A/N: Response to The Shuffle Challenge: I had to put my music listening device on shuffle and write within a song's duration, channeling that song as inspiration.
You can tell which of the songs were on the longer side; gave me time to think and respond. Weirdly, most of these drabbles are on the angsty side, which is probably because I'd just finished writing Grasping not too long before attempting this. Definitely a fun but difficult challenge that I might extend… Especially since such different characters popped up in my head. Title is a silly hodge podge of the songs.
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A Pilgrim Running to Catch a Wanted Angel and Take It Home
Pilgrim—Eric Clapton; Severus/Lily
Standing in the shadows with my heart right in my hand
Removed from all the people who could never understand
I was a pilgrim for your love
He was utterly hopeless. No matter what he did, he could never tear his eyes away from her when she stepped within sight. He could never tear his heart away from her kindly aura. Her beauty, her sweetness, her scent; everything embodied within her made him uncomfortably addicted to her.
How could someone shine with such grace?
Among a group of her friends, he simply watched her from afar, standing in the shadows. She talked with mature energy, laughing softly as someone told a joke. He wanted to be the catalyst for her joy so badly. He wanted her soulful green eyes to sparkle with mirth from his efforts. In fact, he had easily tackled the recent potions assignment, surpassing its expectations to conjure the most beautiful, soft pink lily he could imagine. It was his vision of her uniqueness, and he intended to give it to her.
He meant to…
And then there she was, glaring at James Potter. He glared along with her, staring at the source of his endless days of ridicule. Potter. But even while he cursed the name in his head, he felt his resolve crumble. He knew that kind of glare, different from his own hate-filled stare. Hers was a different sort, one of less malice.
So he pulled back into the shadows, holding onto the flower. He'd never give it to her. But he would prove his love in the end.
I Ran—A Flock of Seagulls; Harry/Voldemort
I never thought I'd meet a guy like you, a guy like you…
And I ran, I ran so far away… I just ran, I ran all night and day
Couldn't get away
Harry was running. He was running from a pair of devilish red eyes. A pair of devilish red eyes and a hissing tongue flicking between a Cheshire grin. The grin started to laugh, laughing that evil, twisted, laugh as a snake-like face outlined the features like an etch-a-sketch toy.
Harry shrieked and continued to run, but he wasn't really moving. His feet slapped the ground, his arms moving fast as he tried to sprint away from the snake head of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. He ran and ran, the villain laughing menacingly at his futile efforts. It was as though he was stuck on a treadmill going nowhere, dark forests and London Square and Hogwarts all passing by his sides like cheaply constructed sets or images on a green screen. Harry kept running, trying to get away…
Until with a loud thud, Harry fell off of the couch and landed squarely on top of Ron.
The noise woke up Mrs. Black, who proceeded to scream obscenities.
Although Harry couldn't escape Ron's strings of curse words and Hermione's overflowing concerns, at least he had gotten away from his dream. If only reality was that easy to tackle.
Pokémon Theme—Billy Crawford version; Hagrid/Fang
I wanna be the very best like no one ever was
To catch them is my real test; to train them is my cause
The creature had smelled them coming before Hagrid had caught a good sight of it. Four antlers, three nostrils, and a tail made of fire. Yes, that was what he'd been looking for.
"C'mon Fang," Hagrid mumbled, tugging on Fang's leash. The dog was involuntarily dragged across the ground, whimpering the entire journey.
Upon reaching the pasture, the dragon-deer creature's ears flickered and it turned to face Hagrid.
"All right. GO, FANG!" Hagrid shouted, pointing at the creature.
Fang stared at Hagrid like he had lost his mind. The cowardly dog looked in the creature's direction. The creature's tail instantly flared like a torch lit by gasoline. Fang sniffed the air, paused, then ran in the opposite direction.
Hagrid stared after his pet. "Stupid mutt."
What a Girl Wants—Christina Aguilera; Hermione/Ron
You let a girl know how much you care about her, I swear, you're the one who always knew
I'm thanking you for being there for me
Whatever keeps me in your arms is what I need
Ron peeked his head inside Hermione's room. Technically speaking, it was one of the guest rooms; but it was the room that Hermione had stayed in during her visits for years, so it felt natural to assign it to her. It felt right.
"Um, Hermione?" he asked tentatively. Hermione was stretched across her bed, scribbling things down in her journal. Her back faced Ron. She didn't turn around at his voice. "Supper'll be ready in a few. Mum wanted me to let you know that," he added.
"All right."
He gulped. "May…May I come in?"
She continued to scribble.
"Look, I'm really, really, really sorry about earlier. That was a stupid thing for me to say."
"Very stupid," she emphasized.
"Right, very. But I'm really really sorry. I was trying to defend you but ended up stepping on your toes. I slipped up and wasn't thinking, as usual, and I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. The last thing I'd ever want to do is hurt your feelings. So I understand if you'll be mad at me for a while but just know that I know I messed up and I'm really sorry and hope you can forgive me." He stopped rambling when he realized she hadn't turned around. She hadn't moved or anything. She kept writing. Sighing, he moved to come in further and try to say something more to convince her, but he stopped himself. Instead, he replied, "I'll leave you be then." He quietly closed the door without saying another word. But he didn't walk away immediately. Sighing again, he leaned against the wall, a gloomy cloud hanging over his head.
Not even a minute later did the door. Hermione peeked her head out to look up at Ron. She smiled shyly at him.
"You're forgiven."
"I really am sorry."
"I know. I just needed to hear it first."
He nodded, surprised when she pulled him into a warm hug.
"I had good intentions, you know," he defended.
"I know. Thank you for being there for me."
Call Me Call Me (live version)—Steve Conte (Cowboy Bebop soundtrack); George/Ginny
Won't you ease my mind
Reasons for me to find you
Peace of mind
What can I do to get me to you?
Lying on his back, George stared into the sunset sky. The wind blew up his face, revealing the hollow where his ear once grew red with embarrassment, twitched with the sound of Fitch's approaching steps, and caught his twin's former plots whispered to him. With Hogwarts memories flooding his senses, George let the few renegade tears fall. He scanned the sky. He scanned the clouds.
A set of footsteps came from nearby, hustling the grass under foot. The footsteps stopped a little ways from him. Gazing lazily upward, blinking back tears, he saw a bit of red hair come into view. His heart skipped a beat. Upon tilting his head upward, he came to rest on a feminine pair of blue eyes and freckles. He closed his eyes and sighed. Disappointment.
The newcomer walked to his side, sliding down onto the grass next to him. She laid out fully, joining him in his heavenly search. Resting her ginger head against his shoulder, she asked softly, "Mum's been calling for you. Any sign?"
"No, not today."
She nodded, snuggling into his shoulder. "Well, I'm glad that I found you."
He blinked back the tears. "Me too."
Brother and sister continued to watch the sky, waiting for the red to lighten into blue; waiting for a redheaded angel to give up his camouflage.
On Our Own—Bobby Brown (Ghostbusters 2 soundtrack); Fred/George
Well I guess we're gonna have to take control (on our own)
If it's up to us, we've got to take it home (on our own)
"Hey, Fred."
"Yes, George."
"You think we should've gotten back up for this one?" he asked while the two carefully traipsed through a new Hogwarts tunnel. This one was particularly dark and creepy.
"It's a little late for that, isn't it?"
"I'm just wondering if it would've been more profitable to have had more assistance for this investigation."
"George, if we're gonna make it on our own, we're gonna have to do things on our own. Right?"
"Right."
"We just have to stay in control of the situation, right?"
"Right."
"You know it. We just have to take control of our environment."
"Right."
A creepy slithering sound emanated from nearby, echoing ominously. The twins froze and stared into the darkness.
"Um, George?"
"Yes, Fred."
"Maybe we should've gotten back-up for this."
**
The Pokémon Theme tripped me up momentarily… As did the Ghostbusters II theme…Gotta love shuffle!
Thanks for reading! Review please!!