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chaoticgeminate · 2 years ago

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You Give me Hope When I am Lost

Dedicated to @writeforfandoms

This piece is a NON-CANON fanwork of Jen's Dragon Rancher series, until she confirms or uses any of this as canon then assume it is not. Thank you for allowing me to write this, love. Go read her series HERE ❤

Pairing: Din x f!Reader Word Count: 3.1k Rating: M (Mentioned cruelty and violence)

Sleep wasn’t coming easily, your mind was buzzing and your heart still raced even as you curled more into a ball than you already were, the bundle of warmth cradled against your lower belly barely stirred; you could still hear the sirens, the shrill alarms deafening as you escaped the facility. It was jarring, learning what you had about what you even did.

All you’d wanted to do was help dragons, to create medicines for ailments that developed with age or through the breeding process, you hadn’t known precisely why your bosses had wanted such an extensive breakdown on the properties of dragons at a biological and molecular level but it made sense knowing your goal was to make medicines. To stop dragons from developing crippled wings, or underdeveloped sensory organs, to give them a better life as humans sought to continue modifying them to their pleasure.

Now, you knew the truth.

The meeting had been an accident, you could still feel your heart sink to your feet and then jump back to your throat, or maybe it hadn’t been an accident? The guard that had been in charge of transporting Grogu hadn’t seemed all that apologetic when he’d entered your lab, saying something about not realizing there’d been a change in the subject’s examination room before leaving, you hadn’t even had the chance to stop him before the little one had woken up from his nap.

One look at him and you knew something was wrong with the infant drake, his eyes were too big and his face too flat, and one look at his chart had given you all the answers you needed. You hadn’t known about the tracking chip, the bandage on his arm was finally free of staining, but you couldn’t ever go back to your old life now. You didn’t even know who to trust anymore, since your lab was supposedly employed by the government, with everything you were learning you didn’t know if that was a lie too.

Honestly, you were lucky that Grogu had developed some of his draconic powers. Sure you’d gotten a nasty black eye and split lip, trying to get away from the two security officials, and there was a burn on your hand where his stream of fire had been too close to your skin but you were free and alive.

Hopping into the cargo car of an old fashioned train had been reckless, something from an old film even, but it was your best bet to get away fast without using your car. All you had with you was your wallet, the clothes on your back, and Grogu. You couldn’t even use your bank or credit cards, no doubt they would be tracking those, and tears pooled in your lashes with how shitty this situation had become. You couldn’t leave him there though, you couldn’t shake the guilt or hide the disgust that your research had been used to this end, and you didn’t know how long you would last on your own.

Sleep came eventually, as the train rumbled and screeched its way down the tracks, and you hugged your hoodie tighter to your body as your consciousness finally drifted away.

“Hey!”

Panic flooded your still waking mind, it felt like it had only been minutes, the stranger’s voice loud and jarring as you flailed briefly and stared up at the man in work coveralls who was unloading the car; his eyes drifted to your abdomen and your arms hugged the swell tighter reflexively. His eyes softened as he crouched down, hands up in a peaceful gesture, and you could only imagine what he was thinking.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't realize- how far do you need to keep going?"

With Grogu sleeping soundly, likely quite tired from his exertion before, you managed to find an ally (even if he thought you were pregnant and fleeing an abuser) who gave you a hundred cash and bought you a ticket for the passenger train in a small private room under his name. You walked slowly since your limbs felt stiff after being curled up in a ball for so long, your hood pulled down as low as it could be and the baseball hat that Clark had given you was also pulled low so the brim could help keep your identity from the stoplight cameras.

Clark had blushed when you called him your superhero and promised that he wouldn't say a thing about seeing you and you prayed that whoever hired you would never find him even as you made your way to the passenger train and boarded. Your car was small but cozy, had a pull down dining table, and you closed the curtains tightly before sitting on the bed and taking stock of what you had. A hundred and some odd dollars cash, an ID that would probably get flagged by any police officer by now, a powered off cellphone you couldn't touch, and a dragon-human hybrid that was still a baby.

You kept him close to your body, knowing that young drakes needed warmth and food the most, and his steady breathing was a small blessing. A tap on the door had you checking through the curtain first, the woman was wheeling a dish of food, and you cracked the door carefully.

"I didn't order anything."

"I have something else for you."

A note, you accepted, passed between the two of you quickly before she continued down the hall as if she hadn’t just interrupted your peace and you only opened it after you locked the door. The penmanship was ornate, looping cursive swirls, but the contents made your blood run cold.

You cannot run from them alone, I humbly offer you assistance, if you wish to accept my offer I will be in the private dining car alone at half past three. We will be alone if you need to feed the little one.

Someone had found you, for good or for ill, and your hands shook a little at the idea of being trapped on this train; they knew your car number, they knew you had Grogu, and they were probably giving you the chance to surrender peacefully. You had a few hours to decide and the tears flowed freely as you thought of what your life might look like now, if they even allowed you to live after this, and you unzipped your hoodie enough to see the sleeping baby and to rub his back through the cotton fabric.

“I’ll figure something out, you’re not going back to them.” Come hell or high water you weren’t going to allow them to continue using, abusing, or hurting the infant drake-human they’d created. Even if it meant going public in a livestream somewhere and praying one of the international groups that handled the protection of dragons got involved, even if it meant finding some ranch somewhere, just something to ensure Grogu was able to live a free life.

In the end you chose to visit the dining car, Grogu was awake but still after you’d impressed the importance upon him, and the fact that he understood you was enough to make you wonder just what else he knew and remembered. He couldn’t speak so you had no metric for how intelligent he really was in that little head of his, he had to be pretty damn smart if he knew to just continue clinging to you and being quiet, and the idea of making up some sort of game or activity to gauge his intelligence was floating around in your head.

As the note stated the private car was empty save for one man, his gray suit jacket seemed very formal and his messy dark curls paired with the neat scruff of patchy facial hair would have been enticing in any other scenario, and those dark eyes lifted to look at you before they softened marginally and he got up to pull the chair out across from his. Your feet felt heavy even though your steps barely made a sound on the plush carpet, taking the seat with a nod, and his touch to the damaged skin of your face as he tipped your chin up made you jolt.

Grogu’s rumbling little noise was a warning and the man cooed softly.

“Hush, little one, I only wished to ascertain the damage. I truly admire your bravery, miss, it takes a certain level of it to do what you’ve chosen to do.”

He returned to his seat and you could feel your eyes welling up again, wanting to hope against all odds that he really was here to help. You had no idea what the fuck you were going to do, especially on a moving train, if Grogu decided to defend you again.

“I don’t feel very brave.” It was a whispered admittance, your voice hoarse from your earlier tears, and he poured you a glass of ice water from the pitcher beside him. You studied the clear liquid, sniffing it before deciding to drink, and his eyes crinkled at the corners as something like pride filled those liquid dark irises.

“Brave and cautious, you’re quite wise but I suppose that’s a given considering what you did for a living. I shall be frank, while you peruse the menu, but you’re not going to be free of them on your own. Those people you work for, the ones that tricked you into your employment, have a very large reach of influence for their illicit work.” You swallowed thickly, work you had helped them do, the guilt was back and the man must have known as he held his hand up.

“Trust me, you had no way of knowing the truth if they hadn’t wanted you to. Now, I don’t know everything but I can’t imagine you had time to prepare for your flight from your place of employment. I have a contact that I can reach out to, who will escort you both to a place of safety, but you must lay low until I am able to determine you and the little one are truly safe. I have a new phone for you, if you could provide me your old device, but you cannot sign into anything-”

“I know. No social media, no banking or credit card applications or websites, nothing tied to my identity in any way like e-mail or billpay accounts. Not even restaurants or take out places with accounts are safe anymore.”

“Correct, I will handle the rest of your monetary affairs so that you don’t wind up with collections and a repossessed property. I can’t do much for your vehicle, I’m afraid, but you won’t need it for a time and I’m not against providing a new one for you given the circumstances.”

“Why? Why are you- how long have you been after my employers?”

His silence was thick with tension but you had to know, it didn’t make sense how he knew about what happened and why he was so quick to help, he had to have been planning this and you thought about all the events leading up to now. The realization you reached must have shown on your face as he offered you an apology laden look, as he basically confessed that he’d orchestrated everything, that the guard was one of his or at least paid off by him and that he’d chosen you for a reason.

“A very long time, to answer your question, and I hope that when this is over you don’t detest me for what I’ve done.”

“I- how can I when you set me free? I would have continued to go my whole life working for them, helping them do things like… like what they did to Grogu, up until someone either shut them down or the truth got out. I would rather die knowing the truth than live in ignorance and say I did nothing.” Your conviction was clear, you didn’t care about how stupid it sounded and maybe later you would find a reason to hate the man across from you more than you hated yourself.

He rubbed his lower lip with his thumb gently.

“You named him?”

“No he- he told me.”

Grogu peeked out of the fabric of your hoodie as you brought the zipper down, eying the man with a look of distrust that made you smile, and he pressed his little tridactyl hand to yours. It wasn’t so much words as it was a feeling, he was telling you that he would protect you.

“That is- that is very curious. I suggest you choose a meal for you and the little one, whatever you both want, and I will not only provide but I will explain more about the arrangement for your travel.”

You looked over the menu now, deciding it would be best to gather your strength, and carefully read the menu out to the little drake so he could choose what he wanted; all while the man watched the two of you with intense eyes and a quiet wonder.

Having a phone again, a new ID with a new name on it and a picture that looked like you but not exactly like you, as well as a plethora of prepaid VISA gift cards to use opened up new opportunities; it was a fall back if you chose to try and make it on your own, the nameless man’s way of offering you a choice. But you already knew, especially after he explained what the Golden Circle had done in broad terms, the likelihood of getting to safety on your own was probably not happening.

His contact would be waiting for you at the next town, which was coming up quickly, and you were happy that Grogu was content; refreshed from eating, his ears -which were the biggest mystery of all in your opinion- were tucked low to continue the illusion that you were expecting, and you ran through the description of the man meant to help you one more time.

Djarin, the name you were given, would be in a thick brown flight suit with a silver helmet; you wouldn’t see his face most likely, his helmet did slightly alter his voice, and he was gruff but not unkind. Your eyes scanned the crowd as you got off the train, hat brim pulled low and hood up, and near the back of the crowd you saw the silvery helmet nearly over the crowd before making your way over. People gave you space, one glance at your still-healing face and then to your arms cradling the swell under your hoodie more than enough for them to back away, and you looked up at the helmet tilted toward you.

“Djarin?”

He nodded and said your name softly, making you also nod, and the man motioned to the door before pressing one of those large hands against the small of your back to guide you out. The security took one look at you and then him, the way you were pressing close to his side, and seemed to accept that you were okay with whoever this was and you thanked small mercies for that since you didn’t exactly want an altercation to start here.

“Have you ever flown on a dragon before?” Djarin’s voice was gruff with a rasp that you didn’t know the origin of, whether it was natural or because of the helmet, and you shook your head gently.

“No, I don’t- I need to get a thicker coat I think.” Altitude meant cold, your thin hoodie and work clothes would hardly be able to handle the cooler atmosphere, and Djarin hummed as the two of you approached the massive silver dragon that was waiting for you. There were bits of orange in her scales and that large head turned to look at you, watching you as you held up one hand and let her inspect you first, her snout pressing to the flat of your hand, and there was no way you could fight the smile that pulled at your split lip as you scratched those smooth scales and crooned like she was just an overgrown house cat.

You weren’t sure how much time passed with you just petting this dragon, indulging in your most childish dream of even meeting a dragon, when you looked over at Djarin to see him watching you; heat flooded your face as he held up what looked like a thick leather jacket and a spare helmet. The silver dragon let out a rumbling noise, almost like she was pouting, when you pulled away but she accepted the attention from her rider instead as you traded out hats and slipped the leather over your hoodie. The ballcap was well worn and a sentimental part of you wanted to keep it, seeing as it had been a gift from someone so kind, but you couldn’t.

You wrote out a small note on the back of a piece of a flyer you had torn off a nearby billboard and slipped it into the inner brim, as Djarin got his dragon ready for the flight ahead, and left the navy blue ‘Standard Oil’ hat on the backpack of the dark-haired man who was talking on the phone around the corner. It was a stroke of luck you had spotted the man leave his bag to walk around the building, likely not wanting you or Djarin to hear him, and then you were hurrying to the helmet-wearing man before he could get annoyed at you taking so long.

Djarin helped you up first and then climbed up behind you, his body was warm and you held on where he advised.

“Razor Crest is fast, hold on tight okay?”

“Got it.”

“Alright, good.”

He wasn’t kidding when he said she was fast, the take off kicking up so much wind and dust, and Djarin’s arms bracketed your body as he helped you learn how to move with Razor Crest. Your borrowed gloves kept your hands warm and Grogu shifted against your body, content and happy and most importantly safe. You didn’t know what he knew, what he’d been told, but you did know that you would never ever regret what you’d done.

Djarin shifted behind you and thanks to the small radio device in the helmets you could hear him clearly.

“If you need to rest just let me know, I can secure you to me so that you can sleep, we’ll be flying for a while.”

“I will, thank you Djarin.” He grunted and you let yourself take in the sight of the clouds around you as Razor Crest cut through the air. It was still chilly, it was kind of terrifying, but one thing you would never forget was the warmth of Djarin at your back and Razor Crest under you and Grogu against your belly as you were whisked toward safety.

All Fics Taglist: @haylzcyon @wordsnwhiskey @pagannightwitch @radiowallet @tauralmie @amneris21 @trickstersp8 @practicalghost @rominaszh @alwaysdjarin @alexxavicry @all-the-way-down-here

Just Pedro Taglist: @maievdenoir @beecastle @littlemisspascal @writeforfandoms @aynsleywalker @lovesbiggerthanpride @mswarriorbabe80 @emiemiemiii

Alt Taglist: @imtryingmybeskar @fan-of-encouragement @grogusmum @sizzlingcloudmentality @deadhumourist @prostitute-robot-from-the-future

#din djarin x f!reader #din djarin x fem!reader #dragon rancher series #fanwork of a fanwork #chaoticwrites

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paganinpurple · 2 years ago

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AO3 Etiquette -UPDATED

Based on both decent and not so decent replies, I have made some changes to my original post below.

It would seem a whole new kind of AO3 reader/writer is emerging and it is becoming clear not everyone quite understands how the website community works. Here is some basic guidance on how most people expect you to go about using AO3 to keep this a fun community archive that funtions correctly:

As well as likes, kudos is for when the story was interesting enough to make you finish reading. If it sucked or was badly written, you probably left. If you finished it, you liked it - so kudos.

If you really liked it, you should try to comment. It can be long and detailed or a literal keysmash. Writers don't care, we just love comments.

No critisism unless the author has specifically asked or agreed to hear it (so use your notes to say if you want some constructive feedback). Even constructive critisism is a no-no unless an author note tells you it's okay. No, posting it online is not an open invitation for that. Many people write as a fun hobby or a way to cope with, among other things, insecurity and just want to share. Don't ruin that for them. I've seen so many authors just stop writing coz they can't handle the negative emotions the critism brings, and it's only meant to be a fun thing shared for free (pointing out tagging errors is not included in this).

Do not comment to ask the author to write/update something else. It's tacky and off-putting and will probably have the opposite effect than the one you want.

There is no algorithm, it's an archive. Use the search and filter function to add/remove the pairings/characters/tropes etc. you want to read about and it will find you the fics that fit the bill.

For this to work, writers must tag and rate stories. This avoids readers finding the wrong things and missing the stuff they want. I don't care how cringy that trope is in your eyes - it gets tagged.

The tag exception is if you don't want to tag a million things or spoil your story, you can rate it as "chose not to use warnings," and maybe tag the bare minimum.

Don't censor tags. How can someone exclude a tag if the word isn't typed out correctly? There are no content bans for terms so don't censor them.

If the tags are mostly content/trigger warnings, especially if they are things considered very fucked up or graphic, you might want to use "dead dove - do not eat" to ensure people know that you're not messing around with tags and what they get is exactly what you've warned them about.

Character A/Character B means a ROMANTIC or SEXUAL relationship of some kind. Character A&Character B is PLATONIC, like friendship or family.

Nothing is banned. This is an rule because banning one thing is a slipperly slope to banning another and another, until nothing is allowed anymore. Do not expect anyone to censor for you. Because of the tags system, you are responsible for your own reading experience.

People can create new chapters and sequels/fic series any time after they "complete" a story. So it's considered perfectly normal to subscribe, even to a finished story. You can even subscribe to the author instead just to cover your bases.

Do not repost stories or change the publishing date without an extremely good reason (like a complete top to bottom rewrite or an exchange youve written for going public). It's an archive, not social media. No one cares what's the most recent, only what fits their tag needs.

Instead of deleting a story you wrote if you hate it - consider making it anonymous or orphaning it so others can still enjoy it, without it being connected to your name anymore. If you still want to delete it, fair enough.

It's come to my attention that metaworks ARE allowed on AO3, which is something I wasn't aware of. So if you do post an essay or theory, please tag it as such so others can choose to search for it or exclude it. Art is also allowed.

The only reason this archive works is because NON ONE PROFITS. Do not link to your ko-fi or patreon or mention monetary gain in any way or you violate the terms and risk having your account removed. If anyone does link, it leaves the archive open to people claiming it's for profit and having the whole thing removed.

I KNOW there's plenty more I missed but I'm trying to cover most of the basics that people seem to be struggling with.

I invite anyone to add to this, but please explain, don't berate.

#ao3 #using ao3 #archive of our own #fanfiction #fanworks

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