Where Monsters Hide

“You have peace," the old woman said, "when you make it with yourself.” ― Mitch Albom

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

F2F → FRAMES

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

Francine was caught off-guard when he reached for her hand; she attempted to pull away, but still as he spoke. Peering up into his brown eyes, she swallowed hard as she willed herself not to cry. But it was difficult, especially as he gave he hand a squeeze. Unable to hold back a cry, her face fell, and she shook her head. “Sometimes it feels like I have. It feels like I can’t keep going on. I wish I could… unsee things. Unfeel them.” Sucking her bottom lip between her teeth, she shook her head, her heart aching painfully. She couldn’t help the strangled laugh that escaped her, caught somewhere between a laugh and cry. “If you burn our pancakes, I’m never talking to you again, James Potter.”

[potter-the-lion]

She was smiling at him. Crying, yes, but still smiling at him in a way that wasn’t forced, or fake, and James couldn’t help but feel the tiniest amount of relief from that alone. If they had been back in the castle, back in Hogwarts, he would have opted for a hug, - but limits were still limits, and so James could only return the grin, blinking away the tears in his own eyes as he let her hand go. “We can’t have that, can we?” he asked, bumping shoulders with her as he turned the stove back on. There was a heavy silence, a deep breath, and James had to force the words out as he continued. “You’re still one of the strongest people I know,” he started, keeping his voice soft. “You can’t unsee things, and you can’t unfeel them, but you can make a promise to never see or feel those things again.” He gave a small shrug. “If you can do that, you’re stronger than most of us.”

[potter-the-lion]

JAMES CANNOT ESCAPE TROLL

TROLL CANNOT ESCAPE JAMES.

[the-taintedtruth]

Because you feel like home to me. That’s why I love you.

(via fearlessknightsandfairytales)

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

F2F → FRAMES

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

“They’d love to see you. Dad especially. Always asks about you,” Francine admitted. “But yeah, they’d really like that. Mum smiles whenever I talk about you.” Her heart ached, so much that she felt sick to her stomach, but she smiled on, not daring to break her smile for fear that she’d really lose it. As she watched the pancakes cook, the knot in her belly twisting painfully at his question. Peering up at him, she shrugged. “Yes.” She quickly turned from him, grabbing another mixing bowl, setting it in front of her to crack eggs into it. “It’s just that… we’ve been through a lot. Are still going through a lot. With the nightmares… and not being able to sleep. Losing… people we love. And I thought… it’d be nice to be with someone who understood. Someone who knows me, and who I know.” Francine stabbed at the egg yolks, beating furiously as she spoke. “And… I’ve missed you, okay? I’ve missed you terribly, and even if things aren’t the same anymore, even if we keep breaking each other’s hearts, you’re… still my bloody person.”

[potter-the-lion]

James stood in silence, watching as Francine put her frustrations into beating the eggs. It wasn’t an answer he had been expecting, - far from it, - but it was an answer that made more sense than anything else in that moment. The fact that she was being honest spoke volumes; she could have brushed it off, told him that she just thought catching up would be nice, that having a familiar face to see every now and again would ease some nerves, that her Dad’s advice and her Mum’s smiles nudged her into it. But she didn’t. James thought for a moment, before switching the stove off, leaving the pan alone. He reached out, letting out a quiet, ‘Oi,’ and taking her hand to get her to stop beating the eggs like they had personally offended her, before pushing the bowl away to make sure he had her full attention. “We have nightmares,” he began slowly, trying to make sense of his own words as he said them. “We’ve lost months of sleep and years worth of friendships. We’ve lost a lot more than we’d ever care to think about, and we lost.. - well. This.” He gave her hand a tiny squeeze, hoping she understood what he meant. “I don’t know how many times a heart can break before it finally gives up, but I know I haven’t reached that point yet. And I know you haven’t, either. But we’ve been through a war, and too many funerals to count, and too many heartbreaks, and I don’t know about you, but I think it’s pretty impressive that we’re still functioning well enough to make breakfast together. In all aspects.” He managed a small smile, hoping it would get her to return one. “If being your ‘bloody person’ means you have to boss me around while I burn pancakes and you start slowly being okay again, then I’m up for that if you are. Because I’ve definitely missed you, too.”

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

F2F → FRAMES

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

Francine couldn’t help the smile that twitched at her lips as he saluted her, giving him a little nod in acknowledgement. “Git,” she murmured almost affectionately under her breath, shaking her head at him. It was easy to fall back into a light conversation with teasing and affectionate name calling, even though Francine knew it wasn’t necessarily allowed anymore. As she finished mixing the mix up, she began to pour some onto the griddle, the gentle sizzle filling the silence between them– until James spoke, that is. “Oh?” Fran glanced up. “I’ve probably got an answer for you. Though, if you’re going to ask after my mum and dad– well, you’ll just have to go see them for yourself.” 

[potter-the-lion]

There was something painfully domestic about it; making breakfast together and talking about visiting her parents, and it took James a moment to snap out of his thoughts. He cracked a smile, shaking his head as his attention shifted between her and the stove top. “Not that,” he replied, nudging her arm with his elbow absent-mindedly, “but I’ll have you know that I’ve been meaning to drop by, so that’ll be happening, anyway.” James paused again, trying to think of how to phrase his words without making it sound too awful. “When you suggested lunch,” he started again, after a moment of staring at the pancake and pushing at it’s sides to check when to flip it, “you said you wanted to catch up. Was that the only reason you suggested it, or was there something else?” He didn’t know what the ‘something else’ could be, but it had been on his mind since the idea of meeting up was first mentioned, and as time went on, it was proving harder and harder to ignore.

[iwishiwasarockstar-blog]

[theboyceavenuechronicles-bl-blog]

For The First Time - Boyce Avenue (The Script cover)

But we’re gonna start by Drinking old, cheap bottles of wine Sit talkin’ up all night Saying things we haven’t for a while

We’re smiling but we’re close to tears Even after all these years We just now got the feeling That we’re meeting

For the first time

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

F2F → FRAMES

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

Just like the old days. Part of Fran wanted to burst into tears, but she quickly swallowed down any sign of that frog crawling up in her throat and inhaled deeply, praying that she’d be able to hold herself together. She’d began to pray a lot over the last couple of years; she didn’t know if there was anyone up there listening, but it helped her feel better, especially during times of trouble, which she’d experienced more than a lifetime of in the past few years. Peering up at her companion, her oldest friend, her greatest love, Fran simply smiled. “Yeah. Yeah– just like the old days.” Reaching over, she grabbed the spatula and turned to hand it to him. “Flip. Just don’t mess them up, Potter.” She offered James a teasing smile, giving him a little nudge before returning to her own task.

[potter-the-lion]

James took the spatula with ease, lifting it up to offer her a mock salute. “Aye, aye, Captain,” he teased, resisting the urge to wink the way he would have five years ago. The pain that had been strangling him all morning had dulled to a slight ache, something that could only be blamed for being by her side again. Even if it hurt. Even if they still had things to talk about. Even if slipping back into old habits was almost too easy, and he was almost too scared to let it happen. But for the first time in a long time, they were standing beside each other again. Not flinging hexes at people who wanted to kill them, and not at a funeral, and Merlin, that was a relief in itself. “I’ve got a question for you,” he started again, the silence around them just teetering between comfortable and painful.

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

F2F → FRAMES

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

Francine stilled her movements, leaning against the counter. You could cut the tension between them with a knife, and it deeply pained Fran. “Ignoring it doesn’t do us any favors.” She picked up her tools again, shaking her head at him. “Believe me, it’s a little strange for me too. A good strange, though.” Peering up at him, she gestured to the mixing bowl. “Wanna mix, or flip?”

[potter-the-lion]

Pushing for details while Fran had anything in her hands was the last thing James wanted to do, - with all the tension resting on both their shoulders, and the instinct to defend themselves no matter what that they both picked up during the war, he knew what she could do with the little she had. One wrong move, and he’d end up with a spatula sticking out of his ear. The thought almost made him smile, but James had to fight it, turning his head to watch her work. “I’ll do whatever you tell me to,” he eventually replied, glancing back at her. “Just like the old days, right?”

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

F2F → FRAMES

[potter-the-lion]

hufflepufflefran:

“They’d never let us live that down,” Francine mused, letting out a giggle as she put the pan over the flame and began lining the strips of bacon. She didn’t like how strained and awkward things felt; all she wanted was for things to be back to normal, back to easy. She shouldn’t feel this bad still, after being broken up for so long– and she’d tried to move on, but it hadn’t been all that successful. It was hard to date while trying to survive a war. “How’s Ryder, by the way? I haven’t had a chance to send him an OWL or anything lately…” Moving around him, she opened up one of the cabinets, retrieving a mixing bowl, then a whisk. Glancing at him, Francine forced a smile. “This is really weird… isn’t it?” 

James slipped into silence, leaned up against the counter as she moved around him. He would have been perfectly content to stay that way, choosing awkward silence over painful conversation in a heartbeat, - but when had he ever been able to predict her moves, anyway? He blinked when she looked at him, and the words pinned him to the spot.  “I wasn’t sure if we were allowed bring attention to it,” he replied, not even trying to force a smile any more as he watched her place the utensils down on the counter beside him. “It’s not every day I get Francine Longbottom frying bacon on my stove top. That alone is a little surreal for me.”

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

F2F → FRAMES

[potter-the-lion]

hufflepufflefran:

Leaning against the kitchen counter, Fran watched the scene unfold, smiling as Taylor Swift, her beloved cat, was freed from the bag where she’d been napping until now. “She missed you,” Fran explained, gripping the edge of the table. She’s not the only who missed you. Scoffing, Francine turned away from James, shaking her head as she began pulling everything out of the other bag. “I would never think of doing such a thing, Potter.” She suddenly felt this overwhelming sadness weighing in on her. Maybe this had been a mistake; coming here would only remind her of everything she didn’t have anymore. Of everything she’d lost. “Crispy, right?” she nonchalantly asked as she began to prep the pan for the bacon. Food was the solution for everything. 

So there were lines to be wary of crossing, boundaries that had set themselves up in the past three years. He could see it in the way she turned away from him, almost refusing to settle into the back-and-forth teasing they had grown up with, - and that hurt worse than a well-performed stinging hex. James forced himself to shrug the sensation away, setting the cat on the table before she started to squirm in his arms as she always did. “Crispy,” he echoed, forcing himself to smile as he moved the last of the ingredients over to the counter, taking extra care to keep some distance between them. “You know Ryder and Fabray would skin us both if we had anything else.”

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

F2F → FRAMES

[potter-the-lion]

hufflepufflefran:

Trying not to laugh, Francine pursed her lips and rolled her eyes at him as she crossed her arms. “I am the boss. The most bossy. –Get those hands clean and start helping, Potter, or else I’m eating all the bacon.” Empty threats, since she wouldn’t dream of letting anyone go hungry, but she did enjoy giving him a hard time and teasing him in return. “–But, before you start helping, could you go in that bag, for me?” she asked, the ends of her lips beginning to turn up trying to keep a straight face. “We need what’s in the bag.”

James didn’t question it. Of course he didn’t question it; the bag probably held ingredients or whatever they needed, and following Francine’s orders came almost far too easy for him, even after their time apart. He gave her a winning smile, ducking over to the bags she had placed on the table. One held the usual ingredients, - milk, eggs, flour, the bacon, everything they needed, - but the other. The other made something in James’ chest ache painfully, though he couldn’t stop himself from letting out an excited laugh, recognising the (now fully grown) cat in the bag instantly. “We’re not supposed to put you in the pancakes,” he started, pulling Taylor out of the bag to hold her in his arms, - something that was somewhat of a struggle for the dog in him. “You trying to domesticate me already, Longbottom?” he asked, directing his excited grin at her again. 

[hufflepufflefran-deactivated201]

F2F → FRAMES

[potter-the-lion]

hufflepufflefran:

“Alright, I couldn’t decide on what to make us for lunch, so we’re having breakfast instead. Breakfast for lunch,” Francine rambled as she barged through the front door of James’ flat, blowing past him and towards the kitchen. Setting her bags down, the tiny young woman stretched and turned to face her ex-boyfriend, giving him a little smile. If they weren’t broken up, this was the part where she’d run up to him, and maybe jump into his arms and start kissing his face… but, as it was, they weren’t together now. Fran shook her head, not wanting to ruin this already; it was still hard to be around James, even after being broken up for a long time now, but hey could still be friends, couldn’t they? Somehow they were back in the exact same place they’d been in during Fran’s sixth year. 

“So, wash your hands if you’re going to help. We’re making pancakes and bacon.”

In the twenty years that he had known her, together or not, James always knew that Francine was a whirlwind of movement, - of getting up and doing things. Even in the tougher times, she refused to sit down and wait, and instead chose to act; and Merlin knew there were enough times where she could have finally stopped. And now, after months of near-silence and post-war wind-down, that rang true, and the former Gryffindor couldn’t help but stand silent and impressed as she made her way into the kitchen like she lived there herself, waiting for him to catch up.

“Should I ask what occasion calls for the magic of pancakes and bacon, or should I shut up and get cracking?” he teased, raising an amused eyebrow at her. “You’re the boss, after all.”

[potter-the-lion]

[PM]

James: ..when the bloody hell have I ever meant /anything/ in the 'Oi, make me a sandwich, wench,' way? When have I ever called anyone a /wench/?!

James: Whatever you want will be great.

Fran: That's my poinnnt! It didn't sound like that at all, and I guess that's one of the things I'll always be grateful for. --I DUNNO. I like using it though. Makes me feel like... Captain Jack Sparrow. Or something.

Fran: Okay. :)

James: ..Captain Jack Sparrow.

James: Right, then, /Captain/.

James: Okay! :)

[wnq-writers]

Most days my demons are silent, but when they talk, oh, God, how they scream.

writersblockedmind (via doucheywolf)

[potter-the-lion]

[PM]

Fran: Terrifying? Or absolutely thrilling? You love my cooking, and besides-- you just admitted you love my being in your kitchen. Which, under other circumstances, I might be offended by, but I'm pretty sure you don't mean it in a 'OI! Make me a sandwich, wench!" kind of way. Oi! I don't eat it THAT much, thank you very much, Potter. I like pizza, and chips just as much as the next person, hmph.

Fran: But alright, homecooked it is. Any requests, before I go for ingredients and everything I'll need?

James: ..when the bloody hell have I ever meant /anything/ in the 'Oi, make me a sandwich, wench,' way? When have I ever called anyone a /wench/?!

James: Whatever you want will be great.

[potter-the-lion]

[PM]

Fran: Um, would you like me to pick something up? Danielle introduced me to Chinese takeout, which we probably eat too much of, but...

Fran: Or we can cook.

James: While the thought of letting you loose in my kitchen again is kinda terrifying, I really love the idea of it. Besides, you should probably only eat Chinese so many times before you /become/ a box of chow mein. I'll take my chances with the homemade stuff.

[potter-the-lion]

[PM]

Fran: Good.

James: Good.