#Advent ficlets 2022

[fuckyeahfightlock]

Advent Ficlets, Day 8

Warming Up

“Mm, c’mere.”

The bedclothes were cold, the room dark, the windows rattling with freezing rain and battering wind. John reached for Sherlock in the grey-blackness--his hand, the hem of his t-shirt, an unfortunate bump of their knees, Sherlock’s cold foot on the back of his ankle as his leg slid between John’s. Sherlock ran the flat of his hand up John’s chest, settled it in the hollow of his shoulder, nuzzled the chilly tip of his nose against John’s cheek.

“Do we need another quilt?”

Sherlock shook his head, his hair rustling against the pillow slip. “No,” he murmured, let it drag and descend into breath. Soft, quick kisses here and there on John’s jaw and chin, and John tucked his hand up under the back of Sherlock’s shirt, stroked the smooth skin of his back, urged him nearer. He hummed contentment into a lingering kiss, their lips barely parted, slotted perfectly together. Sherlock’s palm slid up the side of his neck, behind his head, brushing his hair the wrong way. He shifted his leg and John’s foot found a cool spot, slid back toward the warmth they’d begun to generate.

Wandering hands slid beneath shirts, rearranged the blankets up to their shoulders, even up near their ears, warm mouths and the pockets made by loosened clothing, limbs perfectly fitted together, breathing warm damp onto each other’s barely-bared necks, the v-shaped patch of exposed skin between collar bones. Sighing and humming, now and again small bright gasps, fond words of praise and admiration, More intimate caresses, a deeper burrowing beneath the heat-conserving stack of quilts, no more unpleasant shocks of cold fingers, toes, only nestling into the familiar close embrace of loving arms, and the heat between them only rose and rose until they lay sated and soft in the snug, drowsy afterward.

[alphinias]

Cinnamon

Kiara had never been much of a baker.

Sure, she was decent in the sense of anyone who knew their way around a kitchen, but she didn’t have the practice with baking that she did with cooking. Rising with yeast and eyeballing the correct consistency of dough were totally outside her comfort zone.

And these cinnamon rolls were a bitch.

She wasn’t convinced they looked quite poofy enough, but she did know that if they turned out shitty after all the time she’d spent on them, she might just set the oven on fire.

The oven was one of the few utilities in the patched together little fishing shack she shared with JJ that hadn’t broken yet, so she really couldn’t afford to do that.

It was really all Sarah’s fault, she’d decided. Dragging them into that bakery downtown, where she’d watched JJ pick a giant cinnamon roll from the case.

“That good?” Kiara had joked, when he half scarfed it down.

“Acceptable. It’s acceptable.” His tone was playful, but something was off. Kiara had paused, fingers pulling her cookie in half.

The others had been paying them no mind, utterly consumed in their own conversation; some sort of back and forth about whether or not Pope was allergic to pecans. She nudged JJ’s knee with hers, feeling the warmth of him through her jeans.

“You alright?”

“I’d say so, yeah,” he said, but Kiara didn’t budge. JJ’s eyes stared hard at his plate. “Just thinking.”

Kiara’s brows popped up in mock surprise, a teasing grin haunting her lips. “You were?”

“I used to have ‘em on Christmas sometimes,” he’d offered too casually, nodding at the crumbs on his plate. Upon noticing her expression, he explained, “My mom made it.”

As if giving up this shred of information was no big deal. As if even a hint of acknowledgment of Georgia Maybank’s existence didn’t steal the breath from Kiara’s lungs. They’d been dating for three years, best friends for ten, and she could count the amount of times he’d mentioned her on one hand.

But she forced a smile. JJ scratched at his ear, and she didn’t even bite a warning at him when his hand fell on her thigh, no doubt leaving a little trail of stickiness.

Kiara hadn’t been able to stop thinking about it, and that had landed her here.

At seven am on Christmas morning, up way too early for someone who had already relented and let her and her boyfriend open up all their presents from one another the night before.

Her timer beeped, and she wrangled the cinnamon rolls out of the oven. Stared down at them doubtfully, unconvinced that they were supposed to be such a rich shade of brown. They weren’t entirely burnt, but something was off.

Oh well. It was too late to do anything about it, anyway.

She raked the too watery icing she’d scraped together overtop the buns, face screwing up when it ran even thinner over their heat.

Well. They sort of looked like cinnamon rolls.

“Kie?” JJ’s voice carried down the hall, and a sudden pit of dread gaped in Kiara’s stomach.

Within seconds, he’d appeared, hanging halfway between their living room and kitchen. His fingers were in his hair, little pieces of woven gold standing up on all ends, and he wore nothing but shorts. She realized with a surge of fondness that he’d pulled on the new pair she’d gifted him the night before.

“Merry Christmas,” Kiara said, and she didn’t know why she was fiddling with her hands. She hadn’t prepared for him to be up for at least another hour.

“Is that breakfast?” JJ’s voice had grown less scratchy and a lot more alert. He padded over towards her, stopping only when he was half propped on the counter beside her.

The pit in Kiara’s stomach rose. She hoped this wasn’t a bad idea. They’d made a big deal out of starting new, and doing things differently than what their parents had done, but they still joined the Carreras for Sunday night dinners and watched Rudolph on Christmas Eve, just like her family had always done.

“Kind of. I tried making cinnamon rolls.”

JJ blinked at her, then down at the little doughy lumps that vaguely passed as cinnamon rolls. Blinked some more, and an apology was nearly on her tongue before he was slinging his arm around her, pulling her into the crook of his neck. Her arms went around him instinctively, despite the flour smeared down her apron; they’d hugged each other in worse condition. He smacked a messy kiss into her hair.

There was a murmur of something indecipherable into the top of her head, but all her attempts at hearing went out the window when he let go, one hand falling to rest on her waist and the other snatching up one of the cinnamon rolls.

“JJ,’ Kiara started, but he’d already shoved half of it into his mouth before she could say more. She watched him chew nervously. “I’ve never made them before.”

“They’re good,” JJ said, after he’d swallowed, which was an accomplishment. His words were contrasted by the snort of laughter that followed, blowing the loose curls around her forehead. She frowned, defensiveness rearing within her.

“What?” she demanded.

“We had the little white dough man kind.”

“From the can?” Kiara cried. It melted into some weird laugh hybrid, and JJ’s grin down at the cinnamon rolls widened.

“Yeah, from the fucking can, Kie. Have you met my family?” JJ took another large bite, and one hand wound through her hair, massaging into her neck. Thankfully, he had the sense to do it with the fingers that didn’t have any icing on them.

There was still laughter in his eyes, and that swell of such open, unapologetic affection that still sometimes knocked the breath out of her when he didn’t bother to hide it. His voice softened. “Yours are better.”

[polikszena]

Ficlet Advent Calendar 2022 - December 4

Title: Rooster the mustached pilot Fandom: Top Gun: Maverick Characters: Penny Benjamin, Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw, Jake “Hangman” Seresin, Reuben “Payback” Fitch, Natasha “Phoenix” Trace Word Count: 858 Rating: Teen and up audiences Songs: 2000 Miles by Pretenders, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Summary:  Penny Benjamin is decorating The Hard Deck for Christmas and Maverick calls for reinformcement to help her. However, when the young pilots arrive, the decorating turns into something else. Notes:  Originally I just wanted something with Maverick and the Daggers helping Penny with decorating the bar, but then my brain went wild.

December 4 - Rooster the mustached pilot

Looking around the empty bar, Penny Benjamin let out a sigh. She had just taken out the boxes with the Christmas decorations, but she didn’t feel like putting them up. She was planning to do it with Amelia – they always did it together -, but she had a test the next day and ad to study. She was thinking about a giving it a rain check, but she was already late with the decorations. Being alone she might not finish today, so her daughter might have to join her in the end.

She connected her phone to the bar’s speakers and pressed play on her Christmas playlist to set the mood, then she started it. The first thing she hanged was the wreath on the front door then she opened all the boxes and took the ornaments out on the tables to see the whole collection. She had Santa Clauses from all over the world, given by the sailors and aviators from their deployments, knowing she was collecting them. They also liked to see them on display in The Hard Deck; it made them feel honored when they saw their Santas hanging from a model plane or standing on a shelf.

“He’s gone two thousand miles It’s very far,” Panny sang along to the playlist as she was standing on the bar top, hanging a string of fairy lights between the model planes.

“The snow is falling down Gets colder day by day I miss you,” she continued, and it sounded like another voice had joined her, going a little off-key.

Looking behind, she saw Captain Pete Maverick Mitchell walking towards her, smiling.

“I can hear people singing It must be Christmastime,” he was still singing, even after Penny had already stopped.

“Hello, Pete,” Penny greeted him with a wide smile.

“Do you need a hand?” he asked.

“I could use one,” she replied. “Or more.”

“I think we can arrange that,” the aviator grinned at her, then he pulled a Santa hat out of his jacket’s pocket and put it on. It made Penny raise a brow, but it warmed her heart to see him in such a good mood. Maverick sent a message on his phone then slid it back to his pocket.

“What’s with the hat?” she wondered once he joined her on the bar top.

“I applied to for the role of Santa in this year’s Christmas show,” he told her. “I always wanted to try that.”

“What? Wear red and give presents to the children?” Penny asked.

“Why not? I think I could handle it.”

“But you’re aware that you won’t get to ride the sleigh,” she joked.

“Unfortunately I am, but a man can dream,” he laughed. Although he would definitely give it a try had he ever had a chance to sit in Santa’s sleigh.

After a short while, Maverick heard the sound of cars parking next to the bar and a grin broke out on his face.

“My reindeer have arrived,” he announced, as a group of young pilots walked into the bar: Hangman, Bob, Phoenix, Coyote, Payback, and Fanboy, all ready to decorate. Only Rooster was missing.

Penny had to laugh because seeing Maverick’s team walking in, the only thing she could think about was the song Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer. She told this to the pilots, of course, which led to the whole group singing this song while decorating and writing some new lyrics to it. When Rooster arrived about half an hour later, the others gone suspiciously quiet.

“Sorry, I just saw the message,” he said. “What did I miss?”

A smile touched Maverick’s lips and they all shared a look before they started singing:

“You know Hangman and Phoenix and Payback and Fanboy And Coyote and Bob, But do you recall The hairiest pilot of all?

Rooster the mustached pilot, Had a very hairy nose And if you ever saw it, You could tell how fast hair grows.”

“Seriously?” Rooster raised a brow, but he couldn’t hide his grin. “Is this what you were doing while I was in Cyclone’s office?”

“There’s actually one more verse,” Hangman said, then started to sing:

“All of the other pilots Often laugh and call him names ‘Cause he’s an overthinker and too old for pilot games”

“I think we can all be grateful for you being a pilot and not a lyricist,” Rooster laughed. He found the song funny and somewhat accurate. Although he didn’t really understand why they were singing about him.

“Well, you weren’t there, to begin with,” Phoenix said with a small shrug. “And your call sign starts with R.”

“I see,” he nodded. “But just for the record, Cyclone has a lot more hair in his nose, than I have.”

“And on his chest,” Payback added with a grin, making the whole team laugh.

“While you’re discussing who’s the hairiest of them all, hang these lights above the pool table,” Penny stepped to Rooster, handing him a set of fairy lights, and as she walked away, she was humming the re-written song about Rooster the hairy pilot. Now she was in a much better mood.

(Read it on AO3)

[siren-x-saint]

CLINTASHA Emotions/Moods Dec 17th 2022

( Emotions & Moods )

Subtle Emotions

Takes place during Age of Ultron.

Clint sees her talking to Bruce again across Stark's bar. He feels a sharp pain in his chest as he looks down and smiles softly. He wants to say he's happy for her. He's always suspected that Natasha had feelings for him. She hides it well, she hides it like a Widow. Though he feels it, he sees it in her eyes, and he hates that deep down he feels it because they're there for him too.

She's a Black Widow, most smart people would know better to trust any of them. Though Natasha is the exception. He would trust her with his life. So he doesn't understand why Natasha is having such a hard time winning over the big guy. She's genuinely opening herself to him. How much of a gift is that? A Black Widow truly opening herself up to emotions, feelings, and romance. Most know better than to take that risk.

Yet he distracts himself with the drum set Tony has in the corner. He casually eyes them. He doesn't like how Banner is flatly turning down her advances. He doesn't understand why. Though he can logically reason why he would. The Big Green Guy is too dangerous. Anger issues, other repressed issues. He wants to say Bruce is not good enough for her. He doesn't. He holds his tongue and watches as he softly smiles back at her, and he wonders if she's finally managed to break through. Breakthrough Banner's numerous excuses and insecurities.

YOLO is a phrase Banner does not take to heart.

He takes them into his family home. He sees her try again and it looks like this time. This time she's finally broken through. He's given her hope. At least she looks happy and that same feeling comes again. The same pierce in his chest hits and he feels like a complete and utter asshole. He should be happy for her, for them. One part of him is happy for her but another is selfish. He feels hurt and he doesn't understand why. He has a wife, a family, a life Natasha can never have. He should be happy she can at least have him. Experience love, romantic love.

It's too much for him to witness. He tells himself and his family he's giving them their space, their privacy. Laura buys it completely. Why shouldn't she? He has been nothing but loyal. It's unfair he shouldn't have feelings for more than one woman. That's not what heroes do, that's not what life is about.

As usual everything turns to shit. The good comes with the bad. The bad is that they won against Ultron but the cost. The cost is too much. He feels the need to retire. So, he does yet Natasha stays.

Bruce disappears and he can see that Natasha is hurt and disappointed. He can't tell which feeling prevails. She looks more hurt than worried. He can only suspect that something happened up in the jet. He wants to ask but he knows it's not his place to ask. He has his own life and family to worry about. He chose to run. It's his loss.

He's angry for Natasha yet another part feels relieved. Natasha deserved better, someone who wouldn't push her away. Someone who knows her worth, someone who would risk his life for her. Someone like himself.

And now all he feels is guilt.

[hms-harmony-discord]

Introducing the 2022 HMS Harmony Advent Fest! A holiday-themed event for Harry/Hermione writers and artists:

Every day, starting today, a new prompt will be announced. Participants need to create a short drabble/ficlet/art piece centred around the prompt. 24 days until Christmas, 24 prompts.

Where are the prompts? The prompts will be posted separately on the HMS Harmony Discord, HMS Harmony Facebook group, and r/hpharmony reddit each day.

How do I post entries to the fest? Feel free to post these drabbles/art pieces individually, or if you want to group them together, create an Adventus fic and post them as individual chapters!

All entries must be posted to this collection: https://archiveofourown.org/collections/2022HMSHarmonyAdventFest/

Rules

All entries must involve and centre around the H/Hr pairing.

All entries must stick to the prompt and the overall Christmas/Winter/Holiday theme.

Entries involving explicitly sexualised H/Hr before HBP are not allowed.

You are not allowed to submit or reshare a previously written drabble/art to this fest. Any entries must be written specifically for this fest.

Plagiarism or promotion of plagiarised works is not allowed.

❄️ Good luck, and happy holidays! ❄️

[lilolilyr]

✨ao3 wrapped 2023✨

Haven't seen this tagging meme around at all yet this year, so I thought I'd start it myself!

2022

Works published: 74, very similar to last year! a bit less but the year also isn’t over yet :D edit: by the time I’m getting around to post this, it’s on 86! Yay!

Wordcount: 118254 I’m happy I made it past 100k! That was my tentative goal and I didn’t think I’d make it with how slow it came along for most of the year, but with flufftober and the events I did manage :D

Kudos: 3184

Hits: 31833

Bookmarks: 267

Subscriptions: 114 and I’m at 157 user subscriptions right now? Who follows my multifandom mess of an Ao3, doesn’t that completely clogg up your email inbox? Maybe I’m just biased bc I rarely check my fandomy email and when I do it’s always a mess xD but I think tag lists on tumblr are so much more useful

Most popular by kudos: Gave myself a Fright, a Mirandy (DWP) fic with 301 kudos

Most hits: same fic, 2404 hits

Longest: lonely hearts on remote roads with 10811 words - Milippa road trip AU my beloved!

Shortest: I wrote nine drabbles (100 word ficlets) this year, they’re the shortest ones :)

Most Comments: my podfic of the Mirandy longfic Jigsaw has 14 comment threads - damn, that’s a year with few comments! In past years the whole top 5 commented on fics had more than that. Oh well!

Fics that made me cry: Grief, a fanfic where I project my own feelings about a dead pet onto Myka, and recording the Jigsaw podfic also made me really emotional a lot

Fics that made me smile: so manyy! For example the Berena fic Happiness surrounded by Snow

gifts:

- the first chapter of ‘Time Dilates’ by @barbarawar as my Bering and Wells gift exchange gift back in February, thanks!

- ‘Blame it on Circumstance’, a wonderful sequel to the fluffy fic @squishmittenficfan made me for the Berena gift exchange in 2022, and another sequel Blame it on Love posted just a few days ago I haven’t actually gotten around to read yet but am already very excited for!

- ‘never borrow Helena’s clothes’, a fic for the Bering and Wells advent by @jesstrel that I have beta read for them :)

I have gifted some fics as well this year, I tend to gift people fics when they helped me with it by beta reading or cheering me on, or when I was writing to someone’s prompt! I know I adore getting gift works on Ao3 and I love to share that happiness :)

collaborations:

Halloween fic and art collab with @thewalkingmeepa, that was fun!

Drunken Considerations, a Bering and Wells collab fic with @lavendelhummel :D first time I made a collab while actually in the same room with the other person xD

Both collaborations and part of an event were the fic & podfic works Where No Flan Has Gone Before (Star Trek humor) with @bookgirlfan and Which Mere Modernity Cannot (modern Dracula) with @artax-risen, and the Bering and Wells Advent Calendar with @lavendelhummel @purlturtle @akittennameddaisy @viharistenno @jesstrel @sallysetonbw @violetren @thiakerrigan @tryingthisfangirlthing that is still ongoing! finished now, I take too long for tagging memes xdxD

events:

- Flufftober (I managed to make something for every single day of the month, yay!)

- Berena advent

2022 version

Tagging, if you want to do it, everyone already tagged above as well as @die-schwanenkoenigin @amysnotdeadyet @lesbianlotties @guardianrock @73chn1c0l0rr3v3l @danisnotmyname @batnbreakfast @sapphicscholar @tabsolanya @sterenheart @wibblywobblyida @forestcircle @ongreenergrasses and everyone else who sees this!

For ease of copying: Works published: Wordcount: Kudos: Hits: Bookmarks: Subscriptions: Most popular by kudos: Most hits: Longest: Shortest: Most Comments: Fics that made me cry: Fics that made me smile: gifts: collaborations: events:

sapphicscholar purlturtle die-schwanenkoenigin amysnotdeadyet squishmittenficfan viharistenno lesbianlotties bookgirlfan

[putonmyfavoriteshow]

putonmyfavoriteshow's master fic writing post on-going ~ Violetta the heart of pretending (future franletta/leonetta reverse fake-dating au dramedy; my passion project) Soy Luna ...and they were roommates (post show jazmilia/delfma; self-indulgent rom-com chaos for side-characters who deserved more) BIA the celestial goat & her cosmic fish (platonic-for-now chiarleste's great astrology debate; a dynamic exploration between my favorite kind of bickering sidekicks) finished multi-chaps ~ Violetta a perfectly perfect gift (luty ft. franletta - my first official dcla multi-chap!) luty month (daily prompts from @iristhedeadflower) franletta month (daily prompts from @weirdthoughtsandideas) finished one-shots/two-shots ~ Violetta no boys, no problems (right?) (franletta s2 alternate ending to italy arc) an unexpected evening (jadangie fix-it fic - dcla gift exchange 2022 + bonus dcla pride month chap) midnights (a ludmila pov luty fic + bonus luty month chap) playing murder (and all that jazz) (violetta gang halloween fic - canon pairings) go figure (a naty pov luty fic) the mistletoe experiment (a natila story based on a dcla advent calendar prompt from @countessofravenclaw) welcome to new york (christmas version) (violetta gang xmas fic - canon pairings) it is what it is (luty - angsty ficlet) the deadfast club (violetta gang horror two-shot - luty focus ft leonetta/camcesca)

Soy Luna elevator goes up, elevator come down (simbar s3 missing scene - tumblr soy luna fic week 2021) unlock my heart (when lutteo got locked in the dressing room, except it's jazmilia aka the best non-canon ship ever made by a random wheel) there's a great big beautiful tomorrow (lutteo/gastina tomorrowland adventure - dcla gift exchange 2023) BIA losin' sleep (thiana s2 missing scene inspired by @assim-eu-sou) dream date (romantic chiarleste debut to ao3) non dcla ~ my sorta friend's sister's funeral (victorious - jori - angst/fluff one-shot) even crows have wings (six of crows - kanej - sl/roller skating au one-shot) page 55 (the villains of valley view - hartmy - missing scene drabble) if we were a horror movie (the villains of valley view - hartmy - hartmy watch jennifer's body)

other fan content: my tumblr edits tag my tumblr gifs tag

[daintyduck99]

'tis the damn season (write this down)

For your consideration: some JatP Christmas fics

Summaries included below, check AO3 tags for more information

where the lovelight gleams by @bananakarenina

Julie Molina, one of the biggest popstars on the planet, is spending the month of December in New York City to promote her new Christmas album and a huge Christmas Eve concert at Madison Square Garden. Her team has hired her a personal driver for the whole month--Reggie Peters. Julie's struggling with losing her creativity and passion, while Reggie is struggling with just trying to make rent in the big city; he hasn't been really creative in years. Can the two of them find their way back to music before Christmas comes? What else will they find along the way? (Love. Obviously the answer is love.)

you could call me 'babe' for the weekend by @locketletters

“Look, there's no way my parents are going to buy the fact that you’re my boyfriend.” Luke crosses his arms, brows furrowing, “What’s that supposed to mean?” in which luke goes home with alex for he holidays as a pretend boyfriend, and leaves with him as a real one.

Not Found Under the Tree by @breakaway71

There's only one thing Julie wants for Christmas.

Haunted Holidays by @invisibleraven

JatP Advent ficlets 2023!

Our Luxury (A Love Like Stars) by @psyduckappears, @daintyduck99

“So, I bought a ring,” Luke says, casual in the way that usually Reggie would realize is nowhere near casual and much closer to freaking out, but he’s a little busy choking to death on his lunch.

not the last unknown by @bananakarenina

It's Christmas Eve, and the Molina family goes to church. This year they have a couple tagalongs.

Joy To The World by @wishfulstargazer

"Christmas in LA is free of snow, but not of spirit. In fact, between the lit up palm trees, the shop displays everywhere, Feliz Navidad playing on every radio station, and a host of Christmas music and decorations all over Los Feliz high school, Christmas is pretty much unavoidable. It all grates on her nerves. Christmas without Rose Molina is unthinkable. Almost as unthinkable as music without Rose Molina." Can a well meaning trio of ghost boys bring back Julie's Christmas spirit and help her reclaim her music?

From the Heart by @breakaway71

Reggie gives Julie a gift, but she is not the only one to have some feelings about it.

Hallelujah, Everybody Say Cheese (Merry Christmas From The Family) by @a-tomb-with-a-view

Reggie sighs and turns in Luke’s arms to face him. Luke leans forward to kiss Reggie’s nose, his smile playful even if his eyes are huge and full of concern. God but Reggie loves him. “I’m not going home for Christmas,” he admits eventually. “I don’t know what I’m doing, but… but not that.” Luke frowns, and kisses Reggie’s forehead instead this time, having to lean up on tiptoes to do so. “Why don’t you come over to ours?”

Phantom Carols by @invisibleraven

Fills for the JatP Advent Event 2022!

Kiss Me Under the Missile Toad by @wr0temyway0ut

“Woah, little dude,” Willie says as he lowers Carlos to his feet. “You gotta be careful up there. What were you even doing?” Carlos gives Willie a proud grin and thrusts something into their hands. “I’m hanging the missile toads!”

why do i care how much it may storm (i’ve got my love to keep me warm) by @tillstarscollided

There is something special about nighttime snowfall, how it’s quiet and almost eerie with only the lights from the porch to show it, but how that also means you can watch it collect and sparkle in a controlled section of light instead of being blinded by the sun reflecting off the entire landscape of white. There had been snow on the ground already, slowly melting, but this new batch was evening it out, covering up the mud and sludge with a new blank canvas that Reggie really wanted to just go and mess up with snowmen and snow angels, as the ones he had already made disappeared, but it was 1 am and he should be cuddling in bed with his partners, and he has bad impulse control but not that bad of impulse control. or: Reggie’s partners bring him to New York to see the snow, and he hasn’t stopped staring since.

a lonely boy on christmas by @nuandia

Alex doesn’t really think twice. He takes the tangerines and a wrapped sandwich and a bottle of water out of his shopping bag and offers them to him. The boy looks up, startled. His face guarded, his posture tense before he blinks at Alex and then relaxes. He smiles a tentative smile and slowly reaches for the offered groceries. But his eyes are sparkling, making the breath in Alex’s throat catch.  Or, everybody's lonely on Christmas Eve. Or well, maybe not.

Of Hearts Borrowed And Blue by @daintyduck99

“Some vacation,” Julie mutters, shedding the duvet and reaching for the coffee maker.  She still doesn’t know why everyone was so convinced that a change of scenery would do her good—it’s not like Julie can outrun Christmas. Caleb apparently also forgot to mention that everyone in this town is obsessed with the holiday, which isn’t all that different from the current atmosphere at Molina Family Photography.  If anything, Julie’s even more of a grinch here that she would be back home, because she stuffed all of her grief into a battered suitcase, and she can’t just pull it out for every single stranger trying to get her into the Christmas spirit.

[maraudersftw]

2022 Year In Review (Fic Version):

I was away for six months this year, but managed to write quite a few one-shots during the last few months of 2022. Borrowing this lovely template from @charmsandtealeaves to capture my fic stats of the year (because I love stats!) 💗

Also tagging @mppmaraudergirl @the-dream-team @missgryffin @wearingaberetinparis if they wanna share theirs!

Profile links: AO3 || FFN

2022 AO3 STATS (as of 27/12/22):

User Subscriptions: 345

Kudos: 2,929

Comment Threads: 887

Bookmarks: 548

Subscriptions: 493

Word Count: 191,092 (this is fake because AO3 includes the entire word count of WIPs, even if they were started in earlier years)

Hits: 47,631

Fic Breakdown: 

Jilychallenges:

Soft Bargains (January)

Words: 1.4K | Rating: T

“james and lily find themselves relegated to mundane chores around the safe house until they are able to be within five feet of each other without compromising yet another mission”

Close Your Eyes (November)

Words: 3.3K | Rating: T

“Really?” he whispered, voice tight, clearly hurt. “Do I really repulse you that much?”

Promises In Frost (December Jily Advent Calendar)

Words: 1.4K | Rating: T

Lily Evans has an important question to ask before Christmas.

Multichapters:

Drink Me! (Complete)

Words: 12.0K | Chapters: 3 | Rating: T

What do you do when you find a suspicious vial of potion left on your desk, accompanied by a cryptic message daring your true Gryffindor spirit? If you’re James Potter, you drink it and convince others to do the same. If you’re Lily Evans, you’re others.

Retribution (WIP)

Words: 86.3K | Chapters: 12/? | Rating: Mature

My name is Lily Evans. I’m twenty years old. I have red hair and green eyes. I’ve been experimented upon for the past two years. I tell you none of these facts from my own memory—because I have none. I suppose I’ll just have to take their word for it then, won’t I?

Tracing You (WIP)

Words: 6.7K | Chapters: 2/? | Rating: Mature

“Each student from the creative writing course will be paired with another student from the art course to work on a collaborative project over the duration of three weeks for a chance to be featured in the Hogwarts University Annual Art Exhibition.”

What are the chances that Lily gets paired with the one person she absolutely cannot stand?

Disgraceful (WIP)

Words: 18.4K | Chapters: 5/12 | Rating: Explicit

James Potter is attracted to his neighbour. Lily Evans wishes she wasn’t attracted to hers.

Other One-shots:

Sour Like Sweet

Words: 425 | Rating: E

James's birthday drabble (jily smut)

Loud Silences

Words: 3.5K | Rating: T

Silence speaks louder than words. And sometimes, James Potter learns, it speaks quite inaccurately.

so scarlet it was maroon

Words: 4.4K | Rating: T

James and Lily hide in a safe house after a mission gone wrong, even as unspoken pain lingers in the space between them.

Hoodwinked

Words: 6.7K | Rating: Explicit

James and Lily release stress after a night of undercover work for the Order [jily smut]

We’re Just Friends

Words: 4.0K | Rating: Mature

James Potter is in love with his flatmate. There. Best to get that out of the way before he is accused of being in denial or drowning in obliviousness

HodgePodge Ficlets:

Candles

New Love

Of Drinks & Dances

Fighting Fear

Three Two One

[thefluffychipmunk]

Fruity Four Advent Day 5 - I Want to Grow Old With You

Fruity Four Advent Calendar day 5 - In the future, the holidays of ‘22. Just a short little ficlet today. Barely a thing. I was initially going to write this an AU where Steve avoids an office Christmas party and Eddie works tech support and has to fix his computer, with very heavy, very excessive flirting. After yesterday’s beast of a story, though, I needed something a little shorter, a little sweeter, a little easier (if you need clarification on any of the terms or language, send an ask and I’ll add them). So here we are. Chanukah 2022/5783

 -------------------------------------------------------

Eddie pulled into the driveway, slowly, avoiding the ice patch he still hadn't bothered to put litter on. His house was mostly dark, a soft glow coming from the kitchen in the back but otherwise devoid of the multicolored light every other house seemed to have.

He cracked his back as he got out of the car and grabbed the two bags of Chinese food. It was Christmas. It was their annual tradition, a tradition shared by Jews the whole country over. They’d been to the movies at lunch. They had to have Chinese food at dinner.

It was also the last night of Chanukah. He could smell the oil from outside. Steve was making latkes. He wasn’t sure how well that was going to match with lo mein and fried rice but oh well. If Steve wanted latkes, they would have latkes. Especially if he was the one to make them.

Eddie kicked his boots off in the mudroom and hung up his coat. His gloves and scarf were dropped haphazardly by the washing machine. He left the bags of food on the dining room table and made his way into the hot kitchen.

"I like when Chanukah falls during Christmas break. It's the only time I can do stuff like this before sunset." Steve said, slapping his hand away from the draining tray. There was already a huge pile of latkes, more than the two of them should ever eat in one sitting.

"You could retire." Eddie wrapped his arms around Steve's waist, careful of the hot stove, and rested his chin on his shoulder.

"I'm only 55. I can't afford it yet." Steve dropped the last little latkes into the pan, slowly, so Eddie could move with him and not have to let go.

"You've got your inheritance just sitting there, sweetheart. We could live off my salary plus that." He felt Steve frown, felt his shoulders tense and his back go rigid.

"I'm not living off my father's money ever again, not if I can help it. I can teach for another five or ten years." Eddie didn't push it. He knew better.

“Besides,” Steve continued, “your book sales are good enough. You could retire and just be an author.” Eddie squeezed Steve’s belly in mock shock.

“And abandon my little lost sheepies in their time of need? We haven’t even cast the spring musical yet! I could never.” Steve chuckled as he flipped the latkes. They’d had this conversation so many times. They would probably continue to have it every year as teaching got more and more difficult. 

He dropped a gentle kiss to Steve's neck and pulled away. He could at least plate the food and get the chanukiahs ready. 

He was placing the last of the candles in his own, having gotten Steve set up first, when Steve came in with the plate of latkes. They didn’t usually light in the dining room. There was a table in the living room window, the big picture one facing the street, set up specifically for the purpose of lighting the chanukiahs every year. But they didn’t use it this year. They didn’t feel like they could. Things were getting pretty bad again, worse than he could remember in a long time, and it just wasn’t safe. He wasn’t going to hide his Jewishness, but he wasn’t going to flaunt it either. 

Eddie lit the match and then each shamash. They lit the candles and sang the blessings together. Steve’s singing voice had surprised him, early on, when Steve was still learning how to be Jewish. They’d been together for years at that point but he’d never heard it, never even caught Steve so much as singing in the shower or along with the radio. But he had a good voice, a strong voice, and Eddie was able to harmonize with it easily. He loved to hear it now.

“Happy Chanukah, Love.” Steve raised his chopsticks to Eddie. Eddie raised his back in return.

“Chag sameach, Ahuvi.”

He’d spent thirty five years of holidays with the love of his life. He could only hope to have thirty five more.

[fuckyeahfightlock]

Advent Ficlets 2022, Day 21

Darkness

“John. Are you asleep?”

“Mm. Nearly, but no.” John rolled his head against his pillow, reached for Sherlock beneath the blankets, found his waist, forearm, slid his hand down Sherlock’s wrist to loosely grasp his hand. “All right?”

“One thing, before our wedding.”

John hummed a light laugh. “There can’t be anything you’ve missed,” he murmured. Sherlock’s hand moved in his, tightened, slackened, found the right fit.

Barely above a whisper, Sherlock went on. “Last Christmas. My depressive episode.”

“What about it?” John whispered back.

“It could happen again. It probably will.”

“I know.”

The darkness of the bedroom, nearing midnight, was a blanket around them that eased the way for difficult things that wanted saying.

“Have you considered that?” Sherlock asked, his fingers scraping nervously at each other even in John’s grasp. “I wouldn’t blame you.” He left the rest unsaid.

John adjusted his hand, wove their fingers together, held on tight as he could.

“We’re neither of us perfect, Sherlock. But our broken pieces fit together. Cover up the cracks.”

Sherlock exhaled.

“I want you just as you are, forever. Never doubt it.”

Sherlock’s thumb brushed along the edge of John’s forefinger and he said, “Good, then.”

[shares-a-vest]

💖 Lily 💖 31. Aus. She/Her They/Them. Aquarius.

writing wip | fic recs | talking | answering

Writing

Ficlets | Mostly Steddie. Includes a sprinkling of Ronance, Clarkson, Platonic Stobin and Platonic Edancy. Plus appearances from other ST characters.

Headcanons | As above. There is probably an overlap with ficlets here and there seeing as I usually go off on a little drabble too!

Joanie Munson AU | A fluffy ongoing AU focusing on Steve, Eddie, their bio daughter, Joanie, and their many cats. Eddie is trans. All details/timeline info I keep consistent, but they can be read as stand-alone pieces. No set schedule or tag list. I just return to it when I feel like it.

Drabbles | Varying degrees of 'drabble' based on daily prompts from the Stranger Things Writer's Guild discord server. I try to set myself the task of writing these out in one go.

Fics

Tumblr Fics | Every fic I have posted directly to tumblr, longer writing (over about 1.2k), plus links to my ao3 postings.

i don’t like sand. it’s coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere. (Awkward Dates | Rating: T | Complete, 2.1k)

Steve just wants to take Eddie on a romantic date to a secluded beach-like spot along Lover’s Lake. But they quickly find themselves battling a new enemy: sand. Written for @thefreakandthehair's Spicy Six Summer Fanworks Challenge.

you should come live with me and we could be pirates, then you won't have to cry (Angst with a Happy Ending, Steve Harrington Has Bad Parents | Rating: T | Complete, 5.8k)

Eddie receives a call from Steve's mom, summoning him to the Harrington residence. Steve and his mother have been packing up the house and in the process, he tells her about the Upside Down and his relationship with Eddie. Written for @thefreakandthehair's Spicy Six Spring Fanworks Challenge.

Eds, I'm Hungry (Getting Together, Fluff | Rating: T | Complete, 3.2k)

Basically just Steve and Eddie being sickly lovebirds as they talk over a post-coital midnight snack. Written for steddie-week's Day 1 Prompt: 'Hunger'.

Writing for Community Events & Themed Writing

Microfic Challenge | Fics written for the awesomely difficult (but very cool writing exercise) steddiemicrofic challenge.

ST: Father's Day Edition | Fathers, friendships and Steve Has Bad Parents Bad Parents™. Written in the lead-up to Father's Day. I just needed to project onto my blorbos.

SteddieWeek2023 | Ficlets, headcanons and fics. Written using the daily prompts from Steddie Week 2023.

ST: Easter Edition | Ficlets, headcanons and fics written over Easter this year.

Platonic Stobin Month | Ficlets, headcanons and fics. Written for Platonic Stobin Month.

Valentine's Day: Steddie Edition | Ficlets, headcanons and fics I wrote in the lead-up to Valentine's Day this year.

Fruity Four Advent Calendar | Ficlets, headcanons and fics. Written for @unclewaynemunson's Fruity Four Advent Calendar 2022.

[cerriddwenluna]

I'm gonna go ahead and call this a productive day. I wrote one ficlet, edited two, and wrote all but the final chapter that was missing in my Klaine Advent story (of 2022--Christmas in July is a thing, right?)

Here's hoping I'll be able to finish everything that's left tomorrow and get started on some other ideas that live rent free in my brain 🤞😁

[polikszena]

Ficlet advent calendar - December 5

Title: Tiny Santa

Fandom: Top Gun: Maverick

Characters: Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, Beau “Cyclone” Simpson

Word Count: 628

Rating: Teen and up audiences

Summary:   Cyclone calls Maverick into his office to tell him that he can't play Santa in the Navy Base's Christmas event, only because he is too small for the role.

December 5 – Tiny Santa

Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell raised a brow when he saw the Christmas decoration in Vice Admiral Beau “Cyclone” Simpson’s office as he wasn’t expecting the officer having a Christmas spirit. Noticing the Santa figurine on his desk with the sign saying, “Stars Hollow Santa Beauty Pageant 2003”, he had to admit he might have been wrong about Cyclone. He thought the vice admiral didn’t even want to coordinate the navy base’s Christmas event – it was given to him just because he was the only one amongst the higher ranked officers  who had done theatre before. The mental picture of Cyclone making a fool of himself on stage made Maverick’s lips curl up. However, he had to keep a straight face to enhance his chances to get the role of Santa, and he knew that laughing at Cyclone wouldn’t help with that.

Despite they were on much better terms than ever before, he still wasn’t the vice admiral’s favorite and he wanted to get the part so much. Putting on the red costume with a fake beard, giving small gifts to the children of navy people seemed fun. especially they probably wouldn’t recognize him like little Bradley did when he dressed up as Santa once. He couldn’t even say “Ho-ho-ho,” when the kid called his name with a wide grin.

“Captain Mitchell,” Cyclone began, getting up from his chair, “I looked through your application, but I have to inform you that the part was given to someone else,” he announced.

Maverick had to press his lips together to stop the question blurting out: Why? Speed-wise he would be the closest to match Santa’s velocity, he thought, even though the role did not involve actual flying. He couldn’t believe Cyclone called him only to tell him that he was rejected.

“Sir, may I ask why?” he finally spoke, congratulating himself for remaining this polite.

“I had to admit, your application was impressive,” the vice admiral told him, “but I had to refuse it, because let’s face it Captain, you are too small.”

“Excuse me?”

Seriously this was the only reason he didn’t get the part? Because of his height? He couldn’t believe it.

“Listen, Captain, Santa is a big guy with a deep mighty voice,” Cyclone continued, “and unfortunately you don’t have any of these qualities. If it was about delivering presents with a high speed, you’d have been my first choice, but this is about acting and not piloting.”

The vice admiral’s explanation felt like a slap on the face. Maverick’s cheeks were burning with humiliation, but he decided to hide it as much as he could, not wanting to give Cyclone the pleasure to see him suffer. He was right though: Maverick’s voice wasn’t very deep, and he wasn’t tall enough either. However, he hadn’t thought it would be a problem again ever since that roller coaster incident back in high school.

“Understood,” he finally said.

“You could be perfect for the head of the elves,” Cyclone offered.

Another slap. Maverick swallowed hard before answering.

“I’d like to decline that, Sir,” he said.

Cyclone nodded. He didn’t want to humiliate the captain, although he did feel a little satisfaction when he told him the news. It was a well-deserved revenge for all the problems Maverick had caused, but that was only the bonus. If he had never broken the rules, he would still be way too small to play Santa.

“In that case Captain, you’re dismissed,” he said.

Maverick nodded then left the room. Cyclone sat back down with a sigh, but as his eyes fell on the Santa figurine on his desk, he couldn’t help smiling. His glance then shifted to his notes. Now he had only one person left he had to talk to: Lieutenant Bradshaw.

Read it on AO3

[jedusaur]

2022 fic roundup!

this year I posted 153,007 words on AO3, which is by FAR the most I've ever written in a year, and I didn't even start until the end of April! the summer was just an unprecedented deluge of words, don't ask me wtf happened. so here's what I wrote:

my top 5 favorites

A Hockey Stick Apart [Check Please, Jack/Kent] — cabin-in-Canada trope inversion where Jack won't let Kent into the cabin, and they both learn a whole lot about the complexity of navigating boundaries both physical and emotional (I think this might be my favorite thing I've ever written—certainly the most personally meaningful I've posted publicly—and of course it's in a fandom no one has touched since 2017 >.<)

okay to ask [Marvel, Clint/Bucky] — in which everyone uses a consent settings system to help communicate what kinds of contact they're comfortable with

just trying to matter [Ted Lasso, Roy/Jamie/Keeley] — in which Roy is outed and Jamie comes out, and Keeley handles the PR

but for the grace [Ted Lasso, Roy/Jamie and Jamie/Keeley] — dimension-swap fic about Jamie from canon switching places with Jamie from a world where he's learned to manage his emotions

Made For This (The Yoga Breaks) [MCU, gen] — a character study of Bruce set during Endgame, focusing on his relationship with his body after he merges with the Hulk

Marvel, Clint/Bucky

No Consequences, No Hangovers — time loop fic where Clint repeatedly gets tied back-to-back with Bucky for hours on end

remembrances ⊻ memoria — in which Clint is immortal and Bucky kills him repeatedly over the course of decades

The House Recommends and The House Rules — no-powers AU in which Clint likes to hook up and Bucky is a bartender who tells him who he should bang

burning the hole where I lay and the decision to want — in which Bucky is on a mission to kill all the HYDRA agents that tortured him, and Clint is a hooker with information Bucky wants

something in consciousness — in which Clint and Bucky both keep having the same wet dream at the same time

This Is Why We Can Have Nice Things — Christmas fluff with a coffee Advent calendar

Targeted Areas — gym bros AU, with sexually-charged partnered bodyweight exercises

you didn't hear that — in which they're roommates and Bucky can hear Clint jerking off with his super-senses

Awful Taste But Great Execution — celebrity/fan AU leaning hard on the starstruck crush angle

second watch — in which there are lots of cuddles and clothes-sharing and Clint cannot explain any part of his bizarre wardrobe

Snuggly Like the Wolf — in which Bucky is a werewolf but always sleeps through his shifts

untitled tumblr ficlet in which Clint habitually says "I love you" to everyone except Bucky

untitled tumblr ficlet about the discovery of the Hand of Irelugi because I'm a nerd

Ted Lasso, Roy/Jamie

the exact nature of our wrongs — fake dating fic in which Roy reluctantly helps Jamie kick his alcohol problem

Check and Mate and the best way to spend a night — soulmate AU in a world where soulbonds are triggered by kissing, so people kiss strangers a lot

if you want something — in which Jamie has been fantasizing about getting a spanking from Roy Kent for a very, very long time

more of the thing you just got a taste of — in which Jamie hates Roy and also can't get enough of his dick

Mounting Available On Request — in which Roy accidentally hires a hooker and it's Jamie

Player On Loan — in which Jamie likes Keeley to lend him out to people for sex like a toy

Unmentionables — lingerie kink, that's it that's the fic

The Down Low — in which Jamie finds Roy on Grindr

just do it — consent play, that's it that's the fic

The Core Issue — in which Jamie thinks apples are all the same and Roy forcibly educates him

Russian Doll

you can call any old time [gen] — it always bugged me that they never tried to exchange numbers, so I wrote about why they couldn't

Check Please

A Few Eggs [Kent/Jack/Bitty] — the long-overdue kinky threesome sequel to Omelets, in which Bitty is the consummate hostess in both senses of the word "consummate"

[forabeatofadrum]

Here it is, fic rec friday! I said I was gonna do this! I don’t know if it’ll be a weekly thing, because it depends on whether or not I read fics in a week. Also, to prevent people from being overwhelmed by tags, I don’t think this is going to be a tag challenge, but of course feel free to also make your own post with recs!

Strap in Klainers and Snowbazzians, cause here we go. It’s another long one! Happy reading!

@cerriddwenluna​ wrote Swipe, a funny one-shot about Kurt and Blaine meeting through Tinder. Sort of. Look, it has a tiny plot twist. You have to read it for yourself 👈(ﾟヮﾟ👈).

I read more of Gwen’s stuff! I started Bem Vindo a Portugal, previously known as Klaine in the Netherlands which became Klaine in Portugal. I do not mind, Gwen, and if you ever need more help with Klaine in the Netherlands, please have this: klompen, windmolen, kaas, tulpen, kroketten! Jokes aside, though, I am excited to get to know Portugal. I’ve never been here, but my mum actually visited Lisbon for the first time a few weeks ago and she was very excited.

There are quite some Marta fics I still need to read (goblin!Baz is still somewhere buried in my Likes), but I am going through them! I read The Vampire and the Boy in the Tower and I am speechless. It is so good. Oh my God, Marta created a wonderful universe with a lot of angst, but also hope.

I still have Klaine Advent fics to catch up on, and I read @snarkyhag‘s WIP. I... don’t really know how to link it, since there isn’t a masterpost or a separate Tumblr tag or an AO3 entry yet, so for now, have the Klaine Advent 2022 tag! Yay, Klaine and Samcedes!

Another cute story is Tipsy Truths by @aroace-genderfluid-sheep​. Simon confesses his feelings for Baz through a drunk text. Oh boy!

Apart from reading fic, I also love reading people’s thoughts about fic. @facewithoutheart​ had a nice extra about This Will All Go Down In Flames over here. (Also, Fuck The Mage, kinda). @cutestkilla​ also shared some Humdrum insider information here. It’s really cool to see what parts of canon have been expanded on for What’s Left. And @captain-aralias​​ also has some behind the scenes stuff here on Four Funereal Weddings and an American Stag Do. I adore the fic (and the suits!).

I am also losing it over the “HELEN!!!!”s in The Wellbeloves by @ionlydrinkhotwater​. This is a comic where Simon and Agatha are siblings. I am so emo about Simon having a lovely family and this is so fun.

Unfortunately, I also come with angst. A post on my dashboard led me to This Will End in Flames by @bloodiedpixie​ and uhhh yeah MCD warning. Simon dies in Wayward Son. I need... a moment... to lie down and weep. I see there is also another installment in this series where Baz dies, but I’m not strong enough for that now.

Now, for something no one asked for! This is another thing that I saw on my dashboard, but apparently a group of people started a project in 2016 called Sarah Jane Neverending, which is an extension of the Sarah Jane Adventures! (Kind of like Class: Ongoing, I guess.) (Whovians, man.). SJA got cancelled in 2011 and it was very unexpected, since Lis Sladen, the main actress, died. Back then, three more episodes were already planned and I know that over the years fans have asked for novalisations of those stories, so that they could at least be seen as canon. That never happened, so I guess some fans took matters into their own hands. I have only read their season 5B stories, aka their version of the 3 unproduced episodes. I will see if I will also read their completely fanmade season 6 and 7. But yeah, season 5B. Damn. The Thirteenth Floor fucked me up in particular.

And lastly, there might be some smaller ficlets or drabbles that I won’t mention in these posts, but I will redirect you to my fic tags on my main blog: Klaine fics (klfics), Brittana fics (bsfics), general Glee fics (glee fic), Whoniverse fics (dw fic), Check, Please! fics (omgcp fics), Simon Snow series fics (co fics), and the general fic tag (fics). And here’s the original writing tag, because why not. I do put a lot of stuff in a long queue, so the tags might now always be “up to date”.

Also, guys, I need you to know that I was going through the generic fic tag, retagging fics that needed to be retagged, and I found a Snowbaz fic from the Fangirl days and it was tagged as Bazon. BAZON.

AND OKAY, one more thing. When I was cleaning out that rusty tag, I also came across this fic called And In The End by @scrunchyharry​ (Klainers might remember the name fleurdelisse). It’s over ten years old, but I remembered it immediately. I might’ve even printed it out 10 years ago. Like, I am pretty sure I have a physical copy of it somewhere. Caroline, I see you’ve probably left the fandom, so I didn’t know if I should tag you, but if you read this, please know that even ten years later, this fic makes me so emotional.