#damen/laurent

[rosyandraw]

Can't stop thinking about that post that says falling first and falling harder isn't about loving someone more, it's about the way they fall.

Because it's so Damen and Laurent.

Damen fell first and his experience was a slightly giddy silly jaunt over rooftops with a sunrise and smiles, bright like a revelation.

Whereas Laurent was thrown off his horse and he hit the ground hard and had a near death experience that was all bruises and panic and pain and shock, blunt like a blow to the head.

Damen fell first, but Laurent -quite literally- fell harder.

[wolfpants]

wolf's reading list: july favourites 📚

<- June's rec list here

I've read some really amazing fics this month, across multiple pairings and a couple of fandoms (mostly Drarry this time, though!)! It's been a bit of a bumpy month - work is busy, life's a bit hectic, so I'm very grateful to all of these authors for offering a bit of respite 😇🖤

-

Claim and Satisfaction 🐉

E, HP, Drarry+Charlie, 6.7k | @jtimu

“Did he?” Draco’s thumb pressed harder, rolling a knot deep by Harry’s shoulder blade. “He is very good at it. Looks lovely down there, doesn’t he?”

Charlie leaned back slightly, resting his weight on one elbow. “Does he kneel for you too?”

He wondered if this was what it had been like between them, desire bound together with ferocity. He’d never asked. Now he wanted to know, ached to find out.

-

'But if he wins?' 🔥

E, Captive Prince, Berenger/Ancel, 910 | @magpiefngrl

The sex scene immediately after the end of Pet.

‘You don’t have to do this,’ Berenger said, his voice hoarse, even as his arms tightened around Ancel’s waist. ‘I want you to want it, not to—’ ‘Trust me,’ Ancel said, his lips against Berenger’s, ‘I want it. I want you.’

-

Effervescence 🧪

E, HP, Drarry, 4.3k | @thecouchsofa

Harry has trouble asking for what he wants in bed. Draco uses Veritaserum to help him along.

Running a hand across Harry’s shoulder, down his chest, Draco stepped closer. “Do you trust me?” Harry barely spared a moment to nod, knocking back the vial before Draco could so much as blink. He tugged at Draco’s hand, leading him upstairs and into their bedroom, his pace quick. “So,” Draco said, leaning against the bedpost and smirking. “What would you like me to start with?”

-

[art] Heated 🪢

E, HP, Drarry | @littlewinnow

Draco's Rut is here and Harry is so ready to help out.

-

Like Falling Water 🌲

E, HP, Neville/Charlie, 3.9k | spookywoods

Neville finds out what love is.

“I feel...I feel something for you,” Neville manages to say. He looks down between them at their flagging erections. He thinks about Charlie’s throat, his smile, the hairs that catch the foam from his drinks. “How do you separate the fleeting desire from the real stuff?” Charlie shifts the weight of his body forward and embraces Neville. “I don’t know exactly. One day you just feel something a bit deeper, and the spark hits your spine and warms your heart instead of your prick.”

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The Real Thing ❤️

M, HP, Drarry, 5.1k | @skeptiquewrites

Harry only means to cheer Draco up after a terrible breakup. He doesn't mean to fall in love.

Harry wanted to ask Draco what he wanted, the exact contours of what might please him and how. He cut off that line of thinking in a hurry. There was such a thing as taking advantage. They might have lived together for two years, but Harry wasn’t accustomed to hearing this much about how Draco thought, and that underlined the vulnerability of the moment.

-

The Tall Kingdom I Surround 💦

E, Captive Prince, Lamen, 3.7k | @yekoc

The first time it happened, in the midst of battle preparations at Karthas, Damen had dismissed it as a momentary lapse. Laurent’s voice, issuing curt orders, and his own involuntary reaction: nothing more than force of habit, the instincts he had trained into himself, deliberately, in order to survive.

Nikandros had noticed then, and had let it go with the circumspect silence of a kyroi to his king. That was as it should be, Damen thought. It was not worth discussing. It was not even worth thinking about.

“Who we are together has nothing to do with Akielos, or Vere,” said Laurent, quietly. “Let our countries have our days, and our fealty, and even our blood--but this is for us, and we decide what it will be.”

-

Way to go, Tiger 🐅

G, HP, Gen/pre-slash Drarry, 2.1k | houndsinheaven

Scorpius Malfoy's seventh birthday.

His dad had made a mistake when he was in school, the sort of big mistake that meant people didn’t want to be near him. It was why Scorpius couldn’t get ice cream from Florean Fortescue’s. It was why they had to get permission before going to see Grandma, or to the beach, or to the zoo today.   He had never spoken to the dark haired man before. He couldn’t hear what he said in their home anyway - Dad always whispered the charm that made things go nice and quiet when Potter knocked on their white front door.

-

Let me know what I should read next! Recs always welcome! See you in August!

[sitical]

-breathes asthmatically- they're here. They have acrylic cases in transit. These are my prized possessions and they will be protected and displayed as such

[robbingprince]

Star-dust

“Will you—”

Damen took his head in both hands and kissed his cheek, and kissed it, and kissed it, squishing Laurent’s face in his palms, so—so crushingly overwhelmed that it was difficult to stop, to, think, to breathe. Laurent smelled like sea-daffodils and like grass and like oranges, like warm evening air and rolling hills and twinkling lights, like everything Damen could want, and he inhaled him, deep, long, drawing a punched-out gasp out of him, a yelp of surprise.

“Stop it,” he was laughing, and, “brute, it’s—stop!” but he was making no efforts to free himself, his hands over Damen’s, pressing only closer. One snuck to the back of Damen’s neck, and his eyes opened wide, looking right at him, endlessly blue. “You,” he paused, flushing.

“Sweetheart,” Damen whispered, delighted. Pasted a big, sloppy kiss all over Laurent’s cheekbone; down his jaw, to his chin, and just under it, revelling at the tiny sigh, ravenous for it. Pulled Laurent even closer, determined to kiss him unravelled, until he was trembling in his arms and melted open, determined to give him everything, to have him closest and deepest and truest and free.

“Damen,” low, his voice when it roughens, dazzling, dizzying. “Damen.”

“Yes,” he said, hysterical, “yes, sweetheart,” kissing and kissing and,

“Yours,” Laurent breathed, warm on the tender skin of his throat, “Damen, yours,” and Damen’s mind splintered around it, drowned in the joy of it, heart soaring—

The yelp was more of a squeal this time but to be fair, Damen did hoist him up a little suddenly, and Laurent was—oh, not standing anymore, but closer, finally, and his legs twined around Damen’s as soon as they left the ground and there was no flailing, no time-wasting, just graceful re-tethering that tugged hard on something in Damen’s chest and kissing was more like pecking, grinning too hard to stop, teeth to teeth, and Damen loved him so fully and so hopelessly and so earnestly that it was a bit like being kicked, a bit like flying.

“You’re ridiculous,” Laurent said, but his voice was warmed honey and his smile was even worse and Damen tore the distance still between them with a cry, pleading, closer, closer.

“Yours,” he said, a confession tucked into the crook of Laurent’s neck, “yours, Laurent, yes, always,” silly and flayed open with this, breathless.

Laurent’s hand was gentle as it guided his chin up. His face was luminous, golden-pink in the last of the light. There was something reverent about this, rolling hills behind them and the glisten of the sea ahead; something soft and frightening. It quickened in his chest, rabbiting in every direction. A row of sparkles set aflame. Laurent, in his arms: Laurent, looking at him, looking like this.

“The sun is setting,” he said, forehead resting against Damen’s. His breathing was coming in fast, belying the even tone. “Night will fall soon.”

“Night,” Damen agreed, nonsensically. The smell of sea-daffodil was rich and heady; he was very nearly swooning. “Sweetheart,” he added, helplessly.

“Should we head back?”

“Not yet,” Damen said. His thoughts tried, and failed, to reach past the length of Laurent’s eyelashes; they would glow under starlight too, silver instead of gold. It was all so impossibly soft, impossibly precious.

Laurent blinked at him knowingly. His smile was too wide; it threatened to break something, battering at Damen’s ribs from the inside to the stutter of his heart. “Not yet,” he echoed. “What shall we do in the meantime?”

And when Damen just stared, stunned with this starburst of affection,

“Kiss me,” Laurent said, chuckles interrupting the pout, and Damen could roar with how much—he was still carrying him, crushing Laurent’s body into his, careful and disbelieving, still, shot through with the thrill of it.

Helpless—

Damen took his head in both hands and kissed his cheek, and kissed it, and kissed it. Realised, with this brilliant rush: he could never get enough. “Brute,” Laurent huffed, airy, light, and Damen thought, yes,

And he punctuated each kiss with it: “Yes,” and, “sweetheart,” and, “yes,” and, “yes.”

Star-dust glimmered in Laurent's hair, in his smile. “Fiancé,” he said, his voice sweetly shy, and Damen’s toes curled with the pleasure of it. He said, “Yes.”

“Husband,” Laurent tried, and Damen dropped them both to the grass.

[leojurand]

ok so i saw your posts about the dunnett/captive prince parallels and i read captive prince earlier this year and one scene made me think like wow this is totally dunnett but i looked it up and i could find nobody that had talked about it. it's the orgy scene in scales of gold/prince's gambit? and specifically the conversation between nicholas/gelis and damen/laurent afterwards... like do you see it too or am i crazy? when i read it i was struck by the resemblance

hi!! here are the scenes you've mentioned

i actually didn't notice these similarities at all! even tho i reread capri after reading house of niccolò. @meidebenne was the one who pointed this one (and other similar scenes) to me 🫶 and yeah, clearly one was inspired by the other! you're not crazy!

i never thought about it before, but another thing they have in common is that laurent&gelis are antagonistic at first because of what damen&nicholas did (or they think they did) to their sibling.

i think the lymond inspiration is obvious, but honestly... pacat is clearly a huge niccolò fan lol. i think the reason no one really mentions the connections is that not that many people have read or care enough about HoN to do it </3 but you can always talk to me about them if u find anything else!!

[coffeedrgn87]

Captive Prince FIC: Isthima

Two years ago, in cold dark February, I took a peek at my AO3 stats, and by that I mean how many stories I'd written per fandom. I noticed that, at the time, I'd published four CaPri stories. I also had a vague idea for a fifth story. I wanted to somehow incorporate the island of Isthima into my writing.

So, what did I do? Well, I sat down and wrote three chapters in a whirlwind. And because I was so fond of those three chapters and because I'm also an impatient type of person, I edited my unfinished work and posted it to my AO3 account. Then two and a half years went by (life and other things happened) and every other month, I'd look at that unfinished story and tell myself that I needed to get my act together and write the remaining chapters. And did I? Well, of course not. Because if you know me even a little bit then you know that I'm a coffeedragon with a PhD in procrastination. And if you didn't know that yet, well, then you know that now. 🤣

Anyway, long story short. Some time ago, I did finish the story. And I recently uploaded the missing chapters and now the story is complete and I couldn't be happier about it.

Title: Isthima Rating: M(ature) Word Count: 15K Summary: When Laurent unexpectedly commands Damen to take him to the enigmatic island of Isthima, Damen is determined to fulfil his lover's request—no matter the obstacles. But as preparations for the journey unfold, so do unforeseen complications.

If you're in the mood for fluff and a Laurent-style gambit, then I humbly offer you this work of mine which is now COMPLETED! Whoop, whoop!!!

[seasonsofcapri]

Seasons of Capri 2023: Cycles & Circles - Masterlist!

Thanks to everyone who participated in the fest this year and made it such a success. Scroll down for the full masterlist, but here's a quick summary of what we did this year:

Fics submitted: 14

Fanart submitted: 3

Total number of words written: over 198,000, including four works in the 10,000-20,000 word range, and three that broke 30,000

We're so grateful to everyone who signed up and made all this incredible art. We couldn't do it without your love for these characters and this fandom! ❤️

And now, here are all of the wonderful creations for this year's fest:

Sexual Intercourse by antivillain

Fic | Damen/Laurent | 2.3k

Damen's healthy enough to engage in sexual intercourse. Laurent is (emotionally) healthy enough to tease Damen mercilessly for being so awkward and uncomfortable discussing the matter with Paschal. Paschal is not paid enough.

Tie Me Down, Set Me Free by @kiseopingu

Fic | 14.3k | Damen/Laurent

When Damen gets hired by his family's sworn rival to help track the man's younger brother, he doesn't expect the road to lead him to familiar places, and familiar faces. As for Laurent, his path to freedom is clear. It's only a matter of creating an opportunity to reach it.

As past and present slowly merge, both Damen and Laurent are forced to contend with their truths, whether they want to or not.

Jokeste’s Journey by @vmcgmidlifecrisis

Fic | Jokaste/OFC | 4.3k

Jokaste travels north, meets (original character) Drifa and gets some sexy fulfilment.

Beautiful, Beloved, Strong by bluehair

Fic | Erasmus/Kallias Erasmus/Torveld | 1.5k

My prompt for The Seasons of Capri Fest 2023 was: "Kallias schemes to save Erasmus with no hope of seeing him again--until one day, he does." Hope I did it justice! Because Kallias really would do anything for love.

Returning by flightinflame

Fic | Damen/Laurent | 2.4k

Damen knew the return to Arles would be hard for Laurent. He had not considered that it would be hard for himself.

The Stand-In Wedding Planner and the Obstinate Baker by penstrikesmidnight

Fic | Damen/Laurent | 2.8k

Auguste's wedding planner has decided to go on vacation a week before his wedding, leaving Laurent, the best man, to make sure everything is taken care of. If that's not enough, Laurent has to deal with an obstinate baker who seems intent on making his job as hard as possible.

There is absolutely no chemistry between them. At all.

Heat by @linecrosser

Art | Auguste/Laurent | Digital

While in the middle of a campaign in Delfeur with his older brother, the Crown Prince of Vere, Laurent goes into his first (late) heat at age 17 (totally triggered by the presence of Damen, the stupidly handsome Crown Prince of Akeilos). There are very few things more dangerous than having an Omega in heat while camping in enemy territory, and it's too late now for suppressants. Leaving Laurent to ride out the heat on his own would mean leaving it last for three days or more. Auguste has no option but to help Laurent through it by himself, so it will last no longer than a couple hours.

Red (like our spilled blood) by @pijulle

Fic | Kastor/Laurent Damen/Laurent Auguste/OFC | 39.6k

Akielos and Vere are at war, but maybe marrying the princess of Vere would help the two country finds a common ground - "The prince!" Auguste shouts. "Laurent is a prince!"

Star Crossed by @hephaest1on

Fic | Damen/Laurent | 35.2k

A story of Laurent Capulet and Damen Montague. A tale based on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, of lovers who suffer because their families are feuding. A modern AU that leans on the themes and actions in Shakespeare's original play and plays on the issues young lovers face in a world where gossip is news.

if only to dream of you by @nv-md

Fic | Damen/Laurent | 2.4k

During negotiations with the Vaskians and Patrans, Laurent falls ill and Damen must leave him to lead their newly-forged kingdom.

After a week of quiet suffering, Damen returns to their bedchambers and attends his husband.

Ruin Your Salvation, Ruin Your Mind by pretend_i_dont_exist

Fic | Damen/Laurent | 10.2k

"I do not understand. I thought we had a truce, so I came here for peace." His voice had grown hard and dangerous. "Why?"

Silence for a moment. "You killed my brother. ------- Laurent has suffered a lot since his brother's death, but he survived to his wedding day, and he's looking forward to a quiet life with a man he appreciates. New life, new him, he decides to invite his brother' killer to the wedding to talk and make peace with himself (by murdering the guy).

In Another Life by @mosrael

Fic | Halvik/Jokaste | 43.8k

Jokaste is the pearl of Ios–beautiful, intelligent, revered–and the consort of the most powerful man in Akielos… Or so she thinks. When her chosen lover’s power is corrupted and usurped by a foreign faction, Jokaste must make the hardest decision of her life: remain in Akielos and meet a perilous fate–one she had a hand in crafting–or flee to seek her future elsewhere.

Or: when getting kidnapped, then kidnapped again turns out to be the best possible thing that could happen to a girl.

antidote by @banananamilks

Fic | Damen/Laurent | 2.7k

Auguste survives Marlas, but Damen still becomes our captive prince. Actually all three princes are kind of the captive prince. oops

Soldier, Poet, King by @bluebutter-art

Art | Damen/Laurent | Digital

Two years after the bells had rung, both Akielos and Vere celebrate the wedding of their two Kings, which coincidentally falls on Vere's Annual Autumn Festival.

Chasing Meridians; Or 26,00 Miles to Home by @not-a-coral-snake

Fic | Damen/Laurent | 17k

Laurent lives a life of quiet routine, until the day a few ill-chosen words, his uncle's malice, and his own inability to back down from a challenge see him wagering half his fortune on an impossible journey to the ends of the earth and back. Happily, or perhaps unhappily, his newly-hired valet is making the journey with him and has plenty of opinions about where they should go, what they should do, and de Vere himself.

An Around the World in Eighty Days au.

At the Drop of a Veil by @seekthemist

Fic | Damen /Laurent | 19.1k

The Battle of Marlas could have brought the relationship between Vere and Akielos to a breaking point, but it didn't. As the peace treaty is finally signed, King Aleron has a very clear idea of how to ensure the agreement is truly felt.

"Since the formal establishment of Vere and Akielos as independent reigns, there had been twelve peace treaties. The Peace of Marlas, signed by King Aleron and Theomedes-Exalted before the beginning of autumn, would be the thirteenth.

The thirteenth peace would not go down in the history of the Kingdom as an abject failure. Not if Laurent could help it."

By the Waterfall by @captaindamianos

Art | Damen/Laurent | Digital

Laurent is the god of winter, Damen is the god of summer. They only ever overlap in spring and fall. Is their love story doomed forever?

Don’t forget to kudos and comment to show our wonderful creators your love!

❤️ your mods!

[chastillon]

Capri Valentines Ficlet

For @coffeedrgn87! Featuring some slight snarky Laurent and Damen taking them somewhere special. Happy Valentines Day! :) 

@caprivalentine <3 

“I’ve always wanted to kiss you blindfolded” 

Laurent’s cheeks heated while Damen pulled away. 

“And how long have you harbored that particular wish?” 

They were standing in an unremarkable field outside Marlas, and Laurent had been thoroughly sequestered for the afternoon. He had tried interrogating Damen about his sudden desire to take in the nature of the region. Questions rolled off his back and concerns shrugged away as though the demands of their new capital, and nascent kingdom, could be dismissed for an excursion. It was no miracle Laurent had a gap in his schedule. One was forcibly demanded by a particularly commanding king. It was also no miracle that Laurent let his stubborn protests melt away - for all his bluster, he could never say no to that dimple. He still made a show of grousing about their trip until they slowed to a halt in the field. 

It was early summer, and a golden afternoon swallowed the grasses and trees. Damen’s thumb brushed the line of Laurent’s lower lip while he mouthed at his ear. 

“Let me think. When was the last time I saw you blindfolded?” 

“It’s hardly a regular occurrence.” 

“More’s the pity.” 

Damen punctuated himself with a brief kiss to the cheek. One large, warm hand brushed the length of Laurent’s forearm until their fingers were tangled and he was being tugged onwards. 

“You don’t happen to have a Vaskian clan hidden somewhere in the trees? Should I start running?” 

“I’d only catch you again.” 

Damen was leading, so he couldn’t see Laurent smile. 

“Watch your step.” 

Field grass began to transition into soft moss and knobby roots that Damen deftly led them around. Bird cry echoed from above. 

There had been no time in the past few months for a day like this. They had barely left the fortress at Marlas while planning, negotiating, and reforming their kingdoms together. Daily Laurent was accosted by opinionated councilmen and diplomats exercising their right to be a nuisance. Exploring the surrounding wilderness hardly ranked high in Laurent’s priorities. As it happened, the season had just turned from shy spring into a lush, full summer. 

Laurent marked the passage of time - he hadn’t yet known Damen a year, but within months they would pass that milestone. 

An acorn dropped somewhere ahead as Damen led them around more roots. Eventually they veered to the left and a sudden wash of sunlight struck Laurent’s skin. 

“I’m starting to think you didn’t really need to blindfold me for this long.” 

“Maybe, but you love theatrics. Doesn’t it all add to the intrigue?” Plus there’s the distinct benefit of you seeing me in one, Laurent thought.

Damen slowed them to a halt, then moved behind Laurent to remove the silk slip from his eyes. They were standing in a small clearing ringed by saplings and bathed in sunshine. In the center, two feather cushions were arranged upon the ground. They were deep green and set atop the type of threadbare blanket servants used as tablecloths. A thick tome of poetry rested beside them. 

Laurent felt strong arms wind around his waist and someone nosing against his cheek. 

“Happy birthday,” Damen murmured. 

Laurent stood motionless as he struggled to compute the setup. Despite himself, a feeling of awe swept through his body and his heart kicked itself sore. 

“I - nobody knows when my birthday is.” He hadn’t let anyone know, and it had passed unobserved since Auguste died. It wasn’t self-pity. His uncle never celebrated him, and he was content to pass the day in peaceful reclusion. 

Damen dropped a soft kiss to his temple. 

“Well, I have means. And I’m on good terms with a physician who knows you fairly well.” 

Laurent angled his head to look up at his companion for the first time. There was an impossibility in front of him. The only blessed, unforeseen force of nature that could have altered the course of his life so drastically within one year. Not for the first time, his heart felt a vice of love. Their noses bumped. 

“What do you think?” Damen whispered. 

Laurent turned around completely and wrapped himself in the embrace. 

“The theatrics were a good touch.” I think I want to spend the rest of my birthdays with you, like this. Hiding away from politics and reading a good book. Laurent stepped back and smiled. 

“Thank you.” 

[cactusspatz]

May recs

Family Photos by KelpieCodyne (DCU, gen)

“I thought you quit your photo stalking?” “In my defence, I never said I was quitting, and you never asked if I would,” Tim immediately counters. “So really, this is kind of on you.” Just because Tim became a bat, doesn’t mean he stopped taking photos of bats. Several times Tim took photos of the batfamily, and one time they took photos of him.

This delightful fic features my OTPs of Tim/the batfam, Tim/photography, and Tim/being a little weirdo.

In Service by @smilebackwards (DCU, gen)

Tim rings the doorbell of Wayne Manor for the third time in as many days, and for the third time, Mr. Pennyworth opens the heavy oak door. He looks tired and careworn and Tim knows for certain that he’s choosing the right thing now. Mr. Wayne isn’t going to let him anywhere near the Robin suit, but maybe Tim doesn’t need it. There’s another tack he can try. Or: When Bruce refuses to accept Tim as the new Robin, Tim takes the next best option. He apprentices to Alfred.

Such a clever premise, and a sweet execution!

To Preserve the Life of Others by romantic_drift (Nirvana in Fire, gen)

Lin Jingyi has always been a doctor. "Her heart stutters. She thinks for one wild second of just breaking into a mad dash, running out of this accursed palace, Jinling, Da Liang itself. She is insignificant, an orphan, a wandering doctor. They would never chase after her, surely. But there is her family."

Consort Jing's backstory is only glancingly described on the show, and this fic does a brilliant job of putting all the odd fragments together into a complex whole with great characterization.

Zeitnot by decayaslife / @the-ronan-cycle (Captive Prince, Laurent/Damen)

"Zeitnot (chess): German for time trouble. Zeitnot occurs when a player needs to play several moves in a very short period of time in order to reach the time control defined for the game." When twenty-three-year-old Laurent wakes up on the morning of the Battle of Marlas in his adolescent body, he has to figure out how to keep Auguste and Damianos alive through the end of the day.

Ooh, very fun and well done time-travel fix-it.

Su She Eats his Heart Out by @KizuKatana (Untamed/MDZS, Wangxian)

The (bitter) third party pov of the epic college romance between Wei Ying and Lan Zhan, as told from the pettiest NPC to ever exist.

Extremely funny use of an unreliable narrator, and the sequel/companion from Lan Wangji's POV is hilariously horny and smitten - so very in character!

[rosyandraw]

Speaking of Damen’s POV. I’ve always wondered what Damen was thinking in Chapter 5 when he just got back from secretly rescuing Auguste and Laurent ask him whether he wanted to fuck him. Idk because the way you wrote it seemed so ominous.

Did Damen ever suspect that Laurent was ever groomed at all? Because I think it’s evident that Laurent portrays obvious signs of unhealthy experience like how he assumes that every favour should be repayed with sex etc.

Would love to know more on Damen’s introspection of Laurent. And ngl for someone as protective as Damen, I’m surprised that Damen didn’t take action on Bastian sooner. Like just beat him up already djdghshs

Okay this might get long so I’m very sorry! And I’ll put it under a cut because it could potentially be upsetting or triggering and I don’t want anyone to accidentally see it.

Damen’s awareness of Laurent’s abuse in canon and how I translated this.

Firstly, thank you so much for this question, and yes, it was meant to be a little ominous or dark because you guys all know what it implies.

I’ll start by saying it is a tough topic to navigate in fiction because the nuances can get lost on page and there is no one size fits all.

And that’s always very present in my mind when I think about Captive Prince and the way it deals with -and the ways it doesn’t deal with- Laurent’s abuse.

For Damen in particular I based NMFY and Damen's behaviours/reactions entirely on my opinion regarding the canon.

Did Damen consciously and actually think the words “Laurent was groomed”? No.

Do I think he was aware on many levels of the things he was witnessing, and cataloguing of Laurent's behaviours, and it's likely source? Yes.

I think Damen, like many of us, would never just assume something so brutal regardless of what’s in front of us. It’s not a standard thing to think or assume regardless of the people and circumstances around the person. Most people do not go around thinking of it because it is abhorrent and outside of -most- people’s experiences. I think as good people we -like Damen- would shy away from the conscious admission of the thought because we don’t want it to be true. Even when something is “off”.

And I believe that is at the heart of Damen's understanding in canon (and in my fic by extension). Canon Damen is very good at compartmentalising and actively not thinking about the things that upset him. His ability to repress his pain (Kastor, Jokaste, being made a slave, not getting to say goodbye to his murdered father, the prep and ring scene, the post, Ancel... the list goes on) is unparalleled and speaks to his own trauma response mechanisms. I think this very much extends to Laurent and the fact that he was, as Damen said "mishandled"

He actively shies away from it. He notices little things here and there and then quickly swerves away. An example that springs to mind right now from very early on is Pg 13 of Prince's Gambit:

There was something uneasily transgressive about the idea of sleeping in the place meant for Laurent’s uncle “the prince stays here often?”. The castellan mistook him to mean the keep, not the rooms. “Not often, He and his uncle came here a great deal together in the year or two after Marlas. As he grew older, the Prince lost his taste for the runs here. He now comes only rarely to Chastillon."

Damen made a leap but he doesn't tell us exactly what that leap is. We just know that the intimacy of Laurent sleeping in his uncle's bed made him uneasy. That something felt off. But the castellan mistakes Damen's meaning implying it is something normal and follows up with what is essentially the reason he thinks nothing of it. And then food arrives and Damen rushes off to it with the air of someone desperate to cut the conversation. A flash in the pan; noticed, documented, and quickly buried. One instance of many.

So, yes. I think Damen was only waiting for confirmation both in Canon and in my fic. He was actively repressing everything he had noticed and rejecting the conclusion he desperately did not want to think about.

Because what if he was wrong? That’s a terrible thing to assume or bring up or bookmark in your head about someone when you don’t know.

I think in Canon, and likewise what I attempted in my fic, it equates somewhat to: Schrödinger’s awareness. He doesn't know, but he also does.

In Chapter 5 of NMFY it gives Damen pause, like most of Laurent’s glaring markers, the same way they do for Damen in canon. It’s something he makes a note of and something he endeavours to not question out right -not his place- and to make sure Laurent feels safe enough to know Damen would never do what Laurent expects.

This part in particular I based on Laurent’s assumption following how drunk he gets at Marlas in Kings Rising, that Damen probably fucked him. Laurent in CP and Laurent in my fic are both aware that being out of it (drugged, practically asleep, incredibly drunk) means it’s easy to fuck him and all he has to really do is lie there and it’ll be over quick, because his submission or compliance is the expected norm. Neither upsetting nor angering to him. Just is what it is. An expectation from experience. He’s less trouble when he’s half conscious: this he knows and equates it to ideal time to fuck him because docile is preferable and his comfort/consent has never been part of the equation.

In my fic Damen clings to the idea that Auguste would have said something if it had been true of Laurent. So whilst he’s aware something about Laurent is off, he consciously shuts the ideas down. But Damen doesn’t take time to be convinced both in my fic and in canon, he just absorbs it. There are no questions, it’s just bringing a hard buried suspicion to the forefront as fact.

As for Bastian I think Damen wants to so very badly. But he’s also aware that he can’t really do that given who they are. And he’s never exactly certain that it’s his place to do so. He (and me by extension or is that the other way around? Haha!) needs Laurent to pull the trigger so to speak. He’s protective yes but Laurent has his own agency and Damen wouldn’t overstep that.

Especially in a modern setting and in this setting in particular where he has to worry about the press and the truth of a certain situation which he can never afford to have out. Anything with the police is a no go for him. Just in case. Damen is aware that the Royal family, the secret service, they’d all flip if someone dug up -or dragged up- the truth so its best not to tempt fate. Which absolutely isn’t to say he can’t be pushed but as of right now he’s conscious of Laurent and his choices and what he might want -or not want- and his place in all of that. He’s not petty enough to lash out with jealousy at least. Like in canon jealous Damen is more derisive and sulky than aggressive or petty.

I am very sorry this got so long but I wanted to give it a proper answer 💕💕

[shealwaysreads]

Still

Rhythm ebbed and flowed—drumbeat, string, voice—and bodies moved. A garland of wheat nestled in Damen’s curls, a crown as ripe and golden as his smile.

Another harvest, another year of reign, and this—them—still.

They dance—palm to palm—and Laurent’s heart dances too, light enough to meet the moon in the sky.

A microfic inspired by @seasonsofcapri’s prompt ‘harvest moon’

Read all of my other captive prince microfics here!

[sitical]

I might have a problem....

But the true problem is that I'm still missing books😡

[read-in-the-night]

Capri Kinktober Day 2: Breeding

Title: Your Colour On My Skin Prompts: Pet play (of the Veretian variety) | Breeding | Humiliation Ship: Laurent x Damen Summary: It had been a long day. Council meetings, listening to farmers complaining about who stole whose chicken, more council meetings, dinner in the library while researching the evolution of grain harvests over the past decade. Laurent felt exhausted and wanted nothing more than to sleep when he walked into his and Damen’s bedroom. His husband, however, had other ideas. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/50513800

Thank you @captiveprincekinktober for organizing this!

[robbingprince]

i just really like how damen always has laurent pressed against something. it's very yes

[coffeedrgn87]

CaPri Valentine's Day Exchange 2023

Title: Spring In Aquitart Rating: M Pairing: Damen/Laurent Word Count: 3.5K Giftee: @shealwaysreads Summary: "If people did not love one another, I really don't see what use there would be in having any spring."

Read my contribution to the CaPri Valentine's Gift Exchange 2023 here.

Thank you to the incredible mods of @caprivalentine for putting this fest together, being extremely supportive, efficient, and super-helpful. I'd also like to thank my D for making sure I had the time to write my contribution and @the-toughestest-hufflepuff for the unwavering support I got throughout. My friends are incredible.

I had so much fun writing something for this ship again and writing this little fic made me realise how many more stories I'd like to write for Lamen. These two idiots in love make my heart sing.

If you choose to check out my story and read it, I hope you enjoy it.

Much love, Coffeedragon

[seasonsofcapri]

New Fanart: By the Waterfall

Title: By the Waterfall

Ship: Damen/Laurent

Creator: @captaindamianos | captaindamianos (AO3) 

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings/Tags: Alternative Universe

Prompt #: 32: Laurent is the god of winter, Damen is the god of summer. They only ever overlap in spring and fall. Is their love story doomed forever?

Summary: "Laurent is the god of winter, Damen is the god of summer. They only ever overlap in spring and fall. Is their love story doomed forever?"

View it here on Ao3!

Don’t forget to kudos and comment to show our wonderful creators your love!