#Deidres dad

[gr3yart]

Single dad running on his last thread of sanity

[thepettymachine]

Littler Household

Reuben Littler

Renee Littler

Odine Perry

Bronson Littler

Deidre Littler

[thewolvesandtheirbard]

Beware the Accursed She Wolf, for she was born under the Black Sun.

(A Witcher!Deidre Ademeyn mood board because she definitely deserved better from the world).

[smallest-turtle]

Deidre's adopted family after running away from home: the Fortemps

Caelen's adopted family after running away from home: Carvallain and the (also formerly Ishgardian) man in charge of the Archanist Guild's public library who fucking hates Carvallain for using the loophole that lets him take a 15/16 year old on a privateer vessel

[nurllius]

SKETCH DUMP

Railvia being a great doctor (your health is not guaranteed)

Aahrtur being a single girl dad ( his newest addition @cheddargoblin ‘s Deidre )

Aaaand some friend shenanigans with @twilightdomain and @sylvaridreams

[mooreaux]

If you don’t mind my asking, what happened to Deidre to turn her hair white?

Deirdre was born in a happy, small family of traveling gnomish bards. They travelled in the underdark and the above ground. Her mom sang and played the lute while her dad was on the drum and her older sister played the flute. Deirdre took after her mum and wanted to sing. So she sang a lot as she grew up. All the time, everywhere she went. And unfortunately one day she was overheard by the wrong set of drow. They kidnapped her as a passing piece of entertainment to gift to a noble family in Menzoberranzan. She was then changed by one of the family mages to match the hair and eye coloring of the noble family member she was gifted to (think like the pearls in Steven universe being customized to fit their masters). She was placed in a cage that had a sustenance charm on it so she didn’t need to eat or drink or sleep, and simply made to sing for days and weeks and months on end.

She quickly went from an idyllic childhood like this

To this

Up until one day she was overheard by an archfey who was… snooping around the house for unsavory reasons. He saved her and brought her back to the feywild, and after a few hundred years to recover her sanity, she eventually became his warlock in a pact! And rediscovered her love of music 🥹

Thank you for the ask! I love my lil gnome SO much! I will never shut up about her if yall don’t make me

[lisbeth-kk]

May Prompts (26) Manipulate

The Luckiest Girl in the World (chapter 26)

Summary: Rosie finds an unmarked box in her wardrobe. When John scolds himself for lacking as a parent, Rosie sets things straight.

Twenty-Six Years Old

Six months after my return to London, I was moving out again. The internship at the ministry of justice paid surprisingly well. I couldn’t help but think that a certain uncle had been using his manipulation skills again… In addition to my wage, the generous inheritance from Nana and Timothy’s income from his published novel, were more than sufficient to buy a decent flat in Stockwell. 

Nana had clearly wanted that 221 Baker Street was well looked after, and gifted it to her two boys, and insisted in her will that if Deidre, or Dee, as she preferred to be called, needed a home, 221A should be hers. And for the last two years, 221A had been occupied by Dee. My parents got along with her like a house on fire.

“It’s like having a younger version of Hudders down there,” Papa stated.

“Agreed. The sassiness runs in the family, I presume. Dee’s skills in the kitchen are sadly things she did not inherit from her aunt, though,” Dad said.

“Definitely not! She almost sat the flat on fire when she was boiling eggs,” Papa filled in.

***

Moving out the first time, had been poles apart to this move. That time I was going on an adventure, and I knew it was for just a period. When I moved in with Timothy, it was forever, and that was more bittersweet than I’d anticipated.

Moving to Paris, I had only taken clothes, some books, my laptop and the like. Stripping my room bare, was something entirely different. There were so many memories, and I knew I had to get rid of some of them because the flat wasn’t exactly big, and there were Timothy’s things to consider as well.

Over the next weeks I felt that I lived inside a cardboard box. They were everywhere, even downstairs to let me have some room to move around upstairs and leave the bed free to sleep in.

On the floor inside my wardrobe, I found an old box that had remained hidden behind clothes, rucksacks, shoes and a bag with blankets. It wasn’t marked and I couldn’t remember having placed it there. I opened the flaps and gasped in surprise.

“How are you getting on?” Dad called from the stairs and seconds later he entered my room.

I looked up at him with a stunned expression. When he saw the box, his shoulders slumped, and he sighed heavily.

“Right. I’d forgotten all about that one,” he said sheepishly. “I’ve failed to keep her memory alive for you, haven’t I?”

“Dad,” I scolded him. “You had far more important things to cope with when she died. Raising me with Papa is the greatest gift you could’ve given me. Never be sorry for that. I don’t remember her at all. From what I’ve gathered she did some horrible things to you both. No, stop. She did. I may not know the full extent of it, but it doesn’t matter that she was my mother. Remember what Papa said about extended and chosen family. They can be way better than the biological one. Not that I would want to replace you, mind.”

We both looked down at the photo of my mother and Dad on their wedding day. I didn’t recall when it had been replaced with the wedding photo of Dad and Papa. It felt strange and a bit eerie to look at Dad embracing another person like that. I took it out and placed it in the box that was going to the bins.

“Rosie!” Dad exclaimed, more out of shock than anything else.

“It’s wrong, Dad. I don’t need that. To me she’s the one who gave me life, but she was never in it when it mattered, and I’ve never missed having a mother. I consider myself the luckiest girl in the world having you and Papa as parents. You’ve done a great job, and uncle Myc, Nana, Molly, Granny, Pops, and uncle Greg have been brilliant carers as well. Now, what else is in here?”

I found Ted, still stained with tomato sauce, a white baby blanket with a bee pattern, tiny boxes containing a curl of my hair, my first tooth, a book where my growth, my first real meal, my first words, my first steps, my first trip, (to Barts), my favourite toys and books were painstakingly written down in Papa’s handwriting. My eyes filled with tears when I realised how much love lay behind those notes.

“He didn’t let me near that book with my horrible handwriting,” Dad said in a choked voice, clearly as emotional as me.

Another book caught my eye. The one uncle Greg had mentioned. A book with children’s names. It was worn, and I didn’t know whether that was from Papa searching for male names starting with a G, or my mother’s search for names meant for me.

“Did you…”

“No,” Dad cut me off. “She’d already decided on a name once we got back together. After…”

He didn’t have to finish that sentence, and I’m glad he stopped himself. Just thinking about it made me nauseous. 

I hadn’t told Timothy about her yet, but I knew I needed to. He would eventually ask. The lack of photos of her would ensure that. I reminded myself to ask uncle Myc how much I could reveal. Not that I knew more than half of it myself.

After I’d put the box aside, I leant into Dad where he sat beside me and placed my head on his shoulder. He put his arm around me and pulled me in for a hug.

“I’m so glad you decided to move back here with me after she died,” I murmured. “We would’ve been miserable without him.”

“Yeah, two years was enough for a lifetime,” Dad said and drew me closer, kissing the top of my head.

“I bet Papa is relieved that he can walk around in just a sheet now that I’m moving out for good,” I quipped to brighten the mood.

Dad chuckled and he was unable to hide the glint in his eyes at this prospect.

Also available on AO3

All the love to the other magnificent participants <3 Thanks to everyone for the endless support and especially to those who normally don't read parent!lock, but despite that are walking the extra mile. I'm in awe!

@calaisreno @totallysilvergirl @keirgreeneyes @raina-at @helloliriels

More tags in the replies

[jungle-angel]

The Little Christmas Angel (Bob Floyd x Reader)

Summary: You and Bob have finally welcomed a precious little angel on Christmas Eve and your older children couldn't be happier

Notes: This was the song that inspired this fic along with a bunch of others, I tried really hard not to cry when listening to it but it's just so perfect for this (lol)

Tagging: @floydsmuse @kmc1989

He was so tiny and yet so perfect.

Bob could barely see the tiny little face hidden by his soft Irish knit blanket and the little fingers that poked over the edge. The baby's eyes were shut and his little tufts of dark blonde hair were the only other things he could see amidst the threads.

Rudy James Floyd had been born at home on Christmas Eve, just shortly after you and Bob had gotten back from Christmas Mass at the Navy Chapel in town. Thankfully, Reagan had come home before you to take the rib roast out of the oven. You and Bob would have been screwed if she had been late.

It wasn't long at all, only a few hours, before you and Bob had come face to face with the tiny little boy you had both created together. He was so tiny that you and Bob were afraid he had been born too early, but his sister had said otherwise, that he was right on time and absolutely perfect.

You happily gazed at your husband sitting in the rocker with Rudy, the dim glow of the bedroom lamp leaving a soft glow throughout the room as the snow fell heavily outside. You felt a little sorry Bob hadn't been able to change out of his white dress shirt and black pants, yet the sight of him with your son finally in his arms filled you with a warmth from head to toe regardless.

Rudy began to whimper, his tiny hand balling into a fist near his mouth. "Shhhhh, lovebug," Bob whispered. "I know.....I know you're tired, but so isn't Momma. She went through alot to get you here, you know."

You laughed a little when Bob turned his attention to you. "I thought you were asleep Mrs. Floyd," he said with a side eye.

"Joke's on you, I've been awake this whole time," you chuckled.

Bob rose from the rocker with Rudy in his arms and crawled into bed beside you. "Mom and Dad should be bringing the others back for dinner soon," he said.

"I thought they were already over there," you answered.

Bob nodded, realizing his mistake.

You snuggled against him, kissing the crown of your son's head. Sleep soon took you both and you didn't wake until close to seven-thirty the next morning when the padding of little feet at the threshold of your bedroom door, woke you both up.

"Shhhhhhh, you guys be quiet ok?" Joe warned them.

Auggie, Patrick and Deidre all quietly tiptoed into your room to hug and kiss you and to wish you both a Merry Christmas.

"Santa brought us a baby brother?" Deidre asked, her eyes wide and her voice a quiet little whisper.

"Yep, Santa brought your baby brother," Bob told her softly.

Deidre leaned in and placed a kiss on Rudy's head, everyone melting at the sight. You and Bob couldn't deny that this had been the best Christmas you had ever had and it was all thanks to the tiny little angel who had entered your lives.

[kyellin]

9-1-1 7x10 speculations

So! With the stills that came out today, and mildly silently freaking out because I was at work, I have many thoughts!

So tentative timeline at the beginning of the episode.

Eddie and Buck talking / Madney talking with Hen -> Eddies Parents arriving -> Buck and Tommy's date night / Bathena house fire -> Hospital -> Athena investigating the fire ->Chris going back to Texas

I think it will start with the aftermath of Chris and Marisol discovering Kim. So I feel like Marisol dumping Eddie's ass and Chris locking himself in his room will be off-screen and Eddie is gonna be explaining everything to Buck in the aftermath because we see him gesticulating wildly and running his hand through his hair about why Buck is trying to understand what happened

The only thing that I am unsure of is why the Diaz Parents are in town? But I feel like it was a surprise that they show up at Eddie's house, and they stumble upon this situation and Eddie has no choice but to explain what happened, especially when you see the still where I'm pretty sure Eddie is showing a picture of Kim.

I also feel like Buck will try to talk to Chris and Chris will angrily say that his Dad is a hypocrite because he is dating two women, paralleling how Chris got the talk on how he is a player at the beginning of the season by dating multiple girls.

After that Buck gotta leave because of date night with Tommy and Eddie insists that he leave to make it in time.

So date night is going well, but oh no! Buck receives a call from the Hospital? May? Chim? about how Bobby and Athena are in the hospital. Tommy drives Buck to the hospital because he physically cannot.

Eddie also gets the call from another member of the 118 and leaves Chris with his parents to go to the hospital too.

The Madney and Hen scene will happen at the same time as the Buck and Eddie aftermath scene. Henren probably got good news from Deidre/the judge about how Mara's adoption will go forward despite the councilwomen's attempt to block it. You see Madney and Hen smiling throughout the stills of that scene.

Then when Hen is going to social services or the courtroom, she'll get a call about Bobby from a member of the 118.

Athena's still shows that it will be after the events we see in the promo. Athena is gonna find out where Amir lives and she will confront him. Sorry guys, I really feel like she pulls her gun on Amir while showing whatever it is in her hand because she feels convinced that it is Amir who sets fire to her house after how Amir reacted when he was in her home last episode. Amir is going to say something that convinces Athena that it is not him because he is a red herring!!

Anyways, going back to the stills. One of the last scenes is how Chris announces to Eddie that he will be going back to Texas with his grandparents for the summer because he is so mad at him. Eddie stricken by all the events, will let him go back. But before Chris goes, Eddie will say to his son how he loves him that he is gonna work on himself, that he can call anytime, and that he will do his best to answer, because you know, work. Buck will also be there to see off Chris. Other theories that are floating in my head:

The Cartel that Herman is part of is responsible for the Bathena fire. The propane tanks are set up for a criminal fire! And it doesn't feel like it's Amir. Even if we see Amir angry about how Bobby has a family, I don't think he is vengeful.

The 118 will be split up at the end of the season and Captain Gerrard will take the place of Bobby as interim captain, while Bobby is recovering. Because I am 99% sure that Bobby will survive his heart attack and will come back in season 8 as Captain after recovering and going to more therapy!

Anyways, back to the interim: Even if Hen was a hero in the cruise disaster, she did disobey orders from Chief Simson and will be penalized. At the same time, the councilwoman or someone else will see how the 118 is too close as a team, too family-like, and someone doesn't like it and will take to the appropriate people to disperse the 118 across various fire stations in LA except for Buck and Ravi. In turn, Eddie will feel isolated just like Ryan said in the interviews, and will spiral in between seasons.

I feel like the still with Chief Simson will announce any of the ideas in the above paragraph.

Interesting tidbit. We see Eddie reading from the prayer book in Bobby's hospital room with Buck beside him.

To end all of this: Buck and Tommy are thriving! ✨ Even with all the failed dates we have been seeing!

So! With the stills that came out today, and silently freaking out because I was at work, I have many thoughts!

So here is my tentative timeline at the beginning of the episode.

Quick rundown:

Eddie and Buck talking / Madney talking with Hen -> Eddies Parents arriving -> Buck and Tommy's date night / Bathena house fire -> Hospital -> Athena investigating the fire / the 118 at Bobby’s bedside ->Chris going back to Texas

The details:

Eddie/Buck scene:

I think it will start with the aftermath of Chris and Marisol discovering Kim. Marisol will be dumping Eddie's ass and Chris will be locking himself in his room will be off-screen and Eddie is gonna be explaining everything to Buck in the aftermath. We see him gesticulating wildly at Buck and running his hand through his hair about in the stills. Buck tries to understand what happened and will counter-argument on the actions that he did while also being compassionate about the situation.

The only thing that I am unsure of is why the Diaz Parents are in town… But I feel like it is a surprise that they show up at Eddie's house, and they stumble upon this situation. Eddie has no choice but to explain what happened, and shows a picture of Kim. Helena reacts to how similar Shannon and Kim are. Understandably, Ramon and Helena are disappointed in their son, but hopefully they are compassionate about the whole thing even if it is wrong. 

I also feel like Buck will try to talk to Chris and Chris will angrily say that his Dad is a hypocrite because he is dating two women, paralleling how Chris got the talk at the beginning of the season on how it is wrong to be dating multiple girls.

Buck/Tomy scene:

After all of that, Buck gotta leave because of date night with Tommy and Eddie insists that he leave to make it in time.

So date night is going well, but oh no! Buck receives a call from the Hospital? May? Chim? about how Bobby and Athena are in the hospital. Tommy drives Buck to the hospital because he physically cannot.

Eddie also gets the call from another member of the 118 and leaves Chris with his parents to go to the hospital too.

Madney/Hen scene:

The Madney and Hen scene will happen at the same time as the Buck and Eddie aftermath scene. Henren probably got good news from Deidre/the judge about how Mara's adoption will go forward despite the council women's attempt to block it. You see Madney and Hen smiling throughout the stills of that scene.

Then when Hen is going to social services or the courtroom, she'll get a call about Bobby from a member of the 118.

Athena:

The Athena stills show that scenes that are shown will be after the events we see in the promo. Athena is gonna find out where Amir lives and she will confront him. Sorry guys, I really feel like she pulls her gun on Amir while showing whatever it is in her hand. She feels convinced that it is Amir who sets fire to her house after how Amir reacted when he was in her home last episode. Amir is going to say something that convinces Athena that it is not him because he is a red herring to mislead us all!!

Chris/Eddie

I’m pretty sure that one of the last scenes in the episode will be when Chris announces to Eddie that he will be going back to Texas with his grandparents for the summer because he is so mad at him. Eddie, stricken by all the events, will let him go back. But before Chris goes with his grandparents, Eddie will say to his son how he loves him, that he is gonna work on himself, and that he can call anytime, Buck will also be there to see off Chris as seen in the stills and provide support and comfort. Other theories that are floating in my head:

The Cartel that Herman is part of is responsible for the Bathena fire. The propane tanks are too well set up! And it doesn't feel like it's Amir. It is too well organized, although I don’t feel like Amir is a sloppy guy, but still not him. Even if we see Amir angry about how Bobby has a family, I don't think he is vengeful enough to try and kill Bobby and Athena. When Bobbys truck was stolen by the cartel, the cartel probably found his insurance stored in the truck because everyone does that, including me, and found his address through those papers. And then set up the fire during the night.

I am 99% sure that Bobby will survive his heart attack and will come back in season 8 as Captain after recovering and going to more therapy!

The 118 will be split up at the end of the season and Captain Gerrard will take the place of Bobby as interim captain, while Bobby is recovering. 

Even if Hen was a hero in the cruise disaster, she did disobey orders from Chief Simpson and will be penalized. Chief Simpson appointing Captain Gerrard as interim Captain for the 118 instead of Hen is her punishment. To go even further, I feel like the councilwomen is angry that Henren adoption went through, and she pulled strings and also whispered in Chief Simpson ear saying the 118 is too close to each other, too family-like, and that it would be better that they separate the 118 across various fire stations in LA except for Buck and Ravi, who stays at the 118. In turn, because the 118 is dispersed across the city, Eddie will feel isolated just like Ryan said in the interviews, and will spiral  and maybe understand himself more in between seasons.

I feel like the still with Chief Simpson will announce any of the ideas in the above paragraph.

It doesn’t go in the theories of 7x10, but I feel I should include it here. When Bobby felt the metal being heavy on his chest when he was talking to his father in his dream in 7x09, it was a sign that he was starting to have a heart attack. Because of his father waking him up and the adrenaline of saving Athena from the fire, it staved off the heart attack long enough to get outside of the house.

Interesting tidbit: We see Eddie reading from the prayer book in Bobby's hospital room with Buck beside him.

To end all of this: Buck and Tommy are thriving! ✨

I'm starting to have theories for season 8, but that is another post for another day!

@whollyjoly <3

[rainwingmarvel7]

For the OC dynamic asks, Therese + Dyana and Tristan x Therese! How about your take on Deidre + or × Kaleb? Take your pick!

Oooo these are all so fun! Thanks for the ask!

Therese + Dyana

Why do I feel like these two would be besties? They’re both strong women who are bastards (although Therese is legitimized), know how to defend themselves with a weapon, and just so happen to be in love with the same prince.

For the most part, Therese and Dyana would get along wonderfully, aside from a few exceptions: namely, the whole dragonseed thing and also Therese’s involvement with Criston, I would assume. Considering that Therese has almost as much of a problem with the dragonseeds as Jace, and Dyana becomes one, I think that would be a source of tension between them. Therese would feel like Dyana is betraying her own birthright and their friendship, although I think she’d eventually get over it. And with Criston, well I can’t imagine that Dyana would be too happy to find out her friend is having an affair with her dad.

Therese x Tristan

Ok but like why do I kind of love these two together though? I think that Therese and Tristan match each other’s personalities very well, and as conscious as Therese is of being a bastard, I don’t think that she’d have any issues being with one (I mean, Jace is obviously one too, but that’s a bit different). Even though he has the same name as her brother too, I don’t think she’d mind. It’s very Targaryen of her anyway. Since Tristan is part of the Kingsguard, I think that it’d end up being an affair between them, probably while Therese is still in King’s Landing during her marriage to Aegon. I think if that were the case, she would be involved with him instead of Criston. She might even try to convince him to leave the Kingsguard for her and run away to the North or something. I don’t know if they would have any kids together or not. I know Therese wouldn’t have a problem with it, but idk about Tristan. Once the Dance starts though, I don’t know how things would go between them. Therese is very strongly Team Black, and she would leave King’s Landing for Dragonstone, regardless of whether or not Tristan came with her. If he didn’t, it would completely break her heart to do so.

Deidre x Kaleb

I totally agree with your take on these two being friends from a young age and eventually getting married more out of duty than anything. Kaleb has a habit of doing that lol. That being said, I do think that Kaleb would eventually fall in love with her, even if it’s not as great a love as he has for Rhaenyra or Alicent, and that love would be strong. He would also treat her children as if they were his own because he isn’t the step-father, he is the father who stepped up.

Kaleb would have a lot of respect for Deidre and would try to be the best husband to her that he can be because he knows that he owes her that much.

[themonotonysyndrome]

How will Dain and Deidre react to people gossiping about them in the future?will celica teach them to ignore it or fight back ?

Hmmm... it depends, Anon!

Celica would see this as a learning opportunity for the kids. She'll let them handle it on their own, silently observing from afar and would only interfere if it suddenly becomes dangerous.

HOWEVER!

Should Castin step in and oh, I don't know, punch the parents of the gossiping parents in the face, then she would sigh, shake her head fondly and do damage control from the sideline. Though he won't be happy that Celica left their kids to defend themselves, and no, even when she explains that they need to learn how to stand up for themselves, it wouldn't be enough to pacify him.

Oh boy, the two are in for a long night of arguing.

"But Lady," I hear y'all say, "What sort of gossip would distress the twins and Castin so badly?"

It's the twin's appearances. They're practically carbon copies of their Dad. Rumours circulated that Castin was unfaithful and actually duped the Baroness into taking in illegitimate children and making them her heirs.

So yeah, that would definitely do it.

[vesemirsexual]

So obsessed with my au where Deidre runs into the caravan while trying to travel to Kaer Morhen, and when they find out her plan they’re like “girl. gonna have to keep it real with you. Wolves are…yeah. i would not expend the energy to haul my ass up that mountain.” which is how Deidre becomes a Cat trainee - she’s a black sun princess who’s great with a blade and magic resistant. she does pretty well.

so when Aiden is with Lambert and hears him mention Eskel he’s like “no way??? like deadbeat dad eskel??” and lambert is naturally going WHAT

which leads to the most awkward reunification you have ever witnessed in your life

eskel: um. hi child surprise?

deidre, standing there in her little junior cat armour, arms crossed, unamused: you owe me 38k in child support. i counted.

[darkwolf76]

do you know how you want the story to end when you start, or are you just stumbling through the figurative wilderness hoping to find a road?

do you like to write one-shots or series, and why?

tell us about one of your characters who’s an absolute joy to write

Thanks for the ask!

I always have the overarching end for main characters decided before I start writing, even if the finer details aren't laid out yet. Usually, it's a final scene that I'm working towards with a somewhat undefined plot.

Not a lot, but I've written a few one shots that are companion pieces to larger multi-chapter works. They are ideas in the same universe I couldn't incorporate into the bigger fic.

I love writing Harwin Strong for my HotD fic. The man has such dad energy. I have so much fun writing him interacting with my OC, his little sister Deidre.

[smallest-turtle]

How many times has this man come across reincarnations of Pothos and Cassandra? How many times, together and apart? Has he ever seen them in the same lifetime, and orchestrated their meeting? Has he ever found them in the same lifetime, reborn as siblings again? How many times has he raised his own children? How many times, before Haurchefant and Deidre, did the shards of his children defy him so similarly to who they once were?

I've decided to add to the Family Drama of Hades being the father of my wol's ancient self Cassandra by having Emet-Selch's beloved son Lucius who died young of an illness be the incarnation of Cassandra before Deidre.

Tormenting him.

[runawaymun]

Trick or treat! What about a line or two from something that'll likely never see the light of day from the WIP folder?

Ohhhh this is a fun question!

Ok so with @the-commonplace-book's permission, I shall share quite a few chunks of a little story we wrote together for fun, mostly just to take a break from some of our more serious joint projects, which is the MGME trope, but make it a couple of kids and their shitty parents -- who are some longstanding OCs which have been knocking about for years from a different, really cool project that she's working on. Mostly this whole thing began with, "what if Torin and Finley met Elrond and he could maybe dad them a bit? Wouldn't that be fun?"

The first section includes Glorfindel rescuing the parents from some Trolls (classic) after they fall into Middle Earth, and then I'll just select chunks at random. We wound up dropping it because we got to a point where we got bored, but it was a really good time while it lasted and spawned a totally different (but similar) idea which we poke at every once in a while.

This could get quite long :D

-

Neil and Deidre had been bickering so loudly and incessantly, that they hadn’t heard the thud! thud! thud! approaching until it was just behind them. They spun around just in time to see an enormous grey monster reaching for them. 

They scrambled to escape, but it had them in their clutches - one in each giant hand. It was as rank as it was ugly, and no matter how much they squirmed and screamed, it wouldn’t let them go.

It carried them a ways through the woods, to a camp just outside a cave, where another giant grey creature sat tending a fire proportionate to their size. They began to chat.

If they had spoken the local tongue they might have understood the conversation as:

“What do you have there, Art?” 

“Oh just some tasty morsels for tonight’s stew! Caught them scrambling about the edge of the moor, I did.”

“That one’s got a good bit of fat on him.” The second troll said, poking Deirdre with a thick grimy finger. 

Art yanked her back, sending Deirdre screeching anew. “Hands to yourself, Wildo. I found them. I’m cooking them up.”

“There’s plenty to share! With that one at least.”

“This one’s mine. You can have the skinny one.” He tossed Neil to Wildo, who fumbled the catch, much to Neil’s increasing distress.

Of course, Neil and Deirdre Brady couldn’t speak this language, and so they were left in a fright, with monstrous creatures tossing them about and speaking utter nonsense. Perhaps it was for the best. No one, of course, wants to know that they are about to be roasted alive for lunch.

-

Trolls were nothing to sniff at.

They raised such a horrid stink.

Glorfindel had been waiting just at the edge of the cave this lot was living in, having been drawn by the orange glow this side of the hill. A glow that bright in the middle of the night in the Trollshaws only meant one thing. And these trolls were too close to the main road not to be a nuisance to travelers. 

He’d been waiting because he had only counted one troll at the fire and they generally never lived alone if they could help it. It would be better to bag them both at once.

He was handsomely rewarded when the troll’s companion returned with dinner. 

A very loud dinner.

The screeching was warranted, but hard to listen to. Glorfindel winced. No time to waste!

He left Asfaloth where he was –there was no sense risking him with the trolls– and strode into the ring of light, Aurë flashing in his hands, and called out jovially:

“Ho, my friends! What a nice catch you have!” 

Both trolls froze and turned to look at the intruder. 

Glorfindel gave Aurë a whirl and then gripped the hilt with both hands. “Mind if I join you for dinner?” 

Before either Art or Wildo could decide how to react (trolls were, of course, rather slow creatures), Glorfindel raised his voice in a battle Song which forced both to drop their prizes and clutch their ears in horror. He sprinted toward them, Singing, and cut Art down with one long slice to his belly. Wildo recovered quicker, and grabbed the wicked-looking knife from his belt– which was about the size of Aurë– and waved it wildly in Glorfindel’s direction with a terrified shout.

Glorfindel neatly sidestepped each cut, parried, and then stabbed Wildo straight in the knee.

The troll howled in pain and sank to his knees. Glorfindel took the opportunity to plunge Aurë straight into the beast’s eye, right up to the hilt.

It took a bit of a yank to get the sword out again, which was tiresome. He had to put a boot to the creature’s skull to get enough leverage.

Panting, he cleaned Aurë and sheathed it, then turned and held out a gloved hand, glowing with golden light, to the woman first. 

“Right. I hope you are not terribly hurt. Nasty things, trolls.” 

-

(and later, the twins find the two boys in the forest and, after discovering that they speak no recognizable language, bring them to Rivendell to see if Elrond can figure out how to communicate with them)

The twins led the boys up to the house. It was buzzing with activity this time of day, elves going to-and-from the healing halls or the kitchen, some Dunedain guests milling about. They passed a group of hunters heading out for the diurnal prey that would be out soon. 

Elrohir would have liked to get the boys another meal before doing anything else, but it was best to figure out what language they were speaking first. They climbed the stairs to the second floor, then went out to the garden and passed Lindir, who greeted them with a bow.

“Ada’s in his study?” Elladan asked.

Lindir nodded. “I have just come from there.” His eyes fell to the boys with curiosity, and then flicked back up to the twins. 

“Uh…we’ll explain later. We really have to talk to him,” Elladan said again, and said goodbye and continued on past the courtyard to knock on the door to his father’s study and then went inside.

Elrond was indeed there, bent over some letters with Erestor at his side. Both of them looked over and Elrond straightened. He probably meant inquire after the hunt, but paused at once when he saw the boys.

Before the inevitable could be asked, Elrohir cut in: “We found them at the edge of the trollshaws alone and lost. No sign of any adults. Um– and I have no idea what language they’re speaking.”

“He tried everything,” Elladan added. “They don’t speak common. Elrohir even tried Khuzdul and Haradi but they recognized nothing.” 

Elrond held up a hand to still them both and slowly came over. The boys had dark hair and light eyes. If he didn’t know any better, he would think they were Elros’ kin. But if what Elladan and Elrohir said was true, then he couldn’t imagine how that could be. 

“The trollshaws?” From behind him, Erestor was incredulous. “What were they doing in the trollshaws? That is a long way from any Mannish settlement in the area.” 

“I imagine we shall find out if we talk to them,” Elrond said evenly. He wished to hear them speak, if only to take a stab at a language root. He sank down to their level (his height was hard to handle for some grown men, let alone two children), and then put a hand to his chest and introduced, “Elrond.” And gestured to the eldest. 

Torin kept his feet firmly planted on the floor, despite the way this man’s presence made him want to cower. He was tall - taller than any man Torin had ever met. His grey eyes looked old beyond his years and when he knelt to Finley’s level with those careful, gentle motions and that disarming tone, a profound sense of unease and acute distrust churned in Torin’s gut.

“Torin. We’re just looking for a phone.” He held his hand to his ear, fingers extended to pantomime it, and searched the man’s face for any sign of understanding. “Phone? Cell? Ring ring?”

Finley shrunk behind his brother. 

Elrond cocked his head. The gesture was completely unfamiliar. The language…he supposed he didn’t have enough information to discern a root, though if he had to guess it might be Rohirric in nature. 

The three questions in quick succession were clearly an attempt at some sort of clarification. Synonyms. But unfortunately he hadn’t the faintest idea of what any of it meant.

He glanced up at the twins, who looked baffled, and then sat back on his haunches and decided on: “Well met, Torin. I am afraid I don’t know how to help you,” because regardless of whether or not they understood each other, he was still going to give him the respect of speaking to him. “But I promise I will do my best to find how.” 

“You don’t know what they’re speaking?” Elladan was astounded.

“Unfortunately I do not. It is a puzzle,” Elrond replied back. 

The only thing Torin understood out of all that was his name. It was swiftly become clear they either had no idea what a phone was, or simply didn’t have any here and were trying to explain that. 

“Fuck,” he said, guessing that was as gibberish to them as anything else in English. If he hadn’t left his damn phone charging in his room they wouldn’t be in this mess.

“Okay, uh, Plan B,” he said, not even bothering to whisper. They couldn’t understand what he was saying to his brother anyway. “We’re gonna get some more food and figure out where the hell we are, and then figure out the real Plan B.”

Finley nodded mutely.

Torin took out the little wrapped bread from earlier and held it up, pointing to it. “Food?” 

At that, Elrond lit up into a warm smile. It was an easily understood question.

“That was going to be my next suggestion, in fact. Food,” he repeated the unfamiliar word. “Yes.” 

The letters were entirely forgotten with his attention entirely diverted onto this new puzzle. Erestor let out a long-suffering sigh and gathered them up into a neat stack. Elrond stood and started for the door beckoning. 

“I’ll go get them something,” Elladan said, heading down to the kitchen. “Terrace?”

Elrond hummed in assent, and started up the walkway to the third floor, Elrohir following behind. 

-

Elrond led them back downstairs, all the way to the first floor of the library. He waved to Iûldis as they passed her desk on their way in. She paid him a polite nod of her head. Elrond led them through the rows of books until they came to the selection of maps. He took one down and rolled it out on the nearest table large enough to accommodate it, took a moment to orient himself, and then pointed to Rivendell.

“We’re here. Rivendell.” He then traced over the mountains to: “Dale,” then downward, “Rohan,” further south. “Gondor. Minas Tirith.” And finally, back over the mountains, being sure to trace slowly all the way west. “Bree.” Then, “Ered Luin.” 

Torin may not have been a geography whiz, but he knew a map of world and knew this sure as hell wasn’t it. 

“Are you fucking joking?” Torin shook his head. “You don’t even have a real map. That’s grand. Fantastic. Fuck!” He grabbed the map and threw it off the table like the useless piece of garbage it was.

Finley flinched and shrunk back, worrying at his sleeves, stiff with shoulder hunched up to his ears. 

Torin pointed an angry finger at Elrond. “Tell us where the hell we are!”

“Riv–” Finley tried to say Rivendell. He’d picked up that much. Not that he knew where or what Rivendell was, but it was where they were. The word couldn’t form. It tangled up in his mouth. “Ri–”  Rivendell. Rivendell. Rivendell. It was right there caught in his throat behind a lump of anxiety.

Elrond took the outburst in stride. He watched the map drift to the floor, and then returned his attention to Torin.  Iûldis had crept over at the commotion and was leaning around to glare at them all disapprovingly from around the bookcase. He shot her an apologetic smile and bent to retrieve the map. Thankfully, it was not damaged.

He rolled it up and reshelved it.

“Rivendell,” he repeated, because the question was clear and Torin’s little brother’s answer was also predictable. “That is where you are. And if you dislike the map we can look at others, but I am not sure if they will be of any use to you.”

He had begun to radiate a gentle flow of calm through the floor, if only because he could feel how fast the little one’s heartbeat was. It also may help keep the surrounding books intact. 

Torin couldn’t pinpoint how, but he got the sense Elrond was trying to calm him down and that only put him further on edge. “ Ireland. Europe. British Isles. Dublin. Any of that mean anything to you?!” 

He couldn’t tell if this was an elaborate act of if they really were that disconnected from society. For concerning recent events, the cosmic phenomenon they experienced yesterday had nothing on the presence of these pointy-eared bastards.

-

Elladan and Elrohir decided to go upstairs and get some sleep. They had slept little on their hunt, especially the night before, and it was beginning to catch up with them. On their way in, though, they stopped to check on the boys. 

“Torin screamed at Ada,” Elladan muttered with a laugh. “Everyone’s talking about it.”

Elrohir’s eyes grew wide. “He’s lucky Erestor wasn’t there. He would have put him over his knee. Ai, I can still remember the first and last time I ever did that.” 

Erestor had never done anything of the sort, of course, but the scathing disapproval had hurt just as much. He’d been in the room at the time. Ada had simply taken it in stride, asked him if he was finished, and then sent him to study a corner of the nursery for three hours. The boredom had been another kind of pain.

-

(Glorfindel arrives with Neil and Deidre, and they go to "reunite" with the boys but uhhhhh it does not go well... partially due to the language barrier but also due to the shitty family dynamic which the elves have no way of knowing about)

Celebrían led the boys upstairs. Elrond and Glorfindel came in before they could make it all the way to the terrace, meeting them in the hall. They had to sorely bedraggled adults with them who, Celebrían guessed, looked quite a lot like both boys. 

“Glorfindel! It’s good to see you back!” she shot him a bright smile.

Glorfindel’s smile that he gave her in return was radiant as ever. “It’s good to be back.” 

Torin froze. His body went stiff and he planted his feet. No. No, no no.

There were their parents, tired, with muddy clothes and tired eyes. Relief washed over their faces at the sight of him, but Torin didn’t share the sentiment. He knew it was a lie.

“Torin!” His mum went to hug him and he shrugged her off. His dad placed a hand on his shoulder and he stiffened. 

“We’ve been looking for you for over a day. We were worried sick.” 

“Yeah I’ll bet you were,” Torin grumbled. 

“Where’s your brother?” The concern carried a nearly imperceptible edge.

Torin looked to his side. Finley was gone. Fuck. His eyes turned to his dad’s with a sharp glare. “What do you care?”

Neil sighed, like dealing with a petulant child, and tried to ask after Finley. “The smaller one? Finley?” He indicated the height, hoping one of the strangers (and they truly were strange) could help.

No one knew what to make of the strange encounter. This was not how they had expected it to go. Torin did not look glad to see his parents. Elrond began to wonder if it had not been an accident that they had been separated. 

So focused were they all on the conversation that it came as a terrible surprise when Torin’s father (whom Glorfindel had introduced as Neil) asked about Finley. Before Elrond could register what he meant, Celebrían frowned, looking around. 

“He was just here–”

Ah. Finley was the little one. And he had gone missing in a matter of seconds. Elrond’s heart jumped. He craned his neck. Sure enough, Finley was nowhere in sight.

He shot Neil an apologetic smile and said, “I will look for him. Celebrían, could you have Lindir make up a room?” 

A little shaken, Celebrían nodded. She couldn’t imagine how Finley had been so quiet, nor so quick, that no one had noticed him disappear. 

Elrond set off. Glorfindel took it upon himself to introduce: “Lady Celebrían, this is Neil, and his fucking cunt Deidre.” He said it cheerily, gesturing between the two of them, looking very proud of himself for picking up on the word for spouse from all of their bickering. 

Celebrían shot them a smile and touched her hand to her chest and inclined her head. “Well met. Celebrían,” she introduced herself. 

Deirdre, however, squawked in offense and, before Neil could stop her, slapped Glorfindel. “How dare you!” 

“Deirdre!” He reached her a moment too late. 

“You heard what he called me!” 

“You really think he knows what that means?”

“Well– Well then it’s your fault! He must have picked it up from you!”

Meanwhile, Torin burst into laughter the moment Glorfindel said it. “No, no.” He gave a thumbs up to Glorfindel and pointed to his mum, still laughing. “His fucking cunt.”

“WIFE! I’m his wife!” Deirdre screeched. 

“Torin.” Neil shot him a warning glare, but then those eyes flicked around their company. 

Torin, knowing his dad couldn’t do shit in public, just shrugged and gave him a shit-eating grin. “You said it first.”

Glorfindel was so surprised by this entire thing that he froze. Celebrían’s eyebrows rose. She put her hands on her hips, ready to lash out at Deidre despite her being a guest because they most certainly did not allow anyone to strike anyone in her house– but at Torin’s reaction and Deidre’s apparently correction, the situation became clear.

“Glorfindel– I think that doesn’t mean what you think it means,” she said slowly.

Glorfindel looked between Torin, Celebrían, Neil, and Deidre. “He called her that the whole time!” 

“Maybe they don’t get along as well as you thought,”  Celebrían said with a thin, albeit amused, smile. 

Glorfindel blushed and ducked his head in Deidre’s direction. “I misunderstood. My deepest apologies.” 

Deirdre huffed, but accepted what she hoped was an apology. “Does anyone here speak English?” she demanded. 

“Nope,” Torin said. “No English. No phones. No maps. We’re fucking stranded with these weirdos in this godforsaken larping compound.”

-

(one last little snippet here, after Finley bolts to get away from his parents, Elrond goes off to find him).

Elrond set off from the group. When he turned the corner in the hall, he stopped, shut his eyes, took a deep breath, and blocked everything out to attune to the floor beneath his feet. 

Sure enough, it was faint, but there was a tiny heartbeat some distance away, racing at breakneck speed. 

He followed it down to the second floor, past the rows and rows of guest rooms, hardly saying hello to anyone as he passed them. It grew stronger and stronger until he came to his study. The corners of his mouth twitched. Silently, he slipped in and padded over. The source of the heartbeat came from behind his desk. 

If Finley’s first reaction upon seeing his parents was to hide, that was a bad sign. Torin had, really, reacted no better. Elrond was in no hurry to return Finley to them at present. More than likely it was only out of anxiety that they would be angry with him for running off, or getting lost, or any number of things. But this was such a strong reaction that Elrond worried it might be something more than that.

He sank down to the floor to sit on the other side of his desk, resting his back against it and reclining. 

“Finley, is it?” 

He was glad that he finally knew the little one’s name. He kept his voice soft, hardly above a whisper, and began to radiate a gentle pool of calm, hoping that Finley might come out on his own. 

Finley wasn’t sure how he got here, or where here even was. His arms wrapped around his knees, squeezing so, so tight; he felt he might crumble into a million little pieces if he let go. He couldn’t stop shaking, his head was spinning, his chest wound tight, and he could barely breathe. 

I shouldn’t have run. I shouldn’t have run. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry I’m sorry. 

The words filled his thoughts to the brim like swelling pressure against a frail dam. The door opened. His whimpers silenced and he pressed against the corner of the wood. 

I’m sorry. I’m sorry. Go away. Please go away. Please don’t–

The footsteps stopped on the other side of the wood. A pause, then a voice. That wasn’t his dad. He felt like he should know who it was, but couldn’t remember through the screaming mess in his head. Whoever it was, he had a gentle voice. Finley felt the air come back into his lungs. Tears sprung from his eyes. 

He opened his mouth, but not words would come out. They all tangled up in his clenching chest.

It was quiet for a long time, save only for the sound of Finley’s still-racing heart, his sniffling, and the little sounds of distress he was making every so often. Panic. Elrond’s chest twisted. He briefly considered going to fetch Torin, but that might mean alerting Finley’s parents that he had been found. He had no intention of doing so until Finley was calm and they had a chance to…

…what, talk? They couldn’t. Elrond bit the inside of his cheek, frustrated. He squashed the feeling as soon as it rose before it could bleed out of him.

Finley neither spoke nor came out from under the desk, though his heart did slow somewhat. Elrond fished out a handkerchief from his pocket and carefully reached behind him to set it at the corner of the desk, within reach without forcing Finley to come out before he was ready.

After another long stretch, an idea occurred to him. It was risky– especially in the state Finley was in– but there was a chance they might be able to communicate.

Tentatively, with the upmost care to be gentle, Elrond reached out and brushed Finley’s whirring, anxious mind with his own. 

‘I am not here to make you come out,’ he told him, hoping that at least something would be intelligible, ‘don’t fret.’

The voice, or… impression of a voice, was warm. It felt the same as the calming presence that had begun to ease his fear. Not banish it, but lessen it at least. What he imagining things? He figured he must be. His dad said his grandma used to hear things that weren’t there. 

Whatever he was, a real or not, Finley’s thoughts tumbled back to him.

‘I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have run away. I just got really scared. I don’t know where I am or if Torin’s okay. He was probably so mad and it’s my fault. It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have run away. I’m sorry.’

The response was remarkably clear, for all its rushing current of fear which choked the words. Elrond let out a relieved breath.

‘Torin is well. He is safe,’ he told him at once. ‘And to my knowledge no one is angry with you. Only worried.’ 

Finley buried his face in his knees and pulled them closer to his chest, biting his lip so hard he tasted blood. ‘No. No he’s angry. He’s really really angry and it’s my fault. It’s my fault because I ran away and now he’s gonna hurt Torin and it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have run away or hid the rings or taken the rings or anything. I’m sorry. I’m sorry!’ 

“I’m– I– I– I’m s–” the words stumbled weakly out of his mouth. “‘m sorry. I’m sorry.”

Elrond shifted, rounding the desk to settle down once more a fair distance away, within Finley’s line of sight, but neither blocking his exits nor forcing either of them to look directly at each other. 

‘No one will hurt Torin in my house. I will not let them,’ he replied back, firm and steadfast, but still gentle and warm. ‘is it your father that scares you so much, tithen pen?’ 

Finley didn’t look up when he moved around the desk. He kept his face buried in his knees, but nodded, just a little. 

‘He was really angry, ‘cause I took something I wasn’t supposed to and now we’re here and it’s my fault.’

Elrond tilted his head, still radiating that flow of calm and relieved beyond words that this was working. 

‘predicaments so unfortunate and tangled as this are hardly ever any one person’s fault, let alone someone so small as you. And in any case I am certain you did not intend to cause harm. And a second I promise: I will not let anyone hurt your brother. Neither will I let anyone hurt you. No matter how angry they might be.’ 

Finley couldn’t say why he believed him, but he did. He was just one of those people who made you feel safe. Finley was scared to look up, because he wanted so badly for him to be real, but was so scared he wasn’t. 

It took a few minutes to muster up the courage to lift his head and open his eyes. 

There, sitting on the floor, was Elrond.

He was warm like summer and had a presence so much bigger than Finley’s dad, but so much kinder. 

--

anyway, that's the gist! I know that's quite bit more than a "line or two" but this will likely never go up anywhere, since we don't plan on finishing it. It's a fun idea, but we wound up doing a similar thing with the same characters a little to the left, and we like that better.

[invisibleraven]

That’s not a cat it’s an opossum + PeterPatterLina please!

Reggie didn't need glasses, he didn't. Sure he had to hold music sheets a few inches from his nose to see it clearly, but that was because Luke's handwriting was awful. And maybe he was having trouble seeing signals when riding his bike ending him up in the bushes one time or two.

But that didn't mean he needed glasses.

"Yes you clearly do!" Julie argued with him. "You're getting worse than my dad at finding stuff, and that's saying something."

"But I can't be a rocker with glasses!" Reggie whine. "Can you name me one famous rock star who wears glasses?"

"Clapton, Toni Iommi, Lemmy, Lennon..." Luke listed off.

"Plus you could always get contacts and no one would know," Julie added.

Reggie shuddered. "No way/ I am not touching my eyes, let alone putting stuff in there every day. Plus I don't glasses."

"Bud, I love you, but yes you do," Luke pointed out.

"What makes you say that?" Reggie asked.

"Well you seem to think you're petting Sprinkles," Julie pointed out, gesturing to the creature that had been sitting in Reggie's lep through their whole conversation. "But that's not a cat, it's an opossum."

Reggie peered down to the greyish mass that had been sitting on his lap and got closer, rearing back in fright when the long snout and distinctly non-feline features came into focus. "H-hey buddy."

"Hey you found Bailey!" a little voice said from the edge of their garden. It was tiny Deidre from next door, who came and scooped up the creature. "How did you get out sweetie?"

"Girl is that your pet?" Luke asked.

"Bailey is domesticated," Deidre replied with a lisp. "He lives in our garage. Don't tell my mum."

"Honey, opossums carry rabies," Julie said soothingly. "You need to let your mum know before Bailey bites someone."

"Fiiiiiine," the girl said with an eye roll and rushed off, the opossum still firmly in her grasp.

"So how long were you gonna let me stroke the rabies infested animal before telling me?" Reggie asked.

"Seemed pretty content there honestly," Luke said with a shrug. "Might just be domesticated," he inflected Deidre's lips at that and gave them a cheeky grin.

"So can you admit now that you need glasses?" Julie asked.

"Maybe," Reggie grumbled. "I'll at least admit to needing an optometrist appointment."

"I'll call Dr. Higgins," Julie said. "For all of us, I need my prescription updated anyway, and Luke you're due for a check-up soon regardless."

"Sounds good boss," Luke shot her a thumbs up.

In the end, Reggie did need glasses. But he looked downright adorable in them, if he did say so himself.

And given how much his partners were al over him when he wore them, Reggie was okay with being wrong-just this once.