#bramble: the mountain king au

[littlepurplehue]

You begin your search for your children in the forest. It's dark, it's creepy, and it's certainly not how you expected to spend your night.

Y'all know anyone who likes creepy crawlies?

[free-for-all-fics]

Phantom of the Opera and Beauty and the Beast Crossover AU Prompt! This was going to be a much, much, much shorter prompt, but then inspiration hit me very hard and it got very long, but it still doesn’t feel quite right for me to call this a full fic or oneshot. If you’re inspired by any ideas presented here, pls tag me and I’d love to read it! 🌹❤️🥀

The faerie hesitated. She knew tradition demanded that she curse the newborn prince for not being invited to the christening, but it wasn't his fault the messenger fell off his horse. She decided to get creative with the wording. Thus, instead of being cursed to die, Erik, the firstborn son to the king of France, was cursed with a deformed face. The prince would become more beautiful with every awful deed he committed, but the curse wouldn’t be broken until he found someone who could love him for his heart and marry him. He was disowned from the royal family and disinherited from the throne, decried as a ��demon” or “living corpse”. He grew up with no knowledge of his true lineage and was instead raised by the servants and kept in the walls. The queen was fed lies that Erik died shortly after the christening, and she mourned for her baby boy. She never fully recovered from what she believed to be her firstborn son’s death, but later gave birth to another son, Prince Adam.

The king was known for ruling his kingdom with a cruel iron fist and raised the young prince to be selfish and arrogant, even forbidding the servants from ever questioning or objecting to his ways of raising his son. The prince used to live in the castle with his beloved mother as a sweet child until she died from an illness, which gave his cruel father the opportunity to harden his heart to become a more arrogant but effective ruler of the kingdom. He showed no concern over the loss of the queen, and led his son away from his wife's deathbed without any emotion. Erik became the court composer and exhibited a megalomaniacal personality, convinced he was a genius of music. He considered himself to be great and was never stingy with a compliment for himself. He was lugubrious and had not seemed to share the joys of the castellans and other courtesans. Erik spent much of his time isolating himself in the dark, too busy with concertos and operas of his own composition that he claimed would bring the house down.

“Bravo, bravo! Encore!”

“You approve?”

“Oh, maestro, it's magnificent!”

“Oh, come along. It's merely an opera...to bring the house down! Yes, I know...now, in the midst of my crescendo, I thought I heard merriment outside the window. Have a look see, will you?”

He had a deep hatred towards happiness or, at the very least, happy songs, as he preferred sad, depressing, mournful music. He was extremely superior, cunning, powerful, intelligent, and a bit misanthropic, as he considered humanity to be overrated. Though he was dashingly handsome with a debonair smile on the outside, he considered himself not only an Angel of Music, but a God of Deformity. Despite his face being perfect, he always wore a mask of impassivity when playing music for the public. He was surrounded by beautiful and wealthy women who vied for his attentions, but they were often incredibly shallow or boring, only looking to get into his bed for the night. He longed for more stimulating conversation, full of passion and intellect. The only way to keep himself sane while suffering through idle chat and pleasantries was to escape through his life’s work, treating his music as incomplete masterpieces he was eager to finish.

Following the king’s death, Erik learned of his lineage and the conditions of his curse, but never revealed these truths to Prince Adam. It was better for him to be a best friend and advisor to the prince, rather than a brother and prince himself. He blamed his father for his disfigurement, but he was secretly scared of his corpse and had refused to attend the funeral. As much as he hated the man, maybe his father was right when he used to say that ignorance is bliss.

In another kingdom, the prince fell ill. The widowed king dearly loved his last surviving son and heir, and doctors tried everything but he grew weaker and weaker. They told the king about a mythical rose that witches were rumored to use to cure any illness. The king searched the whole kingdom for the rose to no avail, and his campaign soon became a gruesome witch hunt. His path was lined with the witches he had slain, but the rose was nowhere to be found. Exhausted, bloody, and at his wit's end, the king came to a witch's house on the outskirts of his kingdom. He fell to his knees, begging the witch to help cure his son, and she agreed. The witch explained that the rose held tremendous power that could only very carefully be used for good, and instructed he only use a single petal. Using the whole bloom would only invite death. The prince began to recover, but discontent at the royal line had grown in the kingdom following the king’s bloody campaign. The next day, the king found his son murdered in his bed, and the last light holding his darkness at bay was snuffed out.

Heartbroken, the king turned to the bloom which had promised life, and instead saw it as an escape from his suffering. Lonely and depressed, he felt that all hope was lost after so much tragedy. He was too old to remarry and believed himself to have been cursed. He left his castle with nothing but the rose in hand, and wandered off into the icy wastes of a cruel and bitter winter, hoping to die somewhere his body could never be found and thus end the curse he believed he was put under. Instead, he came across the corpse of a woman who had frozen to death underneath a dead man hanging from a noose. In her arms, he found you, a still living baby girl who became blind due to being out in the elements. In his madness, you bore a remarkable resemblance to his late queen. He believed you to be his daughter and of his blood, so he took you in. The witch, having come to visit the king and the prince, looked at the nightmarish scene in despair. She raised a mountain on top of the king, erecting a dome of rock around the castle to imprison him and prevent him from wreaking further havoc across the land.

You grew up to be a virtuous, graceful beauty, but since you’d been blind since birth, no one had ever told you nor did you know that you were a princess. You lived in a beautiful enclosed garden within the king's castle, secluded from the world, in the care of loyal servants. The king feared you’d be targeted and killed if you were to ever learn you were the princess, so you never learned the truth until you came of age and were betrothed to marry Prince Adam of France. You were raised unaware of the circumstances surrounding the tragedies the king suffered or of his madness. You knew nothing of the witch. As far as you knew, as the daughter of the king, you never expected to inherit anything until a tragic accident caused the deaths of all your brothers and made you his sole legitimate heir. Now he expected you to act as a proper princess after being absent from your whole life.

You were a bright spot of happiness within the castle. You had a lovely singing voice and cared about everyone, living or dead, and everyone loved you in return. Your attendants would bring flowers and sing with you. Your garden was beautiful and full of a wide variety of blossoming wildflowers, except for roses. No matter what color roses were planted in your garden, they all turned out black in the end and smelled like death. Roses had become so rare that they were the most sought after flower in your kingdom, sold at high prices in black markets, under guard in national museums, etc.

You often declared your sadness, and your vague sense that you were missing something important that other people could experience. Your father insisted that you mustn’t discover your blindness and that your betrothed wasn’t to find out about this until after you were married. Your father had you and Prince Adam married by proxy before you had even met. A further ceremonial wedding and festivities followed by the ritual bedding would come later.

Your family had passed down a heirloom for generations: A hand mirror of medium size, framed in pure silver with ornate vine scrollwork. It was tradition that, upon their wedding day, each inheritor must look into the mirror at least once. It was said to be an enchanted mirror that could show you your soulmate, but your reflection never changed when it was your turn to look. However, ever since you’d looked into the mirror, you’d been haunted by a pale and faceless man that only you could see when you closed your eyes. He was there, behind your eyelids and inside your mind. The man moved in slow motion and, when you slept at night, you didn’t dream.

Your new husband, Prince Adam, arrived at the court with his best friend, Erik. The prince and Erik were warned by your loyal servants not to speak of light, colors, or anything of the sort with you. Wanting to bring you a wedding gift, the king arrived with a famed Persian physician who stated that you could be cured, but the physical cure would only work if you were psychologically prepared by being made aware of your own blindness. You appreciated the thought, but you had no will to see as others did and refused your father’s gift. You were born this way and loved yourself as you were. You believed you could see, you just saw things differently or saw so much more. The king supported your decision and refused the treatment, fearing for your happiness if the cure should fail after you’d learned what you were missing.

Erik found the entrance to your secret garden, ignoring the sign which threatened death to anyone who entered. He stumbled upon you singing without realizing who you were and instantly fell in love. Prince Adam, astounded by his friend’s behavior, was convinced you were a sorceress who had bewitched Erik. Prince Adam ordered him to leave but Erik was too entranced, so he departed with the promise he’d be back to save him.

“I am Maestro Erik, court composer and your most humble servant.”

You sang a magnificent duet together. Erik, who asked you to give him a certain flower as a keepsake, realized you were blind when you twice offered him different flowers with similar scents. You wished more than anything for a rose, but only black roses grew here and you didn’t know why. You had no concept of light, vision, or blindness. You fell in love with Erik after he explained light and color to you, believing him to be the faceless man from the mirror and your soulmate. When Prince Adam returned with your father, Erik admitted to seeing the warning sign at the garden entrance. The furious king threatened to execute Erik for revealing the truth to you, but spared him after Prince Adam realized you were his wife. He spoke for Erik, vouching for his character. The king relented, and let Erik return to France with you and your new husband.

Though Erik reciprocated your love, he felt conflicted and unworthy of you because of his curse and his deformities. He exclusively wore masks that covered his entire face. He only told you the color of his eyes, but nothing more. You loved him anyway, but you were born to privilege and with that came specific obligations. You were forced by your father to marry Prince Adam and, although you were spared the brunt of his cruelty, you still had to live year after year witnessing how monstrous your new husband was. From mistreating the castle servants to taxing the townspeople too high while doing nothing to help ease their hardships and burdens, you regretted your arranged marriage.

Despite being a princess, you were still a woman in a man’s world and could do nothing to free yourself from this loveless and miserable union. You and Prince Adam may have consummated your marriage out of duty, but you never shared his bed after that night and kept to separate rooms. If you had to keep Erik in secret and only love him in the dark, then that was enough for you. It had to be enough for you. Even if you longed for more. A life without love was no life at all, so you and Erik had no other choice. No matter how much you loved Erik, you could only love him at night and he had to depart before the lark sang. Every morning you’d have your kitchen maid procure a special tea for you to ensure you didn’t come to be with child. This was your fate and you’d accepted it, but Erik hadn’t. He’d brought up fantastical ideas of running away and eloping, but you wouldn’t hear of it.

“My father forbids me to end my marriage to the prince, Erik. Doing so, especially for a man like you, an untitled bachelor without family who hides his face behind a mask and accrues his wealth from dubious means, would ruin me. It’d cause a scandal so great I could never recover from it. I had to marry a man of substance, father said. A certain wealthy prince. In the eyes of the royal court, you won’t amount to anything but, in my eyes, you’re worth the whole lot of them put together. I fear I would’ve killed myself by now, were it not for the unbearable thought of leaving you behind. My heart can’t bear to inflict such cruelty onto you. You don’t deserve that. But I can’t run away with you, no matter how much I may want to. The wants and desires of a woman, even a princess, are irrelevant.”

As much as he hated it, he understood and reluctantly respected your decision. You and Erik were so in love. You saved him from his solitude, you were the light in the darkness of his existence, but you seemed to be kept apart by forces beyond your control. Still, the maestro gave you, his Angel of Music, a bundle of red roses with a fake one nestled inside, and told you that you'd be with him until the last one withered.

One winter’s night, an old beggar woman came to the castle and offered a single rose in return for shelter from the bitter cold. You, the mistress of the castle, showed kindness to the old woman as she let you feel the petals. They were so soft, softer than any flower you held before, and it smelled sweet, far sweeter than any other rose. You simply asked what color the rose was since you couldn’t see. When she told you it was red, you were amazed. Erik had told you about red when he gave you your first bouquet of roses, how it symbolized love and passion. He described it as the color of the sun or fire, bringing warmth to the hearts of men. Your kingdom had been cursed to only grow black roses that reeked of death, so to have a rose of such a vibrant color in full bloom, especially in the depths of this freezing winter, seemed like magic. You were about to let her inside and have a servant show her to a spare bedroom for the night so she could warm up and settle in, but your husband stopped you, cruelly snatching the rose from your hand and pulling you away from the old woman.

Repulsed by her haggard appearance, the prince sneered at the gift and turned the old woman away. But she warned him not to be deceived by appearances, for beauty is found within. And when he dismissed her again, the old woman's ugliness melted away to reveal a beautiful enchantress. The prince tried to apologize, but it was too late, for she had seen that there was no love in his heart, and as punishment, she transformed him into a hideous beast and placed a powerful spell on the castle, and all who lived there - even you, the princess who showed her compassion. She spared you as much as she could, not wanting your kindness to go unrewarded, but the prince and everyone else in the castle had to learn a lesson. She let you keep your human form, but erased your and Prince Adam’s memories of each other after your marriage so that you’d both have the chance to find true love in the future. However, by doing this, she inadvertently erased your memories of Erik since you only met and started your love affair after you and the prince were married. The enchantress had good intentions and thought she was doing you a great kindness, but her gift was a curse.

After the enchantress placed her curse upon the castle, turning Prince Adam into a beast and everyone else into household objects, he thought that you'd learn to love him since you were still blind and couldn’t see him. He thought you were disgusted with him because of his beastly appearance. In turn, you called him out on this, saying the real reason had to do with his arrogance and cruelty. You still despised him anyway because he was cruel, selfish, and unkind, with no love in his heart. Ever since then, the Beast showed nothing but shame for his actions and hated his cruel father for raising him to be a tyrant, even tearing up a portrait of himself out of anger. Even the servants themselves were in full regret of their reluctance to speak out against the king, implying that they truly despised him for his cruel nature. To you and Beast, you had never married and were only betrothed. Your fathers were both dead by this point, so you didn’t see any reason to go through with the wedding. You left him, claiming that people don't hate him because of his appearance, but because of how he acts, and that he's not some terrifying beast or powerful prince, but a pathetic human named Adam.

After you left, enchantment was the only good thing that happened to Erik. He was turned into a pipe organ and could use music to move nearby objects, but couldn’t move himself, as his new form was far too large and bolted to the wall. But he found himself more useful to his master as a composer and was willing to do everything in his power to stay in that new form. He developed powerful abilities, which he could release through his own music, and became obsessed with it. He wanted more. To possess this forbidden magic, Erik had to sacrifice a memory of equal value. His thoughts about you might’ve given him pause in the past, but you were gone and it didn’t seem like you were ever coming back. He no longer cared about losing his memories for a spell. Falling in love with you while you were married to his brother was painful enough, but his nights with you offered him some respite. He took solace in knowing neither you nor Adam were aware of this family secret, though this comfort was cold and tainted with bitterness. Your miserable marriage to his brother combined with your memory erasure and leaving was too much for Erik to bear, so he erased all his memories of you in exchange for these dark powers. His father was right after all! Ignorance was bliss.

The Beast considered him much more valuable as an advisor and confidant, and found his depressing arrangements of notable classical music somehow made him feel better. It was said that music soothes the savage beast, and they couldn't be more correct. Erik kept the Beast isolated from everyone else in the castle, and close to himself in order to prevent the spell from breaking, which had remained for 10 long years. Erik was a good talker, as he was able to captivate the spirits, to insinuate his hypnotic music, to convince everybody with honeyed words and a soft voice. He appeared to the Beast as his "best friend", but he was actually manipulating him because he wanted to remain as a pipe organ forever and sought some attention. However, this attitude was only displayed because he was quite afraid to fade in the background, afraid that he’d be forgotten. He wasn’t appreciated by anyone as the inhabitants of the castle seemed to ignore him at the least, except for the Beast. The Beast came to him often to hear his soothing music, which would ease his tormented soul.

“Your music is the only thing that helps me forget.”

“Don't worry, old friend. I'm here for you, just as I have been, just as I always will be.”

The more magic Erik used, the more he deviated from being human, not just in body but in mind as well. Moreover, the type of magic he used influenced the changes that occurred within him. He slowly became corrupted by his own desperate desire to be loved. Without you by his side, Erik became arrogant, evil, sarcastic, manipulative, acrimonious, obstreperous, and somewhat paranoid. Under the curse, he composed tirelessly his next opera, “Don Juan Triumphant”, whose sole purpose was to make the castle collapse.

“Erik! Stop the noise!”

“Noise? Noise?! This is my masterpiece.”

You’d lived in castles and palaces among the richest people of any age. But never, never had you stood in greater luxury than when you moved into this quaint little town and lived the life of a simple peasant, surrounded by townspeople who didn’t know who you once were. You loved the hustle and bustle of running errands and doing daily chores, you loved being part of a community and helping others, you loved wearing much simpler dresses, you loved getting dirty and feeling tired in a good way from a hard day’s work. You befriended a lovely woman named Belle, who was about your age, and her father, Maurice. Though they both seemed to be the talk of the town and considered “odd”, you came to love them like family.

Maurice was a musician who was traveling to a music festival to perform. But since the curse, the world had lost its music and melody. All composers in town became superstitious, believing in a “Curse of the 9th Symphony”, its origins unknown. Maurice was a skeptic and, having premiered his 8th symphony last night on stage, a mysterious hooded figure handed him a letter after the performance. “After your 9th,” it said, “I will return. He has a job for you.” Maurice then went missing while on his way home, shortly after his 9th symphony. Philippe returned alone. When Belle went in search of her missing father, you insisted on going with her, not wanting her to get lost in the woods like Maurice might’ve. These woods were dangerous, especially at night when the wolves came out. When you came up to the tall iron gates and Belle found Maurice’s hat, you cursed to yourself. Of course you’d be brought back here. Escape was an illusion, it seemed. Oh, cruel fate, would this nightmare ever end?

While in the castle, Maurice had come across a silver music box. The music box was empty, the cords cut yet, somehow, a song started playing when he opened it. How was this accomplished? He fiddled with the music box and wound it up, making the princess figurine spin in a dance. Unbeknownst to him, it was something never seen in at least a decade. It had been a wedding present for you but, after the curse was cast, the Beast’s heart stayed dark from that moment on. Its melody brought back the Beast’s bad memories; all his mistakes, all his regrets, and all his pain. For the master of the castle, it was a Pandora’s Box that contained many horrors. Each note of that lovely melody seemed to deepen the Beast’s anguish. He couldn't bear to hear it. When Maurice opened it, the Beast could hear it from the West Wing and flew into a rage. He picked up Maurice, carried him out of the room and slammed the door, plunging the den into darkness. For daring to trespass and open your music box, Maurice was Beast’s prisoner, sentenced to rot in the dungeons forever.

When Belle took her father’s place as the Beast’s prisoner, you insisted on staying with her and the Beast let you, giving you your old room back. While the Beast had destroyed his own room, yours remained untouched and was just as you left it 10 years ago. You didn’t tell Belle about the curse nor your complicated history with the Beast because, as much as you may not have seen eye to eye in your past turbulent relationship, you still believed he could change. He deserved that chance to love and be loved in return. You worried that Beast's psychological state would become increasingly feral the longer he was under the curse, such that he would eventually lose his last vestiges of humanity and become completely wild if the spell couldn’t be broken. You wanted the spell to be broken, if not for his sake, then for everyone else in the castle. Everyone, even you, played against Erik, trying to provoke love between Belle and the Beast to break the spell. But Erik wouldn’t be deterred so easily, and continued plotting and scheming in the shadows of the West Wing.

“Trust me. Humanity is entirely overrated. Before the enchantment, there was no need for my particular brand of genius. But now, the master needs my melodies to feed his tormented soul. I am his confidant and his best friend...and I won't let some peasant girl ruin it for me! I will see to it that this blossoming love withers on the vine.”

Neither you nor Erik could remember each other, but you both had this indescribable feeling that wouldn’t go away. You weren’t sure what it was exactly. Even before you officially met again, it almost felt like a pull, a thought trying to break out from the back of your minds, or a strange sense of Deja Vu. Erik hated it with a passion and played his music loudly to drown it out, while you were just confused. While exploring the castle and reacquainting yourself with everything, You could’ve sworn you heard a man’s voice hypnotizing you, seducing you, urging you to enter the West Wing. The Beast’s room. But you couldn’t possibly! It was forbidden! The Beast had warned both you and Belle! And yet…

“Yes, my dear. Come to me.”

You felt like you’d been in this room before. A strange sense of familiarity washed over you as you felt around the walls to guide yourself, but for some indiscernible reason, you hated this room and everything in it. Avoiding broken furniture and other obstacles in your way, you felt fresh air coming from an open window and approached the balcony. You felt around a small table until your hand brushed against something cold and made of glass. A bell jar. When you touched it, you felt warmth and light emanating from underneath it. Next to it, you picked up something cold and heavy. You felt the engravings and markings decorating the frame and handle, and your fingers tapped against the glass of its face. Your handheld mirror that your father once gave you. But it was glowing just like the bell jar and you could hear strange crackling noises coming from it, almost like lightning. What had the enchantress done to it?

You were about to inspect it further, but you could hear music coming from an adjacent room. The door was left ajar and, when Erik noticed you were looking at him, he immediately doused his candles and fell silent. Wandering over to the organ, you spotted a half-finished set of sheet music set aside, complete with inkwell and quill. Curious, you sat down at the organ and began reading it.

“Don’t touch that!” Erik’s voice snapped, seemingly coming from nowhere and scaring you half to death as you were chased away from the organ. You looked around frantically and reached out your hands, confused when you felt no one around you. You thought maybe it was a ghost or ventriloquism, until you realized it was the pipe organ itself that was talking to you, towering over you with a scrutinizing glare that you couldn’t see but could feel. Right. Enchanted castle. You’d never gotten used to it back then, and you still wouldn’t. Not now, not ever. But you felt a strange sense of longing when you heard his voice. He scoffed in disgust whenever you mentioned love or breaking the spell.

“A daring woman, cursed with such beauty but never able to see it, a pity even. A beauty such as yourself, meets beasts in dark hallways and forbidden rooms? An act of love or lust, so you say? Beasts know nothing of the sort. Empty your heart, cast it aside, I say. Dreadful beasts we are, no less? Beauty may fool a blind man, but no beast!”

Months passed. The enchanted rose continued to wilt. Christmas was coming. The Beast, wanting to get a present for Belle, ordered Erik to compose a song for her, much to Erik’s disgust. The girl was evil. She held the master from Erik’s grasp. She filled his head with dreams of love and hope! Yech!

“I want you to compose a song. It's a present…for Belle. And make it happy!”

“Oh, but happiness is so depressing! What's next? Love songs?! Wedding marches?! It's all that girl's fault.”

He had fabricated another curse, a false one to orchestrate distrust within the nearby villages so that the townspeople would either ban music and/or turn on each other. If he instilled fear and superstition so there was no competition, then he’d definitely be the best musician in the world! His plot to get Maurice killed had failed, but he could still go after his daughter. She was a threat to his plans. He twisted Belle’s words and emotionally manipulated her so she’d want to get a Christmas tree in the Black Forest beyond a frozen lake. He lured her away from the castle, and did everything in his power so she’d never come back. While she was away, Erik told the Beast that Belle had abandoned him, thus stoking Beast's anger. He then tried to goad the Beast into destroying the enchanted rose, the symbol of the curse, but the Beast ultimately decided not to when a rose petal landed on the storybook from Belle, thus allowing him to regain his senses. Erik’s plan to drive Belle and the Beast apart almost worked, but was ultimately foiled by the Beast.

“So, Beast gets girl, and it's a happy ending for everyone. Enchantment lifted...and Erik fades into the background. No longer important...no longer needed…I THINK NOT!”

Enraged at the failure of his plan to break up Belle and the Beast's relationship, Erik lost what was left of his sanity and gave into his destructive and suicidal thoughts that had plagued his mind for years. He had no regard for his own life as he was willing to take everyone's lives in the castle along with his own to ensure that the spell remained intact. With the Beast having broken free of his hypnotic control, Erik believed he had nothing else to live for and attempted to bring the castle down with his loud music, playing “Don Juan Triumphant” more intensely to rupture the walls and shatter the windows. He shook the walls to pieces, debris fell, the floors began to separate and created perilous chasms.

“Maestro, stop! What do you think you're doing?”

“Don't you see? They can't fall in love if they're DEAD! You could've joined me, but I see my triumph is a solo act! We can remain as we are, FOREVER AND EVER!”

“ERIK! ENOUGH!”

Erik was finally defeated when the Beast ripped out his keyboard from him, which ceased his contact with his pipes. In a blind rage, Erik tore himself free of the wall and began to collapse, effectively killing himself as he crashed to the ground, destroyed. Despite Erik’s true colors being exposed and his diabolical plans foiled, the Beast mourned Erik’s demise, as he still considered him to be his closest friend.

After the curse was broken, everyone was turned back into humans, and yours and Prince Adam’s memories were restored. You both remembered that you were technically still married and thus had extramarital affairs - you before the curse, and he during the curse. But this realization wasn’t awkward. What was there to forgive? You and Adam were forced into marriage by your fathers and each fell in love with another, it happens. You just considered yourselves even. It took lots of paperwork, but with his signature here, and your signature there, you and Prince Adam officially dissolved your marriage, much to both yours and his relief. You let bygones be bygones after your divorce and considered yourselves friends, no hard feelings. The prince assured you that you’d always be welcome here in his castle, and it was your choice whether you wanted to stay, return to your kingdom, or go elsewhere.

While everyone was downstairs celebrating in the ballroom, you went back to the West Wing, to the prince’s room where Erik was. You remembered him. Oh, your poor darling! Your dear Erik had suffered so much sadness and so much pain, surrounded by people yet completely alone in the castle for all those years. He was human again but he laid deathly still, face down on the floor. You took out the music box and it played that familiar melody, your song. The enchantress appeared one last time and used her magic to resurrect Erik. She couldn’t condone his abuse of forbidden and evil magic, but she’d seen for herself he’d been punished enough. She asked for your forgiveness. She only ever wanted to give you a chance to find true love and happiness, but she didn’t realize you already had it. Consider this parting gift from her her repentance for inadvertently cursing you. She wouldn’t bend or break the laws of life and death for just anyone, but true love was the most magical gift of all, so she did it once for Belle and Adam, and again for you and Erik. She would no longer interfere with either yours and Erik’s or Belle and Adam’s happy endings. You needn’t do anything to repay her, just go on and live happily ever after.

When Erik woke up, his memories of you were restored. You were discovered by the prince, and he was so relieved and ecstatic to see his best friend alive. Erik finally pledged his love for you in front of the prince, not caring that you were blind and married, unaware you had already ended your marriage contract moments before. The prince gave you to Erik with his blessing, not that you ever needed it, but you and Erik appreciated it. Erik moved into your bedchamber where he would often awaken to the sun streaming through the curtains and the lark singing, just like he had always dreamed. No more hiding under the cloak of night, no more sneaking through secret passageways. He relished in finally sharing your bed, but he had a difficult time adjusting to being human again. He still experienced trauma from the curse, and was plagued by nightmares at night. He confided in you his guilt and regrets, his fears and anxieties, and all his insecurities while you gently rubbed his back, drew patterns on his chest, or held his hand. He felt like he maybe didn’t deserve to be this happy after all he had done.

“It's just...it was different when we were all cursed objects. When we could move around freely and act however we wanted to. When I could just play my music. When I knew exactly how to get the master to smile and relax with my music. Even if it meant we'd be cursed forever, I was happier as a pipe organ." 

“And it’s going to take time, my love, but we can learn to be happy again, as humans. As husband and wife, if you’ll still have me. I’m sorry for all that I’ve put you through. I’m sorry for making you wait so long.”

“Now that I finally have you in my arms again, ten years didn’t feel long at all. I would wait a thousand years more and still take you to be my bride.”

The four of you eventually held a double wedding in the castle. As soon as the rings were exchanged and Erik kissed his bride, the curse placed upon him at birth was finally broken. But when the bright light encompassing him had dissipated, instead of a handsome man, his face was still that of a living corpse. His eyes were so deep that one could hardly see the fixed pupils, just two big black holes, as in a dead man's skull. His skin, which was stretched across his bones like a drumhead, wasn’t white, but a nasty yellow. His nose was so little worth talking about that one couldn’t see it side-face; and the absence of that nose was a horrible thing to look at. All the hair he had was three or four long dark locks on his forehead and behind his ears. But you saw nothing ugly in your husband at all, he was absolutely perfect. He was beauty itself, and you didn’t need your eyesight to see that.

“My love, are you okay?”

“Well, yes. But I don’t understand. I’m supposed to be beautiful.”

“Oh, Erik, but you are beautiful.”

The double wedding was a grander celebration than the one that was held after the curse was lifted. The festivities lasted an entire week, and you all sang together of the magical new world now visible to you as the court and townspeople rejoiced.

[bellatheinkdemon]

I have an idea...

[onlyhalfangy]

Cursed

.

.

There's nothing you can do when your partner's cursed for the sins of his past.. do you feel pity for him or do you feel for the ones he hurt and murdered in his bloody path to saving your life?

.

Sun couldn't understand why his partner, one of the kindest creatures he ever met would have killed another right before his eyes in their own home.. Sun could feel everything the poor moth creatures felt as Moon ripped the smaller of the two open while taking the other's wings.. sun couldn't forget the screaming and the pleas for their lives even if he couldn't understand them but he had to stop this he couldn't stand seeing or hearing others in pain especially by someone he was so certain would never harm another without reason...

.

.

.

Pff just a little something I thought up that branches off from a rp me and a friend did, the image above is sun holding moon who's been cursed by his ancestors for taking an innocent's life despite being a creature who's supposed to protect all life hence his punishment of being transformed into a feral broken beast

[actaviya123]

Octavia "danger AU!"

[hcdragonwrites]

Barbed Words (@journey-to-the-au Fic) Part 2 Tea Trouble

So…. This has turned into …,,, three parts. Yes. Three. There’s a lot of dialogue and I… yeah. It’s a lot of different characters talking a bit. So … ENJOY- I’ll post the last part later today.

The day couldn’t have been more perfect on the mountain. The sun was shedding glorious warmth upon Willows back. She was dressed in her finest court attire to impress upon her sisters. Willow would have been in her more relaxed attire but today… was not the day to buck courtly garb in the sisters eyes. They would be dressed just as she, hair done in loops and paint pressed to lips, as the court dictated. Willow would not let her dress be the reason her sisters turned their nose up at her home.

She would impress those same sisters who came stepping off their celestial mounts with the grace of clouds. But It was like the mountain had heard Willows frantic beating heart and had bent to kiss her brow in comfort. The apple blossoms were in full bloom, the scent heady and sweet on the air. The grass was perfectly green and soft beneath the blanket she was settled on. The tree they were beneath was one strong Honeysuckle, it’s emerald leaves chattering in the breeze as if in welcome to the six sisters who walked forward. The morning dew had not burnt off yet which led to a coolness in the ground Willow could feel. Nature was in its best and most beautiful untamed self.

As her sisters steeds touched ground, a monkey named Ocean and his sister Spray stepped forward and collected the horses. The celestial beasts would be put to pasture to enjoy the days warmth and beauty. Which seemed just fine to the horses, as they swished cloud bobbed tails or snorted vapor into the warming air.

That spring air was fresh and the mountain felt it- the troop was out and about. Littles played and tussled between brambles and thickets. Mothers groomed and talked about their babes or gossiped about their mates in trees with low slung branches. Fathers were about, either tussling with others of the troop or collecting foods and polishing weapons. Unmated males, those who felt the spring air a bit too warmly, strutted and fastidiously groomed themselves. Then they would make their way to the bend in the river where the Water Curtain Caves spray coloured the air in a rainbow. Here the bachelorettes of the troop would be sunbathing. Here they would braid flowers and feathers into fur, and blush or chuckle at the sauntering show ponies who walked by to woo their besotted.

The laughter and the noise of the day was like music to Willow. Her Earthen family was about her, frolicking and living life. It set a small bit of her tension to ease.

Thank you Huaguoshan, Willow quietly said, wanting to kiss her mountain home. It had put on its best colors, it’s most beautiful and harmonious of welcomes. Wukong was dressed in battle regalia, soft leathers and polished armour that could set the suns rays to envy. He had dressed as king upon her request, kneeling beside her as the celestial sisters walked forward.

Summer Turning Flower was the forefront, dressed in greens and embroidered in a stitch of golden apples along the hem and wrists. Willow greeted Summer warmly with smile and a hug as her second sister knelt.

“Oh Willow its so GOOD to see you! A veritable beauty among the beasts.” Summer smiled to her.

Ah… was that intended ? Willow looked into her sisters eyes as they parted. She tried to figure out just what could have happened - or what that had been about. Was it an intentional saying ? Her sister had stepped back, casting her eyes downward.

“Hello Great Sage.” Summer bowed to Wukong, head low.

“Arise sister in law. You need not treat me with courtly courtesy. Wukong will do for my family.” Willows heart wanted to stretch in warmth at Wukongs kindness.

“Oh good.” Winter Frosted Grace sighed. She dropped onto the blanket with only the confidence that she could exude. Her ice blue robes crumpled beneath her as she sat, letting go of stately decorum for her posture. “I have had enough bowing to break a back for one day.”

“Was it a rough time in the palace then?” Willow asked.

“Oh sister dear,” Winter sighed, snapping a fan from a sleeve to wave at her face. “You have no idea. On this escapade I had three suitors try and prevent me from leaving. All of them beseeched me to reconsider for the ‘Grace of Heaven cannot loose another to the Savages’”

As Summer laughed Willow felt a bit of rage begin to build in her. A second slight. This time directly at myself. A small wave battered inside her, hitting against the sea wall she had erected all those years ago. Willow looked to Wukong. He seemed fine- his eyes not betraying the friendly warmth it still held.

“Of course I told the fat man to take his worries back to his mistress beneath the peach blossom trees.” Winter flapped a hand with the fan, as if blowing the man away. “I have no interest in any man so foolish as to think me to flights of fancy.”

At least it is only me they target so. She could handle that. Willow had dealt with plenty a honey coated barb from her sisters.

Another crash of that ocean inside her.

Autumn Leaves Falling, dressed in her habitual golden and browns, was stopped talking to Liu just several paces away. The Marshal had agreed so courteously to be the guard today, to play the role of protector. And though Wukong had tried to dissuade his dear friend, Liu had simply stared him down.

“It is to honor our Lady Willow. To make a show that Huaguoshan is well kept in both beauty and manners.” Liu had said. The Marshal would hear no more of it, his mind set.

The monkey greeted Willows laughing sister with kindness and such delicate court courtesy that Willow felt a wave of love swamp her little anger. Liu, of all the monkeys besides Wukong, knew how nervous Willow had grown. He was always carefully watching everyone and had seen how she had begun to pace It had been He who had first told Wukong of her exertions to the caves after bed to start gathering materials and go over supplies. That had been several months ago when the little bit of chill still hung in the air.

As Autumn came gayly up, she was surpassed by Wind Over Sea and Weaves The Clouds. They came in a whirlwind, laughing and tumbling over eachother. They fell head first into the blanket, grabbing and tugging at one another.

Wukongs quick thinking pulled the tea tray and treats up and away before the sisters could crash into the set and make a mess.

“You cheater!” Cloud accused.

“I didn’t cheat at anything!” Sea countered.

“You wagered and lost!”

“I didn’t wager a thing!”

Wukong set the tray aside with grace and pulled the sisters apart with ease as if her were picking two ladybirds up from a rose bush.

“What is this I hear of a wager ?” He asked.

“Sea made a bet that she has no intention of keeping!” Cloud accused, crossing her arms.

“You didn’t win though!” Sea began, voice rising.

Oh good Greif. Of her sisters, Cloud and Sea got into the most trouble together. It was almost as if they took after their namesakes- each feeding off the other and bringing a storm to blow into court. Cloud was game for any challenge, to prove herself in any contest placed before her. She would get along with Wukong, Willow had thought many a time.

Sea was sly and always seeking mischief. Being the second youngest sister meant she did not leave a lasting impression upon the court. She was too far down the birth order for some to set their sons or themselves to courting. Or she was too ambiguous in courtly power to try an ally with. So Sea had found another way to get attention: pranking.

It seemed like this spat was just the typical stirring of the pot Sea would create.

“I will have peace this day for my wife’s sake.” Wukong admonished them both. Sea at least had the propriety to send a sheepish glance her eldest Sisters way.

“As King of Huaguoshan I will hold court.” And Wukong set the two sisters down taking a very mocking and kingly air. Willow giggled and Autumn chortled while Winter looked on with a tired gaze.

“Oh a game!” Little Weaver Girl came bounding up, the last and youngest of the sisters. Willow saw the genuine smile on her baby sisters face as she settled on the edge of the blanket, her body wriggling in excitement. Little was the gem, the glowing jewel, of the court. She was beloved by all for she was the youngest, the most open, and the one to create the unrivaled robes of their Fathers attire.

“Honestly these two gamble over the stupidest bets.” Winter snorted. She grabbed a teacake, sniffing it before taking a bite.

“I think it’s adorable.” Autumn smiled. She looked back to Liu who stood at attention. “Especially as they play act at courtly politeness.”

Play act ? The water in Willow swirled again, sharks smelling rage. Liu was never Play acting. Of all the world, the Marshal could rival generals in Heaven with his respect and kindness. Willow had to bite her tongue, fingers curling into her sleeve.

“Speak first Sister Cloud.” Wukong intoned, taking to the game quickly and with joy. “What sort of wager did you get cheated out of?”

“We bet to see how many colours of Monkeys we would see!” Cloud glared at her sister who stuck a tongue out.

“A fine wager.” Wukong agreed, looking out over the monkeys who walked by. Willow ignored how her sister Summer curled away from the friendly faces of her earthly family. Or at least she tried to.

Sand Crane, a kind old monkey slowly approached the party. She was one of the older grannies, face worn and leathered by the sun and laughter lines. She walked up to Willow, her smile making her eyes crinkle at the corner.

“For you, Dear one.” And she unfurled her hand. On her palm were some of the ripest berries plucked from a raspberry patch that Willow had every seen. The little gems were large and swelled with tart juice.

“Thank you Sand Crane.” Willow bowed.

“I picked them myself this morning.” The great old monkeys silvered muzzle and hair flashed like moonbeams in the sun. “The east mountain gets a nice breeze this year from the sea. The berries should be sweet for you and your sisters.” Without a second glance, the old matriarch stepped to the side, slipping into a throng of old grannies who set to chatter. Willow held the berries like gold. The east side of the mountain was steeper, the ever present monsoon rains having carved the terrible rock into a steep and slippery trap.

Sand Crane had quietly given her a great gift and had reassured her in a simple gesture. We love you, We want the best for you. Willow felt a swell of love threaten spill from behind her eyes.

I cant cry. I will cry later. And I will find that old grandmother and give her a hug for her kind words.

Willow slipped a cool berry into her mouth. The juice burst on her tongue, made all the sweeter by the gesture. Summer was watching her with a befuddled expression.

“Here- I know how much you love Raspberries!” She held her hand out to her sister.

“You are going to eat that ?” Summer asked from behind a polite smile.

It hit Willow like a slap.

Willow pulled back politely, taking the berries in her hand and keeping the fingers uncurled. She would not. Could not. Make a scene. These had been loving picked and given to me. Sand Crane had thought of me and had gone out of her way to gather them…

The waves inside Willow were crashing.

“And what was your guess?” Wukongs voice had Willow come back from that crashing anger, from that perilous rising sea. She saw the Monkey King mediating between her two younger sisters who had significantly calmed down.

“Twenty five colours.” Cloud said with a sniff.

“Alright. And Sister Sea what wager did you set ?” Wukong asked.

Seas smile was sly, a fox curling its lips around a chickens throat. “I said as many as the rainbow.”

“Which is not FAIR!” Cloud accused, throwing one finger in Seas face. Autumn laughed at the antics. Little simply helped herself to another mooncake, used to her sisters competing.

“But there IS A RAINBOW.” Sea insisted.

“No there isn’t !” Cloud spat like a cat.

“THERE IS RIGHT THERE - AND THEIR ARE MONKEYS BENEATH IT!” Sea hissed back, pointing to the waterfall spray that threw a perpetual mist into the air.

“That’s not a Heaven made one so it does not count!” Cloud sniffed. “It’s not a proper rainbow.”

It may have been the past barbs from Winter and Summer, but this phrasing following so close to Summers rejection to Sand Cranes gift- it stung already sore places. Willow couldn’t hide the small falling of her smile.

“A trickster then is Sister Sea.” Wukong leaned into the two fighting groups, giving a wink to Sea who chuckled.

“Do not make wagers with tricksters dear sisters.” Wukong philosophized, placing his hands behind his back to take a bit of a haughty air. “Especially if they are tricksters you call sister.”

“Aren’t you a trickster ?” Summer asked pointedly, her eyes sliding to Willow. What is that look ment to communicate ? Was she implying that Wukong was not to be trusted? That she had somehow been hoodwinked to come here ?

“Why yes.” Her friend rolled the sharper comment off his shoulder, letting the barb fall harmlessly. Or not recognizing the pointed slight. “ I am the best and most well know of cunning minded and sharp witted tricksters in stories. There are lessons to be learned in many a thing I have done.”

“Could you tell us Wukong?” Little asked around a mouthful of coconut cakes.

“Of course.” He leaned over and grabbed a napkin to wipe Littles face clean. Summer shivered and Winter fanned herself, puffing about the stuffy air. Hold it together Willow. She felt the waves rising, the surf surging in her heart. Wukong was being so gentlemanly. He was poised and well mannered. He was taking care of Little like he would any of his troop. It touched Willow with love. It also made her want to actually freeze her sisters in ice. Or politely push them into a rice field. On accident.

Maybe a good dunking will make them come to their senses.

“Now did I tell you of the time I dressed as my brother Bahjies Ex Wife to trick him into divorce ?” Wukong implored and Cloud, Sea and Little all clambered forward.

Whatever slights these three had said were not meant. It obviously had tickled down from on high. Willow saw the elder of her sister in the corner of her eyes. As Wukong launched into his story of disguise and acting, Willow took to leaning back and gauging the elders of the group. Autumn seemed fine- more amused by the journey and curious. Malicious no. Or maybe ignorant in how malicious her comments come off.

“It’s so hot dear Willow.. why is the air so … pungent?” Winter snapped her fingers and Willow felt her body go ridged. “Where’s the servant with some cold water ? I’m dying in this heat…”

Another slam into the sea wall inside herself.

“I will get it for you dear sister.” Willow said, rising from her place and stepping to the path that would lead to Water Curtain Cave.

“No servants to fetch things?” Summer cast about her, taking in the multitude of simians frolicking and enjoying the air. “No help for a daughter of the Royal family?”

Another crash of that wave.

“I prefer to get things myself instead of relying on others. I wouldn’t want to atrophy with the lack of movement.” It was a very sharp and direct barb but Willow had to deliver the reprimand. Summer had a tendency in court to be sloth like, relying on others to fan her or asking to be carried by palanquin. The harsher and more viceroys women of the palace said it was because Summer wanted to remain diminutive of stature and demur of nature. “All the better to woo our men.” One women, had whispered loudly. Willow would usually not try and use the court gossip to make a point. However … her patience was skating thin. She heard more then saw the intake of air as she walked away.

She hoped that was the last of it.

Willow entered the cave beneath the waterfall feeling a rush of emotions. Today was supposed to be lovely. It was supposed to be like that day back when the sisters had first crept to the earthly river, when they had all been girls and had laughed at the pleasure of just being.

Winter was miserable and melting and growing more corse by the second. Autumn found amusements in Lius severity thinking it was a game when the Marshal meant every word.

If she knew the courtesies Liu had she would never look to another man of the Palace. He’s worth twelve of those vipers in manners and in genuine heart.

Then there was Summer. Her second sister. The one who had the most aversion. Who had turned her nose up at a polite gesture. Willow felt her blood boil.

Willow pressed her hand to the cold stone of the cave, trying to take some of the chill into her blood. She did not want to cause a scene. Even though her sisters were digging for it.

[solarianvoidthearoace]

So I typed up a Gerry-centric JonGerry(?) fairytale AU up on the fly last night while I was listening to a Story Explained of Bramble: The Mountain King

Uuuuh, should I post that? Idk where it’ll go and it looks like it will remain a short/ one-chapter

Also I take title suggestions.

The premise I sort-of yoinked from Bramble was the library in the forest and the main character getting chased until he stumbles into that magic library

And, like, the story begins with a fairytale about that magic library and then later the character themself has to flee/ run into the forest and ends up stumbling into that same library from the local folktale

It’ll probably be pre-ship at most, I guess, anything more would need way more build-up between the characters

[vikingost]

The introduction to my bramble x hetalia Au

This Au belongs to the story im currently writing and that i will post on here that is a Fantasy story where the game Bramble: the mountain kings plot is used,with a few changes of characters,which will be seen below.The story is called,the battle of Bramble and harebells,because of the fact that harebells are seen as swedens national flower.

8 year old sweden/Björn as Olle (the main character)

11 year old nyo!denmark/Mette as Lillemor (the sister)

Male scandinavia /king Karl as the mountain king

These two,while They are still nations,have no idea that They are the personifications of sweden and denmark.They are immortal and have healing properties.They have No idea of this though.

Much like norway in the anime,They can see magic beings.Though,its primarily only in magic affected area’s.And while sweden can always see magical beings,Denmark Can only see them if they are extremely close or directly interact with her through speech or touch.

ill post the first chapter soon!

[purble-turble]

Nobody’s seen you in days for the Dad Macaque AU where Mac has kidnapped Wukong with plans to later nab MK to complete his 'happy family' with them?

"Monkey King?!!"

MK waited, listening patiently for a response, but the only one that came was the echo of his own shout reverberating around the empty Water Curtain Cave.

This was unusual. The Monkey King hardly ever left the mountain, and he knew they had a training session every Friday. He even reminded him last week... where could he have gone?

His first instinct was to assume it was some sort of game, like maybe Monkey King was testing him by hiding on purpose. So MK set about on his search, turning the house and cave upside down, checking even the little ants crawling nearby for a monkey tail in case he was pulling that kind of trick. But no, nothing turned up.

Next he moved on to the mountain outside and the jungle path... still nothing. And also so unfair! How was he supposed to find his mentor in all this brush and brambles if he wasn't even going to give him a hint?

At long last, MK gave up. Having reached the beach and finding nothing to show for it except a few annoyed monkeys (none of them a disguised Monkey King, he had checked) he collapsed into the sand and stared up at the blinding bright sky.

Maybe the Monkey King went on an errand and forgot to tell him? To be fair, that totally seemed like something he would do. His mentor pretended to be on top of things and unshakeable, but after the months of really getting to know him and seeing him in action, MK knew that was just an air he put on. He could be lazy and forget things and even make mistakes just as much as... ok, well, not just as much as MK. MK still made a lot of mistakes, but the Monkey King sure wasn't perfect. He had his faults and weaknesses just like anyone.

Still, it was just really frustrating. Seems like everyone was disappointing him lately. He was supposed to train with Macaque earlier in the week, but his other mentor (or dad, actually... Macaque didn't seem to mind when MK called him that) had bailed on him too. At least he had left a note on his dojo door telling MK he'd be gone. Didn't explain anything, but MK hadn't wasted hours looking for him either.

Still laying in the sand, MK reached up and took out the staff from his ear. No sense wasting any more time here if Monkey King wasn't around. He was really hoping for some training; he could practically feel his skill level stagnating every day that went by that he didn't get some instruction... but it was no use. He would just have to come back tomorrow and try then.

Before he could stand and pole vault out of there, a figure came into his vision. He couldn't make out the details with the brightness of the sun shining from behind them, but he recognized that silhouette!

"Monkey King!" MK sat up and whipped his head around to see... someone else.

"Not quite, kid." Macaque was there, standing over him with a wide grin. "Sorry to disappoint."

For a second MK didn't react, just out of sheer surprise. Once it seemed to fully register who he was looking at, he scrambled to his feet, dropping the staff in the sand in favor of leaping at the dark furred monkey and wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug.

"Macaque!!! I haven't seen you in days," he shouted, "I've missed you!"

"Oh, well that's nice to hear," Macaque responded with a chuckle, "sorry I disappeared for a bit there. I had some errands to run... been getting some stuff ready. Y'know. Monkey business."

MK laughed at the pun but then his smile faded as he remembered where they were right now.

"Wait, hold on," he pulled away from the hug, "what are you doing here? I thought you and Monkey King still weren't getting along."

"Yeah, not exactly... I'm working on that, though," Macaque said, placing a hand on MK's shoulder reassuringly, "I actually came here to talk to him about you."

MK paused for a moment before responding, "Uh, I haven't told him, by the way... that you're still training me."

"I know, I know. We talked about some other stuff too... it got a little heated for a minute there, but I think I've got him calmed down now." Macaque's grin widened, "I can take you to him, if you want."

"Yes please!" MK didn't hesitate at all in his excited response.

He'd wanted for so long now to have his two monkey dads to get along. Monkey King said he didn't trust Macaque, but MK had no idea why... sure Macaque could push him a little harder in training than Monkey King would, but that didn't mean he was bad. It just meant he knew MK could do better! And he knew that too. He trusted Macaque. So when the shadow monkey took smiled down at him and gripped both his shoulders, a little tight, and they both started to fade into the shadows together, MK let it happen.

He didn't realize until it was too late that he'd forgotten the staff on the beach

[swordmaid]

headcanons for ur jb batb au?

sorry I replied to this late!

• i see it as a blend of the original tale and the disney version. original as in brienne became his prisoner because selwyn took his roses and none of her siblings (they’re alive in this au) wanted to offer themselves but brienne thought it would be the honorable thing to do so she goes instead. brienne dreams of the prince (jaime’s human form) who tells her to look past appearances, etc. but instead of the original, beast doesn’t offer his hand of marriage to her, only treats her as a guest/prisoner. she tries to escape because of his temper/he saves her and they have that dance scene like in the film bc that’s so important lol. ending is the same as the original that she found out selwyn is sickly, beast tells her she’s free to go but she has to come back in under 3 months (I think??). her siblings tells her that she shouldn’t, but she knows that she has to go back to him so she does but she was one day late. anyway, she sees him collapsed in the rose garden, she regrets it, mourns for him, declaration of love etc. he turns back human then they get married the end lol

• beast!jaime calls brienne ‘beauty’ mockingly. brienne in turn, calls him ‘beast’. however, beast!jaime’s nickname for her turns from mocking to sincere as time passes by and he sees how beautiful she really is. brienne still calls him beast though because she doesn’t know his real name and he can’t tell her because of his curse (she has to find that out herself which she does when she snoops around ala like the film)

• beast!jaime is very much used to being taller than brienne. however when he turns back human he finds out he doesn’t mind looking up at her

• unlike the film, casterly rock is almost empty. the servants are always hiding because they’re frightened of the beast, but they’re bound to stay and serve because of the curse. when brienne arrives, they start coming out of the shadows one by one since she brings life back to the rock so to speak

• essentially, the whole rock has been cursed to a lifetime of unhappiness and jaime was cursed to live his days as a monster. im thinking either maggy the frog OR lady stoneheart was the one who cursed them

• his family in king’s landing ignores his existence. the other lannisters try to siege and reclaim the rock from him but all their attempts was thwarted because of the curse.

• the rock is surrounded by overgrown rose bushes that has sharper thorns than the normal rose and the flowers look too bright and too beautiful. once again, meant to show that appearances are deceiving, etc. the roses are not meant to be removed as well—similar to the film—they’re kind of like Jaime’s life line/heart or something. when selwyn tries to pluck one, an unbearable pain courses through beast!jaime and that’s how he found out what selwyn tried to do etc.

• when brienne was trying to escape the rock, she got caught in the bramble of thorns. when she was stuck there, creatures like snakes, mountain lions, etc. started appearing from the shadows. and because again, jaime has that link with the roses, he’s able to find out where she is and rescue her (rescuing her from his heart bc he sees himself as a monster !!!! ARGH)

• when brienne was gonna leave to go back to selwyn, jaime gave her a singular red rose as a reminder of him. the roses ARE his heart, and giving that part of himself DID hurt him but her leaving him hurts him even more

• and when brienne returns to the rock, he sees him collapsed near a rose bush with the petals wilted beside him. she rushes to him, etc etc declarations of love then he turns human bc of her love !!

• the curse is essentially same as the film where only love can save them because the rock is a cold and cruel place where love cannot thrive. (for who can ever learn to love a beast?)

[littlepurplehue]

Time to get this party started! Hope you like folklore.😈

[sabraeal]

Age of Reason, Part 1

Obiyuki AU Bingo Sleeping Beauty AU

The moon hangs swollen in the night sky, a bloated corpse in the river of the heavens. Fitting for a night like this, for the job he’s about to do.

Salt is thick on the air; a strange taste for a path in the middle of a wood, so tangled and choked with briars that he can hardly pass. As it is, they catch on the wool of his shirt, pulling snags in the pile. He huffs, plucking one from the shoulder seam. By the end of this little excursion, he’ll need a new wardrobe.

His mouth curves. Good. With the mountain of dir he’ll get from this job, he can afford an upgrade.

That is, if he ever gets there. The canopy looms, branches criss-crossing in a messy tangle, blotting out the sun. They said the village was only half a day’s walk, barely an hour over the border but--

That’s the thing about borders in these parts: there’s nothing to mark them.

The brush rattles, soft as a snake’s warning. His feet slide beneath him, supporting his crouch, legs coiled tight to pounce--

“Ah! Hail, traveler!” A man slips out from the bush, his hair a sloppy thatch of mouse brown, a basket perched high on his back. “Not many on these roads, of late!”

He straightens, yanking his boot away from where a briar has latched around its brim. “Can’t imagine why.”

The man smiles at that, but it’s a faint, bitter thing. “Ah yes, well, the plant life is certainly aggressive.”

He frowns down, plucking a bramble off his shoulder. “Can you tell me if it is far to Clarines?”

“Clarines?” His lips part in a friendly flash of teeth. “Why, you’re already there. Or at least close.” He hunches, squinting into the undergrowth. “There should be a marker, oh-- ah! There!”

There-- a small statue, nearly swallowed by the forest, shoulder-high. He steps toward it, gloved hand pushing aside the briars.

“What’s this?” He tilts his head. “An angel?”

“To guide us,” the man says, hushed. “Or guard us. I hardly know any longer.”

He lets out a bark of a laugh. “I thought the Clarinese were above superstition.”

The stranger’s smile wears thin. “So did we.”

The man next to him is large, tall and wide as a mountain, dwarfing the stool he sits on. Still, there’s something delicate about him, almost hesitant, holding this breath like he’s taking a plunge off the world’s edge.

“There’s a place,” the man says, his voice a deep rumble, like the way rocks move beneath the mantle of the earth. “In Clarines, just over the border. A manor.”

He leans in, on the hook. A manor means money, whether the people in it are alive or not. “Clarines? I thought they didn’t brook with the supernatural anymore. They’re--” he pauses, for dramatic effect-- “enlightened.”

The man’s mouth rucks into a smirk. “That they are.”

“And you’re telling me this manor is cursed,” he asks, dubious. “In this great land of reason.”

There’s gravel in this man’s laugh, the sorta of rasp that only comes from experience. “A man’s only reasonable if he believes what he sees with his two eyes.”

“And you’ve seen this?” he presses. “A cursed manor right in Clarines?”

“I have.” His teeth flash in the tavern’s dim. “And if you have any sense, you’ll see it too.”

“Where are you headed?” The man bobs along beside him, the mousy haystack of his hair ruffling in the breeze. “Down on to Wistal? I hear it’s nice this time of year. Prince just had a baby too, I heard. Holding a big party just to name the thing.”

He sighs. Clarines might be a land of reason, but they still clung to their royals. “No.”

“Eurikenna isn’t half bad either, if you don’t mind sticking to your own skin,” the man offers amiably. “They’ve got a festival of their own going on, least so they’re saying.”

He knows persistence when he sees it; this man has no intention of letting him walk in companionable silence. “I’m headed to Laxdo. Just across the border.”

The man’s brows hike to his hairline. “That so?” He lets out a huff of a laugh. “Seems as though we’re headed the same way. The name’s Shuuka.”

“Ah.” His mind whirs. “You can call me Kage.”

“Well, Kage--” he hitches the basket higher on his back-- “what brings you out to Laxdo?”

The gate, in theory, shouldn’t be a problem. Those royals like to make them high, make them spiked, make them out of wrought iron to keep the riff-raff out. He’s no stranger to being kept on the outside.

Boosting over a fence is no trouble, no matter how high they make it. But the briars, well-- those are a problem.

It’s the first part of his night to disappoint his expectations, but oh, it’s far from the last.

“Business.” His hands flex at his side, even as he smiles. “And maybe some pleasure.”

Shuuka’s smile stiffens. “Ah, well, there’s not much of either in Laxdo. Though if you’ve got something to trade, there’s always a few itching to buy.”

The man gives his pack a cursory look, but he assures him, “I’m no merchant.”

“Huh.” Shuuka’s mouth purses, thoughtful. “What else might bring you out this way?”

“KUREI!” A band of men raises their tankards as they catch sight of him in the corner, cheeks ruddy with drink. “The savior of Oberwald! You have a drink?”

He raises his own stein, nearly empty, but they’re all too far into their own to notice. With a raucous cheer, they turn back to the bar, wheedling for another pint.

Good. Now when they remembered that name, they would talk of the man who drank drink-for-drink with them, who told them just what they wanted to hear. He wouldn’t, of course-- but this night would be a blur to them, and a conversation with the man of the hour would be a lie that was safe to make. After all, he wouldn’t be around to gainsay them.

The big man is steady as he pours, the bottle comically small in his meaty hand. “Ah, so that’s what you have them call you.”

He watches his cup fill with dismay, smile plastered onto his lips. Now this-- this wouldn’t do. He could drink any of village men under the table, but this stranger--

Well, he knows when he’d be beat. “All the villages between here and Altenrode.”

“Quite a ways,” the giants says, shifting on his stool. “Thought I recognized the name they were shouting when I came in.”

“Many a tavern lifts a glass to me.” And he’s sure more than a few toast his eventual demise too. “But about this manor...”

The man’s mouth slides into a dangerous curve. “Ah, right, the cursed manor. Used to be a royal residence, you know. One of the ones built by the old king.”

A king’s manor. All the more promising. “Never heard of it.”

“You wouldn’t,” he agrees, “it was barely been finished before he died. The prince took up with it though. Kept a mistress of his there.”

He’d never much cared for Clarines-- too learned, and too suspicious in all the wrong ways-- but he did know something of their royals. At least, the younger ones. “The prince?”

“The same.”

His finger taps at the tables. “But none of this explains the curse.”

The man’s mouth splits wide, teeth flashing white in the dim. “Why do you think you’ve never heard of it?”

“I heard a rumor,” he says, casual, “that there’s a manor in Laxdo that used to belong to the royal family.”

Shuuka’s step stutters beside his. “Still does,” he manages after a moment. “On paper.”

Ah, now that was promising. “So it’s true.” He slants a sly look at him. “It was abandoned.”

A blunt-fingered hand ruffles through his mop of hair, anxiety entrenched at the corners of his eyes. “That it was.”

“The prince’s mistress used to live there, did she?” He doesn’t need to wait for Shuuka’s answer, it’s writ across his face. “Some say she still does.”

It’s silent for a moment, only the crunch of their shoes on the path to fill it, until Shuuka croaks, “Who says that?”

“So you mean this is a ghost situation.” He takes a quick sip of his ale and wishes he had more. “A haunting. Maybe a poltergeist.”

“No.” The man’s smile grows thin. “She’s alive, by all accounts.”

Alive. Now that’s a different sort of request. “I’ll admit you’ve got me intrigued, mister, but I exorcise spirits, not ex-mistresses.”

His mouth twists wryly. “Is that what you call it, then?”

“It is.” He settles back into his chair, balancing some of his weight on his toes. His knives dig comfortingly into the arch of his back. “I may make a name for myself for ridding folk of unwelcome guests, but those are the ones who have lingered, and need to pass on. By all accounts, a living mistress, well--” he winks-- “she’s done her job, and I’m not the sort to pry her from her hard-earned reward.”

The man shifts, the light of the lamps skittering over the hard planes of his face, and he grins. “Glad to hear it.”

Ever so slowly, he slides his feet down, so his soles touch the floor. “Still think I should go see this manor?”

“More than ever,” the man admits, and in the light, he swears he can see red glittering among the gray of his hair. “You see, this mistress, she’s not dead--” he hesitates, lingering at the edge of another drop-- “she’s asleep.”

Shuuka lets out a long string of air. “Wouldn’t think they’d talk about all that, even out in Tanbarun.”

“Ah, you know how it is.” He shrugs. “They love a good story. Even better if there’s a pretty girl with a curse.”

Shuuka grunts, casting him a measuring look. “And that’s what brought you here?”

He grins. “Who could resist?

The man shifts next to him, hesitant. “Just what was it that you do again, Kage?”

The brambles wrap tight around the bars, thorns as sharp and thin as needles. He places a hand over it, and-- ah, yes, that’s not smart. Not gonna be able to climb that way.

Not that he has many other options. Forewarned is forearmed, and someone hadn’t seen the need to tell him about the thicket of thorns tangled around the only entrance. Besides what could hang off his belt-- a few of his finer tools and a couple of his favorite knives, and a handful of nuts for good measure-- he’s shown up empty handed to a pruning party.

Still, if she had gotten in, he could too. He’d just have to get creative about it.

He stares down at his hands, leather giving a soft squinch as he flexes them. His teeth clench at the feel of padding against his palm.

Or he might just have to do this the old fashioned way.

His mouth hooks into a smirk. “I didn’t say.”

Shuuka’s eyes narrow. “Is that how you got that bruise on your cheek?”

The salt is rough against his palms, stinging where cuts haven’t yet become calluses. This hasn’t been the easy job he signed up for, but-- it’s fine. All this ends tonight.

He cranes his neck, squinting at the fattening moon in the sky. It’s not as full as he wants it, but that’s par for the course on this misadventure. It’ll do.

Stretching out a toe, he scratches a circle in the dirt. This isn’t how he likes to do this-- most villages have at least cobbled stones at its center, some sort of central pavilion around the town well, but-- not here.

He grimaces, pouring the sand into the trench he’s made. His payment here is more likely to be greens than guilder, but-- he knows better than to turn his nose up at a good meal. Not when he knows there’s no guarantee of his next.

“Kurei,” the mayor hisses from his doorstep, not daring to take a single step from its frame. “Are you sure--?”

“Stand back!” he warns, holding out his hands. Outstretched, they just fit inside the circle. “When I call the curse’s spirit, it will be violent! It longs for a life, and if any living being stands in this square besides myself, they risk becoming its next host!”

The townsfolk murmur worriedly at their doors, and one by one they close, even as shutters peep open. Eyes peer curiously out from slender cracks, all of them fixed on him. As they should be.

“I shall now call out the incantation.” He raises his arms, hands grasping beseechingly at the moon. “Protect me now, O Mysterious Maiden, for I call forth a power both vengeful and unknowable!” He takes a breath, and projects the words, “Veni! Vidi! Vici!”

For a long moment, there is only silence. He glances at sky, frowning as a cloud leisurely passes.

He clears his throat. “Veni. Vidi. Vici!”

A wind picks up, sudden and urgent, blowing at the salt in his circle, and pricking at his hair, but--

The moon shines down, unimpeded, and the circle around him softly begins to glow. Perfect.

A grunt saws from the rooftops, followed by a savage snort and a dangerous growl. He turns, a moment too late--

And catches a beastly elbow to the face.

His lips part in a grin. “Well now,” he drawls, casting his companion a sly look. “If you want to hear about that, you’ll have to buy me a drink.”

[king-and-his-consorts]

King of the Monsters Verse (Monster AU)

Past the mountain village of windmills, there is a bog where few dare to tread. Dark as night beneath the matted canopy of trees, the moist earth hides a slow death for those daring to tread. Flesh-swallowing mire and all-consuming waters drag down the unfortunate into the chilled depths. Fireflies and plants with glowing veins call to the travelers with their enchanting light.

For those that dare to risk the treacherous wetland are reward with an opportunity.

Beyond the call of the bog lies a castle of black stone. Through the labyrinth of moss and brambles rests the entrance. A creature, gentle in face and young in spirit, haunts the halls of the great castle. Though his fangs are sharp as needles and his blood flows icy through his veins, there is warmth in his heart for those that earn his audience.

Legend says that the master of the castle holds a grand feast each night in his dining hall. A treasure vast and mountainous resides hidden in the catacombs beneath his floors. And the frozen heart of gold beating in his chest in said to bring a high price as it is told that a taste of it will heal any ailment.

What unfortunate soul will brave the siren call of the swamp and the tearing jaws of the labyrinth to reach the ebony castle?

~~~*~~~

Luffy: Vampire Lord of Hollow Aether Castle

A rare gift in the world of spirits and monsters, Luffy is a vampire that was born into his species rather than a human that was turned. Other than his cold blood, he grew as a normal child until his fangs grew in at the age of 18. Though he had no understanding of his race, the villagers took notice quickly of his physical change.

Despite the murderous call of his ancestral blood, Luffy was harmless. Forcibly removed from his brothers, he was shown his greatest fear of loneliness. Yet a childhood of kindness was hard for the villagers to ignore. Unable to bring themselves to kill him, they chased him from the village for being a monster. He was left to wander, confused and unknowledgeable about what he was. Understanding came at the cost of flesh burning under the gaze of the sun and hunger ripped at his belly no matter how much food he devoured. 

Despite his suffering, the young vampire’s soft spirit never turned bitter or jaded. Though a bit frighten of the humans he encountered, he still fought to be friendly with them but never stayed for long. Betrayal and abandonment made fear burn deep.

Not understanding his need for blood, he collapsed one night. Trapped under the dark leaves of a deep forest, a green-haired young man happened upon him. To Luffy’s distress, the man helped him to drink some offered blood. It was bitter and it stung his mouth but vitality filled him with stamina once more. Not understanding what happened, his situation was explained.

A breeze though the forest made the leaves above sway. Moonlight shimmered through in dapples, bathing Luffy’s new companion. Much to the young vampire’s surprise, the man started to shift his shape. The grace of the moon called forth his companion’s truest form. A large almost anthropomorphic wolf with long and powerful limbs. Though the creature’s fur was the oddest shade of green, the sight of the monster brought a sparkle to the vampire’s eye.

Devoid of the vampire’s instinctive thirst for combat with its rival species, Luffy pressed his cheek to the wolf’s fuzzy head. His hands came up to rub its ears. Startled, the wolf froze but soon nuzzled the young vampire.

A bond forming between the two on that dark night, the two traveled together under the safety of the moon. For many weeks they traveled through the valley beyond the village of windmills. One night as they traveled, they passed though a fen with little cover above. They would need to travel quickly before the call of the morning. But their passage was blocked when they happened upon someone collapsed and injured. Blond hair was soaked from the waters of the fen. His robes of gossamer and silk shimmered in the moonlight and caught the eye of the young vampire.

Despite the wolf’s hesitance, the two stopped and helped the fallen man. Upon the man waking, they discovered that he was a water fae. A rare and beautiful male naiad. The fen had been his body of water to care for but his siblings, vile kelpies, had stolen it from him and chased him to the edge before he collapsed.

Heartbroken over the mistreatment of their new friend, Luffy invited him to join them in their quest for a new home. Hesitant at first, the naiad finally agreed. Naiad and vampire climbed upon the wolf’s back and rode out past the grasp of the forbidden fen. 

It was another week’s travel before the trio discovered their new home. A dark yet glowing bog at the end of the box valley. The naiad guided them safely through the mire. Beyond it was a labyrinth of stone covered in moss and filled with brambles. The vampire and  naiad sat close together atop their canine friend. The wolf’s thick fur protected him from the brambles as they made their way through the labyrinth by climbing atop the tall stone walls. He then leaped from wall to wall, carrying them to the castle beyond.

With a bit of effort, the three got into the castle. The young vampire gasped as he stood tall in the middle of the foyer. Grinning with his arms spread wide, he decided that no monster would ever be lonely or abused again if only they had someone to protect them. 

“I’m going to be king of the monsters!” He proclaimed loudly to his friends within their new home.

[actaviya123]

I've come up with an interesting alternate universe. What if the modern bramble AU, in this AU Ole and Lillemore are a little older, and compared to other creatures they are not small.

[imtryingthisout]

Echo and Narcissus

[based on @nachosforfree Au @sanderssides-magicalgirlau check them out]

[warnings: Allusions to abuse, Unsympathetic Patton]

Once upon of time there was an oread by the name of Echo. Echo and her sister’s lived upon a beautiful mountain with the other Nymphs. Where bounds of wild flowers grew and freshwater lay plentiful. Up there it was an everlasting spring, and as such became a host to many a God or Goddess, looking to delight in its beauty.

Echo befriended many of the Gods that visited her home, becoming a favorite Diana- often attending to her in her Wild Chase. She also grew close to the Sky-King Jupiter. So while Jupiter was enjoying the many pleasures of the land, she would distract his Queen-Wife Juno with many a long fantastical tale. So that he may continue his merry-making.

One day though, Hera grew tired of Echo’s words, and her disobedience. So she laid a curse on the girl, so that she could never speak true again- only repeat the words of another.

(“Oh just Shut Up- Virgil!” Patton screamed. “You think you’re the one in control here? I’m the one in control” )

And so Echo was thrown out of her mountainside home, with its lush green trees and sweet-tasting fruit- and into the cold and harsh forests of the mortal world.

There was once a skilled hunter by the name of Narcissus, whose name was known far and wide. Not only for his talent with weaponry- but also for his beauty. For Narcissus was fair of face, the fairest in his town people would say. His voice was sweet as nectar, and his eyes were the color of robin’s eggs. Pure and piercing.

But Narcissus was a vain and cruel man. Whose arrogance ran unrepentant. He rejected many a proposal of man and woman alike- not because he did not feel love, but because he thought no one worthy of himself.

Echo wandered aimlessly across the land. Her dress of spider-silk and silver had been torn asunder by the thorns and brambles of the woods. It was always spring on the mountaintop, so she shivered violently in the cold autumn wind. She was hungry and weak, unused to the plants and animals that grew there. When she tried to call out for help, an invisible cord around her neck constricted- choking her cries in the back of her throat- for there were no people around to mimic.

(The lovely thing about Patton’s abilities was that they were not an exact science. He didn’t say a magic word, or do a special move. They were more feeling based than that. Seeping into his words- giving them more power than he ever intend them too. If Patton wanted Virgil to be quiet, Virgil was quiet.)

(Funny how that works)

One day Echo spotted Narcissus while he was out hunting. Hidden behind the cover of the trees she quietly observed him. He was as beautiful as the Gods who visited her, eye’s as clear as the sky above her- the same shade as the flowers that once laid in her hair. She was struck down by a terrible burst of homesickness- so she fled crying into the wilderness.

(Patton had been with him for as long as he could remember. He placed his home in his smile, whispered conversations in the dead of night. The sound of his bell-like laughter ringing through the halls of his apartment, filling up the gaping hole of his house. )

When Narcissus returned the next day, so did Echo. And the day after that, and the day after that. Soon Narcissus became the light of her life, bringing back color into her world. Watching him she learned was berries to eat- though they were never as sweet or fulfilling as the one’s back home- she learned how to speak.

“Oh spirit of the bear, of the fox and of the river, have there ever been a hunter so skilled and fair as I?”

“So skilled, so fair”

“Not even the Gods behest such beauty. Surely I am more grand than they?”

“No even the Gods” echo agreed, and she had met many Gods, but none so dear to her as the mortal before her.

“But it is lonely being I- for no other in my town are quite as beguiling. There is no mortal equal, no true company. Being cursed with such handsomness- such a solitary life I live.”

(You would never leave me right Virgil? You can’t have him he’s all I have I don’t want to be alone he’s all I have- you’re mine )

Gathering her confidence, she approached Narcissus, intent on confessing her devotion to him. Desperate for any sort of company. Desperate to be able to speak again- even if it wasn't her own words.

(Virgil had stopped trying to talk, Patton was the only one who wanted to hear him anyway- and even then it was short. Virgil couldn't tell if the voice coming out of his throat belonged to him anymore, it didn't sound like his. He swore he could feel the icy blue lining his words. Parroting what Patton wanted to hear)

Narcissus was called many things (beautiful, handsome, fair) but he was also shallow, callous, and above all else, cruel.

(No wrath I’m not going to kill you, I’m just going to hurt you- really really badly)

So he rejected her advances, cutting her down with his words.

(You think anyone else will love you? You’re not even a person without me)

(The others all hate you, Andy Hates you, I’m all you have. )

(Don’t talk to me you little freak)

And Echo’s heart broke into a million shimmering pieces.

(Virgil tried so hard to be good, to be there for Patton. Because no matter how far he went Virgil still couldn't help but love him. Could help but hope he would get better, that things would go back to the way they were. )

So he became a sort of conscious for Pat, the angel on his shoulder, his own personal Jiminy Cricket. Always trying to steer him on the right path- Even if he seldom listened- Tried to soften the harsh edges of Patton’s soul, never minding how it cut up his hands like broken glass.

Never minding how Patton broke his heart- and sometimes his body-over and over and over)

So Echo was left to wander the earth. Constantly searching mountain tops and darkened caves, looking for some semblance of her home. As she walked she began to neglect herself- forgetting to eat. Forgetting to rest. Her once rich and luscious hair, became dull and limp- falling out of her scalp in large clumps.

(Virgil was tired all the time. His already pale skin seemed to have turned grey. His eyes were faded and lifeless- his pupils more baby blue than black. Patton puppetered him more often, focing his shadows to his command. And now inky black tentrials seemed etched into his bone-thin arms. He looked more dead than alive.)

The rocky earth cut and bloodied her feet, her body wasting away in the wind, till she faded to nothing. Leaving behind only her voice- forever cursed to repeat what you say.

(Are you happy Virgil? Yes Patton, Very happy You’d never leave me? Never Patton You’re my best friend, you know? Of Course Patton You love me, right Virgil? Yes Patton, I love you)

[alixlestrange]

Ao3 Feed The hobbit (Middle Earth)

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2x0IWol

by FarGreenCountrySwiftSunrise

Summary: Smaug is let loose on the residents of Laketown. Orcs and Elves are tracking down the Company. Thorin is falling more and more under the sway of the gold sickness. Will the quest to reclaim Erebor destroy all that is held dear to Bramble and the Company? Modern Hobbit AU, Fem!Bilbo, and Bagginshield.

Words: 1865, Chapters: 1/19, Language: English

Series: Part 3 of An Unexpected Road Trip

Fandoms: The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien, TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works & Related Fandoms

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/M, Gen

Characters: Dís (Tolkien), Fíli (Tolkien), Kíli (Tolkien), Óin (Tolkien), Glóin (Tolkien), Thorin Oakenshield, Bilbo Baggins, Bifur (Tolkien), Bofur (Tolkien), Bombur (Tolkien), Nori (Tolkien), Ori (Tolkien), Dori (Tolkien), Gandalf | Mithrandir, Balin (Tolkien), Dwalin (Tolkien), Thranduil (Tolkien), Tauriel (Hobbit Movies), Thorin's Company, The Company, The Company of Thorin Oakenshield, Azog (Tolkien), Bolg (Tolkien), Sigrid (Hobbit Movies), Bain of Dale, Bard the Bowman, Tilda (Hobbit Movies), Smaug (Tolkien), Master of Laketown, Mirkwood Elves, Legolas Greenleaf, Beorn (Tolkien), Eagles of Manwë, Ioreth (Tolkien)

Relationships: Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield, Bard the Bowman/Bard the Bowman's Wife, Dís/Dís's Husband, Kíli (Tolkien)/Tauriel (Hobbit Movies)

Additional Tags: Female Bilbo Baggins, Female Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield, fem!Bilbo, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, United States, Female Fíli, Female Glóin, Female Bombur, Female Dori, Female Nori (Tolkien), Female Ori, bagginshield, Thilbo, References to Shakespeare, References to Monty Python, Road Trips, Alternate Universe - Road Trip, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Unresolved Emotional Tension, Unresolved Tension, Requited Love, Mutually Unrequited, Idiots in Love, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Female Friendship, Male Friendship, Male-Female Friendship, Gender or Sex Swap, Alternate Universe - Always a Different Sex, Rule 63, Angst, Fluff and Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Heavy Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Romance, Humor, Romance, War, Awkwardness, Awkward Flirting, Awkward Conversations, Awkward Romance, Awkward Thorin Oakenshield, Awkward Thorin, Awkward Bilbo Baggins, Awkward Bilbo, Protectiveness, Protective Bilbo Baggins, Protective Thorin, Do Not Separate The Heirs Of Durin, Emotionally Constipated Thorin, Thorin Is an Idiot, Thorin is a Softie, Thorin Is Not Amused, Thorin Feels, King Thorin, Thorin-centric, Possessive Behavior, Possessive Thorin, Bilbo is So Done, BAMF Bilbo Baggins, Poor Bilbo, Hurt Bilbo Baggins, Bilbo is an idiot, The Arkenstone is Bad News, Dwalin Is A Softie, Protective Dwalin, Dwalin & Thorin Oakenshield Friendship, Awesome Dwalin, Bofur is a Sweetheart, Sweet Bofur, Awesome Bofur, Protective Bofur, Family, Family Feels, Family Drama, Team as Family, Siblings, Protective Siblings, Gandalf Meddles, Gandalf Ships It, Gandalf Is So Done, Mother Hen Dori, Motherhood, Widowed, Female Bard the Bowman, Female Bard, Shakespeare Quotations, Alternate Universe - No One Ring, Paranoia, Grumpy Thorin, Grumpy Bilbo Baggins, Major Character Injury, Creepy, Creepy Smaug, Manipulation, Protective Legolas Greenleaf, Protective Legolas, Acorn Scene (Hobbit Movies), Acorn Feels (Tolkien), Erebor, The Lonely Mountain, Laketown, Dale - Freeform, Kissing, Shapeshifting, Alternate Universe - Shapeshifters, Mental Health Issues, Mental Instability, Mental Breakdown, Mental Anguish, Altered Mental States, Mental Disintegration, Gold Sick Thorin, Gold Sickness (Tolkien), Dragon Sickness, Threats of Violence, American Government Incompetence, Disasters, Canon-Typical Violence, tw, trigger warning, this is going to hurt, Eucatastrophe, Injury, Discussions of Colonization, Colonization

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2x0IWol