harry potter au (not hogwarts, and not fbawtft compliant whatsoever)
xxx
two lovers beneath the apple tree in bloom
love, you are not a seasonal thing: you are not summer sun, to be buried by ice and snow--
you are sturdy and evergreen and not so picturesque, so golden-edged, so sweet as this blooming apple tree that we rest under
in evening's fast coming gloom;
but somehow, still,
sweeter are you:
for you have lasted into mine old age, from my youth,
and surely, surely
you will outlast me.
i have foreseen it, and so it shall be.
x
written in the year of 1347, by calypso, for her beloved--a woman by the name of Piper-- found in the late 1950s, and only retranslated in the year of 2013.
xxx
Dearest Rachel,
My darling, beloved, my sweetheart--
ah, sorry, I can't help it! I simply want to love you and shower you with sweet words, but it makes me sound absolutely ridiculous, and not at all charming.
Anyways, moving on--letters are so awkward, and I so wish I could just floo you, but letters are harder to track, and we mustn't be found out. We musn't! I love you too much to put you in such danger, to hurt you with that kind of life.
I'm writing you to tell you of a portrait I have found, that I will be sending you soon--don't take it out in public, though, for its contents may prove dangerous. The subject is two women, clearly in love. Unnamed. They're both dark-skinned (like us!) and silver-haired--they're older women, and oh! It gives me such hope to see them laughing and whispering sweet words to each other, and they always look at me so knowingly, though they never say a word, and I just know! I know they're like us! You have to see it, so I'm stealing it and sending it to you; it's in the back of the museum anyways, shunned by art critics and conservatives--of which there are many! so I don't think it will be missed. Don't worry about me, alright?
We must see each other again soon, my dearest, for I miss you far too much.
love, your wife:
Reyna
x
written in the year of 1875, by Reyna Avila Ramirez Arellano, to her wife in all but name, Rachel Elizabeth Dare. found on March 20th, 1998.
xxx
When Hazel awoke an hour past midnight, she knew something was wrong, but it took her five minutes to hear the soft weeping in the bed below hers. Slowly, she climbed down the ladder, and slipped into Bianca's bed. Bianca froze, and Hazel held back a sigh. They'd been sisters for over five years now, but Bianca still shied away from her. It was disheartening, to say the least.
"Expecto patronum!" Hazel muttered, after a long, awkward pause, and the panther that was Hazel's patronus bounded around the room, bathing everything in pearly light, and lighting up Bianca's tearstreaked face. Perhaps it would have made more sense to use the lumos charm, but she had always preferred the patronus charm. It was so very pretty, after all.
"Bee," Hazel sighed sadly, when are you going to tell me what's wrong? You've been crying at night for the last few months."
Bianca looked away, grimacing.
"...Sorry," she muttered. Hazel shook her head, squeezing Bianca's shoulders gently.
"Don't be. I just... care about you. You're my little sister, you know?"
Bianca nodded hesitantly.
"I..." She began, choking and stumbling over her words. "I think I like girls."
Hazel's world came crashing to a stop. And then she began to laugh, softly, but slightly hysterically. Bianca edged away from her, wide-eyed and frightened, and Hazel forced herself to stutter to a stop.
"Bee," she said kindly, it's just that I... also like girls." She thought of Sadie, of her golden hair, her warm brown skin. Her twinkling eyes and her joyous laughter. Her lips lifted up in a small smile.
"It's... ok. I know it's hard, but... do you have anyone you like?"
After a short while, Bianca nodded.
"Um... Lacy. My best friend?"
Hazel nodded, because of course she knew Lacy, she came over almost every day. She should have known, really.
"You should tell her," she said firmly. After all, she had made up her mind to tell Sadie tomorrow. Bianca probably should too. Get it off her chest. It would be better. Healthier.
Bianca shuddered.
"I can't she whispered hysterically. "What if she hates me?"
"She's your best friend," she said gently, "Does Lacy seem like that kind of person?"
Bianca hesitated.
"Well, no," she muttered, scrunching up her nose and tugging at her tightly wound curls in agitation.
"I know it's scary," Hazel said quietly, smoothing her brow, "and it could be dangerous. But I'm here for you. Always. I'm big your sister."
Bianca sniffled and threw her arms around Hazel's neck.
"You're the best," she mumbled, before drifting off to sleep.
Hazel smiled. Everything was going to be alright.
xxx
I Love a Woman
Sapphic poems and letters, as translated by Reyna Bianca Arellano
dedicated to my wife, Freya
i.--Calypso
i love a woman brighter than the sun:
her laughter sets my heart on fire,
and her dark skin under my hands--
it is the most beautiful thing i have ever seen,
the most beautiful thing i have ever
felt
xii.--Calypso
my dear,
i long for you as the sea longs for the moon--
a constant ache,
pulling me to you
liv.--Calypso
lying beside you is heaven, dearest. i taste starlight in your mouth. you are a goddess divine
xc.--Calypso
love, you are not a seasonal thing: you are not summer sun, to be buried by ice and snow--
you are sturdy and evergreen and not so picturesque, so golden-edged, so sweet as this blooming apple tree that we rest under
in evening's coming gloom;
but somehow, still,
sweeter are you:
for you have lasted into mine old age, from my youth,
and surely, surely
you will outlast me.
i have foreseen it, and so it shall be.
1861, June
A June wedding! Oh, we must have one, for I love the sun, and you look so beautiful in summer colors!
My dearest Rachel, I cannot tell you how thrilled, how ecstatic I am! I am so beyond words, that I cannot seem to say what I desperately want to say! But no matter! We are to be married, even if only in secret, and this has been my life long dream, since we were children together!
love, your dearest, your (almost!) wife,
Reyna
1927, February
Rachel, my heart--are you sure? Do you truly wish to live out in the open? It is dangerous, and if it were only my life in danger than I would gladly be who I am, proud and true! But it is your life too that I risk putting under fire, and I cannot bear to think of such a thing.
But dearest, if you are truly sure, then I should like to charge forward, brandishing my pride as weapon. I should like to make things better, safer, for the generations to come. And, dearest of my heart, my beloved, if we are ever to have children, I would like them to be safe to be who they are.
love, your ever-doting wife,
Reyna
xxxx
an interlude
The wind blew softly through the branches of the apple tree, and the sweet spring scent of the tree in bloom wafted all around Calypso.
"I wish," she murmured, winding her hands in Piper's dark brown hair.
"I wish we lived in a kinder world. I wish we could live together without fear."
Her wife sighed, sitting up and wrapping her arms around Calypso, burying her face in her dark, curly hair.
"I know," she murmured. "I wish it too. More than anything."
"Maybe someday, someday..."
Piper smiled tenderly and kissed Calypso on the lips.
"Someday."
xxxxx
an epilogue
when I became a grown women, I took the name of my Great (Great) Aunt Reyna, not only because she had no children of her own, but because I was so proud to be related to her! She was strong, and brave, and she pioneered not only witches rights, but witch loving witches rights as well! She herself was a witch loving witch, and I used to secretly check out books about her as a kid, longing to be like her. When I found the letters and the poetry in the attic of her old cottage, I knew that we were far more similar than I had ever thought. Not only were we both sapphic--something everyone but me knew at the time, but was still so revolutionary to me--we also loved poetry; specifically, calypso's poetry! It was an amazing discovery for me that completely turned my world around. Thank you, Aunt Reyna. You saved my life.
Bianca