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honestly, i am here for this title and concept and banner and summary, everything is Spicy as Heck
i felt like this was such a good take on the marauders - it definitely aligns with one of my ‘versions’ of them, so to speak (all of which have this sort of vibe; the marauders are proud, and everyone does know it), but that’s partly because it feels so true to canon in certain places. like... the marauders always gave me this vibe of being dumb and on top of the world because they’re teens, because they’re gryffindors, because they have all these stupid, proud possibilities at their fingertips. because they can, because why not, and that’s all that matters. none of them are really above it, they all kind of egg each other on, and there’s no harm in wanting a little recognition - certainly not from their closest friends.
those last lines, though, were what really cemented this piece for me. there’s something very timeless and forever about them. we know the marauders’ fates, but they always seemed so full of life back when the world was a little more right, and i think it says a lot that people love writing about them so much - love filling in those spaces and possibilities. this was A Good Drabble.
<3 ariie
I LOVE YOUR INTERPRETATION OF THIS. (I love your interpretation of all of them. <3)
It absolutely makes sense that Lily, as a ridiculously hardworking girl, needs to be forced to take a “sloth” day. I actually imagine that Marlene is more the embodiment of sloth (particularly given her somewhat privileged outlook a few drabbles ago), and she just happens to pull Lily down into the depths of self-care and procrastination for the day. But something that could be bad for Marlene (or someone who’s sloth-like consistently) is, like you mentioned, a good thing for Lily, whose intensive hard work can drive her to unhealthy degrees of stress.
I like that at this point Lily and James are very much sexual tension-ing. It’s not a verb but I would like it to be. :P
All these drabbles are SO GOOD. You did an amazing job with these prompts! <3
Lov, Eva
!!! This one is so interesting, because it shows this really kind of unpleasant side to the Marauders! I think you sell this scenario incredibly well, and it fits with the general delight in showing superiority that we catch a glimpse of in Snape’s Worst Memory. I don’t think this is necessarily something that tarnishes their personalities for me -- they clearly grow out of this sort of behavior, after all, even if it’s obviously really bad to steal from poor thirteen-year-olds :P -- but it’s a definite flaw that comes from having their specific set of character traits, I think.
I wonder if they WOULD have actually tormented the children had they not given up sweets. I don’t have a strong opinion, but I’m leaning a tad towards “yes” -- just because we see them being very cruel to Snape for no real reason apart from James’s jealousy, and if they’re capable of that, then I think they’re capable of terrorizing some third years if they want to. Obviously this is a somewhat controversial subject haha and I feel like tomorrow I’ll wake up and realize that I was entirely wrong. :P
This was very thought-provoking!!! <3
Love, Eva
God this one is so chilling -- I think it was a stroke of brilliance to have this be from Snape’s perspective, so we can REALLY see the gleam of bloodlust/hunger in Peter’s eyes from an outsider’s point of view. I love that visceral reaction Snape has to seeing one of his old tormentors (or, at least, an acquaintance to his tormentors) sharing the same table -- and the way that the hate slowly morphs into tolerance and acceptance when he realizes they have the same goal of being a powerful, feared being? CHILLING.
It reminds me of when teachers told us about how Aryan Germans who were formerly social outcasts really took advantage of the Holocaust to give themselves authority and power. I don’t know if this is true, necessarily, but it definitely seems to be what’s happening here with Peter, as a person who’s never had much power even in his own friend group. It’s so frightening. This drabble is so brilliant omg. <3
Love, Eva
Aw, Lilyyy. All your characters are so real and fleshed out, even in these 100 to 200 word stories! I’m so amazed by how much you managed to convey here about Lily. I feel like, of all the flaws often given to Lily, ‘envy’ usually isn’t one of them -- she’s perhaps a little too vicious at times, or too fixated, but never really envious in this way. I think perhaps because envy is somehow the most unbecoming flaw, which people don’t want assigned to Lily Evans. But it works so well here!! It reminds me so much of when the affluent kids in my suburban area discussed casually going to Europe for the holidays or some other far-off place, and I’d feel very wistful. I empathize so much with Lily here.
I love this one a lot a lot. Particularly with the beautiful imagery of the splinter digging into her skin! <3
Love, Eva
Regulus and Sirius’s relationship is SO sad, and I think you captured brilliantly their dynamic here!! In particular, I think younger siblings are more likely to be...ungrateful? mean? towards their older siblings (this is not based on fact in the slightest, just empirical evidence, haha), and it breaks my heart to see Regulus following that here. He’s so willing to hiss at his older brother who cares for him and loves him, which makes me want to cry!
And the way that “little brother” is emphasized! [weeps forever] Sirius clearly puts so much stock into their relationship, clearly had so much hope for Regulus, and now he has to watch as the Death Eater cult brainwashes his brother even more. THE WAY YOU WROTE THEM IS SO GOOD, PLEASE WRITE MORE. <3
Love, Eva
AHHH this one is so sad!! I thought your take on the ‘greed’ prompt was so interesting -- and I think you write an amazing self-loathing Remus. Because what he thinks is ‘greed’ is in reality normalcy; he deserves to be loved, to be happy, to be painless! And it really shows so much of his character traits that he takes these comforts, which so many of us take for granted, and views them as unattainable things that reflect poorly upon him if he wishes for them.
WHICH IS SO HEARTBREAKING. I can’t even begin to express how much I want to just give him the biggest hug of his life and forcefeed him chocolate! And to think that this is a mindset that will last all of his life -- it hurts so much to think about.
<3
Love, Eva
You deserve all the love in the world so here I ammm! <3
THESE BOYS. You write this era so unbelievably well -- I can practically envision their desire to do something so insane that it’s worth bragging about amongst each other for weeks, and hanging out of the freaking window absolutely counts oh my god. Sirius being held out BY HIS ANKLES dear goodness, I absolutely stand with Remus in terms of not participating, though now that I’m thinking about it a little more deeply perhaps it would have been safer for Sirius to have had a third person gripping onto him.
But I love that Remus does a 180 when prodded, and shows that he too is perfectly capable of doing the absolute dumbest things for sheer pride, and it’s such an interesting look into his character! That, yes, he has more reason and self-control than the others but that there’s this other side of him that’s completely willing to toss logic away to do something wild.
I loved this little glimpse into their lives!! <3
Love, Eva
I loved this so much because it was cute and sweet and also you are absolutely right, being a little lazy sometimes, needing a break, is necessary and completely okay, and people sometimes forget about it when they have things to prove and when they are driven, and it can be so harmful in the end.
I like how Marlene is there to remind her of this, drag her away from the endless studying, because sometimes it's friends like this that we need to help us out a little in times of stress, someone to just chill with and laugh with, and that was really lovely in here. Also, that line about Lily going a bit weak at the knees and feeling all woozy at the prospect of James snogging her was very sweet!! Thank you for ending this wonderful collection on such a positive note! I really enjoyed reading all these! :)
Eli
I mean, even if it maybe doesn't exactly fit the characters we imagine them to be, I still think it's awesome (and a little funny) to imagine Sirius and James as the Godfather mafia bosses of candy in the Gryffindor common room, collecting extortion candy or bribes to wreak more havoc somewhere in the school, so if you suspend disbelief and just allow the fanfiction to have fun, this is fun too, and a very creative take on the gluttony sin, which i think is always one of the most difficult to depict. And actually, I'm sure the Marauders had maybe a moment or two when they had to battle a little bit with their egos and the power and popularity getting to their head, so it's not like it's totally out of character. Of course I believe they'd always check themselves and do the right thing, but candy is candy, sometimes you gotta fight for it, lol! :D
Oh my god I really love this one, the way Peter lusts for power and so does Snape, so do they all, and that tying them together in this darkness of a mess, it was so very well portrayed. I also really liked that moment when Snape entered and saw him there and nearly lost it because he still sees him as one of the Marauders. But as the moment draws on, he's almost bemused because suddenly he realizes they're here for the same reason. Such a brilliant moment to pick up for this sin prompt, i love it.
And yes, this was the Dark Lord's biggest advantage - people are just desperate for power, and anyone has a chink in their armor that can be corrupted. I really wonder how Snape and Peter interact in the future, considering they're both responsible for Lily's death - Snape by revealing the prophecy, Peter by ratting them out in the end - but Snape 'loved' Lily, didn't he? So to draw on that strange connection between these two character, this being the beginning of it, was a really clever idea.
Great job!
E
HI I'm back for some duelling gift giving and to finish this wonderful collection, and this one was great and hit specially hard. I loved the way you paralleled Lily having that splinter go under her nail, which is a damn painful thing physically actually, and that is still almost just an echo of what she feels when she hears other kids from magical families whine about a summer she'd kill to have.
You've created an entire story here that's behind the curtain of the short wordcount, but it's still there - Lily being non-magical has to spend her whole summer hiding a large part of her identity, and that must be exhausting and sad. Plus there's mean Petunia too and it's just so lousy, and I can identify so much with Lily craving an environment that would be not only exciting but also freeing for her to be who she is, a witch.
Great work on this one as well, envy is such a relatable sin, tbh.
Eli
ugh, i totally know what you mean, i'm still not over the fact that sirius lived on in the false knowledge that his brother was a foolish coward when he was anything but. this piece is remarkable because wrath becomes them both in here, and the anger is something that must've been so true about their relationship, just raw and hurting resentment that sprouted from misunderstanding and misfortune. i think if only the circumstances were different, they could've really loved each other.
the italicized little brother serves a proper punch, because yes, regulus was so young when all this happened to him, and i wish sirius would look past his anger and regulus' defiance, and dragged him off from that horrible situation, but regulus i guess had a very combatative strength of his own, and then that moment when he walks away...we are all heartbroken now! :(
so sad but so well written!
Author's Response:ahhh you and me both!!! I hate knowing that Sirius had these false ideas about his brother up to Regulus' death because there was space for redemption and Sirius as a character is burdened with so much anger and hatred and bitterness and I just want him to be able to let go of a little bit of it <3 :(
I am definitely heartbroken too haha I loved writing this but it made me very sad - thank you though!! I appreciate the reviews very much <3
I like this take, I like (although in a broken hearted kind of way) the way Remus so much desires to be normal and healthy and with his friends, and there is a kind of greed in it, but not the malicious kind, and that's what makes this take quite interesting.
It's a nice touch that he's watching them approach the Whomping Willow since it's actually such a huge symbol of his entire Hogwarts and werewolf story and identity, and I'm guessing this is before they all become friends and the others are just being generally mischievous, and for Remus it must be horrible to watch that from apart and want to be a part of it, feeling like he will never be able to.
So it's nice to think that soon, he'll have those friends. It was a very well-written moment for Remus, and i think it fits so well with his character, forever only wanting to be loved and accepted so badly.
Author's Response:ahhh thank you so much <33 I love remus, and I hate to think about him being a sad, lonely boy, but I think it was probably his life for a long time until he was fully ingratiated into the Marauders and things got better <3
This is like the best snapshot that captures the three Marauders so well, especially remus, I feel like I can totally hear him reading or retelling this somewhere by the fire in a very nonchalant yet unamused yet secretly amused voice. And Sirius is his boyfriend, getting into dangerous hijinks with none other than James, and Remus of course would like to rpetend he's above it all, but he totally isn't and he's the same trouble-maker as the rest of them, which the ending proves, with the cycle, and it's awesomely funny and sweet at the same time. I love the part where it says that they have been carefully not to listen because EXACTLY! This was really cool :)
Author's Response:Ahhh thank you so much!! I'm so glad you liked that <33 it's definitely how I envision one version of the Marauders in my head :'D <3
Julie why are all of your takes on the deadly sins so goooood!? Turning “sloth” into an actual positive “sin” for lily to partake in is really cool and different!! She is someone who constantly works hard at everything and works at everything all the time. She needs a break now and then, and those breaks cannot always just be snogging james potter :P i’m glad to see some girl time too because that is also important chill time to have when you’re in school. Marlene not budging on getting lily to stop studying is very gryffindor of her, and i love that for her. Tbh lily is going to get an O on her transfiguration homework/exam/whatever it is regardless because she’s just that skilled of a witch, but her concern about studying is still adorable. Loved this whole series a lot, Julie!! :)
~madi
Broom surfing
Author's Response:ahhh Madi you will make me blush thank you so much!! I don't think drabbles are my strength at all but I had a lot of fun challenging myself with these + the sins so I really appreciate that!! <33 but yeah, I said this to Melanie too, but I actually really related a lot to Lily in this because growing up I was always encouraged to be very productive and not be "lazy" and take breaks from my work which has kind of been a disaster for my adult life LMAO but moral of the story is, i think when you're a very hard working person, it's easy to slip into the mindset of all breaks = laziness, when in fact, it's more productive to take breaks for your brain and your health <3 and yesss I loved Marlene in this too, so I'm glad you did as well <333 Thank you so much for all the lovely reviews!! <3
Gluttony is probably the more difficult deadly sin to write, mostly because it’s not one often really used or thought about in media, but you do an excellent job with it! This is a total like, 180 on the marauders, which you mention in your authors note, but i think you did them a service still, because their characters are still recognizable as they are in canon. They’ve now just got a darker slant to them, kind of overburdened with gryffindor courage and desire for power (and sweets) as older students lording their power over the younger students. Also the image of sirius with a licorice wand between his teeth as more students drop off their goods between him and james is kind of a hilarious one to have, so thanks for that. *joy emoji* nice work!
~madi
Broom surfing
Author's Response:Haha thank you Madi!! Yeah this one I had a lot of trouble and weird "eh i dont know if i like it" feelings, but I think I've decided that it's got a satirical slant to it, which is different from the other drabbles where I dont really see them as satirical, but this is definitely one where, yeah the characters are recognizable, but I agree it's a real 180 and not necessarily how I would actually expect them to act, but more inspired honestly by the way Snape presented them - as bullies and hypocrites, which I'm sure they were seen as by other people as well even though we as readers have always been encouraged to view them as the heroes - there's something more complicated in the truth of the matter, and I don't think it's this, but I don't think they were perfect either hahaha oh god this turned into a ramble LMAO hopefully you get what I mean, thank you again for the review <3
Lust time, let’s go babey! Broooo I love me some lust for power/notoriety instead of sexual lust, hell yeah hell yeah julie!! Snape being so disgusted at Peter’s presence at a Death Eater meeting is totally justified based on their school memories, but then, once he recognizes that look in Peter's eyes and sees that it’s the same as the one he has, he knows, and he’s back on board. Regulus is also present, so the timeline for this is probably right after Regulus left school and just before the Potters’ death, no? You’ve really found that sweet spot of canon time that is murky because we don’t know exactly when peter became a turncoat, and when regulus died, so NICE! Snape, Peter, and Regulus all lusting for something to be known for is executed perfectly!
~madi
Broom surfing
Author's Response:yeah this was one of the many times I have taken advantage of the murkiness of canon timelines and just been like, ah, well, everyone is here because I said so LMAO but yeah no I was thinking it was shortly after the end of school because I've always had it in my head that after they graduated, and Peter became more irrelevant (like all the bitter former popular people we may know of) that's when he got more sucked in by Voldemort and the ideology and thus, they all ended up there together for that brief time. but YEAH I'm with you, love some sexual lust, but I think lust for power/notoriety is REALLY interesting too and this one was one of my favorite drabbles to write as well <3 Thank you so much!! <3
I’m back again julie! Yay it’s time for lily to shine in one of these drabbles!!! Oooh envy is simultaneously very easy to write and very difficult to write well, I think, and you do an excellent job of it in this drabble. And we get some Mary and Marlene action too! And some mention of magical creatures, hell yeah! (i’m a sucker for magical creatures). I’m curious then if Marlene’s mother is a magizoologist or something if she’s going to be taking marlene out to search for a demiguise -- what other reason would she have for looking for such a mysterious creature? Lily being, well, envious of marlene still getting to be around magic this summer while lily won’t get to do anything at all that’s tied to the wizarding world is part heartbreaking and part truthful, but you balance it well. Great job!
~madi
Broom racing
Author's Response:Yay for Lily!! I'm ngl she's not one of my favorite characters to write, as a writer you kind of have to make up a lot of flaws for her to balance out the ~perfection that she was set up as, and it's a challenge, but not one I always want to partake in when there are other characters with so many fun flaws built in to exploit if you know what I mean lolol but thank you, I liked this 'sin' for Lily a lot because she's the character everyone /else/ was supposed to envy, so the idea of the perfect person being envious, while possibly a cliche and over done, was fun for me to explore here and kind of show the humanity and 'grass is always greener' mentality. Thank you so much for the review though <3
Okay julie, this honestly made me kind of sad to read too, just because there is so much unexplained and unexplored when it comes to the relationship between sirius and regulus as brothers of house black, and i do hope you get to spend some time writing them more fully in the future! Them confronting each other in the middle of some random establishment, in public, is the worst possible press moment for the family i’m sure, but sometimes it just happens like that. Sirius’s absolute wrath ( ;) ) at seeing the dark mark on regulus’s forearm is completely justified, but regulus’s cold remarks back are also pretty justified, at least from his point of view. Nice job!
~madi
Broom racing
Author's Response:ahahah another pun, I'm Living lmao I love it. But YEAH I was just saying to Melanie in my review reply to her that I do want to write more lengthy Marauders era stuff in the future, not sure what exactly yet, but I would like to feature their relationship because I agree I think a lot of it is unexplored and it's a really rich relationship despite the angst and the >.> and everything but I like complex sibling relationships and I think that with 'hate' in relationships, there comes a lot of love and pain and hurt and feelings that we can tap into. <3 Thank you so much though!!
Julie, i’m back for more, this time with greed! (hehe see my pun?) even though you said you weren’t sure if you liked how this one turned out, i still think it works pretty well. In this drabble, Remus is greedy not in a literal monetary or power grab sense, but rather greedy for true friendship, true family, and i think that’s a more subtle way of using greed as a deadly sin, and i think that’s pretty neat!! He feels like crap because lycanthropy but also because he feels like he has to hide such a huge part of himself and can’t allow himself to fully feel things because he’s scared of hurting his friends, or of the potential power he could have over them. Wow i have more feelings about this than i thought i would, but i think you did a great job with taking this in a different direction!
~madi
Broom racing
Author's Response:HAHAH I loved the pun, thank you so much for bringing it into my life lmaooo <3 but thank you!! that is definitely the idea I was going for, trying to move away from the ""stereotypical"" idea of greed into something a little more subtle (maybe ironic for a 'deadly' sin but lmao) and I'm glad that you liked it and had some feelings about it!! <3 thank you so much
Hi there julie! I’m excited for your take on the deadly sins, and this first one with pride is a great start! I’m so happy you’ve gone with marauders era for this too, because it allows for so many more shenanigans to occur with those boys, much like you’ve written here. I love how you chose to incorporate the proverb about pride, and how remus is, of course, refusing to join in the ridiculous endeavors of the other three at the start, but then gets pulled in anyway later when his pride is called into question. Teenage boys feeling like they’re the kings of the world is topical for these idiots, and they get knocked down a peg or two when they do end up failing at whatever ridiculous task they’ve come up with, but turn right around the next week and start all over. Nicely done!
~madi
Broom racing
Author's Response:Hello Madi!!
Thank you so much :'D I have a great love for the Marauders, not so great a love for writing hijinks, I don't feel very adept at it, but I appreciate your kind words and thoughts <3
Julie
Hi Julie!
Ugh, I, too, found sloth difficult to write about in my own drabbles, and I like the playful direction you took it in. Sometimes it’s better to play with the prompt a bit, subvert it, be a bit ironic. And I agree with you, I think Lily was quite hard-working, and when you approach things from that perspective, any kind of slacking off does seem distasteful, when in reality it’s all part of having a balanced life and not being tunnel-visioned, letting yourself have fun and do frivolous things once in a while. This was a lovely note to end your collection on, and I’ve really enjoyed reading these. <3
<3 Melanie
Ravenclaw
2020 HC Finale - Broom Racing
Author's Response:thank youuu! sloth was very hard, I think especially because my own ideas of laziness are kind of warped because I've been raised to be such a "productive" person, it's like taking a break is being lazy so in that I could really relate to Lily, but I also one hundred percent agree with you it's part of having a balanced life and if you don't take breaks, have fun, and "be lazy" every so often, you're not really going to have that balance or that healthier lifestyle. <3 Thank you so so much again for taking the time to read them and share your thoughts, I know it was for the hc, but I still really appreciated it and really enjoyed hearing what you had to say! <3
Hi Julie!
OMG, haha, yes I think I agree with you that I don’t actually see them doing this, but 1) the prompt is difficult for this lot, and 2) sometimes you have to take a situation to the extreme, for effect, and you’ve done that here. This scene is almost comical -- satirical, really. And I mean, it’s kind of a cautionary thought, like, we know James and Sirius were actually quite arrogant in their youths, and to some extent enjoyed picking on others, and this is sort of a hyperbolic take on that kind of attitude going unchecked.
Super creative!
<3 Melanie
Ravenclaw
2020 HC Finale - Broom Racing
Author's Response:I'm gonna be real, I genuinely thought this was going to be the easiest drabble of the seven and then I sat down and I was like, frick, this is not easy at all, this is REALLY HARD LMAO. and I'm not entirely happy with it still either tbh, but I wanted to try anyway and I'm not like, hurt over how it turned out, I may just fiddle with it a little in the future lol but thank you!! I like the idea of it as satirical, and I do see that, and in a sense it's kind of like poking at the blown up versions of James and Sirius and "The Marauders" that we particularly used to see a lot in fic (and still do - they're a lot of fun :'D). Thank you so much for the review <3
Hi Julie!
Ooh, I love the direction you took with the lust prompt, it fit this so well, and wow, you have a great way of saying so much in so few words. You really got into Severus’s head here, the bitterness, the completely human and absurd thoughts we all get when we’re wrapped up in whatever our current problem is -- wondering if Sirius is going to stroll in because Peter is there and damn it, one of Them was not supposed to infiltrate this space Severus has finally found for himself. But then Severus sees that Peter has the same desire he has, to be seen, to be bigger than he always was. I love it.
<3 Melanie
Ravenclaw
2020 HC Finale - Broom Racing
Author's Response:Thank you!! I wanted to do something subversive with lust because it is so frequently shown as sex and/or being sexy which isn't wrong and I do enjoy, but I was specifically trying to challenge myself to do something different with all of these prompts from what I would first think of :') I also always think of lust as being this sort of unhealthy wanting of someone/something, because it comes at the cost of everything, and that has always been want the lust for power looks like to me - like no one really wants power for themselves for philanthropic reasons, following the idea that absolute power corrupts absolutely and stuff like that. but yeah, that was kind of where I was coming at this from <3 Thank you so much for the review!!
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