#but it's very lovely and quiet and i highly recommend it if you're in the mood for some sad vibes

[fluentisonus]

Since we've finally gotten there & it's my favorite song in the book!! This is my personal favorite version of the Song of Eärendil/Eärendil Was a Mariner

Lyrics (also in today's newsletter):

that tarried in Arvernien;

Eärendil was a mariner

he built a boat of timber felled

in Nimbrethil to journey in;

her sails he wove of silver fair,

of silver were her lanterns made,

her prow he fashioned like a swan,

and light upon her banners laid.

In panoply of ancient kings,

in chainéd rings he armoured him;

his shining shield was scored with runes

to ward all wounds and harm from him;

his bow was made of dragon-horn,

his arrows shorn of ebony,

of silver was his habergeon,

his scabbard of chalcedony;

his sword of steel was valiant,

of adamant his helmet tall,

an eagle-plume upon his crest,

upon his breast an emerald.

 

Beneath the Moon and under star

he wandered far from northern strands,

bewildered on enchanted ways

beyond the days of mortal lands.

From gnashing of the Narrow Ice

where shadow lies on frozen hills,

from nether heats and burning waste

he turned in haste, and roving still

on starless waters far astray

at last he came to Night of Naught,

and passed, and never sight he saw

of shining shore nor light he sought.

The winds of wrath came driving him,

and blindly in the foam he fled

from west to east, and errandless,

unheralded he homeward sped.

 

There flying Elwing came to him,

and flame was in the darkness lit;

more bright than light of diamond

the fire upon her carcanet.

The Silmaril she bound on him

and crowned him with the living light,

and dauntless then with burning brow

he turned his prow; and in the night

from Otherworld beyond the Sea

there strong and free a storm arose,

a wind of power in Tarmenel;

by paths that seldom mortal goes

his boat it bore with biting breath

as might of death across the grey

and long-forsaken seas distressed:

from east to west he passed away.

Through Evernight he back was borne

on black and roaring waves that ran

o'er leagues unlit and foundered shores

that drowned before the Days began,

until he heard on strands of pearl

where ends the world the music long,

where ever-foaming billows roll

the yellow gold and jewels wan.

He saw the Mountain silent rise

where twilight lies upon the knees

of Valinor, and Eldamar

beheld afar beyond the seas.

A wanderer escaped from night

to haven white he came at last,

to Elvenhome the green and fair

where keen the air, where pale as glass

beneath the Hill of Ilmarin

a-glimmer in a valley sheer

the lamplit towers of Tirion

are mirrored on the Shadowmere.

 

He tarried there from errantry,

and melodies they taught to him,

and sages old him marvels told,

and harps of gold they brought to him.

They clothed him then in elven-white,

and seven lights before him sent,

as through the Calacirian

to hidden land forlorn he went.

He came unto the timeless halls

where shining fall the countless years,

and endless reigns the Elder King

in Ilmarin on Mountain sheer;

and words unheard were spoken then

of folk of Men and Elven-kin,

beyond the world were visions showed

forbid to those that dwell therein.

 

A ship then new they built for him

of mithril and of elven-glass

with shining prow; no shaven oar

nor sail she bore on silver mast:

the Silmaril as lantern light

and banner bright with living flame

to gleam thereon by Elbereth

herself was set, who thither came

and wings immortal made for him,

and laid on him undying doom,

to sail the shoreless skies and come

behind the Sun and light of Moon.

 

From Evereven's lofty hills

where softly silver fountains fall

his wings him bore, a wandering light,

beyond the mighty Mountain Wall.

From World's End then he turned away,

and yearned again to find afar

his home through shadows journeying,

and burning as an island star

on high above the mists he came,

a distant flame before the Sun,

a wonder ere the waking dawn

where grey the Norland waters run.

 

And over Middle-earth he passed

and heard at last the weeping sore

of women and of elven-maids

in Elder Days, in years of yore.

But on him mighty doom was laid,

till Moon should fade, an orbéd star

to pass, and tarry never more

on Hither Shores where mortals are;

for ever still a herald on

an errand that should never rest

to bear his shining lamp afar,

the Flammifer of Westernesse.

[cowboydisaster]

The Fire In Your Eyes

part VII: horshoe overlook iii

pairing: Arthur Morgan x fem!reader

word count: 15.2k

summary: You and Arthur take Lenny to drown his anxieties at the saloon, and it ends up bring more trouble than you would have imagined. The gang finally deals with that O'driscoll, and Arthur opens up more about his past when Abigail asks you both to take Jack out. You meet a couple of threatening strangers.

a/n: highly recommended playing 'a quiet time soundtrack' when you get to the bar scene. This chapter was so fun to write omg. Lots of set up in this chapter, along with plenty of fluff, angst and more talking about our feelings. You're still in denial, Arthur is opening up, its a whole thing. P.S. if you aren't sure who Nils is, just google him on yt. Please please check the warnings before you read! beta read by @margowritesthings <3

warnings: Violence, gore, blood, attempted/implied mention of SA, its very brief and we kill him hehe, wanted to add the tag just in case)

hotlinks: TFIYE on AO3 & official series playlist

SERIES MASTERPOST

taglist: @margofiore @mrsarthurmorgan7 @woman-with-no-name @tillith @luvliewriting @pine4pple-b0i @photo1030 @dudsparrow

series taglist: @catnotbread @chxosangxl @globetrotter28 @justalittlerayofpitchblack @fruittiest-of-loops @randomidk-123 @heyworld-whatsup @btsiguess-kpop

“Okay, pick a color. We have pink, red, orange or white.” Marybeth asks, excitedly weaving her fingers through your hair, neatly braiding it. You smile, glancing over to her basket of wildflowers. 

“How about white?” You suggest, looking at the assortment of flowers in her basket, eyes honing in on the pale white jasmines and baby’s breath.

It's a warm evening, with golden light peeking over the mountains as the sun begins to set. You had ventured down the hill towards the Dakota River with Marybeth earlier, and she had picked from a patch of wildflowers, bringing home only the most beautiful specimen. Tilly and Karen sit around on the ground next to you, and you chuckle as the three girls giggle and gossip. 

“Marybeth, you oughta do me next. I can’t be goin’ out on the town with hair like this.” Karen jokes, and Marybeth lights up, excited to share the time with you girls.

You bite into an apple, crunching and savoring the sweet flavor as Marybeth braids your hair down your back. You glance into the mirror, the one Marybeth stole from Arthur’s shaving station, noticing how much your hair has grown since you’ve joined the Van der Lindes. She ties the bottom of the braid with a little white knot, smiling as she plucks some white flowers from her basket. 

“You’re gonna love it.” Marybeth sighs, eyes sparkling as she begins to tuck the stems into the creases of your braid, leaving little white flowers embedded in your hair. She’s missed a few tiny pieces around your face, and they fall down, framing your cheekbones. From across camp, sitting outside his tent like an overseer, Dutch keeps his eyes on you. You ignore it, purposefully refusing to meet his glance. 

You glance around, people watching as Marybeth finishes up her work. On the other side of camp, Uncle is wasted, Strauss is scribbling away in a journal, and Abigail is having a hushed argument with John. It's all so normal. 

"I heard Abigail and John yellin' again this morning." Tilly tsks, shaking her head with a sigh, glancing to their tent. 

"What about?" You ask, eyebrows pulled together. Marybeth releases your braid for a moment, allowing you to turn towards the girls. 

"The usual." Karen bites, irritated by their bickering, and Tilly elaborates. 

"Well John ain't exactly been… a great father to Jack." 

"John's an ass. Jack only wants his daddy, but he knows his daddy wants nothin' to do with him." Karen explains, scowling in the scar-faced outlaw across camp. 

"Poor Jack…" You frown, familiar with the feeling of being unwanted. 

"How does Abigail do it all?" Marybeth asks, pulling and perfecting your braid and the flowers lined in it. 

"No idea." Tilly mumbles. It grows quiet for a while as you all get lost in thought. You think about what Arthur had said, just a few weeks ago, about his son, and you sigh. 

"Done!" Marybeth chimes and you smile at her as she holds Arthur's mirror up, letting you see. She's done a beautiful job, leaving the braid tight enough so it won't fall out, but loose enough for it to be beautifully messy and comfortable. The little white flowers are an intricate touch, just enough of them to add dimension to your hair without overpowering it. 

"Marybeth, it's beautiful!" You say, smiling sweetly at her before reaching into your satchel. 

"For your troubles." You whisper, winking as you slide her a candy bar. Marybeth's eyebrows pop up in surprise as she takes the little sweet, tucking it into her skirt. 

"Thank you, Marybeth." You say, standing up and stretching your knees. You address the other girls then, nodding to them. 

"I'll return this to Mr. Morgan, thank you for your good company." You say, taking his stand mirror from the ground and walking away from their wagon. Arthur's tent isn't far, and within a few moments you stand outside his covered wagon, placing his mirror back down on his designated shaving barrel with a hum. 

A throat clears behind you, startling you as you whip around to find the source. 

"Stole my mirror, huh?" Arthur jokes. He's standing in front of his wardrobe, wearing only a pair of jeans as he digs through the clothes in search of a shirt. He's looking down in the chest, and you swallow thickly, watching the muscles flex as you blush.  

"Yeah uh, well Marybeth took it to do my hair. I'm just bringin' it back." You mumble, running your finger along the barrel lid to distract yourself. 

At the mention of your hair, Arthur looks over at you. His eyes wrinkle with crows feet as he smiles, a little warm grin. The white flowers frame your face, and you look up at him with those eyes. He's sure you've fallen from heaven, looking as innocent as a lamb. How deceiving, because your temper is anything but. 

He comes toward you, still shirtless, though he holds a deep blue patterned shirt in his hand. 

"You uh," Arthur nods to the white flowers that crown your hair like a halo. "Your hair looks real pretty." Arthur says, pulling the shirt over his arms before buttoning it up. 

You huff, pulling one of the flowers out and dropping it to the ground.

"Marybeth." You explain, just as hooves sound out like war drums from the outskirts of camp. Without a second thought,  your hand rests on your holster, prepared for the worst. You jog towards the camp entrance with Arthur just as Lenny gallops through the trees on Maggie, both out of breath. Lenny practically throws himself out of the saddle in a panic, and Maggie rears up. 

“They-! They got Micah!” Lenny hollers, running towards the two of you. 

“Arthur! Star, Dutch! They got Micah, they got him in Strawberry. They nearly lynched me!” Lenny yells, hands resting on his knees.

You rest your hand on his shoulder, making sure he's okay, as you all try to catch up. 

“What is going on?” Dutch asks, striding out of his tent and straight up to the three of you. Your braid flips over your shoulder as you make sure Lenny is steady before letting him go. He takes a breath, calming down before continuing as Dutch joins. 

“It’s okay, son, breathe.” Dutch pats the younger man on the back.

“They got Micah at the sheriff’s in Strawberry, and there’s talk of hangin’ him.” Lenny explains, and you raise an eyebrow, unsure of what the problem is then. Arthur seems to be sharing a similar train of thought as he mumbles under his breath. 

“Here’s hoping.” Arthur bites, and Dutch looks at him with a comically shocked face. 

“Arthur.” He scolds, as if disciplining a dog, and you snort. 

“Micah deserves to sit in that jail for a while. Let him get nervous, let him rot a little more, it’ll do him good.” You point out, leaning down to strike a match of the bottom of your boot. 

“She’s right. You know my feelings’ bout him Dutch.” Arthur warns, voice low and you nod, lighting a cigarette. 

“He is a fine man. But she’s right. He’s brought this on himself. Go get him in a few weeks, Me and the lady’s faces are plastered all over Blackwater, it’ll have to be you, Arthur.” Dutch explains, and Arthur groans with a sigh. They continue their bickering, and you leave them to it, walking over to where Lenny sits at the wooden table. 

“You okay?” You ask, sitting on the table, placing your boots onto the seat of the chair next to Lenny.

“Yeah, just shaken up. I hate ridin’ with Micah, it’s like he loses his mind.” Lenny whispers, eyes far away as he shakes his head. 

“Yeah… I seen it too.” You mumble, scowling. Arthur and Dutch wrap up their conversation, and then Dutch walks over to the two of you. 

“C’mon kid. We’re gettin’ a drink, Dutch’s orders.” Arthur chuckles, and you slide down from the table, tucking a piece of hair behind your ear. 

“I’m comin’ too.” You chime, following the two boys to the hitching posts. 

“Maybe just one or two will calm my nerves.” Lenny sighs, climbing back up into Maggie’s saddle.

You pet Athena, giving her a mint as a peace offering for taking her from the hay before mounting up. 

“We even allowed to go in the saloon after all that ruckus you caused?” You ask, raising an eyebrow at Arthur. Lenny turns in his saddle to look at you for a moment before spurring Maggie further into the evening. 

“What trouble have you boys been causing now?” Lenny directs at Arthur, hollering over the sound of cantering hooves. 

“Nothin’ much just some good n fair bar fightin.” Arthur says, downplaying the situation. 

“Ha! Yeah, Arthur, just some friendly punches. How much you wanna bet that the windows’ still broken from your ass flyin through it?” You holler, and Arthur laughs, crossing over the railroad tracks into town. 

“It’s all done with now, and at least nobody died.” Arthur points out to which you nod. Good point.

You trot up the main road, pulling your horses in front of the new Blacksmith building. Typically you would just hitch in front of the saloon, but the bar must be packed tonight because horses line the street in front of Smithfields. You jump down from Athena, petting her neck while looking at the new building in front of you. There's some light inside, a candle or two, and an ‘open’ sign on the front door. Outside two men talk, one wasted. 

“Y-You open mis-” he hiccups, “Mister?” The one man asks, a plain looking feller. But the man he is talking to, presumably the shop owner, is a small man with small features and a big white beard. He wears a red beanie hat on his head, and his face is bright red. 

“Okay…” The peculiar man says with a strong accent. Your eyebrows draw together, and you chuckle. Maybe he doesn’t speak english. 

“I need a hammer… you see I'm building’ a house, buildin’ a house down the road..” The drunk man slurs, barely able to keep steady as the smaller, foreign man grabs the drunkard's arm, pushing him inside the shop. 

“Okay!” The small man says, and you laugh at his oddity. You remember Hosea telling you about this shop owner, and the strange little things he sells in his shop. 

“Star? You comin’?” Arthur asks, and you turn around, realizing you’d been eavesdropping on the strangers. You turn back to the shop for a moment, eyeing its peculiarity before sheepishly turning back to Arthur.

“I'm gonna go check this place out for a minute. I’ll be over shortly.” You smile, looking towards the shop excitedly, remembering that you have a little cash from your box on you. Lenny rests against a beam under the porch of the general store, out of earshot from you and Arthur’s conversation. He only knows that you’re both doing a whole lot of talking and not a lot of drinking. 

“You two comin, or what?” Lenny hollers, and Arthur gestures towards you. 

“We’ll catch up, just give us a minute.” Arthur yells back, following after you towards the shop entrance. 

“I’ll start a tab.” Lenny chuckles, walking up the sidewalk towards the bar. 

“You need somethin’ from the blacksmith?” Arthur asks, holding the door open for you as you step inside. 

“No, just wanted to look is all. Hosea said there was some more stuff in here than tools, the man likes to work metal into all kinds of things.” You say at a volume so that only Arthur can hear you. He nods, and you take in the shop. The little building is split into two sections. On the right, the bigger section, all sorts of home made tools hang from nails in the wall, for sale. There's hammers, screwdrivers, bits, and all sorts of other things that you don’t care about. You glance to the left side of the shop, and your eyes light up. Shelves line the wall, and the little foreign shop owner sits on the checkout counter beside them, swinging his legs. The shelves are lined with hand crafted metal cups, decorations and jewelry, anything one can think of. He has little metal spoons, crafted and twisted beautifully. There are necklaces, belt buckles and rings, none of them resembling another, all unique. Your eyes light up, and Arthur watches you with a sweet smile as you run your hand down the expanse of one of the shelves, taking everything in. A few other people mill around, looking as well.

“Arthur, look at all this.” You gasp, bewildered by the handcrafted, intricate things that this odd man has made. Arthur walks with you, falling into pace as his spurs click against the floor. He’s mesmerized, alright. But the trinkets on the shelf have little to do with it. The flowers in your hair, the excitement on your face from such a small pleasure, the stars in your eyes that shine brighter than any night he’s ever seen. 

Arthur steps away, walking towards the other side of the shop as you come up to the accessory section. Particularly what catches your attention is the hat accessories, and you pick a few up, wondering what they might look like on your own hat, back at camp. Then it catches your eye. A smaller hat accessory rests closer to the back of the shelf, and with your eyebrows pulled together in concentration, you pick it up. It's a piece to be added on the side of a hat, a small bundle of feathers, bound with twine and wrapped in beautiful, coiled metal. But what catches your eye is the teal agate, embedded into the metal that wraps around the bundle. It’s a color you've seen time and again. A throat clears behind you, and you turn, meeting eyes of the same teal. 

“Ready?” Arthur asks, not noticing the little gift that you’re hiding behind your back. You nod, glancing at the older shop owner for a moment. 

“Yeah I’ll be right over, but first could you… could you give me a minute?” You ask, and Arthur nods, looking a little confused or worried. 

“Sure. Everythin’ alright?” Arthur asks, and you nod. He steps back, tipping his hat to you lightly before walking out of the shop. With a breath, you pull the accessory back in front of you.

The agate is the same color as Arthur’s eyes, and you look over the gift with great fondness. No because of the accessory itself per se, but because of the man you’re going to gift it to. Holding the feathered accessory up to the light, you gasp, seeing almost unnoticeable stars stamped into the fine metal. You want to give Arthur something new for his hat, something that he can use to make it his own. Damn his father, and the fear that Arthur feels every day, wondering if he’s turning into the bastard. You want Arthur’s hat to be his, something he can pass down to his children or whomever one day with good memories, not bad ones.

With your mind made, you walk up to the shopkeeper. 

“How much for this?” You ask, placing it on the counter where the man sits. He hops down, not saying a word as he walks around the other side of the counter. He takes a piece of paper from under the register, writing some things down in a language you can't understand. Then, he opens the cash register and looks up to you. 

“Ja, Okay.” He says, holding his hand out for you to place cash into and you chuckle, sighing. 

“You?- Alright mister.” You chuckle, reaching into your pocket and pulling out a five dollar bill. A man, leaning against the wall laughs, filling you in. 

“Yeah, that there is Nils. He don’t really talk much, he understands though. A Norwegian fella, not even sure he speaks English, but he’s a damn good smith.” The man says, picking up a belt buckle and looking it over.

“That he is.” You hum as Nils hands you back a few odd cents.

“Names’ David Geddes.” The informant smiles, reaching to shake your hand. “I work with Nils here. He’s helpin’ me to build a ranch up in West Elizabeth.” Mr. Geddes says, releasing your hand. You smile, hearing that northern West Elizbeth is beautiful territory.

“If you’re ever in the market for tools or land, you know where to find us.” Mr. Geddes smiles, and you nod, knowing that you’re never going to need either of those things. You keep it in mind, though.

“Thank you Mr. Geddes, pleasure to meet you. You as well, Mr. Nils!” You smile at both men, giggling as Nils says ‘okay!’ when you walk out the door. Proudly, you place the little gift in your satchel. You want to wait until the perfect time to give it to him. Smiling, you walk past the few shops towards the saloon. You can hear the music from outside, a pianist enjoying himself on the keys, probably drunk as a skunk. You were right earlier, the window is still smashed out from Arthur being thrown out of it. 

You push the saloon doors open, walking in just as a man was walking out. Your shoulders hit off each other, and you scowl deeply at him before moving towards the bar. A loud game of poker is being played at the table, with drunk, laughing players. Working women linger about, draped over chairs and men, waiting to be taken upstairs for the night. You squeeze past the people, slipping onto the bar beside Arthur and Lenny, with Arthur in the middle. 

“Boys.” You greet, waving down the bartender. The saloon is loud, and you have to yell over the music to hear each other, even with the close proximity. 

“Now just one or two. Right, Arthur?” Lenny asks as he clinks his bottle against Arthur’s.

“Course, just a drink.” Arthur responds, tapping his glass against the counter before taking a long swig. 

“Hey!” You yell to the bartender, irritated. He doesn’t pay you any mind, and you huff. 

Jumping up onto the bar so that your stomach is on the counter, you grab a bottle of whiskey from behind the counter. It’s nearly empty, and you groan. Arthur shakes his head as you slide back down to the ground. 

“I don’t plan on staying too long.” Lenny reiterates, and you nod, tapping your fingers against the bottle to the rhythm of the funk music. 

“Me neither.” You say, swallowing the little bit of drink left over before tossing it over the counter.

Another man slides onto the open space of the bar beside you. He’s already been done in by the drink, eyes glazed over with red cheeks. Arthur keeps an eye on him, not too comfortable with the way this man is looking at you. 

“Hey- Hey miss?” He asks, and you turn to him. Arthur watches it unfold as you bat your eyelashes, and at first he’s confused as you look up to the sleazebag with doe-like eyes.

“Yes, mister?” You ask, twirling your finger around your hair. 

“Can I buy you a beer?” He asks, smiling like an idiot. You smile, resting your hand on the man’s chest. Ah, a pocket watch,right in his vest pocket. You feel the outline of the fine metal through his shirt, and you smirk.

“She likes whiskey.” Arthur bites, not seeing your scheme playing out. You elbow him lightly, and his eyebrows pull together. 

“Hey, Hey a beer for this fine woman!” The drunk man calls out, and as he leans over the bar to pay the tender, you sneak your fingers between him and the bar, gently pulling the chain until the pocket watch emerges from his pocket. Very content, you slide it into your pocket, smirking up at Arthur. He looks bewildered, amazed, as he laughs, elbowing Lenny and filling him in. 

“For you, m- m’lady.” The drunkard says, handing you a beer. You take it, no trace of a smile on your lips as you slide it down the bar to Lenny. The drunk man scowls angrily, slamming his fist down on the counter.

“What the hell?” He asks, face turning red with anger. You smile, leaning against the bar, acting as if he doesn't exist.

“This what a feller gets for bein’ nice?” He huffs, and you bite your tongue, slipping your eyes closed to quell your rage. Arthur orders a whiskey, and places the glass in front of you. 

“Tried to tell you partner, this lady likes her liquor.” Arthur chuckles, toasting another glass with Lenny. You swirl the glass in your hand, sipping from it while putting all your attention into not killing this man. 

“You owe me!” He yells, spittle flying. Even Arthur tenses at your side, pointing a threatening finger to the drunk. 

“Shut your mouth, buddy.” Arthur warns, and the music grows louder, more intense, as does your grip on your drink. 

“Or what?” The man laughs maniacally, sizing you up and down and concluding that you wouldn't hurt a fly.

“Leave this idiot alone, he ain’t worth it.” Lenny interjects, always the voice of reason. The man laughs at that, turning to you three like he's an old friend. 

“Leave me alone? Well people been leavin me alone for nearly ten years! I say that's their loss, I’m a great guy, bought this bitch a drink-” The man rambles on, and your shoulders set, eyes glazing over as a rage fills you. You slam your drink against the counter, spilling most of it before grabbing that damn idiot by the back of his collar. You slam his head down onto the bar in one swift motion, and it cracks. Sparing him no time to recuperate, you tear him away from the bar, dragging him towards the door where you literally kick him through the saloon doors.

Lenny whistles under his breath as you come back, wiping your hands on your jeans before picking your glass back up. 

“Where were we, boys?” You ask, turning to the men. 

— AN HOUR (OR TWO?) LATER —

‘Clink, clink, clink’ is all you hear as bottles and glasses continuously toast against each other. You’ve lost count of the amount of drinks you've been handed, or stolen off the bar. Arthur laughs loudly over the music, a contagious sound that has you and Lenny giggling like fools. You feel good and warm, a buzz running through your veins and filling your head with a fuzzy cloud.

“You want another one, Arthur? Star?” Lenny asks, laughter dying down as he waves to the bartender. 

“Sure, we’re already here!” Arthur hollers, words slurred as you nod your head.

“Yeah but first, I- I gotta go play that piano!” You holler, picking up your glass and dancing your way down to the pianist. 

— A WHILE LAETR—

You sit up on top of the bar, laughing so hard that you can barely breath. You don’t remember what was so funny, but it sure was. You slap your knee, cackling at something with Arthur. Lenny’s laughing too, leaning down against the bar to stop from falling over. 

“You! You are a hilarious feller, Arthur Morgan!” You snort, taking a big long swig from your bottle. You think it's whiskey, but you're not sure. It doesn’t even burn anymore, just going straight down.

“Arthur!” You call, grabbing his biceps to shake his attention. He jumps, startled, and then laughs. Being on the bar has you sitting a little taller than him, and he looks up at you with a dumb expression. 

“You ever-” You hiccup, “-had a dog?” You ask. It's a very serious inquiry, and you need to know. Arthur’s brows pull together as he thinks, and it looks kind of painful. 

“One time… bout a million years ago.” Arthur squints, dead serious, staring at the wall behind you. You erupt into a fit of laughter, smacking the outlaw on the shoulder. 

“What the hell is a million years?” You ask in between chuckles. The music is loud, the mood is good. The sun has set, and more patrons have joined the saloon.

“I don’t know, but I bet it's at least a thousand.” 

You nod, concluding that he’s probably correct on that account. You turn to your right, right where Lenny was sitting, to ask him his opinions on the matter. 

“What about you Lenny? You ever-” You stop, dumbfounded when you realize he’s not there. Surely he was just a second ago. 

“Lenny?” You ask, turning your head around to find him. 

“Oh no.” Arthur mumbles, looking around as well. 

“Arthur, he's disappeared!” You yell, panicked, but Arthur grabs your waist, pulling you down to the ground. Once you're down from the bar, Arthur keeps grip on your hips for just a moment longer. 

“We’ll find him, don't you worry. If anybody can come back from disappearin’ it's Lenny.” Arthur explains, and you nod. That makes sense. 

“Should we split up?” You ask as Arthur leads you to the center of the saloon. Arthur nods, stumbling lightly as he pulls you through the crowd. 

“Yeah, youse smart. We can cover-” Arthur burps, chuckling deeply for a moment, “We can cover more ground if we split up. I’ll go upstairs.” Arthur explains, and you nod, pushing past people. 

“Smart thinkin. I’ll go upstairs too.” You say, following him up. 

“Good plan.” Arthur approves, stumbling up the staircase while pulling you behind him. 

“LENNY!!?” Arthur yells, looking around for your lost friend. You see lots of people, but you don’t see Lenny, least you don't think you do.

“Lenny!?” You mimic Arthur, chuckling as he pulls you around the fenced in overhand that overlooks the bar downstairs. 

“There you is!” Arthur calls, and you look around until you see him. Lenny is leaning on the little fence, trying to balance a glass on his nose. 

“Whatcha doing?” You ask, both confused and amazed. Lenny laughs, swaying so as to not drop it from his nose. 

“I- I don’t know!” 

The glass falls, and Lenny tries to catch it but his delayed reflexes do him in and the glass falls down the overlook, shattering onto the saloon floor downstairs. You all laugh like it’s the funniest thing in the world, doubling over as you try to breathe from cackling. 

Then somehow you all have more drinks in your hand, and you’re toasting them together, cheering loudly. You don’t even know what you’re drinking, but it sure goes down nice. Lenny hooks his arm under yours, and you do-si-do, tripping and stumbling and laughing like you’ve never laughed before. Arthur switches spots with Lenny then, hooking his arm under yours and dancing around. But Arthur lacks Lenny’s grace, or maybe he’s just more drunk, and halfway around the circle he accidentally trips you, sending you straight to the floor. Your drink smashes against the ground, and you lay on the floor for a while, arms and legs spread out as you chuckle. 

Arthur pulls you up, nearly falling over himself, and then you all lean against the railing with more drinks. 

“Arthur why ain’t you never married?” Lenny asks, and Arthur’s mouth hangs open as he thinks. 

“No one would have me.” Arthur sighs, a pathetic, sad little noise. You slap him on the back, trying to encourage him. 

“Whaddya mean no one would have you, Arthur everyone wants you! Hell I’m sure you had ladies lined up round the block back in the day.” You say, and he nods, thinking it over.  

“Well maybe, but I did not see them!” He responds, toasting his drink to yours. 

— LAETR?—

Arthur jumps up and down, stomping against the floor with his arms flailing. 

“I’m doin’ it!” He screams, earning multiple annoyed glances from other patrons. 

“You sure are! I- I don’t know what you’re doin’ but it’s somethin!” You yell back, laughing. 

Then suddenly you’re sitting on the poker table, legs swinging over the side. You’re not even sure how you’ve gotten here, but your head is so fuzzy and relaxed you don’t care. Arthur stands on the ground, in between your knees looking up at you. 

“Why ain’t you never sweet on no one?” You ask, fingers tracing stars on his right shoulder. Arthur’s hand rests on your thigh, and he looks up at you, confused. 

“Huh?”

“Karen said you- you didn't like girls. I mean- Karen said you didn't like any of the girls in camp. They're all beautiful, young n kind, why haven't you gone sweet on em?" You ask, drunkenness loosening your lips and releasing some of the questions you've been holding back for ages. 

"Well I am sweet on someone, dumbass." He says, laughing and you slap his shoulder lightly. 

"Who?!" You holler, eyebrows pulled together in confusion. He's not sweet on anyone that you can think of, but you can't really think right now. Arthur's hand gently squeezes your leg before he backs away, downing the last of his beer. 

"You're funny, y'know. Askin all kinds of questions, but I can't even think right now." Arthur's lips form a little confused pout, "least I don't think I can…"

"Yeah, you're right that's a lot of thinkin'." You say, nodding your head. Arthur comes back forward, placing his hands on the table on either side of your legs.

"It's easy thinkin' bout you though. That's somethin' that don't make my head hurt." Arthur whispers, fuzzy eyes transfixed on the pout of your lips before they trail up to your sparkling eyes. A blush creeps over your cheeks, and you slide down from the table, sneaking under his arm towards the bar. 

"Buy me another drink Mr. Morgan!" 

— LNENY?—

You cackle, leaning over the bar sometime later. The sun has long since set, but you have no idea what time it is. Arthur's on one side of you, and you look over to where Lenny- 

You look over to where Lenny used to be. 

"Wait, where'd Lenny go?!" You slur your words as the room spins, flashing all sorts of different colors. 

"DAMMIT LENNY WHERE YOU AT BOYYY-" Arthur yells, slamming his drink down on the counter.

"We gotta find him, he's probably lost." You conclude, looking around the room. 

"Yeah or maybe he's stuck someplace." 

You wander around, losing Arthur as you yell for Lenny at the top of your lungs. You can hear Arthur yelling too, and you giggle. Lennt must have vanished, like those magic shows in the city. 

"Leave the kid alone, you goddamn animals." Arthur growls, and you turn to see him walking down the stairs. Lenny is standing up on the bar, yelling at a group of men in front of the bar. The man in front of the bar, who Arthur was yelling at, turns towards Arthur. 

"And who might you be?" The man hisses, growing irritated with you all. Arthur looks mighty confused for a moment, and you stumble towards the scene playing out. 

"They call me Arthur, n' people who don't call me Arthur? Well I guess they do not know my name." Arthur whispers, chuckling. 

"What-?" The other man asks, and you stride right up to him, punching him straight in the nose. 

—SUME TYME LTAER—

You line kick, arms intertwined with Arthur's and Lenny's, hoisting your legs up in the air with a bunch of other people, you laugh carelessly, dancing away. 

Then you're not dancing- you're laying on the staircase next to Lenny and Arthur, drinks in hand. 

"I gotta piss." Arthur says, tapping your knee before standing up. 

"You should probably do that. You can't drink more if you ain't peed." You explain, and Arthur frowns, thinking. 

"Really?" He asks, and you nod. 

"It's true Arthur! I read that once. I- I think I did anyhow." Lenny chimes in, and Arthur runs outside. 

You sit with lenny for a while, feeling light as ever, drinking your fill and then some.

— ??? —

"I got a quesstionn…" You say, pressed up against the wall by Arthur's hands. 

"Hmm?" Arthur asks, eyes heavy as he tries not to fall over, arms bracing themselves on either side of your head against the saloon wall. You're outside, and the walls buzz from music and banter. 

"I probably don't know an answer but… but I'll try." Arthur says. 

"Back in Colter, in Horseshoe durin' that storm, up in the hills in your tent… why’d you do all that?" You ask, a sense of clarity overcoming you even though you're drunk beyond help. Arthurs' trying to think back, but his head hurts. 

"Huh?" 

"You- you laid with me, held my hand till I fell asleep. Why'd you do that?" You ask as Arthur's hands slide away from the wall, down to his belt. It hits Arthur then, all the things he'd done, things he knows he shouldn't have done, but couldn't stop himself from doing. 

"I- I don't know. Guess… you was sad. I wanted to make you feel better." Arthur mumbles, eyes downcast. You smile, buzzing. 

"Did it work? Do I make you feel better?" Arthur whispers. His voice is low and deep, that familiar, gravelly tone. You smile up at him as one of his hands comes back up to the wall beside your head, trapping you in. 

"You make me feel great, Arthur. Real great." You breathe out, veins pumping with adrenaline as Arthur leans closer in towards your face. His eyes are dark, pupils blown and you can smell the whiskey on his breath with the proximity.

"I bet I could make you feel even better, Star. I could make you feel lots a' things." He growls, eyes trailing from each of your eyes to your lips. You laugh, pushing him away from you lightly. 

"Well maybe! But you can’t beat me at poker for shit!" You laugh, pushing the saloon doors open and walking back inside. Arthur follows behind you, laughing all the same. 

"You seen Lenny?" He asks, looking around. 

"Dammit!" You curse, pushing through the patrons of the saloon towards the steps. You grab onto Arthur's hand, dragging him along with you. 

You see a few doors there, and thinking Lenny might be hiding in a room, you push one open. You gasp, laughing loudly as you open the door on a man and a woman having intimate relations. You laugh, apologizing as you swing the door shut, but Arthur screams.

You turn to him, chuckling and confused. 

"You n-never saw a naked woman before, Arthur?" You ask. He looks like he's just seen something traumatic as he points a finger towards the door, rubbing his eyes with his other hand. 

"That weren't a woman." Arthur bites, the image of Lenny riding Lenny burned into his mind forever. But you're clueless as to what he's just seen.

— …..?—

You laugh uncontrollably as Arthur pushes that man from earlier into the pig's water trough. He dunks the man's head under one more time before tossing him to the ground. You leave the pig pen, oinking and wheezing with laughter. 

"I'm a- a police!" Arthur laughs, slipping in the mud as he jogs after you, down the main street. 

"I'm gonnaa get'cha!" He yells as you run down the road, sliding and laughing. 

"YOU CAN'T! You can't get me, HA-" You scream, running towards the stables, jumping over a fence, tripping and falling into the mud.

"Fuck!" You yell, unusually colorful language for you as the sheriff and a deputy approach you from the road. 

"Hey! You two, come here!" Sheriff Malloy hollers, jogging after you. Arthur picks you up from the mud and slings you over his shoulder. 

"Arthur! They're- they're gonna get us, we gotta run!" You yell from his shoulder as he bolts, slipping and sliding. 

"WE'RE AMERICANS! YOU'LL NEVER CATCH US ALIVE!" Arthur screams into the night, approaching a mighty high fence. 

"Yeah, we got RIGHTS!" You yell. 

Arthur tries to jump the fence, but he's so drunk, and with you on his shoulder he doesn't even come close to clearing it. The fence breaks as Arthur lands down on it awkwardly, and you both land in the mud.

— — — —

The light hurts your eyes as they flutter open, and you squint, head throbbing. Everything hurts, your head feels like it's been filled with lead and if you move too quickly you know you'll throw up. You finally come to, and realize you're laying on a wooden bench. Arthur is laying on the floor next to the bench, awake but not moving. Then you realize where you are. 

You spot the unmistakable metal bars, and you groan. 

"Arthur, what did we do?" You ask, not remembering an ounce of the previous night. From outside of your shared cell, Sheriff Malloy stands up, grabbing a cup of coffee from a percolator. 

"Well the typical stuff for folks such as yourselves: harassin people, causin trouble, bein loud and breaking shit. But you also waterboarded a fella within an inch of his life, and stole a pig, this man here carried it around half the town oinkin and causing a ruckus. Although it sure was something to see, I don't appreciate being pulled outta bed with the wife at five in the damn morning." He says, taking a sip from his coffee before sitting down in his seat, propping his feet up on his desk. You look around, wincing from the movement. 

"Well where's Lenny?" You ask as Arthur groans loudly, holding his stomach as he sits up on the bench beside you. 

"Only brought in the pair of ya." The sheriff shakes his head. 

“However you two managed to drink that much without passin’ out or dyin’ is beyond me.” Sheriff Malloy whistles, shaking his head.

Arthur stands up, slowly walking over towards the front of the cell. He reaches into his pocket, pulling out a bill fold before handing it through the bars. 

“Should be enough to cover our bounties, and some extra for your troubles.” 

Sheriff Malloy takes the cash and stuffs it into his pocket, silently grabbing the keys off of his desk.

“Go on. Get. And how about layin’ off the hooch for a while?” The sheriff asks, and you nod. He doesn’t need to tell you twice. You and Arthur walk out of the jail scot free. As soon as you’re out of the building, you lean against the wooden support beam, heaving. 

“Shit, I’m sorry.” Arthur winces, pulling your now very messy braid behind your shoulder as you throw up. You cough, wishing you were dead as the sunlight burns your eyes, killing your already throbbing head. 

“Here.” Arthur hands a rag from his satchel down to you, leaning on your knees as you clean yourself up. 

“Just one or two, huh? Jesus-” You take slow, deep breaths, trying not to puke again. 

“You even remember what the hell we did last night?” He asks, and you shake your head. 

“Nothin. I remember nothin.” You admit, standing up from the beam. Arthur hums, he remembers it all.

“Come on, let's get you home, you need a lie down.” Arthur groans, feeling like shit as he whistles. Luckily somehow, the horses stuck around and they trot up the main street.

The ride back to camp is very quiet, and very slow. Neither of you push your horses past a walk, not wanting to sicken yourselves even more. The silence is comfortable, a mutual understanding that opening your mouth to speak right now would be too much, and you just need to lie down and feel sorry for yourselves. Upon arriving at camp, you find Lenny is there, passed out in the grass next to his bedroll. You dismount Athena, groaning as your feet touch the ground. 

“Here, take this. It’ll make you feel better. I’ll go make sure Grimshaw doesn’t give you any trouble.” Arthur mumbles, handing you a glass bottle of tonic. 

You take it, quietly thanking him before dragging your heels to your tent. You’ve never been this hungover in your life, you’ve never had reason to drink so much. After closing the tent flap to prevent any extra light from coming in, you drink the whole tonic and flop down in your bed, groaning. 

— — — —

You wake up, about twelve hours later, to the sounds of maniacal laughing and screaming. You groan, sighing and covering your ear with your pillow to drown out the noise. It proves futile as the screaming and crying continue, and you figure you should probably go check it out. You get up from bed, mood sour as ever,  but you’re feeling a little better. Pushing the flaps open to your tent, you’re met with the pros and cons of living with twenty people.

“Mornin” Arthur chuckles, eyebrows raised at the state of your hair. Your braid is half fallen out, and the few flowers that have managed to stay in your hair are wilted. You groan, rolling your eyes before pulling the band out from the bottom of your braid and finger brushing the flowers out. 

“What's got you so sour?” Arthur asks, looking fresh and cleaned up. He's washed up, taken a bath and trimmed his beard. He looks good, and you look like you just barely escaped a natural disaster.

"How the hell are you even awake right now, let alone bathed and cleaned up? I'm pretty sure I still got puke on my shirt." You sigh, re-braiding your hair neatly, but loosely. Arthur takes a sip of his coffee. 

"I can actually handle my whiskey." Arthur jokes, "Go back to Valentine, buy a bath." 

"Firstly, I don't think you can, considerin'  what happened last night. And on account of the bath, I can't. I don't have enough cash." You sigh.

"A bath is only a dollar, thought you had some cash on you?" Arthur raises an eyebrow as you roll back on your heels. 

"I did. I spent it." 

"On what?" Arthur asks, sure that he'd paid for the drinks last night, except for the ones you stole.

"Just a little present, it ain't much." You smile, sighing and gripping his hand to pull him into your tent. You lead him through the tent flap, pulling him along by his hand.

"What're you doin, woman?" Arthur chuckles as you pluck his hat from his head. 

"Don't make fun of me. I saw this yesterday, n' it reminded me of you." You whisper, pulling out the hat ornament and attaching it to the rope band on his hat, on the left side. 

Arthur watches on fondly as you attach the little accessory. A warm feeling spreads through his chest, knowing that you'd thought of him. After you've finished, you hold his hat back out to him. He takes the hat back with a shocked expression on his face, and you're worried he doesn't like it, so you rush to reassure him.

"If you don't like it, or think it's dumb- maybe this was stupid I just, it reminded me of you, and-" You ramble, stopping to prevent further embarrassing yourself. 

"It's perfect." Arthur smiles, looking down to the agate, feathered ornament, dappled with little stars that remind him of you. He means it. The little decoration is perfect. The teal agate matches his eyes, the imprinted metal ensures that you're with him all the time, as if you don't already linger in his mind 24/7. He couldn't have picked out something more perfect if he tried. The accessory is fashionable, a fancy and intricate piece to add to his hat, and he's excited to wear it.

You blush, smiling happily as Arthur fondly runs his finger over the accessory before placing his hat back on his head. You lean up, adjusting it correctly while on your tiptoes. 

"You carry a lot of bad memories with this hat," You whisper, thinking of Arthur's father, "Figure it's about time you make it yours, start makin' some good memories with it." You explain. 

"It's perfect, Star." Arthur all but whispers, and you sheepishly nod, blushing. You’re proud of the little gift, and Arthur is shocked by the thought you’d put into it. 

“Looks real nice. You needed somethin’ to match those eyes.” You nod up to his hat as he leads you out of your tent. He opens his mouth to speak, but much to your growing annoyance, he is cut off by another yelp from across camp.

“Goddamnit, what is happening?” You groan, nodding for Arthur to follow you to the source. You’re ready to beat the hell out of someone, irritated and hungover. You stomp towards the scout fire where the screaming and yelping comes from, with Arthur following behind you.

The scene in front of you is nothing short of insane. That O’Driscoll from Colter is tied up to a tree. His pants have been pulled down to his knees and you make a point to avert your eyes from his… nether region. His bare quads scrape painfully across the treebark as he fights to get away from Dutch. Your eyes boggle when you see Bill come around the corner of Dutch’s tent with a steaming red pair of gelding tongs. 

“What are you idiots doin’ to this poor feller?” You gesture to the O’Driscoll, wincing at the way he shoves himself further into the tree to avoid Bill’s eager tongs.

“We’re takin’ his balls!” Bill laughs maniacally, looking all too pleased at the idea. He snaps the tongs a few times for good measure. Your jaw drops a little, and your eyebrows draw together in a mixture of shock and confusion. 

“They’re only balls, boy! You probably weren't using them anyway!” Dutch chuckles, slapping Bill on the back.

“You’re- You’re ‘taking his balls’? Really, Bill? What the hell is this, a farm? Get out of my way. Someone please pull his goddamn pants up.” You sigh, ordering the men around. Bill just looks at you for a moment, but you glare at him, and remembering how hard you can hit, he obliges. You sigh, bracing your hand against your nose as Bill drops the tongs and fixes Kieran’s jeans. Then you push past Bill, shoving him out of the way to take his spot in front of Kieran. The O’driscoll is terrified, shaking like a leaf on the tree as if you’re about to torture him. You eye him over curiously before turning on your heels and looking at the men before you.

“What exactly do y'all want outta this feller?” You question, making a plan to get some answers that doesn’t involve castration. Your hands rest on your gun belt, tapping the grip of your revolver in thought. Dutch’s eyes grow dark as he spits something onto the grass. 

“We want Colm.”

Turning back to Kieran, you eye the boy up and down.. He’s a weaker looking fella, the kind you would have stolen off of back in Tumbleweed. He’s terrified, and you know he’ll do anything to avoid a beating, including giving up his old pal, Colm. He’s surely hungry and thirsty. They’ve only been giving him enough water to stay alive, and you don’t know if he’s eaten. 

“You hungry mister? Thirsty?” You ask, watching as tears fall down the O’driscolls mud-caked face. He frantically nods his head up and down. 

“Oh yes! Yes please, please. I'm so hungry, I- I’m so thirsty, miss.” Kieran whimpers, and you nod. Without another word you push past Arthur, Dutch and Bill, straight to Pearson’s wagon. Arthur looks at Dutch, tossing his hands up lightly before following you. He comes up to your side, watching as you dip a metal cup into the barrel of water. Arthur lightly grabs your elbow to get your attention.

“You sure about this? He could be playin’ you.” Arthur warns. 

“Yes, I'm sure. You wanna help? Get me your map.” You say, leaning over the table to grab a piece of salted venison from the table. Arthur isn’t sure about this plan, but he trusts you. He nods, taking his map out of his satchel before following you back to the tree. 

“You.” You nod to the O’Driscoll, and he nods frantically, terrified of you, but glad that you’re not approaching him with some torture device. 

“Y-yes ma'am?” Kieran whimpers, and you hold the deer and water up. 

“You want this?” 

Kieran nods, and you raise an eyebrow. 

“Good. Point me to Colm n’ you can have it.” You give him an ultimatum, knowing that he would rather deal with you than the boys any day. Kieran nods, flinching as you pull your knife from its sheath. You hold it up in front of him for him to see. 

“Try anything, and this’ll be lodged in you, okay?” You warn, moving behind him before cutting him free from the tree. Kieran winces, rubbing at his wrists once he’s free. Dutch and Bill look irritated with you, but you pay them no mind as they file away. Arthur has laid his map out on Pearson’s table, just as you’d asked him to, and Kieran rushes towards it. The O’Driscoll eagerly leans over the map, following the roads with the tip of Arthur’s pencil before stopping and circling a small area north of Valentine. 

“They’re holed up here. It- It's called Six Point Cabin, and Colm will be there. It should be easy, they’ll all be drunk and asleep if you go now.” Kieran offers, looking past the horizon where the sun is starting to set. You look at the circle on the map, then up to Kieran. He has many reasons to lie, but you dont think he's loyal to Colm. You don’t think he’s dumb enough to lie to you either. But… just for good measure, you grip onto the collar of his shirt, threateningly. 

“If this is a lie, or you’re leading me into a trap, I will let this sick bastard take your manhood. You hear me? All. of. It.” You threaten, pointing to Bill behind you. The O’Driscoll frantically nods his head, audibly gulping at your promise. Quickly, you release him from your grip, dusting his shirt off a little from where your iron grip has left wrinkles.Once he’s been thoroughly threatened, you turn to Arthur, trying to ignore the sickness in your stomach as you hear the starved man gulp down all of the water, and tear into the venison..

“Good! Now that that's settled, John, Arthur, you’re with me. The three of us should be able to get this done quickly.” You tell the men, who are standing in a crowd behind you. John is wide eyed, shocked, but of course, Arthur isn’t. With a smirk, you pace through the wet grass towards Athena. Everyone mounts up and rides out pretty quickly, not wanting to waste another ounce of the limited daylight. 

“When we get here, we should do it quietly. Arrows, knives. There’s no reason to start shooting if we can take them out quietly, one at a time.” Arthur yells over the pounding of Balius’ hooves. He’s right, doing this quietly will give you the best chance of getting to Colm before he can run.  

“I agree. John, you know how to use a bow?” You ask.

“Ha! Little Johnny Marston over here can’t shoot a bow. Not that I should be surprised, he can’t do much of anything. Can’t even swim.” Arthur pokes, chuckling in his saddle at his own stab. 

“Oh shut the hell up you big bastard.” John counters, irritated as usual. It's quiet for a bit as the three of you enter Cumberland Forest, moving into a single file line to fit on the narrow trails. 

“How’s your leg holdin’ up?” John yells up to you. Instinctually you trace the scar that's hidden under your jeans.

“It’s fine now, healed up nice for the most part.” You chuckle, hollering back, “How’s your face?” 

“Ugly as always.” John chuckles.

“Hey, quiet, I think we’re close.” Arthur says back to you both, slowing Balius down to a trot. You all grow quiet, trotting the horses into the woods and hitching them off of the trail a ways. After dismounting, you offer Athena an oatcake for her work. The boys wait as she finishes it, and then you grab your bow from her saddle. Arthur and John crouch behind a fallen log, and you get down, coming between them.

“That bastard weren’t lyin’.” Arthur whispers to himself, shocked. 

The camp has one large cabin surrounded by various tents and wagons. Campfires scatter the place alongside a decent number of drunken idiots. Most of the O’Driscolls have retired for the night, snuffed out their lanterns and hit the hay. Some of them voluntarily went to bed, others passed out, completely wasted. A few O’driscolls with greasy hair and green bandanas sit around a campfire, not far from where you’re all perched. 

“Arthur?” You ask, waiting for some instruction. You and John both look to him as he formulates a plan, getting a headcount of the O’Driscolls and peeking around for other vantage points. 

“Okay we take out the ones at the fire from here. I count four. I'm good with knives, so I'll take two and you each take one.” Arthur grumbles, pulling out two throwing knives from his satchel. You’re curious if he has the skill to take down two so in such quick succession. If he’s just a split second late, the O’Driscoll will alert others. Glad that your job is easy, you grab your bow from your shoulder, steadying it in your hand as you squint to aim for one of the awake O’Driscolls. You exhale, releasing your hand just before the arrow lodges into the man’s chest. Within two seconds the other three men fall, thanks to John and Arthur. 

“Good job with the bow.” Arthur whispers, and your breath hitches in your throat when his hand squeezes your elbow with a small, proud smile. He doesn’t miss the hitch of your breath, and unbeknownst to you, he blushes, removing his hand from you and shaking his head. John looks over to Arthur with a raised eyebrow and a chuckle. Oh, he's gonna chastise Arthur for that later. Rolling your eyes, you glare back at the boys.

“Stop foolin’ around,” You hiss, “We sneak in and look for Colm. I'll take the cabin. John, go see what's worth stealin’ from their tents, but don’t wake anyone up. Arthur, cover me if I need it, please.” 

With that you stay crouched, jogging off in the direction of the cabin. You have to step over the sleeping men, and be extra careful not to wake them as you go. Colm better be here. If he’s not, you'll hand that O’Driscoll straight over to Bill tied with a ribbon. You gave him a second chance, and by god, he’d be a fool not to take it. 

Approaching the cabin, you take a quick glance through the windows. The glass is very dirty, and even squinting through the dirty glass, you can't see much. There's no light emitting from the cabin, so you assume its empty or everyone is asleep. 

You quietly step around to the front porch, hoping that this isn’t one big waste of time. Your spurs click ever so quietly with every step as you approach the front door. You lean down a little, readying your bow in case someone jumps out.  Just as you reach out for the door handle, you hear a sharp, quiet whistle, one that you’d recognize anywhere. Your head snaps around and you spot Arthur down a ways in the middle of the camp. He leans his head down a little, warning you to be safe before he gestures to your bow and then to his knife. Despite the fact that hes signaling you without speaking, you know exactly what he’s saying. 

He's telling you to put your bow away and pull out your knife instead, you curse yourself, realizing that you’d neglected to use your head. You need two hands to pull the bow, and opening the door leaves you vulnerable. The knife is a better option. You nod to Arthur in thanks, and swing your bow back over your shoulder before grabbing your hunting knife. You pull it out of its sheath, readying it as you grip the door handle.  You hear a loud grunt from the camp, and as you snap your head over you see that one of the O’Driscolls had woken up, and Arthur knocked him out. You need to hurry.

 With one hand gripping your blade, the other turns the door knob. You push it open quickly, holding up your knife in defense. It's pitch dark inside the cabin, and it takes a few moments for your eyes to adjust as you step inside. The cabin is pretty standard, across from you is a fireplace, a large table and some bedrolls laid out. You step further into the cabin and find two half-empty bowls on the table. They’re filled with some sort of mushy, brown looking stew, and they’re still steaming… 

You connect the dots too late. By the time you whip around, the men who were hiding in the shadows of the cabin slam the door shut so you can’t escape. Your eyes grow dark, and you back up as they step towards you until your back hits the far wooden wall. The two O’Driscolls are tall. They could be twins, black hair hidden away by bowler’s hats, green scarves around their thick necks. They repulse you. 

“Get back you bastards, ‘less you wanna end up like your sorry friends.” You threaten, holding your knife up in warning. The bigger one chuckles while the smaller one slides a chair under the handle of the door.

“Oh, Gabe, she’s a fiery little thing.” He says with a sickening, greedy grin on his lips. You hear Arthur try the door knob, cursing that it’s locked. 

“Anyone touches a hair on her goddamn head I’ll kill the whole lot of ya!” Arthur yells from behind the door. You can hear him dropping his weapons, and you know he’s going to try to kick the door down, but he won't be able to with the chair. You’re on your own.

“She’s a little one. She’ll be easy to handle,” The other man says before directing his attention to you, bringing up his knife and running it along the jut of your cheekbone. Your knife is in your hand, hidden behind your back as you come up with a plan to take them both down. You know his threat isn’t empty. You know what the O’driscolls have done to women, proudly, with no shame. You’ll be damned if you go down without a fight.

 “Hey, sweet thing, is that your man out there? Cause I want him to hear what we're gonna do to y-” You take a deep breath before plunging your knife into the man’s throat with a roar. Blood shoots out from his jugular, spraying all over you. Just as quickly as you had inserted it, you tear it out, and he falls to the floor, clinging to his neck. The sound of flesh tearing sounds through the room as you aim for the second man. Just as you bring the knife down towards his chest he catches your hands. You can hear the loud, angry thumps and screams of Arthur trying to beat the door down, along with his string of threats and curses towards the O’Driscolls. Shots ring out from around you, presumably you’ve woken up the entire O’Driscoll camp and now John is dealing with them. You struggle against the man for a while, as you try to push the knife down into him, and he tries to turn it around. Arthur gives up on the door, instead running around the side of the building to smash in one of the windows. He doesn’t know what's happening, he can't see who’s winning this fight, or what's happening to you, all he knows is that you’re struggling and yelling. As the glass shatters, you hesitate, letting your guard down. A painful sting slices along your abdomen, and you glance down to see that the man has cut your stomach through your shirt. It’s not very deep, but it could have been.

“You goddamn bastard!” You hiss as the O’Driscoll backs away. He smirks, watching you struggle. Arthur wastes no time jumping through the shattered window before running and tackling the O’Driscoll to the ground. Arthur starts beating the O’Driscoll, knocking chairs and items down, and after he gets a few punches in, Arthur smashes the mans head against the wall, killing or knocking him out.

“Colm aint even here!” You seethe, holding a hand against your stomach to ease the sting. Arthur looks up, seeing you covered in a spatter of blood. Immediately, he rushes over to you. 

“How much of this blood is yours?” He asks, running his eyes down your shirt until he sees the tear in it. 

“Not much of it, I’m fine Arthur, just a scratch.” You sigh, looking down at your destroyed shirt, “Shit.” 

It was a good shirt, and now it’ll be joining the burn pile when you get back to camp. You groan,  realizing you’ll have to ride back to camp like this. 

“Is John okay? And where the hell is Colm?” You ask, pulling up your shirt a bit to look over the cut. It’s just over the lip of your jeans, not deep, but a few inches wide. You won’t need stitches, thankfully. 

“Johns fine, lootin the camp now, and who knows where the hell Colm is.” Arthur says, eyes fixated on the bleeding patch of skin in between your jeans and shirt. 

“You think that boy Kieran set us up?” Arthur asks, making a mental note to buy you some poultice, considering how much you use it. 

“No. He’s not that stupid, or that brave. Don’t think he wants to lose his balls just yet.” Arthur chuckles. He motions for you to follow him out, but you raise your finger up signaling him to wait. 

“All this, and we ain’t gonna rob the place?” You ask, and Arthur watches as you climb over the scattered items and corpses. As if you knew exactly where it was going to be, you walk up to the chimney, reach into it and pull out a wad of cash. Quickly, you run your fingers through the folds, counting six hundred dollars. Arthur huffs, forever amused by you, especially as you walk towards him and then stop. You turn on your heels, looking up to the double barrelled shotgun resting on the mantle, and with a satisfied hum, you strut right over and pluck it from the wall. 

“Okay now we can go.” You say, walking past Arthur with a smile, soaked in blood. 

“Whatever you say, boss.” Arthur mumbles, whispering the last part before you glare at him .

— — — —

You’d stopped in Valentine on the way back, breaking off from Arthur and John to take a bath at the hotel. You’d taken your time, using almost every bath soap and oil just to try them out. Each one smelled so good, it was well into the night before you’d finished. It was a refresher that you needed, and deserved. With a new hundred dollar bill in your pocket from the job, you’d rented a room for the rest of the night, and then bought yourself some new clothes in the morning. You picked out a nicer outfit than usual, a dark burgundy shirt, over the shoulder styled with ruffles on your arms. It’s beautiful, and fancy, something you’re not used to. You tucked the shirt into a new pair of black jeans, and smiled contentedly in the mirror before braiding your hair down your back and heading back to camp. 

Much to your surprise, Arthur convinced the boys to let Kieran live, and to keep his manhood. Now as you peel potatoes next to Sadie at Pearson’s table, you watch him talk to and pet Athena with a small smile. Sadie follows your gaze, scoffing. 

“You should have just killed him. Can’t trust any of those damn O’Driscolls.” She hisses, garing daggers at the man, causing him to tremble lightly as he feeds Athena a mint. 

“He ain’t hurtin’ nothing. Sides, same thing could be said about us.” You point out, and Sadie doesn’t argue back, but she shakes her head in disapproval. You haven’t seen much of her since meeting in Colter. She’s kept to herself, hid amongst the shadows and cried herself to sleep most nights. You can see her bottling up, hardening. She’s turning into you 

“Star?” 

You look up, drawn out of your thoughts to see Abigail smiling down at you. There is a subtle redness to her eyes that indicates she’s been crying, and your eyebrows draw together in worry. 

“Everything okay?” You ask, standing from your seat and dropping your knife to the table. 

“Could we talk for a minute?” She asks, a hand sheepishly toying with a piece of her hair. 

“Course… What’s goin’ on?” You ask, smiling back to Sadie in an apology before following Abigail towards her tent. 

“Well, it's the boy.” Abigail says, biting on her nails as she leads you into her A-frame. Before the flap falls closed, you glance out of the tent to see Jack playing with a toy horse. He seems fine, just playing as children his age do. You look at her, confused, as she sits down on the corner of his tent. 

“He’s real sad, Star.” Abigail exhales, tears forming in her eyes that she pushes back, “John don’t- John don’t really care about him like a father should.” Abigail sighs, and you move to sit on the open space beside her.

“Arthur’s always been there for Jack, even when John left…” Abigail says, and you make a note to ask Arthur about it, you don’t recall hearing of John leaving.

“I'm sorry to ask, and I know it’s unfair to, but could you or Arthur take him somewhere, or do somethin’ with him? He looks up to you both so much.” Abigail explains, and you place your hand over hers, nodding. You can’t imagine how she does it all. This life is an unkind one, and raising a child amidst it? You’re sure it's tough. Your heart aches for Jack, and you understand the pain of wanting to be loved by a father that chooses his life over his kids.

“Of course, Abigail, I’d be happy to. I miss Jack, haven’t gotten to chat with him in a while.” You explain, and Abigail smiles bittersweet. 

“Thank you so much, I’ll owe you.” 

“Nonsense, you don't owe me nothin, this’ll be fun. Let me find Arthur, we still have some time before dark.” You respond, pushing the tent flaps open before walking out. The sun is just beginning to set over the mountains, and you reckon that you have a few hours yet. You manage to find Arthur carrying a bale of hay across the camp, and he drops it to the ground in front of the horses. 

“Ride with me?” You call to him, and he looks over at you, pausing for a moment to take in your new shirt, and the neat braid running down your back. 

“Course, always.”Arthur says, entranced by the way you look in the dark red blouse. He debates telling you that you look beautiful, but decides that it would sound odd, so he coughs awkwardly and follows you. 

“Where we goin’?” He asks, dusting some hay splinters off of his hands. 

“That's up to you, mister. We’re takin’ Jack out.” You say excitedly, leading him towards the boulder where the boy sits. Arthur watches as you sort of skip along, smiling to himself. 

“How about fishin’?” Arthur asks, and you stop dead in your tracks, turning around to squint at him. 

“You gotta take a lady and a child out for fun and you wanna fish?” You ask, lost on his decision. But Arthur looks pretty excited, and you can’t help but laugh. 

“Well sure, fishin’ is fun.” Arthur defends, covering his heart in mock pain. 

“Yeah and so is dysentery, are you serious?” You huff, chuckling with a shocked expression. Arthur looks at you like he can’t fathom why anybody would think fishing to be boring. 

“Fine, we’ll go fishing, but you gotta do something that's actually fun with me later.” You chuckle, approaching Jack. He’s playing with a wooden horse, a sad little frown on his face. 

“Hey buddy, do you like fishin’?” You ask him immediately, kneeling down to his level. He looks up to you almost offended.

“Aunt Star, fish are smelly! I hate fishing!” He says, looking up to you with drawn together eyebrows. 

“Well we’re goin’ fishin, so go get your pole off of Uncle Hosea.” Arthur says, and Jack sighs, stomping off towards Hosea’s tent. 

“Arthur Morgan.” You chastise, looking at him with an open jaw. 

“What? It’ll be good for him, he’s practically the man of the house now, considerin’ John’s contributions-” Arthur starts, sarcastically and you swat his chest to shut him up.

“Go get on your horse with your damn pole, I’ll meet you over there.” You sigh, waiting for Jack to come back with his little pole. You smile sweetly at him as he jogs back towards you, a grumpy little frown on his face. 

“I don’t even know how to fish that good, but at least I get to stay up past my bedtime!” Jack says, handing his pole out to you, “Can I ride with you? Uncle Arthur’s horse looks scary…” Jack mumbles, looking at the huge black stallion with trepidation. You chuckle, thinking that Athena is definitely more of a force to be reckoned with, but you trust her. 

“Sure buddy, c’mon.” You nudge him towards the horses with your hand. Arthur has the horses all tacked up, and is tightening the last cinch on Athena’s saddle when you approach him. You climb up into the saddle first, sliding back as far as you can against the seat, and then Arthur lifts Jack up with a groan, placing him down right in front of you. 

“You got a spot picked out?” You ask, turning Athena towards the trail out of camp while Arthur mounts up. 

“Yeah, head down to the Dakota, there's a nice spot down by the bank.” 

Per Jack’s request, you lope down the slope towards the river. You make sure to keep Athena at a very slow, steady pace so that Jack doesn’t lose his balance. Athena seems to be aware of the fragile life on her back, and takes extra soft steps. Jack giggles the whole time, a belly aching laughter as he hangs on to the horn in front of you for dear life. He’s upset when you have to slow down, but grateful for the fun that it was. 

“Here should do.” Arthur says, pulling Balius off the road. He’s chosen a spot in the river with a deep pool off the bank, a nice spot. The grass comes down almost to the water, and wildflowers and big rocks scatter around the area, creating a perfectly peaceful resting spot. It’s a perfect place to read or chat, but of course you’re here to catch fish. Arthur dismounts, coming over and lifting Jack down from the saddle onto the grass. You follow, and both of the horses step aside to munch on the sweet grass. 

“Either of you know how to fish?” Arthur asks, hands resting on his gun belt. You and Jack both shake your heads and Arthur nods, moving firstly to Jack. You stay quiet, watching on as Arthur adds a worm to Jack’s hook. He shows Jack how to do it, and then gets him cast out into the water. Despite his predisposition to fishing, Jack seems rather proud of himself 

“Real good, Jack!” Arthur smiles, patting Jack on the shoulder. You conclude that he must have been an incredible father, it all comes so naturally to him. Jack looks up to Arthur, so proud of himself, and your heart aches for the whole situation. 

“Now, when you got a bite, let me know. We can reel it in together.” Arthur says, nodding to Jack before coming towards you.

“I think I’m gonna sit this one out, Arthur” You chuckle, and Arthur nods. 

“Fair enough.”

Jack waits for a long while next to Arthur, and both have their backs faced to you as you sit in the grass behind them. You pluck some pieces of grass from the dirt, and then bored, you grab your little journal. Arthur and Jack talk about nothing and everything at the same time, waiting for something to bite. Eventually, Arthur gets a catch, and he shows Jack how to gut and store it, and then they’re back to waiting. The whole process is a bit mind numbing for you, and your attention is focused solely on the pages of your journal as you update it. 

New horses, new blacksmith, and a newfound sobriety after the other night. Lots of things are changing, and yet lots remain the same. It's a confusing thing, and I find myself so caught up in between what I should do and what I want that I fear it’s breaking me in two. Honestly, its getting harder to tell the two apart any-

Your pen stills, as you look up to where Arthur and Jack stand. You’re sure you heard what he’s just said, but still you find yourself analyszing it. 

“Y’know I taught another boy to fish once.” Arthur says quietly, head turning towards Jack. Jack looks up at Arthur with his eyebrows drawn together, mirroring exactly your expression. 

“Lenny?” The boy asks, and Arthur chuckles, recasting his line. 

“No, not Lenny. This was long before I even met Lenny. Hell, before you was born too.” Arthur sighs, recounting just how many years it's been. Sometimes he’s grateful that his life doesn’t require the modern calendar. The passing of time would be far too painful if he was more aware of it. Jack’s confusion turns to excitement, as he once again misinterprets Arthur’s words. 

“Oh! What is his name? Could I meet him? I’d like to have a friend…” Jack says, not quite old enough to understand the passing of time, and the growth of children to adults. He’s never been around other children before, and you can’t blame him for his naivete. Arthur’s head dips down, and a bittersweet smile tugs at his lips. You watch on, connecting the dots with an ache in your heart. 

“Nah, don’t think you’ll be able to meet him, buddy. He woulda liked you though, was only a few years older than you.” Arthur whispers, swallowing thickly as a fish tugs on his line. He doesn’t even bother to reel it, staring blankly across the river, lost in thought. 

“Oh. What happened to him, Uncle Arthur?” Jack asks innocently, pulling on his rod too quickly while trying to attract a fish. 

“He passed away.” Arthur mumbles, and the night grows silent save for the buzzing of frogs and the quiet splashes of water. Arthur gives Jack a few more pointers, but after a bit, Jack is tired of fishing, and he sets his pole down, yawning as he walks over towards you. 

“I’m bored now.” Jack states, sitting beside you while plucking a few wildflowers from the grass, “Maybe I’ll make a flower necklace for momma.”

Smiling at the kid, soothed by the sounds of Arthur’s pole splashing in the river, you lean back against a boulder, looking up at the night sky. It’s still early, and streaks of orange and red paint the sky alongside dark blue. It’s a beautiful night, and even though its early, you can still point out a few weak constellations. 

“What are you looking at, Aunt Star?” Jack asks, curiously tiptoeing towards you with a bundle of flowers in his hand. He plops down right beside you, sitting against your waist as he starts to weave the flower stems together. Now Arthur is the one eavesdropping, pole dipping into the water as he listens to you and Jack’s conversation. 

“Oh, the stars, I guess.” You chuckle, thinking that you find yourself answering that question with the same answer frequently. But you just can’t help but eye them, they’re so beautiful, so free. Jack yawns, leaning his head against you as his fingers slow down on his little project. 

“You like looking at stars, don't you?” Jack asks, eyes never leaving his flower necklace. Arthur chuckles, asking you the same question in his head. They seem to follow you like a trail, leaving star-shaped kisses on your heart. 

“Yeah, I do. I think they’re fun to watch. Aren’t they just beautiful?” You ask, watching as the whole sky twinkles and flickers. Jack nods, yawning again. 

“They sure are.” 

You watch them for a while, occasionally glancing ahead to watch the slopes of Arthur’s back as he packs up his fishing pole, retiring for the night. After everything is all packed, he starts to make his way towards the two of you. Jack snores lightly against you, and surprised, you look down to find him asleep. Arthur smiles at this before sitting down against the rock at your side with a groan. He rests against your side opposite of Jack, and as he takes his hat off, dropping it to the ground, your hand reaches out to rest over his knee. 

“Y’okay?” You ask, turning your head to gauge his eyes. Arthur’s eyebrows draw together, and he nods. 

“Sure, why?” 

“That must have been hard to talk about.” You nod towards the bank, recalling Arthur’s memory to the conversation about Isaac. Arthur sighs deeply, removing the weight of the world off his shoulders as his hand covers your own on his knee. 

“It’s gettin’ easier.” He admits, but his eyes are far away, lost somewhere decades ago. 

“Tell me about him.” You invite, leaving the decision up to him. You won’t be upset if he chooses not to talk about it, you understand isolation better than most. But if he chooses to open up, you’ll be there. A supporter, a friend, an ear, whatever he needs. 

“There’s a lot to tell…” Arthur huffs, squeezing your hand lightly. 

“We got time, if you’re comfortable.” You whisper, hand instinctively running up and down Jack’s sleeping back. Arthur nods, tongue darting out over his lips for a moment. He’s never told anyone the full story before, but as he looks into your warm, familiar eyes, he knows he can trust you. 

“About fifteen years ago we was stayin’ in this town, we were there for a while,” Arthur toys with your hands, avoiding your eyes, “Got to know this waitress, god- she was just a kid, only eighteen at the time… Eliza was her name. We had- well it was nothin’ special, just someone to spend the night with. First time it happened we were both drunk, both hurtin’. Then everytime I was in town I’d stop by her place.” Arthur shakes his head, disappointed in his actions, “It was wrong, but we were young and stupid and lookin’ to feel somethin’ other than hurt I guess.” Arthur whispers, a crease in his forehead from the way his eyebrows are drawing together in pain. You squeeze his hand gently, letting him know you’re still present and listening before he continues. 

“One day, after we’ve been doin’ this a while, I rode up and I just knew somethin’ was wrong… Said she was pregnant, said it was mine.” Arthur brings his knee up, resting his arm on it as he recalls memories that he has spent years shoving down, “I knew it was. I didn’t know what to do, I was so lost, Star. I knew I wanted to do right by her, so I made sure she had enough money so she wouldn’t have to work no more…” 

You lean your head against Arthur’s shoulder as he runs his thumb over your knuckles. You’re terrified of the end of this story, and you wish there were something you could do to ease his pain.

“I wasn’t ready to be a dad- not in the least. I had no role model worth a damn, and I was so afraid of turnin’ into my daddy…” He whispers, and your eyes glance to his hat on the ground, and the new accessory adorning it. 

“But then he was born.” Arthur chuckles, a little huff at some good memory in his head, “He looked just like me, and he was growin’ so fast.” Arthur has a joyful smile on his lips, but it dies out the longer he stays silent, thinking about the next chapter to Isaac’s life. 

“I stopped by when I could, always brought him somethin’ from my travels… He’d get so excited when I rode up, Eliza was always hollerin’ after him for runnin’ out the house.” Arthur whispers, an ache in his red eyes.

“I taught him how to write, how to draw, even how to fish and ride. My lord, did that kid love horses.” Arthur huffs a chuckle, “Boadicea especially, she was just under saddle then, a handful of years… He named her- named her after a queen from one of the books I read him. He liked history too. He was such a good kid, Isaac. Smart like his momma and stubborn as all hell like his daddy.”

The smile from fond memories fade away, and are replaced by an old pain. One so deep that you know you could never attempt to reach the bottom. His hand shakes lightly, encased over your own, and he swallows thickly, looking down at his lap. 

“One day I was goin’ back like always, but this time I had a real big surprise for him. Saved up for a long while n’ got him his first pony, a chestnut like Bo, his favorite… I rode up the trail, it had been about a month, soon as I got up the path I saw two crosses out front and I just knew.” 

Tears trail down your cheeks, and you squeeze Arthur’s hand. It’s all you can do to let him know you're here, feeling this with him. He knows. You’re here, and that's more than enough. Jack is still blissfully asleep in your arms as Arthur finds the strength to continue, unshed tears in his eyes that he won’t allow to fall.

“Found her daddy, he said some gang had come through. Robbed n’ killed them for ten goddamn dollars,” Arthur inhales deeply, and that tear finally falls as he whispers, “And Star- his grave plot was so small. He was there and then he wasn’t, and poor Eliza. She deserved so much better than that, than what I provided, they both did…” Arthur regains his composure, hiding his face from you as he sniffs and wipes the tear away. 

“I fell hard into the bottle after that, didn’t come back up for a long while.” 

Arthur looks over at you then, and at the sleeping boy in the crook of your arm. You’re shocked, speechless, and hurting for a loss that you never had to grieve. The trauma that Arthur’s gone through, the loss, and he still gives so much, he has such a big heart and yours aches for his.

“Arthur I- I’m so sorry.” You breathe out, tear tracks running down your cheeks, “I’m so sorry you’ve had to carry that alone.” 

Sitting in silence for a few moments, offering eachother little glances and touches of support, a question pops into your head. 

“You a religious man, Arthur?” You ask, looking up to him from against his shoulder. His eyebrows pull together, not expecting this question as he shakes his head. 

“I don’t know, not really.” He explains, having heard a lot about church and god, but never having actually listened, “Why, you believe in all that?” he asks. 

“I believe that some way or another, we all get what we deserve in the end, whether that be redemption or mercy or suffering. And kids? They gotta be granted somethin’ good.”  You mumble, thinking about it all. Arthur purses his lips, placing his hat back on his head as he looks down at you. 

“N’ what about folks like us? What do we deserve?” Arthur asks, looking at your intertwined hands. You could have pulled away by now, but you haven’t. You sigh, contemplating his loaded question before coming up empty handed. 

“I don’t know.”

Arthur nods, holding your hand up to exaggerate the fact that you’re holding his hand, pressed into his side. 

“What are we doin’ here, Star?” Arthur finally asks, a question that has been on his lips for a while. You bite your lip nervously, looking at your intertwined hands before pulling yours back, and placing it over Jack’s sleeping form. 

“It’s nothing, Arthur.” You say plainly, anxiety panging in your chest at his directness, and he sighs. 

“Is it?”

“Arthur, stop.” You warn, wanting the conversation to be over. You don’t want to talk about this, not now, not here. 

“Why do you keep closin’ up on me?” Arthur begs, having just poured his heart out to you, and you can’t manage to speak to him about anything. You don't speak, eyes purposely avoiding Arthur as your cheeks burn red. You want to cry, to scream, to tell him everything, but you can’t. You can’t because people you love get hurt, and people you love hurt you. Arthur sighs, watching as tears pool in your eyes. He’ll wait. 

You’re about to wake up Jack, to take him back home. Just as you start to move, a pair of horses trots down the road, pulling off the bank where you sit. Arthur is up in a second, confronting the people riding up in the night. It happens so shockingly quickly that you don’t even have time to ask questions. Jack stirs awake, confused and sleepy as you shove him behind you. 

“Good evening! I’m Agent Milton, this is Agent Ross.” A man calls out, climbing down from his branded chestnut morgan. His uniform is identical to his partner’s, stamped with a damning Pinkerton Detective Agency seal, and you gasp. 

“Mr. Morgan, and you,” The bald man, Milton, looks to you then, scowling, “I hear they call you Star now, right? Though it’s not the name on the bounty poster, is it?” He chuckles, humorless. Then, he gestures to Jack hiding behind your legs. 

“I’d ask if he’s the both of yours, but you ain’t been riding with these degenerates long enough.” The agent nods to you, as you fume.

“Tell me, Mr. Morgan. Did you coax this poor woman into joining you? Did you tell her all about your philosophy? Your code? Or was that all old Dutch?”

“What do you want?” You hiss, ready to kill these men. Your hand has flickered to your holster more than once, but you hesitate, not wanting Jack to see. 

“We want Dutch. You give us him and we'll clear your names. You know what they say about a king-less monarchy, hmm?” Ross says. Arthur steps forward then, feigning innocence. 

“We ain’t seen Dutch, not in a long while.” Arthur explains, but Milton chuckles, shaking his head. 

“Yeah that’s what Mac Callander said too, before I shot him, it was really more of a mercy kill.” Milton hisses, and your jaw falls. Arthur is filled with rage, hands clenched tightly as he holds back for Jack’s sake. 

“He didn’t talk though, don’t worry.” Ross chuckles, walking back towards his horse. 

“You best think over our offer, you’re running out of time.” Ross hisses, climbing back onto his horse. 

“Have a good night, kid. You don’t got many more of them.” Milton addresses Jack, and you shove the boy behind you as they gallop off. 

“Arthur-” You exhale, shocked and terrified. The Pinkertons have caught up, and if they’ve chased you this far, you doubt they’ll ever stop.

“This ain’t good. We better get the boy home, talk with Dutch. He ain’t gonna be happy about this.” Arthur says, low with a dark edge. Nervously, you watch them ride off. 

“You think we’re gonna have to move again? We just got here.” You exhale, emotional at the thought of leaving. This is one of the first places you’ve felt at home in a long time. 

“I don’t know. C’mon, we’ll get Jack back and see.”

— — — — 

Dutch isn’t worried about the Pinkertons. No, he's furious. He sees it as some personal stab at his ego. Your eyes roll, sitting beside Arthur outside of Dutch’s tent. 

“I don’t think you understand, Dutch, they know where we are. They killed Mac.” Arthur growls, trying to get Dutch to see reason. But Dutch’s mind is clouded by delusions of grandeur. He believes he can win the fight against the agency, and you think he’s a fool. 

“They’re testing us, son. They’re pushing us. They think they can herd us? Me? They’re wrong. We are NOT abiding by the rules to their twisted games. We are staying here!” Dutch yells, and Arthur sighs, begging  Dutch to cut his loses, but the man is insistent. Arthur tries to speak, but Dutch cuts him off, placing a hand on his shoulder. 

“Son, in the morning I need you to go get Sean. We are not losing anyone else.” Dutch orders, then he moves towards the fire where John is. You and Arthur share a worried glance before following him. 

“John! Gather what you need, we are HITTING THAT TRAIN!” Dutch calls out, smiling brightly as if his master plan is falling together, “Watch them try to control this crew. We’ll hit their bounty hunters, hit their train in the same goddamn day. This is going to be beautiful.”

Your stomach turns as you recall Dutch’s orders about needing your level head on the robbery. You have a bad feeling about this train, a real bad one. But as John and Arthur start packing to head in separate directions tomorrow, you realize that there’s no way out of it. You’re a van der Linde now, and you follow his orders.

[nadinebrooks]

Harry Potter Masterlist: Preferences and One-Shots

Welcome! If any of the links don't work, let me know and I will try to get them fixed as soon as possible. Also if you have any request or recommendations, please don’t be afraid to reach out!  

If you've come across some of these post before please don't be alarmed, I'm just having to post everything again. I was logged out of tumblr and forgot my password so now I am restarting my blog. Thank goodness I had all this saved on my computer.  

I don't have any restrictions on age since I mostly write fluffy stuff. A few of them do have trigger warnings at the beginning so just be aware of that and remember you are responsible for the content that you consume.

I do not own or take ownership of any of the character I write for. Everything is purely fictional and for enjoyment purposes. Please feel free to like, comment, and repost! Thank you in advance for that.  

Started: 06/02/2022

Last Updated: 12/14/2024

Total Works: 43

Preferences

Your House & Blood Type (09/11/22)

Your Year Compared to Him (09/11/22)

Your Siblings (09/15/22)

How You Meet (09/16/22)

His First Thoughts When He Sees You (09/17/22)

He Realizes That He Likes You (10/06/22)

He Realizes That He Likes You Part 2 (10/06/22)

You Realize You Like Him (11/24/22)

You Realize You Like Him Part 2 (11/24/22)

He Gets Jealous (12/09/22)

He Gets Jealous Part 2 (12/09/22)

How You Spend the Christmas Holidays (12/24/22)

How You Spend the Christmas Holidays Part 2 (12/24/22)

You Get Jealous (02/12/23)

Your Best Friend (05/27/23)

One-Shots

Golden Era

Harry Potter

Don't Forget to Write: You learn exactly what kind of school Harry Potter goes to. (09/11/22)

Some Real Competition: You have never head to deal with academic competition in your life. That is until you run into the Harry Potter and his friend, The Half Blood Prince. (11/24/22)

Hunger Games Edition: My obsession with the Hunger Games is back so I combined the two. (12/07/22)

Ray of Light: Harry finally decides to admit his feelings. (07/02/23)

Ron Weasley

I'll Catch You: Ron Weasley was your childhood best friend, and he is not happy that you belong in Slytherin. (12/02/22)

Can We Start Over?: Ron Weasley has made a lot of mistakes in his life. But is this one so bad that he can't come back from it? (03/19/23)

The Silent Slytherin's Stand: Even though you're quiet, you're not afraid to stand up for what you believe in. (07/21/23)

Beyond the Balcony: As Harry Potter's younger sister, you've done your best to stay away from his best mate, but the heart wants what it wants. (07/24/24)

A Very Weasley Christmas: Ron Weasley invites you to spend Christmas with the Weasleys for the first time, determined to make it perfect (12/24/24)

Draco Malfoy

Princess: You get asked to the Yule Ball by Cedric Diggory. What could go wrong? (09/14/22)

Drunken Mess: When you have a few too many drinks, you slip up and say something to Draco Malfoy that you can't take back. (10/07/22)

A Guiding Light: After making a bet with Draco Malfoy, you learn that even he needs some a warm light in his life. (05/05/24)

The Edge of Friendship: Draco must confront his true feelings when his oldest friends begins to fall for the charming facade of Cedric Diggory. (12/14/24)

George Weasley

Do You Really Want This: Slytherins aren't supposed to have feelings for Weasley. But, do you want something that's easy or something that makes you happy? (11/11/22)

The Ravenclaw Princess: A highly intelligent, but often isolated Ravenclaw forms an unexpected bond with George when she helps him prepare for the Yule Ball. (05/31/24)

Fred Weasley

You are Enough: Being a Malfoy is hard. Being a Malfoy who was placed in Hufflepuff is even harder. (10/16/22)

Still My Best Friend: Unexpected love is usually the best kind. (01/02/23)

The Yule Ball Bet: Fred asks you to be his date as a bet and it comes back around to haunt him. (08/04/24)

The Yule Ball Bet Part 2: Fred asks you to be his date as a bet and it comes back around to haunt him. (08/04/24)

Dean Thomas

Make a Wish: Whenever presented with a chance to wish upon a star, always take that chance. (04/17/23)

Cedric Diggory

Hard to Get: Maybe playing hard to get with Cedric Diggory wasn't such a good idea after all. (09/17/22)

Blossoming Love: New school year. New projects. New friends. New love? (10/07/23)

Severus Snape

The New Potions Master: You become the new Potions Master at Hogwarts and you make an unlikely friend (10/29/22)

The New Potions Master Part 2: You become the new Potions Master at Hogwarts and you make an unlikely friend (05/26/24)

Pansy Parkinson

Believe Me Now: Pansy Parkinson has some new feelings and she isn't sure where they came from. (01/12/23)

Marauders Era

Young! James Potter

All I Want For Christmas Is You: Just something cute for the holidays. James Potter and you discuss what you want for Christmas. (12/21/22)

Young! Sirius Black

Mistletoe Mischief: Does a kiss under enchanted mistletoe mean anything?

Young! Remus Lupin

I Could Never Hate You: Even thought you're his best mates little sister, Remus can't stay away. (05/11/23)

The Next Generation

James Sirius Potter

We're Just Friends: A game of truth or dare makes you realize that maybe you like James Potter a little more than just friends. (09/26/22)

[scarletttries]

You Are In Love (Eddie Munson x Reader series)

Part Thirteen: You're In Love, True Love

Pairing: Eddie Munson (Stranger Things) x F! Reader

Tags: References to the horrors of Stranger Things and the upside down, and nightmares had too.

Word Count: 2.6k

Author's Note: This is the thirteenth and final part of my Eddie Munson series inspired by Taylor Swift's "You Are In Love". Thank you so much to everyone who's been following the series, it's so bittersweet that this is the final chapter because it has been so lovely to write this and interact with you all! Links for all the other parts are in my Eddie Munson Masterlist, along with all my other Eddie fics in case you will now have a void in your life for Eddie content 😊 As always please feel free to send me thoughts and headcanons for Eddie Munson, especially as soon I'll be back to writing one shots for him <3 And if you need another Swiftie Eddie Munson fic to get you through after this, I highly recommend probably my favourite Eddie Munson fic ever Begin Again by @pullhisteeth-archive 💕

Gif credit to @vigilanteshit 🥰

Cause you can hear in the silence,

You could feel yourself twisting the rings on your fingers over and over again as the lights sunk down low, a wild cheer rising up from the tables around you in response.

"Do you think you'll ever not be nervous at these things?" Robin teased, tongue haphazardly chasing the thin straw doing laps around the edge of her glass.

"Never. That's why he's the rockstar." You laughed in response as the band stepped out on stage, excited chants of 'Corroded Coffin' filling the small room as spotlights flooded the stage, your own voice joining the chorus eagerly.

"And you're just the very lucky groupie that gets to take him home at the end of the night." Robin's shoulder bumped into yours as she threw her hands in the air with a scream just as the rest of the crowd quietened down, loud enough that you could see a smile crack across Eddie's face as he stepped up to the microphone.

"Thank you so much for that very warm welcome. We are Corroded Coffin." He paused as another cheer echoed through the hall, glancing behind him in disbelief to check his friends were hearing just as much support as he was. "And if it's okay with you, tonight we're going to start with a love song. For someone who knows exactly who they are."

No matter how many times you'd seen the band play since they got out of Hawkins and found a city that actually had a scene for them, you'd never get used to this: The moment of quiet before it all kicked off where Eddie would always find you in the crowd, giving you a soft look that even managed to make him blush, and made sure even in the silence you knew that every sound he made was for you.

As the drumsticks started to tap behind him he finally forced his eyes away from you and to the rest of the audience, masterfully picking up the beat with his guitar and launching into what had fast become one of the band's local hits. It wasn't hard to notice him sneaking looks throughout the set, gaze skimming between dancing bodies as the electric atmosphere seemed to infect everyone listening. Robin quickly found herself up on the table dancing, even convincing you to get to your feet by the time came for the encore demand for another song. The band happily obliged, the difference in their start in Hawkins to the enthusiasm of the crowd tonight enough to make them reluctant to ever step off the little bar's stage, even as the lights rose back up and the crowd began to thin.

Manhandling Robin more than a little to get her safely off the table and back onto solid ground, putting on quite the spectacle for the remaining bar patrons, you dragged her over to the front of the stage where the boys were unplugging instruments and signing setlists for brand new fans.

"(Y/n) (Y/l/n)! What are you doing here!?" Gareth bellowed, hopping off the stage and pulling you into a hug, never one to miss the chance to remind Eddie of his disbelief.

"Oh you know, Eddie still needs to keep up appearances as long as you're around." You teased as the man in question excused himself from a nearby group of fans, draping an arm across your shoulder and landing a kiss against your cheek.

"Yeah, this ruse is starting to get kind of elaborate." He sighed in defeat, letting his hand find yours, twisting the delicate ring on your left hand happily, a habit he'd picked up subconsciously since you started wearing it about a year ago.

"You guys were amazing tonight!" Robin cheered loudly, the beaming smiles on each of their faces not going unnoticed for a moment.

"Seriously! And the crowd loved it." You added, smile full of pride as you pulled Eddie close, his lips settling on yours much to the disappointment of a few of his onlooking new fans. You leaned into him, letting him consume you, the joy and excitement radiating off him as his tongue brushed against yours.

"Ugh, whatever he's paying you (Y/n), it's not enough for that." Gareth mocked, letting Robin lead him back to your table, knowing the two of you might be a while.

You can feel it on the way home,

You turned the radio dial all the way down as you concentrated on the street signs around you, reciting the directions to yourself as you slowly weaved through the city traffic until it began to thin into residential streets. You'd only been in your new job five days, every day this week having to walk yourself through the directions after insisting Eddie didn't need to drive you to and from work despite, as he was so keen to remind you, that worked out pretty well for him in high school. It was a big adjustment, even just spending this time apart, both a little unsettled in the place you were trying to make your new home, finding somewhere that had everything you loved about Hawkins (except the most important people) but also made up for all the things it lacked for you both. You could feel your insides buzzing with excitement as you took the penultimate turning in your winding little route, the knowledge you had a weekend in your new place with Eddie spreading a smile across your cheeks before you could even see the familiar little house.

As you twisted the key and heard it click, the pounding of drums and guitars quickly filled the air, a Black Sabbath record spinning in the cosy living room, your own metalhead dancing along behind the kitchen counter.

"You're home!" He cried out happily the second your movement caught his eye, abandoning the box he'd been unpacking and sprinting over to wrap his arms around you, pulling you into a tight hug like it had been a lot longer than eight hours since you'd stepped out that same door. "Did you have a good day?" He asked loudly, still clutching you close, breathing you in as you nodded happily against his chest.

"Yeah it was good, I think I'm gonna like it there." You chirped happily, optimistic for the future you and Eddie were building here together. "But I'm much happier to be home with you for the next few days." You added, withdrawing just enough to land a kiss on his cheek, wrinkled by his proud smile as he took your coat and wondered how he'd got lucky enough to finally experience the joy of someone coming home to him. "How was your day Eddie?" At your question he gripped your hand excitedly, pulling you with him as he gave you a tour of his productive day of home-making,

"It was great sweetheart, I've now unpacked all our records." He showed off the little stack of them under the record player with a flourish of his arm, turning the volume dial down slightly to continue his description,

"And I finally got our phone working, so I called Wayne to let him know and he talked me through how to make his famous Munson casserole, which is now in the oven." You took a deep inhale of the air and let the homely aroma fill your senses, letting out an impressed hum as he spoke."And, it's a good thing I fixed our phone because that record store I talked to yesterday called back to say I could start work on Monday!" He lifted you in the air as you let out an excited squeal, knowing just how much this meant to him.

"Congratulations gorgeous, that's amazing! I told you they'd love you, and I would know, i'm kind of the expert in loving you." You praised, cupping his cheeks between your palms and peppering his blushing face in celebratory kisses.

"I couldn't have done it without you." He replied proudly, excitedly talking you through the phone call and all the details of the little shop he couldn't wait for. "And the owner said if I like live music, then the bar next door is always putting on gigs for local bands looking to get started, and he knows the promoter. So I figured maybe tomorrow night, me and you could go check it out, see if it seems like somewhere we might like?" He asked smoothly, cut off by you voicing the thought in his head lingering doubt wouldn't let him say aloud.

"And see if it's somewhere Corroded Coffin could play! That would be perfect." The bright look in your eyes as you spoke filled Eddie with confidence he tried to downplay,

"I don't want to get ahead of myself..." You pressed your lips to his, silencing his self-doubt before correcting him,

"You have so many amazing things ahead of you. And thank you for doing so much here today." You pulled him tightly back into a hug, feeling him relax into your arms happily before a beeping timer in the kitchen jolted him upright. Glancing down at the same plastic watch he'd been wearing in high school Eddie frowned, dancing around the kitchen counter and staring at the chiming oven in confusion.

"That's not supposed to be beeping yet...umm, why don't you make yourself comfortable while I roll for initiative against our oven? I unpacked your favourites..." You heard his voice trail off as he crouched to eye level with his foe, maneuvering yourself carefully between stacks of boxes yet to be unpacked to squeeze into your bedroom, the door only opening just enough as duffel bags of clothes lay stacked behind it. The double bed that took up most the room was only half-made, Eddie putting in the effort to fold back your side only, and lay out two familiar items: the same checkered boxer shorts and loose black band tee he'd let you borrow, then steal, the first time he'd ever leant you his clothes.

As you slipped into the familiar outfit and perched yourself on the sofa, watching Eddie flick through the notes he'd made on the phone to his uncle, two mismatched carnival bears sat against the armrest beside you, you couldn't help but think maybe you'd found a new favourite definition for the word 'home'.

You can see it with the lights out,

He wasn't sure if it was the burning pain in his side, or the strangled cry clawing its way out of his throat that had woken him first from the latest installment of his ongoing upside down themed nightmares. Bolting upright he could feel his lungs burning, struggling to gulp down enough breath as the dark shadows around him seemed to dance in the shape of those awful twisted bats that haunted him. He looked around in desperation, not sure whether he had reached safety yet, clutching his side as if to protect himself from a deeper wound as his body trembled against your shared sheets.

You recognised the feeling and flicked your lamp on before your brain really woke up enough to put any words to the action. Eddie's dark eyes darted to you as he shivered, watching you rise up onto your knees, settling directly in front of him and starting to speak softly,

"Edward Munson, you are safe." You brought your arms around his waist, starting to work gentle circles into his lower back in time with your calm, melodic voice, "You are out of Hawkins. You are not in the upside down." Your soothing massage drifted up his broad back as you spoke, eyes locked intensely with his. "You graduated. It's now 1988." Your thumbs kneaded the tender flesh of his shoulders as your hands lifted higher, before easing gently up his neck, feeling the tension melt away as stillness settled over his body.

"You are in our home, with the little black front door we did a pretty good job of painting ourselves." A small smile cracked across his face, letting a single tear spill from his eye as you brushed your thumbs over his cheeks, before sweeping them across his forehead, smoothing the deep valleys furrowed there. "You are in our bedroom, in our bed, with me." Combing the hair out of his face with your fingers you leaned forward to plant a gentle kiss on the tip of his nose before concluding, "You are safe, and everything is okay." Eddie let himself take one full breath, his nervous tension melting away with every reassuring word until finally he pulled you tightly against his chest, forehead resting on yours as the words spilled like a prayer into the dark night air filling the room, "I love you."

You are in love, true love. You are in love.

"Crap!" The shout rang out down the hall as Eddie tugged the sleeve of his coat from where it sat hooked on the bedroom door, watching as the glistening button burst free of the fabric and tumbled to the ground, rolling across the floor until it came to rest by your foot. You glanced up from your hunched over position on the rug, frantically filling out the final few Christmas cards before the long drive back to Hawkins for the holidays, picking up the golden circle carefully and catching Eddie's eye as you shared the same sentimental smile.

"Think you could help me with that? For old times sake?" Eddie asked softly, dropping the packed bags in his hands, and rummaging in a kitchen draw until he found the small sewing kit you'd kept since your cheerleading days.

"I don't know, I seem to remember getting in a lot of trouble the last time I fixed your coat." You teased with a knowing gleam in your eye, patting the floor beside you as you shifted a small pile of wrapped boxes out of the way.

"Yeah, but it worked out pretty well in the end, wouldn't you say?" He quizzed happily, sitting as close to you as humanly possible as he placed his arm and the damaged cuff carefully in your lap, wishing he could tell his younger self this was where he'd end up one day. You sat in thoughtful silence for a moment as you began to add a few familiar stitches before glancing back up at Eddie, who looked down at you like he couldn't picture a happier circumstance to find himself in.

"It worked out perfectly." You replied sincerely, letting him steal a quick, warm kiss before turning your attention to the button below, suddenly sure that you knew from the first moment you weaved the first thread through this coat all those years ago, that you were in love. True love.

---

You Are In Love taglist:

@lacrymosa-24 @aftermidnightwriting @fluttergirl1202 @tayhar811 @souls-rain @neewtmas @kimmi-kat @wintrrrsoldier @dylanmunson @sidthedollface2

@eddiemunson95 @mistiatmosphere @singularattitudeofasafetypin @omgsquee2001

[doctorho]

Distractions

HI BABES!! here's a little surprise to your saturday:

i saw this artwork by @lemonmancer yesterday, and i just loved that idea, so i had to write a thing about it. obviously. i made this into a friends to lovers kind of thing, because that's one of my favorite tropes. because this is based on that particular art, i wrote it with a feminine presenting reader in mind, and i highly recommend you check out that art before reading this!

i hope you like it <3 i'll be back to writing the royal au shortly!

Viktor x f!reader, 2k words, no warnings

It's not exactly hard to guess where Viktor is.

Despite being a certified genius, he is not a very complicated man.

You find him in the lab, exactly like you thought you would; hunched over the table, jacket tossed and sleeves rolled up, working on something.

But he is wearing a suit, or at least parts of one, and that meant that he had at some point at least considered joining the party.

He doesn’t react in any visible way as you open the door and walk in, but you're pretty sure that the sound of your heels alerts him of your presence.

"Are you planning on hiding out here for the whole night again?" You ask, walking to his desk and leaning your hip on the side of it, looking over his latest project.

It was something small and mechanical, with wires sticking out of it in a mess of colors. He’s sorting through them with nimble, practiced motions, twirling a small screwdriver around in one hand as the other moves the wires to wherever they were supposed to go.

You try not to stare at his hands too much. Sure, he wouldn’t notice either way, since he was looking down at his hands, too, more focused on the task at hand than he was on you, but still. It felt a bit weird, looking at him like that. He was your friend. A co-worker. And someone that seemed to actively buffer romantic advances away from him.

Unfortunately, he also had very sexy hands.

"If I can get away with it." He answers without looking up at you, pinning some of the wires in place and securing them with small screws.

You cross your arms over your chest. "You can't," You point out, "people are starting to notice you never go to these things."

"People don’t care if I'm there or not." He answers, dismissively, and you furrow your brows a bit.

Sure, he wasn’t the most social person, but - he didn’t really think people didn’t want him around, did he?

"I care." You counter, trying to keep your voice light, trying to skirt around how deep that caring actually ran, "Do you have any idea how boring these things are?"

"Not really, no. I tend to avoid them when I can."

You breathe out a small, annoyed huff. "It's not fair that I have to listen to all that boring, pretentious small talk alone."

"Isn’t Jayce with you?"

"Jayce is partaking in the small talk." You complain, and then sigh dramatically.

"Come on. At least come steal a few drinks with me." You try to tempt him, "I'll make fun of rich people with you."

He breathes out a quiet almost-chuckle. “We don’t need a party to do that. We can do it right here.”

“The drinks are over there, though.”

He sighs again.

"None of that-" he makes a vague hand gesture towards the door, "is for me. It’s a show, a pretense, a performance. I gain nothing by joining them for a few hours of awkward introductions and stiff socialization."

"It's a celebration, Viktor. And it’s about making connections."

"I have all the connections I need already."

"You only hang out with me and Jayce. Your social circle is not very big."

He doesn’t answer.

Instead, he sighs again, his shoulders dropping, and then he finally turns to look at you.

His reaction is…interesting. His eyes widen slightly as he looks you over, and he licks his lips, and then he promptly looks away.

It’s not the first time he’s seen you all dressed up, but the gown you’d chosen for tonight was maybe a bit bolder than what you usually wore. Dark silk that cascaded over your body in carefully calculated patterns, a high slit that exposed most of your thigh, and thin straps that left your arms and a good portion of your chest bare.

You smile a bit at his reaction.

Honestly, you hadn’t been sure if he would even care what you looked like, before. But he was the type of person that didn’t have the time, energy, or the interest to hide his emotions very deep – he kept them in line, but he did not disguise them.

"You're not going to stop bugging me until I come with you, are you?" He says, placing down the screwdriver slowly.

"No." You smile, and he sighs dramatically.

He glances at you again, meeting your eyes briefly.

"Just let me finish wiring this."

You take a deep breath, and cross your ankles on the floor. Lean a bit closer.

"The wires aren't going anywhere, Viktor." You tell him, gently placing a hand on his shoulder. At the contact, his fingers stop moving for a second or two, and you study his reaction.

You then let your hand drop away, brushing your fingers over his bicep in the process. Just for good measure.

"No," He agrees, with something thick in his voice, "but do you know how annoying it is to come back to work when you didn’t leave whatever you were working on in a sensible state?"

You breathe out a quiet chuckle. “And how long is it going to take you to get this to a sensible state?”

“Eh–” He shrugs with one shoulder, “How long do you think it’ll take until they’re done with the speeches?”

You sigh, but can’t stop yourself from smiling.

He smiles too, just a bit.

Then he keeps working, pinning down more wires, the project starting to look less and less like a mess.

“Alright,” He says after a moment, “I think that’s it for now.” He glances at you again, the movement slow and careful, “Unless you want to hide out here with me.”

You don’t let yourself really think that through, out of fear that you might end up agreeing. It was a tempting offer, in a way, even if it didn’t differ much from how you usually spent your free time.

“Nope, we are going to party.” You grin, leaning away from his desk, grabbing his jacket and tossing it to him.

He leans back with an over-dramatic sigh, and starts rolling down his sleeves, standing up to put on the suit jacket.

By all accounts, no-one should look that good while putting on more clothes, but that doesn’t stop him.

He runs a hand through his hair, pushing it out of his face, before reaching for his cane.

You just look at him, for a moment, silently.

"What you said about not needing anyone else-" You start, studying his reaction intensely, "Did you mean it?"

He looks up at you, keeping his eyes on you for a moment. "Why do I feel like you already have an answer in mind?"

The seconds drag as he watches you, and it feels like standing on the edge of something.

"More like....a hypothesis." You answer, taking a step closer to him, trying your best to look casual.

"Oh?" He answers, a bit too composed to sound like genuine surprise, "May I hear it?"

You smile a bit, step closer again. Lingering on the edge of his personal space, you take your time meeting his eyes. "I would prefer to test it first," You answer, voice quiet and as soft as you can make it, "if that's alright with you."

He blinks, and licks his lips. Nods slightly. "I am a man of science."

You smirk a bit at the response, and tilt your head. Hum quietly, thoughtfully, before taking one final step closer and placing your hand on his chest gently. With a gentle push, he backs to the table - it’s only a step away anyway - and looks at you with slightly widened eyes.

He is surprised.

That didn’t happen often.

You take a deep breath, swallow around your doubts, and meet his eyes again. “Why did you agree to go?”

He furrows his brows slightly.

He says – or does – nothing about the fact that you are now very much in his personal space, just a breath away from touching.

“Because you asked me to.” He answers, simply. His voice is light; it’s the truth, and there is nothing more to it.

You nod slowly.

“So then–” You continue, hoping that you were right about this, “am I also why you don’t feel the need to make connections with other people?”

He blinks, his brows furrowing slightly.

“What makes you say that?” He responds, and you smile slightly, leaning just a bit closer.

“You haven’t pushed me away yet.” You note, meeting his eyes and waiting for him to answer.

“Why would I do that?” He lifts a brow.

You raise your own brows back at him. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because we’re friends, and I’d say that this –” You explain, lodging your thigh between his legs gently, “ – definitely feels like it would fall under…some other category.” You smile a bit, “Unless you do this with all your other friends, too, of course.”

He breathes out a quiet chuckle. “I…do not.”

“Just me, then?”

He licks his lips. “Just you.”

You hum quietly, and place a hand to his thigh. It makes his breathing catch slightly, and his fingers wrap around the edge of the table.

“Why?” You ask, trying to coax a real answer out of him. A real confession.

It was pretty clear that he would not have let you do this, to be this close, to touch him like this, if he did not want you to. But you wanted to hear it.

“Because –” He starts, meeting your eyes again, “I would have no problem being…something other than just friends, with you.”

You hum again, nodding slowly. “Why did you never say anything?”

He shrugs weakly. “Absence of evidence,” He says, the words simple, like it’s an irrefutable fact.

“–Is not evidence of absence.” You counter, leaning a bit closer just for emphasis. At this point, you were so close you could almost feel his body heat, and all it would take for your bodies to touch was a strong wind – or a small nudge. “I think you just didn’t want to see it.”

He shrugs weakly. “I did not want to be rude. I didn’t want to…overstep.”

“So you waited for me to make the first move?”

“It seemed polite.”

You breathe out a heavy exhale, and let your features melt into a smile.

“I could do with a bit less politeness, to be honest.” You point out, running your other hand up the side of his arm. “What’s it going to take to get you to touch me, Viktor?”

He blinks. And then, slowly, he lets go of the edge of the desk, and lifts his hand to the dip of your waist. His hand fits there, heavy and solid, and you lean into the contact instinctively.

“I think giving me permission to do so should work just fine.” He notes, with a smile in his voice.

You don’t bother stopping yourself from smiling back. “Well, then – you have my full permission.”

He meets your eyes and hums quietly in approval, pulling you closer. It doesn’t take much for your bodies to press together, and the contact is enough to make something at the bottom of your stomach drop.

“Good.” He breathes out, smiling against the side of your throat, "But if your plan was to make me want to leave this room," He continues, voice low, "it's not working."

Next

[naffeclipse]

yello Naff!!! i really admire your writing, from the way you write intense nail biting scenes to soft quiet moments i adore ALL of it, and ive read almost ALL of your fics [In Deep Dreams Between the Waves im sorry i'll read you i swear] and ive been incredibly inspired by your writing, after not reading fanfics for years your style just dragged me further into my DCA hyperfixation [...i lowkey made this account just so i can share my sleuth jesters fanart ngl] your narratives have been a huge comfort also in my stressful exam-filled life, its a goddamn event when you update <3

GOD i got distracted but i wanted to ask if you have any advice for some one whos really new to writing? even if its super simple im VERY lost, i havent tried making any long-form fic, ive drabbled in writing 4k~ oneshots but never published any, the social anxiety and pressure of making a good fic is VERY SCARY SKLDJFKLSJL

No pressure to answer any of this btw!!! if you dont want to thats no biggie jus know i love your works very much <3 i hope you have a good christmas Naff!!

Hey, babe! ♥ AHHH THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! I'm so touched, oh my gosh! You're gonna make me cry ;-; Merry Christmas to you, too!

Now for writing advice! I do have this tag right here that you can look through! However, for a new writer specifically, I got a bit I can tell ya!

Let yourself write what you want to write

Self-indulge, use tropes and whatever plot beats you want, just do whatever you want to do and have fun! Don't try to craft something to please others, because that's a good way to become miserable and burnt out real quick. This writing is for you. No one else. You. You just decide to share it if you wish!

Outlining

I highly recommend, especially for a long fic, to have your ending in mind. It erases a lot of stress and allows you to build up towards that ending in a natural and effortless manner. You don't have to get super nitty and gritty with outlining, just a basic format of events and a few notes here and there. HOWEVER! I should mention that outlining isn't everyone's ideal way to craft a story, and that's okay! I will warn you that it can be difficult if you come up with the story as you go along, but again, do what allows you to create. Outlining works for me, but it might not work for everyone.

Please be nice to yourself

Let yourself try new things, take breaks, learn from mistakes and continue to improve, and do not let one mean comment or negative review stop you. Writing can be daunting, but you can overcome it. It's so rewarding and should make you feel accomplished and satisfied, not horrible or defeated.

Good luck and happy writing!!! ♥

[amarguerite]

Hi Marguerite, hope you're doing ok. I've just finished reading Persuasion--after reading your amazing hocky/ice skater AU--and Northanger Abbey (after finishing Walls of Jericho--NA may be my favorite Austen book now!! Go Tilney!! he's just so freaking funny!) Do you have any other light-hearted novel/romance recommendations? I'm not too keen on reading more Jane Austen right now, but I'd love to read other books that you have loved. Merciii

aw, thanks os much!

I would highly recommend L.M. Montgomery's The Blue Castle. It has been my pandemic comfort read lo these many years, and one of the rare books I love so intensely I haven't been moved to write fanfic about it at all (though I love all the fics I've read of it). It's funny, romantic, full of ecstatic descriptions of nature, splendidly pacesd, and beautifully resolved.

I'd also recommend Georgette Heyer if you want light, frothy Regency stuff. Cotillion, which follows a determined young ingenue who just wants to visit London and the well-meaning but not too bright (albeit very socially intelligent) young dandy who gets roped into her various schemes, is my all-time personal favorite. I'd also like to plug The Corinthian (a really fun girl-disguises-herself-as-a-boy-and-runs-away-from-home romance), and The Quiet Gentleman (bit darker, but has a plain and pragmatic heroine with a heart of gold who is at the end is recognized for her true worth by the hero).

If you want light-hearted froth with some of the cleverest linguistic jokes out there, you can't go wrong with P.G. Wodehouse. Literally any P.G. Wodehouse. Any of the Jeeves and Wooster novels are a safe bet, but I've also got a personal fondness for Something Fresh, which is a wacky screwball comedy about a large number of very stupid but well-meaning people all trying to steal an Egyptian scarab from each other while falling in love with the wrong people. I'm also really fond of A Damsel in Distress, because the hero's based on George Gershwin and it got turned into a Fred Astaire vehicle in the late 1930s.

ETA: It may not be the best one to start with, but I do want to plug Wodehouse’s The Mating Season, because I just learned Wodehouse and A.A. Milne (of the Winnie the Pooh books) got into a fight when Wodehouse was writing it, and so Wodehouse has some really good zingers against him, like, “A fellow who comes on a platform and starts reciting about Christopher Robin going hoppity-hoppity-hop (or alternatively saying his prayers) does not do so from sheer wantonness but because he is a helpless victim of circumstances beyond his control.”

[lumosatnight]

Kill Your Darlings 2022 Recs!

@hp-mcd-fest has ended, and I still haven't recovered from all the amazing fics! There were so many (SO MANY) good ones. MCD has always been hit or miss for me, but boy did these fics hit!! And hit reallll good. Here are 7 of my favorite stories from the fest!

—

💀 Five Graves by Chelonie [Triwizard Contestants, M, 3.7k] 💀 This fic tore my heart out and then pummeled it into the ground. And I would 1000% read it again. What if the Triwizard Tournament went wrong?

"The Departments of International Magical Co-operation and Magical Games and Sports have worked hard to ensure that during this revival of the Triwizard Tournament, no Champion will find himself or herself in mortal danger."

💀 I'll take a quiet life by @deliciousblizzardshark [Harry/Severus, E, 5.0k] 💀 A mourning Harry who is so desperate he brings Snape back from the dead. Absolutely delicious angst.

Severus is dead but Harry, who has just come to understand what they mean to each other, is master of death.

💀 Snake Eyes by @diana-skye [Myrtle/Tom, M, 1.3k] 💀 I ADORE Myrtle fics! She's just a girl, really, an insecure teenager looking for acceptance. The Tom in this is ruthless and amazingly characterized.

There’s a single moment, between yellow eyes and nothingness, where she remembers. [Or - What if Myrtle wasn't a random victim of Tom Riddle? What if he was someone she knew, even someone she loved?]

💀 Breakfast, interrupted by Hrair [Lucius/Narcissa, Hermione/Draco, T, 5.2k] 💀 This fic is so funny. I was laughing the whole time. Who knew MCD could be so enjoyable?

All Lucius Malfoy wants is to have a proper, pureblood heir and to eat his breakfast in peace. Is that really too much to ask?

💀 a long way back to the light by @swoontodeath [Colin/Harry, M, 3.8k] 💀 LOVED this fic. Just the right amount of creepy and also a dash of mystery. Colin is such an underused character imho.

Colin Creevey should have died seven years, three months, and four days ago. Actually, Colin Creevey did die seven years, three months, and four days ago. It just didn’t stick.

💀 Nine Hundred and Twelve by @cannibalschism [George Weasley, T, 5.1k] 💀 TIME TRAVEL, ANGST, WONDERFUL METAPHORS. This story has it all. I love the description of time travel in this fic—as unnatural, unknown. George is so desperate to get Fred back that he forces his way through the unyielding layers of time.

After long nights, impossible exams, and years of studying, my application to join the honourable ranks of those Wixen known only as Unspeakables has been accepted. Dad could not be more proud. Mum bleeding cried at the ceremony. My siblings congratulated me for finally doing something other than grieving Fred. They all said this would be good for me, that this would be a fresh start. They don’t know I did it all for you. All for you, Fred.

💀 Sartre Versus the Stoics by JK_Terfling_Can_Suck_My_Silicone_Dick [Draco/Harry, M, 19.5k] 💀 If you want to have a good cry, I HIGHLY recommend this fic. It deals with grief in such a wonderful, very real way. It definitely has the same vibes as Stop All the Clocks, another heart-wrenching Drarry fic.

After Harry Potter kills himself without warning, his friends and family are left to pick up the pieces on their own

—

💀 Read more MCD fics in the Fest Collection on AO3 💀

(Also, psssst @bluesundaycake if you're running MCD fest next year, I'd love to help out. I loved it so much!!!)

[bitchin-beskar]

What about the reader is some sort of royalty, and Paz is their bodyguard?

ooooh, ok so @maybege has a wonderful bodyguard!Paz au that I have read quite a few times called The One, it's over on AO3! but yes, I love the idea of Paz as a bodyguard to a reader who's some kind of royalty!

maybe you're a princess, who's supposed to take the throne once you're of ruling age, since your parents died when you were younger. your uncle rules in your stead as regent, and once you turn 25, you'll take over.

but as you get closer to your birthday, you start receiving death threats, and other horrific messages, and so the advisors push for you to be assigned a full time bodyguard.

you're worried, but you're confident in the security of the palace, and your new bodyguard comes highly recommended. when you finally meet Mr. Vizsla, he's huge, intimidating and quiet, but the way he holds himself signals that this is a man who knows how to handle himself. he's the kind of person you feel safe with.

he takes your safety seriously, and he's your shadow basically 24/7, which has the unintended side effect of making him the one man you've been in the company of the most for weeks on a time, and he's extremely attractive, which your subconscious picks up on.

you've had more than one uncomfortable dream, waking desperate and needy for something you don't know how to put into words, hoping beyond hope that Paz didn't hear you making noise through the thin walls that connect his room to yours (for security purposes, ofc).

and then one day there's an attack? and you're almost killed, very much because your uncle had called Paz away and you'd been left unguarded for a few hours. one of the advisors insists that Paz take you into hiding, that you're clearly unsafe at the palace and it'd be better if you were kept in hiding until the coronation.

so the two of you have to hide out in a safe house for a few months until your birthday, the tension growing and growing with every passing night, especially since the two of you are sharing a bed...

[katierosefun]

hi caroline may i ask you some beyond evil fic recs? i read yours and now I'd like to know some of your favorites, only if you'd be comfortable with it tho of course! 🎀

of course, anon! almost all of my bookmarked fics count as recs, so if you're ever looking for some more than the ones i've listed, feel free to peruse through them as well! but here are some that i find myself going back to a lot:

general/teen rating:

the topography of your touch by pepperfield: "After returning to Manyang, Ju-won navigates the ways bodies can interact. Dong-sik adjusts accordingly."

a really lovely character study into dong sik and his relationships. there are some absolutely poetic lines in this story, and perhaps one of the loveliest first kiss scenes that i've read. (i was kicking my feet and giggling through this one, and this story is also just so . . . quiet? in a really lovely way.)

the way home by whir: "Juwon breaks himself apart and puts himself back together, then he returns to Manyang thinking he’s found his way home. In part, it’s true. He’s just wrong about one thing—home doesn’t have to be a place. Sometimes, it can exist in a person. And it’s unfortunate, because Dongsik starts feeling a lot like home."

one of the first beyond evil fics i read, so this one has a special place in my heart! 16k words of a character study on han joo won working through his feelings about dong sik and also, really, what it means to actually have a home. also some stuff about joo won reflecting on his mom too, which is something that really touched my heart. past relationships affecting your perception of your present, etc, etc.

and i watch you breathe, as i stood breathing by @electricalkittens / satiricalsmiles on ao3:  “Han Juwon, you…” Dongsik’s voice is growing smaller, and it is wavering, trembling in the hollowness of his throat. “Why do you keep getting hurt lately?”

okay, so i actually love all of her works, so i do seriously recommend just going through all of her stories, just because the writing is very poetic and makes me see shrimp colors. but i really do adore this one, just because something about feeling like you need to punish yourself, something about not having the best coping mechanisms in the world, something something about i think about that one scene towards the end where i thought oh, god, that’s what it looks like to love someone desperately and mm. i can go on about this fic for a while, but i feel like it’s one of those beyond evil starter pack fics because it really gets at what their future might look like. 

to the stars by merryofsoul:  Juwon has never gotten along with Dongsik. Not since the first day he stepped foot on the Gaenari almost a year ago.An away mission changes that.

god bless this writer because STAR TREK JWDS AU . . . STAR TREK JWDS AU . . . admittedly a little niche, but i don’t think you need to be incredibly well-versed in star trek in order to appreciate this absolute delight of a fic. but you see, i was a star trek girlie at some point in my life, so i was so delighted to read this story . . . because listen. it’s got the classic enemies to lovers element, but also lots of away mission shenanigans in “i am going to pretend that we are lovers for the sake of covering our asses” trope and also the “i can’t stand your ass but also if anything happens to you i would be outrageously upset” beat and i literally had assignments to work on but as soon as i saw this fic i could not resist reading and giggling over it, what a fun ride.

netflix and chill by starlight bloom:   Dong Sik invites Joo Won to Netflix and chill. Turns out they have very different definitions of the expression.

if you’re in the mood for something really just. hilarious and cute. i highly recommend this one, because i could not stop giggling when i read this the first time. a very lighthearted read, and also, there’s something very hilarious about joo won panicking inside because “oh god i am screwed” and dong sik being like “???? !!!! ?!?!?!!??!”. i think we, as a fandom, need to realize that dong sik and joo won also just. very funny when they’re around each other. this fic delivers on that count!

mature/explicit: 

cosmonauts by @b1uetrees / bluetrees on ao3: “ To promise a future is impossible. To choose it is to live.”

i also recommend going through all of this writer’s works, because they’re all so . . . good and tender and gentle and they make my heart sing. i have a special place in my heart for this fic in particular though, just because i think when i first read it, it was like. 4 am. and i was getting ready for the day and this fic had me in such a chokehold that i literally couldn’t do anything for the next 3 hours and then i remember scrambling because shit, i have to go to class--

what isn’t the grave by isozyme: “Juwon moves in unannounced.”

this is one of those fics that i kinda had to force myself to read super slowly, just because i wanted to digest every single sentence and turn it around in my head for a little bit. also, perhaps one of my favorites just because this fic really looks at dong sik and goes “oh yeah, this guy absolutely isn’t going to heal immediately”, and i sort of adore it for that exact reason. dong sik still feels very much so wobbly around the edges in this fic, and that’s like. what i adore. also, there’s one specific image in this fic that has been haunting me ever since. 

no son of mine by ripeteeth:  "What do you want from me?" Juwon asked, and no one has ever said just you. “

do mind the tags on this one!

but god. god i remember when i read this fic for the first time, it unlocked some kind of emotion that i didn’t even realize was sitting there lololol--but anyways! perhaps one of the most . . . most character study on han joo won. a lot of quiet stuff about joo won and his relationship with his dad specifically, so you know it’s going to really hit where it hurts. and, of course, a lot of joo won in post-canon not knowing how to navigate his relationship with dong sik (ah, yes. the quiet fear and wariness that comes with examining love but if the version of love you grew up with comes with conditions and etc, then what the hell do you do when legitimate love decides to eat at your table?)  

to the sun and all the cities in between by 64907: “ Han Joowon and all his firsts after, shared with Lee Dongsik and fondly remembered. “

this fic just . . . . .. i felt like it really re-awakened some of my love for joo won and dong sik, just because it had been a hot second since i read a fic that really examined dong sik and joo won’s relationship as it’s trying to like . . . wiggle through what it might look like post-canon. also, this fic really utilizes how joo won has absolutely or most likely never been in a romantic relationship ever, and there’s something so endearing about that? just like, the slow development of a relationship and joo won and dong sik trying to figure out the odds and ends with that because this is still ultimately new to both of them, and this fic just makes me so happy for them. you’ve got time and etc. :’)

[felrend]

My thoughts on Stray so far

Please keep in mind I have played maybe an hour and a half of this game (maybe less) but so far I've really been enjoying it! And I hope I'm not giving too much away.

The game play itself is pretty simple but that's not a bad thing

Is it the best graphics? No, but it doesn't need to be HFW or Elden Ring. It's still a beautiful game for what it is

The controls and camera can be a little janky but I can forgive that as the game moves on

Love the adaptive triggers, it vibrates at the perfect time. I totally lost my mind when the controllers vibrated with the purrs of the cat and when you rub against something

The story is actually pretty interesting as you start exploring the city. Fun story! I got to one part where it was very quiet and as I moved forward I got an achievement and it scared the little fuck out of me LOL

Love the robots! They are all so cute and can't wait to share some pictures I was able to take of them. I do have one issue with a particular design of one of the robots but that'll come later

The amount of joy it gives me to knock things over is a little embarrassing lmao

Fuck them little leech spider things. Hate them. Can't wait to find a way to murder them all

It's kind of a creepy/eerie type of game but I love it? As you unravel the world around you, it's sort of bleak. But you're the little shining light in the game and that gives me all the warm fuzzy feelings I need right now

The puzzles are a lot of fun and like I said, this game is simple but in the best possible way

I wish there was a photo mode!!! GIVE ME PHOTO MODE FOR THE KITTY!

Speaking of, unfortunately taking screen shots is a little annoying. The game play doesn't pause when you're taking pictures and then you lose out on getting the moment you really want

Go lighter for the settings, I did the adjustment like it instructed but it's still pretty dark. I'll be fixing it when I get home

The music is also fantastic! Really helps set the mood

The amount of feelings I already have for this game is pretty profound haha I did not expect to be this invested but I am. And I highly recommend it to everyone. I actually wish I was streaming this game to capture my reactions to it lol

BTW thank @northofantastic and @carla-andtheartofbeing for being enablers asking me to write this haha LOVE Y'ALL

[ratskcoreddie]

welcome to my humble abode. please be courteous and read the following rules & introduction before following my account. thanks! i hope you enjoy the show! ↓

im very thankful that you’re visiting my blog! this corner of tumblr is my safe space and i plan to keep it that way. to help me do this here’s a few things before you start trekking around these parts. please be kind and considerate to my boundaries.

before you follow & interact with me:

my blog is an nsfw, fem!reader blog. i write content and consume / repost media that is 18+. be aware that if you under the age of eighteen you should not view this blog. if you follow me and are blank or ageless you will be blocked. if you are an account that post nsfw content but have a 16+ in your bio, that makes me uncomfortable and you will be blocked! minors stay away!

if you ignore these requests and read my works i am not responsible, your media consumption is your own responsibility and i will not be held accountable for what you indulge in.

(everyone on this site is fully aware that minors have accounts on tumblr, i speak on behalf of all adult fanfiction writers that we hope you respect our boundaries when it comes to our NSFW content. you will be blocked.)

all of my fanfiction warnings will be tagged to the best of my abilities, if there is anything that even might be triggering it will be tagged. as far as other things go i am human and will miss things from time to time. be patient with me as i update tags after posting.

any form of racism, homophobia, sexism, bullying, transphobia is not tolerated from anyone on my account. there are somethings i will write about that deal with bullying, homophobia, or sexism but all of my writings are FICTIONAL. they do not reflect my views & will always be tagged.

any comments, likes, reblogs, or asks are greatly appreciated. i'm not on my phone a ton so don't worry about if you're spamming me! it doesn't really phase me. however, i am quiet shy! you can try messaging me through my inbox, but i can’t guarantee i will chat up or answer questions right away. i will try my best!

(if you’re creepy, rude, a blank / ageless blog, weird to me, racist, sexist, xenophobic, or if your vibes are just absolutely wretched, you will be blocked.)

about me:

i've never been great at introductions, but here goes.

my name is eri! i'm twenty-two, & i'm a june gemini. my name is just a nickname because i have a really unique name outside of the tumblr verse and would hate for anyone to find my account, but i’ve gone by this name on other sites such as twitter for awhile! my handle is rockstareddie but backwards; ratskcoreddie, hope that makes sense! i use she/they pronouns and i work in the entertainment industry. i love strawberrys, my favorite colors are red and beige. i have a pretty extravagant music taste and love traveling.

i'm apologize for being so short. i’m very conservative when it comes to telling people about myself over the internet (digital footprint and all that) but i hope i can convey some of my personality through my works and writings!

about my works:

again, content warnings for my writings will be tagged on every single work, i will try my best to be thorough and tag everything! please always remember to check the tags for my works.

im currently working on a series in the au i’ve created, four parts are already done and they will be posted every tuesday between the times 4:00 pm - 11:00 pm. after these four queued post i will definitely slow down on posting!

please don’t post my works on other websites. it’s okay to comment, like, and repost! comments are highly appreciated; willing to accept feedbacks and requests for new fics as well. i also love receiving recommendations. send anything my way!

i appreciate each of you! if you'd like to support me with a reblog or a comment (something as simple as you key smashing in the tags or responding to my work motivates me to write more), i'd love that! thanks so much for even checking out my blog!

characters i will write about:

tldr: eddie munson, steve harrington.

currently, i only write for steve harrington, eddie munson, and in the stranger things universe. this is probably what im going to stick to on my blog. there will be appearances from other characters (but only to benefit the story i'm writing).

tropes i will write about:

stranger to friends to lovers, enemies to lovers, slow burn, forced proximity, forbidden love, second chance, soulmates, fake relationship, sworn off relationships, oblivious to love, ect.

topics i will write about:

im comfortable with writing with fluff, smut, and angst. each of my works will be tagged with what topic they follow. if a work of mine contains heavy angst, extreme fluff, or a lot of smut, i can assure you it will be tagged!

tropes & topics i wont write about: (tw)

please understand that i wont write anything that makes me uncomfortable. such as ddlg, cheating, incest, self-harm, large age gaps, noncon, cnc, power dynamics, ect. nor will i share ask that make me uncomfortable. if you send me an ask that contains triggering material you will be blocked.

well, hello again! welcome to the bottom of my rules, you've made it! thank you for reading!!! please know that i’ll update this post periodically if i think of anything else to add in the future. i'll be sure to let you know when i do with a reblog & tag or comment.

thanks for reading & enjoy your stay!

★masterlist || ← go back home? || join my taglist

[marscia]

initial thoughts upon finishing Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go (I want to write a proper review but I really just have to say a few things):

it’s a really quiet novel, fuelled by tension and beautiful prose (this is my first Ishiguro and I don’t really know why it took me so long to pick it up!!) — the elements would tell you it’s a dystopian novel, and it sure is, but I saw it more as a commentary on the human condition positioned against the backdrop of a cruel world (how else could I describe it) where children can only keep their innocence for so long; and once it’s lost, where does it go? and in whose hands does it fall? I’ve read reviews that say it’s lacking action for something marketed as dystopian, but I think the dystopian elements were only there to provide structure as well as to serve as an overarching device to show that it’s only a matter of time before this innocence is taken away, hence the title. 

and I can’t stop thinking about Tommy and everything he possibly represents: repressed grief, anger, loneliness and a yearning for love — just the kind of innocence children have. he is often referred to in the novel as someone with “the bad temper” and I don’t think that’s fair — and this is neither on Ishiguro nor the novel itself, but on the way people like Tommy are perceived as in real life. these repressed feelings are often masked as temper and it happens. which is very very sad, and unfair.

anyway I’m so so sad I want to cry this was a really beautiful novel and I’m glad I took my time with it! definitely recommend if you're into highly character-driven novels.

[pebblysand]

[PEBBLYSAND'S 2021 FIC REC LIST] - HARRY POTTER EDITION

hi all! i hope you're doing well during this rather awkward week between christmas and new year's! i'm currently sitting on my mum's balcony under the southern france sunshine, enjoying a much welcome break from the grim winter irish weather.

as you might know, i'm not typically one to build extensive rec lists but as 2021 is coming to an end, i thought it would be fun to look back on the fics i read and bookmarked this year and give you a sort of 'best of' (especially since a lot of you might be enjoying some time off at the moment and looking for things to read). as a forewarning, while i did pick my ultimate favourite ten, these are in no particular order. i've tried to keep the ships varied (writing this list has made me realise how much i actually gravitate most towards a specific type of prose than any actual pairing) and am also reccing only works that are finished. if you want my full rec list, please don't hesitate to look through my public bookmarks on ao3, where i keep my most treasured finds.

pour a little salt, we were never here by youcallitwinter (harry/hermione-ish ; 1,274 words ; canon-compliant [1]): so, look. i appreciate that most of my following will not want to hop on the harry/hermione bandwagon with me (fair enough) but this one is definitely one of my faves within a very specific trope of harry-and-hermione-and-all-the-reasons-why-it-didn't-happen, which is probably my favourite trope for this pairing. this fic has some of the most gorgeous writing i have ever seen, period (literally every line is a quotable gem). it's about growing up and accepting life as it presents itself - the summary explains it much better than i currently am: "What happens isn't particularly epic, or even tragic. What happens is stupid; they all just grow up. That's it, that's the whole story." and yeah, that's it, that's the whole story and it's a formidable, heartbreakingly beautiful and realistic story. .

all is quiet in the clearing by slyther-ing (andromeda/ted ; 1,304 words ; canon-compliant): since reading turncoats (which is obviously the ultimate andromeda fic and is my actual favourite fic ever - if you haven't read it, please leave and go read it now), i've been low-key obsessed by andromeda's story and her trajectory from a young, Black, slytherin girl to resistance hero and grandmother to teddy. this fic presents a good insight into her relationship with ted, which is obviously tragic but so very interesting within the potter canon. it's rather short but spans over a few years as ted and andromeda meet, grow up, grow old, up until ted's death. it's beautiful and heartbreaking in all the right ways. if you're interested in that ship, i would highly recommend giving it a read. .

glass over the flame by thegreybeyond (harry/hermione-ish ; 1857 words ; canon-compliant): this is my second rec in the harry-and-hermione-and-all-the-reasons-why-it-didn't-happen category. the writing in this one is fantastic and it strikes similar cords in terms of growing up, coming of age, etc. as the first fic i recommended. i love this one because i think it very subtly studies themes of friendship and how there-might-have-been-something-but-we-chose-not-to doesn't have to be a heartbreak either. .

naive: in defense of hannah abbott by dirgewithoutmusic (neville/hannah ; 5,557 words ; canon-compliant): now, full disclosure, if you've been following me for a while, you'll know that i'm a dirgewithoutmusic stan. i've had to limit myself to only reccing one work per series because if i didn't, this whole rec list would just be dirgewithoutmusic. i've been slowly working my way through their series we must unite inside her walls or we'll crumble from within which is centered around hogwarts houses and different secondary characters, and after turncoats last year, this one was definitely my favourite i read this year. the degree of imagination and worldbuilding this author masters in shaping entire, fully fleshed characters out of the very little information we have about them in the books is truly unbelievable - i am forever in awe. this fic is mostly about hannah, her relationship with neville, the loss of her mother in book six, and a reminder that it'd okay to take time to grieve, and not to always be 'fighting' or 'okay.' it just such a gorgeous story that makes you cry and smile at the same time, just like life does. i adore this fic so much. .

the kids who chose themselves by dirgewithoutmusic (gen ; 9,714 words ; AU): i read this fic once. i will likely never read it again. it has lived in my head rent-free since then, has fucked up my psyche forever and is probably one of the most stunning what-ifs i have ever read. it outlines the scenario of what would have happened if both neville and harry had died that night on hallowe'en and there was no chosen one. i'm generally nnot one to enjoy fics where harry is dead but i suppose this is the exception. if you want to read about muggle/wizard alliances, clandestine schools, and a worldbuilding that is fucking stellar and will make you forever in awe of what this author can accomplish with less than 10,000 words, go read this immediately. the other works in the series are also amazing but this one just stuck with me. .

savior complex by @hiinnys (harry/ginny ; 1,495 words ; canon-compliant - the fic i tagged as not epilogue-compliant but i'm not sure why): someone once recommended this fic to me first asking me if i'd written it and calling it very "me," which i think i can't ignore when placing it on this list. this being said, not only did i not write this, but it's also written probably ten times better than i ever could. @hiinnys's writing is everything i adore down to the lack of capital letters (lol) and an amazing use of language and flow. it's a simple, post-war story around an ipod and harry's love of muggle music and running, topped with a gorgeous picture of his growing relationship with ginny, showing that you can create beautiful tales out of thin air. i can't stress how beautiful this is (and funny, too) and it warms my heart every time i read it. .

warm front by flagpoles (harry/ginny ; 5,332 words ; canon-compliant): as someone who's traveled quite a bit and lived in a number of different countries, i adore the trope of harry going traveling after the war and this fic (and the next one) does this so well. harry moves to australia with teddy and andromeda a couple of years after the battle and slowly learns to find his way home. there's a lot of letters, funny quotes and deep phone chatter between harry and the rest of the gang, and a very interesting study of how you can both miss people but also need to be alone sometimes. this fic is fluff and fun, and warm feelings done incredibly well (see, i'm not always bleak and angsty!) - i love the style and the dialogue and the cleverness of it all. it's something that i don't think i could ever write but which i aboslutely adored reading. flagpoles also very recently released another fic which i'm not listing here officially but also brought me a lot of joy. .

maps to the stars' homes by lizbee (gen - slight harry/ginny ; 7,475 words ; AU): i think i first read this fic years and years ago, but only rediscovered it last may. this one sort of explores the same trope as the previous one (harry goes traveling after the war) but does it in a completely different way as it was written in '05, so before book seven came out. it's a very interesting take in what could have been and what the war could have looked like if written differently, though it's uncanny how the end point is so strangely the same. i absolutely love the non-chronological structure of this fic (we all know i'm a sucker for non-linear narratives) as well as this idea that muggles could just be told about magic casually. this fic was a huge inspiration for how i wrote mia's reaction to magic in castles. .

the seam between by @copper-dust (gen ; 26,188 words ; canon-compliant): i think i'm not alone in saying i absolutely adore this fic, it's - imo - got potential to become a classic. to give you a little bit of a pitch, this story is (mostly) set during the summer between harry fourth and fifth years, before he makes it to grimmauld place. as far as i'm concerned, it sets the canon within that gap of time we never heard of in the books, describes his daily life at the dursleys', his relationship with petunia, the ongoing struggle to come to terms with cedric's death, etc. it's a fic i didn't even know i needed - i mostly read post-war fanfic to makes sense of the giant nothing that is the post-war world in my head - and i'd never really realised that there was a gap in those few weeks spent at the dursleys that i was interested in filling. in terms of the writing itself, i'll just what probably everybody knows at this stage, which is that copper_dust is one of the best (if not the best) writers in fandom at the moment. every word on that page is studied, thought through, chosen and exact, in a way that i've rarely ever seen, including in original fiction. the work and its tone is subtle, clever, and just right; harry's teenage, inner voice is rendered absolutely perfectly - as i've said before, this fic is canon, as far as i'm concerned. what i particularly love about this fic is the amount of research done on the historical context of that period of the 90s, which gives such an immersive feel to the story. you'll often hear that there is poetry in the ordinary, and this fic is the ultimate illustration of that. it is shaping beauty and truth out of the daily life of a scared and scarred teenage boy, in a truly invaluable way. i could not recommend this fic (and the rest of copper_dust's work) more. .

toxicology by speechwriter (gen ; 2,942 words): to me, this fic probably exists somewhere within a space of canon-compliant and not, which is why i'll let you be the judge. i really hesitated on what i'd recommend as my last point (close runner ups were: bless the children give them triumph yet and it's a small crime and i've got no excuse) but i chose this one because it's not only incredibly well written but also dives into an interesting concept: since harry was a horcrux, did being around him impact ron and hermione's personalities growing up, the same way the locket did in the forest? if so, in what way? i'm not sure that i fully subscribe to this theory but i think it's a terribly interesting idea and the exploration is done superbly well in this fic. i would very highly recommend.

[midnightswithdearkatytspb]

VelvetCardiganBucky’s Recommendations 2021: Week 12 & 13 | March 14th – March 27th

Welcome to weeks 12 & 13 of my recommendations, if you would like to be featured on a future list, I follow the hashtag #VelvetCardiganBucky, message me, tag me in your future works, or reblog this post and link to your story, one-shot, Masterlist, writing challenge, etc.

Be aware some if not most stories and writers on this list are meant to be consumed by an audience of those 18+. My blog is also an 18+ blog.

✨Page breaks are made @firefly-graphics✨

«Last Week

Week 14»

My Masterlist

My Fic Rec List of Mafia/Mob Bucky/Sebastian & Steve/Chris/Andy

Stuff I Posted This Week:

Steve + Bey = 4Ever » Steve Rogers and Bey carved places in each other’s hearts, that no one else could ever replace.

I Hear A Symphony » Bucky Barnes x Mutant!Reader — Reader plays an important song to her for Bucky.

—Formerly The Winter Soldier » “I’m no longer the winter soldier, my name is James Bucky Barnes & you're part of my effort to make amends.”

Lee Bodecker

(Mini) Series:

*Give In by @not-a-great-writer » soft!dark!Lee Bodecker x shy!Reader — She didn’t think she was anything special. So when the intimidating Sheriff takes an interest in her, she can’t help but feel a little unsettled. Her boring life is about to get a little interesting. | This story has to be one of my all time series I’ve ever read, and I know I will weep when it’s over. The chapters are decently sized, you have angst, fluff and smut. I couldn’t ask for more, it’s simply a masterpiece.

Deadbeat Pt. 9 by @the-witty-pen-name » Lee Bodecker x F!Reader — You work at the bar at the edge of town, the Sheriff is going through a divorce and needs to rent a room. | Cole thank you for feeding my current Lee Bodecker obsession after I watched The Devil All The Time, for the time. This story is good and I love soft!Lee, and one where no one dies. At least I hope no one dies...

SamBucky

One-Shots:

Loving You Is Cherry Pie by @river-soul » Sam Wilson x Reader x Bucky Barnes — When Sam Wilson, one of your regulars at the cafe finally asks you out, you’re ecstatic until he tells you he wants his friend to join. When you meet Bucky, you decide it might be worth your while after all. [Allusions to stalking, exhibitionism and explicit sex, 18+] | There is just not enough SamBuck stories out there and we have @river-soul to thank for feeding our love for the boys and giving us some good smut, especially to tide us over till Friday.

Nothing Good Happens After 2 AM by @callmeluna » Sam Wilson x Reader x Bucky Barnes — You are admittedly a handful when you’ve had a few drinks in you. Luckily, your partners Sam and Bucky are more than up for the challenge… maybe. | If you are looking for something to make you laugh, might I suggest reading this? The whole time as I read this I couldn’t get the huge smile off my face, it was that good.

Bucky Barnes

Drabbles:

Matching by @heli0s-writes » Bucky Barnes x Reader — Reader and Bucky are “matchy matchy,” with their belly button rings. | This is adorable as well as very funny.

One-Shots:

Smooth Criminal by @bestofbucky » Bucky Barnes x Reader — Based on a dream @velvetcardiganbucky had. You’re parents told you to never give rides to strangers, but when you notice Bucky Barnes trying to break into your car, you know some strangers aren’t so bad. | Jenny did my dream justice! I honestly couldn’t have asked for anything better.

Don’t Over Do It by @whisperlullaby » Bucky Barnes x Reader — Your boyfriend is an asshole. Bucky reminds you that you are perfect the way you are. | I can’t describe this anyway other than perfect, that I wish I had a Bucky like this there for me. Trust me you’ll love the ending.

Coming Home to You by @angrythingstarlight » Biker!Bucky Barnes x Reader — Your Biker boyfriend is finally home and he’s going to show you how much he missed you. With every inch he has. And you’re going to remember how much he loves you. | It’s not very often you read something that has an alternate ending and when you do you find yourself loving both endings. Both endings are hot, the smut is great, again who couldn’t love Biker!Bucky?

Won’t Let You Go by @kind-of-crazy-butthatsokay » Mob!Bucky Barnes x OFC!Kori — Kori met Bucky in one of his clubs, out to get shit-faced with a couple of friends to forget about her worries and maybe take home a guy to further rid herself of her numerous frustrations. Little did she know that the one-night stand with Bucky would turn into so much more than that. | Thank you so much for entering my writing challenge, it means so much. This one-shot is so good, it hit me right the feels and left me falling in love with Kori and Bucky.

Show Me How To Ride by @angrythingstarlight » Beefy Biker!Bucky Barnes x Reader — You’ve been keeping a secret from your biker boyfriend. He is going to get the information out of you one way or the other. | It’s hot and it makes you realize just how much you realize just how much you love Biker!Bucky.

Bubble Baths by @floatingpetals » Bucky Barnes x Reader (Modern AU) — Even your boyfriend Bucky, needs to wind down at the end of a stressful with a bubble bath, but he doesn’t want to do it alone. | Okay, so my summary of this sucks but let me just say this is fluffy and smutty all at once. I wish I had Bucky to take a bubbly bath with.

Bad Boy!Bucky Barnes x Shy!Reader by @gagmebucky — in which there’s nowhere to sit and bucky offers his lap—then, subsequently, his cock. (bad boy!bucky x shy!reader, dirty talk, exhibitionism and voyeurism, cockwarming, unprotected sex.) | *chugs water* yeah is it a little hot in here? I probably would have failed class if Bucky had been in my class along with Steve, I wouldn’t have known who to stare at, forget learning the material.

**Greater Good by @fuel-joy » Bucky Barnes x Reader — There is a cure for the zombie outbreak but is it worth the cost. | Grab your tissues, because you are going to need them. Thanks darling for entering my writing challenge and making me feel so many feels with this one.

(Mini) Series:

A Tender Heart ♥️ Pt. 2 by @river-soul » Alpha!Bucky Barnes x Omega!Reader — You’ve been sweet on Bucky since you started working at the compound six months ago. Normally quiet and mild mannered, an unexpired fight with a coworker brings Bucky into your orbit. [A/B/O dynamics, brief mention of bullying and fluff] | If anyone can pull at your heartstrings it’s @river-soul making the beginning of this series look so promising and I can’t wait to see where it goes.

Run To You 🪙 Pt. 10 🪙 Pt. 11 🪙 Pt. 12 by @bestofbucky » Mob!Bucky Barnes x Bodyguard!Reader — Mob boss Bucky Barnes hires you to be his bodyguard. | Jenny left me at the edge of my seat, making this such an amazing story, I always look forward to her updates, and so sad that there is only 1 chapter left.

Better than Working sequel to This by @angrythingstarlight » Beefy Biker!Bucky Barnes x Reader — Beefy Biker Bucky shows you all the benefits of working from home. In fact what he has for you is so much better than work. | Sometimes you just need to read something hot to lift your spirits, let this do that.

Stucky

One-Shots:

*Tell Me What You Want by @angrythingstarlight » Mafia!Steve Rogers x Reader; Mafia!Bucky Barnes x Reader — Your mob boyfriend, is none other than Steve Rogers and he is willing to get you whatever you wanted, all you have to do is ask. And be careful what you ask for because he’s going to give it to you over and over again. | This is so hot that I highly recommend not reading this anywhere out in public. The smut in this is just *chefs kiss*

(Mini) Series:

Miracle Pt. 2 🥀 Pt. 1 by @heavenhatesme » Soft!Dark!Bucky Barnes x Reader; Soft!Dark!Steve Rogers x Reader — When infertility threatens mankind with extinction and there hasn’t been a baby for almost 18 years, what happens when two certain super soldiers fall for the same woman and accidentally impregnate her? | It’s not tagged as dark, sorry to the writer I tagged it that please forgive me? But I just want to tell everyone heed the tags. I do look forward to reading what happens next. The smut in this is great!

Invisible Ink by @navybrat817 » Bucky Barnes x Reader, Steve Rogers x Reader; Bucky Barnes x Reader x Steve Rogers — The owners of the Howling Commandos Tattoo Parlor want to make you their best girl. | I love the idea of tattoo’d Bucky and Steve, but that's because I have a weakness for tattoo’s. So this series is just right up my alley, and the start of it is so good that I know it’s good to be a great one!

Steve Rogers

Drabbles:

Chocolate Milk & Dino Nuggets by @nony-bear » Steve Rogers x Reader — Daddy Steve helps make his little girl feel better after a long week. DDLG THEMES | Had me wishing I had a Steve to make me Dino nuggets after a long day at work. It’s precious folks.

Prompt 4K Drabble Challenge by @sweeterthanthis » Steve Rogers x Reader — “Show me how deep you can take it.” | You’re going to need an ice cold bath after this one.

One-Shots:

A Cruel Tide by @writerwrites » Nomad!Steve Rogers x Reader — A lost hero thinks she needs saving, but this divorcée’s needs were different, fleeting, and then full of attachment. Can they overcome the burdens on their shoulders and keep their word? | Sometimes you want to wrap the reader and Steve in a blanket and protect them while enjoying the smut. This gave me that and more.

Untitled Request by @navybrat817 » Steve Rogers x Reader — Sending Steve a naughty photo while he’s in a meeting leads to punishment that will remind you to never do it again, right? | Hi, I’m just going to drench myself in ice cold water. ✌🏻

(Mini) Series:

*Control Pt. 3 🔐 Pt. 1 🔐 Pt. 2 by @river-soul » dark!Steve Rogers x Reader — When a probationary agent asks you out on a date you learn Steve’s intentions for you have evolved. He doesn’t take kindly to someone touching what’s his. [Noncon, physical violence (biting), grooming behavior and explicit sex, 18+] | Definitely one of my favorite series to read on Tumblr so far, you know it’s dark, and the smut is great. I always look forward to the updates on this one.

*Lipstick and Crayons 🖍 Ch. 4 by @oneoftheprettynerds » Dark Mob!Steve Rogers x Reader — Steve can’t ever repay you for what you did. After meeting you, Steve believes his broken family is the missing piece in the puzzle of your own wrecked one. Indebting the crime lord to you has been the biggest mistake of your life, cause now you can’t get rid of him, no matter what. Loyalty and favours go a long way in the mob. | This story always gets my heart a racing and leaves you with questions as to what is going to happen next. I truly love it and Soft!Dad while being Angry!Mob boss Steve all at the same time, this story just has it all for me.

This Is My Unbecoming by @river-soul » Werewolf!Steve Rogers x Witch!Reader — When the Hydra pack graduates from turning humans to swell their ranks to kidnapping and murdering witches to consolidate power, Steve knows he needs to strike. He makes a deal with a powerful coven leader for a witch of his own in exchange for destroying the rogue pack. [Magical realism, biting, blood, slightly dubious consent and explicit sex, 18+] | Okay this is so good and I would like to thank the teenage mind of @river-soul for creating this! Like seriously thank you. I look forward to reading more!

It’s been a long, long time ☕️ Ch.1 by @mostly-marvel-musings » Steve Rogers x Reader — Steve Rogers – a man who has lost too much finds himself blending into the crowd in attempts to forget his past but revisits familiar places and spends days sketching his heart out. A rainy evening leads him to find shelter in your coffee shop. Is having meaningful conversations over endless cups of coffee with a stranger the key to unlocking a heart that’s lost the will to love? | The prologue tore my heart out, it truly did but the first chapter just puts the pieces back together. I really love this and I’m honestly looking forward to reading what happens next. I can’t thank you enough for entering my writing challenge!

*Not A Team Part: 1 by @shedobewritingalittle » Steve Rogers x Reader — The Reader tries to live a normal life, but her memories won’t leave her alone. Rhodey comes to visit the reader with a proposition. | There aren't a lot of stories out there that have walk on parts with Rhodey in it and I didn’t know how much I missed out on having him in stories till I read this. This was just so well written and the characterization of Rhodey was perfect, how Peyton got the emotions written across, it’s perfect. Read this and have some tissues on hand. I will always love it.

Andy Barber

One-Shots:

Closing Arguments by @river-soul » Andy Barber x Reader — Andy and you are going out for the first time since your daughter’s birth. Anxious about leaving her behind Andy does his best to make you feel better. [Fluff with explicit sex (f recieving), 18+] | So fluffy and sweet!

Keep the Heat by @ozarkthedog » Andy Barber x Reader — Andy fucks you in the coat. | Semi-Short and the smut is oh so good.

(Mini) Series:

Homebound 🏡 Ch. 1 by @fuel-joy » Dark!Andy Barber x Reader — You witness your neighbor kill his wife. You try to gather evidence all from the comfort of your home. | Prepare to be at the edge of your seat with this one, it’s just that good.

One Night by @darkficsyouneveraskedfor » Dark!Andy Barber x Reader — One night changes your entire life. | This is dark and exciting, with tons of angst in it. I love a real good dark!Andy fic and this is it.

Chris Evans

One-Shots:

Mirrors by @cherrychris » Chris Evans x Reader — “wanna know what i see? me owning you and this sweet little pussy” | Sometimes you read things that just blow your mind and this was one of those things.

*Work Party by @harrylovex » Chris Evans x Reader — you get drunk at a work party and chris looks after you… | This is really adorable and probably one of my favorite fluffy Chris Evans one-shots I’ve ever read.

Misc.

One-Shots:

An Act of Kindness by @stargazingfangirl18 » Jake Jensen x Female!Reader — A simple act of kindness seals your fate. | I would like to simply start of by saying that this was my first Jake Jensen fanfiction in years, or maybe my first one, and all I could was where have I been hiding from him? So good and glad I read this and so will you!

*Come Back Safe by @celestialbarnes » Sam Wilson x Reader — based on tfatws, you find out sam’s leaving for a mission, afraid to lose the man you love, you confront him, and he promises you to come back. | So fluffy you’ll want to cuddle it under a blanket fort and wish under a thousand starry night skies for it to come true.

(Mini) Series:

Fiery Friends Pt. 3 🔥 Pt. 4 by @wanderinglunarnights » Johnny Storm x OFC!Sophia Jones — Johnny invites his best friend Sophia to stay with him in his penthouse during quarantine. | I really like this story, because I find myself mentally rooting for Sophia and Johnny, also going you go girl. Looking forward to what is next for this duo.

Ensnared Pt. 2 🔗 Pt. 1 by @stargazingfangirl18 » Ransom Drysdale x Female!Reader; minor Robert Pronge (Mr. Freezy) x Reader — Robert preps you for the handoff to the smooth talking stranger who bought you, but before he lets you go, he wants to have a little fun first. | So good and hot. Honestly I look forward to hopefully finding out what happens between the reader and Ransom.

Made With Love by @ayybtch » Wanda Maximoff x f!Reader + Friends to Lovers — Wanda is an excellent cook but a terrible baker. A rough day leads her to the bakery in the Avengers compound where she meets you, the lead baker. After a dismal attempt at making chocolate chip cookies, you volunteer to help Wanda learn how to bake. Your friendship grows stronger with each successful recipe until the two of you stumble into something even sweeter than baked goods. | This story will constantly have you smiling, sure it’s only 3 chapters so far, but I started off reading it in a bad mood but by the 3rd chapter I was just so sappy and happy. I can’t wait for more!

Without Me by CuttingMyFingersOff » Legolas x OFC!Braigeth — Braigeth was an elf who has nothing but memories of Legolas to help her survive being imprisoned in the walls of Orthanc. That is, until she is able to escape and reunite with him. | I’ve been invested in this since my friend came forward to me with the idea for this story and now that it’s being written, I couldn’t be more excited to read it. I need more Lord of the Rings in my life if I’m being honest.

Forever and Ever More by @syntheticavenger » Dark Alpha!Ransom Drysdale x Omega!Reader — Ransom Drysdale may be Boston’s most eligible Alpha but he has his eyes set on you. With his inheritance hanging in the balance, he won’t take no for an answer, whether you like him or not. | Prepared to go on a Hawaiian EMOTIONAL roller coaster with this story, there are so many times in this story you find yourself picking your jaw up off the floor. I’ve linked you to chapter 9, which has all the previous chapters, listed.

Is A Shout Out To My...

@bluemusickid in celebration of 700 followers is hosting a Holi Celebration Writing Challenge, that is due April 30th, but extension can be given. Any Marvel or MCU characters can be used in addition to Chris Evans and his characters. The theme is Holi and its colors, for better explanation visit the link provided.

@whisperlullaby in celebration of 700 followers is hosting a 700 Followers Challenge, your entries will be due May 5th. The theme is kinks, no RPF, DDLG/MMLG, bathroom related , incest, or under age kinks. This is MCU characters, Sebastian Stan, and Chris Evans characters x OFC or Reader. For more information visit the link provided. Congrats Becca on the 700 followers you deserve it hun!

@stargazingfangirl18 in celebration of 5K followers is hosting a Soft Dark Writing Challenge, which is due May 31st. Don’t let the name fool you, your writing can be soft, dark, or soft!dark, or headcanons about any Chris character. 500 word minimum with no max, but new or be read as a stand alone piece. For more information visit the link provided and be sure to congratulate Siri on her 5K milestone!

@cloudystevie in celebration of 4K followers is hosting a Mob!AU Writing Challenge, that is due on May 30th. You can use Chris Evans and any of his characters he’s played before, as well as make it NSFW or SFW. To learn more about it please visit the link below. Also congratulations Jasmeen on the 4K followers! 💗

[thebooktopus]

Seven of Wands - Fluff

Sweeten to Taste by @bigblackdogfic (E // 51K)

So, I used this fic for "fluff" and it is that, in that it felt like a hug that I very much needed, but it's also so deep and thoughtful, exploring forgiveness in a way that was really well done. I loved how Harry and Draco fell together, slowly and quietly over shared meals and confessions and trying to be better for themselves and each other. I would be remiss if I didn't mention @babooshkart's incredible art in this fic - you're treated to multiple pieces, each one more detailed than the last. I love how they play with light and how they captured Harry watching/studying/memorizing Draco. I could stare for hours (as if they're Draco and I'm Harry).

Harry is starting to realize that's true. Despite six years of interactions at Hogwarts, most of them awful, Harry really doesn't know that much about Malfoy. He didn't know Malfoy likes to make buckwheat biscuits and obsesses over cabbage. He didn't know Malfoy has been writing to Luna and Hagrid. He didn't know Malfoy has a little dog that obviously loves him. 

This fic made me hungry- not just for the decadent food so perfectly described but also for the pleasure of fresh ingredients, finding a good recipe and building a meal with your own hands before sharing it with someone you love. It's a quiet sort of fic, the kind you almost feel like you're intruding on when you read it but then it sucks you into its warm embrace and then hours later it's over and you look around and it's dark outside and oh... Anyways, if you need something that will give you these stolen, sweet feels, highly highly recommend this fic.

This post is a fic rec for the @gameofdrarry Wizarding Hearts game, a fun team challenge meant to diversify your reading and try new fics! Check it out; sign ups go through July 15th!