love on the brink of war
a/n: part one of the lily and i's four-year-anniversary fic set! because anyone who puts up with my shit for four years deserves more than one fic from me so. ilysm, love! xxxx
part two (the marvel fic) will come once life eases up a bit for me, and shay & i can finish the mcu, aha. think of it as an iou. in the meanwhile, enjoy this little marauders-era fic! :3
(wc: 828)
She lies next to him, listening to the soft way he's snoring, and listening to the crickets chirp in the dead of night right by the Black Lake. She knows they'd be in big trouble if they get caught in the morning. So does he.
(But the thing is, neither of them care.)
It makes her smile, even as she couldn't sleep. Her nightmares, which involved losing her family in the upcoming war, were plaguing her. She wonders how she got so lucky, and that's all it was, honestly, sheer dumb luck. She felt his arms wrap around her, pulling her closer, making her feel loved.
Almost every girl at Hogwarts dreams of being in her position, which is one of the reasons she couldn't believe it to this day, despite the fact that they've been dating for about a year now.
After all, she's a Ravenclaw, barely known by anyone. He's a Gryffindor, one of the most popular boys in school. He tells her that he chose her because he loved her, and she tells him that she loves him right back. He fell for her uniqueness and creativity, and she fell for his caring nature - although it took her five years to even believe that he had a caring nature.
She can't lose him. She can't lose her family. She thinks of her baby brother, who'd just learned how to say his first word a few days ago, and lets out an involuntary shudder at the thought of anything given to him besides pure love and tender care.
She freezes as the love of her life began to stir at her shudder, and as he opened his eyes.
"Can't sleep, love?"
"Sorry for waking you," she says sheepishly, pulling locks of brown hair away from her face. "You should go back to sleep."
He gives her a cheeky grin. "What'd I tell you about telling me what to do?"
"Seriously," she says, chuckling. "Who knows what time it is, really?"
He gives her a serious look. "Was it the dreams again?"
She freezes. "It wasn't that big of a deal, really," she assures. If there was one thing she hates more than anything, it's worrying others. She doesn't want others to worry about any burdens she carries. They're for her, and for her only. That's what she always told herself.
"Stella."
She raises an eyebrow, giving him a small smile. "What?"
"I'm serious."
She can't help herself. She lets out a bout of giggles. "I know you are! And I'm Stella, it's lovely to meet you!"
He looks like he was trying to keep a straight face and remain serious, but he also ends up laughing, and the pair laugh loudly, outside in the dead of night, without a care in the world.
Much to her chagrin, he sobers up and gives her a look. "Were the dreams about the war?" he asks her knowingly.
She sighs. She knows what his family's like. Cold, callous, cruel. She's beyond glad that he managed to escape them to the Potters. She contrasts him. Her family's perfect. She has loving parents, and a baby brother.
"They were," she finally says, her voice clipped. "But you shouldn't concern yourself with them."
"Anything about you," he says quietly. "Is something I'll concern myself with."
She buries her face under the soft blanket. "I worry about everyone," she finally says. "All I want is for us all to come out in one piece. Safe and sound. But with the disappearances happening so often … I fear that won't be the case."
"Me too," he says simply, pulling her into an embrace, squeezing her shoulders. "But know that no matter what happens, I'll be there."
(Will you?)
That's the thought that plagued her. She knows that he'd be there, but what if he died in war? That would be too much for her to bear.
She knows she should loosen up, and have fun more. After all, if life was going to be short, she should live it to her full potential.
"I know," she finally smiles, leaning up to kiss him. He grabs her, kissing her right back, before giving her one of his famous smirks.
"You can't get rid of me."
Their moment's interrupted by a rustle of the nearby bushes, followed by a glimpse of familiar dark black hair.
"Snivellus," he sneers. "Is he spying on us?"
She frowns. "I do hope he's not trying to rat on us."
He grins, and a look forms on his face that she knows all too well.
"How's this funny?" she demands her boyfriend, raising an eyebrow.
"Because if he's going to tell on us, we might as well hex him."
She laughs good-naturedly, grabbing his hand as they both reach for their wands.
(The war against You-Know-Who is approaching, and there's nothing either of them could do to stop it. But at least they have each other. That's all that matters.)
a/n: i'm so rusty, gdi. but i really hope you enjoyed this, love! x
please r&r :)
-ana
