#reader x lily

Summary: A princess refuses to marry for the throne and disappears into her kingdom to prove she can rule alone—only to fall for a girl who doesn’t know who she is. When the truth shatters everything, she must choose between duty and love, and prove she doesn’t need a king to become a queen.

A/n: My love for the Harry Potter series and the Marauders is separate from JKR and her beliefs. If you choose to support the fandom, please do so without supporting her transphobic ideas.

The throne room had always felt too large for comfort. Not because of its size—but because of its expectations.

You stood at the center, beneath the towering stained glass that painted your skin in fractured colors. It made you look like something divine. With your hair neatly combed and gown spilling out like a whisper, you simply looked ethereal.

You had never felt less like it.

“Your Highness,” the council elder began, voice smooth with rehearsed authority, “the time has come to finalize your future.”

You didn’t respond.

You already knew what was coming.

Your mother sat beside the throne, posture perfect, eyes softer than the rest—but not soft enough to stop this.

“You will be queen,” she said carefully. “But as tradition demands, you must marry.”

There it was. Not you will rule. Not you are ready. But you must marry.

You let out a quiet breath, steadying yourself.

“And if I refuse?”

Silence fell like something sharp.

The elder spoke again, slower this time. “A queen does not stand alone. A kingdom requires a king beside her.”

“No,” you said.

The word echoed louder than you expected.

“It requires a ruler. And I am one.”

A ripple moved through the court—shock, disapproval, something close to offense.

Your father’s voice cut through it. “This is not a debate.”

“It should be,” you replied, meeting his gaze. “You raised me to lead. Not to be handed over like a treaty.”

Your mother stood then, descending the steps slowly.

“This is not about control,” she said, softer now. “It is about stability. The people expect—”

“The people expect what they’ve been told to expect.”

That landed.

You could see it.

Feel it.

“And I intend,” you continued, quieter but sharper, “to show them something different.”

Your father’s expression hardened. “Enough.”

A pause.

Then, final, sharp and cold—

“We will begin searching for suitors immediately.”

Something inside you stilled.

“Then you’ll have to do it without me.”

That night, the palace slept.

But you didn’t.

You stood before the mirror one last time, staring at the person they thought they knew.

The future queen.

The obedient daughter.

The girl who would fall in line.

Slowly, you reached up—and removed your crown.

You set it down gently.

Not as surrender.

But as a promise.

Then you turned—

And walked away.