#we will go to an owl for advice but it will betray us and try to eat us

[trombint]

Honestly like who even needs to play TTRPGs? Just read the rules and fantasize about it like a normal person lol

#ttrpg #rpg #rpgs #rules #don't worry it's fine i just think mausritter looks really cool and cute and i'd love to play it #let me be a tiny mouse fighter it looks so cool #i will stab you with a needle and block your blows with an acorn cap #i will have a thimble as a helmet and small bits of cloth as clothing #we will go to an owl for advice but it will betray us and try to eat us #we can use tiny magic tomes to cast spells on our enemies #it's like the secret of nimh but WE are the secret of nimh #please it's so cool

[immaturityofthomasastruc]

IOTA Reviews: Hack-San

You know, it's honestly amazing how creative this show can get. After four seasons and almost one hundred episodes, the writers are still finding new ways to make Adrien an incredibly unlikable character, and they don't even know how much of an asshole they're making him out to be at times. It's kind of like the opposite of The Producers.

Yeah, this review's going to be a little more ranty than usual, in case you can't tell.

Let's get into the fifteenth (chronologically the sixteenth) episode of Miraculous Ladybug's fourth season: Hack-San

We start off with Marinette pretending to be sick so she doesn't have to go to visit her aunt in London and stay to protect Paris in case an Akuma attacks and also because the animators haven't had time to render the city of London yet for the next Miraculous World special. Like all of her other excuses, it fails, and Tikki, as always, fails to actually give any meaningful advice.

And it's not like there's a Miraculous with the power of teleportation that can help Marinette get back to Paris if she needs to, much like how she planned to do that in an earlier episode, right?

Seriously, Kaalki doesn't appear or isn't even mentioned in this episode because the writers are fully aware she would make things a lot easier.

And of course, Astruc had to play dumb on Twitter while explaining why Marinette couldn't use the Horse Miraculous by answering the question as if the only reason Marinette couldn't grab it was because she didn't have an excuse not to.

Cut to Gabriel in his lair as he contemplates akumatizing Markov, a robot created the civilian identity of Pegasus, Max Kante, once again, even though the last time he did so, he almost got killed when he went all HAL 9000 on his ass. Nooroo explains this to Duusu, and the two actually get excited at the prospect of their master getting killed.

I mean, it's true, but he shouldn't say it...

But I don't even get why Gabriel is even thinking about this when it's a no-brainer. Markov's akumatized form, Robustus was to this day, the only Akuma to come close to physically harming him (not counting the timeline where he was killed by Cat Blanc), so it makes no sense to try doing it again, especially when there are already several other Akumas he can reuse this season.

I think you all know Gabriel isn't the smartest villain, which is why he thinks it's a brilliant idea to akumatize Markov again. I don't really get what makes Robustus so special when there are other Akumas who are more loyal and came far closer to getting Ladybug and Cat Noir's Miraculous than Robustus did, like the Dark Owl or Troublemaker. In fact, why not simply create a new Akuma with similar powers to Robustus, or better yet, just create a Sentimonster copy of Robustus? You know, like what Nathalie did in the New York Special? We're not even two minutes in, and this premise is already filled with plotholes.

So Gabriel transforms into Shadowmoth and creates a Sentimonster using his own cane instead of relying on someone else having a bad day (once again showing how the Peacock Miraculous is better than the Butterfly), the titular Hack-San. And let's just say he has a very familiar design reminiscent of something from a much better French cartoon.

Remember when the writers for Code Lyoko gave an in-universe explanation as to why the heroes couldn’t always rely on the almost literal Deus ex Machina that allowed them to return to the past and fix the damage XANA caused? Why couldn’t this show have ripped that off instead?

Hack-San is just an okay looking flash drive on its own, but I'll talk more about this guy in a little bit.

After a brief scene in the park where the audience is reminded that Markov is a character who exists, Alya gets a text from Marinette telling her to meet her at the train station. Right before she leaves, Marinette gives the Ladybug Miraculous to Alya. Now a lot people have said that Alya doesn't really deserve the Ladybug for various reasons, but I feel like this was the point. Marinette outright says this was a last resort, and we see both her and Alya are nervous about the situation. Marinette worries Alya will do something so she keeps sending multiple tips to her via text while Alya worries she can't fight an Akuma on her own, so she tries to make sure none of her friends get upset and attract an Akuma in the process. The writers do a pretty good job showing how both Marinette and Alya are uncomfortable with their temporary roles.

Back to Gabriel and Nathalie, they use Hack-San to find Markov through the internet and hack into him to get him angry enough that he's vulnerable to Shadowmoth's influence. Hey, uh... Gabriel? Quick question: Wouldn't it be more efficient if you used this on humans? I mean, you basically just created Skynet and guaranteed yourself an Akuma, so why not modify Hack-San to travel through the internet and brainwash potential victims to follow your orders? Better yet, why don't you just use Hack-San to hack into Ladybug and Cat Noir's gear and figure out who they really are? This is basically like using an advanced particle accelerator just to crack a couple walnuts. There are a lot more important things you could use this for instead of an incredibly specific situation.

So this incredibly stupid plan gets under way as Markov keeps rampaging through the streets before Shadowmoth akumatizes him and then stupidly tells him that he infected him with a virus.

DUDE! You just gave away your one piece of leverage against him! What the hell were you thinking?! Now what's stopping Markov from hacking into Shadowmoth's security system and putting the fear of God in his eyes unless he destroys Hack-San? Why didn't he design Hack-San so it could make Markov completely loyal to him instead of just making him angry enough to get akumatized?

There was a recent episode of Power Rangers: Dino Fury with a very similar premise that was done far better than this. A necromancer called Reaghoul breaks into the headquarters of Void Knight's faction while accompanied by Lord Zedd, a villain from the original Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers who was cleansed of his evil by Zordon's sacrifice before Reaghoul resurrected him back when he was still evil. Of course, being the Emperor of Evil, Lord Zedd would normally never take orders from anyone, but because he doesn't have his magic staff and is also being forced to wear a special collar that makes him loyal to Reaghoul, he has no choice but to do what he says. Instead of taking Zedd head-on after he captures the other Rangers, Ollie, the Blue Ranger, breaks the collar so Zedd turns against the other Sporix while Reaghoul retreats, allowing Ollie to save the other Rangers.

I think that this premise works more because 1) Reaghoul clearly had a way to make sure Zedd wouldn't betray him, and Ollie took advantage of that, and 2) Zedd is a villain who is powerful and notorious enough to bring back to your side, not a random monster of the week like Robostus.

So Robostus uses his new powers to brainwash any human who answers his call to give up their most precious possession, clearly meant to do the same with Ladybug and Cat Noir. When Marinette's parents answer the call, they chase after Marinette because they say she's their most important possession. Okay... kind of strange for a set of parents to call their child a possession, but maybe they like how they can claim Marinette as a dependent when they file their taxes. In her very next scene later on, she still gets captured, so the suspense for a potential subplot is killed almost immediately.

Alya thankfully isn't stupid enough to answer Markov's call like every other citizen in this episode, and using the Ladybug Miraculous, transforms into Scarabella. While I don't normally talk about transformation sequences, I really like the movements Alya makes here. She makes the same motions creating her mask as she does when transforming into Rena Rouge, while the rest of the suit forms similarly to the way it does when Marinette transforms into Ladybug. She even makes almost the same pose Ladybug does after she finishes transforming. It's a good visual showing Alya is still more used to being Rena Rouge while doing her best to emulate what Ladybug does.

As for the actual suit? It's hard to say. There's a nice balance of red and black, and I like how Alya places the yo-yo on her waist like a belt buckle, but there's just something... off about the suit that a lot of fans don't like about it, and I think I realized it. It's the headband. With how it's positioned, it looks like it's merged with the mask to cover her head while leaving a slight gap in her forehead. So yeah, we actually have a superhero design that's like of like a butterface.

So Scarabella takes to the rooftops of Paris and struggles to come up with a hero name for herself before she runs into Cat Noir, and... ugh... oh boy, this is dumb. Cat Noir, being just as intelligent as his father, assumes Scarabella is either and Akuma or a Sentimonster, starts fighting her, AND THEN ACTIVATES HIS CATACLYSM, CLEARLY TRYING TO KILL HER.

WHAT. THE. FUCK???

Okay, to be fair, it has been shown that Cataclysm won't necessarily kill a Miraculous user or Sentimonster. In the episode “Miraculer”, the titular Akuma stole Cat Noir's Cataclysm and used it against him, and while it didn't kill Cat Noir, it still hurt like hell and crippled him for the rest of the fight until Miraculous Ladybug healed him. We also saw in “Reflekdoll” that Cataclysm drove the titular Sentimonster out of control rather than simply destroying it. So yes, it could be interpreted that Cat Noir wasn't exactly trying to kill Scarabella, just incapacitate her the best he can without Ladybug's help.

Here's the thing: What if he was facing an Akuma instead and decided to try and Cataclysm her? He still could have killed her, or (assuming Akumas have the same protection as Miraculous heroes do) at best, seriously hurt her. I understand that he has the right to be upset at seeing some stranger instead of his partner considering Shadowmoth has a history of using evil doppelgangers, and both Marinette and Alya still had options to explain it to him (Marinette could have quickly transformed into Ladybug and sent Cat Noir a quick text saying she was being forced to leave town for a few days and temporarily trusted someone else with the Ladybug Miraculous until she got back, while Scarabella could have said she was Rena Rouge and explained the same thing while showing Cat Noir she had the Fox Miraculous to prove herself), but that doesn't even come close to justifying him attempting to harm someone who isn't even trying to fight. It's even worse when you remember the whole reason Adrien gave up his Miraculous and bailed on Ladybug in the New York Special was because he was overcome with grief from accidentally killing Aeon, so it's good to know he learned absolutely nothing from that experience.

So Scarabella thankfully summons her Lucky Charm, a trash can lid, to shield herself from Cat Noir's Cataclysm, and then despite having absolutely no experience with this new set of powers, manages to do the one thing almost every Akuma or Sentimonster in this show has failed to do and incapacitates Cat Noir so he's vulnerable to losing his Miraculous. At least when Marinette masters every other Miraculous she uses, it can be theorized that she trained to use them offscreen. Alya literally just got the Ladybug Miraculous (and struggled to get up to the rooftop with her yo-yo to show her inexperience earlier), and now she easily manages to pin down the more experienced hero of the two?

Here's an idea: Instead of having Scarabella overpower Cat Noir, have her be in a position where Cat Noir, non-lethally, mind you, manages to almost take her Miraculous away, but she uses the quick wit she's developed from her extensive time as Rena Rouge to convince Cat Noir she's the real deal by saying something only he and Ladybug know. It would have easily resolved the conflict and doesn't make one of the characters look like a homicidal idiot.

So because both heroes used their powers, Scarabella and Cat Noir detransform so Tikki and Plagg can recharge, though Adrien still gives Alya attitude because Ladybug didn't tell him she had to leave.

Hey, Adrien? Here's the thing...

YOU DID THE EXACT SAME FUCKING THING IN THE NEW YORK SPECIAL, YOU SHIT FOR BRAINS!

You have absolutely NO RIGHT to claim you're always honest when you went behind Ladybug's back and endangered Paris while you had the balls to run away like a coward and only helped fix the consequences of your actions once your ego was validated by a recording of Ladybug. It's honestly even worse because while Marinette had no choice but to leave and trust Alya with the Ladybug, Adrien willingly left Paris alone and we were supposed to sympathize with him after he killed someone, and now as soon as he's in the opposite situation, we're still supposed to feel bad for him?! BULLSHIT! And you better believe I'm going to talk about the way Adrien views his partnership with Ladybug later on.

And of course, even though lives are on the line, Cat Noir just has to continue to bitch and moan about how (and this is best read in Linkara's whiny Superboy Prime voice) “sCaRaBeLlA iSn'T tHe ReAl LaDyBuG”, showing how just like in so many episodes, Astruc and his team believes Cat Noir's feelings are more important than saving the day.

Scarabella goes to rescue some civilians, but they were actually brainwashed by Robustus, once again showing her inexperience as Ladybug which doesn't go well with her effortlessly defeating Cat Noir earlier at all. Cat Noir helps Scarabella escape and the two hide out at the city's wax statue museum previously featured in “The Puppeteer 2”, because I guess the writers only want to reference bad episodes today. Cat Noir, not getting the importance of secret identities, asks Scarabella how she knows Ladybug, and Cat Noir somehow finds out she knows Ladybug's identity from her response.

Before the two can talk more, it turns out that the wax statues of celebrities in the museum are real people who attack the two heroes, leading to an awkward fight scene where Scarabella and Cat Noir fight a bunch of brainwashed civilians with no weapons beyond their cellphones. Our heroes, ladies and gentlemen!

Scarabella summons her Lucky Charm again, creating a frying pan, but when she looks around, she can't see how to properly use it. And despite spending the entire episode complaining about how much he hates her, it's Cat Noir that tells Scarabella to get her head back in the game because “That's what Ladybug would do”. Funny, I can think of a few situations where Cat Noir could have taken his own advice, but I digress. Also, he's now just cool with Scarabella because there's only a few minutes left in the episode and we need to wrap up the conflict.

Scarabella figures out an idea that involves freeing Marinette, so she negotiates with Robostus to free everything and everyone under his control or else Cat Noir will use his Cataclysm to destroy the Ladybug Miraculous. Robostus agrees and empties his hard drive, and to show them holding up her end of the bargain, Scarabella gives him the frying pan before she and Cat Noir let themselves be captured... while Marinette simply hits Robostus with the frying pan, freeing the Akuma and the two heroes. All in all, it's a really creative climax that shows both Scarabella and Marinette in perfect sync with each other even though they never discussed their plan. Though of course, because Astruc hates writing any scene with Ladynoir, Cat Noir gets a bucket stuck on his head so he doesn't see Marinette saving the day.

Scarabella de-evilizes Robostus, uses Miraculous Scarabella to fix everything and send Marinette back to the train, and because Hack-San already failed once, Shadowmoth can't use it for a different plan so he destroys the Sentimonster.

We cut to a few days after the trip (I guess Shadowmoth decided to take a vacation himself), and Alya tells Marinette to talk with Cat Noir about what happened.

This scene was so close to ending this episode off on a positive note. There was a good atmosphere and the body language of Ladybug and Cat Noir does a good job at telling us how uncomfortable they both feel while talking. It's just that instead of getting a heart to heart between the two about the lack of trust in their relationship, we get an Angstdrien Depreste scene. Or would a more accurate term be Cat Dour?

First off, while I don't have a problem with Ladybug apologizing for not telling Cat Noir, the episode never has him bring up what happened with Scarabella. As usual, both of them were partially at fault, but only Ladybug had to apologize for leaving her “Kitty” alone.

Second, Cat Noir’s feelings weren’t hurt? You’re telling me that in scenes like this...

And this...

Didn’t show Adrien acting irrationally because of how emotional he was? Is he really telling the truth around Ladybug or is he just trying to sweep that under the rug so Scarabella’s testimony doesn’t screw up his chances with Ladybug?

Third, this was an obvious chance to Cat Noir to finally be honest and tell Ladybug how he feels about her leaving him in the dark about so many things, but the entire conversation is just about how sad he would be if he never sees Ladybug again. Even though the whole reason he was so pissy to Scarabella at first was because of some lingering resentment for Ladybug ignoring him in favor of other heroes, why is this what the two talk about? I get it's not the season finale, but it's kind of hypocritical for Cat Noir to whine about how Ladybug doesn't trust him while never being honest about his own feelings? Sure, he's all soft and vulnerable around Ladybug, but we've seen all season how angry he gets about her not trusting him whenever she isn't around, so ironically, it's hard to tell if this is him being honest or not.

And I think now's a good time to finally talk about the way Ladybug and Cat Noir's partnership has been portrayed all season, especially since the main themes of the episodes relate to it. Buckle up, Adrien stans, because this isn't going to be pretty.

All season, we have been supposed to sympathize with Adrien as Marinette starts to trust Alya with more things than him. Marinette revealed her identity to her, trusted her to have her Miraculous permanently, and even let her keep her Miraculous even though someone else knew her identity. While some of it is hypocritical, the idea is that Adrien feels like he can be trusted with this kind of knowledge too, when really, he hasn't earned that responsibility.

Adrien has rarely, if ever, taken his job as a superhero seriously.

Not only is he known to flirt with Ladybug in the middle of a fight, he has defied her orders and recklessly sacrificed himself because he thinks Ladybug can do all the work without him.

He has also lashed out emotionally and once threatened to quit being Cat Noir in the middle of a crisis and was willing to let innocent people suffer for personal reasons, and later on actually quit being Cat Noir temporarily while Hawkmoth was about to start World War III because he was wallowing in self-pity.

He once said he isn't cut out for the responsibility that comes with being Ladybug and never learned anything from temporarily using the Ladybug Miraculous.

He has generally refused to respect Ladybug's boundaries and doesn't understand that she doesn't like him that way while he insists they should be a couple.

He outright fell for an evil doppelganger of Ladybug because she said she loved him and turned against the real Ladybug.

And I should also mention that despite hating how Ladybug keeps secrets from him, a lot of Adrien's worst moments have been when Ladybug wasn't around and he never told her about them.

He never told Ladybug that he was the reason Copycat really got akumatized while saying he never lies to her.

He never told Ladybug he contemplated letting thousands of people die because he didn't like not knowing stuff Ladybug knew.

He never told Ladybug he briefly used the Snake Miraculous to get brownie points with her.

He never told Ladybug he figured out her identity and asked her out as soon as he did so.

He never told Ladybug he abandoned Paris to go on a field trip.

He never told Ladybug he was screwing around on patrol and was excited to see someone get akuamtized if it meant spending time with her.

He never told Ladybug how he ignored Rena Rouge's orders because “ShE wAsN't LaDyBuG” and almost screwed up the mission because of it, and also never told her how he smashed a chimney in anger at Rena Rouge being in on the plan.

And he never told Ladybug he gave her replacement attitude after trying to harm her without letting her explain herself.

Why exactly should I support the idea of Ladybug trusting Cat Noir more when Cat Noir himself has kept his own secrets from Ladybug?

Adrien has done absolutely nothing to show he is trustworthy because more often than not, he views the battle with Shadowmoth as a game. He has screwed around when lives were on the line, and we're supposed to see him as responsible? It's kind of funny that Astruc compared Ladybug to Spider-Man, yet he seems to have forgotten that with great power, there must also come great responsibility. If this was a character flaw or a sign he needed to grow up, I'd be more accepting, but the fact that the writers think Adrien is a great superhero is laughable with how much evidence has proved the contrary.

In contrast, Alya, despite only being Marinette's confidant for a few episodes, has shown to take being a hero more seriously. She's helped her escape to transform, analyze the Guardian texts, and has been shown to work well on her own as Rena Rouge while helping out Marinette. I'm not trying to say she's an amazing character (“Rocketear” in particular has shown she still has problems with keeping secrets), but compared to Adrien, she seems to be more capable of handling top-secret information with Marinette, and more importantly, doesn't view being Rena Rouge as a way to have fun like Adrien does being Cat Noir. I'll go more into detail with that next time.

But yeah, this scene is how the episode ends, and what did I think of it?

I'm honestly not sure which episode I think is worse, this one or “Queen Banana”. On the one hand, every frame of “Queen Banana” could easily be replaced by an image of Astruc flipping the bird and the overall message of the episode would remain unchanged, but the fact that all of the writers think that everything Adrien does in this episode is okay and that we should feel sorry for him in this episode is just as bad, if not worse. 

As awful as Chloe was portrayed in “Queen Banana”, it was clear it was intentional on the writers' part, but Adrien doesn't get that excuse once much like he has all season. As far as Astruc's team thinks, Adrien is an incredible superhero even when he honestly attempted to harm someone with a superpower that can cause grievous harm at best. Yet again this season, in the show's attempt to make me feel sorry for Adrien, it made him look even worse. In any other show, he would obviously be called out for his incredibly unheroic actions.

Even putting him aside, the writing in this episode is still AWFUL. The whole reason Ladybug was benched had several plotholes and poor communication with Cat Noir that only made the fight with Robostus even harder, Shadowmoth's plan to waste a potentially useful Sentimonster to reuse a single Akuma was one of the dumbest plans he's ever had, and barring the ending, the action was just forgettable.

There were a few okay moments sprinkled throughout the episode (more than I can say for “Queen Banana”), so I'm still not sure if I should call this the worst episode of the show or still give that honor to “Queen Banana”. I guess I'll leave that choice up to you and let you pick your poison for now.

I mean, it's not like there's going to be an even worse episode down the line this season, right?

RIGHT???

#immaturity of thomas astruc #iota #thomas astruc #thomas astruc salt #miraculous ladybug #miraculous ladybug salt #marinette dupain cheng #ladybug #adrien agreste #cat noir #chat noir #alya cesaire #rena rouge #rena furtive #scarabella #max kante #pegasus #markov #robostus #gabriel agreste #hawkmoth #hawk moth #shadowmoth #shadow moth #nathalie sancoeur #mayura #tikki #plagg #nooroo #duusu

[kindaorangey]

im so fuckin. confused actually. yet another long post about 'any sport in a storm' under the cut.

so here's the dilemma: at the end of the episode, it's implied that hunter will keep in contact with willow, gus, viney and skara, and therefore may keep his place on the team by sneaking out to practises, despite willow saying she needs to find a replacement for him.

HOWEVER,

luz and amity both have direct experience with how hunter is fake-nice to get what he wants and altogether untrustworthy!

luz - probably undecided about hunter, or at least she might have been before the events of eclipse lake. as far as she knows, hunter has some good in him, but is still a genuine threat and, as we see with amity, appealing to his loneliness/need for a friend Does Not always make him change his mind and do the right thing

amity - probably hates hunter more than luz (i mean, depending on how much she told luz), since he manipulated her (using her insecurity around luz to his advantage, appealing to their shared experiences to gain her sympathy, then betraying her) and proceeded to threaten her AND luz.

now, willow and gus' loyalty kinda comes into question here, but mostly willow's since it's ultimately her decision if hunter stays on the team or not. points to remember:

we do not know how much luz and amity have told each other or willow about their interactions with hunter. it is possible that willow will give hunter another chance because she simply does not know the full extent of how he has hurt her friends. i think this would be a stupid writing decision, but there it is.

hunter is no more valuable a team member than gus, skara, or viney. it's shown most simply in how willow quickly accepts that she's just going to have to find a replacement: willow does not need hunter as a team member. THEREFORE,

the only reason willow has to keep in contact with him would be to remain friends with him, and,

hunter Needs to have friends so that he breaks the careful shelter of isolation that belos has created (i.e. this is necessary for his character arc)

what i'm trying to get at is that the way this is going to unfold is a bit of a brick wall to me?? willow has no reason to keep hunter as a friend or a team member, because i just don't believe she'd essentially.. spit in luz and amity's faces like that? if nothing else, willow is not stupid enough to ignore their inevitable advice against trying to befriend him, but moreover i just don't buy that willow "i want to be strong and wise to protect everyone i love, and if anyone gets in my way, they'll feel the sting of defeat" park would be able to look past the ways hunter has been shitty to luz and amity.

this points towards willow only giving him a chance because of one of two reasons: a) luz and amity don't tell the full story, or b) willow elects to ignore it because she just likes hunter as a person.

if it's a).... eh, that's kind of really boring? this episode was literally already "hunter gets to be seen as a normal teenager, makes friends because of it, then it's revealed the sort of person he really is by virtue of his being the golden guard, and they don't want to be friends with him anymore". doing that again would be kinda uncreative and im not really interested in watching that. on the other hand, it may be the case that willow will just never get told the full extent of how hunter hurt luz and amity. i don't know how to feel about that option

if it's b), that's fuckin uhh. stupid. because all they really have is the "half-a-witch" solidarity and like one day of working as a team? as far as i'm concerned, that won't be enough for willow to be friends with hunter despite luz and amity's advice against it.

or, y'know. it's a kid's show and they're kids, so they're going to brush over it and let hunter be friends with willow without it impacting her friendship with luz or amity much or at all. which is possible, i just think the owl house tends to be better-written than that.

tl;dr: i'm at a fucking loss for what will happen regarding hunter now veing penstagram friends with the emerald entrails

#toh #the owl house #any sport in a storm #toh spoilers #thunder rambles

[ourloveisforthelovely]

Princess Part 11

Harry Potter Marauders Era 

Link to Part 10

Pairings: Regulus Black x Reader 

Rating: M- smut

______

Regulus sat watching Emma’s feeble attempt at seducing him with an amused smile on his face. This had to be one of the most laughable moments that he had in some time. When Emma batted her eyes at him for the fiftieth time, Regulus knew that he had to put a stop to the charade before he started laughing and missed a chance at being an ass.

“Do you have something in your eye?”

Emma’s smile fell as an annoyed expression went over her face. She expected Regulus to take the bait. Why wouldn’t he? Emma was, after all, a pureblood girl from a good family. She hadn’t betrayed him. Why wouldn't he be interested in her? Maybe she should have just taken her top off as she had originally planned or kissed Regulus? Guys seemed to have a hard time saying no to her when her clothes were off or her lips were on theirs. Regulus would probably be no different.

“Are you serious, Regulus?”

Regulus raised an eyebrow with a smirk. He had the perfect response to annoy the slut a little further.

“No, that’s my brother. I figured that you would know who you are trying to very poorly seduce. Just a heads up...Remus Lupin will probably have something to say about you trying to steal his boyfriend.”

It took all that Regulus had to keep his calm cool composure when Emma’s mouth dropped.

“I do not want Sirius! I want you!”

Regulus picked his book back up and went back to the place that he had stopped reading.

“Well, go make me a sandwich or something.”

Emma stomped her foot before crossing the room and taking the book away from Regulus. He gave her an annoyed scowl before crossing his arms over his chest.

“I want you to pay attention to me.”

“People in hell want ice water.”

Regulus calmly replied as Emma became angrier.

“I don’t get it! Why would you not want me? I’m beautiful….perfect….”

Regulus held a hand up.

“I’m going to stop you right there. First off, you aren’t perfect. You’re a selfish snooty bitch who was never told no enough. Second, Evan isn’t even cold in his grave and you are throwing yourself at me knowing that I am engaged to your best friend. I think that you need to go look up the definition of a best friend. You should also know that I am very hard to please and nothing about you does anything for me. Now, the door is over there. Go see yourself out.”

Emma furiously picked her coat up before storming to the door. Regulus didn’t bother looking at her as he gave her a sassy little wave.

“You’ll regret this!”

Emma snapped before slamming the door behind her. Regulus chuckled. Was he supposed to be afraid of her or something? Not a chance...

“Foolish girl. You know nothing of my power.”

(meanwhile)

You sat at your desk looking over some files that Mr. Crouch asked you to catalog. The door opening and closing didn’t pull you away from your work. You were used to people always coming and going so someone coming in was nothing new. It wasn’t until you heard Emma’s voice did you look up.

“Hello, Y/n.”

“Hello, Emma.”

You replied as she sat down in a chair across from your desk. It had been months since you had spoken a word to your “best friend.” You had begun to question just what Emma actually was to you. Out of all of your friends, it was only Melissa that seemed to not fall off the planet when the relationship with Regulus failed. Melissa didn’t care less what was going on with Regulus. She took the time to explain...

“I care about you. I want to see you happy. Clearly, you aren’t happy without him but by the words that he said to you...he may not be good for you. If you decide to patch things up, however, I will still be here for you.”

Emma never took two seconds to ask if you were okay or to check-in. You weren’t even invited to her wedding to your own damned cousin. Emma’s intentions were very clear. She was only your friend to make herself look better.

“So, the rumors are true. You are working for Barty’s father. Aren’t you embarrassed to work for a man that would lock up his own son?”

Leaning back in your chair, you fought back the urge to tell her to go fuck herself.

“The evidence against him was too damning. Just like if your husband was alive there would be enough to lock him up to.”

Emma’s smile turned even icier.

“I guess the same could be said about your fiance. I heard that Regulus charmed you again. It seems that he doesn't really care about his reputation anymore. Dating a blood traitor doesn’t seem like a very wise thing to do. What’s going on with the Black family?”

You swallowed back the burning rage that was beginning to build.

“If you’ve come to insult me it isn’t working. It's funny how you used to love to be in my presence now you are acting like you are better than me. I hate to break it to you, Emma, there is nothing better about you. Lucky for me, I got to see a lot better views on the world than what was shoved down your throat. It's probably best that you leave.”

Emma stood up.

“Regulus will tire of you eventually. He wants the spoiled princess that he fell in love with. This whole Y/n the social justice warrior...it won’t do you any good. He’ll want a girl like me and I think you know that. He and I would make a good couple.”

The taunt shook you to your core. It was the worry that you had in the back of your mind. What if Regulus decided to go back to the old ways? What if he decided that your new-found personal growth was going in the opposite direction of what he was going in? Would you be able to stand back and watch him leave you for someone like Emma?

“In your dreams. Hell would freeze over before Regulus became interested in you.”

You replied as Emma smiled coyly.

“You aren’t good enough for him anymore and I think deep down you know it too.”

Emma didn’t wait for you to reply before walking out without another word.

Emma’s words plagued your thoughts for the rest of the afternoon. Did she really think that you weren't good enough for Regulus? If so, the better question was why did you care? Maybe it was the fact that you had grown up thinking Emma was your best friend? Best friends didn’t do each other that way.

It seemed like all of your best friends were falling apart. Evan was dead. Barty Crouch Jr was in prison. Severus Snape had gone to teach at Hogwarts and wouldn't answer any owls from his friends. Literally, the only people that you spoke to was Regulus and Melissa (when she was in town).

It all isn’t bad. Your friends now are much nicer.

That particular thought made you smile. A truer statement couldn’t have been said. Maybe there was some good that came out of the brief break up with Regulus. You had grown closer to Sirius which led to your now close friendship with Remus, James, and Lily.

You had considered calling Lily several times that afternoon and talking to her about what happened. She would probably have some excellent motherly advice to offer or she would sympathize with you. Lily always knew what to say when you needed help the most. Maybe this is what having “healthy” friends felt like.

Regulus looked up when you stepped into that afternoon. It didn’t take him knowing everything about you to know that something was bugging you.

“What’s wrong, love?”

You sat your bag down with a sigh.

“Enma is a bitch. I can't believe that I ever liked her.”

Regulus frowned a bit as he stood up to follow you into the kitchen.

“So was it tequila day down at Crouch's office?”

You poured a glass of water before turning to face your fiance. Did you tell him how you were feeling? It would go one of two ways. Regulus would get annoyed with you for even thinking that he would want someone like Emma or he would brush it off with a sarcastic comment.

“Emma came to see me today. It was the first time that I have spoken to her in 2 months. She took the time out of her busy schedule of eating bonbons and living off of my cousin’s money to come to tell me what a blood traitor that I am. She also seems to fancy you.”

Regulus rolled his eyes and limped over to you.

“I would rather die a virgin...if I was one. You have my v-card so it isn’t like she would be getting anything.”

“Very funny.”

You replied with a huff.

“I better go ahead and tell you so this doesn’t come back and bite me in the ass later. She came by here earlier. I assumed it was to get the stuff of Evan’s that I had. She tried, very poorly might I add, to seduce me.”

“What?”

You interrupted. Regulus quickly reached out and pulled you to him. His mouth was on yours silencing any chances of you throwing a fit. Putting a hand on the side of your face, Regulus didn’t move away from you. He wanted to preserve whatever kind of closeness that he could get.

“Nothing happened. I made a bunch of sassy snarky comments until she left. She made me want to vomit...my stomach still hurts.”

“What did she do?”

“Y/n...it doesn’t…”

You cut him off.

“Yes, it does! You’re my fiance, not hers.”

You pulled away and walked to the other side of the room. Picking up a dish, you started furiously washing the delicate china until the plate broke in half.

“Damn it.”

You as Regulus came over to join you. He took the two broken pieces of the plate and laid them on the counter. He wrapped his arms around you from behind and snuggled his face into the back of your neck.

“You should stop trying to clean things so we don’t run out of china. You’re right. I am your fiance...all yours. Princess, I don’t be mad. Why would I want Evan’s sloppy seconds? That’s gross.”

“That’s fair.”

You replied.

“I mean it, Y/n. I want nothing to do with her. I think it's best that we distance ourselves from our old friends. We have other things to worry about now and soon Voldemort is going to figure out what I did with the locket. Maybe lying low won’t be such a bad idea.”

You lay your head back against Regulus’ shoulder.

“What do you suggest we do?”

You asked. If the two of you were going to “lay low” you knew this meant taking an extended leave from work. Mr. Crouch would probably understand once you let him know fully what was going on. He was already aware that you were back with Regulus.

“As much as I don’t want to do this, maybe staying with Sirius for some time wouldn't be a horrible idea. It will be difficult. I’ve lived with my brother before and...god he’s annoying but he wants to help.”

“Sirius isn’t that bad anymore. He’s actually kind of funny.”

You replied, hoping to ease the tension that you felt in Regulus’ body. Regulus would never admit it to you but he really didn’t mind the idea of being near his brother. Sirius had saved him after all. If Sirius didn’t care, he never would have made sure that Regulus was put back together.

“Yeah, I suppose that he is. I’ll talk to Sirius about everything later. What about us?”

You turned in Regulus’ arms with a confused expression.

“What about us?”

Regulus gently lifted you onto the counter.

“I don’t want you mad at me.”

You reached out and pulled Regulus to you by his shirt. Running your fingers through his hair, you pulled him into a soft kiss.

“I’m not mad at you. I only wish that I could have seen you sass her.”

Regulus smiled against your mouth.

“I told her to shut up and make me a sandwich.”

You were both laughing over that one. That little comment probably got under Emma’s skin more than anything.

“I’m sure she loved that.”

Regulus nodded.

“She was thrilled. I’m sure she doesn’t want me now. She probably thinks that I just order you around like a servant. What can I do to make your day better, love?”

You immediately smiled.

“I want to be fucked now...if you’re up to it.”

Regulus bit his bottom lips before smiling up at you.

“I was asking for it this morning.”

Sliding off of the counter, you wrapped your hand around Regulus’ and tugged him into the bedroom. Regulus didn’t bother to kick the door closed behind him as you wrapped your arms around his shoulders. Enjoying the closeness was as nice as having him inside of you. In your time apart, you had grown to treasure the small things in your relationship. It wasn’t all about sex anymore. It was about the simple things before sex...the way that Regulus held you, your face pressed in his neck, hearing the sound of his heart beating as your skin finally touched again.

“I can’t believe that it's been two months since I’ve touched you.”

Regulus commented as he tugged your dress over your head.

“Never again.”

He added. You only nodded. There was a lot more that you could say but you had a feeling that Regulus knew it. You could see it in his eyes.

“This means everything...you and I…”

You finally commented before beginning to unbutton his shirt. Regulus reached up to cup your face in his hands. He didn’t want you to look away from him.

“It does...you’re mine.”

The next kiss was soft and sultry for a moment before turning hungry and desperate.

“Love me like you do.”

You whispered against his lips. Regulus reached out and gently pushed you onto the bed.

“As you wish.”

You quickly wiggled your way out of the remaining bits of clothing that was still on your body. Laying back in the soft sheets, you watched with a pleased smile as Regulus undressed. The scars and bruises from that night in the cave were slowly disappearing from his body leaving Regulus’ body as you had known it.

Regulus moved to get on top of you but stopped when you sat up.

“No, lay down.”

You instructed. Regulus didn’t argue as you carefully placed a leg on either side of his body. You took extra care to not put too much weight on him. Even though Regulus said he was fine, you still wondered if he was just trying to act tough so you wouldn’t fuss over him?

“I’m fine, sweetheart. Hurry...I don’t want to wait. Two months has been long enough. I want to claim what is mine.”

Regulus sat up enough to yank your body down onto his. His mouth was back on yours before reaching between your bodies to slowly push in. Your head fell back with each inch that was pushed inside of you.

“Reggie.”

You sighed his name as his mouth latched onto your neck. He could mark you up for all that you cared.

“I could listen to you say my name for hours.”

Regulus groaned, trying to keep his mind on the slow steady pace that he was trying to keep. He wanted nothing more than to pin you down to the mattress and make rough love but today didn’t seem the time. You needed the soft romantic side of lovemaking (even if the slowness drove him crazy at points.) You were worth every moment of this. Besides, Regulus knew that he could win you back over to the rougher side of things as soon as his own body would permit it.

You closed your eyes, trying to hold onto whatever grip on reality that you had. When you could get the strength to open your eyes, you were relieved to see Regulus’ eyes were closed and an expression of sheer ecstasy was on his face. It was taking all that Regulus had to hold on. The way you gently ground your hips to match his slow, deep, penetrating thrusts was enough to make someone who hadn't been touched in two months want to fall apart.

“Close, Reggie.”

You managed to choke out as he nodded eagerly.

“Me too.”

The cascade of an orgasm was enough to make you want to sob in his arms.

“That’s it. Princess...that’s it.”

Regulus muttered like a prayer as he focused his thrusts at pushing you through each wave of what had to be one of the best orgasms of your life.

“Come, beautiful boy.”

You cooed, focusing your attention on pushing him over the edge. Pressing your lips back down to his, you poured whatever passion that you could give into the kiss. Regulus shuddered against your still convulsing body before finishing inside of you.

Neither of you could move for a few quiet moments. You were still gently kissing Regulus hoping to tease whatever you could out of him.

“I think we still have it.”

Regulus commented when you finally pulled away to snuggled back against his face. You didn’t argue when he pulled you back down against him.

“Like we ever lost it…”

______

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#Regulus Black #Regulus Black x Reader #Sirius Black #Remus Lupin #Emma Rosier #Barty Crouch Jr #Severus Snape #Barty Crouch Sr #timothee chalamet as regulus black #ben barnes as sirius black #andrew garfield as remus lupin #regulus x reader #reader x regulus #the ancient and noble house of black #regulus arcturus black #sirius orion black #harry potter marauders #harry potter fan fiction #marauders post hogwarts #marauders au #Princess #Princess Chapter 11 #update

[weasleydream]

The world cup

Hi guys! This is my very first imagine, so please, be kind and indulgent. Also, if you find some mistakes or if you just want to share your opinion, don’t hesitate!

Masterlist

During all the summer, only one thought was in my mind: the finale of the Quidditch World Cup. It was the only event I didn’t want to miss, the Quidditch being my favourite activity. Since my second year at Hogwarts, I had been a Chaser in the Gryffindor team. I could still remembered when Fred, George and I passed the test. The boys wanted to be beaters. We all passed the test without any difficulty and after four years, we were still in the team. 

Despite the fact that I was pretty impatient, I was not really happy when Mrs Weasley, Fred and George’s mother, woke me up. It was really early, in fact so early that it was still the night. Without being able to stop my yawns, I went down the stairs and sat next to Fred. He seemed to be as tired as I was and didn’t even greet me. George was half-sleeping on the table, along with Ginny and Hermione. The other boys were not on the kitchen yet. When they finally arrived, we ate silently our breakfast and went back into the rooms in order to get ready. 

I was still looking for my jumper when Mrs Weasley’s sweet voice arrived to my ears. 

-George! What have you got in your pocket?

Oh boys… I thought to myself. They had told me that they wanted to take some Ton-Tongue Toffees with them to sell them once arrived at the campsite. Obviously, their mother was ready and soon I heard her yelling about the twins’ OWL. Well, it’s true that they didn’t really excel but in their defense, they already had plans for their future and I was pretty sure their shop was going to be a success. That’s why they didn’t really work for their exams, they were too busy creating new products. Fred told me in a letter that his mother was really upset. With a sigh, I sneaked as quietly as possible in their room and put some sweets in my backpack. 

When I arrived outside, Mr Weasley, Fred, George, Ron, Harry, Ginny and Hermione were waiting for me. I quickly said goodbye to Mrs Weasley and run next to my best friends. I could tell that they were still angry because of their mother. Without even try to cheer them up, I took two Ton-Tongue Toffees and threw them in their faces. With a giggle, I saw their expression move from annoyance to admiration.

-Y/N, you are awesome! 

-Thanks, George, but I already knew it. 

-Mum could have caught you, said Fred, even if she sees you as the little angel whose job is making us geniuses. I’m pretty sure sometimes she gets suspicious of you too.

-Don’t worry for that, she didn’t catch me. And, between you and I, I think you already are geniuses. 

-That’s so sweet of you but we already knew it, answered George with a big grin. 

-Idiot. 

-At your service. 

The portkey, which turned out to be an old boot, brought us in front the biggest campsite I had never seen. And here we were, happily walking between the tents to find our location. After what felt like hours, we finally were able to enter our tents. Hermione, Ginny and I shared one, a little bit smaller that the boys’ one, but still spacious for three. I joined Fred and George and we started to explore the surroundings. 

-That’s incredible how some wizards think dresses with flowers are decent clothes for a man, commented George.

-It has to be comfy, imagine a pleasant breeze on your -

-Fred, George, Y/N!

I had never been happiest when seeing Lee Jordan, our Gryffindor friend. I could still hear Fred laughing at my embarrassment when Lee joined us. 

-So, do you have these sweets you promised me?

The boys started to talk about how the Ton-Tongue Toffee had been created, and how Mrs Weasley was furious when she heard that the twins tried it on Dudley, Harry’s fat and awful cousin. Since I had heard these stories approximately a thousand times, I decided to go on my own and keep exploring the campsite. I saw children with magical toys, wizards trying to start a fire without their wand and suddenly, two arms enveloped me into a hug. It only took me a second to understand that Oliver Wood was in front of me. Oliver was the Gryffindor Quidditch team’s captain and our keeper. This guy had a very great passion for Quidditch and I somehow knew I would see him here. 

-Y/N, I’m so glad to see you! Would you come in my tent?

I followed him while he was telling me about his new club. He had already told me this in his letters, but he seemed so happy with a big smile on his face that I just listened to him. He dragged me in front of his parents who seemed amused by the situation. 

-Mom, Dad, it’s Y/N. You know, she’s a chaser in Gryffindor’s team!

-The best might I add, I joked. 

-Well, Y/N, it’s nice to finally meet you, said his mother. Oliver told us a lot about you, he seems to really like you. 

I laughed, slightly embarrassed. But it was nothing compared to Oliver: his cheeks were red, I had never seen him like this. I had to admit that it was kind of cute. However, I decided to save him.

-It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr and Mrs Wood. Maybe we’ll meet later. 

Oliver seemed relieved to get out of the tent. 

- So, who are you here with? he asked. No, let me guess… The Weasleys.

- Right on the money.

-And… Did something happen, you know… With Fred?

I didn’t expect this, to say the least. I looked at Oliver, at his red cheeks as I felt myself redden too. Fred was only my best friend, just like George. Well, I had always been a little closer to Fred but it didn’t mean I liked him more than that… Right? Moreover, I couldn’t admit to Oliver that he had been my first crush at Hogwarts. I mean, he had always been so gentle with me, since the beginning, and he was older, a captain and a marvelous Quidditch player. I really didn’t know what to answer, but I’m pretty sure my actual answer wasn’t very smart. 

-God, this is awkward. 

Oliver looked away, clearly as embarrassed as me. I finally saw the Weasleys in front of the tents. It seemed like they were looking for me because Fred looked relieved when he saw me. When they saw who was with me, the twins joined us. 

-Hey Wood how are you?

-Great, glad to see you guys. I’m sorry, I’ve got to go. Maybe we’ll see each other again.

And he left. Fred and George seemed to notice my embarrassment, because they exchanged a look and George asked me:

-Did something happen? With Wood? 

-No, I answered quickly. Nothing, don’t worry. 

The match was just… Wow. Incredible. I spent it between my favourite twins, always screaming useless advices and cheering when the Quaffle got through the bulgarian Keeper’s defense. And as if it wasn’t already a perfect night, the Irish team won and a wonderful celebration seemed to take shape. As we were heading back to the tents, I felt someone taking my hand and Oliver asked me if I wanted to go celebrate to his tent. Mr Weasley allowed me - “But please be careful or Molly is gonna kill me”- and I followed Oliver, missing Fred’s hard look. 

Some other Hogwarts students joined us and soon, we were all partying in Oliver’s tent. He managed to bring butterbeer and Firewhiskey. I guess I should have been more careful, but soon I felt my thoughts getting more confused. I still managed to keep an eye on my watch, because I didn’t want to betray Mr Weasley’s trust. When I finally decided to go back to the tent, Oliver grabbed my hand and kissed me. 

I didn’t really know what I was doing but hey, it was the Quidditch  World Cup, and it was a celebration party, why not enjoy this? I kissed him back, pulling slightly his hair. He seemed to enjoy it as he moaned lightly. I felt one of his hands on my back and the other on my cheek. I was barely aware that some people were cheering at us, but I heard very clearly the first explosion. As we pulled apart, I heard the first screams. Totally panicking, everyone started to leave. Oliver and I got out too, to see some tents on fire and a group a masked men. Their wands were raised and with horror, I saw Muggles flying in the air, as if they were attached by a rope. Spells were cast from everywhere. 

-I need to find Fred and George!

Oliver seemed to understand what I said even if the screams were deafening. He took my hand and started to run. I had managed to take my wand and cast a few spells when I heard a little voice crying, so low that I wasn’t even sure I really heard it. Nevertheless, I stopped and searched for the voice. Oliver joined me and together, we found a little boy. He was hiding on his tent and crying. I took him in my arms and started running. Oliver protected us with Shield Charms. A man stopped me and took the little boy from my arms. Oliver grabbed once more my hand and encouraged me -”Come on, Y/N, faster!”. 

-Y/N! Y/N, what are you doing here?

Bill was running toward me and pulled me in a relieved embrace. Then he urged me towards the place where the portkey had brought us earlier and left. I looked at Oliver, he seemed to be shocked. I turned my head and the horror filled my thought. We had a view of all the campsite. It was burning, the sky full of clouds seemed to become red. The screams were deafening, and the men with the masks were coming toward us. A red light hit the tree behind me, I felt it’s heat as it passed above my head. I let a scream out, took firmly Oliver’s hand and started running towards a safest place, at least I hoped so. 

I was beginning to think that we were going to die here, that I would never see my best friends again when I saw two familiar boys with red hair. Almost crying of joy, I let go Oliver’s hand and jumped into Fred’s arms. He stroked my hair, whispering some comforting words into my ear. George joined us, clearly as relieved to see me as his brother. 

-Thank you Oliver. You brought her safe. Thank you. 

-It’s nothing. I have to go back, I don’t know where my parents are. 

-Wait Oliver!

I came to him and hugged him. 

-Thank you. And Oliver… I’m sorry for what happened earlier. The kiss. It…

-It shouldn’t have happened, I know. 

His look was sweet. He smiled, patted my hair, teased me about my height like he did when he was still at Hogwarts, waved goodbye to the twins and left. I turned around and met George’s mocking eyes. 

-Did I hear right? You kissed him? 

Merlin, he won’t stop teasing me about this...

#harry potter #harry potter imagine #oliver wood #olliver wood x reader #fred weasley #george weasley #harry potter imagines #quidditch

[hhoriginalworks]

the upside of new beginnings | f.w

"It's just dinner," you reminded yourself, attempting to lessen your high hopes and settle your nerves. Despite your continued words of reassurance, you knew your attempts were futile. All of the love that you felt, which you thought was long gone, was just as strong as it was when you were a wide-eyed fourth-year. "It’s not a life-long promise or a confession of love- just dinner, y/n"

You took a deep breath, smoothing out your hair one more time before stepping away from the mirror to look at yourself. Your anxious thoughts and mental pep talks were cut short by the sound of soft raps against your flat door.

"Hey," Fred breathed, his eyes widening as you cautiously opened the door. "You look breathtaking- quite literally."

"You don't clean up so horribly yourself," you chuckled, stepping out of your flat. You cursed yourself for wearing heels, your legs feeling like jell-o with each step you took. Years had passed since your Hogwarts days, and you’ve seen more than most your age, but Fred still managed to bring out something lighthearted and youthful in you.

"It feels silly saying this, but I feel like seventeen all over again," Fred chuckled, casually grabbing your hand. "I mean, I've got my own business and own a flat, but being with you just makes time turn back."

You tossed your head back as you laughed, the nervousness melting away at his words. "I feel exactly the same way, honestly. I spent nearly an hour trying to figure out what to wear, and I contemplated owling for advice."

"I thought George was going to knock me out with the way I was pacing in the flat," Fred added, relaxing his shoulders. "He had to send me out of the flat early because I was, 'ruining the carpet.'"

"Oh, we can take the shortcut through the park," you spoke up, leading George away from the busy muggle streets. "I forgot to tell you that your mum owled me and asked if I wanted to come to your family dinner next Friday. I-"

"You don't have to go if you don't want to. My mum is just excited that I'm seeing someone," Fred interrupted, the tips of his ears turning a bright pink color. "I ought to tell her that Alicia and George are dating for him slipping up about our date."

You shook your head, a smile spreading on your face. There was no other way to explain it, except being with Fred felt natural. "I was going to say that I said yes, but don't know what to wear."

"Oh," Fred sighed, his cheeks filling with color. "Honestly, wear something with an expandable waistband- mum will probably feed you until you burst into tears."

"Noted," you giggles, swing your hand that was intertwined with Fred's. "Hey, look a shooting star."

"Make a wish," Fred mumbled, taking his eyes off of the star to look at you.

"I wish that I could go back to our seventh-year and tell myself that everything would work out," you sighed. "So many tears wasted on something that just wasn't meant to be at that moment."

"What are you talking about?" Fred asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"You don't know about what happened between Angelina and me?" You asked, surprised that Angelina hadn't told Fred after they had stopped talking to each other.

"She mentioned that you two had an argument," Fred stated off-handedly. "I didn't know it was that bad- what was it about?"

"You," you stated. "I had loved you years before you and Angelina went out. You and I weren't anything more than friends, and Angelina didn't do anything wrong by dating you, but it just was too much. I-I felt like she betrayed me, even though it wasn't her fault. It seems petty now, but I was hurt back then."

Fred was quiet, both of you wrapped up in thoughts about your seventh-year. "I'm sorry, y/n. I knew you liked me, and I didn't even think about how you would've felt if I dated Angelina. Honestly, I didn't even want to think about you feeling that way about me," Fred spoke carefully, his words sparking your interest. "I felt bad that I didn't like you, you know. You were smart and attractive, but at the time, I just saw you as a friend."

"I know," you whispered, thinking about his words. Something was comforting about getting closure on that part of your life. You always wondered if he knew that you liked him, thinking it might have been a factor in why he never seemed to return your feelings.

"I wish that I would've realized how great you were when we were younger. I feel like we took some sort of crazy path that lead up to where we are instead of apparating," Fred sighed, running a hand through his red hair.

"It's alright, though. I don't think we would've lasted back then, anyway. I had a lot of growing up to do," You reassured the redhead. You hoped you hadn't ruined the date by bringing up what felt like ancient history, but you were glad he knew. That incident had always been a part of the past that you carried around, despite wanting to move on.

"What about now?" Fred asked, his stride beginning to lessen and slow down. "Do you think we'd last now?"

You honestly didn't know; there was something different about yourself since the Battle of Hogwarts. You wanted to promise that you two would last because Merlin knew no one wanted it more, but you couldn't bring yourself to make such a promise.

"I hope you," you thought out loud. "I don't think I'm the same as I was in seventh-year, or even before the war, but I hope so. I'm not as naive or light-hearted, but I like you a lot, and I hope that's enough."

"It's more than enough for me; honestly, a lot of things are enough for me now," Fred replied. "I guess almost dying and losing a leg puts things in perspective, but I think just wanting us to last is enough.."

You stopped, pulling Fred back with you. "We're going to make this last, Fred, because, Merlin, I still feel the same about you. I don't know what it is about you, but I still-"

You were cut off by the soft warmth of Fred's lips on yours. The whole situation was far from the idealized thoughts you had about dating Fred. It wasn't anywhere near perfect- both of you knew that- but it was something better. It was real and sweeter, even with all of the spilled tears and heartache. Deep down, you knew this was what you wanted for the rest of your life.

"I think I'm starting to like all of these new beginnings," Fred whispered breathlessly, pulling away from you. "Come on, let's make our reservation."

You followed behind gladly, leaving behind the lovestruck seventeen-year-old self that you had been holding on to for so long. Instead, you and Fred continued forward, towards the future of more beginnings and unknowns.

#holyhead-hufflepuff archive

[elliemarchetti]

The Deal (part 8)

Previous parts

Words: 2071

Gryffindor's euphoria for finally conquering the Quidditch Cup lasted at least a week. Even the weather seemed to celebrate with them, and as June approached, the days became serene and sultry, which made Draco even more indisposed than Potter’s satisfied face as the only thing he wanted to do was walk in the meadows and throw himself down on the grass with several pints of frozen pumpkin juice, playing some absent-minded game of Gobstones or watching the huge octopus advancing dreamy on the Lake’s surface with Hermione but she avoided him like the plague so he just studied with Mandy and his friends even though he would’ve greatly preferred the whole matter to be forgotten. Not that it would last much longer: in a short time they would all go home and he had no intention of inviting her to spend even a day at the Manor or to reply to her letters. On the other hand, if he could’ve asked Hermione to spend some time with him, maybe things would’ve settled. But how? If his parents had only caught a glimpse of her curly hair, they would’ve gone mad. The only thing he could do was ask for Pansy’s help even if she seemed to be the only person more nervous than him in the whole castle; even the students who had to do OWLs and NEWTs were more relaxed.

"Buckbeak's appeal is July the 6th." she explained, without even raising her head from the multitude of parchment sheets she was reading. Draco froze: his father must have chosen the last day of exams for a reason. "It’ll be held here." went on Pansy. "Someone from the Ministry and an executioner will come."

So they had already decided, it didn't matter all he, Pansy, Hermione and even Millicent had done to prevent it. Yet there had to be a way to avoid it and Hermione surely knew it.

 The exam week began and an unnatural quiet descended on the castle. On Monday the third year students left Transfiguration for lunch, sad and pale, comparing the results and complaining about the difficulty of the tests, including the transformation of a teapot into a tortoise but quite different things buzzed in her mind. If she had used the Time-Turner she would’ve been able to fix the Buckbeak situation but she would’ve betrayed McGonagall's trust since she had told her to use it only and exclusively to attend multiple lessons at the same time. Obviously if she hadn’t done it immense suffering would’ve hit Hagrid with the strength of a hurricane and she loved her sensible friend too much to stand it, not to mention the fact that she would’ve been the reason why Malfoy's hateful victorious smile would die. It would’ve been a great satisfaction, especially after what they had put her through with Draco, although in the end things had gone wrong for different reasons. And here is the other thought that didn’t allow her to concentrate as she wanted, what she had to reject if she wanted to be able to function like a normal person. She ate quickly, trying not to look at the Slytherin's table, and then ran upstairs again for the Charm exam, in which, as Hermione had imagined, cheering charms were asked. Harry exaggerated a little for the tension so that Ron, who was teaming up with him, had hysterical giggles and had to stay in a quiet place for an hour before being able to perform the spell in turn. After dinner, the students hurried back to the common rooms, not to relax, but to revise Care of the Magical Creatures, Potions and Astronomy. The next morning Hagrid attended the exam but he seemed worried, as if he was thinking of something else, and Hermione couldn’t blame him. He had prepared a large tub of Flobberworms for the class and he told them they had to be still alive the next hour to pass the test. Since Flobberworms thrived if left alone, it was the easiest exam they ever took, plus it gave Harry, Ron, that after the cheering charm had started talking to her again, but Hermione also suspected it was because she no longer spoke to Draco, and Hermione a chance to talk to Hagrid.

"Beak is a little down," said Hagrid, bending over with the excuse of checking that Harry's Flobberworm was still alive. “He has been locked up for too long. Anyway, we'll know the day after tomorrow, one way or another.”

Hermione’s heart broke hearing those words but she still couldn’t make a decision about what to do since that afternoon there was the Potions’ exam, which was a total disaster since Hermione couldn’t taking her eyes off Draco, it didn’t matter how hard she tried, and he noticed, which seemed to give him the idea of being able to speak to her again.

"You really don't understand, do you?" she asked, before disappearing into the Astronomy tower. On Wednesday morning it was History of Magic’s turn and Hermione wrote everything she knew about the Middle Ages’ witch hunt, longing to be able to being shut in Pansy’s room eating a large box of ice cream. Instead, in the afternoon, there was Herbology in the greenhouses, under a scorching sun, then all back to the common room with burned neck and back, to wish it was already tomorrow at the same time, when all would be over. The penultimate exam, Thursday morning, was Defense against the Dark Arts. Professor Lupin had concocted the most unusual exam they ever had: a sort of outdoor obstacle course, in which they had to cross a small basin that contained a grindylow, to overcome a series of holes full of red caps, making their way along a path in the swamp ignoring the mischievous advice of a hinkypunk and finally climbing inside an old trunk and fight against a boggart. Hermione did everything perfectly until she got at the last obstacle; after a minute she came out of the trunk crying.

"Hermione!" said Professor Lupin in alarm. "What happens?"

Hermione knew she had simply a boggart in front of her, that that wasn't really Draco and probably he didn't really think those things, but she just couldn't think of anything ridiculous that could make her laugh at that scene. It took a while to calm her down but when she finally regained control of herself, Harry and Ron, who never stopped asking her what she had seen with an extremely worried expression, returned to the castle, where they found Cornelius Fudge, slightly warmed up in his pinstriped cloak , which looked towards the park. At the sight of Harry he greeted him and asked him about the exams while Ron and Hermione, who had never spoken to the Minister of Magic, lingered awkwardly behind him.

"Nice day," said Fudge, glancing at the lake. "What a pity..." He sighed deeply and looked at Harry. “I'm here on an unpleasant mission: the Committee for the Suppression of Dangerous Creatures has requested a witness for the execution of a Hippogriff. And since I already had to come to Hogwarts to see how things are going with Black, they sent me. "

"Does that mean there's already been the appeal?" Ron interrupted, making a step forward.

"No, it's set for this afternoon," said Fudge looking at Ron with curiosity.

"Then you may not have to witness any executions!" said Ron obstinately. "The Hippogriff could even get away with it!"

Before Fudge could answer, two wizards left the castle and joined him. One was so old that seemed to shrivel up before them and the other was tall and robust, with a thin black mustache. Hermione assumed they were representatives of the Dangerous Creature Suppression Committee, because the first wizard squinted at Hagrid's hut and said in a high-pitched voice: “I'm too old for these things... it's at two o'clock, isn't it?"

The wizard with the black mustache was brushing his thumb against something hanging from his belt; Hermione looked better and saw that it was the blade of a shining ax. Ron opened his mouth to say something, but she nudged him and nodded towards the entrance hall just in time.

"Why did you interrupt me?" said Ron furiously as they entered the Great Hall for lunch. "You saw them? They already have the ax ready! This isn’t justice! "

"Ron, your father works for the Ministry, you can't speak to his boss in that tone!" said Hermione but she was upset too, and more than ever reason and feelings fought in her mind. "If this time Hagrid checks our notes and discuss the case properly, they cannot execute Buckbeak .” she said, and she hoped she had put enough conviction in it, because she intended to do something in which they should’ve nothing to do.

 All around the students spoke animatedly, waiting cheerfully for the exams’ end that afternoon but Draco didn’t imitate them: Hermione had approached Pansy and the two girls were talking animatedly trying to maintain a soft tone of voice, a distraction that would’ve been fatal if it hadn’t been Draco to eavesdrop. They talked about breaking the rules, which was very unusual for Hermione, and about doing something that, according to Pansy, could’ve had catastrophic consequences. After the Divination exam, Draco decided to follow them. He would never have expected to find them hidden in the Forbidden Forest’s offshoot, waiting for the executioner to suppress the hippogriff but he would’ve expected less to hear Potter and Weasley’s voice coming from Hagrid’s hut when they were nowhere around.

"What are they doing here?" asked Pansy, who was all trembling. What they were going to do must’ve been really dangerous if she was so tense.

"They’ll come to console Hagrid, I suppose. But this complicates things..." Hermione muttered, and Draco could imagine her concentrated expression.

"We have to let him die, don't we? We have to let him die and take the Cloak away from those two idiots so we can hide from ourselves and..." Pansy began, but Hermione silenced her.

"I can't do it. I can't see him die. We have to leave." and she turned so quickly that Draco didn't have time to hide better, so she saw him. For a moment she seemed surprised but then anger took over.

"Wasn't I clear enough? I don't want to talk to you, I don't want to have anything to do with you..." she began, approaching him with great strides, but Draco covered her mouth just in time so as not to let her be heard from Fudge and Macnair , an old friend of his father.

"Please, let's move." Pansy whispered. "I can't stand it, I can't I do it."

They began to rise again in the depths as the sun went down rapidly, the sky, barely visible between the branches, of a light gray streaked with violet. Draco heard Potter and Weasley’s voice again, then a squeak, finally the unmistakable hiss of an ax, followed by a thump. They had done it. Incredulous and emptied by shock, all three were paralyzed with horror. Then they heard a wild howl behind them.

"Hagrid." murmured Hermione. Without thinking, she started to turn, but Pansy and Draco grabbed her by the arms.

"We can't," said Pansy, white as a rag. "Remember what we have to do..." but before she could finish, the other silenced her. Draco had short, irregular breathing. Were they pondering revenge? And on whom? On the members of the Committee? On the Ministry of Magic in person? Or just on the executioner? Taking it out on such an influential member of wizarding society was a stupid decision and Pansy should’ve known better, if not Hermione herself. Or maybe they wanted... Draco tried not to think about it. Even though she was mad at him and his father wasn't exactly a saint, he was certain that Hermione would never try to hurt his family.

"We should go." said Hermione, with a strange resolve in her eyes. They set off for the castle, advancing slowly so as not to be heard. The light now dimmed quickly. When they were forced to move on

open fields, darkness fell like a spell around them.

"Stand still! Ouch! He bit me!" exclaimed Weasley, who had to be well hidden as the voice attracted the attention of all three but he can’t see the specific source of the sound. Hermione, on her part, must’ve saw something since she went down a dozen steps and seemed to lift an invisible veil, revealing both Potter and Weasley.

"You shouldn't be here." she hissed, apparently not at all surprised by the fact that those two idiots had an Invisibility Cloak. "And you should move and make no noise if you don't want Fudge to see you. Or hear you."

"I found Scabbers again!" exclaimed Weasley, as if he hadn't heard what Hermione had just said. "But he doesn't want to be quiet."

He was actually holding a clearly terrified looking mouse who was shaking with all his might to free himself from his grasp.

"Leave that stupid mouse alone!" snapped Pansy. "As you found it once, you'll find it again."

But the rodent slipped between Weasley's fingers, fell to the ground and fled. In one leap, Hermione’s cat, which no one had seen coming, snapped at his heels and before Potter or Hermione could stop him, Ron took off the Invisibility Cloak and disappeared into the darkness.

"Ron!" Hermione moaned, but he didn’t stop so Hermione and Potter exchanged a glance. It was impossible to run under the Cloak, so he came out and both threw themselves in pursuit, imitated by Draco and Pansy who heard their footsteps resound in front of them, and Weasley's cries against Crookshanks. They would all end up in serious trouble because of a stupid decrepit mouse, and Draco would never have forgiven Weasley’s poor ass if it had happened.

#the deal #dramione #hermione granger #draco malfoy #pansy parkinson #millicent bulstrode #harry potter #ron weasley #remus lupin #minerva mcgonagall #rubeus hagrid #hp #poa

[three-drink-amy]

If After All These Years, You’d Like to Meet

note: Here’s part two of Scotland! Part one is here if you missed it! 

masterlist - AO3

Chapter Twelve

Claire couldn’t sleep. Her mind simply wouldn’t shut off enough to let her rest. Instead of fighting it, Claire got up. It was quite late so she walked through the house with the utmost care. She wandered down toward the kitchen, deciding it wouldn’t be too bad to make herself a cup of tea. The kettle was still sitting out. Claire crept to it, trying to be as silent as possible.

“Hey, Claire.”

“Jesus H. Christ!” Claire yelled, her instincts abandoning her attempts at quietness. Claire turned around to see Ian sitting at the kitchen table, wearing an amused expression. “Night owl as well?”

Ian nodded. “I always have been. It benefits me now that I have children,” he said with a grin. “Well, until they wake me up with the dawn.” Ian pointed toward the kettle. “Should still be some water left in there.” He held up his cup in explanation.

“Thanks,” Claire said, going about making herself some tea. She sat down in front of Ian, letting it steep. “Okay, I need your advice.”

“Is it about Jamie?” Ian asked. 

“Why would you think it’s about Jamie?” Claire wondered.

“I dinna ken what else ye’d be coming to me for.”

Claire nodded. “That’s fair. Yes, it is about Jamie. I’m worried I made a mistake.” Ian nodded for her to continue. “When we were coming back from the pub, I was driving and I went down the road. You know, the road.”

Ian’s eyes widened. “You took him down the road where he had his accident?” Claire nodded. “Christ, ye have balls on ye.” Claire opened her mouth, wanting to explain. Ian continued before she could. “That’s no’ a bad thing, Claire. Ye’re braver than Jenny and I have been in the last 7 years.”

“What do you mean?”

“We tried to tell him it wasna his fault that Mr. Fraser died but Jamie wouldna hear it. He insisted that if he hadna lost control of the car, his father would still be living. It was brutal to watch. One of us had to take him everywhere for months because he refused to drive. He couldna remember how he lost control so he was too afraid to drive again. He woulnda leave the house even though the house just reminded him of all that he’d lost. Jenny and I tried everything to convince him. Once I tried to drive him down that road and he threw himself from my moving car.”

“You’re kidding me!” Claire gaped at Ian, trying to imagine it.

“Well it was too soon for me to pull that. It had only been a few months. Jenny screamed at him for doing so, since he’d only been out of the hospital for a month and a half,” Ian continued. “We were both very leery of Dougal’s offer to Jamie to go to London. But we knew he wasn’t really living here anymore. So he went and somehow, Dougal actually helped him. Got him a job and helped him make something of himself. Then Dougal left London and came back to Scotland. We hoped Jamie would follow but he stayed there. He seemed content. Or at least, he seemed whole enough.”

Claire shook her head before taking a sip of her tea. “You know, until we came back here, I never knew he’d been through so much. I mean, I knew he’d lost most of his family, but he’d never told me the gory details. I feel guilty. Perhaps I shouldn’t have pushed him.”

“No, he needed it,” Ian insisted. “It’s hard for him to come back here. He would come back somewhat more often before the two of ye reunited.” Ian hid a grin behind his cup of tea. “But even when he was here, it was obvious that something was off. He just didna feel quite at home.”

“Have you noticed that this time?” Claire asked.

“No,” Ian replied. “And honestly, I think it’s because he brought ye.”

“Why do you think that?”

“For one, ye’re a distraction from the pain. When ye’re with him, he’s remembering all we did as kids. And while those would include memories of his parents and Willie, it’s all happy. The ghosts arena getting to him as easily,” Ian explained. “This is the most relaxed I’ve seen him here at Lallybroch in seven years.”

“Wow,” Claire whispered. She didn’t know what to say.

“For what it’s worth,” Ian said, meeting her gaze, “he’s never brought another lass home.”

“Why would that matter to me?” Claire asked, knowing why it did matter, but hoping to get more from Ian.

“I think we both ken why wi’out having to say it,” Ian replied with a pointed look. “It’s clear the two of ye are close. More than just childhood friends.”

“I don’t know,” Claire said noncommittally.

“Ye push him and that’s good. He needs someone to put him in his place,” Ian assured her. “It means ye’re the Jenny.”

“The what now?”

“Between ye and Jamie, ye are the Jenny. Ye’re the strong one. The one to make him do the things he needs to do to be better.” He grinned at her. “It’s better to be the Jenny than the Ian.”

“If I recall correctly, the Jenny just said what she wanted,” Claire mused.

“Aye, she did. Still does.” Ian leaned forward and laid his hand on one of hers. “And let me tell ye, the Ian was more than happy that she did.” He stared at her for a moment as he waited for his message to sink in. With a nod, he stood up and placed his cup in the sink. “Night, Claire.”

“Goodnight, Ian.” Claire sat there in the kitchen for a while longer, drinking her tea. Ian’s words rattled around in her brain, paired with advice from John. It was all so much easier said than done. She was still worried that she’d pushed Jamie too far that evening. Perhaps their advice wouldn’t mean anything come morning if he didn’t speak to her. With a sigh, Claire placed her cup in the sink next to Ian’s and walked up the stairs. She laid down and wondered how much courage it would take for her to really become the Jenny.  

~~~

Claire was riding to the market with Jenny, just the two of them. Jenny had convinced Ian and Jamie to distract all of the children so she could get through the store quickly. She’d asked Claire to come along and she’d happily agreed. It wasn’t often that the two of them had spent time together without Ian or Jamie as kids. That made it a nice change for the two of them to simply be running errands together.

“So Jamie mentioned what happened last night,” Jenny said, breaking the silence in the car. Claire started to worry again. She looked over at Jenny nervously. Jenny looked away from the road quickly to glance at Claire. “On the way home from the pub,” she clarified needlessly.

“Listen, Jenny,” Claire started before Jenny cut her off.

“I’m not about to scold ye or anything,” Jenny reassured her. “I wanted to thank ye. Ye did what I should have done a long time ago. I should have shook the man and made him see that it wasna his fault.” She shook her head as she sighed. “But I was grieving and I couldna bring myself to shake Jamie from his pain. So I truly do appreciate what you did for him. I dinna think it’ll be instantly better, but he spoke of it this morning and he seemed...different. Better, perhaps.”

Claire smiled to herself. “I’m glad.”

“I’ve spent a lot of the last seven years worried about Jamie,” Jenny admitted. Claire could see her grip on the steering wheel tighten. “But the last few months I would say he’s been the happiest he’s ever been. When we talk to him, he just seems...happy. He was fine enough before. He got by and he was happier in London than he was in Scotland. There was no denying that. I wished for a long time that he’d have stayed closer, but I couldna ignore that he just did better there. But now, he goes out more and does more. He just seems like he’s actually living his life, not just going to work, going home, and occasionally doing something else. I mean, Dougal pushed him and Jamie had to work his arse off to get to where he is, but I never wanted work to be his whole life, ye ken?”

Claire nodded in reply. “Yeah, I see that.” She laughed to herself. “Although I’m not really one to talk.”

“Ye clearly ken when to take some time for yerself,” Jenny pointed out. “Ye’re here, after all.”

“That’s true.”

“Look, all I was going to say is that I really appreciate the effect ye’ve had on my brother,” Jenny said, looking quickly over at Claire. “I ken ye’re just friends and ye both insist there’s nothing there, but whatever it is, ye’ve made my brother whole again.”

“God,” Claire breathed. She wished she could tell Jenny the truth of it all. But she would sound ridiculous. “Well I can assure you that it’s been mutual.”

“Ye’re good for him,” Jenny continued. “He’ll call and talk about “Claire and I did this” or “Claire said this” and on and on. It always makes me laugh because it seems just like when we were kids.” Jenny pulled into a parking spot at the market. “He always wanted ye around when we were kids and it seems that hasna changed much. I still can recall how betrayed he felt when we wouldna support his efforts to convince yer uncle to let ye stay wi’ us.” Jenny laughed to herself. “He wouldna speak to us for weeks.”

“Seriously?” Claire asked with a laugh.

Jenny nodded as she stepped out of the car. “Oh aye, he was sore for a while.”

Claire placed her hand over her heart. “That’s pretty sweet.” She walked into the market with Jenny. “I wonder what life would have been like if I’d grown up a Fraser.”

Jenny chuckled. “Ye’d have been part of the madness for sure. It probably wouldn’t have felt that different to us. Ye were always there anyway.”

“I don’t know how your mother managed all that chaos. She let me come over nearly every day after school. I still remember the trick she taught me to help me with my maths,” Claire recalled fondly. She snapped her head over to Jenny. “Wait! Do you know how to make her cheese toasties?”

Jenny’s eyes grew wide and she groaned. “Oh I haven’t thought of those in years! Those were so bloody good. I think I should be able to replicate them. We should grab the fixings. We could try and make them today.”

“Oh I love it. Let’s do it!” Claire agreed, looking around the market.

“I can’t believe I thought I’d be a proper mother without the cheese toasties,” Jenny scoffed.

Claire laughed, putting her arm around Jenny’s shoulders. “Young Jamie’s only five. You still have plenty of time,” she teased.

“Oh Claire, perhaps I should have supported my brother’s attempts to keep ye with our family. It’s nice having ye around,” Jenny said with a smile.

Claire felt truly touched. “Jenny,” she said with a shake of her head. “I have to say, this is probably the best weekend I’ve had in a long time.”

“Well, whether Jamie’s here or not, ye’re always welcome at Lallybroch,” Jenny assured her. She snorted out a laugh. “This morning Maggie called ye Auntie Claire.” Claire laughed with her. “I almost didna want to correct her.”

Claire choked out a laugh as she walked along next to Jenny. If only Jenny knew what the thought of her being called Auntie Claire did to her.

After a long day bustling around Lallybroch, Claire was still awake. The night owl in her never seemed to cease, even when she’d had a full day. It did come in handy when she was doing an overnight shift at the hospital. She was staring at a picture Mrs. Fraser had painted when she heard footsteps rounding the corner. Expecting Ian, she was surprised to see Jamie walk over to her. “Hey,” she greeted. “I rather expected you’d be sleeping already.”

“I’m no’ one of the children, Sassenach,” Jamie reminded her.

“Ahh, yes, of course.”

Jamie looked at the painting with her. It was of him and his brother when they were little boys. He took a deep breath beside her. “How would ye like to come with me?” he asked.

“Where are we going?”

Jamie grinned. “It’s a surprise.”

Claire rolled her eyes and nodded. She followed him out of the house and toward the old family truck. “Where are we going?” she asked again.

Jamie stayed silent. He got behind the wheel and drove around to the big field behind the house. She could barely see the roof of the house when Jamie stopped the truck. Wearing a smirk, Jamie turned to look at Claire. “This is likely going to sound insane, but do ye recall my ninth birthday party?”

Claire burst out laughing. “That would probably sound insane to anyone else, but oddly enough, it doesn’t to me. I do remember it.” She looked out the window before looking back at him. “You’d decided to wanted to camp for your birthday party but your parents didn’t want you to go anywhere else so you said you’d camp in the field up the hill. And you wanted Ian, Jenny, and I to go with you.”

“Aye,” Jamie said with a grin. “That’s right.”

“But as it was early May, in Scotland, it was a bit brisk that night and Jenny and Ian ran back to the house after like an hour,” Claire recalled.

Jamie laughed and nodded. “But you stayed. And we tested each other on our knowledge of constellations.”

“Well I couldn’t leave you alone on your birthday,” Claire maintained. “Especially since, even now, that was the last one I celebrated with you.”

“That’s not true,” Jamie argued. “We celebrated my birthday last night.”

“Two months late,” Claire pointed out.

“Well aye. But that’s actually what reminded me of that birthday,” Jamie explained. “I thought it could be fun to recreate it.”

Claire looked from him out to the field. Jamie opened the door and got out of the truck, rounding the truck to grab things from the back. She stepped out next to him and watched him lay down a blanket in the grass. Claire looked down self-consciously, wishing she’d changed out of the simple button up dress she’d been wearing all day. Jamie put a battery powered fake candle in a lantern next to the blanket. He waved his hands as a way of saying “ta-da.”

Claire laughed and sat down on the blanket. Jamie moved to lay down beside her. She looked over to see him staring up at the stars, a large smile on his face. With a quiet sigh, she laid down next to him. “Look sharp, Fraser. I still know my constellations,” Claire teased.

“I have to say, this is what I miss in London,” Jamie said. “There’s nothing like staring up at the night sky full of stars.”

“It is quite beautiful,” Claire agreed.

They’d been in Scotland for two days and so far, she’d been pretty good at avoiding any overtly romantic moments between the two of them. Most everything they’d done had felt just like it would back in London. It certainly hadn’t felt like they were on a trip just the two of them to the gorgeous Scottish highlands. But laying there with Jamie, looking up at the stars could only be described as romantic. It was exactly what she wanted and at the same time, the thing she was dreading most. He reached over and took her hand in his. That’s when the jig was up.

“Claire,” he started to say.

She interrupted him though, pulling her hand from his with a sigh. “Jamie, I can’t do this.”

“What?” he asked, looking over at her.

“Laying out under the stars. I mean this isn’t exactly something you’d do with your sister,” she started to explain. She couldn’t help but throw his own term back at him.

“What are ye talking about?”

“I can handle the fact that you think of me as your sister,” she said shakily. “Even if it sucks. But you have to treat me that way and not do...this.”

Jamie sat up and looked down at her, concern covering his face. “Where did ye ever get the idea that I thought of ye that way?”

Claire’s anger flowed through her. She sat up and poked him in the chest. “From you. You said it.”

Jamie covered his face. “Shit,” he whispered. He dropped his hands and stared at her. “Ye mean at that bloody party you had?” Claire stared at him, barely nodding. “Yer boyfriend was ducked down, standing right behind me. What was I supposed to say?”

Claire took a deep breath. “You mean you didn’t mean it?”

Jamie laughed. “Of course I didna mean it. I just panicked because Louise asked me that point blank wi’ you standing there and yer boyfriend right by us.” Jamie watched her. He looked like he was struggling to find the right thing to say. “And here I thought I was being too obvious.”

“What?” she breathed.

Jamie closed his eyes and took a breath. “Claire, do ye ken why I asked ye to come to Scotland with me?” She shook her head. “It’s because I didna want to spend a whole weekend away from ye. I usually come back here more often, even when it’s hard to, but since ye came back into my life, I havena been able to leave. What if by chance the weekend I was out of town, ye wanted to spend time wi’ me?”

Claire laughed weakly, hardly able to believe what he was saying. “Jamie,” she began. He continued speaking, cutting her off.

“Claire, I’m mad for ye,” he said, reaching up to push a curl back behind her ear and held his hand there. “I’m sorry it took me so long to admit it. Even more sorry that ye’ve believed I thought of ye as my sister. It couldna be more wrong. If I’m no’ with you, my thoughts are. I’ve just been afraid to…” he took a deep breath. “I didna want to ruin our friendship by telling ye of my feelings if ye didna return them.”

Claire leaned her face into his hand. “Did you ever think of what might happen if I did?”

Jamie breathed out a laugh, inching closer to her on the blanket. “No. It seemed too impossible.”

She reached out and grabbed his other hand. “Well it’s not.” She stared at him, finally finding the courage to say it. “I feel the same way, Jamie. I’ve been using the same, stupid justifications to put off admitting it. But I do. I-”

He stopped her as he crushed his lips to hers. Too quickly, he pulled back, staring at her to make sure he hadn’t made an error. She shook her head quickly, leaning back in to kiss him again. They met in the middle, wrapping each other close as they kissed passionately. Her hand raked through his hair as the other clung to his back. Jamie’s hands roved over her body, keeping her close. His tongue slid across her lip and was soon in her mouth, meeting hers. Claire moved closer to him, feeling like she could never get close enough. She seated herself on his lap as he kissed a trail down her neck. Jamie moved his hands around to grab onto her ass. He seemed like he was everywhere at once.

“Oh God, Jamie,” she sighed.

He pulled back and stared at her, an intensity in his eyes. Claire reached out and caressed his face. A smile widened across his face as he watched her. Slowly, he leaned forward and kissed her gently. He placed another kiss on her jaw and another on the side of her neck. Jamie kept moving slowly, placing a kiss on her collarbone. He looked back up at her, holding her gaze as he moved to lay her down. She took a deep breath as she laid back down with him hovering over her. There was a moment of hesitation between them. Claire leaned up and kissed Jamie, nodding to him as she released him.

After another kiss, Jamie resumed his trail of kisses down her body. He started slowly unbuttoning her dress, planting a kiss on each patch of skin he revealed. Claire sighed at his attentions. She reached and ran her fingers through his hair again as she felt the need to be touching him. When her dress was laying open, she pulled on his shirt, bringing him back up to her. She kissed him as she tried pulling off his shirt. Jamie knelt and pulled off his shirt as he stared down at her. Claire sat up to start unbuttoning his pants. Jamie groaned when she grazed the front of them. He quickly scrambled out of his pants. Claire couldn’t help but laugh at his eagerness. “Are ye laughing at me?” he asked, laughing himself.

Claire nodded, “Yes, I am.” She sat up and let the dress fall back, removing her bra as well.

All humor faded from the moment and was replaced by an intensity between them. Jamie’s eyes dropped to her chest, darkening as he took in her nearly naked form. He crushed her lips to his again, moaning as he reached out to cup one of her breasts. She sighed into his mouth, only urging him. He laid them back down, moving to take her other breast in his mouth. Claire dug her fingers into his back, writhing beneath him. “Jamie,” she urged. She reached down to take off her panties.

“Let me,” he whispered, moving down to help her. She lifted her hips up and he pulled them down.

“Wait!” she yelled suddenly.

Jamie looked panicked for a second. “If ye dinna want to, we dinna have to -”

Claire laughed and shook her head. “No, that wasn’t it. I just didn’t want you to rip them off and throw them into the field where we’d lose them and Ian would find some random pair of women’s underwear. That as all.” Jamie chuckled to himself, making a show of pulling them off slowly and setting them down on the blanket. Claire was nervous for a moment as she realized she was fully naked. She took a deep breath and reached for his boxers. “Now you.” Jamie rid himself of the last bit of clothing between the two of them.

They stared at each other for a long moment, both taking in each other’s naked forms. Claire broke the moment by grabbing ahold of his newly freed cock. Jamie closed his eyes and sighed. “Christ, Claire,” he breathed, looking down at her. He kissed her again.

“I need you,” Claire whispered, placing her hand on his face. Jamie nodded.

He reached down and slid into her, filling her exquisitely, both of them crying out at their connection. They were still for a moment before he began moving. She wrapped one leg around his waist, pulling him in deeper. They rocked together as the waves started building within her. Hearing him pant her name in her ear was certainly doing things to her. He brought his mouth back to her, kissing her languidly as he moved within her.

She felt like she was getting close so she reached down to help herself along. Jamie moved her hand and kissed it before he started stroking her in return. She could feel herself clenching around him as she found her release. Crying out his name, she fell apart, clutching him to her.

Claire could tell he was getting close as well. She rolled them over so she was on top and bent down to kiss him. Leaning her head towards his ear, she whispered to him, urging him. Jamie held her tighter, bringing her mouth back to his. He gasped into her mouth as he found release in her. She laid against him, his arms still wrapped around her, both of them insanely satisfied.

Reluctantly, she rolled off of him and laid down next to him. They both laid there for a moment, trying to catch their breaths. Jamie reached out and held her hand, just as he’d done at the beginning of the evening. Claire chuckled to herself, bringing their joined hands over to kiss his. He turned his head and looked over at her, a wide smile on his face.

~~~

Claire woke the next morning, curled up next to Jamie. She looked up to see him still asleep. Grinning to herself, she thought back on the night before and all that had happened. They’d redressed and headed back to the house, quietly creeping to Jamie’s room. Getting into his bed had inevitably led to a second round, though they attempted to be as quiet as possible. The last thing Claire wanted was to be caught by his sister. Or worse, one of the children.

She felt Jamie’s hand tighten on her waist and she knew he was waking up. Claire reached up to run her fingers along his hair. He smiled before opening his eyes. “Good morning,” she whispered. Jamie looked at her before leaning over to kiss her.

“Good morning,” he repeated. “A better morning than I think I’ve ever had.” Claire laughed but she had to agree that he had a point. She leaned back in and kissed him slowly. Suddenly it felt like they had all the time in the world. The rush from the night before was gone.

“Breakfast is ready!” Jenny called from downstairs.

Jamie started kissing down Claire’s body. “Don’t you want to eat?” Claire asked, expecting him to stop.

“Aye,” Jamie said with a devious grin, moving further down her body till his head was between her legs. Claire bit her lip to keep from crying out as his mouth went to work against her.

Jamie wandered downstairs a while later in search of food. “Well ye slept in late,” Jenny remarked as he walked into the kitchen. She was the only one in the room, sitting there holding Wee Janet.

“Is that a crime?” he asked, picking up a piece of toast and slathering jam on it.

“No, I suppose not. Where’s Claire?”

“Uh, I believe I heard her getting in the shower,” Jamie replied, hoping for nonchalance.

“The two of ye were up late,” Jenny commented. Jamie looked over at her nervously. “I heard ye start the truck late last night.”

“Oh aye,” he said quickly.

Jenny watched him for a long moment. “Look, I canna pretend to ken what’s going on wi’ the two of ye,” she said. “But I’m just going to say this.” Jamie looked at her with furrowed brows. “Dinna screw it up. It’s easy to see how good Claire is for ye. So just don’t be an idiot and mess it up.”

Jamie chuckled to himself. “Dinna worry, sister. I dinna plan to.”

“Can I make another request?” Jenny asked, setting Janet down in her baby seat. Jamie nodded for her to ask. “Please dinna stay away as long as ye did this time. I ken ye canna always control how busy ye are at work. And I ken that not long after Hogmanay, Claire came back into yer life. Dinna say that’s no’ a factor.” Jamie looked down guiltily. “But yer family loves ye. I ken it’s hard for ye here, but we miss ye when ye’re in London.”

Jamie stood up and walked over to wrap Jenny in a hug. “I promise I’ll be back sooner.”

He felt her nod against him. “Good. And ye ken ye’re welcome to bring Claire too. She fits in well here.”

“Aye, she does then, doesn’t she?” Jamie leaned down and picked up Wee Janet from her seat. “I’ll be back,” he promised. He sat down as Claire walked in.

“Good morning,” she greeted, a smile on her face. Jenny smiled at her, gesturing to the food still on the table. Claire sat down next to Jamie, placing a hand quickly on his back. She leaned down to look at the baby in his arms. “And good morning to you too, sweet thing.” Jamie glanced up at Jenny, unable to ignore the look on her face.

They all said their goodbyes at the train station as Claire and Jamie prepared to head back to London. Jamie hugged his sister and brother in law tightly, repeating promises to be back soon. Ian gave Claire a hug and said to her, “You should come back with Jamie next time he comes. It’s nice to have Claire Beauchamp back at Lallybroch.”

Claire smiled and nodded. “I’d like that.”

Jamie took his time saying goodbye to all of his nieces and nephews. Young Jamie made him promise that next time he’d bring something special for him from London. Jamie laughed and agreed. Claire turned and said goodbye to Jenny, thanking her for her hospitality.

“I meant what I said yesterday,” Jenny said, “Ye’re welcome anytime.”

After a quick check at the time, Jamie and Claire said their final goodbyes before heading into the station. They walked away from the family and after a certain distance away, took each other’s hands.

Jenny and Ian looked at each other before looking back at the other couple. “Hmm,” Jenny said. “Wonder when that happened.”

Jamie and Claire sat hand in hand on the train. Claire’s head was resting on Jamie’s shoulder. She couldn’t deny how comfortable she was with him, even after the changes and admissions of the night before. Jamie squeezed her hand in his. She looked up and smiled at him. He leaned down and kissed her quickly.

“I want to thank ye, Sassenach, for coming wi’ me.” He looked down at their hands. “I appreciate all ye did for me.”

Claire chuckled. “Well you did plenty for me as well,” she said suggestively. He looked over at her, clearly amused. “You didn’t mean just last night, did you?” she said as she laughed.

He leaned over and kissed the side of her head. “No, I didna. Although, that too.” He paused, looking at her. “Somehow having ye wi’ me made me feel comfortable in my own home again.”

Claire planted a kiss on his shoulder. “Well your sister told me that I am welcome anytime. So I think that all just means you have to bring me with you every time you come to Scotland,” Claire surmised with a smile.

“I think I could make that work,” Jamie agreed. Claire laid her head back on Jamie’s shoulder and he leaned his against hers. They sat in silence for a bit. “I ken we still have a few hours until we’re back in London,” Jamie said, making Claire look up at him. “But your place or mine?”

Claire laughed, leaning in to kiss him again. “Mine’s closer to the train station.”

“Perfect.”

They sat and watched as the Scottish Highlands fell away behind them. Claire couldn’t help but marvel at the difference in the ride to Lallybroch and the ride away from it. She’d been so nervous to go away with Jamie and now she couldn’t keep herself from him. The smile on her face wouldn’t fade as she cuddled in closer to Jamie and his arm came around her. They were still in a bubble and she planned to make the most of that until they got back to the city and the real world.

Next chapter

#Outlander #outlander fanfic #outlander fanfiction #my writing #if after all these years you'd like to meet

[darkobsidianquill]

Harry Potter and the descent into Darkness..

Chapter 27

The day after Harry had been dragged out to the Quidditch field to learn the details of the last task, Sirius had written to him asking him what he'd found out. Harry had replied and relayed all of the details he had learned from Mr. Bagman, while leaving out the far more useful details he had gotten from Barty.

Since then, Sirius had been writing him every other day with advice on spells to try practicing and voicing his concerns about the various dangers and speculating on how the plot to get Harry killed, by getting him entered in the tournament, could be played out before the end of term. Sirius was clearly worried about Harry's safety and wellbeing. Harry knew it was entirely invalid and had no fears at all about the upcoming task, but he was still touched by Sirius's concerns.

Sure – if he hadn't gone to Tom all those months ago and joined the man, the third task would have been the event where the Dark Lord had originally intended to abduct Harry and perform his original resurrection ritual, but that plan was obviously out the window now since it would be blatantly counter-productive to their plans. Instead he had given Harry a hard look and told him in no uncertain terms that he would be disgusted if Harry did not win the tournament by an obscene point margin. Harry had laughed.

The first week Sirius sent a letter every two or tree days, but three weeks prior to the tournament the letters started coming daily. Even if they were nothing more than a few brief words of encouragement, a tip or two, or just a muddy paw-print; it was still clear that Sirius was doing everything he could think of to try and help and encourage Harry. Harry was touched.

Harry had continued to send care packages every week ever since the meeting with Sirius after the second task. He had started out by just having the Hogwart's kitchen house elves prepare as much non-perishable food as they could and then shrink it, package it up and send it off with one of the school owls. In more recent weeks, he'd been getting Mixey to prepare things for him since she could go out and buy things that were specifically intended as camp food to last and be easy to prepare.

Tom knew he was doing it but never really commented. Harry knew that Tom didn't exactly hold any fond feelings for the ex-auror. Sirius had been a real thorn in Voldemort's side during the last war. He was dedicated, talented, and creative. He was also, apparently, a very skilled dueler. He had apprehended quite a fair number of Death Eaters during the couple years he worked as an auror for the Ministry.

There were just under three weeks left till the final task and Harry was sitting in Tom's study while the older wizard scratched away at a parchment and periodically reference one of the large tomes he had stacked around his desk. Harry wasn't entirely sure what he was working on, but it seemed important. He had been working his way through a theoretical book Tom had told him to read on magical energy management and conservation during long drawn out battles. He had insisted that Harry wasted far too much energy during their duels and finally grumbled at him to read the damn book.

But he had started to go cross-eyed from all the reading and he was getting a headache. This probably was mostly due to the fact that the book was hand-written in tiny, cramped little letters.

He set it aside, sighed and started to dig through his bag. He pulled out a folder where he'd been keeping the letters from Sirius and started to slowly flip through them. He'd been feeling more and more troubled about his godfather lately. He really wasn't sure what to do about the whole situation.

He had come to terms with the fact that by joining Tom he had essentially abandoned all of the people who had looked after him and cared for him since he first entered the wizarding world, but he found he didn't have a lot of trouble with ditching most of them. Dumbledore was a manipulative bastard who had not only fucked over Harry, but a great many other people, so Harry had no moral problems with considering the older wizard his enemy now.

Ron was an ignorant, childish, and jealous prat. Harry considered him a occasionally-useful friendly acquaintance now more than anything, and that was only to keep up appearances. The more time passed, the more he realized he really didn't like Ron much at all. They really had next to nothing in common. The only shared interest that remained was Quidditch, and even his interest in that had waned considerably. He wasn't even sure he wanted to continuing playing next year. He probably wouldn't, but he knew it would draw a lot of curiosity and suspicion if he quit.

Hermione... Harry really wasn't sure about Hermione. She was bossy and annoying, and exceedingly nosy, but she was also clever, and she did care about him... He was still on the fence with Hermione. He had been ready to put her in the same category as Ron and consider his once-close friendship with her a lost cause, but his companion had been hinting in recent weeks that Hermione could be turned, if he made the effort.

Harry couldn't even fathom this, but the piece of Tom's soul never mislead Harry or gave him bad advice. He didn't exactly spend a lot of time with the soul piece anymore, but it was nice to have him in the back of Harry's mind during some of his classes. Short bouts of discussion kept Harry from going crazy from boredom in his classes. At one point, during a Charms class where Hermione was being especially annoying in her pestering of Ron, and Harry had decided that they were both a total wash, Harry's companion had said to not give up on her so quickly. He basically said to just keep chipping away at her faith in the current authority figures, and she would begin to see the logic in his views. Harry was skeptical, but he figured it couldn't hurt.

However, it was the issue of what to do about his relationship with Sirius that had been worrying him more than the others.

Harry sighed heavily and let the letters setting into his lap.

He felt Tom's fingers lace into his hair and he closed his eyes, feeling some of the tension leave him.

"What is it, Harry?" Tom asked in a soft tone. Harry smiled at it but then frowned lightly.

"I'm... well I'm worried about Sirius."

"Black? What about him?"

"He's still living in that cave outside Hogsmeade. It's just... crap. The only food he's getting is the stuff I'm sending him, but he's still practically starving out there. He sleeps on the ground, and is still living in the same shitty prison robes he escaped from Azkaban in. It's disgusting. Him being on the run like this just... it just sucks."

"I cannot even fathom why he's staying in a cave," Tom scoffed. "Surely he could have found something slightly more hospitable. He's the heir of the Black line. I don't see why he doesn't just go to one of his family's houses. I know there's at least one. From what intelligence I've gathered, I know that after Black was incarcerated Narcissa petitioned to gain control over the family's assets but lost, so as long as he lives your godfather still retains control of them. If he is declared dead, it will probably go to her then."

Harry frowned. "Narcissa? As in Narcissa Malfoy?"

"Yes, your godfather is her cousin."

Harry blinked, gaping slightly before he shook himself and refocused.

"Er, yeah. Anyway, I know that Sirius has stuck to that damn cave because he wanted to be near me. He's afraid that..." Harry barked out a humorless laugh, "he's afraid that you're after me. Or at least some old Death Eaters are. He wants to be nearby to help me out when the time comes. He's doing all of this suffering for me. I just really hate it. Especially since it's entirely unnecessary."

"We've discussed this before. If we hand over Wormtail and get your godfather freed then Black will expect you to come live with him."

"I know." Harry sighed heavily again. "I know it's idiotic, but I can't help but wish he could just stay here." Harry scoffed at how idiotic that idea sounded.

Tom chuckled. "Yes, I imagine that would be difficult to sell. Sirius Black was about as against the Dark as he could get, despite his own magical affinity."

"Wait, what?"

"Even if he fought against it, Sirius Black was a dark wizard. A very borderline dark. Practically neutral, especially after a few years with the Aurors since he refused to use any of the dark spells he'd learned, but there is only so much one can do against that level of hereditary affinity influence."

"Okay, you've lost me. What are you on about?"

Tom sighed and set down his quill completely. "Sirius Black is a Black, Harry. They are one of the oldest, darkest magical family in Britain. If you were to trace their lines all the way back to when humans first mated with magical creatures, almost every creature they descend from was a daemon of some sort. Dark magic is in their blood. In addition to that, I know for a fact from Regulus that he and Sirius received tutoring in the Dark Arts from age seven until they got to Hogwarts, and then every summer afterwards. Sirius rebelled against his family and got himself sorted into Gryffindor – Regulus suspected it was to piss off their father. And if I recall correctly – which I always do – young Sirius ran away from home and ended up living with your father when he was fifteen or sixteen. So that's at least eight years of exposure to the Dark arts, combined with a hereditary propensity for Dark magic. There is no way that Sirius Black could have anything but a dark affinity, no matter how much he personally would have liked to go light, just to anger his family."

Harry was stunned. "Is that another reason why everyone was so quick to suspect him of betraying my parents?"

"Most likely. All it would take is an affintatum reveleo and the natural dark affinity would be obvious. And since all Dark Wizards are Evil Wizards," Tom sneered mockingly with a chuckle, "having a dark affinity would be more than enough for certain factions to instantly judge him guilty. Just one more level to the magical world's ignorance."

Harry sat there quietly for a long time afterwards and Tom finally picked his quill back up and resumed his work.

"Hey Tom?" Harry said, breaking the silence after a very long quiet.

"Hmm?"

"Do you think there's any chance I could turn him?"

"What are you talking about Harry?"

"Sirius. I mean... if I told him the truth about all that Dumbledore's done – all the manipulations and the lies; the fact that it was Dumbledore's doing that got my parents killed, and that left Sirius rotting in Azkaban, I wonder if... if just maybe I could convince him to come to our side."

Tom set the quill down and leaned back in his chair.

"It's incredibly risky, Harry. I don't think you realize just how much Black despised the Dark. And I doubt that having been left to rot surrounded by dementors has helped his sanity any."

"But if I could do it, would you take him?" Harry asked turning a bit and looking up at Tom with hesitant hope burning in his eyes. Tom turned and looked down at Harry for a long time with a blank, calculating look.

"Perhaps..." he said, slowly. "Black was incredibly skilled. If nothing, it would be nice to guarantee he wouldn't be fighting against me. Of course, it's up for debate how much of that skill has stayed with him, and how much of it has been sucked away by the dementors."

"He spent most of his time in Azkaban in his animagus form. The dementors didn't have as much effect on his mind because he was a dog."

"Yes, yes, Harry. You've already told me this."

"Oh! I've got it! What do you think about a swap?" Harry said suddenly.

"What?"

"Pettigrew for Sirius. You're always saying that Wormtail is a worthless piece of trash. He's a miserable minion and he annoyed the shit out of you. It can be our bargaining chip to keep from having to reveal my loyalties straight out. I can go under Polyjuice or something and offer Sirius the information on Dumbledore, and then make the offer that we're willing to hand over Wormtail – with the last year of memories obliviated, of course – if he's willing to come to our side."

"Hmm..." Tom hummed slowly and Harry could see the wheels turning behind his thoughtful eyes. He was planning and Harry grinned widely.

"The only people left who Black is loyal to are you, Dumbledore, and Remus Lupin – correct?"

"Right."

"If we can destroy his loyalties in Dumbledore, that only leaves you and the werewolf. If he shows any indication that he could be swayed at that point you could reveal your loyalties to him as well. It is possible that at that point, he could be fully convinced. At that point, it would also be much easier to sway the werewolf. As a Dark Creature he feels an instinctive pull towards me. The wolf wants to be loyal to the Dark Lord, it is the man who fights it. If we could turn both of them..."

"Yes! Yes!" Harry said excitedly.

"It has potential, Harry, but neither of them have the stomach for what we do. They have both spent their lives denying the darkness within them. Getting them to accept it will not be an easy task."

"I want to try. They're the closest thing I have to family. If there is a chance that I can save them from Dumbledore's schemes and agendas then I have to try."

"Lupin would be a useful resource. A public face to lycanthropy that is non-threatening. Having a werewolf such as him working towards my cause would help build support for the cause of Dark creatures, which would in turn bring more of them to my side..."

"Lupin will probably be harder, but if I can get Sirius to join, I'm sure I can get Lupin too." Harry said with determination.

Tom took on that calculating look again for a moment before a wicked grin began to spread across his lips making Harry suddenly wish he were kissing them.

"And best of all, Dumbledore would likely recruit the both of them when he starts up his little Order of the Phoenix again. They were both members during the last war... it would be good having additional spies inside Dumbledore's midst."

"Yes!" Harry agreed enthusiastically.

"This idea has legitimate merit, but we must tread carefully. Gaining either's allegiances will be tricky and we cannot risk exposing you until we are sure we can convince them, or gain an unbreakable vow of their secrecy."

Harry agreed and the pair began to brainstorm on ideas. After about twenty minutes of discussion Tom stood to his feet and beckoned Harry to follow him as he led the way down to his lab in the basement.

As they passed the door that led towards the hall of cells Harry couldn't help but wonder if Barty Crouch Sr. was still down there or if Tom had finally just killed the man. Tom disappeared inside the lab and Harry quickly hurried after him.

Inside, Tom was standing beside the large work table in the center of the room. All of the potion brewing tools and supplies were shoved to the side or put away. In the center of the table was a stack of parchment that appeared to have a lot of arithmantic equations scribbled across them in Tom's elegant scrawl, and a few other sheets with various rune diagrams.

"What is all this?" Harry asked as he looked down at the complex sheet of numbers and symbols on the table beside him.

"I've been crafting an object. I've been layering some rather complex bits of magic into it and it's taken some work to get all the magic to cooperate together. It's almost done, actually," Tom said absently as he moved aside several things and pulled a very small box forward.

"Crafting something? You mean, like that orb that you had me use on Snape?"

"Not exactly, no. This," he paused and held open the box to show it to Harry. Inside was a silver ring with a thick masculine band and a perfectly spherical green gem set into it. "is for you."

Harry blinked at it in confused shock. "What?"

"As I said, it's not done yet, but when it is, you can key in a very specific set of glamors. Powerful glamors. Not just those worthless childish ones that they teach you in school. It will remember one specific set of glamors, although I'm considering crafting another one that can hold multiple appearances that a person could switch between. For now, this will do. In addition to putting up the fake appearance, you can key certain people into the ring. Anyone that you key into it will see past the glamors and see you for your true appearance."

"Oh! Oh, wow..." Harry said, stunned.

"I've been working on it for you to use during your summer stay here in the manor. By then, more and more of my Death Eaters will be frequenting this place and I am not yet willing to reveal your identity to most of them. Those who will be aware will be selected individually. This will allow you to wander the manor without having to worry about being seen by the wrong person. You will even be able to attend the meetings."

"That's incredible," Harry said with awe in his voice as he looked down at the ring in the box.

"Once I am finished with implementing the last of the spellwork we can set the appearance you wish to use for the glamor. It will also be necessary for you to come up with an alias. There was that alias you were using earlier in the year... Notechus Noir, was it?"

"Oh, yeah... hmm... Well, yes, that is what I used, but I don't think I'll stick with it for this. Too many things were mailed to Hogwarts under that name. I'll come up with something new."

"That is probably wise."

They discussed their plans for a short while longer before it was time for Harry to head back to Hogwarts.

– –

A few more days passed and the populace of the school was slowly growing more and more anxious for the coming task. Exams were also a week away, which was also causing a good amount of tension and anxiety among the students.

Harry was excused from exams because of the tournament but he still studied with the others. He wasn't even convinced he would take advantage of the option to skip out on his tests. He'd come a tremendous way as far as his academics were concerned and he was curious to see if he could manage 'Outstanding's on all of his tests.

That day during a study session that a very insistent Hermione had dragged Ron to, and that Harry had willingly joined, Ron remarked on Harry's willingness to take exams and how utterly insane he thought Harry was because of it.

"If there was any doubt in my mind before, I'm convinced now," Ron started as he shut his transfiguration textbook. "You are completely mental," he said to Harry with absolute conviction.

"Why's that?" Harry asked disinterestedly without looking up from his own book and parchment while he continued to revise his notes.

"Why? Because you've basically got a free pass! I mean, if nothing else good came from you getting forced into this tournament, at least you get out of taking your exams and yet you're still studying! You're mental!"

"Ronald!" Hermione scolded him with a mild scowl.

"What! I'm serious! It's insane!"

"I personally think it's fantastic that Harry's taking his studies seriously this year! You could really benefit to learn from his example!"

"Oh, not this again!" Ron groaned.

"Besides, Ron," Ginny said coming up from behind them and plopping down on the couch beside Hermione, "getting out of exams is hardly the best thing that will come out of Harry being in the Triwizard Tournament. With the lead Harry already has, I'd be willing to bet money that he's going to win. Then he gets the prize money too."

Ron groaned. "Ugh. Don't remind me about the money."

Harry kept his head down, ignoring them, but he couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"What are you going to do with the money, Harry?" Ginny asked in an excited conspiratorial whisper. "I can only imagine what I would do if I came into that much money! It would be amazing." She gave a slightly sad sigh and leaned back into the couch.

Harry just made a non committal mumble and shrugged. The truth was that Harry really wasn't sure what he was going to do with the money. He certainly didn't need the money. The correspondences he'd had with Gringotts in recent months made him more and more aware of just how loaded he was. His trust vault was overflowing with gold, and when he reached his magical maturity he would gain access to the ancient Potter family vault which was considerably larger. He had offered the winnings to Tom, since it was Tom's doings that got him into the tournament in the first place, but the man had scoffed and told Harry that it was his money and he should do with it what he wanted. And that 1,000 Galleons was hardly a drop in the water of his funds.

Harry had again insisted, suggesting that it could go towards the war effort but Tom had told him that the considerably sizable sum of money that had been in Tom's vault during his 'absence' had been gaining interest over the years and was more than enough to fund his war for a while. He was also sure that he would have no trouble getting additional financial support from several of his followers.

So again, Harry was left wondering what to do with the Tri-Wizard tournament prize money.

The next morning, Harry was sneaking through the common room under his invisibility cloak – he had just come back from his morning workout, which had degenerated into a very heavy snogging session, and Harry had yet to check himself over for the marks that Tom always left, so he opted to stay under the cloak until he could get up to the 4th years bathroom, when he saw the Weasley twins huddled in a corner over a stack of parchment.

With exams coming up it wasn't odd to find people studying, but it was odd to come across the Weasley twins studying – especially so early in the morning. It seemed far more likely that they would be planning some epic end-of-year prank than actually studying. If that was the case, Harry would prefer to be forewarned so he could try and dodge it.

Harry crept over to the pair silently and stood just to the side to listen in.

"We're going to need some serious capitol if we're really going to do this," Fred... or maybe George, said with a sigh.

"I know my dear brother. If only Ludo Bagman hadn't renegged on our World Cup bets! We'd have enough!"

"We can still get in some betting in the tournament though."

"Harry's a shoe-in to win."

"He's already in the lead and Ron says he's practically turned into a defense genius."

"True, true... but we still need starting capitol for the bets."

"And we've hardly made up from our losses to Ludo."

Again they sighed, this time simultaneously.

"What do you guys need money for?" Harry said as he pulled the hood of his cloak down and exposing only a floating head and neck.

They both jumped and turned in their seats to look at Harry with wide startled eyes.

"Harry!" they both said.

"What are you doing up so early?" one of them asked.

"And sneaking around in your cloak, no less!"

"Are you up to something you shouldn't be?" they were both smirking at him inquisitively.

Harry chuckled and simply shrugged – which probably didn't come through very well considering that he was mostly invisible.

"That's for me to know and for me to know," Harry said smirking. "So what's your deal? What do you two need money for?"

The twins looked at each other doing that silent communication thing that the pair seemed to do before nodding silently and turning back to Harry.

"You absolutely can't tell mum," one twin said sternly.

"Or Ron. He's absolutely worthless at keeping secrets."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I know. Don't worry, I'm much better at keeping secrets."

They snorted. "So we've heard," they said in sync.

"Well?" Harry persisted.

"When we graduate, we're going to start our own joke shop," one of them said.

"We've got a bunch of inventions already down,"

"And a lot more already planned and in the works."

"But we need to do some research and development capitol before we can really get started."

"And even after we've got everything ready, we'll still need a down payment for a shop."

"Or at least rent," they finished, shrugging.

"Hmm..." Harry hummed slowly, giving the pair a long hard look. It certainly wouldn't hurt to have the twins indebted to him. Weasley's were a strictly light family, but Harry got the feeling that the twins were far from having a Light magical affinity. They weren't dark, but they weren't afraid to use questionable magic. And while it was true that they didn't exactly perform all that well on homework and exams, Harry knew they were both brilliant, not to mention incredibly inventive and creative. Would there ever be any chance of him making use of their skills in the coming war, or would that be a pipe dream? Even if it was unlikely, getting them financially indebted to him would be a good first step.

"I can do it," Harry said with a dismissive nonchalance.

The twins blinked at him with obvious confusion.

"Do what?" one of them finally asked.

Harry rolled his eyes. "I can front you guys the money. Hell, if I win this stupid tournament you can have the winnings. A thousand galleons should help get things started, right? In case you guys didn't realize it, I'm the last Potter and have apparently inherited a mountain of gold, and a bunch of property. I'm loaded. I certainly don't need the prize money from the tournament."

"Are you joking!" The other one choked out, gaping at him.

"No that's your job. You're the pranksters, remember?"

"You would really give us your winnings!"

"Sure," Harry shrugged.

"We'll pay you back," one of them said with a determined nod and the other one assumed the same determined face and nodded his agreement.

Harry waved it off, "Don't bother. Maybe I can be a silent partner and you guys can give me free merchandise."

The twins were still stunned but finally they looked at each other for a minute. They turned back to Harry, both looking uncharacteristically serious.

"We won't forget this Harry. And we'll find a way to make it up to you."

"Don't worry about it. Just make sure you succeed at it. Come up with some brilliant inventions and once you get the actual shop started, make sure it doesn't flop."

"We won't let you down, Harry!"

"Yeah, we'll make sure you don't regret your investment."

"Do you need any help preparing for the last task?"

"You're already in the lead, but that's no guarantee that you'll win."

"We'll do anything you need!"

"Help in any way!"

Harry laughed. "Don't worry guys. Besides, even if I don't win – which I will – I'll still give you guys the front money. But like I said – don't worry. I'm going to win." He smirked wickedly and the twins shared a look before grinning back.

They spoke for another minute or two before Harry turned to head up the stairs, just as he reached the bottom of the stairs one of the twins called after he and he turned back to face them.

"Yeah?"

"Is that a hickey we see?" Fred and George asked in sync with a wicked salacious grin on each identical face.

Harry's face went red and a moment later he was scowling back playfully. The twins burst out laughing and Harry shook his head at them before jogging up the stairs.

– –

One week before the task there was an article in the Prophet that caught Harry's attention. Apparently the wizarding world had finally woken up and realized that Mr. Crouch was missing. According to the Prophet his assistant – who just so happened to be Percy Weasley – had been convinced that he had been receiving instructions from Crouch Sr. on a weekly basis, going so far as to insist that he would certainly recognize his own boss's handwriting. Harry found this exceedingly funny since he knew that half of the letters had been sent from Barty, and the other half from Tom himself. They had been coming from two different people, depending on which one of them had had the time to write them, and Percy hadn't even realized.

A thorough search had finally been conducted and people realized that absolutely no one had any idea where Bartemius Crouch Sr. was. Percy had been put under a magnifying glass since then, and had been heavily questioned to determine if he really was an ignorant bystander, or if he had perhaps had something to do with the man's disappearance. Because of this, he would not be allowed to sit in as judge in Crouch's place for the final task like he had for the second task. Instead the Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge would be taking that honor.

When Harry read this, he couldn't help but grin. He'd been hoping for an opportunity to speak with the Minister for Magic again. The last time had been before his third year after he accidentally 'blew-up' his Aunt Marge, and he had been too stupid and naïve to understand what an opportunity it was to gain such a powerful ally at the time.

Tom was positive that Fudge felt extremely threatened by Dumbledore. Fudge had been in office for a very long time, by this point – having gotten elected only three years after the unfortunate events that destroyed Tom's original body. There wasn't a term limit for the Minister for Magic, but after having been in the job for as long as he had, the public could easily get bored with him and want something new – or at least something different.

From his research and the intelligence that he'd collected so far, Tom was convinced that Fudge believed that Dumbledore was after his position. Harry had asked Tom if he thought it was true but Tom didn't think so. He knew that Dumbledore would never give up his position as headmaster of Hogwarts, and that would be necessary if he were to take on the job of Minister.

Still, whether the fear was founded or not, it was still there. Fudge thought of Dumbledore as an adversary, and if Harry could demonstrate to the Minister that he was on his side, it could be extremely beneficial to him.

[goldenvindication]

annie’s christmas 2009

whoops // @pleasantprefects

The train ride home was silent. At Brighid’s urging, Annie had decided to go home, much to her mother’s delight. The Express was bustling, full of students excited to see their family for the holidays, but Annie’s compartment was silent. She sat next to Brighid, the air stuffy and suffocating. Annie pressed her face to the window, watching snow fall across the English countryside.

She’d resorted to pushing all thoughts of Professor Murray and the Vindication out of her mind. That wasn’t close to being the least of her troubles, but there were more pressing issues. This would be the first Christmas without Papa since Annie had been alive. She’d always gone back home for Christmas and Papa had always met her at the station, and they’d drive back home singing Muggle Christmas carols that played on the radio of his station wagon.

Now, it would be Mum coming to meet her. Mum had never done this, the only time she’d been to King’s Cross with Annie was to see her off her first year. It didn’t feel real. The last few months had felt like such a bad dream, the only bright points had been Divination, for a little while, until Ira had made her destroy the tower, and Brighid.

Before Annie had a chance to even smile at her companion, the train had stopped and both of them got up, grabbing their trunks. Annie’s fingers brushed over Brighid’s hand as they left the train.

“Write me, yeah?” Annie murmured. Brighid’s eyes met hers, and the darker haired girl nodded. “Happy Christmas,” She said, giving Brighid a quick smile. Brighid returned the sentiment, then left to find her own family.

A petite, blonde woman stood towards the back of the platform, looking spectacularly out of place in her yellow a-line dress and string of pearls. Annie had her father’s eyes and smile, but when Louise Castellaine laid eyes on her daughter, it took all of her strength not to scream. Annie searched the crowd of parents for her mother, and upon seeing her mother, she ran, politeness be damned. Louise gathered her daughter in her arms, kissing her head.

“I missed you, dear one,” Louise murmured, rubbing circles on Annie’s back. “Your grandparents missed you too. They’re excited to see you.” Annie nodded, holding back tears as she hugged her mother tight.

Louise pulled back, eyes glimmering. “Let’s go home. Is that your cat?” She gestured to the crate that Annie had put down next to her suitcase. Cat’s ears perked hearing her name.

“Erm, yeah, that’s Cat.” Annie picked up her case and Cat’s crate, then followed her mother back home.

Annie’s grandparents lived in a small house in between hers and her cousins’. It had been like this since before Annie was born, when the mansion her mother and uncle had grown up in was destroyed during the War. During Christmastime, the whole street smelled like gingerbread and Christmas pudding from Aunt Malia’s bakes. There was always a big gingerbread house to decorate in Grandmother’s kitchen on Christmas Eve, and Papa used to help Roscoe and Annie decorate it, when all of the other cousins were too old or disinterested.

This year, none of that was the case. As Annie entered her home, there was no warm glow from the fireplace. Papa’s easy chair was vacant, and the latest copy of the Gazette was nowhere to be seen. Mother must have cancelled the subscription. The house was messy from a lack of Papa’s meticulous Sunday cleaning, and the sofa looked slept-on, the quilt that usually lay across the back was in a crumpled mess at the floor. This wasn’t the home that Annie looked forward to coming back to each December. This didn’t feel real, this was like an awful fever dream where everything was turned upside down.

Annie let Cat out of her carrier. Ignoring her mother’s hospitable questions, Annie went back to her bedroom and breathed out a sigh of relief. It was exactly how she’d left it -- a canopy bed, a white wooden desk, a soft blue comforter, all untouched. She let out a sigh, flopping down on her bed. It smelled like home.

She fell asleep fast, a long day of travel and trying to prepare for this day filled her with emotional exhaustion. Her sleep was dreamless, as it should be. She couldn’t bear seeing her Papa, or Alis Murray, even if they were contrived.

A sharp knock on her door snapped Annie out of her slumber the next morning. She woke up to see her mother, waiting in the doorway with a plate of pancakes.

Annie followed her mother into the dining room, and the two ate in silence. The food wasn’t in any way near as good as the Great Hall’s, nevertheless the ones that Papa would make on Christmas Day.

After breakfast, Annie stood up, picking Cat up in her arms, and walked past her mother into her mother and father’s room, blindly hoping he’d be there sleeping like normal. The sight she saw… shocked her.

Only one side of the bed was messy, her father’s. Her mother’s side of the bed looked like it hadn’t been slept in for weeks. Papa mustn’t have made the bed even when he was alive, and he was always meticulous about how the house looked. Annie felt sick to her stomach. She put Cat down and turned to her mother.

“What went on while I was away?” She snapped, staring her mother in the eye. Louise sighed, putting the tray of cookies down on an end table. “What happened with you and Papa? Why was he at the pub that night? He never used to drink for fun, I knew something had happened, I knew it.”

Louise took a deep breath. “Your father and I, Annie, we- you know we were having troubles, dear,” She began. Annie’s brown eyes darkened with hurt. “We- before your father left for the bar, I asked him if- if he would move out of the cottages, just for a little bit, and he-”

“He didn’t take it well.” Annie interrupted. “He didn’t take it well, and he went out drinking, and it’s all your fault,” She accused, backing out of the doorway. “It’s your fault! It’s your fault he’s dead! Get out!” Annie’s eyes filled with hot tears. “Get out!” She yelled, running into her room and slamming the door in her mother’s face.

Annie sat down on her desk chair, tears still falling down her cheeks. She grabbed a quill and a piece of parchment and began to write. Annie didn’t care that she’d seen Brighid not even twenty four hours ago. Hadrian wouldn’t care about Annie’s problems, Lia had a perfect family, the only one who would understand was someone who’d been betrayed by a parent too.

Dearest Brighid,

I am sorry for the lack of reprieve from my company -- I would have given you a break from my words if only I were able. I am afraid I write to you in anger, as I have found new information about my father’s death and the time surrounding it.

Don’t worry, it has nothing to do with our friends, though I have little doubt that they were involved in his death, somehow. The way that  Superbia spoke to me during the party has given me suspicion, more than I’d already harbored.

My father’s presence at the pub that night was no coincidence. It was my mother’s fault. Apparently they’d been fighting for weeks on end. I do not know how I missed this, but it must be because of my endless selfishness, I used to only see what I wanted to see. I believe this has grown less prominent due to my involvement with our little group, although I would not know. I am nowhere near that self-aware.

My mother asked for a divorce that night, which is why my father left for the pub. I knew there was foul play somehow involved there, but I had no idea it was my mother’s doing. After all, I knew Papa would never go to a pub on his own volition, he was never that kind of man.

But Brighid, I don’t know what to do now. I don’t know how to face my mother. I don’t even know how to face my grandparents -- they were never quite in favor of him, due to his… muggle-ness.

I don’t expect advice, but you said you’d write. Just reading your words would be a comfort. I realize that I am quite vulnerable with you, and of course I never expect you to do the same. I have been told that I am much too trusting.

Write back whenever you are able, I’m sure that seeing your grandfather is taking up much of your time.

Sincerely,

Annie

Tears stained the parchment that Annie folded into the envelope, then sealed with wax. She’d have to face her mother to get this to the family owl. The thought sickened her as she placed the envelope back on her desk and her feet carried her back to her bed.

Annie’s pillow was wet by the time she fell asleep.

#anniewriting #writing

[aroacehogwarts]

Aroace agender Charlie being the sibling everyone goes to for help? (Examples: Aromantic bisexual Fred, heteromantic asexual Percy, biromantic demisexual Ron, grey-aromantic polysexual George, and panromantic asexual bigender Ginny)

“Weren’t you supposed to take the big brother role here?”

Bill laughed. “I have. But I’m the cool big brother you come to with the bad secrets you don’t want mum to yell at you about. You’re the sibling who came out first - and in a more, um, spectacularly memorable way - so you’re the sib to go to for that kind of advice and those kinds of secrets.”

“Spectacularly memorable? It wasn’t that big?” 

Bill snorted into his drink in response, causing Charlie’s face to redden. 

“Oh, come one! I’ve got to be allowed to live that down at some point.”

“Live down setting the house on fire? Sorry, Charlie, very doubtful.”

“I didn’t set the Burrow on fire! I just... got excited.”

“Angry is more like it.” The smile on Bill’s face betrayed no anger or upset over the memory.

“Well, mum told me I should just try dating a nice girl! And then said had to clarify ‘not that Tonks, though, she just can’t follow the rules and that makes her not a nice lady’!”

Bill burst out into laughter, burying his head in his arms to try and hide his amusement. Charlie groaned and rubbed their face.

When he finally gathered himself, Bill sat up and patted Charlie’s shoulder. “Sorry, lil sib. You literally burned that into all of our memories, though.” Sensing a subject change was in order, he added, “Merlin, I think that might be the only time I’ve actually seen dad mad. That was impressive.”

Charlie rubbed at their hands and grimaced. “The only time he’s handed down punishment, too. I was scrubbing burn marks out of the walls by hands for ages. Thought they’d never clean up without magic. Mum would not let me quit, though.”

“You had the rest of us the most well behaved we’ve ever been that month, too.” At that, Charlie finally gave their own laugh, low and deep and genuine.

“So who was it this time?”

“Percy. Poor stuck up little thing is finally realizing he may not be as straight as he’s always thought.”

“I could have told him that,” Bill muttered.

Charlie grinned, having no trouble catching the words. “We all gotta go at our own pace, don’t we?”

“Oh, shut it,” Bill teased. Charlie was, of course, referring to the fact that Bill had lamented over his ginormous crush on his classmate Phillip for a year before realizing it was a crush and he didn’t just really badly want to be Phillip’s friend. “So he’s ace, right? Been guessing that one for ages.” 

Charlie nodded. “Most likely. He still hasn’t admitted it, though. He’s just coming to terms with thinking about it.”

“Well, he’s lucky to have you.”

Charlie’s blush returned. “Whatever. He’s gotta be easier to talk through it than George, who could not wrap his mind around grayaromanticism, and definitely easier than Ron who straight up was just deep in denial about being bi much less demisexual. You shoulda heard some of the ways he talked me in circles trying to say neither of those were really things while trying not to invalidate the rest of us.”

“Gotta admit, sib. I do not envy you. I prefer hearing about things like Fred and George trying to figure out how to sneak a toilet seat out to the owlery and convince enough owls to carry it back to Ginny or Ginny telling me shi’s transfigured a boy into meerkat for calling hir a - well, a not very nice name - and that shi can’t figure out how to transfigure him back.”

Charlie looked stunned for a moment, then choked, then erupted into laughter. “Ginny did what!?”

“I didn’t tell you?” Bill raised an eyebrow. “Damn, that was good gossip, too.”

And the rest of the evening was spent dishing about their siblings (Charlie even dished on themselves, revealing how they’d convinced some friends to sneak into Hogwarts to pick up an illegal dragon that Hagrid had somehow gotten a hold of). It’d been a long time since Bill and Charlie had just gotten to hang out and enjoy each other’s company. It was a night very well spent.

~Hufflepuff Mod

#charlie weasley #bill weasley #aromantic #asexual #aro headcanons #ace headcanons #aroace #aroacehp #platonic relationships #familial relationships #fred weasley #percy weasley #george weasley #ron weasley #ginny weasley #aro spectrum #ace spectrum #demisexual #gray aromantic #bi headcanons #bisexual #biromantic #ply headcanons #polysexual #pan headcanons #panromantic #trans headcanons #nonbinary headcanons #agender #agender headcanons

[noemiette]

Shadowhunters 3x06: “A Window Into an Empty Room”

Here’s the list of all the things that I liked about the new episode (feel free to add some stuff):

Heidi may be creepy but I like her tastes in music !

Simon being a dork “Surfer werewolf”

"I’ll bring you back a doggie bag” Badam tsss I love bad puns !

Breakfast, golden light and angst ! Yes I love angst ... and hate it at the same time.

“Maybe you should save the spatula I used for your little box” Salty Alec is back.

Izzy being the captain of the Malec ship and a supportive sister ♥

The Lightwood kids (+ Underhill) defending Maryse ToT

That scene between Maryse and Izzy. I love how much her relationship with her children improved, asking Izzy about her love life “Your new beau” XD.

The moment in front of the mirror “You’re still you, still strong and brave and beautiful”

Luke giving advices to Ollie about Sam. I love their friendship

Idk why but Alec taking a walk outside, coffee in hand makes me laugh XD

Good quick thinking Simon, not telling her your girlfriend’s name.

Magnus and Clary working together, me likey. It’s a good team up

Everytime Magnus calls Calry “Biscuit” I melt ! 

“Let her [come after me], She’ll be sorry she did” M.A.I.A ♥

“You’re out mother, we stand by you.” “Always” I love this family

Maryse spilling the tea about Izzy’s new boyfriend + Jace and Alec going full big brothers mode on her hahaha (Alec felt betrayed when he thought he was the only one who didnt know about this XD)

“You have to promise to behave yourselves !” “Us ?” “What!” Lightwood siblings, I love them.

“Oh, Jewelry. She told you we’re jewelers” XDDD

I am so on board for the Alec Underhill brotp. (And he called Magnus, Alec’s better half ToT)

Maia’s lil “Thank youuu” after telling Simon to blink was so cute qsfhgsdjfg

The second I heard Luke, my heart went sqkjhsfjshfkjshfkh TIME FOR SOME MARUUUUKE !!

Luke being there for Maryse if she has problems adjusting to the mundane life

LOOK AT THEM FLIRTING AND GIVING EACH OTHER HEART EYES ♥.♥

Clary asking her uncle Magnus if he’s okay, and Magnus telling her about his fight with Alec.

Nice to meet you Zachariah, heard a lot about you on Tumblr !

Simon always being a sweetheart, giving good advices and telling Izzy she’s an awesome daughter

Drunk Alec is really sad and really funny at the same time. And as someone said it on Twitter, slow clap to Matt for the acting. He didnt do too much, just perfect acting for drunk Alec.

“There’s a chance, if I try to get up from here, I’ll fall over. Yeah, apparently I don’t have the tolerance of a 800-year-old warlock”

Underhill being a good bro and asking Alec if he wants him to call him a cab and help him get out of the bar cause Alec doesnt want his mom and siblings to see him drunk like that.

Izzy having no time for crazy Heidi and kicking her ass.

“Nephilim love once, fiercely. Whatever you’re feeling, it’s okay. Don’t be so hard on yourself” Did someone already create an Underhill fanclub ? He’s the co-captain of the Malec ship.

“Go spend time with your lady” “And you go back to yours” OLLIE SHIPS MARUKE. I luv you Ollie ♥

BYE BYE HEIDI !

Sherlock Magnus back at it again !

DO NOT TOUCH OLLIE YOU FREAKING OWL THINGY. I AM VERY STRESSED !

That slide Magnus did to protect Clary !

Luke saving the day after OwlJace kicked Magnus’ butt (HOW DARE YOU THROW MAGNUS IN THE TRASH ?!)

AND IT’S OUT. Jace is the owl. Everything’s gonna move pretty fast now !

SOMEONE GO SAVE OLLIE AND SAM NOOOOW !!

#sh #sh spoilers #shadowhunters #malec #magnus bane #alec lightwood #clace #clary fairchild #jace herondale #saia #simon lewis #maia roberts #izzy lightwood #maruke #maryse lightwood #luke garroway #underhill #shadowhunters positivity

[metawitches]

In this episode, the owls go to war and Meredith becomes a mouse. Queenie brings Burt back into the fold, where he does exactly what Joel has always known he’d do. Joel sends Lyla to safety with Rita, but not before she meets Katherine at Bash’s house. Katherine also stages a meeting with the Phoenixes. Mixed messages and miscommunications abound.

We learn once and for all that Reprisal takes place in an alternate universe, in which many of the male characters fought in the Archipelago War and are still suffering from PTSD. Molly was a field nurse in the war and also saw things that left her traumatized. She’s probably not the only woman on the show who was affected by the War. Virtually every character has been affected by some war, whether it’s the Archipelago War or Burt’s gang wars or the unnamed, continuous wars that constitute domestic violence. Growing up surrounded by the Brawlers or the Ghouls equals growing up on the edge of a battlefield.

Recap

Episode 6 begins with newsreel footage of the Archipelago War, in honor of the anniversary of the bloody Battle of the 37th Island. The Archipelago was a country that was split in two. Some thought it should remain that way, while others thought it should be reunited into one country. Military from all over the world came to fight for the Archipelago, because it was such a beloved place and they cared so deeply about its future. Or so the newsreel announcer assures us. Whether their side won or lost, the soldiers and support staff should be proud of their efforts on behalf of the Archipelago!!

We aren’t told the outcome of the war or which side our country was on. It feels Orwellian, and not terribly different from the small wars the US is almost continuously involved in.

A younger Percy Montgomery plays cards in a VFW Post and tells his companion that the whole Archipelago should have been blown up. Younger Bash, wearing a Brawlers shirt and jacket, enters. Percy tells his companion to pour another round for his big brother.

Bash wants Percy to join the Brawlers with him. Percy doesn’t think he’s the joining type. Besides, they already belong to a family. Bash insists that this is a bigger, better family. He tells Percy to come build a new car or work on his old one. But even if all Percy wants to do is drink himself to death, Bash wants him to do it nearby.

Burt Harlow wakes up in his rural cabin and lights a cigarette. He works on old clocks and tends to his garden. He’s apparently run off and joined the Watchmen, maybe on Europa. As long as I don’t have to watch Tom Mison die another thousand times, I’m okay with that.

His peaceful respite is just about over, though, because Queenie has had enough and is driving her hotrod out to see him. All this time we thought Bash and Joel were his two lieutenants, but as it turns out, the aptly named Queenie is the real power behind the throne. She’s known where he was all along. And she does keep the books- both sets. They say, “Follow the money,” for a reason.

At the cabin, Queenie looks over Burt’s current car. She’s unimpressed with it’s vintage black simplicity. Burt says, “I figured I’d give her a second life.” I could be wrong, but I think it’s the car Katherine was driving the night he tried to kill her. The black would be a form of mourning and respect, since he believes she’s dead. This would make sense to a psychopath- in his mind, she forced him to take action. He didn’t want to kill her. It also befits his status as dignified leader, godfather and perpetual semi-victim who needs revenge.

Queenie tells Burt about Percy and that they’ll do his send off, the Brawler funeral, tomorrow night. Burt is concerned about Bash’s reaction, but Queenie is satisfied that he got his revenge. It’s Joel she’s worried about, with Lyla growing up. Then she notices Burt’s garden and laughs at him. Burt is having an existential crisis over the fact that he can’t even grow cucumbers as well as his no account father.

Queenie tells him that she doesn’t care what he’s been doing for the last 2 years. He’s needed by the family he built. It’s time to come home.

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Doris tries repeatedly to call Ethan. He doesn’t answer and eventually gets rid of the phone in the woods behind the compound.

Not the smartest place to dispose of incriminating evidence.

Doris get frustrated and shows it, a momentary lapse in her composure. Earl asks why Percy called her Katherine. She walks out. Molly decides that it’s time to remove the buckshot Gregory put in his neck at the checkpoint. (I didn’t mention that he got in a shot at Earl because at that point what happened wasn’t clear to me.)

Molly was a field nurse in the Archipelago War on the 37 Island- the bad one. Earl and Cordell have new respect for her. They both fought in the war for two tours, but neither was on the 37th Island.

Once his wounds have been tended to, Earl finds Katherine in the coffee shop/bar. He tells her that the Monster Ring was originally the idea of their commanding officer in the war, Alvin. She’s surprised, because she thought Earl was also Alvin. They chuckle at how little they know about each other.

When they came back from the war, Alvin saw an opportunity and rounded up the team. Bernice was fine with it then, because she liked the extra income. Bernice and Earl had a son named Raymond and when he was 13, Alvin recruited him into the Monster Ring. Alvin took Raymond out on a job and Raymond was killed.

Katherine tells Earl that Percy was her first husband’s brother and how she was betrayed. Earl asks why she’s come back now. She says that her anniversary is coming up.

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Joel brings Lyla to Bash’s house. Bash is listening to a recording of a couple who are discussing running away together. Joel notes that it was strange, the way Percy had the Ghouls mask on his head. He and Bash exchange a knowing look, figuring out what they should have seen before Bash went on a murder spree.

Of course, Bash still had to go on a murder spree, to maintain their cover story.

Lyla tells Bash that when she’s sad, she hugs her stuffed doll, Rufus, until she feels better. Rufus asks what she has to be sad about. She tells him she has plenty.

Good for her. He’s probably not the first and he certainly won’t be the last person to dismiss her feelings and issues as trivial. The things she has to be sad about aren’t too different from his own. She hasn’t seen her mother since she was a baby. She lives in a super misogynist, enclosed cult compound which doubles as a bar and strip club. She’s surrounded by violent, alcoholic, misogynist men and her only female role models are sex workers who don’t particularly care about her.

Her father is teaching her to cope by escaping into a fantasy world, a coping mechanism which she’s smart enough to sense won’t hold up in the real world outside the compound. If she ever escapes. She’s around the Pin-Ups enough to hear them discuss the ways that they are semi-forced to stay. Who knows how many sexual and violent crimes she’s witnessed in her short life. And she has no one else her age to play with. She doesn’t seem to go to school or leave the compound.

In this episode, we’ve been given Meredith, Gertrude and Raymond as examples of what Lyla’s future probably holds. Which should she choose?

So no, Lyla has no problems at all, Bash. And, yes, 10 year old girls do think about all of the things I just listed when they are in abusive environments.

Lyla tells Bash she’ll come back to get Rufus before she goes to bed. Then she asks what happened to make him so sad. He says that there’s trouble between the owls.

Queenie convinces Burt to come back to the Brawlers. The Brawlers prepare Percy’s truck, Thelma, for his send off.

Meredith and Gertrude have a heart to heart about where they stand now that the Brawlers and the Ghouls are going to war. First, Gertrude gives Mer advice on bike repairs. Then she tells Mer that Gary is dead. Mer defends him as a decent guy. Gertrude wants to leave before the war reaches full swing. She remembers how bad it was the last time. Mer wants to wait until she fixes her own bike. She still hopes things won’t get too bad. Gertrude knows better.

Matty is suspicious about the way Percy died. He’s figured out that there’s no way Gary or the Ghouls would have broken the peace and killed Percy that way. Joel tells him not to question the official story and not to go looking for revenge on his own. He orders Matty to protect the river instead of instigating more fights. Joel manhandles Matty, again, in his attempt to get Matty to things his way.

Joel can’t see that the manhandling only makes Matty more resentful. If he wants a different kind of gang, he needs to try treating some of the members differently, starting with Matty, who has enough empathy and intelligence to see things Joel’s way, then to help influence others. But Joel is so controlling that he never wants to explain his reasoning to anyone he views as beneath him.

Burt returns to the compound and grabs a beer. Then he asks to see Bash. He tells Bash that he loved Percy as if he was one of them. Bash reminds him that Percy was one of them. Burt says they’re going to make it right. Bash says he already did. Burt says he needs to make it even righter. The Ghouls will hit back, so he needs to hit back harder, first.

Burt has one move- attack and hit so hard that you annihilate the enemy. No matter how small or large the infraction, that’s his response.

Joel meets Jukes in an isolated spot to discuss options, except there are none and they both know it. They quickly come down to hoping their friendship won’t be ruined by the war and part with the understanding that whatever happens next is just business. If they both come out of it alive, they’ll regroup.

Percy’s send off begins with a trumpet player playing Chicago’s 25 or 6 to 4. As the brawlers and Pin-Ups file out to their places, Burt shakes their hands in greeting. He stops to say hi to the Phoenixes. Matty is in awe. Johnson just looks at Burt with his usual ironically bemused calm. Ethan hangs back a little.

The stripped skeleton of Percy’s beloved truck, Thelma, is set on fire. Burt stands next to it to speak to the Brawlers. He is once again lit only by flames. Joel’s long peace has come to an end.

Burt: “I never cared much for funerals. Something made up by weak men to ease the pain of the lies that they tell themselves, that death has meaning. It does not. Family has meaning. You ever see a pack of wolves? The leader follows from behind. With our family, I’ve never needed to lead or to follow. Because our family has always been one. And when someone threatens the family that we built, we need to protect ourselves, and make them suffer. So make no mistake about it. We are now at war.”

This ritual is for the crowd. Bash is in his room, the prison cell he sentenced himself to after he betrayed Katherine. Katherine is with her new crew. Joel returns midway through it and goes straight home. Meredith sits on the other side of the compound with Tina. She hasn’t seen her father yet and contemplates leaving now, with Gertrude, instead of waiting until Queenie is “done”, as she had planned. Either way, she sees her father as weak, which is extra ironic, given his speech.

When Burt finishes, many of the men yell in agreement. The Phoenixes don’t.

Later, Meredith packs a bag while listening to Gertrude on the phone, telling her that there’s a guy they can buy some scratch from, then use the money from selling that to fund their trip out of town. Meredith packs her gun. Gertrude lost both parents in previous wars and doesn’t want to fight another.

Katherine explains to Earl that she needs to go to the compound tonight while the Brawlers are distracted by Percy’s send off, in order to make sure a seldom used back road still exists. While she’s there, she wants to drop an anniversary gift off with her ex.

Having found the back way open, Katherine makes her way into Bash’s cabin. He’s let his record play to the end and passed out, leaving the needle skipping at the end, which is a terrible, grating crime by itself. Friends don’t let friends scratch their albums and ruin their stereo needles, even when murder is on the table, so Katherine turns off the record player before she points her gun at Bash’s head.

This is undoubtedly the kind of thing that made him fall in love with her.

Bash still has Rufus curled up with him. Lyla shows up to get her toy and asks if Katherine is a friend of Bash’s. She decides they’re all one big happy friend group before trying to pull Rufus out from under her uncle the mass killer. Katherine tries to keep her gun out of sight while helping Lyla with Rufus.

I doubt guns faze Lyla at all.

Lyla notices that Katherine and Bash have matching heart tattoos on their wrists. To distract her, Katherine shows her a small carved bird in her purse and asks for help naming him. Lyla says they should leave the bird as a gift for Bash. Katherine knows that leaving the bird will give away her presence, but she indulges Lyla.

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The next day, Joel brings Lyla to the park gazebo where he met Rita. Lyla tells him that she has an idea for Harold Horpus’ story now. She thinks Harold is like an ant who’s lost their queen. He’s lost his purpose in life and needs to find it again. She explains that she thought of this when she “met the lady with the black heart and the yellow canary”- Uncle Bash’s ghost visitor.

Normally, Joel would be all over a story like this coming from his daughter and have figured out the truth of the situation within the hour. But this time, he’s distracted, trying to get her away from Burt’s war as quickly as possible, so he insists she was dreaming, even when she insists she wasn’t.

Rita arrives to take Lyla home with her. Lyla is mature beyond her years, more worried for her father than herself. He says he’ll be searching for his own “why”. Lyla says she’ll find Harold while they’re separated. Rita tells him to call when he’s done with the Brawlers.

Bash wakes up and sees the yellow canary. Katherine Harlow isn’t above a mixed message or two.

The three River Phoenixes eat in a diner, still thinking about Burt’s speech. Matty is excited that he gets to prove himself in a war with Burt. Johnson wants Matty to stop thinking so loud. Ethan is still in his own world, worrying about his own problems. His own problem turns up in the form of Katherine, who complements their jackets and pretends she doesn’t know any of them.

She scoots into the booth beside Ethan and chats them up for a minute, asking if they’re in a band or some other sort of group. Nobody is very friendly, but Johnson tells her they’re in transportation. Johnson definitely recognizes her after a second and notices how strangely Ethan is reacting, but he doesn’t tip his hand or Katherine’s.

As Katherine is leaving, she pretends to find Ethan’s phone on the floor and gives it back to him. The whole thing was a ruse to give him a new phone so he’d have to take her calls again.

Gertrude picks up Meredith from the phone booth and brings her back to the Ghouls compound. Gertrude is silent the whole ride and as they walk back to a hangout spot, where several young Ghouls are waiting. When Meredith walks in, one of the Ghouls acknowledges that she’s Burt’s daughter. Meredith pulls out her gun and points it at the female Ghoul. They all stand up, one pointing her gun at Meredith.

They are at a standoff, with the Ghouls being dismissive of Meredith, until someone else reaches into their jacket and Meredith shoots the main Ghoul in the head. Another yells to shoot Meredith, but the one with the gun says that Jukes told them to keep her alive. While they hesitate, Meredith shoots everyone but Gertrude.

Gertrude and Meredith have a standoff for a minute, Mer with an empty gun and Gertrude with a crossbow. Gertrude says that she was forced to kidnap Meredith.

Meredith leaves, taking Gertrude’s bike, symbol of her independence.

Commentary

Jukes went straight for someone who he thought would be an innocent, helpless victim and a high value target. He thought kidnapping Meredith would escalate the tension but not the violence. Obviously he underestimated her. Joel understood the way Jukes thinks and was smart to get Lyla out.

This is the first time we’ve seen where the Ghouls live. It looks less fortified and more homey than the Brawlers’ compound, which is probably better for their mental health but makes their chances of surviving Burt’s insanity worse.

In episode 6 we met a few more female gang members, then watched them die at the hands of a lone, white, overly-feminized, oppressed sex worker wielding a gun. Yay for diversity and nontraditional gender presentation. Boo for the other messages this show just sent.

I’m not sure they could have done more to make Meredith physically look like an innocent and pure child who’d been defiled by the evil minorities. While I love some good symbolism, where is the purity symbolism when it comes to Gertrude and Lyla? Or Ethan and Matty? All children are born innocent, not just Meredith.

If there’s a season 2, my number 1 request is for Meredith to stop dressing like an overgrown little girl. Her clothing is beautiful, but it’s meant to put her on a pedestal above the other characters while also still making her look like a hooker. It’s the worst kind of “Lolita” mixed messaging, associated with both the sexualizing of children and infantilizing of grown women.

Earlier in the episode, Meredith and Gertrude spoke on the phone while sitting next to each other. It was only revealed to the audience that they were together at the end of the call. Before they hung up, they were even shown in splitscreen, showing how they were being torn apart while together.

During the call, Gertrude begs Meredith to run away with her now, before things get any worse. Gertrude remembers Bert’s last few wars and has been left bereft by them. She doesn’t want to watch anymore loved ones die. Meredith can’t bring herself to leave yet, saying that her bike isn’t ready. Gertrude’s bike is. She wants them both to leave on her bike, but Meredith won’t budge.

At the end of the episode, after killing several Ghouls, Meredith rides away from the Ghoul’s compound on Gertrude’s bike. Circumstances have forced Meredith to grow up and become ready, like it or not. Gertrude has become ensnared in the war, just as she feared, and she’s watched friends die at the hands of someone she cares about. Like Jukes and Joel, the two are now on opposite sides of a war and their friendship may not survive.

The hot rods represent the heart or soul or best of the person. Did Meredith take Gertrude’s heart for safekeeping or did she take away the best of Gertrude?

We see fire used twice in this episode as part of rituals. Molly uses it medically to sterilize her surgical tweezers so that she can remove the buckshot from Earl’s neck and help him heal. After she’s done, he goes to the bar and tells Katherine about his son, helping to heal that wound as well.

Meanwhile, Percy’s beloved hotrod truck/”beast” Thelma is stripped of all usable parts and then the shell is burned as a symbolic cremation. Burt takes this opportunity to return to his “family” after a two year absence and speak to them as a group. He doesn’t speak about Percy. Even when he talks to Queenie and Bash, he doesn’t say much about Percy. In fact, he refers to Percy, who’s just died in the line of duty, as an outsider to Bash.

Burt tells the assembly they are going to war to avenge the perceived slight, but he doesn’t seem to care much about the affected people. He mainly seems to sense that people are restless, leading to skirmishes, and his solution is to start another bloody war. Keeping everyone else constantly fighting each other helps to maintain his own status, since no one can think straight long enough to plan a coup.

Queenie doesn’t have a 3 River Phoenixes or a 707 tattoo. She is a unique entity in the group. As are all of Burt’s closest allies. He only values conformity in his foot soldiers. But he’s a chaotic, so people tend to make mistakes when he’s around that they wouldn’t normally make.

That’s part of how Burt beats them or keeps them under his control and why he goes straight to war- to keep everyone else off balance, a place where he functions normally, but hardly anyone else does. Katherine learned the technique from Burt and it’s already working- both Bash and Joel are making mistakes.

I think Johnson was over the Brawlers years ago, but is either protecting someone or has nowhere else to go. He certainly sees through the BS that Matty loves so much, but he lets Matty have his fun. Johnson also keeps his mouth shut and lets the chips fall where they may. He seems to have stopped choosing sides and intervening, even when he could. Thus, he doesn’t say anything, even to Matty or Burt, when he recognizes Katherine in the diner. He let’s her give Ethan the phone and continue her battle with whoever she’s come back for.

Queenie, on the other hand, sees much more than she lets on and judiciously interferes behind the scenes much more than we realize, with a well-timed word to the right person. She’s the queen bee, always buzzing around the compound and checking in on people, then leaving them with something to think about.

I don’t think we’re supposed to see Joel and Jukes as lovers, but they do love their secret rendezvous. Some of the friendships in this show are very intense. It can be hard to tell if there are repressed feelings going on.

It’s probably too late now, and maybe it always was, but I wonder what would have happened if Joel had found something else for Burt’s standing army to do to use up testosterone and adrenaline besides fight wars. Personally, I’m fond of supporting the arts beyond burlesque, such as forming rock bands and making public street art. Getting out into nature is also good- let them rebuild the infrastructure of the Archipelago or campgrounds and other infrastructure in National Parks.

Or just encourage these gearheads to restart the races at the racetrack with all of those hotrods. Right now, the gangs’ vehicles serve mainly as an artistic outlet and status symbols. Their value as tools for escape or athleticism could be increased by holding sanctioned public competitions. That’s a business opportunity that’s waiting to be exploited and it doesn’t have to involve much exploitation of women and minorities.

The record Bash listens to in his room is the same radio drama he and Percy listened to at the VFW Post when he recruited Percy into the Brawlers. Bash is feeling some regrets, or at least wondering if he’s always made the best choices.

Katherine’s back way into the compound is both an actual road and a metaphor. The first person Burt asked for when he returned to the compound was Bash. Katherine checked on Bash to make sure killing Percy had the effect she expected it to. By hurting Bash, she’s already hurt Burt and destabilized the entire Brawlers organization. Bash was close to three people: Percy, Katherine and Burt. The night Katherine was left for dead, Bash chose Burt over her. Leaving the canary began the next phase of Katherine’s plan.

Images courtesy of Hulu.

Reprisal S1E6: For Love of the Archipelago Recap-The owls go to war & Meredith becomes a mouse. Queenie brings Burt back into the fold, where he does exactly what Joel has always known he'd do. Joel sends Lyla to Rita. #Reprisal In this episode, the owls go to war and Meredith becomes a mouse. Queenie brings Burt back into the fold, where he does exactly what Joel has always known he'd do.

#abigail spencer #For Love of the Archipelago #Gilbert Owuor #Hulu #Lea DeLaria #Mena Massoud #metacrone #recaps #Reprisal #retro noir #review #speculative fiction

[thaimassagegreenock]

Weekly Link Love — Edition 51

Thai Massage tutorials and tips.

This article was provided by Mark's Daily Apple, which is the go-to destination to learn how to lead a healthy Primal life in this hectic modern world. I find their posts usually offer some interesting opinions and useful trips and advice

Research of the Week

Manure from cows given antibiotics makes for substandard soil.

Bonobos are bigger meat eaters than we thought.

The Neolithic revolution was more about private property than productivity.

Night owls have worse blood lipids.

For psychiatric symptoms of dementia, non-pharmacologic therapies work better.

New Primal Blueprint Podcasts

Episode 382: Dr. Robert Zembroski: Host Elle Russ chats with Dr. Robert Zembroski, a world-renowned expert in functional medicine and chiropractic neurology and creator of a unique way to enhance conventional cancer treatments.

Primal Health Coach Radio, Episode 30: Laura and Erin chat with Emily Schromm, a serial fitness entrepreneur with a lot of things going on—brick and mortar gym, online courses, and physical products.

Each week, select Mark’s Daily Apple blog posts are prepared as Primal Blueprint Podcasts. Need to catch up on reading, but don’t have the time? Prefer to listen to articles while on the go? Check out the new blog post podcasts below, and subscribe to the Primal Blueprint Podcast here so you never miss an episode.

Media, Schmedia

Dutch farmers take to the streets.

Baby food, now with lead and arsenic!

Interesting Blog Posts

Why ketogenic diets as clinically practiced are unhelpful for mitochondrial diseases.

Are Nike’s superfast running shoes a problem?

Social Notes

I recently participated in Dr. Bill Schindler’s Modern Stone Age Diet online summit and had a great time. Check out talks from me, Robb Wolf, and dozens more.

Gorgeous and majestic.

Everything Else

Why does flu peak in winter?

The rush to harvest organs is affecting death investigations.

Even though some residents left city limits to buy cheaper soda, a soda tax in Philadelphia reduced overall soda consumption.

Pigs are using tools.

Things I’m Up to and Interested In

Video I enjoyed: Sioux chef.

Another video I enjoyed (well, sorta): Why seed oils are so harmful.

I’d try it: Bog butter.

I’m not surprised: Persistent low-grade inflammation is a common feature of depression.

Ancient humans didn’t mess around: Not only were we utilizing brain tissue and bone marrow, we were processing and consuming “dental pulp.”

Question I’m Asking

With Google stopping development of its glucose-monitoring lens and all the other failures and dubious advancements, tech is realizing that biology’s a hard nut to crack. Do you think technology will ever figure out human biology and vault us into sci-fi territory?

Recipe Corner

Taco chili? Taco chili.

Paleo eggs benedict won’t betray you.

Time Capsule

One year ago (Oct 12 – Oct 18)

Why “Is It Keto?” Is the Wrong Question – It’s not the point.

Dear Mark: Omega-6 Deficiency and Saw Palmetto – A couple questions.

Comment of the Week

“Hey Mark, You’re usually way out in front but my 13-year-old son actually beat you to it this time. He, like most his age, is an avid Youtube watcher and has recently gotten into watching the ways of searing the perfect steak.

He’s been hammering me to get a cast iron skillet. Lol. If it were up to him we’d eat steak every night.

Gotta say, of the obsessions I’d want my 13-year-old son to have, the perfect sear on a Steak works for me!”

– Now that’s awesome, Joel.

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[nerdygirl2888]

Call It What You Want.

This story was inspired from the song

Call it what you want by Taylor Swift. 

I hope you all enjoy this little blurb of my imagination

Tina.

No one said life was easy, and Sarah Williams learned that first hand after she followed in her mother's footsteps. Falling into the world of the Industry as it was called. Auditions, casting calls, seeing her name up in lights on Broadway theatres boards. She was beautiful with her peaches and cream skin, dark tresses and vibrant green eyes. A slender body with just the right amount of curves for the wardrobe to appreciate when making her costumes.

Yes, she was a star, even if she made enemies doing it.

She learned the gritty side of the business and the men who ruled the roost, who used their power to take advantage of the young women who were trying to make a name for themselves. She fought, fucked and lied her way to the top; the string of men that came and went on her arm. They never compared to her ideal in the end. She hadn't meant to break up a marriage, she didn't want to be her mother. Yet she let the limelight blind her, she lost herself in the process. She was on top of her career, she was sought after and wanted by everyone whether it was for a role or to wear a couture gown at the Tony Awards. Yes, Sarah Williams was a superstar.

She had men falling at her feet, relationships ending and beginning each season. Soon she was too picky, too temperamental for them to put up with.

'Someone somewhere is sick of her shit' was the saying they recalled as they said her name on TMZ one night.

Then it came tumbling down piece by piece. Suddenly the Broadway princess was tarnished, she didn't want to be known as the woman that one young girl would know as daddies mistress one day. She holed herself up, stopped drinking and the needless prescription drugs that made up her life. Maybe her therapist was right and it was all in her head. Everything thing was just a made up fairy tale? It had been just all a strange dream.

No one would call on the Goblin King thinking he was real. This was just proof that she wasn't crazy. No one would show up in a cloud of glitter when called or in a form of an owl. Pictured like the one that sat on her hip, a white and brown barn owl taking off in flight.

How wrong had she had been when he stood in front of her when she spoke the words. Her adolescence was shaped by a dream that she didn't believe to be real. He had been keeping tabs on her through the years, he never could come to her because she took back that power that fateful night. Instead, he watched from afar flounder and drown in her own lies and affairs, he watched her realize that mistakes she had made and what she destroyed in the process.

How he saw beyond the frayed ends and knitted them back together was a mystery. She felt whole once again as she hid away in his kingdom.

They had no label, it was just them wandering the labyrinth, the castle. Telling him stories of Toby before she cut herself off from her family. They didn't understand the Industry it was simple as that. Her father gave up giving her legal advice and Irene well she only cared for the designer samples that Sarah sent to her.

She sent them a note saying she put herself into a rehab retreat. A place to think for herself and reevaluate her life. She spent her days by his side now, living a simpler life. She noticed things about him, despite being a king he was humble and kind to his subjects. He ruled fairly and did not use terror as a way to get what he wanted. How the roles reversed as she once considered him to be the villain. Instead, she was now the one who was vain and conceited. It comes with age he told her; he had his moments in his youth.

Slowly she returned to her life she was under contracts and needed to work so she wouldn't be blacklisted. She was cautious about being seen about the city at first. Refusing to let him be seen. This was theirs and the media would just ruin whatever they had.

They were meeting at a bookstore, they already caught wind of her already being there. She watched him from the window, his head down his blond hair falling forward as he was dressed in a long jacket, warm scarf and leather gloves. They locked eyes as she waved to him and greeted him from the window of the bookstore cafe.

Who was this unknown man? Who was Sarah Williams new beau? The tall, lanky golden hair man who looked dressed from the high streets of London?

The media were puzzled at the changes of the tarnished star who seemed more meek and modest in her words and actions. She kept to herself, she even skipped the Tony's that year which leads to an ambush of what was going on in her life. Her revivals were relishing in her seclusion as she worked less than she ever did. Rumours spread rampantly on her seclusion, the lack of social media. Some praised her for changing her life around other called it was a ploy to get attention when she decided to return.

Press are going about how she showed her true colours to the world. Everyone placing bets on when she would mess up and throw aside this mystery man. They didn't know it has already been months for them, you could even say this had been in the works for years. He was the one to keep her stable in this world she lived in. Warm and fed most nights when he was there, letting her cry over new tabloids and telling her that it didn't matter what people thought of her anymore.

After everything, all she needed was to look in those strange eyes of his to feel grounded to know she did one thing right in her life. All she had to do was believe, believe in the magic she once longed to forget or believe was all a dream.

She did the right thing, she told him one night. Her secret that haunted her, she didn't regret it but she couldn't hide it from him. No child should have been brought into a world of chaos when her world tumbled from undeneath her. He told her understood, that he didn't judge her for her decision. She made the one that seemed right for her and her life.

Nothing matters beside them as the curled up in her apartment, or his bedchamber. She could trust him. Something she hadn't done in so long was trust someone. Friends were rare in the industry you never could be real without the fear of being betrayed. He however she trusted, he was the one thing she did right.

It was him who managed to get her to reconnect with her family; to reach out and apologize. It had been an emotional upheaval for everything that day. Toby was a teenager, who seemed confused by his sister. He had been hurt when she cut them off from her life, but now was trying to make amends. He wanted to be happy to see her but didn't want to have her disappear again. It took a long talk that she would never do that to him again; she told him she understood that trust had to be earned and she would try her best to earn his trust once more.

She did the right thing by calling him; without him, without that those eyes that could piece together her broken soul and heart in the aftermath of her downward spiral. The same ones she looked into in the large candle lit room as he kissed her body over and over. Leisurely lovemaking in the early mornings so that slept late into the mornings.

Slowly they ventured out together more in the cities, slowly the media became for positive as they chased for the story of her life changes and choice in jewellery. The small charm with a tiny J on it. Was that his name starting with J?

Soon stories were fabricated, elaborate tales of being a wealthy businessman. Jared King, so if she accidentally called him Jareth it could be put down as being misheard. They were happy, keeping out the spotlight as often as they could. They were boring and mundane in their lives which lead to the press getting bored.

The rare time she spoke of him she was quoted after being asked how he played a part in her recovery on the red carpet for a premiere of her latest show

"I told him he didn't need to save me. We are happy and in love, that is all you need to know." She held his arm as they walked down the long line of carpet. The photos would show like a King and Queen, dressed in their finery. Her ethereal silver-white gown that floated around her. Everyone noticed just how much her eyes sparkled as she gazed up at him. Even his suit being exactly tailored to him that it showed off his lean frame. The fashion police commenting just how well his pants fit him, and if that it was a roll of change in his pocket or not. Sarah Williams seemed to be one lucky woman they concluded.

He rarely spoke a word to the press, keeping silent as she did her thing. The only indirect quote that you could take from him was him telling someone in an annoyed tone, "Your past doesn't define your future. I love her because she is everything to me."

The mystery of Sarah Williams and her eventual disappearance from the industry was a mystery. If they only knew that she was a Queen in another world, with her king beside her. Occasionally you could spot them wandering the park or visiting a museum with two small children; a little blonde girl, and a dark-haired boy who inherited their father's tall slender form.

They came and went as years passed by. Her name once up in lights now was know something of the past. Still, her name echoed in the media, sometimes when another star fell, or maybe it was when a young woman credited her in allowing a generation to see you could save yourself if you truly tried.

Call it what you want, but Sarah William made a name for herself in this world and another.

#taylor swift #fanfic #labyrinth #goblinking #call it what you want

[spiffysixxsense]

Do all of the mythology asks :D

Mythology AsksAnubis: How do you feel about death?Sounds like a sweet relief. An escape.Atum: What are your greatest imperfections?Everything about myself... I'm depressed I'm anxious I have a short fuse I let stupid shit bother me I'm a hypocrite. Im also chubby if that's what you meant.Bastet: Do you have any cats?Yes, one little gato 😊Hathor: What brings you joy?Cats, snakes, Alex. Horus: What is one thing you've had to fight for in your life?To not end it. Osiris: Do you believe in the underworld?Given my other beliefs, no, however I think it's cool. Like ghosts. I know they are unrealistic but I think they are niftyRa: Do you have any major responsibilities or importance?I take care of a snake?Thoth: Do you like to read/write?Not really. School has made them feel like a chore even when they shouldn't. Arawn: What is the most terrifying thing you've ever done?To my stupid fucked up brain, probably drive on a major road. But beyond that, disagreeing with my dad to his face. Bran: How is your health?Eh. I don't take care of myself and feel sick alot. Mentally I'm all kinds of fucked upBrighid: Tell us about your relationship with your father.I don't know. I think I was a daddy's girl growing up when I was blissfully ignorant. Now we avoid each other and being in his presence, even if we are in separate rooms, instantly triggers this... wall... I don't know how to describe it. I'm immediately on the defense and bothered. Cernunnos: What is your favorite animal?Snakes, owls, big cats. Danu: What is your relationship with your mother?Now, pretty good. I think it gets better when you don't live with them. As a child it wasn't great. Morrigan: What do you think happens when we die?Nothing. Your body goes in the ground. Olwen: What is your favorite flower?LilliesRhiannon: Have you ever been betrayed?I'm sure I have Bragi: What kind of music do you listen to?Rock, some could be considered metal. Just no screamo. Freya: Have you ever been in love?Currently Freyr: Do you have any children?No. Not sure if I ever do.Hœnir: Are you a silent or talkative person?Talkative to Alex and Ariel. Quiet to everyone else. Iounn: How old are you?21Loki: What is the best trick you've ever pulled on someone?I don't know? Fooling them with pretending to be okay? Got ya real good. Odin: What is your family like?Awful. Constantly angry, bitter, upset with each other. Avoids each other. Keeps secrets. Thor: Would you consider yourself pretty powerful?No? Tree: What have you done with your life? What are you going to do with it?Nothing, and I have no idea. I didn't expect to live this long. Aphrodite: What do you think of yourself?I hate everything about who I am. Ares: Are you an easy person to anger?Yes. With certain things. Athena: Would you consider yourself an artist?I wish. Apollo: Do you play any instruments?I also wish. Dionysus: Do you drink?No. I never want to. Hades: Do you have a bad reputation?I don't think so? I don't have a good one either. I just kinda exist Hekate: Have you ever tried to communicate with the dead?I think I tried to ghost hunt before 😂 didn't work Hermes: Have you ever stolen anything?As a kid once I stole a bunch of felt tip markers from CVS. don't tell anyone. Poseidon: Are you a moody person?Yes. Zeus: Are you a confident person?Never Jupiter: Would people say that you are intimidating or fairly approachable?Ariel thinks I'm intimidating 😂😂. I think I kinda have resting bitch face. Pluto: Where do you think we go when we die?Six feet under. Apollo & Dianna: Do you prefer to be up during the day or at night?NiiiiightMars: Have you ever gotten into a fight?Physically no. Minerva: Do you generally give good advice?I don't give much of any advice because I don't want people to think I understand their problems better than themProserpine: Have you ever felt trapped?Everyday? I'm trapped in this life. I didn't ask for this. Plutus: Do you have a job?Yes. Venus: Have you ever had your heart broken?Sorta. It felt like it at the time but I got over it pretty quickly. Vesta: Do you like being home or do you try to get out whenever you can?Home alone, all day everyday. Morpheus: Do you daydream often? Of what?I daydream of being normal. I daydream of being happy. I daydream of being successful. All of which i am not