

“I don’t like that saying. I don’t…I don’t know how long I can hold on for.”

Rey found herself speechless. Marle’s eyes continued to bore into the water, but there was a vulnerability now at the surface. She’d seem to find it in spades what was going through her sibling’s head. Nothing nice. But now, it seemed, with all the time they all had now after the war, everything was hitting Marle at once.

Rey seemed more controlled with it. To be truthful, the only reason she was, was because of the rest of her family - how they all huddled around each other and kept an extra eye out.

Marle didn’t join them as much, she noted at the time. They didn’t completely close off, but they were around less so much that it became noticeable.

Rey shuddered. Feeling those emotions hit her as well. The confusion, malice of the self, the worry of the wait for it to all get better - but also the worry on the how it would improve and whether it ever would.

She knew every Jedi had doubts in themselves, the force, pretty much anything - it was a vary natural thing to do. Doubts were always going to crop up. Especially after events like what the Siblings of the Sand had gone through in such a short amount of time. So short that they didn’t ever fully get a chance to slow down.

They had that now, but Rey seemed more adjusted to it than Marle.

Marle looked at the water. The memory was still there, the feelings still somewhat raw whenever they thought about it. But maybe…maybe they could go a little deeper next time. Maybe if they sought out their friends instead of the other way around. Rey was trying. They all were. Marle appreciated that, even if the voice in their head and the inability to adapt to this shifting situation lingered.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

Marle looked to her, bewildered, “why are you sorry?”

“I didn’t - I didn’t act fast enough.”

“I’m not angry at you.”

“…I would be.”

“Why?”

“I didn’t do my job.”

“Your ‘job’?” There was a slight bit of hurt to the younger sibling’s voice.

“I’m your sister. Your sibling. Your friend. Whichever way we want to say it, I care about you, and I failed in being there for you. I’m sorry about that.”

“I guess I failed too, then. I didn’t really help you either. Especially after you…passed.”

It had been the first time it had been spoken about between them. For once, Rey didn’t instantly jump in. Neither did Marle. They both processed what was just said.

“You didn’t fail me,” Rey decided on.

“Then how can you say that you failed me?”

Fair point. The feelings stayed, however.

Marle sighed, then slightly chuckled, “I think this is the first time we’ve actually spoken to each other.”

Rey nodded, “I’m glad we are now. I just…I just don’t like that I took us so long.”

Marle shrugged, “we never really had any experience with it.”

Rey snorted. That was true.

“I’m glad we’re trying to,” she nudged them slightly. They nudged her back.

“When do you leave to start building the order again?”

“A few months,” she said, “still preparing.”

“Are you scared?”

“Terrified. What if - what if I fail them?”

Marle looked to Rey with a soft look. They put a hand on her arm, “you haven’t failed me,” they said, “you’re a good person, Rey. The darkness calls to you, as it would all of us —“

“But what I came from, Mar…I’m glad I have my actually family still here,” she said, putting a hand on their’s, “but…I don’t know. Sometimes my blood scares me. What it can do. What I can do. What I could do.”

“You aren’t your blood.”

“But I feel like at any moment…maybe I could be. Maybe it could all go wrong in a moment of anger —“ Rey took a shuddering breath. She blinked a few times, the tears still being there unfortunately.

Marle took their own breath, hugging Rey instead as they looked to the lake.

“We’re not doing so good, are we?”

“We’ve been better,” Rey laughed, running her fingers through Marle’s hair.

When she looked at that binary sunset and declared the name of her true family, she meant it. She always will. She’s a Skywalker, not a Palpatine. Blood meant less and less to her each day. But still, there was a part of her gnawing at her. A rage at the world for all it had done to herself and Marle. She overcame it with Palpatine. She did. But she hated that it was still there. That it hadn’t fully left her.

She supposed, in some way, just as those feelings of inadequacy and self hatred continued to bubble in Marle, despite the efforts of the others and the impact they had each had on the younger individual.

She let herself go lax, weight leaving her once again. She let herself see that the battles never ended. Apart of that drove her mad, another part made her look down at her younger sibling, seeing them looking to the water with a mixed look.

“Maybe —“ she sniffled, “maybe we just…maybe we just take it one step at a time. You and me, yeah? Both together and separate.”

Marle nodded, “I can try that…” they’re hiccuped, “I can try that.”

“That’s all any of us can ask.”

Marle hugged Rey tighter, “you’re a good person, Rey Skywalker.”

“And you, Marle Skywalker,” she pushed them back slightly, making sure they met eyes, “are someone who deserves all the space to understand your emotions and move in your own time. You understand me?”

They nodded. Rey mirrored it.

It wasn’t perfect. It was some sort of start, however. An acknowledgement. They weren’t fully ok. Still not fully fine with all the bad things that happened. Maybe they never fully would be. Maybe those scars would never fully heal.

That was ok. Well, not ok, but at least understandable.

They didn’t have to bare it alone, however. They had each other, the siblings of the sand; but also the new people added to that family. The people of the resistance and the Jedi.

They had to look back at some times to move forward; and also look back to see how far forward they had come.

It was an odd push and pull. Maybe they’d never fully master it. But they could try. They could do that at least.

That was all anyone could do.

[tommymaddox]

Marls.

The name pulls Tommy’s head up with a confused ‘hmm?’ With no view of his best friend’s approach finds himself asking “Marlow did this to you?” with a bewildered rise in his voice, trying to imagine the blow of her fist against Vitus’ cheek. The question loses any purpose to it as soon as the woman in question laughs out an apology, whipping Tommy out of the bubble he thought had safety protected him with Vitus inside. Icicles drip down Tommy’s spine and crawl along his veins until they find where panic lives, letting it run straight to his heart. He turns slowly as if giving time for fate to change its ways.

A sickening feeling washes over him at the look of Marlow’s strained smile. What had she seen? How much had she heard? Tommy had never been caught with a man before, not by a stranger nor a loved one, well, not since his father all those years ago. He had been so careful to only show people the sides of him they would accept, and in that time struggled to accept it himself. With his walls down lately he’d forgotten to be paranoid, to keep his secret in walls he can control. What had he been thinking?

Whilst Tommy stands still, frozen in place, he watches the way Vitus and Marlow dance. Once step forward, one step back, hands extending out mirroring one another. After months this was the first time Tommy had ever seen them together, ever witnessed the yearning that redefines the beauty in their eyes. The trees laugh at Tommy as a breeze of summer air move around the all too quiet woods. Their dancing partners slip away from him, leaving Tommy to wonder if they even see him anymore. Now, outside their bubble, he is the intruder.

The only thing that holds him in place is the hand that is readily discarded by Vitus. It’s the act that breaks Tommy from his shock. Air forces it’s way back into his lungs, up into his brain. “I’ll get her, just... just be careful going back to the party,” he insists, a lingering coldness in his voice remains as bricks around him begin to lay down in the familiar grooves of his maze. Panic is working fast, trying to protect him before hurt can settle into place.

“Marls- Marls wait up-“ Tommy springs into action, moving around trees, once again following the trail of a beloved one. He rushes ahead this time, no longer stalking but corralling. “Hey, hey hey-“ he extends his fingers, holding them out to slow her retreat. “It’s not-“ It would be so easy to lie, to say she had misinterpreted the shadows or she had had to many drinks, to gaslight her until he’s safely protected behind his walls again, but that has never been his relationship with her. Around her he laid down his sword, no longer a soldier unless she called him to arms. "You- you were looking for me, right?" he tries desperately to latch on to the before. "I'm here. Right here."

Blood leaks from every edge of her smile. It patters onto the greenery at her feet, invisible, but Vitus can still see it. Like a fresh kill left to bleed out on the forest floor. As her eyes land on him in those final moments of life, Vitus becomes fairly certain he's the one who struck the final blow.

The shattering something in her chest tears open a new crater in his own. Right next to the one that's been there all his life, the one she once recognized, sitting next to him on the couch. He harbors no guilt for being so near to Tommy; the pit ripping open inside him has only to do with her. And her months-long absence. And the nights he's spent staring at his ceiling in the dark and wondering if she was off somewhere, getting crushed to death by the weight of her life. Wondering if he could have succeeded in holding some of it at bay, if he made different choices. But he'd lost her to an August from twelve years ago, unearthed from beneath a mountain of lies in his living room.

She's so close. Close enough that he could run after her, reach, ask his ever-futile are you okay? and measure the truth of her answer in her eyes. As she flees, she takes all the gravity with her, dragging his feet forward.

"Fuck," Vitus says, dropping Tommy's hand. "Marlow, wait, please—"

@tommymaddox

[gryffindormarveltwilight]

Sirius Black x Potter!Reader - Hogwarts Champion Part 1

A/N: This is my first Sirius x reader. I hope you enjoy there will be more parts! Please any request or feedback are welcome. X

Masterlist

Part 2

Pairing: Sirius Black x Reader

Warnings: Angst, insecurity, Fluff, injury

I was sitting in the train compartment on the hogwarts express, it was the same compartment that 7 years ago me and my twin brother James met our best friends. 7 years later we are all sitting in the compartment heading into our last year of school.

James was sitting opposite my playing with a golden snitch glasses sitting wonky on his nose, I smiled at the sight. I loved my brother endlessly but our whole lifes we had been compared to each other and James was always the golden child it was worse through our hogwarts years, sure i worked harder and got good grades, but James was captain of the quidditch team, I was only the seeker, James was head-boy, I was only a prefect, James had a beautiful girlfriend in Lily Evans and a perfect relationship, I couldn’t hold a boyfriend for more than three months before they broke up or cheated. Still staring at my brother now I smile at his goofy behaviour, and remember all the times i have found him in detention after being caught doing a prank or getting into a fight normally with one of my ex-boyfriends. I was grateful for my goofy protective twin brother but after years of comparisons, I had to admit it was wearing me down.

I then glance to my best friend, Remus Lupin, he was sitting the corner reading his book trying not to fall asleep, it had been a full moon two nights before and it was a hard one. Remus would not let us join him this month out of fear of his parents finding out about our animagus forms. Out of all the marauders Remus understood me the most, he knew what it was like to feel as though you were not living up to someones limitation, sure Sirius understood it to an extent but the way i felt was different to his. Remus and I had spent alot of time together studying and doing homework and we found a safety net in eachother. He was also the only one who knew my true feelings toward Sirius and how I felt about people calling me things like the ‘other potter’ or ‘James’ Sister’. He was truly my closest friend.

I then looked down at my lap where Sirius had rested his head while he slept. I smiled at the sight, Sirius and i had a complicated friendship that much was obvious. He was one of my best friends albeit we were probably closer than me and Remus however it was a different kind of closeness, we had a lot more of a flirty relationship which annoyed my brother no end, there was many times i had woken to Sirius entering my room in a messy state after a breakup or a nightmare and i had returned the favour many times. He was as just as protective as James was if not more, Remus swears he has overheard Sirius threatening my boyfriend or any guy who even looked in my direction, Remus also love to remind me of the time Sirius fought James after he had said a mean comment to me in second year.

I was broken out of my thoughts when the compartment door was opened, causing Sirius to stir in my lap.

“Lily!” James shrieks causing Sirius to bolt upright nearly headbutting me.

“Sorry love” he whispers before turning his head toward the people standing at the compartment door.

“James, did you want to come sit with us in our compartment?” Lily asked her boyfriend. James didn’t answer just stood up and followed her out of the compartment both giving us a quick wave. Marlene replaced Lily in the doorway. I felt Remus’ glance on my as Marlene shot my a glare.

“Babe are you coming?” She says directed at Sirius they had got together at one of Lilys pool party’s over the summer and had been dating ever since.

“I don’t know Marls…..”he said slightly glancing at me, I gave his hand a quick squeeze, I hadn’t even noticed he had been holding my hand but it wasn’t uncommon for us to hold hands, he nodded and stood up following Marlene out of the compartment.

“When are you going to tell him Y/N?”

“Not this again Remus, I told you he doesn’t feel the same way.”

“How do you know?”

“He is dating Marlene Remus thats how i know.” I looked sadly down at my hands in my lap. Remus didn’t say anything else he just stood up and replaced the spot in which Sirius had just left and i rested my head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around mine, the door opens once more showing Peter returning with and arm full of sweets.

Remus Peter and I entered the Great Hall spotting Lily James Sirius Marlene Dorcas and Mary already seated at the Gryffindor table. We quickly joined them me taking the empty spot next to Sirius and Remus sitting next to me.

Once the sorting ceremony was over we heard a bang out side the doors, before we knew it students from Drumstrung and Beauboxtons entered the great hall. Dumbledore was quick to announce that Hogwarts would be hosted the Triwizard tournament and that it was open to any student over 17. I saw James and Sirius fist bump over the table knowing they had both agreed to enter I turn to look at Remus,

“No Y/N.” He whispers, knowing that he won’t change my mind, “James and Sirius will be furious,” this catches the attention of the group,

“What will James and Sirius be angry about Remus.” I look pleadingly at Remus,

“If Y/N asks Fabien Prewett out.” Remus say staring at me as i silently thank him. I turn and see Sirius staring at me with an angry look, i shrug at him and turn my attention toward the feast. After dinner Sirius and Marlene are quick to leave the rest of the group not far behind. Remus and I drop to the back of the group,

“Thank you Remus, for not telling them.”

“You’re welcome, but Y/N what happens if you get selected.”

“I compete and deal with James and Sirius if it comes to that.”

“Just be careful people die in these competitions.” I squeeze his hand before we head into the common room and head to our dorms.

The next day we are all gathered in the hall surrounding the goblet when James and Sirius walk in and place their names in the goblet everyone cheers including me and Remus, we continue our classes for the day however i noticed James looking at me oddly all day. Up to this point no females from Hogwarts had entered their names. After dinner everyone headed back to their common rooms. I headed up to my room grabbing a piece of parchment and writing my name on it, As I headed back down the stairs I saw the Marauders sitting in a group with Lily and the rest of the girls, i tried sneaking past however Sirius was quick to notice me,

“Y/N, come join us!” He beamed Marlene curled in under his arm.

“I will later, I need to go see Minnie apparently she wanted to see me.” I smile at the group, i looked to remus who looked like he had paled concerned features spreading over his face. All day he had been hoping that i would change my mind and not enter my name but he also know that i wouldn’t. I exited the common room and started heading toward the goblet, i had been so caught up in my thoughts i hadn’t noticed James had grabbed the invisibility cloak and was following me through the hallways.

I opened the door and closed it again making sure the room with the goblet was empty before walking toward it putting the parchment in the blue flames.

“ARE YOU CRAZY!” I whipped my head around to see James standing their watching me.

“J-James w-why are you not with the others”

“I didn’t believe you and it felt like you were hiding something so i followed you, what the hell are you thinking.”

“I am thinking that me entering is no different to you entering.”

“It is very different!”

“HOW! Because i am not head boy or the captain of the quidditch team or the perfect golden child!” I scream at him tears streaming down my cheek. He stand there looking at me in shock. I quickly run out of the room headed toward the common room. “Y/N” I hear James shout behind me but i keep running. As i enter the common room i notice the girls have gone up to their room and it is just Sirius, Remus and Peter in the common room probably waiting for me and James to return, Remus is the first to stand and i run into his arms as a soft sob leaves my lips, i hear the common room door close again,

“Y/N….” James stops and takes in the scene infront of him. I quickly fall out of Remus’ arms and face my brother.

“I am tired Jamie, can we not do this now.”

He nods and i turn and walk up the stairs toward the dorms.

“What the hell was that” i hear Sirius ask as i walk away.

“I have no idea.” James mumbles.

Over the next few days i keep a low profile only talking to the boys when i am at the great hall and spend all my free time hiding in the library. Finally the night comes that the champions are to be drawn.

Dumbledore finishes his speech and it was time to draw the champions. He announces the two champions from the visiting schools.

“And finally the Hogwarts Champion is.” The goblet spits out a piece of parchment and as Dumbledore reads the name he smiles slightly.

“Y/N POTTER!”