#and this took me way too long xD | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

applesandbannas747 · 4 months

Note

Wait, I'm confused... do you like the Fence novels or no? Because your first review sounded positive and happy with the fun humor, and then every other thing I've seen from you about them is most pointing out the (very prominent, very not-good) flaws with them.

fair question! I had a Journey with the Fence novels and it was hellish. First, please keep in mind that I am unhealthily fixated on Fence and that does impact things all along the way.

When Striking Distance was announced, I was as excited as anyone, though wary because Pacat was handing it off to someone else to write. Still, I was hopeful--and more hopeful after reading In Other Lands because, despite the disturbing sexism that squicked me tf out, I really enjoyed that book! And so I was very eager to get my hands on Striking Distance. So I went on an absolute quest to get an ARC...and I did! It took a lot of dead ends and desperate tries, but remember that I'm insane. So I got my hands on an advanced copy by emailing the editor assigned to the book (who has since left the position). And as is custom with ARCs, he asked me to send my review when it went live.

Reading Striking Distance was such an experience dude. I wanted to love it as much as I loved the comics--remember that at this point, we only had up to issue 12 and the characterization therein. I love the OG 12 issues, and they'll always hold more sway in my understanding of the characters, but when reading SD, it was very clear that I'd read the entire comic completely fucking wrong. Remember my unhealthy obsession? Yeah. Trying to come to terms with Fence being something so opposite of everything I really loved about it and the fact that my reading of it was so wrong was really hard--like mental breakdowns level of hard. I wish I was joking. But I tried to force myself to love the reality of Fence anyway, despite kind of hating the novel, which I absolutely would not admit to myself because disliking any part of Fence felt like SUCH a betrayal to it, and I really really really didn't want to hate the characters I'd spent so much time bringing to life in my mind, because selfishly I didn't want to have to divorce my idea of the characters from canon, I just wanted to be able to love the canon characters and add onto them a little the way I'd been able to with the comics up until that point. So especially right after reading Striking Distance, I was insistent on liking it, and even as I slowly started to acknowledge that there were parts of it that made me want to scratch off my skin they made me so uncomfortable (see: the steak scene), I was really hell-bent on understating my dislike/criticism of it.

So when I went to write my review for Striking Distance to send to the really nice editor who sent me the ARC, I didn't want to betray Fence, I hadn't really processed my issues with it (and was--and honestly still am to an extent--worried that I was just being an entitled baby because my stupid fanfictions/interpretations were so fucking wrong), I didn't want to upset or hurt the feelings of the man who did me this HUGE favor, and because I wanted a chance to get an early copy of a possible sequel (because hating the novels didn't lesson my Need for early access to them. i know I'm unwell about fence jdhfa), I pulled out all the nicest thoughts I had about Striking Distance, exaggerated them and stretched them and sugar-coated everything else to provide a review that was nice and non-hostile.

Obviously, the longer I sat with Striking Distance and processed some things about it and about me, the more I started picking apart all the aspects that I hated and found I was able to produce reasons for each piece I disliked and was also able to pinpoint in the OG comics where I got all the pieces of the stories and characters I loved. So I did have to divorce my idea of Fence from canon if I wanted to keep loving Fence. And when I decided to keep loving Fence for all the reasons I used to instead of feel sick looking at/thinking about the franchise and characters, I was sort of free of the things holding me back from speaking about the things I didn't like, and so I started to analyze and essay and post about the novels and my untangled, truthful thoughts about them.

So I don't like the novels--there are maybe 3-4 things total that passed the vibe-check for me in both novels. I never liked the novels, and I lied about liking Striking Distance...but I was lying to myself about that one as much as anyone. And I haven't changed that review because, at the time, that was where my feelings were about it. So up it stays.

Here’s my fun little list of some of the places I've explained my dislike of the novels if you're curious, but yeah these are the real thoughts, the SD review was a carefully crafted lie <3

My full review of Disarmed

Autism representation in Seiji

Seiji in general

Eugene

Eugesse as a concept in Disarmed

Eugesse interactions in Disarmed

Nick's bisexuality

Coach Williams and sexual harassment

#jackshit #jacksalt #thanks for the ask!💜#my reaction to and the impact on my mental health from SD was in fact so deranged and unhealthy that it's a huge factor #of what pushed me to pursue professional help and diagnosis to understand and cope with my emotions #it did not take long for them to clock the autism and bipolar #anyway i did get on mood stabilizers and have an explanation for why I'm like this #unfortunately it does not make me any LESS like this #and so i am feral about fence and it is not always in a good and healthy way <3 #i am aware my negativity about the novels is upsetting to people but genuinely if i DONT hate the novels #i have to hate Fence itself #and fence is one of the reasons I'm still chugging along so i cant afford to lose it XD #fence novels #disarmed negative #fun fact this is the first time i took a break from fence to write an OG novel instead with an idea id planned for a fic #because if the characters in my head arent actually fence characters then i might as well write original fiction for my ocs #and that was good because it gave me the distance i needed (which is funny because by distance i mean that i was writing my novel side #by side with promised things lmfao) AND also proved to me that i love writing for fence too much to leave it and i hated the novel too much #to accept it as canon #so i packed up my ocs back into my little kerchief on my little stick and marched back over to ao3 and kept writing about them #as if they're fence characters #so to the people still with me at this point know that i love you and your readership means everything to me <3 #fence comic

5 notes · View notes

suck-on-a-fire-ball · 2 years

Note

The writer of this letter was clearly excited; the letters almost seem to bounce off the page, at times. There is a small drawing in the upper, right corner: A stick figure is holding a book in its hand. Above it, is a bubble of text: ”The owner of this object has stubbed a toe, and likes wearing orange underwear…” Next to it, another stick figure is standing, rolling its eyes, saying ”You were supposed to tell me about the weapon she created! What kind of a psychic are you?!”. At the bottom of the page, someone has tried to draw a tabby. It looks like a constipated badger...

Hello again, Anders!

Thank you so much for your letter! I was in a fairly dark place mentally when I received it, and it immediately made me feel better. So many new thoughts! It’s also a great relief to know that you have found safe ways of exchanging these letters. I admit I was worried, what with Kirkwall being the way it is.

I’ll save Atlantis for next time, as that is going to be a long story and I want to do it justice. It may, however, relate to many of the things I’ll be bringing up in this letter. You brought up many fascinating things that I can’t wait to dive into! First of all, I want to respond to a couple of things you mentioned. I’m afraid you are right regarding how we found some of the medical knowledge we have today. I’ll tell you more if you like, but I should warn you that it’s depressing. And yes, a heart treatment similar to what you suggested does exist here, but it took us quite some time to figure it out! About the electricity in our brains – sometimes it’s impossible to help or save people here, too, even if we can tell that their brains show signs of activity. Please don’t be upset that you, as you put it, may have let some patients die. With your healing abilities you most likely save lives that we wouldn’t be able to!

You asked if there are any rules limiting the creations of AI, and truth be told it is being discussed a great deal. Some say that we would have to find a way to program ethics into the AI, so they don’t hurt people. But, as you pointed out, whose ethical opinions should be accomodated? One possibility could be to program a variety of ”Asimov’s three laws of robotics” into them, although that too would be problematic. These three laws were invented by a scientist and fiction author (Asimov) many years ago. They are more or less as follows:

1. A robot may not harm a human.

2. A robot must obey all humans, unless doing so conflicts with the first law.

3. A robot must protect its own existance, provided that doesn’t conflict with law 1 or 2.

I suppose they would just be a foundation on which to build, for there are many things that could go wrong! Still... I’d like a world in which we work together with the AI, on equal terms. They shouldn’t have to be servants or slaves.

The witch hunts and executions… yes, they were terrifying. In so many ways. I hope it never goes that far in your society! From what I understand, it’s bad enough as it is. If fear of magic wasn’t constantly being encouraged, I think your society would benefit a lot! Being aware of risks is one thing, fearmongering another. But I don’t need to tell you that! There are actually those here who say that they can do magic; summon spirits or demons, manipulate energy, curse or heal others… It doesn’t seem, however, that they can do anything even close to what mages are capable of in your society. No fire balls or lightning bolts! Nevertheless, there are phenomena here that sound like magic to me. If even five percent of the personal accounts I have heard or read are true, and don’t have another explanation, there is definitely something interesting going on!

First off, we have what we call telekinesis or psychokinesis - the ability to move objects with one’s mind. Perhaps I’m wrong, but isn’t this what you call force magic? It isn’t common here, but some people claim to have done it on purpose, while others seem to have this happen to them involuntarily. It’s supposedly more usual among young people about the age of 11-12, especially girls. At what age does magic manifest in your society?

Then we have telepathy, or mind-to-mind communication. Some are also supposedly capable of communicating with animals this way. In our society, a medium contacts spirits, or the souls of the departed, while a psychic may claim to be able to see the future, ”read” the minds of others/ feel their emotions, remote view through time and space, hold an object in their hand and tell you about the person it belongs to or its history (psychometry), seeing auras, astral project… Any or all of those things. These abilities are referred to as ESP (Extra Sensory Perception), and whether they exist or not is often debated. It’s of course difficult to know whether a person is a genuine medium/psychic, or not. And the source matters – just as you said. What spirit is this medium in contact with, and what is it’s intention? (I do hope you meet that tabby one day, by the way! They are so lovely…!) As for guardian spirits, I personally believe that we all have them and that they may be souls we have known and loved (in this life or another, as I am a believer in reincarnation). Or perhaps other benevolent spirits. Sadly, I have never seen my spirit guide.

Some of our scientists believe that there are many dimensions, or realities, parallel with each other. They can, for example, exist in the same place but be seperated by time. To me it sounds almost as though there are a form of membranes between them. Or a kind of veil. We are unable to see or hear the other realities most of the time. It is claimed by some, however, that there are portals or openings in certain places - and those places are often ripe with strange phenomena, some of which appear to be paranormal. Do you think the Fade could be what we would refer to as another, parallel dimension? It could perhaps, if so, be that we are drawing on power from another place. But I wonder if maybe it is within us, somehow, like electricity. What do you think?

I can understand why you’d take comfort in Andraste. She sounds kind. Caring. Similar to Jesus, in a way.

I would love to hear about your thoughts and experiences regarding all this! Please be safe, my friend, and pet the cats from me! It’s really too bad people can’t purr, come to think of it...

AidanTheCryptid

The author of this letter (first of all adores all the little figures you draw on your letters) has once more sent you a crumpled bunch of papers he attempted to smooth out with his hands, only to have some of the ink smudge – aka, the second page (bottom half of this letter) is a little difficult to read despite him trying to fill out the letters again. The wrinkly letters have been neatly folded into a fancy envelope, which has the Hawke crest on it again.

A little note has been added for you that reads: “Pardon my friend’s abhorrent manners, I’ve sprayed the papers with some of mother's perfume for you so it wouldn’t smell of healing draughts (those make me sick to the stomach and I didn’t want you to go through that) – Hawke”.

At the top of the letter, Anders has drawn a cat in the same style as yours – not intentionally. He’s a healer, not an artist.

Hello, my friend @aidanthecryptid (have I ever mentioned how I adore your name?),

I am sorry to hear that you were not feeling good mentally last time. Knowing these letters help you oh so much was incentive for me to write this response quicker. I hope by the end of this that I managed to do so too. Scribbles have been inserted at a later point here, with ink of a slightly different colour, reading: (I needed to move my clinic, things have been hectic… Kirkwall is getting less safe each day. I am sorry this letter reached you so late, my friend! A close friend of mine has helped me send this to you with swift mail only nobles get access to.)

It’s fun to hear that we have so many future things to talk about! In a world ever changing, and ever dangerous, it’s nice to know that I have two familiarities grounding me in life. Our letters. And cats.

In the future, when we get the change, I would love to hear more about Atlantis and even the heritage of your anatomy studies. It is okay if it is a little depressing, there are plenty of heritages in Thedas that are depressing – sometimes the depressing heritages are the ones worth continuing to discuss so we never forget and never repeat prior mistakes!

Thank you for your kind words. Saving people is one of my priorities in life, and even thinking I might have doomed people to their death (people that weren’t Templars, mind you) was quite painful. Does it beat my love for cats? No. But it definitely nudges it.

I’ve read through this Asimov’s three laws, and I find them quite intriguing. Perhaps I find them the most intriguing from a point of view of fear – I don’t condone slavery, in any form, however these three laws seem… ruthless. Perhaps specifically the second one. If a robot needs to defend itself, it is not allowed to do so if a human is attempting to hurt it? If a robot disagrees with a human’s moral standards, then it is not allowed to do anything about it? That is scary. Then again, they sound like a power capable of destroying humans easily, so rules need to exist… Still, living alongside them requires trust. I agree, they should not have to be slaves or servants, these rules need tweaking before robots are created! Let’s hope AI will not walk among you before a trust is built.

I think the notion of trust is lacking in our society concerning magic too. As you say in relation to witch hunts (although how far away aren’t we from that with the way Templars drag mages out of their homes…), fearmongering is never a solution, nor is it a proper way to control a people. Far too often have those with agency over others used fear to stay in control. What purpose is there to fearmongering? If your power is no longer needed, have you not succeeded in reaching a goal for your people? Why cling to power through fear? Help your people in some other way… Though, I digress, and I apologise. The second my brain even hears a whisper of mage rights, I go on rants. I haven’t had the time to write much on my manifesto as of late, and the words are itching to be written down!

Nevermind that. You write of interesting things in your society! For a place that says magic does not exist, you sure have quite a lot of mysterious “unexplainable” things happening! If the people you speak of tap further into these abilities, you would have full blown mages, I have no doubt of that!

Magic appears in each person at different ages here in Thedas, and with various degrees of intensity. For some it appears at age 4, for some at ages 12. I had a friend who had magic manifest to him at an early age, only for him to never be able to fully tap into his mana, leaving him rather useless at the Tower in relation to magical lessons. He ended up becoming very good at potion making instead though, which one can do without magic. I wonder what happened to him… whether he is still alive…

And, to answer your question, that sounds exactly like force magic! I have a friend in Kirkwall who is very keen on Force Magic. He has adapted it to be strong enough to push people away from friends in a battle. Saved my life quite a few times! Although, he does prefer punching with his hand. These people you speak of, they talk about their Force Magic openly? Without repercussions?

Oh Maker, telepathy? I would not openly admit I am scared of any magic (aside from, perhaps, certain kinds of blood magic) but telepathy? I don’t want people to know what I am thinking of them. Specifically if said person has a nice… behind… Once more I am surprised by the amount of magical attributes many of your people claim to have, and yet magic is not a subject of discussion amongst your leaders? Oh how such a thing sounds like such… freedom. I could open a clinic and heal those in need of it, those who believe in me, with my magic without fear of being found. I could openly move objects around with my magic without hermetically sealing each and every window shutter first. Amazing!

Though, you touch upon an important point too. How safe is this freedom? If people do not take it seriously, do people stay safe? Are there books to guide those who need it? Are there teachers you can find easily? Schools? Spirits can easily claim to be someone when in reality they are demons. One needs to know how to walk the path in order to not stray into the dark forest.

And do not fret, my friend! Spirit guides will reveal themselves when they feel it is right. Sometimes they also reveal themselves in your surroundings rather than directly (of course, I speak now of our teachings, I do not know how it is in your part of the world). They can also appear in dreams when we walk the Fade (or wherever your mind takes you). Look for signs. Look for what your eyes are drawn to, look at what symbols you see each day. A cat? A crow? Multiple people wearing a red scarf? And think of what you remember from your dreams. Your spirit guide might already have revealed itself to you but you have not noticed it yet.

Your scientists believe in multiple layers of the Fade? Interesting… Would that entail there are multiple… aspects of me?

In regards to your questions, yes. I believe the Fade could be what your scientists have found, or seen. I believe the… “portals” your people speak of could be where the Veil is thin. Strange occurrences appear in places where the Veil is thin. Demons can pour out, spirits or other creatures too, and they can attempt to manipulate their surroundings the way they are used to in the Fade, only for it to not be possible. Instead, things are flown around. They get upset, scared, or angry that their surroundings are not what they are used to, and they lash out. Sometimes, demons pour out purposefully to find a willing host so they can stay. What, exactly, is alluring about the mortal world is something I do not understand just yet.

Whether these dimensions, the Fade, can exist within us…? This is an interesting concept. Perhaps it is a bit of both? Perhaps where we go when we dream, whether you are a mage or not, is a part of the Fade which our souls are connected to. Perhaps this within us is an internalisation of the connection we have to the Fade, creating an entire world within ourselves? Or, perhaps, it is simply a connection in the form of a leash which we follow to the Fade when we dream, and follow back out when we wake? I do not know. I know I can tap into a pool of mana, which in turn is the Fade, or dangerously close to the Veil at the very least. It feels as though that exists within me. But I can also feel it outside of me. It is a comforting thought nevertheless, no? To both not know for certain and be able to believe something that puts us at ease, and to be aware that there is something that potentially connects all on this world… Something that connects us, and shows us that despite differences of culture or otherwise, we all belong together.

Perhaps, that is sometimes more comforting than my belief in Andraste.

I will admit, my thoughts were all over the place. You bring such interesting subjects to the table! Your world is a wonder, truly, and so different from mine with SO much unexplored still! It is new, filled with mysteries and close to breakthroughs. Hearing of your world is fascinating, and I hope I can offer some interesting thoughts to you too.

I have let a certain tabby (yes! I found a tabby down here! And he lets me pet him) sign off this letter for you. He says hello (I think, I can’t do telepathy the way some of your people can!). He is purring very contentedly as I write this last paragraph, though if I purr back, he gives me a strange look. If even cats look at us strangely when we purr, perhaps that’s why we don’t.

Yours truly, Anders.

Below Anders’ name is a blob of snot (not intentionally put there by a kitty sniffing the paper) and a cat’s paw print!

DA letters guidelines Scroll through other letters here Buy me a coffee here

#omg this is a thing?? in our world??#Anders would LOVE THIS SO MUCH #um this took me way too long #but Anders didn't want to talk through me after some bad stuff happened to me #either way #thank you SO MUCH FOR THESE LETTERS #I missed writing these so much #I love reading something you write and both going #and going #and I love that you and Anders are freaking out about cats together XD #thank you ever so much again #dragon age #dragon age 2 #rp #Letter from DA Characters #Anders #dragon age anders

18 notes · View notes

j-ellyfish · 10 months

Note

You are the QUEEN of Spaus 💜

Waaahhhh thank you!! Q///w///Q

#ask #I'm blushing and smiling like an idiot right now you have no idea how happy this makes me feel #I've been liking Spaus for SO long but back then I felt very insecure about my art and stuff and I didn't even have anyone to talk about #it with ... And so I drew them kind of rarely because I was so scared of not giving them justice and the lack of content also made me feel #down ... I know I shouldn't have thought that way and I'm SO HAPPY I got out of that mentality but #back then I felt like 'why should I bother my art sucks and no one cares about this ship anyway so I'll just keep it for myself in my mind'#but little by little I got out of that mentality #felt a bit less insecure about myself as an artist and had more experiences all around #and so when I came back and got into Hetalia again in late 2019-early 2020 #I felt very compelled to make up for it #I came back thinking 'I don't care if people ship it or not I HAVE to give it my love and let it known because it makes me feel good'#and so I started by translating the first part of what would become 'Einmal Noch' which I had started writing many years ago #originally in Italian ... Then I FINALLY finished writing it and it made me feel so accomplished because that story wouldn't leave my mind #and it stayed with me in the back of my mind even during the years I spent away from Hetalia #and then I took the courage to start drawing Austria again even if back then I was never fully satisfied with it #and little by little I think I got happier with myself through it and wanted so badly to do things the way I wanted no matter what #and I started sharing about SpAus and stuff and it makes me SO happy that there are other people who like it too T___T ♥#sorry I'm getting a bit emotional haha 'xD

5 notes · View notes

skinny-beanz · 1 year

Text

Hi guys, I’m back. Life has been busy, so haven’t been drawing much, but I saw the Mario movie 2 weeks ago and got inspired. It has literally been 6 years since I last drew these two, which is crazy. I think I’ll make a comparison post with my first Mario Bros drawing so you guys can see the difference 😂

#my art #digital art #fanart #super mario bros #nintendo #this took way too long for me to make xD #Maybe I’ll draw Peach next… 👀

4 notes · View notes

skatinginfinitelywithyourmom · 23 days

Note

🌻😈 :3

🌻- a flower - tbh pretty basic probably and you kinda answered already coz it is actually sunflowers that I like the most hehe I just really like yellow 💛 :)

😈 - meow meow - now that a tough one hmmm ok omg wait!! took me too long to think about him xd at the moment I think it's Boothill honkai star rail, he's a space cowboy and also a cyborg who kills people and threatens to kill them, but what's funny is that apparently he has some kinda profanity filter built in so instead of saying, idk, "you look like shit" he'd say "you look cute today", but aside from him I'd say adam sk8 probably, he's really grown on me, coz like he really is a good antagonist right? and we've all seen him fall on his face in a silly costume sooo yea

#ok wow that's long xd #thanks for the ask!!#took me way too long to type it out tho lmao #ask game

1 note · View note

apricottheapricat · 5 months

Note

31 harold n rivy :0 (alsp sry am i spamming???)

31. When do they feel the most guilt? How do they respond to it? (also spam good!!)

Harold: After he gets married to Zeph it happens almost every time he thinks too much about the curse. He feels guilty that Zephy is "stuck" with him and "has to" deal with his curse stuff, even if they theoretically have a good few years together left he cares about his husband's future more than his own. For that second part of the question he can't really do anything about it, (divorce isn't really an option even if they both wanted to), but Zephyr's always there to comfort him and remind him that he did, indeed, sign up for this when he chose to marry the fishboi, and he knew what he was getting into.

Rivulet: ok to tone down the angst a bit- Most of their problems died when they did, so now that they're back the only thing they'd still feel guilty about is having lost their potential now that they can't do magic anymore and thus can't do alchemy. They don't really want to re-learn everything from scratch, so other than the few potions they can still make without their magic they don't really bother with it. It's just something they were good at that didn't pan out in the end

#oc: harold #oc: rivulet #god i hated writing this one xD #took me way too long n i kept blanking on it too #probably shouldnt b answering akss in the middle of class tho

1 note · View note

factual-fantasy · 8 months

Text

!!PLEASE READ END MESSAGE BEFORE REBLOGGING!!

So guess who got a big break from their projects and was also informed about Clowns boundaries? <XD Me!!

I was super cautious to draw fanart of these characters at first.. But after getting some informative comments (thank you guys!) and thinking it though.. I don't think any of my artwork would cross a line. So here I am! And BOY do I have a lot of experimenting to do on these partial redesigns.

I'm sure you've noticed Sally is bright blue and very spikey. I was going for a young blue star look, but now that I'm looking at it.. ehh,, blue might not be her color, idk. Also her cool glow effect took so long to draw that I only drew it on 1 canvas. So definitely gotta think of a better way to draw her glow.. Barnaby needs some work too. I don't like how his fur patches came out. They look spray painted on.. Also Frank's vest and Sally's sweater took AGES to draw. I either need to find a faster way to draw them or just redesign them all together. Same with Poppys feathers, they took forever to color-- aaaa

ANYWAY, you guys get the point XDD First time drawing these guys to the fullest and my interpretations need some work. But I hope you like these drawings none the less!

Also important note!!

To avoid any potential drama or uncomfy stuff, please only tag this post as the individual characters, and "Welcome home arg" No other tags of any kind. No ships, canon or not- No exceptions. Just avoid any and all potential problems by tagging simply. Individual characters and the series name. This would be very much appreciated and would encourage me to come back and draw more Welcome Home stuff. Thanks you guys! <:)

#welcome home arg #wally darling #julie joyful #barnaby b beagle #frank frankly #poppy partridge #howdy pillar #eddie dear #sally starlet

6K notes · View notes

cow-smells · 7 months

Text

Worth your While | Opla! Sanji x reader

Request: I've read that you are in the need for some Sanji request or ideas so here's one for a fic :D

The crew gets into a fight ( it can be the Navy or anither pirate crew) and the reader gets badly hit and Sanji just loses his shit seeing the person that he cared for the most getting knocked out?? I just genuinely wanna see Sanji just go ape shit on people because of it XD and maybe hiw the others in the clue will react to seeing Sanji like that? @smolracoon25

Summary: You and Sanji have been playing the flirting game for way too long. When you get injured, Sanji shows a side of himself you had yet to see.

Word count: 2.1k

Warnings: none

A/n: I'm going purely off the live-action so pls have that in mind, also I'm just getting back in to the rhythm of writing after such a long time so sorry if this is poop/ooc/both, love ya :)

Read on AO3

“Don't you ever take a break?”

Zoro's voice coming from behind startled you, forcing you to break your longing gaze at Sanji who was fishing at the bow of the ship. “Huh?” came your wise response.

Zoro looked from you to Sanji. “You've been making moon eyes at him for months now. Don't you get tired? Or are you waiting for him to take his shift staring at you so that you can clock off?”

You felt heat rising to your cheeks. This was far from the first time crew members commented about you and Sanji's – whatever was going on between you two – but this was the first time Zoro called you out so blatantly.

When you didn't respond, Zoro went on. “I just came to tell you we should be docking soon. I'll leave you the pleasure of telling the cook.” with that, he left.

You closed the book on your lap. You really did have the intention of reading when you first head out to the deck, having some time to kill, but then... you noticed Sanji. At first you thought you'd go sit with him for a while, flirt and banter a little as you always do, but you found yourself absorbed in taking him in instead. He was different when he was alone. The way he looked so focused, so deep in thought when it was just him and the sea. Maybe even a little sad. So different from his usual sunny exterior that he put on when he was with people. Falling in to deep thoughts wondering what he might be thinking about – maybe about you? - you sat and stared, not reading as much as a word.

The book discarded, you felt a spring in your step as you made your way to the ship's chef.

The creaking floorboards alerted your arrival. Sanji turned to see who was creeping up on him, and when he saw you, he set his fishing rod aside as a wide smile grew on his lips, his dimples deepening and making your heart miss a beat. “There's my favourite girl. Come here, let me hear all about your day.” Sanji held his arms open, beckoning you to come sit on his lap.

The flirting was nothing new. When you first joined the Strawhats, Sanji was as flirty to you as he was to any other woman; he did not expect to meet his match in you. You were quick to play along, always one-upping him, dancing along the line that separated playfulness and seriousness, never quite picking a side.

The problem was, in reality, you had chosen a side long ago.

You would flirt and giggle and make him blush but never actually act upon anything. Neither would Sanji. He, however, took your playing along as though it was a battle to be won. Sanji would flirt, you'd reply with something raunchy, he would surprise you with something heartfelt. It was as though he knew exactly where to hit in order to get you a little closer to buckling, every time. As time went on he had become so devoted to your back and forth that you noticed he had gradually abandoned all other efforts flirting with other women, to focus entirely on you.

You had to remind yourself that this was a game to him. An instinct, almost. It hurt to think of your relationship that way, but you had to keep that thought at the forefront of your mind if you didn't want to fall even harder for him.

So you would continue to play along, even if that's all that you could have with him.

You chose not to indulge him completely – that was too dangerous for you – and so you opted to bend a knee over the armrest of his chair. Close, but no contact. “Come on, Sanji,” you bent your head in what felt like a bashful manner and said, “you know I spent all day thinking of you.”

You weren't sure if he was blushing or if that was just your wishful thinking. Composing himself, Sanji wrapped an arm around you to hold your waist, lightly tracing circles on your hip. “I beg of you, darling – next time, come find me instead of just thinking of me. I'll make it worth your while.”

You wanted to ask, how will you make it worth my while? Just to hear Sanji go in to detail of what you've been fantasizing about for months. But instead, you opted for a tamer response. “I came to tell you we're docking soon. Maybe I'll find you then and you could make it worth my while with a drink.”

Without missing a beat, Sanji took hold of your hand, bringing it to his lips. “There's nothing I'd enjoy more.” With that, he kissed your hand, his eyes never leaving yours.

Docking started out normal. Everyone knew what their usual chores were when you reached a town, restocking and fixing so that the ship would be in top condition for its next leg of the journey in your search for the One Piece. So while Sanji went in to town to restock on groceries (you didn't pay much attention to the others), you, Nami and Usopp stayed around the ship to fix up some of the damage it took when you last encountered a rival pirate ship. That also happened to be the reason it was just you three when the same rival pirates noticed your ship docked, ready to take their revenge.

The three of you had your individual talents, but you just weren't enough to hold up against an entire rival crew. They had attacked so suddenly and so fiercely – it didn't take long before you were on the sand, fighting to stay conscious. You lost that fight as you watched Usopp try his best to fight off three attackers at once.

You really thought that would be the end for you. You should have known better; it was Sanji's voice you heard as you regained consciousness, motivating you to open your eyes despite the pain that flooded your body.

The beach area all around you was covered with pirates who were taken down, just like you – only that they were your enemies. You first noticed Nami's orange hair – she seemed to be taking care of a bleeding Usopp, his condition worse than yours. Following Sanji's voice, you found him holding the last one of the rival crew by his shirt, throwing punches like you've never seen him before. It took you aback – thinking about it, you had never seen Sanji use his hands in combat. Too precious – need them for cooking, he'd once told you before adding, the only thing more precious to me is you. It had made you blush at the time before you had laughed him off. Now, you were questioning if it was a joke at all.

The man Sanji was holding wasn't putting up a fight – he was far too battered for that, but Sanji didn't stop. He was too far away for you to understand what he was saying to the guy, but focusing hard, you could just about make out half sentences – "to hit a woman" – "don't deserve to breath" – "finish you" – you searched for the strength to get up and stop him. You had never seen Sanji – your happy, cheerful Sanji – so angry, feral even. It scared you a little; but mostly, you knew Sanji would regret it if he were to kill a man who no longer posed a threat. So you grasped at the sand, forcing your aching bones to pick yourself up. But as you were regaining your balance, Sanji finally threw the man to the sand, a look of disgust painting his handsome features. "Finally made a date with her and you ruined it... You hurt her. You're lucky I don't kill you." The man groaned in pain.

In a sharp change, his features went from anger to concern as he finally left the man and turned to where he last saw you laying. His eyes were full of honest pain, until he saw you on your feet – then they read of hope. "Y/n!" Sanji called, rushing to you as he could see your struggle to stand upright. "You- I-" he scanned your body as he reached you, taking in all visible injuries. "Are you – are you okay? Can I help you?" he reached an arm around your waist, waiting for your approval before he held on to help you stay up, so afraid he might hurt you.

"Thanks." his arm around you really helped you to stay up. It was a practical measure, sure, any one of your crew mates would do the same – but when you look up and meet Sanji's eyes, you know that the tense feeling between you two wouldn't have been replicated with anyone else. "I mean it. You saved us. We'd... I'd be lost without you." at that, Sanji smiled that deep-dimpled smile of his at you, the playfulness not reaching his still-concerned eyes.

"Y/n," he started. "are you really flirting with me, at a time like this?"

It was strange how despite all your injuries, you felt less and less of the pain the longer you leaned in to Sanji, close enough to smell his fragrance. A half-smile reached your lips. You couldn't play this game any longer. "Did you really beat that guy up that bad because he ruined what should have been our... date?"

Sanji tensed, obviously not ready to have this conversation now. His gaze dropped momentarily before he wrapped his other arm around your waist, holding you tightly to him. "I had a hundred reasons to kill him," Sanji said, and you felt disappointment bubbling through you until he continued, "but the most pressing reason is that he ruined our date."

Sanji took the opportunity to tuck a stray strand of hair behind your ear and you couldn't help but smile so big you were embarrassed by it. "I really wanted that drink with you, away from the ship and everyone else. Just us."

You recomposed yourself. You needed clarity. "I'm not playing anymore, Sanji."

Sanji chuckled. "Fancy that. I was never playing at all."

You must have forgotten how to breath at all when he leaned down, his hand finding a rest on your neck as his thumb caressed your cheek. Nearly a whisper, he asked – "Can I kiss you?"

You leaning in served as the consent he searched for. After months of pining over each other, wondering what it would be like – his lips met yours, in a mixture of softness and passion like you'd never felt before. Forgetting you were injured at all you sneaked your arms around his neck, pulling him in, almost afraid of letting this anticipated moment of passion go. Sanji was more than happy to pull closer, a hand on your lower back holding you impossibly close to him.

The moment did, however, find its end as you heard your Captain whoop and holler from afar. "Yeah! Way to go, Sanji! About damn time!"

Breaking the kiss, Sanji nodded at Luffy, his smile lines prominent as he looked the proudest you'd ever seen him.

The crew was more than happy to make a quick exit that night, preferring to not stay around until the rival crew regained their strength. You were helping Nami untie the ropes anchoring the ship to the dock when she said, "I really thought he was going to kill him earlier." you didn't know how to respond. "I've never seen Sanji like that." Nami managed to untie a knot, and Zoro began pulling the rope up on to the ship. "He's really got it bad for you."

Despite that questionable context, you couldn't help but smile. In a burst of honesty you confessed; "I hope so, because I've got it real bad for him, too."

On cue, the ship's chef leaned over the ships railing, looking down to you. "Y/n, my love!" he called, as though the rest of the crew wasn't surrounding the both of you. "I hope you're finished down there, because I've got a candlelit dinner waiting for you up here. And drinks. You know, to make it worth your while," he finished with a wink.

From behind Sanji you could hear Luffy ask, "What about our dinner? Just because you're lovers now doesn't mean we don't need to eat..."

Sanji sighed and turned away from you, probably to go protect your dinner before Luffy demolished it.

"Right then, let's go," Nami said as you finished untying the last rope. "While there's still food to eat."

And for the first time, you boarded your ship not to find the One Piece or the All Blue – you were just happy to be there, with the man you loved.

#vinsmoke sanji #one piece sanji #one piece live action sanji #sanji x reader #sanji imagine #sanji fanfic #sanji fanfiction #vinsmoke sanji x reader #one piece sanji imagine #one piece sanji x reader #one piece live action sanji x reader #opla!sanji x reader

5K notes · View notes

theoretical-thinker · 1 year

Text

Chapter 3 is up! :) the prompt´s, as always, in the end notes on AO3

You can can also read chapter 1 and 2 through here on tumblr

read chapter 3 under the cut:

3) Icicle on a Branch Tip

The next few days went pretty much the same, with the only difference that Potter wasn´t as late anymore. Which didn´t mean that he was truly punctual either. After the fourth day of Potter bustling in hurriedly 10-20 minutes too late, Draco couldn´t stay quiet anymore. He looked up and squinted at Potter.

“Were you cursed to always be unpunctual or why can´t you seem to ever be on time?”

Potter had the actual audacity to roll his eyes. “Oh please, as if you´re always on time, you just happen to be here earlier than me.”

“And how do you come to this outrageous and completely untrue conclusion?”, he said miffed.

“That´ll remain my secret.” The tosser really grinned back at him. Draco had half a mind to hex him. Of course, he´d immediately get suspended, but with their forced teamwork in mind, that suddenly didn´t sound as bad anymore. Quite the opposite.

“Anyways, I´m here now, so we can get on with it. As we already established, none of us wants this”, he indicated at the space between them, “to go on any longer than it absolutely has to.” When Draco didn´t answer, he just shrugged and sat down. “So, did you find anything new in the precious time you were here before me?”

Draco felt a smug smile forming on his lips. “Actually, yes I did.” Potter´s left eyebrow lifted, as it often did when his curiosity was peaked. Not that Draco was paying much attention to Potter. But he´d done that even back in school, and in the few days they´ve been working together he´d done it, too. A lot. It was annoying and not attractive at all.

Draco frowned when that thought appeared in his head. Where did “attractive” come from all of a sudden?

“So?”, Potter asked impatiently. “Spill the tea, what did you find?”

“Ah, yes. Remember how you tried to locate the place from where every curse box originated?”

“Yes, Malfoy, that was literally yesterday - but we couldn’t trace the Sectumsempra at all. And there were also no reports from other Aurors catching a whiff of curse traces like that in the past weeks. It obviously led nowhere.”

“Not entirely correct though, as I now know.”

“And would you be oh so generous and share this newfound knowledge with me?” There was the eyebrow again. It was actually kind of graceful, the way Potter lifted it.

“Well, I found it a bit weird how a curse that unique and powerful wouldn´t leave any remarkable traces. So I researched a bit and found…this!” He proudly presented Potter with an old map.

Potter frowned. “What am I looking at?”

“My, my, Potter, has your eyesight worsened lately? It´s a map.” Instead of an answer, Potter only looked back at him unimpressed. Draco smiled amused.

“It´s a map of different magic and energy zones in England. See this part?” He pointed to a particular bright spot on the map. “Magic flows pretty freely here because the energy is very high. Every object in this zone conducts magic without much resistance. Which also means that any magic cast here will be easy to trace. On the other hand, there are zones like that…” He pointed to another part on the map, this one distinctly darker than the spot before. “…which are the complete opposite. The objects there won´t conduct magic as well, and that means…”

“…that even more powerful curses couldn´t be traced?” Potter finished his sentence.

Draco nodded. “Exactly. Though, to be able to swallow any traces of a curse like the Sectumsempra, the zone our culprit works from needs to have a lot less energy than this part here. In fact, there are just a few zones with energy that low. And only one of them,” with that he pointed to the final spot on the map, “correlates with the location where two out of three of the rarer potion ingredients they need for Felix felicis can be found. It´s not far from the coast, so capturing a Murtlap shouldn´t be hard and as there are significantly more old and abandoned magical buildings in this area, it would be easy to find Ashwinder serpents and especially their eggs. Of course the culprit could´ve gotten them in another way, too, but most of the ingredients have to be used as fresh as possible if you want a really powerful outcome. The longer you wait from the moment they´re extracted, the weaker your potion will get. And even though the potion´s outcome was faulty, most likely due to wrong brewing, the reaction was still very strong- so I´d say they live not far from the ingredients they use.” Draco shrugged.

Potter looked up at him. “That…makes sense. Good job” he admitted reluctantly. He then glanced down at the map again. “So, where exactly is this place?”

Draco shrugged a second time. “Don´t know yet, I only got that far until you arrived.”

“Okay then,” Potter said, while rubbing his hands, “let´s get to work.”

***

By the time they finally found the place - a small Muggle town called Sorcebury - a few hours had passed. (“Seriously, how can it be so hard to find the equivalent position from the energy map on a normal map?!” - “Malfoy, the energy map´s pretty old. They didn´t put a lot of coordinates there and even the few that they wrote down don´t match the real ones a hundred percent. What did you expect?” - “I don´t know, the cartographer to actually do his job? What good is an energy map if you can´t track the energy zones back to their geographical locations?!”)

Draco was just contemplating whether or not he should get himself another cup of coffee to be able to concentrate again, when Potter suddenly spoke.

“I think we should take a break. We made a lot of progress today. It´s nice outside – how about we go out for a short walk?”

Draco looked at Potter, immediately suspicious. “Why?”

Potter rolled his eyes. “Jesus, Malfoy. I just think we could both use a breather and the fresh air should help us to concentrate later again.”

Draco scowled, but when he glanced back at the documents he and Potter had been brooding over and saw only blurred letters anymore, he had to admit Potter was right. “Fine.”, he sighed and got up to get his coat and scarf.

As he put them on, he saw surprise taking over Potter´s whole face. He frowned and looked down to see what could possibly get that reaction out of him. Not finding anything out of the ordinary, he glanced back up at Potter, frowning. “What? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Your scarf…”, Potter said unbelieving.

Ah, so that was the reason. Draco rolled his eyes. “Merlin, Potter. Yes, I´m aware that back in school I was a near fanatic defender and follower of everything Slytherin, but I do actually like the colour red. So you really don´t have to look like I´ve grown a second head just because I choose to wear a scarf in this colour.”

After a moment, Potter seemed to regain his composure, because he finally closed his mouth and nodded. “Yeah, you´re right. Sometimes I just forget that you´ve changed a lot since the war.”

Draco smirked. “My, my, Potter, did the Saviour himself just give me something akin to a compliment?”

Potter only frowned.

“Forget it.”, Draco waved it off.

When they got outside, there already was a thick layer of snow coating every centimetre. Inwardly, Draco nearly burst with joy at the sight.

“Should we take the brief route through the park here?”, Potter asked.

Which would mean even more snow. “Yeah, sure.”, Draco replied, trying to sound as casual as possible. According to the suspicious look Potter threw him, he didn´t really succeed.

After a while of quietly walking next to each other, Draco´s thoughts drifted back to case. “Even though we´ve finally found out where our culprit probably works from, I´m still not entirely sure how we should proceed.”, he thought out loud.

Potter considered this for a moment. “Yeah, you´re right, it´s tricky. Because the town´s Muggle, they would probably be able to detect any proximal magical activity pretty easily. So we can´t just barge in with our wands raised or else they could escape before we even got chance to take a look at them.”

“Exactly. I´ve looked at a few- What in Salazar´s name are you doing, Potter?!”, Draco asked horrified. Potter just looked back at him innocently, a big icicle suddenly in his hand and only centimetres away from putting it into his mouth. “That´s unsanitary! Where did you even get this?!”

Seemingly reluctant, Potter lowered the icicle. “From there.”, he simply replied, pointing to a spruce tree a few steps behind them. Its branches were laden down with half-melted snow sitting atop its needles, and a few icicles in different sizes hung from the tip of the branch closest to them.

“Okay, but- “, turning back to Potter he saw that he was too late. The lunatic had already put the icicle in his mouth, obviously enjoying himself. Draco was appalled. “……why?!”, was the only word he could think of.

“Why not? I always wanted to do this as a kid, and since I couldn´t, I am taking every opportunity I now get to enjoy some delicious”, he punctuated the word, “icicles from trees.”

Draco was confused. “I thought you were brought up here in England too, why wouldn´t you have been able to eat these disgusting things as a kid?”

Potter´s reaction was instant, his whole body seemed to tense up. “Because I wasn´t allowed to do a lot of things.” Seeing Draco´s confusion only growing, Potter sighed. “Let´s just say that I didn´t have the kind of happy childhood that you probably imagine I had.”

Before Draco could ask any further questions, Potter switched the topic.

“Anyways, what were you trying to say before – you looked at a few…?”

It was obvious Potter didn´t want to keep talking about the topic of his childhood, so Draco went along.

“Ah, yes. I researched possible accommodations in Sorcebury. I may have found one suiting our situation. It´s a small hotel, themed after different holidays throughout the year. The only problem is that it seems to be made mostly for couples, so we have to think about how we could- “, Draco stopped in his train of thought upon seeing Potter´s expression.

Draco immediately got suspicious. “What are thinking about, Potter?”

Instead of an answer, Potter only started to smirk mischievously. That was never a good sign.

“I´ve got an idea.”

#25 days of draco and harry #third chapter #who doesn´t love eating icicles from trees #Draco apparently #also the whole ingredients explanation took me way too long #I should´ve just stayed vague XD #christmas #25 days of drarry #25 days 2022 #slythindoor100 #fanfiction #writing

0 notes

once-upon-an-imagine · 1 month

Text

Scars To Your Beautiful - James Potter

A/N: I have no idea how I was able to finish this xD thank you @captainlunaxmen for all your help! I hope yo loves like this :)

Request - @nix-rose asked: What about a James Potter x Black!Reader (if reader can have some personality: extrovert, loyal, gryffindor but could probably be a slytherin, just a happy person, definitely rough and tumble but still enjoys looking cute-) “Have you… Always been this beautiful?” “…That’s so cheesy even for your standards.”

Warnings: reader is really insecure, mentions of abusive parents, James protecting you from a creep (nothing to explicit though) also, this isn't proofread :D

Disclaimer: I don’t own Harry Potter :) gif isn’t mine :D

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Scars To Your Beautiful

But there's a hope that's waiting for you in the dark You should know you're beautiful just the way you are And you don't have to change a thing, The world could change its heart No scars to your beautiful, we're stars and we're beautiful

The ‘other Black’. That's how you were known in Hogwarts.

You knew your family wasn’t perfect. As much as they all like to make it seem that way, it was very much far from it. Being part of The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black brought a lot of pressure with it, but you were used to it by now. And, deep down, you loved your family. At least your brothers and your cousins. Well, two of your cousins, you were always pretty terrified of Bellatrix after she enchanted all of hers and her sisters’ ancient creepy dolls to come alive and it still terrified you to your very core today. But you loved Andromeda and Narcissa, even if the latter was now spending all of her time with Lucius Malfoy and you saw less and less of her.

Even if you’d never admit it, you were always a bit envious of them. Not in a bad way, you just… wondered a little how it would feel to be like them. You remembered guys literally fighting to get your cousins’ attention. And not a day went by without you having to hear at least ten different people saying how gorgeous your brothers were.

And then, there was you. You had a respectable reputation since you were part of the Black family. But it sometimes felt like you weren’t worthy enough to be part of it. You’ve sometimes noticed some guys staring at you a bit too long. And you’ve gone out with a few guys before. But you’ve also had people come to you specifically to get closer to one of your relatives. And nobody had referred to you as beautiful. Well, no one, except…

“Hey, beautiful” you heard that very familiar voice standing next to you.

“Potter” you smirked.

“Going to the match today?”

“The Slytherin-Gryffindor match?” you smiled. “Oh, I wouldn’t miss it for the world” you told him.

“Good, cause I need my good luck charm” he said as the two of you walked to the Great Hall.

“Exactly, how does that work, Potter? Because I’m not really rooting for your team” you reminded him and he scoffed, pretending to be offended.

“But of course you are, your brother plays on my team-”

“My other brother plays for my team” you interrupted.

“Well, maybe not the team but… I’m sure you like the Gryffindor captain more than Slytherin’s” he smiled sweetly at you.

“Well, you got me there, Potter” you admitted.

“Promise you’ll come to the party when we win?” he asked as you entered the Great Hall and you knew you would separate.

“That’s a lot of talk, Potter” you smirked but he offered his pinky to you. You rolled your eyes but you took it. “Never speak of this” you told him.

“See you there, beautiful” he said before he saw you walk to your table.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

“Here” you said, sitting down next to your brother at Potions and handing him a small bag.

“What’s this?” he asked, grabbing the bag.

“That girl from Ravenclaw wanted me to give you this. I think she wants to ask you to Hogsmeade next weekend” you said, grabbing one of the chocolates inside. “Bite this, if it doesn’t have a love potion, I’m stealing them” you said.

“I’m not trying anything!” he complained. “Remember when we had to take care of Sirius after that girl from Hufflepuff basically drugged him?”

“I know, that’s why I wanted you to try them first” you chuckled.

“Hold on” he said, grabbing his wand and pointing it at the candy. “We’re good” he said when a small purple dust came out of it. You grabbed one of the chocolates and Regulus grabbed another one, reading the note inside. “So, how was your talk with Potter this morning?”

“I didn't talk to Potter this morning” you frowned, stealing some of his chocolates.

“Don’t do that. I’m not Sirius” Regulus glared at you. “I’m not oblivious of how you two just casually entered the Great Hall together” he said.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Reggie” you said, pretending to be confused.

“Or whenever he goes to Honeydukes he just happens to buy one too many Peppermint Toads so he gives you some, which just so happens to be your favorite” he said.

“He doesn’t… do that” you said, with your mouth half full of chocolate.

“Are you… playing dumb? Or have you actually not noticed this?”

“Notice what? James is just friendly. That’s how he is” you tried to explain.

“Really? He’s never gotten me Sugar Quills” Regulus said.

“He doesn’t like Sugar Quills, why would he buy those?”

“He doesn’t like Peppermint Toads either” he smirked.

“Y-yes he does!” you argued, nervously.

“No, he likes Chocolate Frogs, like the rest of us normal people” he said, as you glared at him. “And besides, it’s not just that. He’s always asking Sirius and me what your favorite books are, or asking Remus which songs you liked” he shrugged.

“He… he does?”

“Does he really strike you as the guy who would read Pride and Prejudice for the fun of it?”

“He might” you tried to convince yourself as you grabbed another chocolate.

“Look, I know what you’re doing, and I know why you’re doing it. And it’s not worth it, bug” he said, getting serious.

“It’s easy for you to say, Reg” you mumbled, picking another chocolate. “Look, it’s just… not that easy for me” you added.

“You’ve gone out with guys before” he frowned, confused.

“Not like James” you added. “What if… what if he’s really just being friendly? What if I think he’s interested in me and then I make a complete fool of myself? Just because he’s nice to me and I think there might be something else there? I feel…” you sighed, looking down at your hands. “It feels pathetic” you mumbled.

“First of all, there’s nothing wrong with you liking James. Having feelings doesn’t make you pathetic” he said in a serious tone. “Secondly, did you not listen to what I just said? I honestly don’t think that James is just nice to you randomly like he’s nice to everyone else. He’s always looking for excuses to be around you, and he seems happier when he is. As do you. And, to be honest, I thought you were as oblivious about this as Sirius is, but now that I know that you were just trying to live in denial well, you’re dumber than Sirius- OUCH!”

“Excuse me?!” you asked, offended.

“Only when it comes to this” he defended himself. “Look, I know that… for some reason, you’ve convinced yourself that you’re never going to find someone who fancies you-”

“For some reason? There is a very clear reason, Regulus, her name is Walburga!”

“I know” he rolled his eyes. He knew very well about the hierarchy of the three of you in your home. And even if you were still not as below as Sirius because you were in Slytherin, your mother never let you forget that you were not Regulus or any of your cousins for that matter. “And I know that is not easy for you to turn off her voice in your head but, if you don’t, you might miss your chance to be with someone who is actually a great fit for you and it looks like he really likes you” he explained. “Don’t do that. If you let her win, you’re admitting that she’s right. And we all know, she’s not” he reminded you. “What’s the worst that could happen if you give Potter a chance?”

“It’s very annoying when you’re right all the time, did you know that?”

“I do” he smiled triumphally, eating one last piece of chocolate as Professor Slughorn finally entered the class.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

“Ugh, what is it?” you heard your cousin’s annoyed voice on the other side of the door that you knocked on before it opened, and she appeared. “Oh, hey, love” she smiled when she saw it was you.

“Hi, Cissa, um… is this a bad time?” you asked, hoping you were not just interrupting her having sex with Malfoy.

“Oh, no, love. Lucius is just moping about losing the match” she laughed, stepping out. “What’s up?”

“Um, w-well, I wanted to ask for a favor… if you’re not too busy” you smiled.

“Please, anything to get away from Lucius” she said, linking her arm with yours and already walking over to your dorm. “So, what’s going on?” she said, stepping into your dorm and noticing all the clothes scattered around your bed and the floor.

“Well, I was hoping to get your opinion on something” you said, smiling sweetly.

“Let me guess” she said, sitting on your bed and grabbing a few skirts and dresses. “You’re going to the Gryffindor party to see James Potter” she said, erasing the smile off your face.

“Wha-? How did you know? Did Regulus tell you?”

“Oh, please, love, I’m sure you and Sirius are the only ones who didn’t know” she laughed.

“What?”

“Yeah, Bella and Andy also know” she informed you.

“What? How?”

“I told them” she shrugged.

“Ugh, great” you said, throwing yourself on your bed. “My entire family is discussing my pathetic crush” you lamented.

“It could be worse” she said. “At least he’s a pureblood” she smiled.

“Right” you said awkardly, sitting up. Of course that would be the only pro she’d find on James.

“Besides, he obviously likes you back” she said as she started looking through the dresses. “Stand up” she said, pulling you up and putting the dress in front of you.

“How are you so sure that he likes me back?”

“Oh, please, love. You can’t be that dense” she snorted. “The boy won’t leave you alone. And I’m pretty sure you’re the only one not from Gryffindor to get invited to their parties” she said. “Or at least the only Slytherin” she said.

“W-well, maybe Sirius invited me-”

“Then why isn’t Regulus going?”

“Okay, fair” you sighed.

“This looks pretty. How come you haven’t worn it before?” she asked, holding up a black dress.

“Oh, I got it a while ago in a very cute shop, but, I know it’s not something my mother would ever let me wear” you told her.

“Well, lucky for us, your mum isn’t here” she said, throwing the dress at you.

After you put it on, Narcissa happily sat back down on your bed and helped you with your makeup.

“Hey, Cissa?”

“Try not to move, I’m doing your eyes” she said.

“How do you um… get a guy to uh… notice you?” you asked, making your cousin’s look soften a little.

“James Potter already notices you, love” she smiled.

“W-well, yeah, I guess b-but, um… how do I let him know that I like him?” you asked. “You know, without actually telling him” you chuckled.

“You mean, how do you flirt with him?”

“It’s just… Regulus insists that he does these things to get my attention and… to be honest, I didn’t think it was any different from the way he acts with other girls so… I guess I have been acting normal, but… I’d like him to know that I’m interested, I guess…”

“Well, Potter seems to have a big ego, so congratulate him on how well he played today” she said as she kept doing her makeup and you glared at her a little.

“And Lucius is as humble as they come, I suppose” you muttered.

“Fair point” she said, before she continued. “Look, you already know he’s interested in you. Just smile at him, laugh at his stupid jokes, you should be fine” she insisted as she finished. “Okay, I’m done” she smiled. You got up and walked over looking at yourself in the mirror.

For the first time, in a very long time, you actually felt beautiful. Narcissa had managed to make you look as elegant and flawless as you did whenever your family had a dinner party, but you didn’t feel like you were wearing a costume in one of the dresses your mother always picked. You felt like yourself. You turned around and hugged your cousin tightly.

“Thank you so much, Cissa!” you smiled.

“You’re welcome, love. Now go flirt with your dumb boy” she said, ushering you outside your dorm.

“You too” you said, smiling and walking down the stairs as she rolled her eyes.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

When you entered the Gryffindor Tower, the party was already in full mode. You felt a few people, guys specifically, looking your way but you thought maybe it was because you were possibly the only Slytherin here. You walked across the Common Room, looking for James, but you found a different Marauder first.

“Hi, Remus” you smiled as he walked over to you.

“Oh, thank Merlin you’re here” he hugged you. “You’re the only person I like at this party and now Prongs can finally stop moping about you not being here” he said, making you laugh a little as he pulled away and looked at you. “Wow… you look-?”

“Bad?” you panicked.

“What? No! You look lovely” he smiled. “Prongs’ probably gonna have a heart attack though” he smirked.

“Shut up! Stop saying things like that!” you widened your eyes at him.

“Oh, please don’t tell me that you are as oblivious as your brother” he chuckled.

“I am not-! You know, I hit Regulus for saying that today!”

“Alright, don’t hit me” he said, putting his hands up in surrender. “But, you cannot tell me that you haven’t noticed the way Prongs acts around you. He was literally throwing a fit about you not coming today” he insisted.

“Really? Because he seems fine to me” you said, pointing behind Remus where you saw James talking to a group of very pretty girls as he offered a drink to one of them while another one threw her hair back, clearly flirting with him.

“That means nothing” Remus said, rolling his eyes when he looked back to you. “That’s how James is-”

“Exactly, that’s how James is” you repeated.

“No, it’s different with you” Remus insisted as he grabbed a drink and handed it to you.

“Really? Enlighten me” you glared at him.

“So, you are admitting you are as oblivious as Sirius then?”

“You know, you’re making a big deal out of that for someone who is just as oblivious on my brother’s crush on him-”

“What?!” Remus said, choking on his drink and pulling you aside. “Alright, now you’re just making stuff up” he said.

“I’m not! You really haven’t noticed how Sirius is obnoxiously loud whenever you’re around to get your attention?”

“He… does not” Remus said, blushing a little.

“Or that he calls you sweet names” you smirked.

“He calls everyone ‘love’” he interrupted.

“Yes, he does” you nodded. “But he only calls you ‘my’ love” you added.

“He… does not” he repeated.

“What are you doing here?” Sirius asked, walking over to the two of you all of the sudden.

“Nothing” Remus quickly said.

“Being normal, why?” you said at the same time, making Sirius raise an eyebrow at the two of you. “Um… h-have you seen James?”

“No, but I am seeing too much of something” he said, gesturing his hand at your body. “What the bloody hell are you wearing?”

“A dress?” you said, looking down at yourself.

“That is too revealing. You need to go change!”

“First of all, it is not. And secondly, your shirt is literally completely open!” you complained.

“Yeah, well, this isn’t anything they haven’t seen before” he defended himself. “I am not in the mood to fight some prick that stares at you for a little too long because of… that” he said. “Go upstairs and grab my jacket” he told you.

“What? No!” you complained.

“Yes” he insisted. “Would you reason with her, my love?” he asked, looking at Sirius and you smirked when he blushed furiously.

“Shut up” he whispered to you. “Look, just go upstairs and pretend to look for a jacket, I’ll distract him and you can come back in a few minutes” he said while Sirius finished his drink.

“Ugh, fine” you rolled your eyes.

“How come she only listens to you?” Sirius complained, pouting at Remus. “It must be your beautiful eyes” he smiled.

“How many of those have you had?” Remus asked, taking his glass away from him.

You made it upstairs to the boys’ dorm and went over to Sirius' trunk to look for one of his jackets. You found one that you kind of liked and put it on before you went back downstairs. You looked for James but saw he was still talking to the group of girls. You tried to look for your brother instead but saw him very busy with Remus and you didn’t want to interrupt so you went to grab something to drink.

“I didn’t know they let Slytherins into our parties” you heard Augustus McLaggen on your left, pouring himself a drink as well.

“Oh” you said nervously. You were rarely alone at these things. You would at least have Regulus by your side and he would make someone go away if you were uncomfortable. “W-well, James invited me and- I was with my brother-”

“Relax, darling, I’m joking” he smirked, walking closer to you.

“Oh” you smiled wearily.

“It’s actually a bit… refreshing to have someone from another house” he said.

“Um… thanks?”

“There’s something different about you” he said, eyeing you up and down. “I can’t quite put my finger on it” he said, making you pull your jacket a little closer.

“Hey! You finally came, love” you thankfully heard James’ voice coming towards you and wrapping his arm around your waist. “I thought you were standing me up” he said, kissing your head.

“J-James, hi” you smiled relieved.

“Sorry, mate, gotta steal her for a bit” he said, smirking at McLaggen who was glaring at him and he quickly pulled you aside.

“Thank you” you told him as the two of you walked away.

“Don’t mention it, love. McLaggen’s a prick, why were you talking to him?”

“I wasn’t talking to him! He was talking to me” you insisted as James raised his eyebrow. “I was just getting a drink! And I was gonna go look for you-”

“Are you wearing my jacket?” he asked, confused.

“Y-your… what?” you said, looking down at your jacket. “This is y-your jacket?” you asked confused.

“Yeah” he smiled.

“Oh, I’m sorry, it was in Sirius’ trunk” you said, confused. “I thought-”

“Yeah, beautiful. I’m gonna save you some time, probably none of our clothes is in the correct trunk” he laughed. “Except Remus’” he added.

“I’m sorry” you said, starting to take it off.

“N-no! Don’t worry about it, gorgeous. Are you cold? Is that why you wanted my jacket? ‘Cause it looks good on you- I mean, you look beautiful tonight” he said smiling at you. “W-well, you always do” he added.

“R-really?” you smiled, feeling your cheeks blush.

“Yeah” he nodded. “You don’t need the jacket if you ask me-”

“Oh, um, w-well…” you stuttered. “Sirius just… didn’t like my dress and said I needed a jacket” you rolled your eyes.

“Well, Padfoot just needs to snog Moony and mind his business” he laughed, making you laugh as well. “You look beautiful with that dress” he smiled dreamily at you.

“Thank you, James” you said, feeling your heart flutter. “Wait, you know about that?”

“How Sirius calls Moony ‘my’ love? Of course I do” he chuckled. “So, what took you so long to come? Were you crying all this time because your house lost?”

“Really? Did you want me to come just to brag about the match, Potter? I can still leave” you smirked as he handed you a drink.

“Please don’t. I was so bored before you came” he said, walking you over to one of the sofas near a window.

“I find that very hard to believe” you said, looking around.

“Why do you always think I’m lying?” James asked, placing his hand on the sofa, behind you.

“Because I’ve known you since I’m eleven?” you replied, making him glare at you a little.

“That hurts, love” he said, trying to sound offended. “When have I ever lied to you?”

“Well, for starters, you didn’t tell me that you, my brother, and Peter became Animagi to help Remus-”

“That was your brother. He didn’t let us tell you” he defended himself.

“Alright” you said, trying to suppress your smile. “So, you’ve never lied to me?”

“Never, love” he insisted.

“Not even to avoid hurting my feelings?” you raised your eyebrow at him and noticed him tense a little.

“N-no, of course not” he said, taking a sip of his drink.

“So, last Christmas when you invited us over and your mum was teaching me how to cook, you actually liked the Christmas Pudding I made?”

“Of course I did” he chuckled.

“James” you glared at him.

“Yes, love?” he smiled, goofily at you.

“I mistakenly added salt instead of sugar, it was ruined” you laughed.

“No, no. It wasn’t ruined. It gave it a new better taste” he shrugged.

“James!” you laughed.

“What? It’s true! I liked it” he insisted.

“Nobody else ate it! You can’t possibly think it was good” you laughed.

“Well, I did” he shrugged, turning your way.

“You’re really stubborn, did you know that?”

“Oh, and you’re not?” he laughed making you smile. “Have you… always been this beautiful?”

“That’s so cheesy, Potter, even for your standards” you chuckled, feeling your cheeks burning.

“Wait… do you-? Do you not believe me?” he asked, his tone getting serious.

“I- um… I do” you said, unconvincingly.

“You don’t” he said, turning himself to you. “It is one thing that you don’t believe that I liked your Christmas Pudding-”

“You didn't” you insisted.

“But how can you not believe me about that?”

“I do!” you insisted. “It’s just… I’m sorry, I’m being stupid” you smiled sadly, looking at your drink.

“No, you’re not” James insisted, placing his hand under your chin to make you look at him. “What’s going on, love? Did- did I say something wrong?”

“No!” you quickly said. “You never say anything wrong” you smiled sadly. “It’s just… I’m not really used to um… hearing that” you said, feeling your cheeks blush.

“Love, I tell you that every single day! Why is it so hard for you to believe me?”

“Because, James, look at my entire family” you said, sadly. “You know who I live with. My mother is not warm and loving like your mum is. I grew up very differently than you” you reminded him, making his look turn soft and his heart break a little. “I know you wouldn’t lie to me” you added. “It’s just… not easy for me to believe it, I guess” you smiled sadly.

“Well, love” he said, moving closer to you and placing his hand softly on your cheek. “If you’re okay with it, I will keep saying it until you believe me” he told you. “Because you are the most beautiful person that I have seen in my life. And, since apparently I haven’t been as obvious as I thought I was, I am completely and madly in love with you and I would love to take you out on a date” he said, making your heart stop.

“R-really?” you asked and he raised his eyebrows at you. “I m-mean, y-yes, I would love to go on a date with you” you smiled. “And… in case you didn’t know because I’m horrible at this… I am very much in love with you too” you added, making the biggest smile appear on James’ face. “And I also think you’re really beautiful” you said before he pulled you in to kiss you on the lips.

“I love you, beautiful” he said, making you smile.

“I love you too, Jamie” you said. “Can I ask you one more thing?”

“Anything” he said.

“Do you like Peppermint Toads?” you asked suddenly, remembering your conversation with Regulus.

“Do I uh-” he frowned. “Why are you asking me that?” he chuckled nervously.

“You always give me Peppermint Toads when you say you bought too many but… I don’t think I’ve seen you have one” you explained.

“Well, love… I hate to break it to you, but nobody likes Peppermint Toads” he admitted.

“That’s not true!”

“Yes, it is” he said, kissing your cheek. “I just bought them because you always smiled when I gave them to you” he said. “So, I’ll buy you as many as you want” he said, hugging you to him and giving you another peck on the lips.

"Thanks, love" you smiled. "Can you now tell me if you actually liked my Christmas Pudding?"

"I did!"

The End

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

A/N: I hope you loves liked it! :)

#marauders #marauders imagine #james potter #james potter imagine #james potter x reader #sirius black x sister!reader #regulus black x sister!reader #james potter oneshot

457 notes · View notes