In Search of Something More || Read The Epilogue on Ao3 || NOW COMPLETE
A Jily Regency AU || 1.6K Words || Rated M || Playlist || Start from the Beginning
In the sunlit garden of her sister’s home, Lord Potter had promised Lily a life of her own design, with minimal expectations—her presence at community events, companionship, and an heir. As the two stumble into the routine of marriage and work to make a life together at Stinchcombe Hall, unsolicited feelings provoke each to start wondering if this is merely a marriage…or if it could be something more.
A continuation of this Jilytober entry.
Chapter 12: The Epilogue
February, Five Months Later
“It was bordering on indecent—”
“There certainly was a lot of whispering going on. Plenty of tittering mamas.”
Peter’s face reddens and he sputters as his eyes dart between Samantha and Sirius from where he sits across from them in the parlor. “It isn’t as if it was my intention! I simply lost track of the number of times Miss Eleanor and I had taken to the floor. I—it—”
“Ease off of him, you two,” Graham chastises with a smile as he lifts his glass to his lips. “We don’t need to worry Peter to the point of passing out. We’ve made it the whole night without incident.”
Thank you all so much for your patience with this fic! It definitely took longer than expected to write, but the reception for it has been so overwhelming <3 I hope you enjoy one last little peek into this world!
Next up: Baby time (for me) and then I plan on pivoting back to my first war AU, in the latter days. I'll see y'all around here until then!
the rabbit’s love letter to the dog in the abandoned backyard.
oh, lover. oh, sweet boy. oh, dog chained to the pole outside, pacing back and forth, drawing a line in the dirt, cleaving this backyard apart with the soft pads of your paws and the idle clinking of your claws. the snapping of your teeth is enough to frighten, enough to make blood turn cold. i watch as you bite at your wrists, seeing your attempt at turning this monster within. your talons tear at the rows of your teeth; you do not wish to be such an abhorrent beast. oh, puppy. oh, darling. oh, my beloved stray. the way the moonlight dances across your coat of charcoal black and gray. you turn away from my touch, and growl at the slightest grazing of fingers as soft and plush as winter’s first snow. you think that love is a race, and that you’ve long since been forgotten. you see yourself as the losing dog, a thousand times bitten and never not shy. your canines are always angled, your body always tense. my beautiful wolf, i bear my neck to you, empty and bare and ready for your bite. a mark of territory. a warning. a threat. my trust for you is rooted in my bones. my marrow sings psalms in your honor. my blood pumps in the rhythm of the brush of your paw on my thigh. my heart sings foreign words to my ears that only you have the key in deciphering. whether the bite comes or not, i need not care. i am yours. and you are mine.
oh!!! I remember when u did these a bit ago!! Anyways. For the song ask. You know. Jjpope + 34 <3
oof this is late! sorry, got too drunk at a holiday party yesterday and had to work today. sorry for the wait, have some ridiculous boys💖💖💖
beg for you charli xcx featuring rina sawayama
There is a boy in Pope’s bed.
And this boy is kissing Pope, all sweetly devastating, keeping him close with a hand wrapped around his neck. “I’m supposed to be packing,” Pope murmurs between the slow, easy slide of their lips. He makes no move to detangle himself from the grip.
There is a boy in Pope’s bed, and it’s new and terrifying and wonderful, and Pope wants to indulge, stay wrapped in this moment and let time pass them by. Because tomorrow means leaving this perfect bubble, leaving his bed and his boy behind.
JJ hums into a grin, lips moving against Pope’s as he snarks, “you sure are packing something,” and Pope manages to jerks away just as JJ’s knee comes up between his legs.
JJ cackles, like that’s the reaction he was hoping for. Pope ducks his head, hiding his smile.
“You’re the worst,” he tells JJ, too fond for his own good.
“Yeah, probably,” JJ agrees easily. He flips his vape over his knuckles, a neat little trick that highlights his thin, deft fingers. Pope’s eyes get caught there for a moment, the uneven nailbeds and rough, callused skin from years of salt-water work without gloves, because JJ loses every pair. Luckily, JJ misses his obvious staring, too busy sneaking a hit off the vape before Pope can scold him. “You’re still gonna miss me, though, right?”
The words poke at some tender spot in Pope’s chest. Sometimes, Pope considers there may be something wrong with him; this unending hunger, the unquenchable want that fills him up can’t be normal. He’s cursed to never be satisfied with what he’s got, to always, selfishly, want more than his lot.
Even this, with JJ, as good as it is, is not enough to quell that greed. Pope’s adrift, knocked clean off his board and spinning under the waves, untethered from any solid thing that makes sense. It’s not even about whether he’ll miss JJ - he will, of course he will, terribly and constantly - but more, it is that he doesn’t know how to exist without JJ.
Instead of fumbling through the attempt at explaining his disorganized thoughts, Pope presses back into JJ’s space, arms going around him.
“Oh, hey,” JJ says, soft, his own arms wrapping Pope close. JJ’s nose nudges Pope’s hairline as he awkwardly cranes his neck to keep Pope in his eyeline.
JJ kind of stinks, unwashed boy and weed and the vaguely cola scent of stale deodorant. And this position is more than a little uncomfortable, JJ squished between the wall and the bed, Pope all but sprawled out over his chest. Plus, Pope really does have to pack.
Instead, he hides his face in JJ’s sweaty neck, clinging. JJ laughs, a small huff that jostles Pope, but he also pulls Pope tighter against him, settling them more fully into the embrace.
Pope will get up in a few minutes. For now, he’s going to enjoy having exactly what he wants.
send me a ship and a number (1-100) and I’ll write something based on the corresponding song from replay playlist
Merry Christmas, @unashamed-shipper! I am your secret santa! I really hope you enjoy your gift and have a great Christmas and rest of your year! ^.^
I wrote an IzuOcha fanfiction for you! Uraraka is unable to spend the holidays with her family, so Izuku decides to spend the night of Christmas with her! I hope it has enough fluffy goodness for you! :) I also posted it on Ao3 if you would prefer to read it there, just click here.
And a big thank you to @bnhasecretsanta for setting this event up! I wish you happy holidays as well!
Christmas Cheer
Izuku took a deep breath, inhaling the cool, crisp air around him. Nervous energy cackled throughout his body, his heart picking up a beat. He tried shaking it out, but that only seemed to get his blood pumping rather than calm his nerves.
It was stupid to be nervous. He was just going to hang out with Uraraka, just like they always did. There was no need for him to feel nervous.
Just focus on something else.
He settled his emerald eyes on the door in front of him. Below the apartment number hung welcoming wreath, its pinecones and small, round ornaments lightly dusted in snow. In the middle of the wreath was a smiling Frosty the Snowman, holding a candy cane.
Izuku lifted his hand to knock on the door before him, hesitating. As much as he tried to convince himself, he knew that today was no ordinary day. The weight of Uraraka’s present that hid inside his jacket pocket served as a constant reminder. It was Christmas, and it was his first time spending Christmas with someone outside of his mother.
He was spending Christmas with a girl.
The girl he liked.
The thought alone had been enough to make his head spin and heart race, but now that he stood in front of her apartment door, the nerves had kicked into overdrive. His hands trembled, butterflies filled his stomach, and his heart beat fast in his chest. He was a mess, a nervous wreck.
His mind sent him into a panic, thoughts racing through his mind as he made a move to knock on her door and paused.
“What if her parents found a way to visit her for Christmas? Maybe the roads cleared and they picked her up and she forgot to message me… Or if she is home, maybe she’ll think it’s too cold to go outside. Maybe she’ll hate the gift I got her and-“
“Deku?”
Izuku’s body straightened, his eyes snapping to attention. Uraraka stood before him, her chocolate brown eyes peering at him in concern. She donned a cream-colored sweater and black jeans with snow boots, a white and purple spotted hat covering her head, and a matching scarf covering her neck.
She tilted her head as she looked at him, her hat tipping in the direction. “Deku, are you okay?”
His eyes widened with horror as he realized he must have gone on a mumbling ramble in front of her. He covered his mouth with his hand as red creeped along his cheeks. He didn’t trust himself to speak in fear of stuttering and tripping over his words, so he simply nodded in answer.
He could tell she didn’t fully believe him, but she didn’t question it. Instead, she took a step backwards into her apartment, offering him a small smile. “All right. I’ll be right back; I just need to grab my jacket and we can head out.”
She shut the door, and Izuku blew out a breath of relief, dropping his hand from his mouth.
‘Calm down. It’s going to be fine. Just breathe,’ he reminded himself, taking a deep breath.
Uraraka emerged from her apartment a moment later, donning a salmon pink jacket and a bright smile just for him. The sight made his heart skip a beat, and it took him a moment to realize she had spoken.
“W-what was that?” he responded, shaking his head to focus on the conversation.
Uraraka narrowed her eyes at him, confused by his lack of focus. “I asked if you were ready to go?”
“O-oh! Yes, I am,” he responded, stepping forward. “J-just follow me.”
Around this time on Christmas, Izuku and his mother would be watching Christmas movies and cooking together. He originally had been planning on doing just that, but after receiving a call from a very upset Uraraka, he had changed plans.
Uraraka lived alone in her apartment for most of the school year, so for holidays she would travel home to her parents. This holiday, however, hadn’t worked out as planned for her. On the day she was supposed to travel home, a heavy blizzard had come through. And on the day her parents had planned to visit her, another wave of snow had fallen. Uraraka had called him in tears, unsure of what to do.
There hadn’t been much that he could do for her; it wasn’t as though he could teleport her to her parents, so he did the next best thing and volunteered to spend Christmas with her. He had been so nervous on the call that he’d nearly thrown up, but hearing the excitement in her voice had made it worth it. So, he had researched something for them to do and found a Christmas lights show in the city that they could go to.
The trip to the city took longer than expected, due to all of the traveling everyone was doing for Christmas. Even though the trip was long, it was still enjoyable thanks to Uraraka. She always had an abundance to say, always bringing up the positive aspects of the trip – “I’m so excited for the lights!” or “Even though we didn’t grab seats on the train, at least we still get to stand together!” – which kept a smile on Izuku’s face as they traversed through the city.
Once the two stepped off the train, it was a quick trek by foot until they hit the city park where the lighting would be. The air was chillier now, with an icy breeze cutting through as the two found a spot amongst the crowd awaiting the lighting, huddling close to each other.
The sun was beginning to set, streaks of pinks and orange lighting the sky beautifully. People milled around them, the smell of hot chocolate and coffee filling the air as the crowd chatted mindlessly amongst themselves. But even with all the bustle around them, Izuku felt as if he and Uraraka were the only ones in the world as they watched the sun set.
“Have you ever been to see the Christmas lighting before?” Uraraka asked suddenly, dragging Izuku from his thoughts.
He shook his head. “I’ve always wanted to, but my mom and I never made it.”
Her smile grew a little wider at that. “Then we’ll both experience this for the first time.”
That was what he’d been hoping for to make this night even more special. “Th-thank you for coming with me tonight,” he said, his cheeks flushing. “I-I really appreciate it…”
Uraraka giggled, her smiling brightening. “Thank you for inviting me, Deku!”
Izuku opened his mouth to say something else, but he paused when the world around them illuminated in lights of all colors. The Christmas tree overlooking the city went up in an array of red, green, blue, and white lights, the star on top glittering in white and red. Tinsel and ornaments of all sizes and colors decorated the tree, each reflecting the various colors of the Christmas lights.
The rest of the city around them lit up in color as well, breathing life into the dark, cold air as lights in purple, white, light and dark blue, red, pink, light and dark green, and yellow flashed on. Lights were strung along the trees, wound along the branches. Bushes were wound in lights, with figures of Rudolph, Frosty the Snowman, Santa Claus, the Grinch, even one of All Might, and other Christmas icons sticking out.
Music sounded a moment later, Carol of the Bells playing through speakers scattered around the park. As the music played, the lights around them began flashing in tune with the beat. At each beat, various lights would turn on and off, lighting up different parts of the park and leaving others in the dark for the briefest moments of time.
The sight was so enthralling, so unlike anything Izuku had seen before that his entire focus was on the show until the song ended. And as soon as the next song started up, the lights moved in tune with the music as well. It completely captured his attention until he moved to place his hands in his pockets and felt something hard.
The gift! The whole reason he brought Uraraka here! He had nearly forgotten about it all.
“U-um, U-Uraraka?” Izuku whispered, tearing his nervous gaze away from the lights and turning it to her. He stuck his hand in the pocket where her gift rested, fiddling with the box.
“Yes, Deku?” she responded, glancing at him, a soft smile on her face.
He pulled out the box, handing it to her with shaky hands. “I-I g-got you a present… M-Merry Christmas,” he stammered, a nervous smile working across his lips.
She peered at him in surprise, her eyes softening as she reached out to take the gift. “But Deku, I don’t have yours on hand,” she replied, her eyes glued to the small box.
He waved a dismissive hand; he couldn’t care less if she had a gift to give him or not. He just hoped that she would like what he got her. “I-it’s okay. P-please, open it.”
She wasted no time in unwrapping the box and opening the lid. When she saw the item inside, her eyes shone brightly, the Christmas lights reflecting within them as one hand covered her mouth.
“Deku,” she breathed, moving her hand from her mouth and to the box. She pulled out the charm bracelet, her chocolate brown eyes looking at him. “It’s beautiful…” She held it up in the light of the Christmas lights, her hand gingerly touching the two charms: a pink, sparkly UA and two purple stars touching one another.
His cheeks burned red as he opened his mouth to explain his thought process. “W-well, I-I figured since w-we met at UA a-and we g-go to school th-there, y-you might like a charm o-of it. A-and I-I know how much y-you like the stars. W-whenever I look up at the n-night sky I-I always think of you.” She always was so positive and radiated light, just as the star radiated light in the night sky. After a moment, his eyes widened and his cheeks grew redder at the comment, his flailing in front of him. “I-I mean, u-um, n-not in a-a creepy way!”
Uraraka giggled, her laughter ringing softly through the air, drowning out the chatter from the people around them, the clomping of the carriage rides, and the vocals of the carolers.
“Deku, calm down. It’s all right,” she said, trying to stifle her laughter.
“O-okay, b-but i-if you don’t like it, I-I can always exchange it f-for something else! I-I’m sure I kept a copy of the receipt somewhere…”
She shook her head. “That isn’t necessary. I love it.” She smiled earnestly, and Izuku thought he saw the faintest hint of a blush on her own cheeks. “Really, it’s so thoughtful and I love it.”
Deku took a deep breath before speaking again. “I-I also have another charm for it…”
“You do?”
He nodded. Offering her this charm was going to be the most difficult part of the night. “B-but it d-depends on your answer to my next question…”
“What is it?” she inquired, raising an eyebrow.
He bit his lower lip, his heart slamming against his chest so hard that it thought it might leap out.
You can do this. You won’t know her answer until you ask.
“W-will y-you…” He took another deep breath, feeling nauseated from nerves. Why was this so difficult? It was a simple question, and yet this question brought a world of possibilities with it. He didn’t know what he would do if she rejected him. He didn’t want to think about it, honestly.
“U-Uraraka, w-will you… w-will you.... p-pleasegooutwithme?” he shouted, bowing and closing his eyes. His statement came out in a rush but he couldn’t help it; it felt as though it was the only way the words were going to come out.
He couldn’t see her, but Uraraka was blushing, her cheeks a bright pink. “W-what?”
Oh no, he had to repeat it? He tried again, stating his words more slowly. “W-will y-you g-go out w-with m-m-me? I-I mean, y-you don’t have to!” He stood up, flailing his arms once more, though he avoided eye contact. “I-I don’t w-want you t-to feel like y-you don’t h-have a ch-choice! I-I just-“
His words were cut off as arms wrapped around him, the feeling of fuzz tickling his chin. Startled, he tensed, bringing his emerald-eyed gaze downcast to see Uraraka hugging him. Well, he could only see her hat and a little of her hair since her face was buried in his chest.
She lifted her head, resting her chin on his chest as she met his gaze. The brightest smile lit her face, her cheeks pink, and her eyes glassy with tears as she replied, “Yes. I would love to go out with you, Deku.”
Relief washed over him, as he had been wracking his brain over how she would react to the question and how she would respond. He’d been so terrified of rejection that he almost hadn’t asked, but after hearing her answer tonight and feeling the immense amount of joy that he did, he was glad that he went through with it.
He finally returned her embrace, hugging her as tight as he could, the largest grin lighting his lips. Never in a million years had he imagined that a girl as beautiful and kind as Uraraka would like him or want to date him. It almost didn’t feel real, and for the briefest of moments, he hoped he wasn’t dreaming.
Uraraka broke the silence and pulled away a little, keeping her arms around him as she excitedly bounced in place. “So? What’s the other charm?” A sparkle of excitement gleamed in her eyes.
Izuku laughed for a moment, having temporarily forgotten about it. He had been too elated to hear her answer to remember the final part of her gift. He dug into one of his pockets and pulled out the charm of a Christmas tree.
“I-I figured this would always remind you of our first Christmas together,” he admitted, his cheeks as red as a tomato.
Uraraka removed her hands from his torso and opened her palms so he could drop the charm in her hands. She ran her fingers of the tree, smiling softly. “I love it. Thank you so much.”
“M-Merry Christmas, Uraraka.”
She glanced up at him, her hand closing over the charm as she moved to hug him once more. “Merry Christmas, Deku.”
I am so sorry I could honestly not think of anything creative! That’s why it took so long! Plus I know it’s supposed to be a send me a fake title and I’ll tell you what I’d write about it but I didn’t know how to unwrite the end bit, I quite liked that actually!
***
Her deep breaths, like oceans waves in, out, they took her with them.
Pyrite.
Probably.
What else could it be?
Molly embarks on a self discovery journey of ignoring Sherlock Holmes after he’d done exactly what she asked him to. Said it like he meant it.
Throughout all these years she’d never felt the most idiotic as she did about loving Sherlock Holmes until now.
Pyrite.
That was what it was, Fool’s Gold. He didn’t mean it, of course he didn’t.
It didn’t matter how much she thought he did, believed he did, didn’t matter if it just sounded so real that she thought she knew he did, because how could he? Honestly?
Choice (caution to the wind) || Read on Ao3 || 5K Words
“It’s just…” When she speaks again, her voice is softer. It’s tired, but not absent of a sharp quality to it. “Between the war and the Ministry…I miss feeling like I had a choice. I sometimes feel like things just happen and all I can do is react.”
Potter seems instantly aware of the almost imperceptible shift in her and his hand comes up to ruffle through his hair. “Righteous anger’s a good look on you, Evans. Always has been."
Or: Lily finds a small way to take her life into her own hands.
In Search of Something More || Read Chapter 11 on Ao3
A Jily Regency AU || 6.3K Words || Rated M || Playlist || Start from the Beginning
In the sunlit garden of her sister’s home, Lord Potter had promised Lily a life of her own design, with minimal expectations—her presence at community events, companionship, and an heir. As the two stumble into the routine of marriage and work to make a life together at Stinchcombe Hall, unsolicited feelings provoke each to start wondering if this is merely a marriage…or if it could be something more.
A continuation of this Jilytober entry.
Chapter 11: Resolutions
Time passes in a fog, the days and nights blurring together as one as the halls of Stinchcombe settle back into a sleepier rhythm, absent of visitors. In the aftermath of the Meadowes’ stay, however, there is no lack of joy to be found. On the contrary; waking hours are spent sharing smiles, stories, and laughter as hands gently brush through tendrils of hair or trail lightly over soft skin. Days tick by with no work to demand James’ attention away from her, and whether they’re passing contented time in parallel solitude—reading, writing, playing music—or find themselves decidedly more engaged with one another, Lily cannot remember a time she’s ever felt more at peace.
The days are spent alongside one another, yes, but so are the nights.
Merry Early Christmas to you all! Sorry I spent like half the year on this update 🙃 I packed it with extra Jily cuteness to make up for it.
