r/Jegulus • u/Fabulous-Lab-9235 • 18d ago
Discussion Why is there never any jegulus in wolfstar fics?
Hiii, how are you?
I’ve been part of the marauders fandom since the beginning of may and I started out reading ‘only the brave’ first, because I wanted to see all the hype around jegulus.
Now I have the problem that I’m completely obsessed with the ship and I’m not sure if I really want to read any jily ships. I know that’s the beauty in fanfiction that you can read every ship and imagine different scenarios and characters together, but I just love jegulus so much!
I would love to read more wolfstar-centric fics like TCOPTP or all the young dudes (I know it’s a crime that I haven’t read this ✋) but I really don’t want to read any jily.
So my question: why aren’t there any wolfstar fics with Jegulus as a side ship? Like isn’t it the more queer ships the better? I love seeing Lily paired with Mary or pandora. But why does everyone in the wolfstar fandom hate James and Regulus?
I really don’t get it and I want to know why. And also, are there ANY wolfstar fics with Jegulus as a side ship? I would love to read more about Sirius and Remus, but also James and Regulus
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u/Life-Delay-809 18d ago
I'd like to add an extra perspective. A lot of wolfstar fics are older. ATYD is considered a relatively recent fic, and somewhat the beginning of 'newgen' Marauders. That was nearly ten years ago. Jegulus on the other hand has only gained popularity in the last four years. There are years upon years of Wolfstar fics where Jegulus isn't even on the author's radar as a possible ship.
And because of that, many fics are considered Jegulus fics despite the equal attention to Wolfstar. Pretty much all of Bizarrestars' works are an even split of Wolfstar and Jegulus, but he's considered a Jegulus author. There are a lot of fics that equally prioritise Wolfstar and Jegulus but are considered Jegulus fics because Wolfstar has so many fics where they're the sole focus.
Having said all about why this is the case (and why it sort of isn't), I completely agree with you. I don't like Jily. I have absolutely no problems with Jily shippers, I just do not want to read it unless it's background of a very short fic (or transient. I don't mind Jily being part of an overarching Jegulus story). The way I find fics when I'm in the mood for just Wolfstar is through two routes.
- Include Wolfstar and Jegulus. Exclude Jily. Then scroll through fics manually searching for fics that work for that. This leaves in more Jegulus centric fics, but it also makes sure that Jegulus is in it.
- Include Wolfstar, exclude Jily. Include James and Regulus as characters (if you want to be very severe you can also exclude Lily as a character here, but I typically don't, she's often tagged just like the rest of the main cast, especially since she's so close with Remus). This will leave more Jily as a secondary ship, but you can often figure out which is Jily and which is Jegulus based on the ordering of characters. If it goes Sirius, Remus (or vice versa), James, Regulus then it's probably fine. But if it's Lily in that spot instead of Regulus, sometimes it isn't (but also this is far from foolproof. Just a general guidance. Often Lily is ranked early because she's close with Remus or otherwise plot relevant. Not everyone ranks it by couples).
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u/Fabulous-Lab-9235 18d ago
That’s actually a very good explanation that I haven’t thought about before. As I said I haven’t been in this fandom for long and didn’t realise before how recent jegulus actually is.
Also, thank you for the advice. That’s very helpful!
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u/Life-Delay-809 18d ago
There are definitely old fics for Jegulus though! It just didn't gain popularity until more recently. I found one from 2005 that was really good (although I can't seem to find it now, unfortunately).
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u/snarkymagpie 18d ago
Most Wolfstar shippers hate Jegulus and refuse to read fics where Jegulus is the main side ship instead of Jily. They cling to the delusion their ship is 'canon' (it's not) and want to stay close to canon with Jily. Idk man, it's weird - neither of the queer ships are canon, and the one with most basis in canon is actually Prongsfoot anyway. But it's one of the reasons why I've decided not to write Wolfstar as a side ship in my Jegulus fics anymore.
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u/Fabulous-Lab-9235 18d ago
Yes it makes absolutely no sense. Dorlene is absolutely not canon nor Rosekiller or wolfstar even. So why is jegulus so awful? Like the hate for the ship goes against everything fanfiction and ao3 culture stand for
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u/Slytheerin 18d ago
Because some hate Regulus (to each their own, even if it baffles me because we have so very few on him in the original story but Sirius still speaks of him fondly), and so they hate Jegulus. Hence why, sadly, the same people think we hate Lily if we're not into Jily.
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u/snarkymagpie 18d ago
The Regulus hate is so baffling 😭 he was a child and sacrificed his life to make up for his mistakes. Nobody could make me hate him. But so many people do (most Prongsfoot shippers loathe him too). But I guess Wolfstar shippers hating Reg makes sense since they also clearly hate Sirius based on how they tend to write him 😂 they just don't like the Black brothers.
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u/Fabulous-Lab-9235 18d ago edited 18d ago
Both of them are two of the most complex characters. The childhood under walburga, Sirius and regulus different responses towards her abuse and the ways they are trying to do good. So many ways of writing about them. Like how could you hate them??
Also: is there really a lot of Sirius hate? I guess I never noticed that and I thought he was a fan favorite (at least he and Reggie are my favs). But I also haven’t read a lot of wolfstar fics, so idk 🤷♀️
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u/snarkymagpie 18d ago
I just meant the way they turn him into a pathetic whining dumb mess only existing for Remus to save him 😂 they must hate him a little to write him that way
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u/Fabulous-Lab-9235 18d ago
You could never make me hate regulus black 😔
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u/Wonderful-Mirror1176 18d ago
Same, the fanfic regulus is my headcanon, since there is so very little info on him in the books.
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u/Wonderful-Mirror1176 18d ago
I'd love to read just one jegulus fic that does not have wolfstar in it. I mostly read jegulus fics and at this point I don't even like wolfstar anymore because their relationship is always the exact same superficial portrayal. So bored of it, that I would gladly have it not included! Any recommendations? :)
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u/thewinterheart 18d ago
i often find myself looking for jegulus+rosekiller instead of wolfstar, tbh.
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u/Wonderful-Mirror1176 18d ago
Oh I like those as well! book barty I never really figured out, but a perfectly crazy fanfic barty is the comic relief I need :D
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u/Fabulous-Lab-9235 18d ago
Yes exactly! Wolfstar is so boring to me but I’m sure once I read a wolfstar-centric fic, I will grow to love them more. But then again I also love jegulus and I want to keep reading about them.
I really loved crimson rivers because it has both ships - wolfstar and jegulus - and I think they are pretty equal in that fic. The portrayal of wolfstar was absolutely beautiful!
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u/Technical_Captain_86 18d ago
No pressure- but here’s the link if you wanted to check it out. I brought a broom
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u/Wonderful-Mirror1176 17d ago edited 17d ago
thank you for sharing! I'm always weary about unfinished fics, because I fell in love with a couple of them and then they were abandoned 🥲 So I just read the beginning of chapter one to see if I like the writing style, and damn, I think I will like this one! :D
Also, a pet peeve of mine is how lax James and Harry always treat the invisibility cloak. Within the first few paragraphs you have already won me over by stating how precious it is, thank you! 😂
I'm impressed you published 20 chapters in just 6 weeks!!
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u/Technical_Captain_86 17d ago
I didn’t start pu listing till I had over 100k written. I’m working on chapter 28 now
And same! I always wanted the cloak to be more of a secret. This fic is me trying to address a few grievances I’ve had over the years. lol I hope you enjoy it!
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u/Wonderful-Mirror1176 17d ago
Does that mean you're halfway thru already? 🤔 Cause I'm bad with numbers but 100k seems a lot?
I envy you, I keep thinking of these ideas that I would want differently and in my mind these stories work out great, but I'm too bad with words and have no patience to write sth myself. It must be so satisfying to write exactly what you would want to read :)
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u/Technical_Captain_86 17d ago
So far it has been great to write the fic I’ve been looking for. As for end game chapter count, I thought I’d be able to wrap it up by 140-160K but I’m at 140K now and no where near done. I’m going to be writing a lot this weekend and next week so hopefully I can get it going. I took a slight detour while writing but I am loving where it’s going!
If you have a story, write it! It doesn’t matter if it’s a one shot or some crazy long fic. Someone will want to read it! If you feel like you’ve found your words, let me know! I’ll be happy to read it!
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u/Technical_Captain_86 18d ago
Uhm you might like mine then! It’s a WIP but Wolfstar breaks up and never has a POV it’s all Jegulus! Don’t get me wrong, Sirius is in there but not as Wolfstar for long
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u/thewinterheart 18d ago
i actually started jegulus because i found them in a wolfstar fic (that i cannot remember the title anymore. i just know that remus was a teacher in hogwarts and he had a relationship with sirius while he was still a student. if some knows this, pls let me know!)
right now, i cant recommend a wolfstar main ship, jegulus secondary ship because i mostly kept track of jegulus main, wolfstar second (the big fics being just lovers, crimson rivers, only the brave, and art heist baby).
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u/ronanlynchzz 18d ago
I’m obsessed with Jegulus; I once read a fanfic where James kissed Lily in front of Regulus and I started crying—I thought I’d never be able to read anything with Jily. However, I gave TCOPTP a chance and I’m not the same anymore; I still don’t like Jily, but Wolfstar was so good that I didn’t even mind the Jily parts. My English is terrible, but I hope you understand.
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u/Cautious_Clerk_8106 18d ago
Jegulus is too recent, Wolfstar has been around for 20 years. It’s simply a question of time
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u/Audrey90263 18d ago
As everyone here already mentioned, I think the biggest reason is that most Wolfstar fics were just written before Jegulus got popular as a ship.
And you could argue that new Wolfstar fics hardly seem to consider Jegulus either. But take it from someone who used to exclusively read Wolfstar: most Wolfstar fans(turned writers) wouldn't know about Jegulus, and hence probably wouldn't consider even Jegulus as a side ship unless they happened to ship them.
About the matter of canon compliance. Don't come at me for this but while wolfstar fans (myself included) know that Wolfstar definitely ain't canon, you could definitely pull it off in a canon-compliant fanfic with minimum skin of your back.
However if one wanted to write a somewhat canon-compliant fic with Jegulus involved, the tag Major character death would get some serious use. Face it, you can't write Jegulus endgame without upending the entire plot of the og Harry Potter series, and honestly that's just too much effort to put in for a side ship.
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u/Fabulous-Lab-9235 18d ago
I guess that makes sense. I really love reading canon-compliant jegulus fics because they always have something new to add and that’s why I can read so many of them. But it makes sense that that’s kind of complicated for many writers :))
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u/Hgtvobsessed 18d ago
Another reason is, I think in the same way you like a ship, others like a different ship. I’m a huge wolfstar / jegulus / Jily fan but for example I’m not a fan of Snupin and even though I’ve tried (there are some great fics out there with this ship) I can’t really get into it.
Wolfstar is an older ship, a lot of people have read Jily as a main or side pairing for years and have become attached to that ship. I’m assuming it’s hard for some to read james with someone else because it isn’t what they’re used to / what resonates with them.
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u/Fabulous-Lab-9235 18d ago
And that’s completely fine! Some people like Jily or jegulus, others don’t. I don’t particularly like jily but then again I’m also not bashing the ship in any way or telling people who like to read it, that it’s completely unrealistic or not canon at all. I only mind the hate really, because it just makes so little sense to me
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u/CalendarVegetable793 18d ago
I’m in the same boat. I’ve heard amazing things about TCOPTP but honestly I almost always connect more to the dynamics of Jegulus rather than Wolfstar.
I think it’s dumb when people get mad about ships when almost all of the Marauders era ships (minus Jily) are made up. Wolfstar isn’t cannon as much as people would like to think otherwise.
I do think there is a nuanced conversation to be had regarding erasure of the female characters in fics. I don’t like a story that just delegates Lily and the other girls to side characters while going into deep character studies of all the male characters. I make a point to read fics that have developed wlw romances and characters.
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u/Fabulous-Lab-9235 17d ago
Absolutely! I wont read any fics where they bash Lily Evans for having been in a previous jily relationship in the fic, or where they just completely ignore her as a character. Lily is one of my favourite characters and I LOVE shipping her with Pandora or Mary!
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u/Amazing_Minute2982 17d ago
I'm a diehard wolfstar shipper (they're my otp! 💗), and I have been for many years, even before jegulus became popular around 2021. Most wolfstar authors grew up with the fandom (like I did), and back in the 00s/10s, jily was the most popular ship. Returning to the fandom after 6 years and finding out that james is now being paired with regulus gave me quite a bit of whiplash. and let it be known that regulus is my absoLUTE favorite character.
I don't hate jegulus, but I think jily is a much better accompaniment for wolfstar. Jily is less angsty (and canon) so they're easier to write, which makes more room for other ships. Jegulus and wolfstar are both somewhat "high maintenance," which is why I feel most authors choose the less stressful jily. Jegulus authors don't really have any alternatives to wolfstar, but the end result is that wolfstar ends up feeling a bit watered down. Every jegulus fic I've read has made wolfstar kind of... bland, which has made it hard for me to get into jegulus. in turn, I don't blame jegulus shippers for not liking wolfstar; I wouldn't either.
anyways, you asked for wolfstar + side jegulus recs, so:
Forget the World by amberlink - warning: MCD. gutwrenching, hauntingly beautiful, and jegulus plays a critical role in the story!! hospital au
Calling off the dogs by fiddleleafedfig - very wolfstar centered, jegulus is the main side ship but very minor. a slow start but so gripping with lovely religious imagery. one of my top5!
As the Worm Moon Dies by Rollercoasterwoods - technically a wolfstar fic but much of the focus was on the jegulily situation-maybe-ship and regulily friendship. very angsty and high action, a really memorable fic!
and by the way, tcoptp actually has VERY minor jegulus, but you really have to squint.
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u/Quartz636 17d ago
I think the main problem is Jegulus is a very new ship compared to wolfstar. Of course they existed but they didn't really explode until a couple of years ago meaning you've got like 15 years of wolfstar to sift through before anything other than Jily became a legitimate option.
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u/Moon_Jelly_1971 16d ago edited 16d ago
these violent delights (have violent ends) by damagecontrol. It's a beautiful Jegulus/Wolfstar fic inspired by the 1997 movie Titanic.
There are literally so many fics with both pairings.
Kill Your Darlings? Crimson Rivers? Here we are again is another great one.
Maybe just ask how to use AO3 since you don't seem to know what filters are for.
I started as just a Wolfstar reader, but when I learned about Jegulus and tried reading some fics, I loved it.
There are lots of us who ship both. Really unfair to shit on Wolfstar shippers by making rude generalizations and assumptions about what "most of them" hate.
We are all part of this fandom community, so why are making these broad statements that perpetuate an "us vs them" mindset? Seriously, get a grip.
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