#that sirius spent more time in Azkaban than he knew james | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

jimblejamblewritings · 2 years

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what we were, what we are | part 1.

Summary: The worst thing that ever happened to Y/N Lupin was getting sent to Azkaban for a crime she didn’t commit. The second worst thing was when she got out on parole and not because her name was cleared. Trying to get her life back proves difficult when everyone has moved on into the present while she only has memories of the past.

Warnings for the Series: angst, smut

Pairing: james potter x black!reader, james potter x lupin!reader, sirius black x black!reader, sirius black x lupin!reader

Word Count: 2.5k

A/N: Uh, yeah, I still think tumblr fic is dying or no one’s paying attention to my work anymore which is why I haven’t finished the others but still this called to me so I’m writing it. I won’t tag my normal taglist unless y’all want it. Also I don’t know if it’ll be James or Sirius as the love interest yet.

(Series Masterlist)

The worst thing Dumbledore could have done was give a job to the three Marauders that were still alive, McGonagall was sure of it. James was the best Transfiguration assistant professor, Sirius was wonderful for Duelling Club and Muggle Studies, and Remus might have been the best Charms professor that she had ever seen. Of course, it was a shame that they had to switch him to Defense Against the Dark Arts. But after Quirrell and Lockhart, they needed more time to find a proper professor. If Lily wasn’t married to her job in the Ministry then maybe her husband and child could’ve persuaded her to take the teaching job for just a year or two.

The only thing worse than hiring three Marauders was hiring (Y/N) Lupin. Every member of staff, including her own brother, told Dumbledore such over the summer meeting before school’s start. Severus rolled up the sleeve of his black robe.

“I didn’t spy for you and let them brand me a Death Eater for you to invite her right in. You know this was her idea? She said so we wouldn’t be caught. These don’t fade easily,” he sneered.

“Are we supposed to forget she tried to have the Longbottoms killed? Frank and Alice barely escaped with their lives,” James spoke up. “How is she even getting out? She killed Wormtail and some muggles.”

Dumbledore let them continue protesting until they ran themselves out. Adjusting his spectacles, he looked at all of them.

“I do not know much of the details, only that the Ministry seems to have entered a plea deal of sorts with Mrs. Pott— Ms. Lupin,” he corrected himself after the look from James. “She can be watched at Hogwarts while carrying out whatever they need.”

No professor bothered arguing anymore. It was clear that this wasn’t Dumbledore’s choosing as he told them everything he knew. With the threat of Voldemort getting larger, it was necessary for the Ministry to step up the hunt. Auror Moody had suggested it. Letting (Y/N) Lupin out on probation as long as she helped them at least establish contact with Death Eaters and maybe even Voldemort.

Only a few years ago, you had been a spy with the Order. Fresh out of Hogwarts, you and the others were eager to join the fight against the Dark Lord. You were on their side… or that was what they thought. That was what you knew. You weren’t sure how you had been so stupid to not think Peter would have pulled a trick the minute you discovered his true intentions. But none of it mattered. You were still at the crime scene that night and he was gone. No one bothered to listen to your words. You were labeled a criminal, a follower of Voldemort, and whisked away to Azkaban.

Of course you had taken the plea deal when it was presented to you. You would have done anything to get out of Azkaban, fearing that a few more months and you’d go properly insane. It didn’t matter that you weren’t even sure how to get in contact with the Death Eaters that you had spent months pretending to be. Maybe one of them would get into contact with you? After all, you had never been found out.

You pulled down on the sleeve of your sweater to hide the Dark Mark that the Auror handing you back your wand was staring at with hatred. The wand was simply for show. They had put a charm on it so you couldn’t do most spells. Not that it mattered. You couldn’t do most spells anyway after being fed on by dementors almost every day since arriving in Azkaban.

“Try anything—”

“And you’ll send me back,” you cut him off. “I understand. You all have been threatening me with that for weeks now. Can we just go now?”

You wanted to get settled in at Hogwarts before the kids arrived. Nothing was lost on you. You knew that no one would be happy to see you. You weren’t even going to bother finding your brother or your husband.

At least they kept the ring, you thought as you fiddled with it while waiting for the Auror to come back in order to apparate to the school.

It had been Euphemia Potter’s. She figured when her only son was getting married that giving her future daughter-in-law her original engagement ring was only fitting. While you knew that no one would be happy to see you, there was a small part of you that hoped maybe you could get them all to listen to you. If you could just get someone to hear the truth then maybe they would give you a proper trial. Those hopes were immediately shattered when all the professors either walked by like they didn’t see you or cowered in fear.

You sighed as you sat at the end of the staff table. It only got worse when the students entered and Dumbledore announced what was happening. You wanted to correct every bit of what he said because it simply wasn’t true. Your heart sank when you watched the Marauders— your old friends— all reach for their wands when you stood from the table. They had nothing to be scared of. You were the traumatized one. You were the one riddled with nightmares and scared of your own shadow. They had nothing to fear. You addressed Dumbledore.

“I’m finished with dinner, is it alright if I leave? I’m not going anywhere but my room.”

“That’s fine.”

You went to leave before turning around again. “If none of the students arrive in my Study Hall, don’t punish them. It’s understandable if they want to skip.”

A boy ran past you, pushing up his large glasses as he did. “Dad, did Uncle Remus tell you about what happened on the train?”

You blinked in confusion between the boy and James. The resemblance was uncanny. And you were forced to face a thought that pained you whenever it popped into your head while in Azkaban. Of course he wasn’t your husband anymore. Why would he be? Still, judging by the boy’s age, James had moved on fast. You figured it must have been easy when you were branded a murderer. The divorce papers that you were never served probably got approved as soon as they saw your name on the form.

But he was one of the few bright thoughts that you had while in prison. And now that was gone. Without much thought, you wiggled the ring off your finger and set it down next to James’ hand. He barely looked at the thing, only picking it up when he recognized it as his mother’s ring.

“I thought you were going to your room.”

You jumped when you heard the deep voice. Relief settled over you when you noticed that it was just the Marauders. You had been headed to your room until you noticed that it was the full moon. The full moon was worth getting in trouble for not going straight to your room. That had always been something that plagued you while in Azkaban. You had spent every full moon worrying about your brother. You were the one that bandaged everyone up after they came back from the Shrieking Shack. Remus never allowed you to go with them even though you became an Animagus for that very reason. He had always been concerned about your safety around him.

While you were relieved, the Marauders couldn’t say the same thing. Remus’ Moony Nights had calmed down severely since being students once Severus learned how to brew wolfsbane potion for him but it still wasn’t easy. They all sat down at the island in the school’s kitchen with a lot of tension. You seemed busy as they watched you move around. When you turned to face them, they simply stared at the cups of hot chocolate. You grabbed the jar and moved around the island.

“Remmy, are you hurt anywhere els—”

Remus grabbed your wrist before you could dab the cream to the cut above his eyebrow. “I don’t need your help.”

You simply blinked at your older brother. “It’s just that it’s a Moony N—”

“You said you were going to your room. Already lying.”

Despite glaring at you the entire time, James’ face softened slightly when he noticed your eyes go wide and a slight tremor to your body. Quickly, you retreated to your room after a quick apology. The incident with the dementors and the Hogwarts Express had been your fault. You and Remus shared dna and that almost got him and some of the students severely hurt when they mistook him for you on that alone. You weren’t even sure if the men heard your apology with how fast you left the kitchen.

You didn’t want to be in trouble with the dementors on the first day of freedom. You were the reason they were patrolling school grounds in the first place. Everything you did was monitored. That thought didn’t escape you as you ate breakfast in your classroom.

Like you suspected, none of the students that had you as a professor for Study Hall showed up. You got plenty of letters from their parents and lots of mean-spirited messages from the students themselves. All three of your meals were eaten in your empty classroom. You were starting to wonder if the isolation of Hogwarts was any better than Azkaban. At least the food was better.

The commotion outside of your bedroom door woke you up. Your entire body felt heavy. You had just finished another bottle of Dreamless Sleep Draught. The nightmares were endless and the noise outside was cutting into the little bit of sleep time that you got. You groaned when it didn’t seem to die down. Eventually, you dragged yourself out of bed.

“You insolent litt—”

“Professor Snape,” you called out in a bit of confusion.

Severus and Harry froze up at the sight of you, even if you were in pajamas. You were too tired to even be bothered by their actions. You squinted slightly as the light from Snape’s wand shone in your face.

“Professor, what is happening?”

Severus snatched a large piece of parchment out of Harry’s hand. “Seems Mr. Potter has found an interesting artifact. Clearly dark magic. Why don’t you look since this is your area of expertise.”

Your nostrils flared slightly at the insult but you said nothing. You simply leaned over to look at what he was holding. The laughter that escaped your mouth was impossible to stop as you recognized the paper. The Marauders’ Map wouldn’t even exist if you hadn’t helped. Harry and Severus tensed at the laughter. It sounded like nails on a chalkboard. Severus remembered your laugh in your school days. It had always been soft and bubbly. It certainly wasn’t now. You took the map from him with a promise to check it out in case Harry did come across a dark artifact. After many moments of deliberation, Harry chose to go with you instead of Snape for his punishment for being out past curfew.

“How much trouble am I in, Professor?” he asked tentatively after you reached your classroom.

You shook your head. “If I got you in trouble for something James did every other night, I’d be a hypocrite. You know I can’t give this back to you though.”

Harry shrugged. “It doesn’t matter, I don’t think it works anyway.”

“Oh? Well, the magic of that map doesn’t lie… Harry, what is it?”

“It’s, um.” He picked at his clothes, regretting that he had opened his mouth. “The map showed a name but Peter Pettigrew is dead.”

“What?”

“It’s n-n-nothing. Goodnight, Professor.” Harry scrambled out the room as you began to open every single fold of the map.

The dark circles under your eyes were prominent as you ran into the Great Hall. With little care for their breakfast, you placed the map on the staff table in front of the Marauders. Your eyes practically sparkled as you pointed feverishly at the map. Before you could open your mouth, Severus glanced over.

“Is that the parchment you confiscated from Mr. Potter last night? Is it actually dark magic?”

“You were near my son?” James asked with great concern.

“I… the map,” you quickly redirected when you found that you didn’t have an answer that would appease him. “Just look please.”

The almost whimper in your tone immediately sent Remus into big brother mode whether he liked it or not. His gaze moved to where your finger kept stabbing at the paper.

“What are we looking at?”

Your eyebrows scrunched in confusion. You bent your head down, shaking it furiously.

“No, no, he was asleep a minute ago. I swear he was there, Peter wa—”

“Don’t you dare say his name,” Sirius cut you off.

Tears were welling in your eyes. The map, Harry’s discovery, was the one saving grace that you had. If you couldn’t find Peter then you were going to be a criminal for life. It didn’t matter if they let you stay out of Azkaban. You wanted to be rid of your nightmare once and for all.

“Peter was here, he was here,” you kept whispering.

You shook your head, scratching at your hair as you backed away from the table still whispering. The gossip already started as you exited the Great Hall in such distress. You kept going towards the school’s entrance, needing to be outside. You hadn’t been outside in so long. Up until now, you had just reserved yourself to staring outside your classroom windows at the scenery. But now you needed air. If you couldn’t find Peter then you had nothing. You stumbled backwards slightly when a large cloaked figure seemed to appear in front of you.

Panic set in. You must have stepped too far out of the bounds of the castle grounds. But you were still close to the door. You thought that you’d have more room to walk around. Maybe the dementors didn’t care. The mumbling about Peter turned to pleading with the dementor.

Like when you were in prison, the creature ignored you. Your scream was silent as the familiar freeze set into your body and the dementor sucked out another shred of happiness— the entire year of when you were eight was now officially gone from your memory.

James, more pissed than anything that you were near his son, couldn’t help but look down again. He knew your tells. Even before you were married, before you started dating in sixth year, he always noticed your tells. The scratching at your hair was only when you were under great stress. He let his eyes lazily scan over the map. Sirius and Remus looked at their friend when James abruptly stood up. The word Wormtail leaving his mouth made them look at the map. James was out of his seat and out of the Great Hall in a matter of seconds.

You always liked to sit on the pier at the lake whenever you were stressed. He froze in his tracks when he saw you kneeling in the grass. Throughout the whole war and the brief Auror career that he had, James Potter had never seen a dementor at work.

“Expecto Patronum!”

The dementor slowly backed away from your body that had now dropped into the grass.

“Shit,” James muttered under his breath as he scooped you up and carried you to the Hospital Wing.

(Part 2)

#sirius black x black!reader #sirius black x reader #james potter x reader #james potter x black!reader

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starslovechasers · 2 months

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Rotten work

Remus Lupin would never forget how it felt finding out that his Padfoot, murdered his best friends.

It was a dreary November afternoon. He had returned from a classified mission for the Order of the Phoenix.** James and Lily had been hidden for months in an undisclosed location, so he wasn’t expecting to be reunited with them, not for a while at least. He had returned to headquarters, only to be surprised at the lack of hustle-and-bustle it usually held.

Searching the hallways and rooms for anyone, he almost hit Mary McDonald smack in the face.

He smiled. He was home. But something wasn’t right.

Sweet Mary. Her brown eyes had deep coloured circles, swelled with redness that could only be caused by tears. Remus knew something terribly wrong had happened.

‘You haven’t heard.’ Her silky voice cracked, a small break that caused Remus to feel a deep sense of dread, because no one could have prepared him for what he heard next.

He fell to his knees. Remus has spent so long trying to stay strong for them, for his family. But at that point in time, he felt the weight of the world he had been holding for so long, crush him.

Mary wasn’t finished, he knew there was more. He tried to calm his breathing to look at her. He needed to know everything, he needed to do something. He needed to get to them.

Oh James. Oh Lily.

Harry.

Where was Harry in all this?

“Sirius… does he.. Have Harry? Is Harry okay? Sirius is his godfather-’

‘Remus-’

‘Sirius can look after Harry-”

‘Remus…’

‘He can do it, I know he can-’

‘REMUS!’

Remus stopped.

He met Mary’s eyes, her teary eyes had softened. Not a look of anger, a look of pity.

All that could be heard was the strong ringing that filled Remus’ ears that could only be caused by betrayal.

At that moment, Remus couldn’t hold it in anymore. He let out a blood-curdling scream. He sobbed and hit the floor, he hit and banged so hard it ought to break.

There was no silencing charm on the room, so if there was anyone else in the building they would barge in at any moment, but there was no one.

There was no one left to barge in.

***

Thirteen years ago, Remus Lupin lost three of his best friends. More than that, his family. Not only did he lose his family, he lost the love of his life in one of the greatest betrayals known to man. His partner, his best friend, his love. Sirius Black.

For thirteen years, he mourned a love that burnt him so badly it marked his bones.

He mourned his family, James Potter, one of his first and only friends. One of his friends who made him feel okay in his skin despite its scars.

Lily Potter, one of the sweetest girls he would ever know, one of the only other people who he was comfortable to tell anything to. The couple had done nothing but love and adore him. He watched them grow and fall in love with each other despite years of scepticism and banter. He learnt what love was through Lily and James Potter. Not only did they love each other effortlessly, they loved all of their friends to a fault. He shared his secrets with them, he shared his soul, and he lost them. Not to anyone, but to someone who had known the most raw parts of him, from his soul to his skin and his scars. Lily and James Potter had died at the hands of their closest friend.

At least that’s what Remus Lupin thought.

Here he stood, thirteen years later. With their killer who had the same face as the teenage boy he once loved. Except he was not their killer.

***

Sirius Black had spent the last thirteen years in Azkaban paying the price for what Peter Pettigrew did. He was not able to mourn his family because he was busy being blamed for the murder of them.

Now Remus Lupin had to figure out how to cope with the truth. Could he do it?

He had his arm wrapped around the shoulders of Sirius who clung to his waist, limping alongside him. They didn’t speak for much of the journey, there had been too much to say but neither of the men knew how to say it.

They walked into Remus’ empty apartment.

‘Make yourself at home.’ He mumbled, although he didn’t intend for it to come out that way. The irony was not lost on him, considering he had bought the apartment after he had left Hogwarts.

With Sirius.

Remus lowered Sirius gently on the couch. He watched him observe the apartment, a distant look lingering in his eyes.

‘Hasn’t changed much, has it Moony? Someone was a little lazy while I was in Azkaban!’ He let out a damaged laugh. Remus tried not to wince. Banter was not new for them, but it was for the men they were now, this was uncharted territory. How are you meant to speak to someone you loved who you believed for over a decade had betrayed you?

Pity there wasn’t a class for this in Hogwarts.

Sirius’ gaze softened when he saw Remus’ cautious reaction, he reached for Remus’ hand.

‘Moony.’ He almost sounded pleading.

‘I think you should shower, I'll get you a fresh set of clothes.’ Remus turned on his heel. He didn’t give Sirius a moment to react, he needed a moment. Once he reached his room, he shut his door quietly and leaned his forehead against it.

A single tear slipped down his face and he took a breath to calm himself. He is innocent. Remus reminded himself. He needed to remember. He heard Sirius shuffle up off the couch. He held his breath hearing him pause outside the bedroom door.

Not yet, please. Remus thought. I’m not ready.

As if Sirius had heard him telepathically, he continued past the door into the bathroom. Remus waited, cautiously listening. He heard the shower tap turn on. He let out a gentle sigh. At least he could take these few moments to calm his pounding heart.

After all this time, Sirius Black controlled every part of him.

He began looking through his drawers for a set of clothes that would do. Unfortunately, not much would fit Sirius, he concluded. Sirius had always had a more slender, smaller figure than Remus but since he had been in Azkaban he had gotten significantly smaller. His cheeks were more hollowed out and his collarbones stuck out like knives. Surely he would be able to find a pair of pyjamas that would suffice.

His search for acceptable pyjamas was cut short but a sharp scream caused every muscle in Remus to freeze. He immediately dropped what he was doing and ran to the bathroom. He shoved the door open to see Sirius bent over, wincing in the shower.

‘Sirius?’ He whispered, approaching the shower. His eyes widened at the sight, Sirius’ chest was covered in scars and cuts that seemed to be reopening under the hot water. Sirius couldn’t face him, he was heaving, on the verge of collapse.

Remus ripped a towel off the rack and wrapped the man up, his free hand turned off the shower. Soaking his jumper in the process- but he didn’t care. He helped a whimpering Sirius out of the shower and placed him down on the edge of the bathtub.

‘We don't have to talk about it.’ Remus sat next to him on the bathtub.

‘I’m not ready to yet.’ Sirius’ lips trembled, his hands rubbed gently at his chest. Remus took his hand, pulling it away from the raw skin.

‘That's okay. Let me help.’ Remus whispered. He gave Sirius’ hand a gentle squeeze before letting go to reach for a wash-cloth. He stood up, turning the tap on. He tested the water with his hand before running the cloth under the water, once it was damp he sat back down next to Sirius who hesitated.

‘You don’t have to do this.’ Sirius reached for his arm.

‘I want to.’

‘It’s rotten work.’

‘Not to me, not if it's you.’ Remus spoke effortlessly. Sirius nodded.

He stood up and moved the towel to reveal his chest, adjusting it so it only covered his waist.

Remus ran his eyes over the scars covering his chest, he tried to do it in a way that didn’t make Sirius uncomfortable but he had to assess the damage. He watched Sirius shiver.

He took the cloth and gently began to tend to Sirius’ cuts. The two men sat quietly, Sirius watched Remus clean the cuts up, and Remus tried to avoid Sirius eyes as he did so. Remus felt warmth spread over his cheeks under Sirus’ gaze, he always did have that effect. He rolled his sleeves up upon completion and leaned over the sink to ring out the wash-cloth.

‘There definitely could have been a spell to fix that, you know Moony.’ Sirius’ voice was still weak, but a soft chuckle from him made Remus fight the urge to smile.

‘I didn’t want to risk hurting you.’ Remus turned back to him and Sirius’ eyes caught on his wrist. Remus looked down to see what he was looking at and felt anxiety sweep him, ‘That’s nothing, don’t look at that.’ He stumbled over his words, sweeping his shirt back down his wrist but Sirius was too fast, he grabbed it.

‘What is this Remus.’ It wasn’t a question.

‘I think you know.’ He whispered.

‘Remus. Why do you have a tattoo of a star.’ His voice sounded heavy in his throat, his eyes remained glued to Remus’ wrist.

‘Not just any star.’

‘The brightest one.’ They both whispered at the same time.

Sirius’ eyes flicked up to Remus’ for the first time since Remus had entered that bathroom. Remus tried to avoid his gaze but felt drawn to it, he couldn’t resist looking at Sirius Black anymore.

‘You got a muggle tattoo of Sirius? Of my Star?’ Sirius questioned, but it sounded an awful lot like pleading.

‘I did.’

‘Why-’

‘Why do you think Sirius?’ He cut him off. He hoped his soft tone didn’t reflect his heart pounding in his chest but at this point, he wasn’t too sure Sirius couldn’t hear it.

‘After all this time?’ Sirius’ face was unreadable.

‘Always.’

They both paused. They both wanted to let the silence linger for a moment.

‘What about you?’ Remus tried not to gulp.

Sirius sat there for another moment, just staring at Remus. Remus feared he might never speak again.

‘Always.’

That was all Remus needed to hear before his lips were on Sirius’ for the first time in thirteen years.

Remus took Sirius’ face into his hands, kissing him with the same passion, the same electricity as the first time they kissed. Almost like nothing had changed. Sirius melted into Remus’ touch almost instantly. He threw his arms around Remus’ neck. No matter how close they were, it never felt like it could be enough. No one dared to break the kiss.

Remus pulled Sirius with him up, pressing him against the wall. They pulled and touched each other as if they were almost trying to get into eachothers skin. Remus was a part of Sirius and vice versa. They had always made sense, they had always meshed together perfectly. They were too halves of the same whole and they were finally reunited. They both pulled away, panting. They struggled to catch their breaths but neither of them cared. Their foreheads leaned against each other.

‘Please, don’t leave me again.’ Remus whispered, his thumbs traced the lines on Sirius’ face.

‘Anything for my Moony.’ Sirius whispered against his lips, a soft laugh followed his words.

Remus pulled back, and he could have sworn Sirius let out a whine. He took Sirius’ hand and led him out of the bathroom.

‘Let's get you some clothes.’

‘Always the fun police.’

They were together, and they were home.

#remus lupin #wolfstar #reunion #angst #mostly canon #one shot #sirius black #sirius post azkaban #wolfstar reunion post azkaban #fuck peter pettigrew #dead gay wizards #trauma #short one shot

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theresthesnitch · 2 years

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Lost time is never found again

For Sirius and Harry Saturday, and Sirius’s death date, I’ve written this angsty little piece. vaguely a twist on the prompt: Sirius comes back from the veil wrong.

The veil is thick.

It looked thin when Sirius stood next to it, fought next to it, but it was thick, suffocatingly so. It felt like he was swimming through custard, breathing in custard. Whatever the spell was that Bella hit him with was rooted in his chest, immovable and anchored into the soul of him, a great ball of heat and pain that Sirius could almost feel but wasn’t quite reaching him.

Couldn’t quite reach him through the thick veil.

He wasn’t dead. That was the only thing he was really sure of. He had spoken with enough ghosts at Hogwarts to know what death felt like, and this was not it. Death was light, freeing. Unrestrained from the daily pains of being human.

But the veil was thick, heavy. He was weighed down by the heft of his life decisions—those that he made and those that he never got a chance to make. It was painful, hard, difficult. He felt like he might break underneath it.

He was adjacent to death, he thought. Occasionally, he thought he could feel James reaching for him, could hear Effie crying for him, but he couldn’t reach them.

He felt Peter go past him, and he reached out, clawing for him, scratching at him. Peter saw him, but acted like he did not.

He saw Remus too. Remus reached for him, but they could not touch. His fingers brushed almost close enough to feel, but Remus was dead, and Sirius was stuck.

He saw Harry glide through, and Sirius screamed his name. Harry didn’t see him. Sirius screamed more. Then, he watched Harry go back, and it was the first time that it occurred to him that back might be possible.

He spent his time trying to get out. It worked sometimes, he thought. He felt himself slip closer to the doorway sometimes, though sometimes he slipped the wrong way.

He couldn’t tell how much time was passing anymore. There were no sunrises and sunsets. He couldn’t put little ticks on the wall for how many days he spent in the veil like he did in Azkaban. The mass of the veil around him seemed to press the days out of him, and he could have been there for a single day or a thousand years, and he’d have no idea.

He stopped looking for people he knew passing through when he thought he saw Fleamont. Fleamont was dead well before Sirius, so he was sure the veil was taking what was left of his mind, too.

Finally, he shifted one day and felt himself slide out of the veil toward the doorway. It happened fast, and he wasn’t really sure what made it finally work, but he tumbled out onto the floor, coughing.

It looked just like it did when he fell through. The air felt a bit different, but Sirius was sure it was just because he had been squeezed out of the veil like toothpaste from the tube.

He looked around, and his eyes fell on Harry. He was older than Sirius expected—clearly more than a few days had passed like Sirius hoped, but age seemed to have softened him. The cracks in his appearance like stress fractures under the burden of his destiny seemed smoothed over in his age.

“Harry? How long has it been?”

The face in front of him gave a small smile, and the illusion fell. Harry did not have that nose, or freckles like that. There was no scar. His eyes were brown. “I’m not Harry, actually. I’m James.”

Except that was wrong, too. James and Harry looked similar, but Sirius had always been able to see where they were different. This person wasn’t Harry, but he wasn’t James either.

“I knew James, and you are not him.”

The man fully smiled now. “No, you’re right. That James was my grandfather, though I never met him, and Harry was my father.”

The weight of the word was fell somewhere behind his ribs, but Sirius ignored it for now, unable to deal with it.

“Harry’s your father, so you must be…”

“James Sirius Potter, son of Harry and Ginny Potter.”

Tears stung Sirius’s eyes. He’d missed far more time than he realized. A soft hand fell to his shoulder.

“Do you know where you are?”

Sirius had to clear his throat a few times before he could speak. “The Department of Mysteries, right?”

“That’s right. You are Sirius, right?”

Sirius could only nod.

“We could hear something behind the veil, and I knew from my father’s stories that you had fallen through. We never suspected you were still in there.”

Sirius opened his eyes again, taking a minute to focus on James. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

He nodded. “I’m so sorry.”

“And Harry?” Sirius choked on the word, needing to ask but not wanting to.

“I’m so, so sorry.”

Sirius sobbed, covering his face with his hands. He had lost so much, and the irony that Harry’s son was now comforting him—Harry’s son who, by the looks of it, was older than him—and that he had lost another generation of Potters he loved. Would he be around to lose one more?

“It happened a few years ago. It was age related, if you believe it. He laughed on his dying bed that he always suspected he’d die loudly, in battle, and so death was quieter than he expected.” James cleared his throat, still pained by the memory. “He talked about seeing you again. He was excited for that.”

Sirius cried harder now. “What do I do now? I’ve lost everything.”

James spoke quietly, offering Sirius a place in his home, but it felt wrong. He was being saved, once again, by James Potter, but in a way that felt like missing a step instead of coming home.

He was so tired of missing steps in his life.

He was so tired of missing home.

#sirius black #sirius and harry saturday #sirius black deathday celebration #james sirius potter #James S is an unspeakable #tw: death #tw: discussion of death #vague wolfstar if you squint #snitchwrites

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impishtubist · 2 years

Note

again you are so sweet ;-; here’s the snippet! just a small warning that remus is a little insecure at this point in their relationship, he’s still learning to accept that he deserves nice things, plus he’s not quite aware of the extent of james’s feelings, but rest assured that doesn’t last long lol, james puts those thoughts to rest a few paragraphs later. also i’m playing around with tenses so this is in past prefect for now, hopefully it’s not too clunky to read lol. anyway i hope you enjoy!

“Swear on my life, Effie and Monty thought you’d been dating since sixth year,” Sirius told him later, after Remus and James had become <i>official,</i> so to say. “They asked me all the time when you would be moving in. You never knew?”

He hadn’t.

Remus hadn’t even caught on to James’s own feelings until they were both freshly twenty-two. James had asked him to attend one of his cousin’s weddings with him, an early April affair, and Remus had easily agreed. He had no jobs scheduled for the week it was set to take place, and at the time he hadn’t assumed James asking that of him really meant anything.

But then James had started talking about his tailor, and matching outfits, and before Remus really knew what was happening, he was suddenly in possession of a set of dark midnight blue dress robes with golden accents, finer and fancier than anything he had ever owned before. He had tried to protest, to tell James he didn’t need to go to the trouble, but there’s no arguing with him, not really, not when he gets like that. So Remus had gone along with it, had let himself be poked and prodded by the Potter family’s tailor at a posh little shop in Mayfair, had let James <i>watch</i> as he was poked and prodded; he had never looked away from Remus, not once. He sat there and made comments about the length of the robe, about the golden thread sewn delicately into the sleeves, about the fucking inseam. All made to James’s exact specifications, under his own watchful eye.

“Don’t look as if you’re about to be sentenced to life in Azkaban,” James had murmured, as he finished buttoning up Remus’s dress shirt, and proceeded to stick a finger in his collar to check how tight it was around his neck. Snug, Remus had thought, a little uncomfortable, but not so much it restricted his breathing. “This is just how my family does weddings, alright? You need something fancy. I know you hate standing around like this, but believe me, you’ll stick out far more if you try to wear your modified Yule Ball robes from 6th year, like I know you want to.”

“I never modified my Yule Ball robes,” Remus had lied, “the ones you’re talking about are new.”

He had never much been one for clothes shopping before he started properly dating James. Back then, he enjoyed a romp at a charity shop as well as anyone else, but his robes for work were the only items of clothing he had ever bothered having tailored; James had been right, Remus had never been able to tolerate a stranger flitting around him like that for an extended period of time, to be touched by the hands or magic of someone who wasn’t James or Sirius.

Besides, he had never seen the use in having anything so fine, not when mostly all he did was work, and his idea of downtime had been a night spent being fucked against half a dozen surfaces by James, or loitering outside of a pub with Sirius and Lily, making a valiant attempt not to spill fire-whiskey on his jumper. He had no room in his life for silks, or cashmere, or anything expensive and fragile.

Not until James, who had stared straight into Remus’s eyes, covetous and hungry, while Remus was swathed in fine wool of James’s own choosing, and said, “Mhm. Well, wherever those robes came from, these are much more appropriate for the wedding. And we’ll match, remember? It’ll be lovely, we’ll look fucking fantastic in the pictures.”

And Remus hadn’t been so sure about that, but he couldn’t say no to James, not when he looked at him like he had been then, intense and certain, his sharp hazel eyes half-lidded behind his glasses. So Remus had nodded, and for the moment, ignored the fear threatening to claw its way to the surface of his consciousness; that he wasn’t worthy of this, of James, that he was too dangerous for something so soft as this, too dangerous to be desired or looked after. He had decided to let himself be wanted, and thought that maybe, just for a week, they could pretend.

For a week, they could be more than best friends who fucked, sometimes. Remus could be more than a convenience.

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I'M SCREAMING

I love your Remus, you've captured his voice so well. And I'm obsessed with James. A thousand kudos! I can't wait to read the rest of this someday.

#moonchaser #imp speaks #moonchaser breeding kink #WE HAVE A SNIPPET Y'ALL

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fensherohair · 2 years

Text

In This Heart Of Mine (Sirius Black x Fem! Reader)

Not proofread

Sirius's time in Azkaban had been awful. It was something he wouldn't wish on anyone, not even his worst enemies. The Dementors always trying to force him to relive his worse memories, although they failed for various reasons. Namely him focusing on his innocence, for the crime he'd been accused off, and he often spent time in his animagus form. Yet even that didn't stop him from remembering those he had lost during the war, both to death and those whom turned away because of the crime he had supposedly committed. The betrayal of Peter Pettigrew, someone he once mistakenly believed was a friend.

James and Lilly, both hailed as heroes for their sacrifice that went on to end the war. Friends whom had been murdered for standing against Voldemort and his black clad followers. The Longbottom's had been tortured into insanity, not long after Voldemort's fall. Yet the one to hurt Sirius the most, was the loss of his (Y/N). She'd been taken from him during one of the many battles, all of it had happened so quickly and ripped his heart to shreds.

Flashback

It had been the height of the war, 1980. Things had taken a dark turn with members of the order being slaughtered left and right. The Prewett brothers had been murdered, Marlene McKinnon and her entire family had been wiped out by the Death Eaters as had several others. At every scene the dark mark was cast, as if to strike more fear into those whom were already terrified. Distrust also ran riot within the Order, especially when it become clear there was a traitor in their midst, someone feeding Voldemort information, that allowed the onslaught to happen. Long time friends and family distrusting each other, because of suspicion and fear.

(Y/N) had been sent out on an assignment, Dumbledore had personally sent her on it, with hope valuable information would be found. He'd chosen her for her metamorphic abilities, allowing her to be anyone if she so willed it. Only a few knew of her mission to find information, by infuriating the Death Eater ranks. (Y/N) had been close to Sirius and the Marauders since their school days, always pulling a prank or tripping over something. No one knew of her assignment, until days after she'd been sent, her disappearance noticeable.

Lily had been the first to speak up over (Y/N)'s disappearance, Sirius admitting he'd noticed but hadn't voice his concerns, due to hoping she'd return sooner or later. Every night he hoped to see her at the dinner table, just as he found himself preying (Y/N) was okay, even when he didn't know the nature of her assignment. Dumbledore had personally answered the question, when Lily had asked, although he'd not told her at dinner, instead inviting her, James, Remus and Sirius his and Alastor Moody's shared office. Moody being the only other to know of (Y/N)'s assignment to find information and if possible the identity of the traitor in their mists.

Weeks had gone by and no word was heard from (Y/N), letters sent and all form of communication had gone unanswered. The last time (Y/N) had responded to give the information on an impending attack at a muggle park, in the dead of night. It was supposed to be an attack against muggles, to strike far more fear into them, to use them as an example of the cruelty Death Eaters were capable of. So the members of the Order had arrived to prevent it, meeting the black clad Voldemort followers there, they being lead by the twisted Bellatrix of all people, Lucius Malfoy, Rodolphus Lestrange and Evan Roiser all present. In the clutches of Bellatrix was (Y/N), far worse off than before, wandless as Bellatrix held (Y/N) wand as if it were a trophy of triumph.

"Looks like our mole was right" spoke Lucius, his voice barely above a whisper as he stood next to his deranged sister in law. Her wicked smile spreading as she held on to (Y/N)'s tangled black locks, pulling harshly to force her to look at those, whom she was friends with, whom she fought side by side with on so many occasions before hand. Lucius knew the order Voldemort had given, (Y/N) had refused to give him anything, blocked his attempts to read her mind, even when tortured. Instead she had stood in defiance against him, stayed silence and even attempted to to hide her pain.

"Avada Kedavra" yelled Bellatrix, her wand pointing at the younger metamorphic witch knelt in front of her. Hearing her cousin Sirius scream out when the flash of green light surrounded (Y/N), Remus had grabbed hold of Sirius before he could run head first into the jaws of doom. Holding his old friend when he screamed out (Y/N)'s name, calling for her to answer as his blue eyes turned glassy. As if by design the death eaters left, it being clear the planned attack and be redesigned into an execution, meant to show the members of the Order, there would be no mercy regardless of their blood.

Sirius soon broke free, running to the lifeless body of (Y/N), pulling her into his lap. Begging her to wake up and come back to him. Even when he knew she was gone, he still begged her to wake up. Sirius had never told anyone of his love for the metamorphic witch, nor about his desire to marry. He'd been to afraid she'd reject him if he told her, too afraid he'd become everything he feared. He knew for sure his family would banish him for sure, after all (Y/N) was a half blood. Yet still he wanted nothing more than to tell her the truth, for her to wake up and tell him the answer to his wild question and request.

Despite that Sirius knew it was impossible. His deranged cousin had killed her without even blinking. (Y/N) hadn't even been able to pass on the information she had collected, having been betrayed and captured before she could. She being destined to be another name on the seemingly endless of causalities of the war.

"Wake up (Y/N), Wake up. I love you. Please wake up" whispered Sirius as Remus sat besides him, a hand on his shoulder. A silent promise being made, he'd write a letter to James and Lily to inform them, the two have since gone into hiding, from the threat of the dark lord.

End of Flashback

The night Remus found him in the caves near Hogwarts twelve almost thirteen long years later. He'd given something to the former prisoner of Azkaban. The photo of (Y/N), Sirius had kept on him everyday since leaving school, the photo he'd promised to keep with him ever since he lost her. Deep down Remus knew (Y/N) would have fought for Sirius had she lived, she would have tried her hardest to convince so many of the truth he now knew. She would have fought to prove Sirius's innocence no matter what.

"In this heart of mine, we've live for a lifetime (Y/N)" whispered Sirius when Remus left, his blue eyes focusing on the ageless (Y/N) pictured, her sweet grin. "Lily and James are with you always. One day I'll see you all again" muttered the Marauder, making a silent vow of revenge against the one whom had betrayed so many. And to protect his god son, the boy with the weight of the world on his shoulders. Harry.

Fens Masterlist

#harry potter oneshot #harry potter one shot #wizarding world oneshot #wizarding world #sirius black x reader #Sirius Black #first wizarding war #sirius black x fem reader #oneshot #metamorphic reader #reader insert #reader interactive

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jmagnabo92 · 2 years

Text

Sirius’ Mission

This is actually the START of Return From the Veil. Sirius is given a special mission and returns from his supposed death.

***

Sirius Black, Harry Potter’s godfather, can hear Harry’s tearful cries yelling for him to come back, that he couldn’t be dead, as he falls through the veil. Sirius wasn’t sure if he was dead as he lands on his back after falling through, but he realizes that he’s not alone. James is standing over him with Lily on the other side. They both looked just as they did prior to their deaths. Sirius sits up.

“Hey Pads,” James says, smiling.

“James…Lily…what…” Sirius frowns, hearing Harry yelling. His instinct is to immediately go back to him, but he knows he’s dead. “Harry…he needs…”

“He needs you, Sirius,” Lily says, smiling softly at him.

Sirius clears his throat and gets up with the help of Regulus, who had been standing on Lily’s other side. “We don’t have long, Sirius.”

“What do you mean?” Sirius asks as they take turns hugging him.

“It’s not your time. Harry needs you, but he needs the you from before Azkaban,” James replies.

“He needs the you that was strong enough to run away at sixteen, and stand up for what he believed in,” Regulus states.

“He needs the Grim in you, Sirius, the one you’ve lost during the war,” Lily states.

Sirius is confused, “What? I don’t understand.”

“Remember when we looked at your Animagus form? The Grim, the companion to Death, but protector of the Innocent?” James asks.

Sirius nods, “Yeah, but I don’t…”

“Sirius, you lost your purpose. You were supposed to protect the innocent… like you did with me, when we were kids…” Regulus starts.

“But then what happened with Remus and Snape…” Lily starts.

“I wasn’t trying to…” Sirius says, shaking his head. He never meant for things to get out of hand with Snape and the Willow incident.

“We know.”

“And the war pushed you further and further away from that, and then you…the protector of the innocent…went to Azkaban as an innocent…” Regulus starts.

“And spent twelve years there…and only broke out when you knew that Harry needed you to protect him,” James finishes. “He needs you to protect him, Pads.”

“From who? Voldemort?” Sirius asks. Of course he’d protect him from Voldemort, it was what he’d been trying to do.

“Yes and no,” Regulus states. “He needs protection from…”

“From Dumbledore, who wants to manipulate him,” Lily states.

“From the Ministry, who want to use him,” James states.

“From Voldemort, who wants to destroy him,” Regulus states.

Sirius is confused by the mentions of protecting Harry from Dumbledore and the ministry. He looks through the veil and no longer sees Harry. If he could protect him, he would be he’s dead. “How am I supposed to protect him if I’m dead?”

“Because you’re not staying, Pads,” James says, smiling slightly. “I know a part of you wants to – and after the year you’ve had, no one supporting you, stopping you from being there for Harry when he needed you – I completely understand. I know you’ve been suicidal, only holding on for Harry, and a part of you wanted to die so that you could be with me. It’s part of why you came here tonight, but Sirius, he’s needs you more than I do. Lily and I, Regulus, we miss you, and I know you miss us, but Harry can’t lose you, too.” James pauses. “He’s lost too much already. I want you to let go, and move on, be happy with Harry, live your life with Harry, stop hurting yourself by not letting yourself grieve and move on. It’s okay to miss us, but don’t keep punishing yourself. And for the love of Merlin, stop drinking. It’s not helping.” He stops again, with Sirius nodding. Sirius understood him. If he has this chance to go back to Harry, he would make damn sure to make it count. “I love you, Pads, but the life you’ve lived in last year – isn’t what I would’ve wanted for you. I want you to be happy. I want you and my son to be happy.”

Sirius nods and opens his mouth to respond, when Lily interrupts.

“We’re running out of time, James,” Lily states. “Look, Sirius. We need you to protect Harry. You’ll go back, and be sixteen, so that you can be by his side to protect him.”

“That’s the age you started losing your purpose,” James explains.

Sirius nods, it made sense to him.

“One more thing: Dumbledore already knows this, but hasn’t told anyone, Voldemort made horcruxes. One of them Kreacher saved – it’s at Grimmauld place…” Regulus starts.

“One of them Harry killed – ask him about the Basilisk,” Lily offers.

“Basilisk,” Sirius mouths, but no one responds, James just continues.

“And another that Dumbledore’s onto – he should find it this summer,” James offers.

“And Bella had another one – try claiming her vault when you’re freed,” Regulus finishes.

Sirius looks at him. “Horcruxes? What – how? How many? Is that why you died?”

“You know that letter you’ve been refusing to read since you found it after the New Year?” Regulus asks, and Sirius nods. “It explains everything I know. Read it.”

Sirius nods. He looks over at the three of them, “How much time do we have?”

“Not much. Harry needs you more than we do,” Lily replies. “We love you, Sirius, and we love Harry. And we are so proud of him. Please tell him that.”

“I love you, too, Lily-pad, and I will,” he says after Lily hugs him.

“And we don’t blame you for what happened with Peter. None of us saw that coming,” James assures him. “I know that the dementors made you think otherwise, but we don’t blame you, and you can’t change the past. Take this second chance with Harry and make sure that he kicks Voldemort’s ass – if he wants, it’s okay if he doesn’t.” James pulls him into a hug. “I love you, Pads, you’ve done great with what you’ve had to deal with, and now, you have a real chance to be what always should have been with Harry, a family.”

“I love you, too, Prongs.”

“Also, tell the bitch Petunia that I plan to haunt her,” James states. Even knowing that he can’t.

“James!” Lily yells, but she doesn’t correct him. “Although, I don’t disagree after seeing her treatment of Harry, actually that reminds me, you forgot about our cottage by the sea. You forgot our plan in case the worst happens. New identities, a safe house only the three of us knew about, and our plan to be put Harry’s safety first. I know that you have had many missteps in your memory lately, so I’m reminding you, go there – do not go back to Petunia. He was never supposed to go there in the first place and she doesn’t deserve safety or compassion after the way she treated my son.” He’d never heard her voice so hard and cold, not even through the fights with James before they were together. “If Harry wants to protect her, then warn her, but don’t go out of your way for her, although I would suggest not telling Dumbledore.”

“I wouldn’t tell anyone, Pads,” James adds, stressing the word anyone. That must mean Remus as well. Clearly James wasn’t too happy with him. Then again, Remus had failed Harry more than Sirius had, of course he’d be angry with him.

Sirius nods before turning to Regulus as he speaks. “Read my letter and know that I wish I had been brave like you. Remember to kick Voldemort’s ass for me, too – if you want,” Regulus hugs him. “I love you, brother.”

“I love you, too, Reg. Really, I wish I could have done more for you,” Sirius says.

“I know, I know, and what you can do for all of us, help Harry kick Voldemort’s ass…”

“But you don’t have to, Pads. While you can, it’d be nice, but I don’t want you or my son here earlier than necessary, so…”

“So, if you want to – it’s okay not to finish Voldemort, as long as you keep Harry protected,” Lily states. “We love you, we love Harry, and neither of you deserve to have this war on your heads. It’s a choice, and we will respect that.”

Sirius nods, “Will do.”

“Now go, protect my son,” Lily says, and Sirius nods, again.

“Thank you, all of you.”

With one final look, he walks back out of the veil. He feels clearer than he has in years, and ignoring everyone in the veil room, he runs after Harry. As soon as he can he transforms into Padfoot, determined to find Harry as soon as possible. It doesn’t take long before he’s up in the atrium, and he sees Harry on the floor, the crowd by the fireplaces, Dumbledore in the middle, and Voldemort apparating away with Bellatrix.

Harry looks in his direction, and sees Sirius as Padfoot, “Sirius?”

Padfoot jumps up on him as soon as Harry stands up. Harry hugs Padfoot, who turns into Sirius. “Harry! You’re okay. I’m okay.”

“You’re okay, but you…” he gasps.

“It’s a long story. For another time, another place.”

“You died,” Harry says into his neck, he can feel the tears that tell him that Harry’s crying. “I lost you.”

Sirius doesn’t let go, as he says, “But I’m here now, I’m back, and I’m not going anywhere. I promise. I’m never leaving you, again.”

“But you –”

“I’m never leaving you, again. Don’t think about what almost happened.” He leans back just enough to look Harry in his eyes. “I’m meant to be here to protect you, okay? So, don’t think about it. I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere.”

It’s hard to see if Harry believes him, even as he hugs him, again, clearly not ready to let go – not that Sirius blamed him, he didn’t want to let go either.

“Sirius, I need to send Harry back to school…” Dumbledore starts, moving towards him.

“Then I’m going with him. I’m not leaving him, again.”

Sirius stares Dumbledore down, and he relents if only because there’s an audience. “I’m sending you to the entrance hall, and I’ll send you a note for a meeting once I’ve cleared things up here to discuss things.”

Harry and Sirius both nod, and Dumbledore creates a portkey, sending them back to Hogwarts.

#Sirius Black #Harry James Potter #Harry Potter #Harry J Potter #Harry and Sirius Saturday #sirius and harry saturday #James Potter #Lily Potter #Regulus Black #RFTV

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bisexualbumblebee-writes · 1 year

Text

Resignation- Sirius Black x OC

Sirius Black x Gaia Devereaux

Description: After the events of Prisoner of Azkaban, Gaia has a bone to pick with Dumbledore that leads her to screaming at him and quitting. An unexpected guest visits her to help her reconsider.

Word Count: 2.4k

Fact: Peter Pettigrew was the Potter’s secret keeper. Second fact: Sirius Black was not. It was a trick because he would have been too obvious. Third fact: Peter Pettigrew was alive. All of these bits of information didn’t make itself known to anyone until 1994. The events of what happened at the Shrieking Shack replayed in Gaia’s mind over and over.

Sirius kidnapped Ron Weasley in his animagus form in order to lure Harry (and Hermione) to him so that he may kill Peter. Remus and Gaia burst in to ease the situation. Remus, Gaia and Sirius were just about to kill Peter when Snape burst in. There was so much yelling. Harry attacked Snape and knocked him out before he could do anything. Peter became human again and begged for forgiveness. The adults prepared to kill him again, but Harry stopped them. They began walking back to Hogwarts when Remus turned into a werewolf. Gaia was knocked out, but woke up later to find out that Sirius escaped. Sirius was innocent.

He was innocent. The words echoed in her mind, and she grew angrier as she made her way to Dumbledore’s office. Now that she had healed from her minor concussion, she had a bone to pick with said headmaster. She spent twelve years believing that he had sold out the Potters to Voldemort and killed Peter Pettigrew because of him, and the very thought made her furious. As she stormed up to the headmaster’s office, she nearly ran into Remus, who had been walking out of said room.

“Oh, hello Gaia,” he greeted with a tired smile, but she barely paid him a second glance as she stomped into the office, slamming the door behind her. Dumbledore didn’t seem surprised to see her there, and he offered her a kind smile as he took a seat at his desk.

“Professor Devereaux, what can I-”

“You told me not to pursue it,” she stated severely. His eyebrows raised a bit in surprise.

“I’m sorry?” Gaia’s eyes narrowed at him and she crossed her arms.

“You told me not to pursue it. You told me that Pad- that Sirius Black was guilty,” she clarified, attempting to at least keep her voice calm despite the fact that she was fuming.

“I didn’t know,” Dumbledore responded carefully, resting his hands over his stomach as he leaned back in his chair. “I did not know any more than you did, Gaia.”

“I DID KNOW, THOUGH!” She yelled, throwing all civility out the window and storming over to him. “I TOLD YOU! TOLD YOU HE WAS INNOCENT AND YOU TOLD ME TO LET IT GO! I KNEW THAT HE WASN’T LIKE THE REST OF HIS WRETCHED FAMILY, BUT YOU DIDN’T ALLOW ME TO FIGURE OUT IF HE WAS TELLING THE TRUTH!” She panted, her arms dropping by her side. Dumbledore finally seemed surprised by her, but he stayed silent, so she continued.

“You- I- He…” she stuttered, too flustered to continue until she took a deep breath. “Twelve years, Sirius rotted in that cell. Twelve years, and you did nothing!” She began pacing in front of his desk as she wasn’t able to stay still.

“I didn’t know, Gaia,” Dumbledore repeated, still calm. “We all thought that he had been the Potter’s secret keeper, there was nothing I could do.” Gaia froze mid-step and glared at him.

“Yes, we thought that he was, yet you offered him no chance of defending himself,” she hissed. “You, the man who willingly took in Severus Snape, a.k.a. a known Death Eater. You took him in on his word and nothing else and not only shielded him from Azkaban, but employed him at a school. You could have spared him as well but no, Sirius was just too far, huh? You didn’t give him a chance, not one!

We all knew that even if he was misguided at times, Sirius Black was, and still is, a good man. He loved James too much to betray him and openly detested his family for being loyal followers of the Dark Lord. That man wasted twelve years of his life, twelve years that he can never even attempt to get back, in prison because you were the only one who could challenge the Ministry’s trial-option policy but you didn’t! You just sat back and placed Harry in an abusive household thinking that you did something good! You- You…” she trailed off, shaking with anger. After taking a minute to take a deep breath and calm herself down, she looked at him once more, hatred and disgust in her eyes.

“I quit,” she concluded calmly. “Consider this my resignation.” She gave him no time to respond before she turned and walked out with her head held high. She didn’t look back until she reached her chambers, unaware that her friend had listened to their entire conversation.

Gaia had the decency to at least wait until the end of the year before announcing to her classes that she wouldn’t be returning the next school year due to personal reasons. Though most of the students were sad, they understood and supported her decision. Just a few days later, she found out that Snape outed Remus as a werewolf. In response, she offered condolences to her friend then promptly hexed Snape before getting on the Hogwarts Express to go home. What a way to end the school year.

Just a month later, Gaia was at home deep cleaning. She hadn’t been there in roughly nine months, her house definitely needed it. As she cleaned the kitchen, she suddenly paused upon hearing a noise coming from the living room. It sounded like someone used the Floo Network to get to her house, which confused her. As far as she knew, she wasn’t expecting anyone over. Usually people would at least send a warning, but to be fair there were several times when Violetta or Remus would forget to do so, so she assumed it just was one of them.

Nevertheless, she grabbed her wand. It never hurts to be cautious sometimes. She walked to the living room with quiet footsteps, then paused in the doorway. Her eyes widened at the very unexpected guest. Sirius stood there, examining some pictures on her wall. They were all pictures from when they were younger, most likely still in their Hogwarts years. His heart melted at one particular picture though.

It was of him and Gaia sitting side by side. He was in a nice shirt that hung against his body under his leather jacket (of course) as well as jeans. Gaia, meanwhile, was in a nice dress with her hair and makeup done beautifully by Violetta. Sirius had thrown her a surprise party for her twentieth birthday, which is why they were dressed so nicely. At that moment, Gaia had just cut the cake and everyone was eating around the couple. Remus decided to take as many pictures as he could throughout the entire event, and he snapped a picture right as Sirius fed Gaia a bite of cake, capturing the sweet moment. Gaia always said that it was probably her favorite picture of them, so he wasn’t really surprised to see it up there. His reminiscing was suddenly cut off by a voice behind him.

“Sirius?” Gaia questioned, shocked. He nearly jumped out his skin and whipped around to face the girl.

“Gaia? You’re here?” She raised an eyebrow at him, confused.

“Well, I do live here, so yes,” she responded with a small laugh. He looked embarrassed by his own question and he shook his head.

“Remus said that you’d probably be out of the house all day with Violetta,” he explained with a small laugh. Gaia nodded knowingly.

“I was supposed to, but she wasn’t feeling well this morning so we rescheduled,” she said before pausing, eyes widening. “Wait, what are you doing here? You’re supposed to be in hiding. Does anyone know that you’re here? What if-” Her ramblings were cut off by Sirius laughing.

“Relax Butterfly, no one knows I’m here, not even Dumbledore. I used a sub passage of the Floo Network.” Gaia sighed in relief at his answer, butterflies erupting in her stomach at his nickname for her. She nodded slowly, opening her mouth to question him again. He seemed to know what she was asking before she asked because he grinned.

“I just wanted to see you again, and maybe talk.”

“Talk?” She repeated curiously. He nodded then gestured for her to sit, taking a seat beside her when she did so.

“Remus told me about your conversation with Dumbledore,” he started after a moment. The girl’s eyes widened. Remus heard her? Well, to be fair, she wasn’t exactly quiet. More than likely he began to follow her when she shoved past him then decided to listen when she began yelling. Gaia sighed softly and looked down.

“He told me what you said,” Sirius continued softly. “You really thought I was innocent?” There was a hint of hope laced in his tone that made the girl look at him. He had a smile on his face, one reserved only for her when she was being comforted.

“I did, and I really tried to keep that hope,” she answered. “But after all the chaos settled and no sign of Pettigrew anywhere, I couldn’t help but think…” she trailed off, not wanting to finish her sentence as she looked down, ashamed. “I should have known that you would never do that, but Dumbledore told me not to pursue it. I thought he knew better, but apparently he doesn’t, and never has.” Her words were bitter at the end, and she couldn’t help but frown. She nearly flinched when his hand reached over and rested on hers.

“I held a lot of hate towards Dumbledore for a long time while I was in prison,” he stated matter-of-factly. “I couldn’t believe that he didn’t even attempt to get me a trial. Then he refused to even look at me during my sentencing. I felt so alone.”

“Sirius, I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but if it’s trying to make me not hate Dumbledore, you’re not doing a great job here,” Gaia cut him off, which made him chuckle.

“But I had a lot of time to think, twelve years as a matter of fact,” he continued. “Hate is what keeps not only Death Eaters, but Voldemort going.” He shot her an apologetic smile when she flinched at the name. “Hate for muggles is what kept my parents from kindness, hatred and spite is what kept the Dark Lord from dying, and hatred is what got Marlene, Dorcas, James and Lily killed. I don’t want to have that burden, and I highly doubt you do either. Dumbledore has made many, many mistakes, but at least we know he’s on the side of good. This is a war we’re all fighting, and wars can make people do stupid things. Don’t let your hatred of him get in the way of the bigger picture Gaia, you’re better than that.” Gaia sighed softly. He was right, she was better than that. It didn’t make her hate him any less, but she’d set it aside for Harry, Sirius, and everyone else.

“Okay,” she finally relented, which made him perk up.

“Now, Harry needs you at Hogwarts. I can’t be there for him for obvious reasons, so I need you to be there to help him. Please, reconsider your resignation.”

“I hate when you’re right,” Gaia said after a minute. The man beside her offered her a patient smile.

“Neither of us are right or wrong in this, but I’ll take the compliment anyway,” he responded with a small wink. That made her giggle and she shook her head at him.

“Always so modest, Mr. Black,” she teased playfully. He stuck his tongue out at her in a very mature response. After her laughter settled down, Sirius’ playful smile morphed into a kind one and he squeezed her hand gently.

“You know, the entire time I was in Azkaban, I couldn’t help but think of you,” he admitted quietly. “And how you must have felt when I was arrested. Aside from Harry, the only person that kept me going was you. I had to get out so that you could know that you weren’t thinking the wrong thing about me, I had to tell you the truth.” Gaia was surprised by his words, and her heart broke as she took in his vulnerable confession. It almost made her angry again, knowing that this was Dumbledore’s doing. But she decided to keep herself calm and instead squeezed his hand tightly, though not enough to hurt him.

“Sirius, I’m so sorry for doubting you,” she practically whispered. “I should have believed you, but my judgement was clouded. I know that’s no excuse, but it doesn’t make my apology any less sincere.”

“I forgave you within the first hour of my imprisonment,” he responded without hesitation, which made the girl tear up and throw her arms around him. His arms wrapped around her waist, and he found himself rubbing her back soothingly as she cried, even shedding a few secret tears himself. Neither of them said anything, there were no words necessary. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, they pulled away.

“I don’t want you to leave,” she muttered as her gaze fell to her lap. “I just got you back and now you’re going to have to leave again.” After a moment of thought, Sirius’ spoke.

“Summer vacation’s only just started, right?” He questioned, making her look at him again.

“Yes, why?” She responded confusedly.

“Then come with me,” he stated with a charming smile. His words made her eyes widen, but he continued before she could say anything.

“No one at work will miss you, and the only people you keep in constant contact are Remus and Violetta. They’ll understand if you just explain it to them. Come back to The Mamanuca Islands with me, just until school starts,” he begged. Gaia sat in shock as she processed his question. Finally, she nodded.

“Let’s do it,” she said, standing up. Her answer made an almost lip splitting smile appear on Sirius’ face and he stood as well.

“Well what are we waiting for? Let’s go!” He exclaimed, taking her hand and running towards the fireplace.

“Wait! Sirius, I need to pack!”

“I’ll buy you clothes when we get there,” he brushed off as he stepped into the fireplace. She couldn’t help but grin as she stepped in beside him. Sirius held her hand tightly and, with one last smile her way, they were off to his hideout in Fiji.

#harry potter #harry potter imagine #sirius black #sirius black imagine #sirius black x oc

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slytherinsnekxvii · 3 years

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let's talk about lily evans and the marauders, aka moony, wormtail, padfoot and prongs. given that i didn't use their actual names, i think you can figure out where this is going. it's also long as hell, so. canon vs fanon, marauder edition, except snek is sleep deprived.

now, before we begin, i don't dislike the marauders. or lily, tbh. if I'm being perfectly, genuinely honest, i still go back and forth sometimes but they've been growing on me for a while now. the canon versions, at least. fanon does them real dirty, and that's part of why i'm writing this, because i'm genuinely tired of it. it's an injustice.

you can at least make excuses for james and lily, who were so undeveloped that jkr practically dropped a fill-in-the-blank sheet of character information in our laps, but sirius, remus and peter were around long enough for y'all to get real acquainted with them.

in canon, sirius black is an unhinged mf. genuinely. this isn't to say he's a bad guy, in fact, we see that he's still capable of doing good things, still capable of love, still capable of all the things that prove he's actually not bad at heart, just,,, severely traumatised and very steeped in negativity from his time with the dementors. what i'm saying is that this man is absolutely, no questions asked, no holds barred demented, and how could he not be? the guy sat wrongfully imprisoned in azkaban for twelve years, a good portion of which he spent as a dog in order to protect himself from the dementors. he certainly wasn't completely insane, but you cannot tell me that he was all there. he got out of azkaban fuelled almost solely by the intent to get revenge on pettigrew, tried to commit murder in front of three witnesses who were also children—one of whom was his godson—ate rats and was also malnourished, which i'm certain did not help the situation any. this man is off his goddamn rocker, and you know what? you love to see it. good for him.

oh, but, snek, that's what he's like as an adult. what about when they were at school? before azkaban? my guy, the reaction he has to grimmauld place is not the reaction of someone without trauma. i don't believe that walburga and orion were the type to physically abuse their children, but whatever happened in that house helped to fuck him up enough that he skipped the joke of part of practical joke, and pranked snape by telling him how to meet a werewolf that he knew would be fully transformed and dangerous to humans. more than that, the werewolf was remus, whom he's friends with, and who—best case scenario—would be facing a trial if james hadn't stepped in. you can say that maybe he didn't think about or understand the gravitas of his actions, but at the end of it, that's not how properly sane people react to people they dislike, and that's not how they treat their friends. if anything, it reads like he was in the middle of a breakdown and absolutely losing his shit and he wasn't thinking at all.

my guy went through some serious shit, and was in no way completely mentally stable. we can see pretty clearly that he's got a serious dark side to him that probably would have gone unbridled had he not disagreed with his family, and yet, fanon took one look at him and went, "teehee, uwu bad boi go vroom."

fanon said padfoot is a pretty boy with nice hair who is tastefully traumatised from his horribly abusive household. sirius rides his motorcycle and plays jokes and flirts with anything that moves, but he can do no real wrong and always comes back to his soft, bookish, chocolate-loving boyfriend remus, who will laugh about his lycanthropy and quietly disapprove but secretly laugh at his friends' antics while hiding his smile in his cardigan.

respectfully, what in the absolute fuck.

i'd put that meme in here if i could, the one that's like, "well done, you've broken _______ down to its bare essentials," but no. i can't bc it doesn't even apply. this isn't a meme, it's theseus' fucking ship.

fanon broke it down, and replaced the pieces one by one until we got to this point, where we need to sit down and ask ourselves, "is this even the same character?"

the answer is no, by the way. it isn't. when people talk about woobifying characters—you know, taking away every flaw they have, romanticising everything they do and making them only capable of doing good, wonderful, lovely things?—this is what we mean.

and it'd be one thing if it was just the one character, but, no. fanon went all in and made them all squeaky clean and boring, especially peter, who draws the shortest of the straws.

remus got fucked, too. not just because fanon insists on sticking him into a relationship with sirius. which, we'll tackle wolfstar in a bit, but that's not even the worst of it. here, we have yet another example of blatant, rampant woobifying. again, is he a bad person? no. we know he's a good guy, we know he's generally kind and well-mannered, we know that he wants to fo the right thing but hey, fun fact. did you know that you can be nice and a coward? did you know that you can be benevolent and good and kindly and have the greatest of intentions and still be shady as fuck? no? ask dumbledore. the man played people like chess pieces when he needed to, and he was a twinkly grandpa. these are things that can coexist.

teenage remus is a coward who, understandably, does not stand up to his friends, likely for fear of being ostracised, and doesn't uphold his prefect duties as he should and takes part in their bullying of snape as a result. he lets them romp with him in werewolf form while they are in their animagus forms and then, he lets them continue to do so even after they have multiple close calls, which, again, had anything happened, would have resulted in a trial in the best case scenario.

grownup remus is still a coward, he tells no one that sirius can move about the school in his animagus form despite wholeheartedly believing that he's a mass murderer, he tries to run out on his wife and unborn kid. he isn't deliberately making attempts to harm anyone, but he's content to sit back and let things happen to him and around him so he doesn't rock the boat, although he is capable of action, which we see when he is more than willing to help sirius merk pettigrew in the shack. he can be careless, he runs out to the shack knowing he hasn't taken his wolfsbane and ends up transforming in front of the students he, as a teacher, is meant to be protecting. of course, this doesn't negate his good qualities, it just bears repeating that his flaws do exist, and they're pretty serious.

fanon moony is always pleasant and kind and soft-spoken and bookish, and he always has to have his chocolate. he knows when to tell off his friends, and he'll do it, even if he's secretly amused by everything they do and laughs about it with his best friend, lily evans, who coincidentally spends all her time with them so he and sirius can go on double dates with james and lily and no one has to remember peter exists.

why. theseus' ship 2.0. does the actual character still exist or is this something entirely different thing bearing the same name?

as for peter, who needs peter pettigrew, the actual, legitimate, fourth marauder when you have lily evans? canon pettigrew is opportunistic as fuck. he's latching himself to the biggest bad on the block and he's going all in. for teenage peter, that was james and sirius, and for adult peter, that's voldemort. canon peter is good enough at transfiguration to master the animagus transformation, just like his friends, and he's good enough at potions to brew the potion that gives voldemort a body. and honestly, you can't say he wasn't brave. he could've run off somewhere and died, or changed his identity or something after he faked his death and framed sirius, but, no. he goes and resurrects voldemort. that's fucked up, yeah, but it happened and honestly, i respect that it. he stuck to his guns.

fanon wormtail is lucky if he exists beyond being a spineless sycophant for james and sirius, or an evil conniving little rat who's looking to toss his entire friend group to the wolves at eleven.

of course, this isn't meant to negate his bad qualities, he still murdered people and framed sirius and sold out the potters to die, but his good characteristics do exist, and james, sirius and remus genuinely were his friends.

and now, we get to lily and james.

we have hardly any information on either of them. they're a pair of cardboard cutouts that we can paint and stick flyers to and colour outside the lines however we want. we can do whatever the fuck, as long lily is brave and smart and somewhat kind and james is brave and willing to die for his family. we were essentially handed a pair of ocs.

and yet.

what little bits of canon we have are thrown out of the window regardless.

james is privileged and rich, and he throws hexes for fun. he's willing to hex lily when she disagrees with him, and then, he goes behind her back to continue hexing snape after she believes that he's stopped doing so. and that's all we know about him until he dies for his family at twenty-one years old. once again, say it with me: this does not negate his good qualities. he definitely had them, he took sirius in when sirius ran away from home, he became an animagus to keep remus company as a wolf, and he saved snape in the shack, thereby saving remus and sirius by extension. him having flaws does not make him a bad person.

fanon prongs is a feminist. he fights for equal rights for women everywhere, and he constantly treats his girlfriend, lily, like an absolute queen. he's the hottest boy in school and everyone claps when he walks through the halls. mcgonagall and dumbledore are always patting him on the back and making jokes with him. he has a built-in dark detector that helps him sense when someone is a evil and needs to he punished.

give me a break. the dude's cool and all, but was the gary stu treatment necessary?

...oh, he needed to match fanon lily? right, right.

canon lily is a contradiction unto herself. she's supposedly a great friend, but since we see her at a point where they were already drifting apart, we see her putting little effort into keeping their friendship afloat. she victim blames based on rumours, she doesn't seem to care over much about what snape has to say about the people who have been tormenting him since day one. and she's justified, of course, she doesn't have to stick around. canon lily is a bit of hypocrite, she says that snape calls everyone of her birth mudblood, but then that begs the question why she still hangs around with him if that's the case. he calls her mudblood, she retaliates by calling him snivellus, and finishes up with a dig about his underwear, which, sure, it's kicking a man with a rusty spoon and pouring salt in the wound, but she's, again, justified. i get where she was coming from. and then, of course, she dies for her kid after marrying the guy who relentlessly bullied her quote-unquote best friend for their entire school careers. but, like i said, canon lily is, in many ways, a contradiction.

lily is basically a plot device. she pushes everyone's narrative but her own, and does little else.

of course, this trend would continue in fanon. fanon lily exists to be the perfect girl who gets really angry over the slightest injustice, and of course, she gets to be one half of one of the oldest enemies-to-lovers "it was just sexual tension" cliche pairings in the book. she's just,,, a mary sue. in so many fics, so many headcanons, she's just pettigrew's stand-in, a girl to form a gang with marlene, mary and dorcas—who happen to be more undeveloped ocs who also get the woobify mary sue treatment—to parallel the marauders. there is nothing compelling about her character when she's presented as a saint, and even less when she's supposedly the other moral compass for the marauders that doesn't actually work because she thinks that james is cute.

and this brings me to the next topic. jily. what, why, how. this was supposed to be a healthy, happy relationship that would have lasted in the long run? absolutely not. even for its time, i can't say that i see it lasting.

first of all, jkr presents james' crush on lily as just that: a crush. a mildly obsessive one, but a crush nonetheless, which she tries to liken to the pulling of pigtails. and then, we see that james' way of getting her to go out with him consists of blackmail, and when that doesn't work, he resorts to threatening her. this could have been set aside if he had actually, genuinely changed when they started spending more time together, but as we're told by sirius and remus, he didn't. he just got better at hiding what he was up to. and it has to be that he hid it, because if she knew, this further damages the character that she's set up to have and paints her out to be either unable to stand up to him or an enabler.

regardless, they get married. and while i have trouble believing that it was out of genuine love, there are scenarios that could make some semblance of sense. it's wartime, after all, and maybe lily is worried about her stability in the wizarding world, so why not marry into an established family whose son is already showing interest? or perhaps, she falls into the trap of every bad boy cliche ever, and she thinks to herself, well, i got him to be better then, maybe i can get him to do even better in the future. or maybe, she doesn't get into a relationship with him immediately and sees him on and off, until eventually, she accidentally gets pregnant and they scramble to have a shotgun wedding so as not to leave lily alone at nineteen with a baby. or maybe they marry each other because they're there and sure, neither of then is ready and they don't know what love even is but what else is there to do when there's a dark lord about? anyways, the point is, they get married.

and then what? if we count pottermore into canon, he goes on to further damage her relationship with petunia and vernon, to the point where she ends up crying. if we don't, she fades into the background enough that nobody has anything to say about her. she's harry's mum, she's james' wife, lily potter, she was kind and smart and brave and that's it. her agency is gone, anything else we have of her personality is gone.

jily just,,, wasn't built to last. and, yeah, this,,, this is a hill i'll die on.

same with wolfstar, honestly. there are so many reasons why it wouldn't work, but fanon has made it so fucking prevalent that it's literally everywhere no matter where you look.

first of all, i've said it before and i'll say it again. sirius is more likely to get with james that he is to ever end up in a relationship with remus. their chemistry is just,,, underdeveloped. net zero for a relationship.

secondly, sirius instigated the werewolf prank, and lupin would have paid the price for it. this could have been overlooked, but he doesn't seem the slightest bit guilty about any of it when it's brought up in poa. he could have been responsible for lupin losing the security of his place at hogwarts in the best case scenario, and in the worst case, his life. and he seems to look forward to full moons, even though they clearly aren't pleasant for remus, which,,, yeah, you're going to have fun, but like, maybe be concerned about the fact that your friend undergoes excruciating pain and it isn't a pleasant time for him? read the room, my g.

thirdly, they don't trust each other as much as fanon seems to think they do. they were both willing to believe each other the traitor before ever suspecting pettigrew. sirius thought remus gave away the potters, hell, he thought remus was a spy for voldemort, and remus was convinced that sirius was a mass murderer. neither of them needed to be convinced.

fourthly, maybe i'm reading too much into it, but like. sirius had money. remus had no money, since, yk, he was a werewolf and struggling for cash and still, sirius,,, did not leave him any money. i feel like if you had money to spare, you would give to your friend who is literally poor. but, again, maybe i'm reading too much into it and this isn't as valid a point as i think it is.

and ehh, the fifth reason is that it's,,, actually very much not the representation for the ltgbt community that fanon says it is but y'all aren't ready for that conversation.

anyways, just,,, even when you set the couple shit aside, the power dynamics between everyone here is fucked. like, james and sirius are clearly at the top of food chain calling the shots and egging each other on. then there's lily, who isn't even a marauder, but is always ever-so-slightly above remus but still not on their level, because, well. neither of them actually listen to her. remus is the novelty friend, the friend who's,,, alright, i guess, but you keep them around specifically because they're funny or they can dance or they have something that you can either show off to other people or keep as your little inside joke, your little secret, yk? and peter is just sort of there. like, yeah, he can do what we can but does that make him as good as we are? no. does he have a funny little something about him that we can exploit? nah. therefore he sits at the bottom. and like, yeah, james and sirius are on the same level, but james is yanking sirius' chain, not the other way around. anyways, like i said. power dynamic's fucked and it bothers me that we were given all of this, and fanon decided to take it all and throw it away so they could give us flamboyant!badboi!sirius black x softboi!motherhen!remus lupin going on double dates with feminist!trustfundbaby!james potter and saint!lily evans while ignoring peter pettiwho?

theseus' fucking ship, indeed.

anyways, this needed to be said. it might not make as much sense as i want it to, considering it's 4:12 in the morning as i'm posting this, after taking a break from writing to do some research and coming across way too much content about fanon marauders, but it's here and it still makes enough sense that you can read it and understand what i mean. and like, at the end of the day, you can go ahead and headcanon whatever you please, you can write fic and make art and do whatever you like, just,,, remember that they're exactly that. headcanons. stop presenting fanon as canon. please. i'm literally begging. we actually have evidence against it. just,,, acknowledge that they're headcanons and stop putting them forward as though they're able to fit into canon. please.

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kohanayaki · 3 years

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.:Time And Time Again:. (Marauders Era x Reader) Ch 1

Old habits die hard— and so do feelings, apparently. Relive moments high and low from your life with the Marauders and co. as you tell your godson, Harry, about all the mischief you got up to back in your school days. Takes place mainly in the Marauders era but also has content congruent with the Order of the Phoenix timeline, with some cannon divergence, of course~

- Main pairings: Sirius Black x Reader, Severus Snape x Reader, James Potter x Reader, Remus Lupin x Reader, slight Regulus Black x Reader, and a bunch of friendships! Gender neutral pronouns :)

LINKS: CH 1 CH 2 CH 3 CH 4 CH 5 CH 6 CH 7 CH 8

____________________________________________________________

Ch 1 .:Memories And First Meetings:.

12 Grimmauld Place was cold.

Not in the temperature sense of the word, especially in the heat of London summer, but something about it felt distant. Perhaps it was the cookie cutter exterior, dreadfully drab, although you knew its true nature was anything but. Despite its grandeur, the interior was as ornate as it was dull and unsaturated, like a black and white photograph in all its monochromatic glory. Maybe it was the fact that you knew what had happened here in the past, or the fact that you knew who was waiting here for you in the present.

You felt the strange sensation of stepping through the thick blanket of protection charms surrounding the house, as if your body were moving through molasses for a fraction of a second. The moment you were fully inside, you began to hear the hushed bits of a conversation echoing through the entrance hall from the dining room whose door was slightly ajar. The words became clearer as you neared the door.

“Harry's not ready! Have you gone completely mad?”

You found yourself grinning at the first voice, Molly Weasley's stern tone unmistakable.

“He's not a child, Molly.”

You froze as you heard the second one; you'd know it anywhere.

A heavy wave of emotion surged through you as you got near enough to the entrance to see the face of Sirius Black through the gap in the door. His time in Azkaban had taken a toll on him, you could tell. Heavy bags hung from his face, his cheeks hollow; although his gray eyes still held that spark in them. His hair was longer, somehow even more wild and unruly than before, but it suited him.

“Well he's not an adult either! He's not James.”

You caught a flash of ginger as Molly crossed the room, using her wand to aggressively clear away the plates on the table as she made her point.

“I know he isn't, but he can handle himself,” Sirius said, “and I'll be there to protect him.”

“How touching, Black. Perhaps the boy will grow up to be a felon just like his godfather.”

Your stomach dropped at the third voice. Shit.

Your presence remained unannounced, but as you peaked your head around the corner of the door frame you were met with Severus' stoic face, an imperceptible crease of distaste in his brow as he regarded Sirius. As your view widened you saw that Lupin sat to his left, a human wall between the two former foes.

You stilled at the door, taking a deep breath in an attempt to settle your irrationally rioting nerves. It's not as if you didn't know they would be there, but it had been so long since you'd seen any of them. So much has changed. . .

“You stay out of this, Snivelus. I don't care what Dumbledore has to say about your supposed reformation, but I know better.”

“Don't you have to go play fetch elsewhere?”

“Oh come on, you two,” Remus sighed.

Well, maybe not much has changed after all.

“Still resorting to playground bickering, are we?”

Several heads snapped in your direction at your words, and you were met with various reactions. Molly's face immediately split into a smile and she rushed around to table to greet you.

“(Y/n), dear! So nice to see you again,” she pulled you into a surprisingly strong hug and you couldn't help but join in her laughter.

“It's good to be back,” you admitted, “Charlie says hello, by the way.”

“Oh, I'm going to give give that boy a talking to,” Molly huffed, “you aren't his owl, dear. The least he could do is write home and say so himself.”

“Romanian mountain ranges keep a wizard busy,” you grinned, “He says he tries to keep in touch.”

“Sending home a bag of petrified dragon scales with a note that says 'look at this!!' is hardly keeping in touch,” she retorted, fussing about with your jacket's collar that had become wrinkled from her embrace.

Even from across the table you could feel Sirius' eyes on you, grateful that you had Molly's whirlwind greeting as a scapegoat for your flushed face.

“(Y/n). . .” he said softly, getting up from his seat.

“Hey,” you smiled, fighting the lump in your throat as he wrapped his arms around you. He was so warm, still wearing that damn leather jacket he'd somehow been reunited with after his imprisonment.

“What are you doing here? They told me you were out working in America,” Sirius said, eyes twinkling as he held you at arm's length.

“Well, I suppose I'm sort of working everywhere these days,” you said. As his words registered in your brain you turned to Molly with narrowed eyes. “You didn't tell him I was coming?”

“I thought it would be a nice surprise,” she said coyly.

You shook your head, turning back to Sirius.

“I'm so sorry, Molly said I could stay here so I thought she already ran it by you—”

“No, no, of course you can stay!” he said enthusiastically, “I'm glad you're here.”

He seemed gentler than he was before, certainly more mellow than in his youth, but that energy that was so quintessentially him remained buzzing beneath his skin, and Merlin, you'd missed it.

After realizing how long the two of you had spent practically holding each other you coughed awkwardly, slowly drifting apart. As you looked around the table your eyes caught Severus' and you thought your heart stopped for a moment. To the untrained eye he probably seemed just as uninterested as ever, but the look of shock in his eyes was so blatantly apparent to you that it threw you off guard. You managed to cast a small smile in his direction, but his expression remained unchanged while yours dropped. You felt your stomach twist up in knots as you thought about what had happened the last time you saw each other.

Lupin looked between the pair of you before getting up from his own seat and coming to your rescue. He extended his arms with a kind smile, and you happily shifted your attention to him.

“It's about time London had its best auror back in town,” he said.

“Flattery will get you nowhere, Moony,” you said playfully, hugging him tight, “It's good to see you too.”

“Are you hungry?” Molly asked, pulling a chair out for you.

“Oh no, I had something on the way here,” you said, taking a seat, “thank you, though.”

It felt surreal to be back here, where it all started. The faces were different—some new, some missing—but the same determined feeling remained.

“Now, where were we,” Sirius said, his confidence returning to his shoulders as he addressed the table.

“We were just talking about how Harry isn't ready to be tangled up in all this,” Molly said sternly.

“I think he should decide that for himself,” Sirius said adamantly.

“Well of course the boy would say he wants to fight, he's—”

“Listening in right now,” you pointed out, jutting your head in the direction of the open door where Harry stood, half obscured by the shadow of the stairway.

The boy flushed, backing away slightly as he was caught. But his eyes lit up as they landed on you, and you felt a tug at your heart as you saw your best friend in their bright green hues.

“(Y/n), you're back,” he said in disbelief.

“And here to stay for a bit, apparently,” you said with a smile.

Molly looked between the two of you before letting out a sigh.

“You know what, we should stop for the night anyways,” she said with a wave of her hand, “We've kept the children up long enough with our chatter, and (Y/n) ought to get some rest as well. Off to bed, the lot of you.”

Some of the other adults exchanged some knowing smiles as she shooed them out of the room. People slowly trickled out through the doorway, goodbyes exchanged, and before long it was just you and your godson left.

You had been lucky enough to meet Harry at the end of his third year, and he'd broken the news about Sirius' innocence to you. You so badly wanted to be there for Harry sooner, but between your strained relationship with the Ministry and cleaning up the mess with MACUSA in the States, you always seemed to be called away from the boy. You wanted nothing more than to take him away from that horrid house—you knew how nasty Petunia could be firsthand. Nonetheless, he seemed to be doing well, and you were happy that you'd grown closer over the last few years even if you couldn't be there in person all the time.

“I've got another little souvenir for you, by the way,” you said, having migrated to the living room.

Harry seemed to perk up at that. Since your visits had been so sparse, you began to make it a tradition to bring him back something magical from whatever part of the world you'd been working in.

“You mentioned you were struggling in Potions the last time we spoke,” you said, rummaging through your bag, eventually producing a small, gold-rimmed vial full of a deep maroon liquid. Small black clouds seemed to tumble in a miniature cyclone inside the glass.

“Dragon's breath essence,” you grinned, “nicked it off of Charlie before I left Romania. Put a few drops of this in your salamander blood the next time you brew a Wiggenweld potion and you're set to pass with flying colors.”

“Brilliant!” Harry said, eyes wide, “that's on our O.W.L.S. this year.”

“I know,” you said cheekily, “you didn't hear it from me. Personally, I think an Outstanding in Potions as a requirement to become an auror is utter rubbish. Don't get me wrong, it's important to know your way around a cauldron, but to hold someone back who excels at Defense Against the Dark Arts and Charms just because they can't cook up a sleeping draught? I don't know, it doesn't sit right with me. And I've heard Severus is hard enough on you guys as it is.”

Harry seemed surprised at your casual address of his professor but shook it off quickly.

“But you're ace at Potions, and it seems like you really like it,” he said.

“Yeah, well I—” you faltered a bit, “I learned from the best. . .”

“Professor Slughorn, you mean?” Harry questioned.

Your eyes widened at that.

“Yeah,” you lied, recovering fast, “Well, Slughorn was a great teacher but terrible at throwing parties. He had this thing called the Slug Club and the dinners were just awful. Your mother was the first of us to join and she ended up roping me into it, and before we knew it we were all standing around in these ridiculous outfits taking swigs of the firewhiskey your dad snuck in just to get through the night.”

You smiled fondly at the memory, and you could see Harry living vicariously through the emotions on your face. You were grateful for this moment; this was the longest you'd actually gotten to sit down and talk together in a long time.

“Were you always friends?” Harry asked, “with my parents, I mean.”

You had to laugh at that question.

“With your mum, yes. Your father, well, not exactly. . .”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1971 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Your body swayed gently with the movement of the Hogwarts Express as you walked up and down the isles, looking for someplace to sit. Most of the carriages were packed tight with large groups made up of upperclassmen not exactly looking to expand their circle.

As you approached the back of the train a mostly empty car caught your eye, occupied only by two children your age, or at least that's what you guessed from their black ties and basic robes that marked them as unsorted first-years like yourself.

One of them was a brooding looking boy with messy, shoulder length black hair and shockingly pale skin, leaning against the wall of the train and halfway through a book that seemed well beyond his years. Sitting across from him was a pretty red-headed girl who was admiring the rapidly passing scenery through the window.

“Excuse me, do you mind if I sit with you?” you asked, sliding the screen door open.

The boy's brow furrowed, clearly about refuse when the young girl beat him to it.

“Of course not!” she beamed, her smile infectious. You didn't miss the sharp look she shot over to the boy who simply rolled his eyes in response. After you muttered a small 'thanks' she scooted over closer to the window so you could sit next to her.

“My name is Lily,” she said, extending a hand, “Lily Evans.”

“Nice to meet you,” you smiled, “I'm (Y/n) (L/n).”

The boy quirked a brow at your last name, his expression shifting to something unreadable as he blatantly studied you over the spine of his book. After letting this go on for some time, you glanced over at Lily.

“Does he speak?”

“Perfectly well, thank you,” the boy said coldly.

Lily sent a disappointed look his way and his heart fell slightly, but he didn't need to be friends with anyone else, and he certainly didn't want other people becoming friends with Lily either. An irrational thought, he knew, but it was how his stubborn little brain worked at the time. They didn't need anyone but each other. Wasn't that enough?

In any case, he expected his behavior would be enough to scare you off (it usually worked on other people), but to his complete and utter surprise, you began to laugh. It started off as a light giggle, soon growing into full on laughter. He stared at you in open confusion as you were nearly brought to tears from your fit.

“You're funny,” you stated honestly, managing to speak through your chortles.

The boy was taken completely aback by your candor, actually at a loss for words. Lily joined in the laughter at your simple remark.

“So you do talk, I guess you must have a name too, then,” you said teasingly.

He blinked once. Twice.

“. . . Severus Snape.”

“That's a cool name.”

The heat that crept onto the boy's face surprised no one more than himself, and he buried himself in his book quickly to hide it. Another surprisingly frank statement from you, and not one he'd ever heard before.

If he thought you were full of surprises then, he had no idea what was coming to him.

_____________________________________________________________

The minute the Sorting Hat was placed on your head, it was immediately intrigued.

“Now here's an odd one,” it chuckled, “loyal, compassionate, empathetic, and yet a razor wit. A calculating, ambitious mind, and yet a relentless sense of adventure. All this, and with your bloodline to take into account as well. Your family has quite the history here, (L/n).”

Hushed whispers fell across the Great Hall among the older students and even some of the faculty at the hat's words, and you shifted uncomfortably in your seat.

“Though, I sense a different sort of mentality in you,” the hat continued, “you desire to challenge the old ways,” it paused for some time before going on, “do you truly have no preference, child?”

You were surprised at the question. You knew your family's reputation— it had been ingrained in you from a young age— but that didn't sway you, nor did it scare you. When you really thought about what house you wanted to be in, you truly couldn't think of an answer. It wouldn't change who you were, after all. Whether you donned red, yellow, blue, or green, you stood firmly in the knowledge that you would always be (Y/n) (L/n). Having made up your mind, you shook your head at the hat's question, and although its face was obscured from your view, you could almost sense its grin as it knew you were telling the truth.

“Well then,” it chuckled, “It is truly rare that I get an opportunity such as this. Let's make it interesting, then, shall we? Better be. . . Slytherin!”

Snape sat, slack-jawed, as you bounded over to the applauding Slytherin table and plopped down next to him. You rested your chin atop your folded hands, looking largely unbothered, a glint in your (e/c) eyes. He chuckled under his breath despite himself.

Full of surprises indeed.

___________________________________________________________

Your first encounter with James Potter was of a different sort.

It was the very beginning of your third year when you'd first met him properly. You had a few classes together, and Lily would rant about him constantly pestering her; occasionally you'd see the Gryffindor, along with another unfamiliar boy in his house, sprinting through the corridors, Professor McGonagall not far behind and demanding them to stop. But other than that, you'd never really interacted with him.

Ever since you'd met on the train you and Lily started to hang out more and more, with Snape “begrudgingly” tagging along. The Slytherin had been slow to warm up to you, but you were relentlessly kind and infuriatingly persistent, and eventually he found himself enjoying your little quips and comparatively sunny disposition. By the end of your first year, the three of you were nearly inseparable, and your bond only strengthened throughout your second. But third year is when things started changing.

Snape sat in the shade among the thick, overgrown roots of the old oak tree by the Black Lake, nose deep in an advanced Potions textbook he'd swiped from a fifth year as he waited for you and Lily to return from Transfiguration, the only class you didn't have together. This became your usual spot, with Lily sitting in the grass beside him and you on the branch above him, legs swinging as you absentmindedly sketched in your notebook. A comfortable silence would settle between you, something you'd all grown to enjoy; there was no need for constant conversation, it was enough sometimes to just enjoy each others' presence.

The silence he was reveling in alone, however, was promptly interrupted as rowdy laughter reached Snape's ears. Sure enough, a few figures emerged from the curve of the hill, revealing none other than James Potter, flanked by the curly haired boy he'd been seen running around with earlier along with two other Gryffindors: a short-statured boy with dirty blonde hair and another, taller and leaner, with long scars that ran along his face.

Snape didn't pay them much mind until he realized that they were heading straight for the tree— straight for him. Snape had noticed right away how the Potter boy had tried to befriend Lily as soon as she was sorted into Gryffindor, and it was safe to say he was less than fond of him despite having never really spoken to him before.

“You've got to be joking,” James snickered as he walked up to the tree, looking Snape up and down, “This is the guy Evans has been ditching us to see?”

Severus' eyes narrowed. So now he had a reason not to like him.

“Get lost,” he said, turning back to his book.

“What, you think you're too good to talk to us, huh?” James scoffed at him, clearly miffed.

As if on cue, the curly haired boy snatched the book out of Snape's hands, holding it out of his reach as he fumbled to get it back.

“Toss it, Sirius!” James called out. The boy, who he now knew as Sirius, threw the textbook like a frisbee, and Potter caught it easily.

As Snape angrily rose from his seat to get it back, the two boys continued to throw it between themselves so he couldn't grab it. Fed up, the Slytherin drew his wand but was quickly outmatched.

“Expelliarmus!”

Snape's wand flew out of his hands and straight into Sirius', who held it above his head. Just as the black haired boy jumped up for it, another spell flew towards him, this time from James.

“Winguardium Leviosa!”

Snape grit his teeth, staring helplessly at his wand as it hovered higher and higher out of his reach.

“James, come on, I think that's enough,” the taller boy near the back said.

“Don't be a bore, Remus, we're just having some fun.”

“I-I think he's right, guys.”

“Shut up, Peter.”

While his gaze was trained on his wand a harsh shove threw Snape to the ground, tears of frustration welling up in his eyes.

“No way, is he really crying?” James taunted.

“He is,” Sirius goaded on, “just look at him snivel.”

“You're right, maybe we should call him Snivelus, it suits him better.”

“Nice one, James.”

Snape winced as he was harshly pulled to his feet by James who sneered at him.

“Come on then, Snivelous. What are you gonna do?”

“Relashio!”

James' eyes widened as he suddenly felt himself repulsed back by some invisible force, his grip on Snape's robes forced to loosen as he was flung backwards. You stared the shocked Gryffindors down, wand at the ready for another spell as you ran to stand between Severus and them.

“Accio!” another voice called out, Snape's book and wand whizzing past their faces and into Lily's hands.

James staggered to his feet, trying to look unbothered by the fact that he'd just been knocked down, and by a spell that he hadn't even heard of yet.

“Look at that, boys,” he said, feigning confidence, “guess Snivelus needs a couple of girls to come to his rescue. You should ditch this loser, Evans.”

Before Lily could lash back, you stepped between them.

“What's that supposed to mean?” you scoffed.

“I'm sorry, who are you?”

You felt your forehead twitch, itching to smack that smug grin off his face.

It was Sirius who spoke next, recognition filling his gaze.

“Wait, you're the (L/n) kid, aren't you? Well that's just perfect, you two freaks can go study the Unforgivable Curses together.”

That struck a nerve in you.

“You don't know anything,” you said, not lowering your wand, “now get out of here before I knock you down too.”

“Aw, I don't know, Sirius, they're kind of cute all flustered like this,” James smirked.

You felt anger flare up in your chest, and it was Lily's turn to step in for you.

“Leave us alone, James,” she ordered.

When none of them moved you exhaled sharply, taking another step forward.

“Or I can just turn you into a flobberworm instead,” you said, “might be more fitting.”

Sirius laughed off your threat, but you could have sworn you saw a twinge of concern in his eyes as he looked over to the rest of his friends for backup.

“Let's just go, James. Come on,” the one named Remus said, trying to be the voice of reason.

The bespectacled boy frowned, shoving his wand back in his robes.

“Fine,” he said, “they aren't worth it anyways.”

He turned promptly on his heels, Sirius right behind him and Peter scampering after. Remus stayed behind for a moment, regarding you three.

“I'm sorry about them,” he said, “really.”

Your brow creased in suspicion, but you nodded, not quite smiling but offering up a neutral expression at least before he turned to catch up with the rest of his group.

“You were kidding about (L/n) being cute, right?” Sirius said as they headed back to the common room. When he was met with silence instead of a clear 'of course I was' he nearly had a stroke.

“Are you kidding, James?” Sirius said incredulously, “They're a Slytherin! They're just another dark arts dabbler who doesn't care about anything but their blood status.”

James only shrugged.

“Normally I'd agree, but they seem different,” he said. When he turned to see Sirius' unwavering expression he sighed, “I was just saying that to get a rise out of 'em. Don't worry, this won't be the last time we mess with them and Snivelus.”

Meanwhile, you were still out sitting by the tree, brushing the grass out of Severus' hair.

“That was amazing, (Y/n),” Lily said, wide-eyed, “How did you manage to learn that spell? And you already learned the worm-morphing jinx too?”

“Sev isn't the only one who's been learning ahead,” you said, “but that worm thing was a total bluff.”

“I didn't need your help,” Snape muttered.

You blinked down at him, shaking your head and unable to fight the smirk that crept onto your face.

“Sure you didn't,” you huffed, helping him up to his feet despite his protests, “don't be so dramatic, we won't tell anyone if that's what you're so worried about. Now come on, we're gonna be late for dinner. If Wilkes hogs all the Yorkshire puddings I'm blaming you entirely.”

Severus said nothing, only taking his book and wand back from Lily before you three walked back to the castle arm in arm, the smallest hint of a smile playing on his lips.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“It seems like so long ago,” you said, reminiscing, “Although I suppose it was, but I don't want to think about that too hard— I'll start to feel old, Merlin forbid.”

Harry's eyes were full of disbelief at your story.

“So you, my mum, and. . . Snape were friends?”

“Believe it or not,” you grinned, “unlikely trio as we were, it just sort of worked somehow.”

Until it didn't, you thought grimly, but forced the thought aside. You could tell by how quiet Harry had gotten that something was bothering him.

“My dad really did that?” he asked quietly.

Your gaze softened and you turned to fully face him.

“He was dumb and immature at the time,” you said, “we all were. There's not much else to be when you're thirteen. Each of us made plenty of mistakes, too many to count. And your mum. . . she was good for him. He always told me that she made him want to be a better person. People can change. In my opinion, there are few things someone can do that makes them truly irredeemable, and your father never came close to doing any of those things.”

You thought it better to mention that Snape probably didn't feel the same way.

“In any case, we should be getting to bed,” you said, getting up from the couch, “if you ever want to hear any other stories about your parents, I've got plenty of them.”

“Yeah,” Harry said, smile brightening his whole face, “yeah, definitely. Thank you.”

As Harry walked off to his room you sighed, making your way as quietly as you could up the creaky stairs. Just as you were about to retreat into your own guest room, your eyes snagged on the slightly ajar door at the top of the stairwell.

You stalled in front of it for a moment, wondering if you were out of your mind or not. When you had unapologetically settled on 'yes', you moved to knock on the door when it suddenly swung open. You practically leaped back at the proximity as you were met with Sirius standing in the doorway, stormy eyes wide. He'd shed his leather jacket for the night, leaving him in a dark maroon button up with the top few undone. Your senses were draped with the heady scent of his cologne, and you found yourself grasping at words to say.

When Sirius got over his initial shock he laughed sheepishly, running a hand through his curls out of habit.

“I was about to see if you were awake,” he admitted with a small grin, “Seems we both had the same idea.”

Read chapter 2 here !

#harry potter #the marauders #marauders x reader #sirius black x reader #james potter x reader #remus lupin x reader #regulus black x reader #sirius black #james potter #remus lupin #regulus black #harry potter x reader #marauders era #severus snape #snape x reader #severus snape x reader #multi chapter #harry potter fanfiction #marauders fanfiction

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missdawnandherdusk · 3 years

Text

Beautiful Ghosts

Ghost!Reader X Draco

Summary: Request: @sydthekid1518: I had an Idea for a draco fic, where y/n is a ghost that’s fairly popular with the students and staff, and draco falls for her and stuff? And then maybe y/n and Harry create a plan that would allow reader to come back to life and stuff and be with draco.

A/N: Happy spooky season to all and to all a good night filled with Draco Malfoy. I’m so excited about how this turned out and that I got it done before Halloween because the odds weren’t looking to hot not gonna lie, but here it is and it’s beautiful. As always, let me know what y’all think,,,

“Y/n, please don’t disturb my students,” Snape droned with a monotone voice.

“You’ve got no power over me, Severus,” I laughed, ghosting away from his Slytherins working on Polyjuice potion.

“But I do have control in this classroom, dead or not Miss Y/n, this is my domain,” Snape argued, ruffled.

“I’m eternally bonded to this school. It’s my domain more than it is yours,” I countered, perched on his desk.

“Blasted ghosts,” A boy muttered, catching my attention, “No respect for authority,”

Tilting my head, I made my way over to him, studying the young Slytherin. He was about the age that I was when I had died, moved on, crossed the veil—whatever. His steady grey eyes and twisted sneer told me all that I needed to know about him.

“Another Malfoy,” I mused. “Interesting... And where’s your respect for the dead Mr. Malfoy?”

His eyes went wide at the idea that I was addressing him at all. Like I spooked him. Imagine that, a ghost spooking someone.

“Enough Ms. Y/n. Kindly refrain from scaring my students if you must stay,” Snape intervened. “I’m not scared,” Malfoy shot back.

“Boo!” I teased before passing through the walls of the dungeon and into my favorite spot in the entire castle, even living: the library.

I never had so much time on my hands before being dead, and now I could just take a book and read. Pince had been able to enchant them in such a way that I was able to hold them and turn their pages still. I was in the middle of a riveting tale about a boy who never grew up and had his destiny forced upon him and could fly. Perched on one of the tops of the shelves, I was lost in another world of magic.

“I didn’t know you could read,” I heard the same condescending voice from Severus’ potions class earlier that day.

“Little Malfoy,” I smiled down at him, closing my book. “And why would you assume that? I don’t look that stupid, do I?”

“Well, no,” He fumbled. “But you’re a ghost, you’re dead,”

“Yes, and I like to read, anything else?” I raised an eyebrow at him.

“Don’t call me little Malfoy. My name’s Draco,” He huffed.

“But it annoys you,” I mocked a pout. “And you are a little Malfoy, a bit taller than your father, but young all the same,”

“Who are you calling young? We’re the same age,” His voice raised enough that Pince had to shush him.

“I was born in 1776, I think you’re a little young,”

“1776!?” Draco’s eyes bulged. “But... how? You’re...” Pince hushed him again. I floated down and perched on the desk, trying and failing to contain my laughter.

“Oh, so now you care little Malfoy?” I teased lightly. “What happened to your dismissal of spirits not hours ago?” He didn’t have an answer for that. He just stared and didn’t dare to meet my eyes. “If you really want to know, I’ll tell you some time, but you’re going to be late for McGonagall if you don’t get going,”

Flustered, Draco headed out of the library and I watched him go. Knowing that Remus had a class this hour with the infamous Harry Potter, I headed over and perched on a desk in the back.

“Miss Y/n,” Remus acknowledged, “Perhaps you’d like to aid us today as we learn about ghosts and spirits?” Even though he had grown quite a bit over the years, there was still the same shine in his eyes when he was able to teach—even if it wasn’t a rag-tag group of marauders.

“So... you’re a ghost?” A young Hermione asked, a girl who spent a lot of hours in my library.

“Yes,” I smiled at her. “There are different types of ghosts however,”

“Oh, yes, Poltergeists, Funnels, Whisps, Orbs, and Shades,” She said matter-of-factly.

“Exactly, and Hogwarts has them all,” I looked to Remus who nodded for me to continue. “Most of you know that Peeves is a Poltergeist, a trickster loud ghost. Sometimes they were loud and violent, sometimes... well sometimes you have something like Peeves.” The class laughed.

“I’m sure you all have heard of the Grey Lady?” Remus interjected. “Helena Ravenclaw was murdered by the Bloody Baron and spends the rest of her days here at Hogwarts, they are both what we classify as Funnel ghosts. Ghosts who visit loved ones or loved places,”

“What about Whisps?” An intrigued Weasley asked.

“Well, most others are Whisps,” I explained. “Nearly Headless Nick, the Fat Friar, and most others you see strolling about. There is no strict reason that they’re here, other than they chose not to move on, or felt their work on earth was not completed.”

“Orbs are normally the spirits of animals or humans travelling about,” I continued, “They mainly show up in photographs. It wasn’t till after I died that cameras were invented, and they were found,”

“Any what kind of ghost are you?” A shy kid in the back asked. The class of kids turned to me, all expectant.

“I’m a Shade,” I explained. “It means that when I died, I wasn’t meant to. My soul knowing that, remained, and here I am,”

“Shades are very rare in the Wizarding World,” Remus cut in, “Not many are killed before their time, and many of them are very young,”

“Aren’t Shades allowed to come back though?” Hermione asked. “Because they were wrongfully killed? Doesn’t fate allow them another chance?”

Remus and I shared a look. I remembered when he had asked me that same question when he was no more than a third year as well. There was a solemn sorrow in his eyes.

“Yes,” I answered hesitantly. “There is a possibility, but the odds are almost impossible. Most of them have to do around prophecies.”

Class had ended, and Hermione waved as she went to leave. I lingered behind a bit with Remus for old times’ sake. He was one who had always been kind to me. I was one who never judged him for being a werewolf before he found his marauders.

“Sirius escaped from Azkaban,” He whispered softly, his gaze fixed on the papers on his desk. “I... I thought I was over it. Over him. He had my best friends killed,”

Pity flooded my chest as I hovered over to him, my hand ghosting above his.

“That wasn’t your fault Remus...” Was I going to give away the truth that I knew? Or would I keep it a secret? “And it wasn’t Sirius’ either,”

“How can you say that!” Remus slammed his hand on the desk. “He gave away Lily and James’ location! Then he killed Peter!”

“Remus,” I shook my head. “I can’t tell you everything, because it’s not in the stars, but... your friend isn’t who you think he is,”

A quiet moment passed between us and rather than get upset at me like I had thought he would, he spoke softly and surely.

“You’re... you’re saying there’s hope?”

“There’s always hope,” I offered a soft smile. “For all of us... even me,”

“How are you doing with that? The prophecy?” He asked.

I sighed and shook my head. “I might really be stuck like this for the rest of... forever...”

“Is there anything...?”

“No,” I denied softly. “Interfering with a prophecy can ruin it,”

“Can,” Remus stressed. “Not that it will,”

“But is it worth that risk?” I countered. “I could lose my one shot to come back. To be human again,”

“If I could be human again, I’d take any chance I could,” Remus’ eyes held a sadness that very few could sympathize with. One of those was me.

“Perhaps you’re right,” I murmured and let him be, drifting around the halls for a bit then back to the library to think some more and maybe find the right answer.

What I didn’t expect to find however was Draco, fast asleep where we had spoken earlier, draped over a few books and handwritten notes. I hadn’t noticed the late hour, sometimes time did elude me, and the days seemed to run together.

I didn’t want to wake the young Malfoy, instead, I peered at the books underneath him. Potions books, it seemed. Supposing that a Slytherin might have a partiality to Snape’s class, there was no need to question why he’d rather work on this subject than the others. Knowing Pince would chase Draco out of the library if he didn’t wake, my notion to not disturb him fell to the wayside.

“Malfoy!” I whispered loudly. “Draco, wake up!”

It was useless to try and shake him awake, I wasn’t able to. I could however pull the book out from under his resting head. So, I did.

“Bloody hell,” Draco grumbled, rubbing his eyes. “What’d you do that for?”

“You fell asleep?”

“And that was the only way you know how to wake a person?” He snapped, blinking into consciousness.

I gave him a flat look and reached out to touch him. He shied away, but it was in vain because my hand passed right through his material body.

“Oh,” He muttered. “But you can touch the books?”

“Pince and I worked on that together,” I informed him. “Did you think I would spend eternity and not figure out how to read?”

“I... uh,” He stammered, blushing a bit. “How come I’ve never met a ghost like you before?”

“And that means?” I pressed, perching on the desk.

“Well, all of the other ghosts are... I don’t know... stuck in their ways? Not sad about being ghosts? Haven’t kept up on things like reading?”

“You think I’m sad about being a ghost?” I mused.

“I... you—I mean,” He stammered, looking down in embarrassment. “You just seem... optimistically hopeless,” It was almost mumbled through his exhaustion.

“You know those words have opposite meaning, right?” I teased softly. “And... I’m a Shade. I doubt you’ve met another before like me,”

“A Shade?”

“Do you not pay attention in Remus’ class?” I raised an eyebrow at him.

“I don’t have his class until tomorrow,” Draco dismayed. “And it’s a stupid class anyway,”

“Defense against the dark arts isn’t stupid,” I refuted. “Especially with Remus teaching it,”

“You knew him then... when he went here. Professor Lupin,” Draco noted.

“Yes,” Lost in thought, a quietness passed before I spoke again. “When you learn what a Shade is, you’ll understand,”

“You could just tell me,” Draco whined, listlessly tired.

“But then you won’t pay attention in class,” I smiled. “Go on to bed, Draco. I’m not going anywhere,”

____________________________

Draco sulked in bed that night, thinking about you. Thinking about what a Shade was. Of course, he didn’t wait for class in the morning, instead he took out his DADA book and began to read up on ghosts. And he read. And read. And read. And barely found anything about what a Shade was. All that he knew was that you died when before your time. Maybe that was why he saw the sadness in your eyes.

He had every intention to be at Lupin’s class that day, but having Mythical Creatures beforehand, things hadn’t gone as planned.

“There’s always one,” Your voice sounded amused. “Why am I not surprised it was you, Little Malfoy?”

“It was the bloody hippogriff,” Draco snapped back.

“And somehow I don’t think that’s the entire truth,” You mused, hovering at his bedside. Until Pomfrey gave him the clear to leave, he was stuck with you.

“Won’t you just leave me alone?” He groaned, closing his eyes and laying back on the lumpy pillows of the hospital cot.

“Did you not want to learn about Shades? You’re going to miss Remus’ class after all,” The smile he heard in your voice made him look over to you, skeptical.

Your offer was tempting. Very tempting. He didn’t care much about magic other than excelling at it, therefore things that didn’t pertain to his advancement—mythical creatures and the like— held no inkling to him. And yet, you were a mystery he didn’t mind learning about. He wanted to know more about you. And you specifically.

“I guess, since I’m stuck here,” He tried to play it off as nonchalance, but you raised an eyebrow at him, seeing right through his charade.

“Well, Little Malfoy,” You hovered and perched on the end of his bed. “What do you know?”

“I... uh. Shades are people who have died before their time,” He stammered, not sure why he was so nervous.

“Quite,” You nodded. “Anything else?”

“Our book didn’t have anything else,” He admitted.

You went pensive a moment then nodded. “I suppose that you’d learn more about me in Divination than the Dark Arts,”

“Divination? You’ve got to be bloody joking! That class is a circus!” Draco exclaimed, wincing when he moved his arm too much.

“Perhaps,” You didn’t berate him, but seemed to be lost in thought once more. “But all Shades are tied to prophecies.”

“All of them?” Draco pressed.

“The fates understand that these souls left before their time, and give them another chance, a prophecy... to come back and live one more time.”

“So, you have the chance to live again?” His genuine curiosity seemed to shock both of you. “How?”

“If the prophecy is fulfilled, then I get to live again,” You said it as if it were obvious.

“So, why haven’t you, I don’t know... fulfilled it?” Draco asked.

You laughed something sad and soft. “Don’t you think I’ve tried? I’ve read every prophecy, every book, every scribble. I’ve tried everything... after so many centuries, you give up hope and accept your fate,”

“But this wasn’t your fate,” He argued back. “You were meant to live, back then, whatever that life was,”

“Do you know what happened when I was young, before I died, Little Malfoy?” You spoke, and he could hear the age in your voice though you liked no older than he was. It was your sorrow that aged you. He waited for you to continue. “I was born in 1776, the year the Americans went to war with the King of England. At the time we were living in the French countryside with my aunt because my father had gone to fight in the war. He was a general,” A smile ghosted your lips. “My father died in the war... the battle of Yorktown... that’s what it’s called today. Back then it was just a letter and inheritance money that went to my brother,”

“Hang on, you’re saying that your father fought in the American War of Independence? Under the king?”

“So, he can be taught,” You smiled at him. “Yes, the king at the time was a wizard and until parliament and the ministry were born and declared that muggles and wizards should rule themselves. Of course, the ministry was formed in the beginning of that century, but it took the war for them to call the final straw.”

“So, your father died in the war, that doesn’t explain what happened to you,” Draco pointed out, deeply invested.

“Well, tell me, what happened in France after that war ended?”

“The French Revolution,”

Your warm smile had the same effect as the sun. “Yes, and as I said, I was in France at the time, being tutored at home for the summer. Muggle girls weren’t allowed to go to school back then... I travelled to Hogwarts to receive schooling and even then, I was only allowed to learn Herbology and Potions. At least those two classes stayed the same,” You sounded sad and wistful. “But the revolutionists were going for the rich, any sort of rich. And at the time, they saw knowledge as wealth and power, and I had a reputation for being able to read and attending a private school out of the country and well...”

“They killed you because you knew how to read?” Draco distressed, sitting up, enraptured by your tale. “That’s so... stupid,”

“It was. But perhaps it was my own fault, I wouldn’t deny that I could read. I was proud.” Your smile faded again as melancholy settled on your face. “Now it seems that’s all I do. Fate is funny like that...”

“You’re free to go Mr. Malfoy,” Madam Pomfrey’s voice seemed to draw you both from whatever world had been created with your words.

He had to blink a few times to come to grips with the fact that he was currently in the hospital wing at Hogwarts, and not centuries behind, trying to imagine death for the reason of knowledge. There was an awkward moment between the two of you as you both seemed to realize that you were no longer int eh late eighteenth century. You offered a smile and left without another word, a curious look on your face as you left.

That was the last time he saw you that day, and that week for that matter, but he always wondered what you were doing. What were you reading today? What was your prophecy? Was it really as hopeless as you said it was? Was there a reason that he found himself caring?

______________________

“Oh, hello Harry,” I stood from the corner of Remus’ office, intrigued that the young Potter had come. He looked so much like his father that my heart ached for Remus and to imagine what he felt when he saw Harry.

“Y/n,” Harry seemed surprised. “I... uh... you know Professor Lupin?”

“Well I was here when he went to Hogwarts himself, so yes, I’m quite fond of him if you can believe it,” I smiled as Remus eyed the situation.

“Is there something that you needed Harry?” Remus asked, trying to sound professional, but I could hear the sentiment in his voice.

“The map...” Harry turned slightly pink.

A smile grew on my face. “You have the Marauder’s Map?” I almost laughed. “How in the world did you get that? Oh, if your father knew,” I did laugh this time.

Remus shot me a sharp look and Harry looked at me in wonder.

“My father? You knew my father?” The realization seemed to dawn him.

“Yes, well,” Remus interjected sharply. “Don’t get caught again Potter,”

“Why haven’t you told him?” I demanded as soon as Harry left. “Remus, come on, that’s not fair to Harry,”

“I’m not the one to tell him though! I can’t be!” He protested and I could hear the anxiety in his voice.

“Remus, I’ve known you a long time. And I’ve known James and Lily. They would want you to talk to him. They would want you apart of his life,” I argued, or perhaps encouraged softly.

“Maybe you’re right,” Remus mumbled.

“Of course, I am,” I smiled. “It’ll work out Re, with Sirius, and with Harry,”

“I hope you’re right,”

I left him to his thoughts and on my way to the library, I was ambushed by the younger Potter. Not that I wasn’t expecting it, I knew that Harry would have questions for me as soon as he knew I knew his father.

“Hello Harry,” I smiled.

“You know about my dad,” He burst out, hope in his eyes and tone.

“And your mother,” I smiled and perched on the windowsill nearby.

“Can you tell me about them? Please?” His eyes went glossy with tears that he blinked away.

“Your mother was bold, but still kind and gentle. She looked out for the little guy. She rooted for the underdog and protected the younger years of any House. She was always kind to me. Her and Remus both.” The memory was fond, if it was a memory. Did ghosts have memories after they were dead?

“And my dad?” He clung to every word.

“He... was a bit like you. Always finding trouble whether it was his fault or not. Totally deserved to be smacked a few times... but the war changed him. He grew up rather quickly. Into a protective caring young man. Almost everyone had eyes for him, but he only saw your mother,”

“Do... you think they would be proud of me?” His gaze dropped to his beat-up sneakers.

“Harry,” I called his attention. “You’re their son, they’ll always be proud of you,”

“But—”

“No buts,” I interjected. “That’s all it takes for you to make them proud, I promise,”

He nodded and mumbled a thanks before taking off toward the Gryffindor dorm. Finding solace in the library, I began to read again. Maybe a week had passed. Perhaps two. I wasn’t sure. I was so wrapped up in my books that I became lost to time. Until a blond-haired boy came in, his nose stuck in a book.

“I was wondering when I’d see you again Little Malfoy,” I smiled, from my perch in the library. He didn’t acknowledge me, causing me to frown. “Draco?” I ghosted down and perched on the table next to him. “Are you ghosting a ghost?”

Though he ignored me I could see the smile that twitched at his lips. That gave me little hope. “Is everything alright?” I asked, genuine concern coloring my voice.

“Ask Potter,” Draco snapped. “You seem to fancy him lately,”

“Excuse me?” I was taken aback. “Harry? He just wanted to know about his parents, that’s all,”

Draco frowned at this and he finally looked at me. “His parents?”

“Yes,” I rolled my eyes. “It’s not like he has a lot of people who know his parents and are willing to tell him anything. Dumbledore has made almost everyone vow not to talk to him, but what good is a vow to someone who’s already in the grave?” I shrugged. “Poor kid knows nothing,”

“I...” Draco didn’t seem to have the words. Instead he looked back down at his book. I smiled and rolled my eyes at his antics.

“If you care that much, you are still my favorite Little Malfoy,” His cheeks tinged pink and I laughed. “You’re something else Malfoy, you know that?”

“Says the girl who died for admitting that she could read instead of lying,” He raised an eyebrow at me. I chuckled and shrugged.

“Says the boy who avoided me for what, two weeks, because I talked to a boy about his dead parents,” I mused.

“It wasn’t two weeks,” Draco grumbled. “Nine days,”

“Oh, forgive me,” I laughed. “Nine days.”

He smiled and looked back down at his notes. I think it was the first time I had ever seen him smile and not sneer.

“So, nine days,” He prompted. “I assume you haven’t left the library... read anything interesting?”

I laughed and somehow the hours passed as Draco and I spoke about books and stories we had read as kids, and the ones we were currently invested in. It shocked me to know that he was an avid reader, of fantasy novels, nonetheless. Though I had read just about everyone that he had mentioned, there were a few that I added to my mental list of his that I said I would check out. He seemed sincerely happy at my interest of the books he read.

“Father thought they were childish,” He muttered when I asked him about it. “Fairytales and fantasies,”

“That’s stupid,” I scoffed, and Draco gaped at me, aghast that I would dare to call something his father said ‘stupid.’ It made me pause. “You... you know you don’t have to always agree with your parents,”

His gaze cast downward. “I don’t want to disappoint them,”

My face furrowed. “You’re they’re son, that’s enough for them to be proud,”

“You don’t know my parents,” He scoffed, leaning back in his chair. “I think the last time they were proud of me, is when I was sorted into Slytherin.”

“I’m sure that’s not true,” I protested.

“You don’t know my parents,” Draco argued again.

“I do,” I retorted. “Or I did,”

The notion seemed to dawn on Draco as he stared up at me with wonder in his eyes.

“You did,” He realized. “Can you tell me about them... have they always been so...”

“Strict?” I offered.

“Suffocating,” Draco supplied.

I pressed my lips together and thought a moment.

“Your father, perhaps. I never spoke to him much, and he never paid me mind. But you mother,” I smiled at the memories that came flooding back. “She was bold, cunning. She loved her sisters with a fierce passion.” My smile. “The three of them were some of the brightest witches I’d ever seen,” I glanced over to him. “You have her eyes, her same spirit,”

A smile drew on his lips as his face turned a soft shade of pink. “Do you know that because you’re a ghost?” He mused.

“No, I’m just a girl who can read character pretty well. After seeing so many faces pass through here, and reading so many stories, there are those who stand out and stay with you. Your mother... she stood out to me. And I can see her in your eyes,” My demeanor softened as I realized the words I was saying and if I could have, I would have blushed.

“Thank you,” He whispered as the clock chimed a late hour.

“You should head back,” I sighed softly. “Get some rest,”

“Why don’t I ever see you near the Slytherin dorm?” Draco asked, gathering his things.

“I’d rather not cross paths with the Baron,” I admitted.

“The Baron? Why?” Draco frowned; his bag slung over his shoulder.

“Never you mind,” I smiled. “Get to bed Little Malfoy,”

“Don’t call me that,” He grumbled, trudging out of the library.

The night progressed as did the month and I went from one book to another, soon searching for a book I hadn’t in a long time. My diary from when I was alive. Published as its own book that I had found a few decades ago. Tucked into the pages was what held my fate. My prophecy.

I went to the shelf in which I knew my book had its home, but it wasn’t there. Instead a sliver of time carved away by my missing book. Drifting over to Pince I asked her about where my book had gone. She told me that Malfoy had checked it out and had it for about a week—since the day we spent in the infirmary together.

For the first time in a long time I felt... embarrassed that my story and thoughts were on display for anyone to read. I never cared before, but this felt different.

Cursing the late hour, I knew that there was no way to get to Draco now. The Bloody Baron was protective about other ghosts coming into the Slytherin dorms. I’d have to find him in the morning then. I considered loitering outside the Slytherin portrait, but I also did not want to go anywhere near the Bloody Baron. I had heard and read enough.

So instead I headed to the Astronomy Tower to watch the stars again, having silent conversations with them, wondering if they’d ever grant me life again.

“You’re glowing,”

The voice startled me enough that I actually jumped. The irony of scaring a ghost. I turned to see Draco behind me, his eyes glued to my shimmering skin.

“Yes, all ghosts do it under the moon and stars,” I noted. “By the way, can I have my book back?” I stood, going over to him.

“Your book?” He questioned.

“My book,” I restressed. “My diary? That you have from the library? The one that has my—” I stopped myself.

“Your prophecy.” Draco finished, offering me the book that he had drawn from his robes. “Yeah, I know.”

I stared at him curiously, pulling the book back into the security of my arms, where it belonged. That uncertain feeling returned to my chest.

“You know it’s rude to read a girl’s diary,” I retorted, defensive.

“It’s a published book in the library, anyone can read it,” Draco rolled his eyes. I gave him a flat look and he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “So, have you figured out what it means?”

I sighed softly and shook my head in defeat. “The only thing I’m sure of is the great star is Sirius,”

“Sirius, like Sirius Black? Escaped Azkaban criminal?” Draco exasperated.

“Well, the star is his name sake. But I’m sure you of all people know that Draco,” I raised an eyebrow at him. “Your family has a knack for celestial namesakes. If I remember correctly, Sirius is your mother’s cousin,”

“What?” Draco demanded. “No! There is no way!”

“Draco,” I reached out for him in vain as he paced in anger and confusion. “Draco will you calm down?” I nearly shouted.

“Calm down!? How can I when I know that I’m related to that criminal!?” He demanded.

“Sirius isn’t a criminal!” I argued back. “He didn’t kill Peter or those people!” I gasped, covering my mouth in shame, my eyes wide. That was a secret that I wasn’t supposed to tell.

“What do you mean he didn’t kill those people?” Draco sneered, stalking up to me.

“I—I’m not supposed to...” I took a step back, ghostly tears welling in my eyes. “I wasn’t supposed to... Merlin,” I cried, sliding to the ground.

Draco’s demeanor changed from anger to worried and concerned. Not that I noticed through my distress. I felt as if I had just betrayed one of my best friends.

“Y/n, what... what in the world are you talking about?” Draco asked sitting beside me, a failed attempt to reach out and comfort me.

“I promised. I promised I wouldn’t tell what I knew until the time was right,” I sobbed. “Bloody hell, he’ll never trust me again,” I squeaked.

“Who?” Draco demanded.

I looked at him, wide eyed with fear, shaking my head softly. “I... I can’t. I’m sorry Draco,”

I dematerialized and rematerialized in a quiet portion of the castle grounds, away from the rest of the students, among the woods. The trees welcomed me and the further I walked in, the less tied to the castle I felt. I came to a lake and sat beside it. Crying tears that would never fall in my undead state, I stared at the water and my lack of reflection.

“I’m so sorry Sirius,” I wept softly. “I didn’t mean to tell him... I was just defending you,”

“I’m surprised you kept the secret this long,”

Again, I jumped, startled by the voice behind me.

“Hey there Spooks,” Sirius gave a lopsided smile, the years in Azkaban resting in his eyes and in the lines on his face.

“Sirius,” I gasped. “What are you doing? It’s not safe here!” I protested.

“I couldn’t leave my girl to cry, now could I?” He smirked, before his expression sobered.

“You should,” I sniffed. “I’m so sorry Sirius, it slipped out,”

“I know,” He held his hands up in a calming effort. “I knew it would, and it’s okay. Who did you tell? It wasn’t Moony was it?”

“No,” I looked down. “But you need to tell him Sirius, he deserves to know,”

“He won’t even talk to me. He thinks that I betrayed James and Lily and killed all of his friends,” Sirius toed at the dirt—the same tick he had in his Hogwarts years when he had been caught in a lie or prank.

“But you didn’t,” I protested. “He still loves you Sirius, I can see it in his eyes and when he talks about you and James...”

“He—no,” Sirius shook his head. “That’s not for you to worry about,”

“Do not make me mother you,” I threatened. “Talk to Remus,”

“I will,” Sirius sighed. “When the time is right,”

“As a girl who’s waited for centuries for the right time... talk to him as soon as you can,” There was a pity-filled look on his face that I brushed off.

“Any luck with that? Your prophecy?” He seemed almost hopeful.

“No,” I sighed. “But there is one who took the time to ask this year. Like Remus did his first year,” The memory was a soft spot for both of us.

“You were his first friend,” Sirius smiled at the same memory. “So, who is it this year?”

“Little Malfoy,”

Sirius snorted. “We both know you don’t have a sense of humor, drop the act,”

“I’m ser—” He gave me a look and I paused to rephrase. “I’m telling the truth. It was Draco who asked, who read my diary, and knows about the prophecy,” I hesitated. “He’s also the one I told,” My gaze dropped to the ground waiting for the backlash.

“Malfoy!?” Sirius demanded. “You told Malfoy!?”

“I’m sorry! I told you I was sorry!” I shouted back, bristling, feeling my body shudder. Sirius seemed to notice and took a few paces away and composed himself.

I dared to speak. “All he knows is that you didn’t kill Peter. That’s all. I’m so sorry Sirius,” I turned, and he was gone. “Fine! Leave!” I shouted. “Like always... like everyone...”

I let out a scream of frustration that was carried away with the wind. Letting out a sigh of defeat I wandered up to the castle again.

“Y/n?” For the third time tonight, I jumped at the call of my name. It was Draco again.

“Draco, look,” I started. “I...”

“No,” He stopped me softly. “I’m sorry... I...” He shook his head and took off down the hall towards the Slytherin dorms. Chasing after him, he was too far gone, and I was face to face with the Baron.

“Oh, could this night get any worse?” I shouted to no one in particular. “I don’t mean to trespass, apologies.”

“Stay out of my territory and away from my students, you little harlot,” The Baron sneered.

“Gladly,” I growled back. “Arse,” I muttered as I ghosted back to the upper levels of the castle.

Utterly lost on what to do, I found myself by the Black Lake, staring up at the moon and stars. I stayed there until the sun rose over the dark waters, painting the valleys in a golden light. I remained there, watching the sun and moon dance in the sky in an unchangeable waltz that continued for eternity.

“They said you were out here,”

I didn’t jump this time at the sound of his voice as the moon rose to her duet again.

“Hello, Draco,” I murmured softly. “Come to watch the stars with me?”

“Sure,” I could hear the smile in his voice as he sat beside me on the bank of the lake, the only sound was the music of the night, the lake lapping at the small beach, and his gentle breaths.

“I... I’m really sorry,” He murmured softly. “For that night, I didn’t mean to get so angry. I wasn’t upset with you...” Silence fell softly between us. “My parents never told me... I wrote to my mother...” My eyes widened as I gazed over at him, his pale skin almost having the same affect that mine did in the moon light. “I never knew...”

“I’m sorry,” I offered.

“Merlin don’t apologize to me,” He laughed hopelessly.

“Well I did sort of freak out on you, so... sorry.”

He shrugged and his gaze fixed on the moonlit water. “My father thinks it’s absurd that I’m talking to you... and I think my mother is slightly worried about me for it,”

“Any particular reason?” I mused.

“Father has always been against those different than him in any way... my mother probably worries that I’m not making friends...talking to ghosts...” A smile toyed at his lips at the mention of his mother.

“Are we not friends then?” I teased lightly, causing him to laugh.

“Sure,” He rolled his eyes at me, this time causing me to laugh. “Do you miss them?” He asked after a quiet moment.

“Who?”

“Your parents... your family?” He seemed almost afraid to ask.

I pondered the question. “Yes, sometimes... but I’ve spent a lot of years wasting tears that will never fall over people I can never see again... you move on and learn to live after a while... well as much as a ghost can live,”

“You can’t cry, can you?” He came to the fact easier and saner than most did.

I shook my head. “I can feel bitter sorrow, the worst loss, but I can never shed a tear,” I chuckled humorlessly. “The irony, I have the most to mourn and I can’t even cry,”

“I’m sorry,”

I shrugged. “I’ve lived a long time without being able to cry... just reminds me that I’ll never be quite human again,”

“But you could be,” He had more hope than I ever had about the fact.

“Yeah,” I scoffed. “That stupid prophecy,”

“I don’t think it’s stupid,”

“You’ve haven’t spent centuries wondering what it meant,” I argued back:

“In the days when evil lurks around every corner;

The condemned will become innocent;

And the innocent will become condemned;

True love can reanimate a deceased heart;

Under the star of Great Dog;

She will become alive as time is altered;

Two souls will be set free that day as the star takes her place.”

“True love,” I scoffed again; my lips pressed together. “Like some sort of stupid fairytale,”

“I thought you said that fairytales weren’t stupid,” Draco raised an eyebrow at me smirking.

“They’re not,” I rolled my eyes. “Believing that there’s true love out there to save me? That’s stupid,”

“Then maybe there’s no hope for any of us,” Draco sighed. “If someone like you can’t find true love, where’s the hope for the rest of us,”

A smile ghosted me lips at his words as I looked over to him, his eyes still trained on the water.

“You’re really sweet sometimes, you know that Malfoy?” His eyes darted to mine as his cheeks tinged pink.

“Will you come back inside?” He asked softly. “The library isn’t as interesting without you there,”

“Sure,” I smiled warmly at him.

Fall turned to winter turned to spring, and Draco and I spent a lot more time together than I cared to admit. He was almost easier to talk to than anyone else I had met. And that was saying something, because I knew Remus Lupin, who was fascinated with my fascination of the young Malfoy.

But all the same, I found myself crave Draco’s company more and more and cursing the Baron for not letting me see him while he was in his dorm. It was rough when he came down with a cold and I wasn’t able to see him for a week. No number of books could distract me from the fact that he wasn’t there to talk to. That he wasn’t here to talk to me. I had never missed anyone like this before.

But when he felt better, we’d press curfew to mere minutes just to get another word in with each other. Then he’d have to be human and I’d have to remember that I didn’t belong in his world and never could. It didn’t stop me, however, from finding and talking to him the next day. Or the day after that. Or the day after that.

Then there was a day in late spring that caught my attention as Sirius had finally gotten to Harry and his friends, but things had gone from bad to worse as I watched the scene unfold, doing the only thing I could think of, I spirited away to find Remus. He would know what to do, he would know how to help.

After I had explained what I had seen, Remus grabbed his wand and took off towards the Whomping Willow. I followed him, and as soon as I left the castle, I felt the dark presence of the dementors around me.

“No!” I shouted, going up to meet them, and for the first time in a long time gave into my spiritual power, long enough to hold them off and let Remus pass through safely.

I hovered over the Shrieking Shack, keeping the dementors as bay, away from Sirius, away from Remus. They didn’t dare to go near my pure light that was amplified by the full moon. Soon I saw the three of them emerge, Peter in chains, when the light of the full moon hit my little Remus.

With a cry of desperation, I did my best to keep the dementors away as I watched the horrors unfold before me before I couldn’t take it any long and chased after Remus, who was not a wolf into the wood.

“Remus!?” I shouted; my voice lost with the wind. “Remus, it’s me! Please come out!” I caught sight of Hermione and Harry and gestured that they should leave, and quickly. “Remus!?”

I heard a growl and turned, seeing golden scared eyes.

“Hey,” I cooed softly. “You’re alright, you can’t hurt me,”

A pained howl left his lips.

“I know,” I replied. “But you’re going to be alright, let get you back, yeah? To Prongs and Pads, they’re waiting for you.” Tears I wanted to cry weren’t shed at the pitiful heartbreaking whine that left his lips.

But he let me lead him back to the Shrieking Shack all the same. I stayed with him until McGonagall and Dumbledore came. There was a soft thank you from the both of them. I drifted back to the castle, pacing in anxiety.

“Y/n?” It was Draco’s voice. I turned.

“Draco, it’s not safe!” I squeaked. “What are you doing out of bed!?”

“I had to see you,” He confessed. “There are rumors, about Black and Lupin... I thought you’d... Are you alright?”

“Draco, really,” I glanced around, cursing that I couldn’t drag him inside to where it was safer. “It’s not safe for you out here,”

“Bloody hell, Y/n, what about you!?”

“I’m already dead! So, unless you’d like to join me!” I shouted, realizing after the fact what I had said. “Draco, I didn’t mean that,”

“You’re keeping things from me,” It was a broken accusation. “About Sirius, about Remus,”

“Draco, please,” I pulled away. “I... I have to go, I have to make sure that he’s alright,” My eyes trailed up to the top of the tower, knowing that I may have been the reason that Sirius was in chains again.

“No!” Draco shouted, drawing my attention.

He had never demanded anything of me before, not like this. It wasn’t the fact that he told me to stop, it was the notion that he had found his own voice in it that caused me to pause. I waited for him to continue.

“I’ve spent all year, all of my three years here, knowing you, and getting to know you and I’m not going to let you walk away again! I want to know! I don’t want this you can’t tell me act. If anyone, you can tell me. Can’t you trust me? Please,” His voice broke, unshed tears in his eyes.

“Draco,” My non-material heart broke a bit as he stood before me, vulnerable. Shaking and terrified I nodded. “Remus... is a werewolf. Sirius is an Animagus. Peter betrayed the Potters, and Sirius went to confront him. Peter faked his death and killed all those people and it was blamed on Sirius...” In my nervousness I began to ramble:

“...and Sirius and Remus confronted Peter tonight and Harry and his friends were there and I had to fight off dementors so that Sirius would be okay because I couldn’t bear to see him get hurt for something he didn’t do and then I had to go and help Remus because it’s a full moon and he won’t hurt me but for the love of merlin he will hurt you so will you please go inside!”

Draco gaped at me, in utter disbelief.

“Please Draco, go inside,”

“Only if you come with me,” He recovered.

My thoughts for Sirius were forgotten as I took a step closer to him. Instead, all I could see and focus on was the heartbreak on his face and the hand that he held out for me. A hand that I wanted to accept but knew that I couldn’t because I would phase right through him. Never had I loathed being dead so much but in that moment when all I wanted to do was comfort him.

For the first time in almost two hundred years, tears slid down my cheeks. I barely noticed.

“Please,” His voice shook as did his hand as it remained extended to me. “Please, Y/n,”

The moon fell behind the mountains as the sun shed her first light onto us.

And with reckless abandon, I reached out for him, for his hand. In desperation and false hope, closing my eyes, knowing my heart would never break more that in the next few moments for not being a part of his world.

Then my hand felt softness and warmth.

I gasped and jerked back, and Draco seemed to realize this as I did.

“You just...” He stammered.

“I...” Trembling, I held my hand up, the sunlight no longer passing through it but refracting off of it. I finally reached up and felt the wetness of tears on my cheeks as I gasped in pure joy.

“I’m human,” I laughed, “I’m human!” I marveled at my rosy skin and the soft green fabric of my dress as I felt the grass beneath my feet. After a moment, I, at last, looked to Draco, who seemed to be frozen in a state of wonder and disbelief, and almost... scared.

“Draco,” I called softly, “It’s me,” I offered my hand to him, the grin not leaving my face.

“You’re... and...”

I nodded and smiled, taking a step closer to him. “Not scared of ghosts, are you?” I teased softly.

He finally laughed and took my hand, pulling me close, into the comfort of his arms. I began to cry again because for the first time in two hundred and fifty years, I was hugged. I clung to him, my fingers marveling at the softness of his shirt, trailing up into his hair.

“Merlin,” Draco pulled away softly. “You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting for this,”

Before I could ask him what he meant—or argue that I had been waiting longer than he ever had—he pressed his lips to mine, and in that moment, I swear I could have died all over again in his arms.

In the days when evil lurks around every corner,

The condemned will become innocent,

And the innocent will become condemned.

True love can reanimate a deceased heart,

Under the star of Great Dog,

She will become alive as time is altered;

Two souls will be set free that day as the star takes her place.

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