#hphl

⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒

Cw: swearing(??), no use of y/n, gn!mc pt. 1(?) (unedited)

⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒

It’s the same nightmare almost every night now. The same feeling too, just like that day.

That day you made the same mistake Isidora did eons ago. You’d been warned, by so many. Rackham, Fig - even your own conscience told you to be careful. But even when that conscience was screaming at you, you didn’t listen.

Absorbing the dark magic that day, restoring the repository, saving the school- the wizarding world as a whole.. you lost yourself in that moment.

You awoke with a gasp & in a cold sweat. That moment playing in your dreams over & over again. You sat up & rubbed your eyes, adjusting them in the darkness. You looked over to the clock you had sitting above the mantle in your room. You could barley make out what the hands read.

3:34 am

You’d been waking up around that time after the nightmare. With a groan, you swung your legs over the bed. You opened the drawer from your night stand, & selected one of the vials that sat in a wooden box.

Sleeping draught.

You modified the potion so it’d only be in effect for a few hours, you had to be up at 6 for work. You’d also modified it so you wouldn’t have any dreams when you slept. Most of the time it worked. But nights like tonight, you expected it not to.

When you finished the vial, & lied down again & closed your eyes - you feel into sleep again.

More like a paralysis however.

You opened your eyes. You weren’t lying in bed, you weren’t in your room- you were standing in an abyss. You felt smaller. Looking down at your clothes, your back in your Hogwarts uniform. Back to before, back in your 15 year old state.

You felt a presence in front of you, when you looked up, it was you. Yet it wasn’t. It was the version of you that absorbed that dark magic.

I’m tired.

You need me.

I don’t need you.

Then why am I here?

Trick of the mind.

Is it though?

You only stared at yourself. Unnerving, unsettling- this version of yourself smiled at you. Sadistically, witty, threatening.

If this is just a trick of the mind, & you don’t really need me, why am I there beneath the floorboards?

You jolted awake again. Sitting up in bed in another cold sweat. Your heart rate already began to slow to its normal pace. Your once racing mind began to come to terms with reality again. Just a dream. The room was lighter now. You looked to your clock.

5:47 am

You’d only been asleep for a little over 2 hours. You knew you wouldn’t be able to fall back asleep. You didn’t want to waste another sleeping draught for less than 15 minutes of sleep.

Might as well get ready.

⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒

You walked into the Ministry of Magic, people already trailing behind you. Journalists, coworkers, Aurors-

“Please, you’re the only one who can catch this wizard!”

“We need you in this meeting coming up.”

“What’re you doing about the ancient magic now?”

You answered all with as much ease as possible. Some having to decline a comment. Your expression didn’t falter, remaining cold & professional. Because that’s how you were here.

You had the elevator to yourself. How lucky for that almost never happened. Especially the silence.

“Hold the door-!!”

Key word: almost.

Someone managed to slip in the elevator with you before it took off. “Please help us!” You looked next to you. Lucan Brattleby.

Your underling in Hogwarts that ran a well organized dueling club. It wasn’t a very well kept secret however. He’d grown into a well rounded man, & he became the head of the Aurors at quite a young age.

“Please, the Aurors need you! You’re the strongest person!”

“Lucan,” you said with a heavy sigh.

“I know you’re not an Auror anymore-“

“Then you know my answer.”

“Your license hasn’t expired yet-! You could still help us!”

“Lucan,”

“Please MC, they’ve been more persistent now. So many of our current Aurors are already severely injured!”

“Are they rookies?”

“Some yes, but-“

“Then there’s yours problem. Send in the older Auror’s.”

Ding!

‘Department of Mysteries.’

You stepped in the doorway of the elevator.

“MC, please.”

You stopped hearing Lucan’s plea.

“We need you.”

Me? Or my magic.

You let the silence fill for a few seconds

.

. .

“Send Onai to catch the dark wizards. Her strength is unmatched.”

“But.. she’s not-“

“She was. At the same time as me.” You stepped out of the elevator. “If my licensed isn’t expired, neither is hers.” The elevator door closed, began moving backwards. You only heard Lucan sigh before the elevator disappeared.

You walked down the hall. Hands to your side, your assistant came from a nearby hallway- walking beside you. She had a floating notepad & quill following her.

“Is it him again?”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

“Same excuse?”

She snapped her fingers, her notepad flipping to a page where a male voice echoed.

“I am Ranroks son! I will finish what he started!”

The notepad flipped closed. You sighed. Your steps ceased in front of a metal door. You inhaled, & exhaled.

“Let’s get this over with.”

“Good luck.” Your assistant said sarcastically.

“Yeah right.” You said, waving your hand.

Your assistant closed the door behind you. In the center of the room, sat a goblin, his hands were constrained in handcuffs, goblin metal. You took your slow steps towards him.

“What did you fail at again this time, Valx.” You asked.

The goblin glared at you, grumbling under his breath. “I didn’t fail. I miscalculated.”

“Ergo, you failed.”

“I didn’t fail shit!”

“Val C’mon, this is the 5th time I’m having to talk to you.” You said circling his chair.

“Then maybe it shouldn’t be you.”

“Believe me, I wish. But your manipulative wording make people want to kill you.”

He only huffed & turned his head away from you.

Valx, listen to me, you need to give this up.”

“I’m his fucking son.”

“You’re not shit Val. The only family he had left was his brother, of whom he killed. I was there.”

“His blood runs in my veins! I know I’m his son, I can finish his work- I can make the goblins rule the wizarding world-!”

“Valx, even if Ranrok succeeded 20 years ago, there would still be chaos & violence. It wouldn’t be much different than it is now.”

“I would’ve taken over!”

“Your dream is cute kid, but if you’re really Ranrok’s son, you would know he didn’t care about giving power to anyone else but himself.”

“Liar!”

“I really wish I was.”

The room went silent after that. You walked past his chair, nearing a wall. You sighed heavily before speaking again. “If I get another report about a goblin conspiring about Ranrok & the repository- you won’t be here next time.”

He only clicked his tongue. “You said that last time-“

“Yeah well this time I mean it.” You said sharply, turning around & trudging towards him.

You looked down at him with darkening eyes. Eyes that have been through years of magic, pain, & misuse.

“One more arrest, & you’ll find yourself in a cell in the middle of the dark sea.”

Valx only looked up at you with a glare, it wasn’t as cold as yours- for he was still young. He hadn’t been surrounded by death or suffering long enough.

“Do I make myself clear?” You asked.

“Eat shit.”

Your eyes narrowed, & you swiftly walked past him to the door. Not before brushing his shoulder on your way out.

⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒

You sat in your office writing reports of your recent assignments. It was never a big hassle, you had decent memory, but they were still a little annoying.

Knock knock

“Yes?”

“Mr. Sallow & Mr. Gaunt are here.” Your assistant said, muffled behind the door.

“Let them in.” The door swung open.

“Merlin’s beard your still working?” Sebastian said loudly. You looked up at him through your lashes.

“Woah, jeez, alright. Someone didn’t get their morning pumpkin juice.”

“Must you always be this obnoxious?” Ominis said, hitting Sebastian’s shoulder as he stood next to him.

“What do you need?” You asked, going back to your report.

“Did you seriously forget?”

You stopped writing again. Forget ..

.

. .

“..shit.” You muttered.

Sebastian groaned loudly, & Ominis sighed, pinching the bridge of nose. “For Merlin’s sake MC, we’ve been planning this reunion for a month!” Sebastian complained.

“I know.”

“Seriously dear, we just reminded you yesterday.” Ominis chimed in.

“Look I’m sorry, okay? Works been … a lot.”

The room went silent. You had gotten a letter a few weeks ago about a class reunion. You had gone to one 10 years ago, but I didn’t end well. You’ve avoided gatherings with your classmates since then. You debating telling Sallow & Gaunt to just go without you. But perhaps, maybe for one evening. One evening you could just-“No.”

“What?!” They both said.

“I need to finish these reports.”

“Bullshit.”

“MC please.”

“I have to work.”

“We both know you don’t like reports.”

“Even more reason to get them done faster.”

“MC, just come with us. Get out of your routine for a day, you don’t have to stay for the entire evening.” Ominis said, trying to convince you. Yet you remained silent.

“MC, I swear on Merlin’s beard, I will drag you out of this office.”

You abruptly stood from your chair, pushing it back with a screech against the floor. You still held your quill, but you had stopped writing.

“Just one hour, then you can leave.”

You kept your silence.

No one wants to see me. You thought.

You stared at your report. Your writing blurred in your vision. You almost couldn’t read what you wrote. One hour. One hour to smooth over the previous events. If you couldn’t, then you’d never see them again.

“..fine.”

Ominis smiled, & Sebastian let out a small ‘yes’.

“But just-“

“One hour.” They repeated at the same time.

You smiled. A small one, but a smile nonetheless. Putting down your quill & picking up your wand, you gave it a wave- & your belongings began to gather in your bag. You stepped out from your desk, & in front of the pair.

“Alright then, let’s go.”

⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒

A/N: this hit me like a truck @ 4 am I needed to get this written down omg

HI CATO!! 🥹💚

I was doodling Renn earlier and somehow it accidentally turned into a doodle of both of them 😭 I wasn’t even planning on drawing Danny but my hand had other ideas apparently.

One thing I keep thinking about is how Renn is the type of person who will DENY with her entire chest that she likes physical affection while simultaneously making it incredibly obvious that she does 😭

Like she’ll insist, “I don’t NEED someone to hold my hand while walking.”

Danny just goes, “Mhm.”

Five minutes later they’re walking from Charms to History of Magic and she unconsciously reaches for his hand without even looking 😭

If you point it out she’ll immediately go:

“I was making sure you didn’t get lost.”

“…Renn, we’ve taken this route every Tuesday for the last year.”

“…exactly.”

They’re honestly the type of couple that spends most of their walks in comfortable silence. Neither of them feels the need to constantly fill it with conversation. Sometimes Danny is rambling about whatever random thing has hijacked his brain that day, sometimes Renn is telling him about a book she read, but most of the time they’re just… walking. Hands linked, matching their pace without thinking about it, occasionally bumping shoulders or squeezing each other’s hand for no reason at all.

I also have this image of Danny absentmindedly swinging their joined hands while they’re walking and Renn pretending to be SOOOOO annoyed.

“You’re making me walk weird.”

“…You literally started matching the rhythm.”

“I did not.”

“You absolutely did.”

“…”

“…”

“…don’t let go.”

😭💚 mwhahahah i love them your honour

Awww, me too Jenna, I'm super soft for these sweethearts. They face a good amount of turmoil in their life so I felt it was more than right that they deserve their own space of peace together for their troubles. 😭🫶💙💚

This piece you did and the headcanon for is so peaceful and wholesome, a silent booming voice reaching out to my heart as they stroll together taking comfort in their shared tranquil. Perhaps this is my favorite of the ideas we came up with for Danny and Renn's ship so far. It's an endearing and powerful bond they have! 🥺💞

"No," Jackdaw admitted. "I've never had the pleasure."

"I thought you would have."

"So did I." A small, self-deprecating laugh escaped him. "My romantic endeavours, back when I was breathing, weren't... terribly successful."

Imogen lowered her gaze, absently smoothing the cuff of her sleeve.

"I haven't either."

For a while, neither of them spoke. The forest was still around them, save for the wind stirring the leaves overhead. Jackdaw broke the silence first.

"...I wonder if I'd even feel it."

She looked up. "Feel what?"

"A kiss." He hesitated, as though hearing the words aloud had made them sound rather more foolish. "If a ghost kissed someone."

Imogen considered him for a moment.

"I've never thought about it."

"Me neither... until now."

The silence that followed was unlike the ones they had always shared. It stretched between them, touched by an understanding neither had yet found the courage to voice. Jackdaw looked away first.

"Forgive me, that was an odd thing to say. Forget I said that."

She drew a slow breath, gathering a courage she wasn't entirely certain she possessed. "I've been wondering the same thing."

His brows lifted ever so slighty. "...About ghosts?"

Imogen met his gaze. For a fleeting moment, she wondered if she ought to laugh it off, to let him believe she'd meant nothing by it. Instead, she said quietly

"...Not entirely."

Whatever veil had been between them dissolved in that moment.

Jackdaw laughed under his breath, though there was little confidence left in it.

"...I should confess something."

"What?"

"I may have steered this conversation on purpose... Because I wanted an excuse..."

He hesitated, suddenly finding the words far more difficult than he'd expected.

"...to kiss you."

Imogen answered by reaching for him.

(I feel like I have to say this : Imogen isn't a 5th year here-)

Bruv, my urge.... And knowing that soren as a scorer in Quidditch, he would be amazing as a striker.

But NGL, I'm sooo loving the jersey design!!

Fun facts:

- Her father is an orphan while her mother comes from a French pure-blood family, so no one can confidently determine her true blood status.

- Her parents are highly respected figures of authority. Her father taught her hand-to-hand combat and self-defence from a young age, which is why she enjoys physical combat training.

- She didn't begin attending Hogwarts until she was a fifth year. Her parents chose to educate her at home, fearing she would be bullied or harassed because of her albinism. As a result, she is painfully socially awkward and dislikes crowds.

- Due to the lack of pigment in her eyes, she has terrible eyesight and severe light sensitivity. She owns a pair of spectacles, but only wears them for reading or studying. They don't give her perfect vision, only enough extra focus to help. She's incredibly self conscious about being seen wearing them.

- It was Cressida Blume who managed to convinced her to start wearing them.

- Much like Ominis, she occasionally uses her wand to help navigate the castle. Though she only relies on it when the sunlight is so bright that she can barely keep her eyes open.

- She almost never starts conversations. If spoken to, she'll usually answer in as few words as possible.

- She can stay angry for a very long time.

- She is lactose intolerant (loves milk anyway).

- She is the slowest eater at every meal.

- Her footsteps are somehow very silent.

- She never goes out the castle during the day without a parasol.

- She absolutely despises being sung happy birthday.

- The cello is her first love.

- While her mother was pregnant with her, she was struck by na unknown curse during a duel. Although she survived, Imogen was born frail with a weakened immune system. Healers suspect she inherited remnants of the curse, believing it will slowly consume her over the course of her life, though no one knows when.. Or if it even will.

I haven’t posted anything in so long, because it takes me such a long time to finish something.

So I thought I can at least show some of my WIP‘s I‘m working on.