#egf2023

[pato-roldnart]

Orange Juice | Snowbaz collab!!

I’m happy to bring you all some snowbaz that @orange-peony and I did for @erotic-grope-fest  😏😏🌈✨❤️

 This fic has a special place in my heart. 😌 Thank you, Peony for letting me draw for your gorgeous fic. 

Read Orange Juice on AO3 

[erotic-grope-fest]

Erotic Grope Fest 2023 Works Masterlist

A huge thank you to everyone who participated in and supported this fest! All of the creators, betas, and cheerleaders—I appreciate all your efforts to make this event such a success! Below is the masterlist of all the steamy and spectacular works created for the fest. Please check them out and let the creators know you appreciate them! <3

Fic

Restoration Ecology - The REmix (Baz's version) by RoyalAsstronaut

Orange juice by @orange-peony

Good at Something by @larkral

i want the love on your wrist (oh give me the heart on your neck) by @wellbelesbian

Good morning, good night, good morning by chen-chen-chen-again-chen

Let Me Live That Fantasy by bonus_content

turn around and make it alright by fowlsprincess6138

to touch the skin of me by onepintobean

i carry your heart with me(i carry it in my heart) by @themandilorian

Good for Him by palimpsessed

Redline by thewriterxj

carve your name into my bedpost by fowlsprincess6138

Double Your Pleasure, Double Your Fun by Aristocratic_Otter

Enter Bastard by facewithoutheart

The ABC's of Kink by prettylightsbigcity

Blackout by thewriterxj

Oiled and Aroused by skeedelvee

every inch of you by ConfusedBiQueer

Many ways to hold onto you by @nightimedreamersworld

Captive Heart by Blackberry_Summer

Keep Your Enemies Closer by @scone-lover

The Domestication of Hands by EarlGreyMage

Art

art by @takitalks

art for "Good morning, good night, good morning" by @shemakesmeforget

art for "Enter Bastard" and Måneskin video by martsonmars

art for "The ABC's of Kink" by @stardustasincocaine

art by @ic3-que3n

art for "Orange Juice" by @pato-roldnart

art for "Double Your Pleasure, Double Your Fun" by @artsyunderstudy

[shemakesmeforget]

“Do you want a pint, then?” the man-thing asks, curious, as if they’ve just met at a pub and he’s offering a drink to a homicidal stranger who is staring glassy-eyed and slavering at the bottles on display.  

“Do you have a death wish?”

My piece for the @erotic-grope-fest ❤️❤️❤️ this is a companion piece of @chen-chen-chen-again-chen 's wonderful fantastic showstopping fic (chaper 1 is up, more to come), read on ao3:

Good morning, good night, good morning

[palimpsessed]

"I think he wants this, wants me. And I’m going to make it so good for him. This morning. This life…I’ll keep trying. To keep him well. To keep him happy."

Simon makes good on fulfilling his new mission in life.

Good for Him

A fic written for the Erotic Grope Fest 2023

Rated E, 4k

(text free image under the cut, non-explicit)

[chen-chen-chen-again-chen]

WIP Wednesday & Countdown to EGF (6 days!)

Hi, hello, hola!! How are you lovelies doing today? Thank you for the Wednesday tags, @confused-bi-queer and @cutestkilla, and for the Sunday tags, @you-remind-me-of-the-babe, @larkral, @shrekgogurt, @raenestee, @fatalfangirl, @shemakesmeforget, @hushed-chorus, and @aristocratic-otter! I've been away from Le Tumbs for the last few days and I am still sloooowly catching up on all the delightful things you've all been making and reccing!! ❤️❤️❤️

My Good EGG / EGF fic continues apace.... Have one of the rare snippets from Ch. 4 of the draft that isn't just fucking: 😆

“Is it a dealbreaker if I’m a night owl?”

“I think you’d make a very handsome, very judgy owl,” Simon says. He sounds sleepy, and he arches a little whenever Baz’s thumb circles his skin. “If I was a bird, I’d be - dunno, one of those birds with the weird frog mouths.” 

“No,” Baz says. “You’d be a shrike. A butcher bird.”

A smile lifts up the corner of Simon’s mouth. “You really took it to heart when I said that killing things is my love language.”

If you haven't seen the tantalising glimpse of art that @shemakesmeforget shared for SSS, please CHECK IT OUT. I laughed manically when I saw it and it continues to bring me joy~

Tags and a slightly spicier snippet behind the cut!

So, one of the great joys of re-reading a draft that has been sitting for a while is finding bits and pieces that still tickle my funny bone:

"Tell me about things that you’ve killed.” 

Simon laughs, confused. “Are you - does that get you off?”

“No,” Baz says frankly. “But it’ll keep me from jumping on your dick before I’m ready.”

Smut peddling tag: @erotic-grope-fest

A buncha hello tags! I am sleepy so if I forgot anyone please consider yourself tagged (and loved) ❤️ @artsyunderstudy @captain-aralias @dohrnaira @facewithoutheart @ionlydrinkhotwater @ileadacharmedlife @imagineacoolusername @johnwgrey @martsonmars @moodandmist @nightimedreamersworld @onepintobean @sailorblossoms @tea-brigade @thewholelemon @theimpossibledemon @whogaveyoupermission @tectonicduck (I AM DOWN TO CLOWN AND READY TO CRAFT ON SAT 🪡📍🧵✂️)

[blackberrysummerblog]

Six(teen) Sentence Sunday

It’s Sunday AGAIN. The weeks are just slipping past me like a greased eel 😬

Thank you @thewholelemon for tagging me! I’m posting some lines from the #egf fic I’m working on. Honestly, I don’t even know if I’ll go with this, but we’ll see what a few more days of pressure does to my creativity hmm.

I cast three softening spells on the rope to make certain it’s smooth and gentle enough for his skin before Simon loses his patience. “Baz. It’s not supposed to be a spa treatment, come on. Tie me up already.”

“You’re very bossy for someone who’s supposed to be my captive,” I tell him, taking his arm and pulling him toward me. Simon turns around and crosses his wrists behind his back. “That’s a good boy,” I murmur against his ear, feeling him shiver when my lips skim along the side of his throat. He’s mine. I could bite him, and then he’d be mine forever. I pull back quickly.

“Tighter,” Simon says, pushing against me as I fuss with the rope.

“Shut it or I’ll gag you, too.” I don’t mean it, but he whips his head around to look at me. His cheek is pressed against my shoulder.

“You could do that,” he whispers, sounding hoarse. “If you want.”

Tags under the cut!

@onepintobean @cutestkilla @raenestee @palimpsessed @thehoneyedhufflepuff @facewithoutheart @fatalfangirl @shrekgogurt @larkral @carryonsimoncarryonbaz @ionlydrinkhotwater @dazed-squid @captain-aralias @letraspal

[nausikaaa]

i want the love on your wrist (oh give me the heart on your neck)

snowbaz | explicit | 3000 words | complete

summary: Baz is attacked by goblins, and Simon has to patch him up. But in order for him to heal, he needs to drink Simon's blood, which turns out to have some rare interesting effects on them both.

tags: blood drinking, vampire bites, stabbing, that part isn't a kink lol, oral sex, anal fingering, anal sex, porn with plot

my submission for @erotic-grope-fest!

read on ao3!

[aristocratic-otter]

Hello everyone on this nearly-still-Sunday-night. Thank y'all for the tags. I've been extremely busy, though more with creating valentines for the discord valentine's exchange than writing. Still, I've got some words in every WIP. Below the cut for length.

Thank you and tag backsies for Wednesday to @artsyunderstudy, @you-remind-me-of-the-babe, @fatalfangirl, @hushed-chorus, @ileadacharmedlife, @frjsti, @takitalks, @confused-bi-queer, @thewholelemon, @chen-chen-chen-again-chen. Your fics are so freaking brilliant, it's unfair how much talent is concentrated in this fandom.

From Westward Son (Only three chapters left!)

 I remember drowning. I remember fighting the river back in Virginia; trying to hold my head above water, trying to hold my breath until I just…couldn’t anymore. I remember falling falling falling.

Then Shepard is on me. “Simon!” he shouts frantically. “Is she…” 

His voice snaps me out of the spiral of memory I’d been trapped in.

From The White Chapel (writing the last scene this week!)

I kiss him. And kiss him. And kiss him.

He kisses me back frantically. On my lips, my nose, my cheeks, my eyes, anywhere he can reach. “You shouldn’t be here,” he’s mumbling between kisses. “You need to leave. Before it’s too late.” But, even if I were inclined to agree with him, he never stops kissing me long enough to let me go.

From: Raising Dragons (a chapter and a half to go)

I truly think we became a single entity for several seconds there. My thoughts were his, his were mine and our bodies were united in every possible way. 

Now, we’re exhausted and happy, ready to sleep the remainder of our wedding night away in each other’s arms. 

At least, we were ready. Until Niamh began pounding on our bedroom door with all the subtlety of a battering ram, shouting, “Simon! Baz! Your eggs are hatching!”

From: To Heal a Broken Mind (18,000 words and nowhere near finished):

I never want him to go home. I refuse to examine that thought. It’s not hope. I know there’s no hope for him to fall in love with me. He’s straight. And he hates me. But maybe he hates me a little less now?

From Double Your Pleasure (WILL be done by the 24th) (will have art, too! I'm excited about who I'm getting to work with) (and that's all you're getting 😉)

I do know the spell. But I’ve never tried it before. I’m flammable, and a mispronounced syllable could be fatal for me. But I can’t face down my own clone’s confidence. He thinks I can do it. 

I’m going to try. 

From Saving Simon Snow (18,000 words and about halfway done):

I settle back against the plush leather seats of Basilton’s Jaguar. Really, what right does an eighteen year old have to own a car like this? He says it's his father’s, but he drives it deftly, confidently. It’s like he was born to drive this car. 

I shake my head. I know I’m perseverating on the car because I don’t want to think about the numerous ugly outcomes that are possible for Simon.

Should I be excited that 2/3s of my WIPs are nearly done? ...well, there may be three more WIPs waiting in the wings 🤦‍♀️

Tagging a few more folks: @angelsfalling16, @annabellelux, @bazzybelle, @bookish-bogwitch, @basiltonbutliketheherb, @bloodiedpixie, @carryonsimoncarryonbaz, @dragoneggos, @excalisbury, @erzbethluna, @fight-surrender, @facewithoutheart, @foolofabookwyrm-activated, @giishu, @gekkoinapeartree, @ivelovedhimthroughworse, @ionlydrinkhotwater, @johnwgrey, @j-nipper-95, @jbrrring, @jasonfunderberkerthefrogexists, @krisrix, @larkral, @letraspal, @messofthejess, @moodandmist, @nausikaaa, @nightimedreamersghost, @otherworldsivelivedin, @onepintobean, @petrodobreva, @prettylightsbigcity, @raenestee, @thehoneyedhufflepuff, @theearlgreymage, @tea-brigade, @technetiumai, @whogaveyoupermission, @yellobb-old, @yeonjunenby

[orange-peony]

SnowBaz I Explicit I 18k - complete I Established relationship, fluff and smut, soft d/s dynamics, light rope bondage, scent and praise kink, vampire bites, smutty smut, dragon mating cycles, multiple orgasms, a hint of breeding kink, mpreg and @pato-roldnart​‘s amazing NSFW art.

Summary: 

I can hear him mumbling something incoherent against my skin, can feel his lips move, a kiss pressed to the scar at the nape of my neck. He’s always so tender with me, so careful when he pulls out and checks if I’m okay. As if he could hurt me with a good fuck.

There’s something different today, though.

I don't know how I managed to convince @pato-roldnart​ to join me on this, but I feel sooooo grateful for the amazing art they've created. It's scorching hot and soooo tender and full of love. I've spent way too long staring at it in awe (with heart-shaped eyes because look at them!). Thank you so much, Pato! You're honestly the best.

Another massive thank you goes to my beta @avenueofesc​, who is always just fantastic. A shiny thank you to @bubble-gumhead​ for being so supportive.

Last but not least, thank you to the mod for running the @erotic-grope-fest​ and for being so organised and helpful!

Read Orange juice on AO3.

[confused-bi-queer]

Good morning, everyone!!! Thank you @artsyunderstudy for the tag:)

I’m almost back in school and I’ve been gone a bit in here, so I wanted to compensate my being missing by making this thing early. The senteces and tags are under the cut.

So, I have one things to show.

I’m still very much working on my Ballet AU (I’m almost done writing Chapter 14, there’s a plot twist somewhere, AND the fic is 90k!!!!! How tf did that happen!!!!!), but that’s not what I’m showing.

I realised just a few days ago that I had never shown my fic for the @erotic-grope-fest !!!! So that’s what I’m showing you all

It’s waaaaay shorter than the ones I wrote last year, definitely waaay less kinky too, and it’s just one fic, but I wanted to keep things simple (for my own sake tbh), and give Baz some birthday peace instead. The entire thing is soft rather than kinky, sadly. I gave into vanilla porn🥲

SIMON

“I love everything about you,” I go on, slowly wrapping my hand around him.

As I’m jerking him, I move around him without disturbing his pleasure. He’s eyes are closed, and he’s breathing heavily through his mouth, completely into what I’m giving him. Lost in sensation.

I sit behind him with my legs around him, and settle my dick between his arsecheeks. His hips jump when he feels me, but I keep him against me with both hands.

Look at that! Six sentences for once!

Now tagging: @thehoneyedhufflepuff @wellbelesbian @theearlgreymage @shrekgogurt @martsonmars @castawaypitch @bazzybelle @onepintobean @larkral @ninemagicks @nightimedreamersworld @ionlydrinkhotwater @ileadacharmedlife @yellobb @you-remind-me-of-the-babe @cutestkilla @johnwgrey @ineffable-grimm-pitch @kohatenz @katmiscellanious @aroace-genderfluid-sheep @yeonjunenby @erzbethluna @whogaveyoupermission @hushed-chorus @ic3-que3n @aristocratic-otter @angelsfalling16 @whatevertheweather @raenestee @foolofabookwyrm-activated @j-nipper-95 @dragoneggos @palimpsessed @letraspal @captain-aralias @kherub @basiltonbutliketheherb @moodandmist @bookish-bogwitch @fatalfangirl @forabeatofadrum @facewithoutheart @jasonfunderberkerthefrogexists

[palimpsessed]

Well. Fancy meeting you here.

This is the part where I confess that, as some of you might have noticed, I did not in fact post a chapter for SAE last week. And also that I kind of accidentally wrote a fic for @erotic-grope-fest. Oops.

I realized that I left out something glaring in my SAE chapter and then was too busy to find a good place to add it in. I’m giving myself an extra week for it and will post next Friday. And it will be much better and I will feel better about it. Sadly, I also haven’t had time to finish writing the chapter currently in progress, but hot damn am I excited for it.

And yes, after doing way too much for EGF last year, I told myself that running the fest was enough of a time commitment and I shouldn’t make anything this year. But then a vision came to me and I very uncharacteristically felt like writing porn. So I did. It’s called Good For Him. First draft is done.

I think the funniest part of all this is that it wasn’t even the smut that made me want to write the fic and it’s literally PWP. Do with that what you will.

Unlike this post, the fic gets right down to business. I should, too. Here’s a non-explicit taste. Simon POV.

His hair is falling from his head like a jet waterfall into a pool of ink.

(He smells like a waterfall.) (I've told him before, but I don't think he believes me.)

...

He lets out these soft little sighs that make me feel like I need to bash my head into something.

...

"Mmm?" He asks, nuzzling his face into the hand I've still got under his cheek. He presses another kiss into my wrist. He keeps his mouth open while he does it, tongues at the vein that's sticking up, throbbing with blood desperate to fling itself into his mouth.

Tags! Thanks to @artsyunderstudy @confused-bi-queer @takitalks @aroace-genderfluid-sheep @thewholelemon @thehoneyedhufflepuff @frjsti @you-remind-me-of-the-babe for tagging me today!

I will tag @aristocratic-otter @basiltonbutliketheherb @bazzybelle @bookish-bogwitch @captain-aralias @cutestkilla @facewithoutheart @fatalfangirl @ic3-que3n @ileadacharmedlife @ivelovedhimthroughworse @jbrrring @johnwgrey @larkral @letraspal @martsonmars @moodandmist @mostlymaudlin @nightimedreamersworld @onepintobean @otherpeoplesheartachept-2 @prettylightsbigcity @raenestee @scone-lover @shemakesmeforget @shrekgogurt @sillyunicorn @skeedelvee @stardustasincocaine @stillmadaboutpetra @tea-brigade @theearlgreymage @themandilorian @urban-sith @wetheformidables @yellobb @yeonjunenby

[chen-chen-chen-again-chen]

Six Sentence Sunday & Countdown to EGF (Week 1!)

Hello hi hola!! Thank you for the early morning tags, @thewholelemon and @artsyunderstudy! I have six-ish sentences from Chapter 3 of my EGF fic, which I shared with my lovely EGF collaborator @shemakesmeforget (thank you for making me feel good about my writing 😆😆😆):

When Baz comes out into the kitchen, Simon Snow is still trotting around mostly naked except for Baz’s boxer briefs. He has freckles and moles everywhere, and the collar around his neck and the steaming mug of tea in his hands make him look oddly domestic; Baz is sure he’s seen a porn that started this way. 

“Here,” Simon says, thrusting the mug at Baz. “Wasn’t sure if you took milk or sugar.” 

“Usually milk,” Baz says, opening the fridge, “but - ah, yes, I’m out. I was going to do the weekly shop, but then kidnapping, imprisonment, et cetera.”

“Extremely et cetera,” Simon says solemnly. 

Writing blather, a bonus pic, and tags behind the cut! 

Here’s a brief description of my writing process thus far: 

Write 22 000 words in basically a fever dream / fugue state (around the same time that I wrote “A cake with your name on it”)  

Let it sit, because I knew it needed massive edits 

Sign up for EGF in early Jan with all the arrogance and naivete of youth, because “hey! I already have a draft!” 

Reread the draft in mid-Jan and feel like throwing up (Jan. 15 journal entry: “I just re-read my EGF fic and it seems like such a fucking disaster. What the actual hell”) 

Attempt ambitious rewrites. Fail. Lose momentum. Journal about it a lot. Draw a bunch of mind maps. Get lost in the black hole of Tumblr. Cry in the car. Eat kettle chips and binge-watch the K-drama Doctors  

Reread/re-watch some classic things that I should keep in a box/bookmarks folder called Break Glass in Case of Artistic Emergency (The Artist’s Way; Liz Gilbert’s TED talk on daemons; Kiki’s Delivery Service) 

Do some useful loosening up exercises (rewriting and responding to the Basic Principles in The Artist’s Way; writing a paean to the Muses; making a checklist of how to create a good writing context for myself)

Re-read the draft. Think, “Huh, it’s actually not as bad as I thought. Rewriting isn’t working, so I think I just have to work with what I have.” Realise that the draft hasn't changed in quality, just my mindset.

Think fondly of my old mentor McKenna (playwright, poet, Irish madman), who would always say, “These things that you think I'm teaching you? You know them already. I’m just reminding you, is all.”  

I share this not just because I crave validation (I mean, I’m an artist and a human, of course I crave validation) but because I think everyone who reads this probably resonates with at least one part of it. 

And it’s useful for me to have this as a record to come back to say, “Oh yeah, this happened to me before, this will probably happen again, here is evidence that I climbed out of this well before, and here are some really concrete things that I did to climb out of the well. This is all part of the process, even the stretches that suck and feel like you’re off-roading in the dark.” 

If you made it through this exercise in navel-gazing, please enjoy this picture, because I have apparently branched out from making fake t-shirts and entered the realm of making fake mugs for my fic, as part of my Creative Process: 

I have to run off soon (to pick up fresh cinnamon buns) so I am just going to do a bunch of hello tags off the top of my head in a completely random fashion: @erotic-grope-fest, @captain-aralias, @fatalfangirl, @cutestkilla, @technetiumai, @tectonicduck, @aroace-genderfluid-sheep, @raenestee, @dohrnaira, @larkral (look, I came out to play!!!), @facewithoutheart, @you-remind-me-of-the-babe, @whogaveyoupermission, @martsonmars, @aristocratic-otter. Happy Sunday to you all!

[theearlgreymage]

I have reemerged from my hermit hole to deliver a belated Fic for the 2023 EGF Event. 

It is spicy. Please handle with care. 

This is also a public apology to everyone who had to tolerate me while I was deep in writing this baby. 

Summary under the cut 😘

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Carry On Series - Rainbow Rowell, Simon Snow & Related Fandoms Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Tyrannus Basilton "Baz" Pitch/Simon Snow, Tyrannus Basilton "Baz" Pitch & Simon Snow Characters: Simon Snow, Tyrannus Basilton "Baz" Pitch, Penelope Bunce, Shepard (Simon Snow), Malcolm Grimm, Daphne Grimm (Simon Snow), Ruth Salisbury Additional Tags: Established Relationship, Hands, Holding Hands, Hand Jobs, Blow Jobs, Anal Fingering, Rimming, Anal Sex, Oral Sex, Marriage Proposal, Post-Canon, First Time, Baz is really obsessed with Simon's hands here, Love Summary:

Submission for the 2023 Erotic Grope Fest (EGF)

-----

I never thought that the hands that so deftly wield a sword could be this delicate. The way Simon plucks my shirt buttons open with a smooth finesse is borderline hypnotic. He's gotten so good at it. If he really wants to, he can get a couple buttons undone without my noticing.

Normally, Simon is brute force and strength in everything that he does. But with me, it's the opposite. He treats me gently, reverently, just like I asked for when he decided to genuinely try.

When I finally feel the tips of his fingers on my newly exposed skin, it makes me shiver. The temperature contrast between us has my nerves feeling extra sensitive.

Simon is so good with his hands.

[onepintobean]

to touch the skin of me

a fic for @erotic-grope-fest 2023! Featuring food, sex, and chronic illness ❤

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 4.7k

Summary:

I bat him away. “You’re going to give me hives.” He pouts at me. He has such good lips for pouting. Thick and soft and warm. I want to feed him strawberries. I want to kiss the flavour out of his mouth.

---

Baz has always been very good at wanting what he can’t have: boys, blood, and now: too many foods that all make him sick. Fortunately, Simon is also very good at wanting Baz.

read on ao3!

[larkral]

Turns out I'm better at giving my evil roommate a blowie than I am at holding the interest of the most perfect girl in school. Which, honestly, is a bit vindicating. Come at me, prophesies: you can't pull this disaster back from the brink.

Simon Snow has lived through seven years of trials and tribulations.

His eighth year is going to be a little bit different.

Good at Something: Chapter 1

[aristocratic-otter]

Woohoo, I'm down to five WIPs again! (Ok, at least two are waiting in the wings. But I officially haven't started writing those yet, so they don't count.) It's late, but I haven't posted in forever, so I'm determined to do that today.

It's been a long time since I posted, and so much glorious work has gone up in that time. Friends, your talent humbles me, and at the same time makes me so proud of the brilliancy of this fandom. Thank you to @cutestkilla, @palimpsessed, @blackberrysummerblog, @nightimedreamersghost, @fatalfangirl, @you-remind-me-of-the-babe, @thehoneyedhufflepuff, @shemakesmeforget, @artsyunderstudy

Snippets and tags under the cut

From: To Heal a Broken Mind (House AU):

“I regret…I regret so many things. But, most of all, I regret pushing you away. Making you think I hated you. Making you feel less.”

He looks surprised. “Making me think you hated me? You didn’t hate me?”

I shake my head. “I never did. I just…there were so many outside influences in my life, people I desperately wanted to please or impress, and being friendly with Mage’s chosen one would have made those people very unhappy. I’m sorry. I should have made my own decisions about how to act. But I was young, and stupid.”

“We both were, Baz,” Simon says, and he reaches out a hand and lays it over mine. It’s warm and soft. It’s clearly been years since he used it in the kind of manual labour and exercise that used to make his skin hard and calloused. I stare at it. “I was a prat to you, too. I gave as good as I got, honestly. We were both immature brats. I stopped blaming you for that years ago, Baz.”

“I—” I clear my throat, trying to pull back the tears that burn my eyes at his forgiveness. I don’t deserve it. But I’ll take it. I try again. “I want to try again, Snow. Try to be friends, I mean. If you’re willing to give me another chance.”

Simon smiles broadly, and this time there’s no hint of sadness in his face. “I’d love to, Baz.”

If my heart wants to hear those words as “I love you, Baz,” I’ll never tell. 

From: Raising Dragons

I’m desperate enough that I’ve even asked Shepard Bunce for advice. He was the least comforting of all. “I don’t know too many hybrids,” he told me. “And they were all creature/normal hybrids, not creature/mage hybrids. But I do know that the creature powers and instincts were reduced in the hybrid offspring. Like the Jersey devil’s two kids can only make folk anxious with their screams, not out-of-their-mind-with-terror like the screams of their monster parent.”

From: Double Your Pleasure (EGF 2023, posting next week)

Suddenly, I need to see his beautiful eyes. “Baz…” I whisper.

His long, thick black eyelashes quiver, and his pale pink tongue peeks out of his mouth long enough to glide wetly over his lips. Slowly, so slowly, he tilts his head towards me and, when he’s finally facing me, his eyes flicker open. They’re misty with pleasure and so dilated I can only see a ring of pewter around the black irises, but I feel my heart settle into a more contented rhythm once I can see them. 

“I love you,” I whisper.

From: Westward Son (COTTA 2021)

Penelope’s alive and that’s the most important thing, I tell myself as we make the last few short crossings, from island to island and island to shore. I don’t tell Simon that. I know he’d agree with me, but he loved those animals. He’d given them all names and he’d cared for them and babied their every hurt. His face has been drenched with tears on top of river water ever since he realized.

From: Saving Simon Snow

Simon

Two days ago, I was certain I’d be dead of deliberate starvation by now. Two hours ago, I was certain that Baz’s plan had no chance of working, that he’d doomed himself along with me.

Now? I’m certain of nothing. 

I just know that Baz’s life rests on me convincing him to go through with this. I know he hates me. I know that being married to me is probably revolting to him. But I noticed what Baz apparently did not. I am magically cursed to not be able to be unfaithful to him. Baz is not under any compulsion at all. 

Even if I’ll never be happy, even if Baz is forced to keep me hanging around, a perpetual roommate, he can still find love in someone else’s arms. 

From: A secret project, gift fic for members of the discord valentine's exchange (will be posted on AO3 once everyone has gotten their valentines:

“Whoa,” Simon breathes. “D’you think it was real dragons? And are they still there?”

“Not likely,” I answer him. “This city has been settled for far too long for any dragon to be comfortable near it, I think. But they may have been here in the distant past. It was in this region where St. George reputedly slew a dragon. Though those old Christian priests were infamous exaggerators. Probably George fought a crocodile or a monitor lizard.”

Tagging for Wednesday, or just passing along a belated happy Valentine's day to you all, everyone above as well as

@annabellelux, @bazzybelle, @basiltonbutliketheherb, @bookish-bogwitch, @carryonsimoncarryonbaz, @dragoneggos, @excalisbury, @fight-surrender, @fatalfangirl, @facewithoutheart, @giishu, @ionlydrinkhotwater, @ivelovedhimthroughworse, @johnwgrey, @jbrrring, @jasonfunderberkerthefrogexists, @krisrix, @larkral, @letraspal, @messofthejess, @moodandmist, @martsonmars, @mostlymaudlin, @nightimedreamersghost, @onepintobean, @prettylightsbigcity, @raenestee, @theearlgreymage, @technetiumai, @tea-brigade, @whogaveyoupermission, @whatevertheweather, @yellobb-old, @yeonjunenby