#Charles rowland centric

[read-write-thrive]

Hospitals had never been the favorite location of either of the Dead Boy Detectives, and they usually refrained from even approaching the premises when at all possible. In the early days of the agency, it was too risky— too many dying or newly dead individuals meant Death was nearly impossible to escape, after all. Even now, with an expanded agency under the influence of the Night Nurse, and as such without immediate risk of hell if they strayed too close to Death, they still tried to avoid hospitals out of habit and for the comfort of all involved—the boys never knew when someone might see them (and it never stopped stinging when someone suddenly did) and it wasn’t exactly easy for the girls to just walk into a hospital without rousing suspicion. It was easier in some ways, these years later, now that the girls were adults and less likely to be seen as truants, but that newfound freedom did not bring with it any sudden desire to see what they were missing behind hospital doors.

All this caution and hesitation was ignored when Charles tapped on the mirror to check on his parents and was met with an unexpected chaos. A heart attack, from what the paramedics were saying as they wheeled the old man out on a stretcher, Charles’s mother and their neighbor following behind in her car. Charles didn’t witness the incident itself, pure luck on the timing, but the aftermath was a flurry of commotion that left him reeling.

He wandered back to the main space of their headquarters (a bigger place than what it once was, courtesy of the girls’ tiring of the boys being unreachable during a crisis or two and deciding to go all in on a shared flat) in a daze. Charles didn’t hide his checking in on his parents anymore, but still preferred to do it alone. Thankfully, his friends were kind, wonderful people who were happy to leave him to it. Said wonderful friends, however, were also quick to notice something wrong.

“Charles?” Edwin, naturally, was the first to notice Charles’s return and immediately put his book aside.

The girls, engrossed in a new show on the other side of their living room, snapped up in their own ways.

“What’s wrong?”

“What happened?”

Charles swallowed down the mixture of emotions threatening to drown him, “It’s my dad, he’s had a heart attack.” He screwed his face up in an attempt to stop the tears that threatened to spill out. Why was he crying? The bastard made his life miserable—

“Good.” Crystal was the first to comment. Niko slapped at her arm. Crystal put her hands up, “What? He was awful!”

“It’s still his dad!” Niko protested, “You can’t just say that!”

Charles tuned out their bickering. Everything felt a little tuned out, actually. And then Edwin was in front of him, hands on his shoulders.

“-love? Charles?”

“Hmm?” Charles tried to silence his whirring emotions.

“Are you alright?”

The Charles of even several years ago would have been quick to brush it all off with a smile. But he’d grown since then.

“Honestly? Not sure. Is that bad? Crystal’s right, he was a dick.”

“And Niko makes a very good point as well. He’s still your father.”

The tears were back again. Edwin pulled him in for a hug before Charles could say another word.

The girls had also quieted, alternating between watching the exchange and speaking through meaningful glances.

Niko was the one to break it, “Did you want to see him?”

The very idea shocked Charles, going rigid in Edwin’s arms.

“He might not even be dying, and going to a hospital is recipe for trouble—“ Charles responded slowly, as if waiting for someone to agree with him and take the weight of the decision off of him.

“I mean, a heart attack is probably close enough to death even if it doesn’t get him.” Crystal contributed.

“And our avoidance of hospitals doesn’t matter if you’d like to go see him. The Night Nurse’s lone positive trait is her protection from Death’s clutches, after all.” Edwin said into Charles’s curls.

“I-“ Charles gave himself a breath, “I wouldn’t even know what to say.”

“We don’t have to.” Crystal said softly.

“Yeah, we can just have our movie night and distract you, or if you want to talk to us but not go see him…” Niko backed her girlfriend up, trailing off into the silence.

“We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do,” Edwin echoed, sighing, “But I don’t want you to regret anything, either.”

“That’s true, it might be good for closure…” Niko chimes in once again, positive in the face of it all and determined to see Charles cheered up as well.

“Fuck that. You don’t owe him closure. If you don’t want to go, then don’t go.” Crystal’s anger was not what it once was, but she had her moments, particularly when abusers were the topic of discussion. Thankfully she seemed determined to keep her composure.

“Your call, Charles.” Edwin said, pulling away from the embrace but not letting Charles go just yet. He obviously had more to say, if the turn of his mouth was any indication, but he was all softness regardless.

“Could be my last chance, innit?” Charles said lowly, obviously not thrilled at the prospect, “If the bastard goes…”

Edwin’s face shifted, and Charles knew he’d guessed Edwin’s unspoken comment correctly. Still, Edwin’s tone and posture were the same, “No one expects it of you. And we’ll support you regardless of what you decide.”

Charles had a distant feeling of pride that Edwin had gotten better at this sort of thing. He’d tell him that another time. Once this was all over and the world made sense again.

After a moment of reflection, Charles sighed, “I think I’d like to go. Might help me heal or closure or whatever, yeah?”

The girls were up, pulling on their coats and shoes without a second thought. Charles felt monumentally lucky to have them.

Including the boy who held him still, voice low and meeting his eyes, “Do you want all of us with you? We can stay behind if you’d rather do this alone.”

Charles shook his head with his same sad smile, “I don’t want to think what might happen if I do all this alone, mate. Though you’ll have to forgive me if I lose my cool.”

Edwin clearly saw through the attempt at a joking diversion but smiled regardless, “Very well. Do you know which hospital we’re visiting?”

“I’m not sure, but it’s probably closest to their place, yeah?” Charles guessed, scrambling his thoughts trying to remember which hospital he’d been taken to when he’d broken his arm as a kid. It was so long ago, and so much had happened since…

Edwin once again shook him out of his thoughts, “Some investigation is in order, then. Niko? Crystal?”

“On it!” Niko chirped, already deep into her phone, Crystal close behind.

After some internet sleuthing, the girls had acquired the address of the nearest hospital to the Rowland family home and were taking the long way there while the boys readied themselves in front of the mirror.

“Are you ready?” Edwin double checked, hand outstretched.

Charles shook himself, “Not sure I’d ever be, love, but let’s get on with it.”

Edwin pulled him in for a quick kiss on the cheek, a sincere smile, and then through the mirror they went.

—-

They stepped out of a mirror in one of the many bathrooms in the hospital complex, disoriented by the amount of beings (alive and dead alike) as they tried to navigate the halls. The A&E department was the worst, with traumatic deaths creating a perpetual plethora of ghosts. Of course, this was also the first place they needed to check.

The boys held hands tightly as they went, both wound tight by the noise and the blood and the general atmosphere of the place. It was far from the most dangerous place they’d been in their decades together, but that brought little comfort in the face of it all.

Phasing through the various doors and curtains, it was ultimately clear that if Charles’s father was in this hospital, he’d been moved elsewhere. They split momentarily, with Edwin going to find a map of the hospital while Charles waited at the nurse’s station to see if he could get any leads on his family.

It soon became clear that there was simply too much going on for Charles to glean any real information, and he was ready to give up and find Edwin when the next phone call to the desk came from a familiar phone number and gave way to a familiar voice. Niko’s voice was clear on the other end, and just loud enough for Charles to overhear. The nurse gave the information with little questioning, informing all involved that Mr. Rowland had just been moved to a private room on a different floor. Charles didn’t stick around to listen to what exact department the man was in, or what the prognosis was—as soon as he knew the number he was off to find Edwin.

It was quieter in this department. Less urgent. Which meant something significant that Charles was pointedly not thinking about, less that send him into another tailspin. Thankfully Edwin’s presence was grounding beside him.

A nurse left the room as they found it, giving a glimpse through the doorway. Charles’s mother sat at his father’s bedside, accompanying neighbor at her side. They couldn’t see his father (or his father’s ghost for that matter) from their vantage point.

Edwin gave one last squeeze of Charles’s hand to get his attention, “I can give you a moment alone if you’d like.”

“Don’t you dare.” Charles tried to joke, but his voice didn’t seem to cooperate. Edwin’s eyes saddened, but he gave a firm nod and gestured for Charles to take the lead.

The man of the hour looked frail against the white sheets. He was awake, but by the look of his eyes he was definitely on his way out. There was a bulky mask over his nose and mouth, IV in his arm, heart monitor dragging along beside him. Charles's mother sat quietly, holding his hand between two frail ones of her own.

Charles didn't think his emotions could get any more complicated, and then his father's eyes found him. Then Edwin. Then back to him. He rasped behind the mask, Charles's mother shushing him gently.

"Hi dad." Charles sighed more than said, standing awkwardly at the foot of his bed and gripping Edwin's hand so hard he wouldn't be surprised if he managed to hurt him despite all the ghost technicalities.

Another rasp, this time accompanied by a frail hand gesturing towards the boys. Charles nearly slumped in relief when his mother glanced their way but returned to murmuring to her husband rather than reel back in shock. She had some time left, at least. His father, however, continued to try to speak.

Seeing his mother's distress, Charles felt himself snap into his protective mindset without thought, snarking, "Just give it up, mate. They can't see us—you're the only one dying here, so only you get the honour. Trust me, I'd rather talk to mum than you any day, but I cant say I'm too torn up about you going first. Maybe she'll get to have some happy years without you."

The man thankfully stopped his rasping, but his eyes emoted enough that Charles knew he heard him. It gave him the confidence to keep going, never quite sure what his next word was going to be but glad to say it anyway.

"Not that you asked, but I've been having a great time these last thirty, forty years. Yeah my death was awful, don't get me wrong. Kinda wish you got even a taste of that, for all the shit you put me through… Actually, do heart attacks hurt?" He turned his question towards Edwin, who had such a complicated expression that Charles immediately decided that the question wasn't that important, "Doesn't matter now, I guess. But yeah, my afterlife has honestly been better than my life ever was. Not only do I not have to deal with your bullshit, but I've also found people who actually care about me.

"Like this, right here, is Edwin," Charles swung their held hands upwards in an attempt at a wave, earning a slightly hysterical chuckle from Edwin, "He found me dying in that attic, showed me kindness as I died, and I've been by his side ever since. He's the best thing that ever happened to me—"

Charles took a breath as his voice cracked, Edwin's hand squeezing his in silent support. Charles didn't look over to try and keep it together a bit longer.

"He's the love of my—well, love of my afterlife. And I know you’d hate that, or at least hated all that when I was alive. I remember your rants about how all those people dying deserved it. Shouting at the telly like they personally offended you just by existing. Do you still think like that, all these years later? Hell, now here you are, dying on a hospital bed while your queer son laughs at you. What a twist!" Charles laughs, but it doesn't sound right even to himself. He, once again, pointedly doesn't look at Edwin. Looking at Edwin means dropping the brave face, and he's got a few more things to say first.

“You know, you’ll think this is weak or whatever, but I checked in on you and mum over the years. Neither of you could see me, and I never stuck around long, but I wanted—no, I needed to see. If I was the only one you beat, if you’d turn to mum now that I was gone. If you felt any remorse when I died. I’m not sure what I would’ve done if I’d seen you raise your hand to her. Probably taken up Edwin here’s offer to haunt the shit out of you.”

“I never—“

“Not in those words, love, I know, I know. But you meant it like that and you know it. Anyway, thankfully I never saw it. And she didn’t cower like I did, or hide any bruises, so I figured you were safe there. As for remorse, well, never really saw that either. I was bitter and angry those first few years over that. Thankfully Edwin here kept me busy. And now I can’t really be arsed, especially now that you’re dying and I can’t find much remorse either. Angry it took you so long, maybe.”

Charles once again looked at his mother, at the tears on her cheeks and her face turned in silent prayer.

“Even if you never beat her, I still wish you’d given her more time without you. Did you ever visit her family? You shot it down every time she even hinted at it when I was alive. And she’d smile and move on like it didn’t hurt her to hear that the man she married hated her family that much. You know, I used to promise her that I would take her to see them again. I’d tell her that once I was grown up we’d run away and live in India where you wouldn’t care enough to chase after us. She’d swat me for that. Disrespecting you. It always came back to you. Which is just how you wanted it, right? The whole world revolving around you? So fucking glad I got out of there. I shouldn’t have had to die for that, but whatever. It let me live free of you. And soon enough I won’t have to worry about you at all.”

Shoes squeaked obnoxiously right outside the door. Charles glanced up just in time to see Niko giving him a thumbs up as Crystal pulled her away from the glass. Turning back, he was glad to see his mother hadn’t turned away from her husband. No need to confuse her or get the girls in trouble.

Charles sighed and turned back to his father, “Not really sure what else to say here. Edwin? Any ideas?”

Edwin thankfully took the playful question as seriously as Charles meant it, “Hmm. You could tell him about hell if you’d like to be especially vindictive. Or take the moral high ground and forgive him for all he did to you. Crystal and I would also be happy to curse him for all he did if you’d like. Literally or figuratively.”

Charles genuinely laughed at how his father’s eyes widened, “While that sounds tempting, he’s already on his way out. All we’d do is freak out my mum.”

Edwin gave him a soft smile, “Of course. Just a suggestion.”

He returned the smile and squeezed his hand in thanks before turning back to his father, “Right. Well dad, I’m glad I caught you before Death did. I won’t speak to hell or anything, don’t want to jinx it, but I hope you get what you deserve. I’m not going to stick around to find out. And I won’t forgive you, either. You were a right bastard and I still struggle with getting you out of my head even after literally dying. So you don’t deserve my forgiveness, honestly. I’ll keep an eye on mum, but that’s for her and my sake, not for yours. Probably won’t go to your funeral or any of that, either. I’ll be a little mad if they bury you next to me, but those are just bones by now so I guess it doesn’t really matter. Yeah. I think that’s it. No forgiveness, no love, just hope you get what you deserve and that I never have to see you again. That about sums it up.”

Edwin squeezed his hand again, drawing his attention, and speaking softly, “Does that mean you’d like to go? We can wait if you want to be sure.”

Charles once again felt overwhelmed with it all, particularly with how lucky he was to have Edwin. He didn’t want to start crying here, so he just nodded and pulled Edwin with him out of the room.

“How’d it go?” Crystal asked from her seat in the hall chair, Niko nodding next to her.

“He’s dying alright. Gave him a piece of my mind. But I’m ready to never think about him again, honestly.” Charles tried to make light of it, but it was clear none of them bought it. He blinked up towards the ceiling to keep the tears away just a bit longer.

“Once we get back to the apartment, expect plenty of hugs from us.” Niko informed him, eyes glancing down the hall at the others down the way.

Charles smiled, “Noted. Sorry to make you come all the way out here, guys.”

“Nope, none of that—“ Crystal started, but was cut off by nurses suddenly rushing towards the room, obvious some alarm or something had been pulled. The girls stood in a rush to get out of the way.

“We’ll see you back at the apartment!” Niko called back to the boys as they took their leave.

Edwin held his arm out, the way he did when he wanted Charles to feel especially cherished, “Shall we?”

Charles turned very purposefully away from the door and took the offered arm with a thankful smile. He would need to have a proper cry and rant and rave about all of this later, he was sure. He’d come to learn that all those complicated emotions don’t just go away when you ignore them. But, for now, he was happy to hold onto his partner and get the bloody hell out of this hospital.

~

EDIT: now with part 2 !!

[sunsetcurveauto]

Dead Boy Detectives as out-of-context texts between me and mary (@spacegirlsgang) + friends part 7

Bonus in-context texts:

[terresdebrume]

AU concept: Dead Queer Boy Eye

The cast:

(All cast ages are how old they are for season 1)

Edwin Payne, 34, design specialist. Grew up in a wealthy family that couldn't make space for his autism, went through a period of acute depression as a young adult as a response to the trauma of constant homophobic & ableist bullying and masking in upper secondary. Occasionally socially awkward but covers it up with faux arrogance. Meets Charles during compatibility tests for Queer Eye and falls in love instantly.

Thomas King, 36, grooming expert. Grew up in Port Townsend in a working class family with four siblings (he's the middle child), also faced some bullying. Got into theatre and make up young, moved to London for a job on the West End and never left. Met Charles in the Tube when Charles helped him shake off a guy who didn't like that he was wearing a skirt.

Charles Rowland, 34, food & wine. Ran away from home at 16 to escape a violent home, met Crystal Palace soon after and ended up having a son with her at 18. Extremely repressed bisexual who only really accepted his sexuality around age 27-28, in great part through his friendship with Thomas. He hasn't had any contact with his parents since he left them.

Niko Sasaki, 33, fashion expert. Japanese young man who studied in America from high school on and made his business first as a personal shopper and then as the founder of a clothing line. Comes out as a trans woman after the second season of the show and stays as part of the cast afterwards. Bonds with Edwin over both being autistic.

Mick O'Leary, 55, culture/life coach. Licensed therapist from a long line of longshoremen and also a leather daddy who was a pillar of his local queer community and believes he can help more people through participating in the show. Also in charge of a 3mn Queer Culture segment at the end of each episode. Adopts the others like the kids he never had.

The plot:

It is the second episode of season 3. The hero of the week is a heroine: Ms. Amarita Sandhu*, 54, nominated by her 18 year old daughter Diana. Amarita moved into the neighborhood two years ago following the death of her husband, who was the love of her life, and immediately became invaluable to the ageing residents of her street. When she isn't working as a secretary in the local doctor's office, she helps her neighbours with their groceries, cleaning, and personal lives. Outside of that, she mostly stays home and cleans or watches TV on the couch, or goes for an early night. Amarita's old hobbies all involved her husband and she stopped practicing them when he died, which makes Diana worry that she will be even more isolated once she leaves for university in the autumn. The Fab Five's mission this week is to help Amarita network outside of her neighbourhood!

The Fab Five meet a new hero, and none of them is as shocked as Charles when it turns out that Ms. Amarita Sandhu was once better known as Mrs. Mary Rowland. It's lucky Charles can rely on his colleagues and friends, especially Edwin, even if he can't help but get a little overwhelmed everytime Edwin hugs him better.

* The maiden name Sandhu is an homage to Halcyon Days by cordelianoir on AO3 which I encourage you to go read.

[chaoticly-shy-dragon]

The two creatures in my ears are arguing: in the end neither wins.

aka

Should I write a 5+1 fic where Edwin and Charles swap surnames and nobody comments on it (and one time someone did) or the angsty fic where Charles is dragged to Hell alongside Edwin in episode 6 sans the notebook or his bag?

Highlights of both are:

• reversal to form of death due to distress

• inter- and codependency galore - Edwin will try to use magic from memory to different levels of success, Charles will fistfight a doll (or a thousand): neither can think straight (in more way than one) without the other safely tucked away by their side

• old married couple on acid (yes even in hell)

• Niko and Crystal will feature as deus ex machinas on earth that will never reach hell - in different ways for the two fics tho

• Charles being just as good of a detective as Edwin - also being two cm shorter than him

• their dance parties aka the intro. I will figure out a way for Edwin to dance like that. I will

• the idea that haunts me: part of Edwin's disdain for the Cat King's shtick is that he was more than once caught in Lust - the only times he was glad the babydoll demon caught him when he did - touch aversion due to even more trauma - I like traumatizing my characters

• Charles and Edwin regularly go on walks and trips around the country - festivals, events, landmarks - I definitely have to look up so many British things

[fenristheulv]

Song: The Fire by Lima

[charles-rowland-week]

I’m thrilled to announce Charles Rowland week!

This week will of course be Charles-centric and will run from January 6th through January 12th!

The prompts should be announced by December 6th to give everyone a month

All forms of creativity are of course welcome (fics, gifs, art of all kinds), and the prompts can be interpreted however you like!

I thought this would be a nice way for everyone to exercise creativity and have fun around our beloved show and wonderful Charles

[adventures-in-mangaland]

More Dead Boy Detectives Fic Recs

Since my last fic rec post got a great response and I've read some excellent fic in the meantime, here is a new list with more recs!

The Case of Richard Rowland by RB (BlueflowersandWings)

Charles' dad hires the Dead Boy Detectives to solve his murder. It's. Traumatic. The writing and characterisation are excellent and heartbreaking and the case is intriguing. I have many theories! Cw for domestic abuse, child abuse and homophobia.

we all have a hunger (series) by Anonymous

I couldn't choose! They're both so good! The first is from Crystal's PoV as she tries to figure out what happened to Niko. It also features some wonderful Crystal & Edwin bonding, an absolutely gut-wrenching speech from the latter and The Sandman cameos. The second in the series is an Edwin-centric (so angsty!) case fic featuring Accidental Child Acquisition, greek gods, the Cat King and a happy ending. Superlative writing in both.

Terrible, Horrible, No Good and Very Bad by hibye

Feelings realisation as Charles pines for Edwin and tries not to show it because he has to be sure he's in love. Terrific, very funny writing and Charles is a precious himbo. Excellent payoff too.

Oh, Lonely Bones, Have You Forgotten? by DontOffendTheBees

Charles and Edwin investigate a mystery at St Hilarion's and discover a gut-wrenching secret. Compelling and brilliantly written.

I'll let you go if you kiss me goodbye by shadowquill17

Idiots in Love meets Friends with Benefits and Misunderstandings. Edwin breaking his own heart for no reason is very accurate and Charles gets a cool queer mentor.

the spooky thing about penis ouija by skadii

College AU! Everyone's alive and Charles and Edwin have been besties since middle school. This is another Oblivious!Charles fic; he's like a well-meaning golden retriever trampling Monty in his clueless wake. Also, the gang perform a seance and Edwin is a ghost-sceptic, which is hilarious.

after the insects have laid their claim by lolotr

Charles finds out that Edwin's body was never found and will not let that stand. Has a kind of gothic romanticism I really love and a nice in-universe explanation for the "Charles and Edwin can only feel each other" trope.

The author has written lots of other great fic, including a very cute librarian!Edwin and single dad!Charles human AU with bonus Crystal/Niko.

A Form of Genius by Neous (Greyality)

Charles shows off for Edwin. Crystal Suffers. Idk, it's just cute.

the taste in your mouth by greenaerie

When Esther hurts Charles, Edwin decides to take up the Cat King on his original offer. Interesting exploration of dubious consent, shame and guilt. The author is fairly sympathetic to the Cat King, while also exploring Edwin's complicated feelings, including the impact of his upbringing, general repression and, yes, coercion on his first time. It's not exactly explicit, but take care if those are tough themes for you!

The Manuscript of Real People by paraph

Slow burn Boarding School AU where they're both alive and it's also the 70s. And they were roommates! I have been longing for a fic like this. All the jock/nerd romance tropes, complicated by discussions of bullying and Charles' (perceived) proximity to Edwin's bullies. Edwin is an orphaned scholarship student, so it's also a kind of role reversal and touches on themes of class and poverty. Minor cw for sexual harassment as the Cat King/Thomas is also there (sorry catwin fans).

When We Walk Together We Tend to Walk Alone by UneducatedAuthor

Charles meets Death and gets to say goodbye to his mum. A sweet concept and it's nice to see Death of the Endless getting some love!

Marriage is a Payne by Ace_of_Turtles

Arranged Marriage and Omegaverse AU featuring the boys agreeing to get married to spite/escape their awful parents. Not explicit and fairly light on the a/b/o details, in case that's a squick for anyone.

job officially jobbed by vernesatlas

Charles decides the answer to the handjob question requires a practical demonstration. Very funny and well written and the title is excellent. All the kudos.

Try, Try Again by Asidian

Alterative ending to episode four. After the Night Nurse, Edwin makes a second attempt to comfort Charles. Heartwarming and sad.

The Risk and Rewards of Communication by Opossum_Subatomic

Another alternative ending to episode four featuring Edwin coming clean about the Cat King. So well written. I feel like this is going to be a fandom classic.

take your chances (win or lose her) by ObsessedWithFandom

Charles decides to check in on his mum. Some very sweet established relationship fluff followed by discussions of domestic abuse and family feels. The ending opened up some amazing possibilities for future fics! Highly recommended.

The same author has also written the ghost of the past that you live in, which is an excellent in-depth exploration of Charles' bisexual awakening and trauma-related repression.

Anyway, I'm going to try to make this a regular thing, so please send me more recs!

[manicpixiedreamedwins]

(I realized I haven’t made one of these for Payneland yet, which is so silly because I love them so much 🖤)

I’m not sure if we’re doing fic recs here yet, but I’m being the change I want to see and making a teeny tiny rec list to start it off. That being said, here are three things I found in the Edwin Paine | Edwin Payne/Charles Rowland tag on AO3 that I absolutely loved.

right. never finished it. by taableclofh

Mind the tags (as is always a good practice). I read this fic a few days ago. I have zoned out thinking about it a few times since. This is, truly, a masterclass in transformative fiction. Charles-centric, it is an incredible exploration of his feelings for Edwin and just makes me wish I had seen a scene like this play out. I just. I can’t say enough nice things about it.

Love You Like That by Pa_tr0_clus ( @pa-tr0-clus on here )

The boys finally talk about the confession from hell, and their respective feelings about it. This is so soft and lovely and the details are wonderful to read. There’s so much great dialogue and lines that just make me stop and smile while I’m reading.

lay my hands on heaven by Opossum_Subatomic

Mind the tags, as is always a good practice (this one is rated E, for those of you who are into that). They have forever, and now Charles and Edwin are finally taking a step forward.

Add your favourite fic recs for these two or make your own. BE KIND! Maybe someone will find their new favourite if you do.

[edwinspaynes]

A Note on Starting Line (will crosspost to Ao3) -

I am posting this a few days before the upload would happen so everyone knows what's up.

There will unfortunately NOT be a new chapter of Starting Line on 15 December. There are a few reasons for this:

I have been working on DBDA holiday oneshots for the Payneland Promptfest and DBDA Yuletide;

I have been extremely focused on my Payneland multichapter The Rules of Engagement, an established relationship story about Charles and Edwin (that actually will comply with the ending of Starting Line!)

The overarching fandom response to the spoilers from George about the Edwin losing his virginity to The Cat King.

I would never shame ANYONE for their opinion regarding the spoilers - I understand that different people like different things. As such, varying reactions are valid!

But that was the plan for chapter 4 of this fic, and watching everyone vocally hate on the plot point made me feel really blah about continuing to write it. I toyed with some other story possibilities, but I was really so excited to write the Rise and Fall of Catwin that I didn't like any of the other options. I also need TCK to do something major plot-wise in chapter 5 that relies on him being in a relationship with Edwin. Eventually, after a lot of thought, I have decided to keep the story the same as it was originally.

However, you can in fact expect an unequivical Payneland endgame in this fic worthy of their soulmatism - I don't think this is a spoiler since I've had Endgame Edwin Payne/Charles Rowland in the tags since the beginning of this fic. I am certain canon would have gone that direction, too.

So, what does this mean for the future of Starting Line?

Chapter 4, a Charles-centric (!!!) chapter The Case of the Scorned Son, will be pushed one month to 15 January. All of the subsequent chapters will also be pushed by one month.

I hope you'll bear with me! Thank you for reading. I hope that the Christmas stories (of which there are more to come!), The Rules of Engagement , and its spicy spinoff The Pleasures of Engagement tide you over until next month.

Much love, -thegirlofthorns

[deadboydetectives-anonmeme]

Charles-centric — Mrs. Rowland's A+ Parenting

Not so much a prompt as an exorcism, I just want this idea out of my head.

Mrs. Rowland dies and lingers as a ghost. She's just as critical and demanding as Charles' father, it's just emotional instead of physical. She doesn't approve of Edwin or Crystal or Niko or Jenny. She's disappointed that Charles hasn't moved on or reincarnated, and keeps urging him to go.

She thinks the detective agency is childish and doesn't listen when Charles' friends try to tell her about all the good he's accomplished. She behaves as if he's still the sixteen-year-old boy who died and not the ghost who's been helping people for decades.

She second-guesses everything he does, and Edwin realizes half the reason Charles is so impulsive is because stopping to think would paralyze him with all the second-guessing and criticism his parents beat into him. Eventually Mrs. Rowland interferes with a case and the Night Nurse dumps all Charles' life trauma into her head to shut her down. No idea what would come next but hopefully now I can stop thinking about this!

Fill: None

[safaiagem]

It's Thirsty Thursday, and I just finished fanfic this week, so, of course, I'm posting. The Hour of Separation has been my consistent writing project for almost three months and got way longer than I ever thought it would be. I already have at least two one-shot ideas that will be part of this series; I just need a break to get my brain back online and some time to do a little outlining. I know some people only read fics once they are completed, but this one is done! So, I'd love a comment if you have time to read it. Check out the more Sandman-centric fic in this series, Sleeping Wake/Waking Sleep, if you also want to.

The Hour of Separation - Complete - Words: 77,867 - Part 2 of the More Than Endless Repetition Series - Dead Boy Detectives - Edwin Payne/Charles Rowland

The problem with solving big, flashy cases and going international is that you become well-known. Word came down about everything the Dead Boy Detectives managed to do in Port Townsend, and they have never been busier. The problem with becoming more well-known is that you don't always draw the kind of attention you want. You might jump onto the radar of someone with a grudge just looking for an excuse. Technically, it is part of a series, but it can be easily read as a stand-alone.

[captain-jacks-coat]

For October, I'm going to do 200 word fics, single word prompts!

Each of them will be centric to one specific character or group, but some will include others too.

Here's the list of character(s) I'm writing for (which I will edit as I write them) if you want to suggest a word!

If it's in red, I have already written it.

1. Edwin Payne

2. Charles Rowland

3. Hobert Gadling

4. Morpheus (Dream of the Endless)

5. Bill Potts + Twelfth Doctor

6. Clara Oswald

7. Jack Harkness

8. Hamlet

9. Horatio

10. Henry Clerval + Victor Frankenstein

11. Nico di Angelo

12. Will Solace

13. Thirteenth Doctor

14. Ianto Jones

15. Aziraphale

16. Crowley

17. Sherlock Holmes + John Watson

18. Mycroft Holmes + Greg Lestrade

19. Tenth Doctor + Rose Tyler

20. 14th Doctor + Co

21. 15th Doctor + Ruby Sunday

22. Ninth Doctor + Rose Tyler + Jack Harkness

23. Wolfstar

24. Nick Nelson + Charlie Spring

25. 15th Doctor + Rogue

26. The Ponds + 11th Doctor

27. Niko Sasaki

28.  Alex Claremont-Diaz + Henry Fox

29. Loki + Theo Bell

30. Basilton Grimm-Pitch + Simon Snow

31. May Bellerose + Francois DuBois