#if anyone has any idea of a short fic they'd like to read with the two of them i'd be happy to hear it!

[yume127]

I miss writing about Roxas and Ventus...

[iam93percentstardust]

It's not just the commodification of fandom. It's not just the disinterest in wips in favor of completed stories. It's not just the unwillingness to take chances on new writers.

It's the demand for instant gratification too.

I'm posting a "wip" right now. It's actually a fully completed story, and I stated that in the A/N when I started posting it a few weeks ago. I finished writing it early in December. It's not going to be abandoned and discontinued. Short of a tragic accident, it will 100% be posted in its entirety before the end of January.

It's also almost 60k words long. Each chapter is approximately 14k words. That's a lot to expect people to read quickly, so I made the decision to post weekly instead of dumping it all at once. I don't normally do that for wips. I normally post bimonthly to give myself time to write the next chapter. But in concession to the fact that this one is already finished, I decided to post once a week. Could I have posted it all at once or even once a day? Sure, but again, I have more than a few close friends who are slow readers, and I thought it was better to give people the time to read each chapter and let it digest before dumping another one on them instead of making them feel like they have to read it immediately so they don't miss the next update.

This, apparently, was a mistake.

I've been very open about working on this fic since I started it in September. People told me they were excited to get the chance to read it every time I posted an update about where I was in the writing process. When I announced that I was posting it, they told me that they couldn't wait to read it. It's not like I was expecting massive numbers of kudos and comments; this fandom has shrunk in size and engagement, I'm not the most popular writer in it, and I try not to feel entitled to engagement, but considering all the people telling me they were excited for it, I was expecting something.

Instead it was crickets. All those people who were so excited and told me they couldn't wait to get home to read it? That was the last I heard from them, unless it was to express outright incredulity that I expected them to read a work in progress. "It's not a work in progress!" I protested. "I'm just taking a little longer to post it!" Yeah, but it's not posted all in one go, so why should we bother to read it? We'll just wait until the end of January once it's finished. "Will I hear from you then? Will I get any indication at all that you liked it?" Eh, maybe. If we feel like it. But it'll only be one comment at the very end. If that.

This keeps happening. If it's not an already completed chaptered fic that I'm posting over time instead of immediately, then it's an idea that I had first talked about a while ago but took a couple months to write only to be met with silence once I start posting because everyone moved on and forgot about it. If it's not ready to go right now in all its fully finished glory and all 60k words posted immediately after I first spoke about it, then why am I talking about it at all? Why should I expect people to be waiting in anticipatory eagerness?

I remember when I posted my first Christmas event fic in 2020. It was already finished too when I started posting it. I'd been talking about it all year. People had seemed really excited for it when I first mentioned it, but then interest seemed to die out somewhere around August. By the time I started posting it in late November, I was fully convinced that no one was going to read it. I actually posted the first chapter and then immediately turned my computer off and didn't let myself turn it back on until the next day.

I was shocked by the number of readers I had. The number of comments. The sheer amount of people telling me they'd been waiting on tenterhooks for me to post that first chapter. And it kept coming. People were talking and theorizing and marking their conversations with spoiler bars for anyone who hadn't read the latest chapter. People timed when I posted the first few chapters so they could be waiting by their computer for when I dropped the next one. I was randomly gifted art. It was really an event, and I'll always be grateful for the support and community I was given for that month.

I never believed I'd ever be able to capture that kind of readership again, and I was right, and that's okay. But when I posted last year's Christmas event fic, for the first time since I started doing this in 2020, someone asked me why I bothered to space it out over a month instead of just posting the entire thing in one go on Christmas Day and how could I possibly expect them to be that invested for an entire month instead of just waiting until it was finished. I didn't know how to tell them that only three years prior, that's not only exactly what people did but they were excited for it to be like that.

If I'm not going to post my already completed fic in one lump sum right now, then the audience for it is nonexistent. And the audience won't grow once it's finished. It's like I have one opportunity to capture the readers and if they weren't willing to take the chance on the first chapter, then they'll never come back. It's disheartening, to say the least. Only six months ago, I was telling a friend that I thought this was my forever pairing, that I'd still be writing for this ship when I was old and grey. And now I'm going through my ideas folder, wondering what can be repurposed for other ships, because I increasingly feel not just that I'm shouting into a void but that the void is actively ignoring me.

I can't post wips because what if I abandon them or take too long to update? I can't post a chaptered fic in one go because that's too many words to expect people to read. But I can't space out posting completed chaptered fics either because everyone wants the instant gratification of the full fic right now. So what am I supposed to do?

I miss December 2020, but it's not the random art that I miss or the kudos or the number of comments. It was the community that built up around this fic. It was knowing that it was okay to space out the chapters because everyone was still right there with me, talking and theorizing and using their spoiler bars. It was my audience trusting me enough to come along with me for the ride instead of waiting for me to be done. I was so scared back then that the full year between me first talking about the idea and posting the first chapter had lost me my audience, scared that they'd all forgotten about me and moved on to other authors who were quicker to post, but I wish I'd known that three years later, it would only take four months for people to lose interest in an idea.

I'd have treated December 2020 like it was way more special than I did.

[jubilantmedusa]

Hi! I just wanted to say that I really like your fics <3 I re-read your latest Zukka one 3 times. Do you plan to write any more soon? What type of ideas do you have? I hope I don't sound pushy I'm just curious!

Aww, so glad you enjoyed it :)

I doesn't take much to get me to talk about ideas and WIPs so here you go!

I'm not sure how soon any of this will get done, just because life is very busy right now (which is the reason I've been focusing on short stuff - I prefer medium/long, but short is more achivable right now; and it is a fun challenge to stick to a word limit).

Actively working on:

Zukka HC Sketch + Fic: I have two other Zukka H/C-ish sketches that I need to write stories for. They should be a little less angsty then the last one, in theory, but still have some H/C element. Waiting for inspiration to strike. (1 - 1.5k each goal). I might do more of these, or I might switch to a non-H/C sketch/fic focus. Or I might stop when those two are done. IDK. Whatever's fun.

Iroh and Zuko Post "The Desert" Whump AU: Zuko and Iroh’s escape from "The Desert" is intercepted by an enemy who quickly surmises that the most effective way to torture Iroh is to torture Zuko. With Iroh literally losing his mind, can Zuko (who is not doing well) save his uncle and himself? (currently at 4k; estimated 12 - 16k)

If I can finish the above by the end of the year I'll be pleased.

Ideas that I really want to do and have at least done *some* pre-writing for:

Iroh's Second Spirit World Journey: An Iroh centric story that diverges after "The Earth King." When Zuko never wakes up from his angst coma, Iroh goes literally beyond the ends of the earth to try to save him (aka - Iroh's second spirit world journey). Could have a sequal (or even be a trilogy, potentially), but not required. I really want to write this but I'm not sure if it would have an audience. Estimate: long, over 25k

Escaping the Desert: Another "The Desert" divergence story - Zuko and Iroh are captured by the Rough Rhinoes. Unfortunately, so is Toph. Zuko will do anything to save his uncle, but what about the strange blind girl who was with the avatar? Estimate 15 - 25k. The problem with this one is it would more or less require a trilogy... but if I can keep all the stories to around 10-15k that may be achievable.

Zukka Iron Lung: There is a plague that only effect firebenders. This spurs the invention of the iron lung -- Sokka is one of the lead engineers. When Sokka goes to the Fire Nation to Save the Day, he catches feelings for the Fire Lord. Unfortunately, Zuko then catches the plague. Length TBD.

Zukka Post Series romance: Zuko was injured/disabled before the finale and never took the throne. Sokka hasn't spoke to him since. He has, however, developed PTSD. With his life seemingly falling apart. Sokka decides to run away and go to university at Ba Sing Se. He stops for tea at the Jasmine Dragon, which is now run by, you guessed it, Zuko. Angst and romance ensures. Bonus airbender field trip. Length TBD.

Ice Demon / Waterbender Hospital - This is something I'm not sure anyone would be interested in except me, but I do like medical whump. I've done some light worldbuilding for a waterbender hospital, and have a vague idea of sending Zuko there when he's attacked by an Ice spirit. For some reason. Maybe involving Aang and his quest to master the avatar state? or maybe not, because that would be a lot of story. Lots of more to develop here. Could be gen or Zukka. Season 3 somewhere. Length TBD.

Fire Demon story - I would love to write a longer form season one AU that shamlessly steals the premise of the excellent short fic Fire Walk by Sholio and makes it into a multi-chapter Zuko joins the gang early story. Length TBD.

Ancedotes: This is an idea for a series of short form slice of life/characters backstory fics (3 - 8k, lets say). So far they'd include - "Old Man " a story that answers the question 'how did Sokka learn about physics?' - coming of age/loss of innocence; "Losing at Pai Sho" a story about teen Iroh learning to not be arrogant; and "First Kiss" - the only idea I've ever had for an Azula story, featuring Ty Lee's first kiss and Azula's first... something else. I have an idea for Toph and Zuko, but not committed to them. Katara story has not come to me. I also wanted to pair these with exercises from The 3 A.M. Epiphany because idk the whim struck and the idea is in my head.

Aside form that, I'd like to write a few whumpy Zuko short stories (3 - 10k) that focus on the gaang relationships I haven't written about as much - friendship fics featuring Katara & Zuko, Aang & Zuko, or Toph & Zuko.

If I am ever to become independently wealthy, I'll write my season 3 AU.

And if I ever feel very, very silly - but still slightly angsty - I'll have Iroh commission a symphony in C.

Thank you so much for the question! I am flattered. It was very nice.

If there's an idea you (or anyone who stumbles across this) especially likes, let me know!

[nerdallwritey]

✨ writing interview tag game!!! ✨

Gonna go ahead and thank @busy-baker and @khywren for tagging me :) I'm very late to filling this out, but I wanted to really dedicate some attention to it!

I'm a yapper, I apologize in advance.

When did you start writing?

I started writing when I was in elementary school, I think. I know my fourth grade yearbook said I wanted to be an author when I grew up, and that's only KIND OF changed, I still want to write for a living, but for TV instead of novels (though I'm not opposed to that, should I ever have the right idea for one). I remember going to my friend's house after school all that time and using her mom's laptop to open a blank Word doc and just start writing. We wrote tons of stuff that we never finished, but I'd give ANYTHING to read some of it again, if only for a laugh. The only story I remember was about four teens being stranded on an island - we called it "Castaway." No clue what became of that, but our main characters were always based on ourselves 😂 I didn't start writing fanfiction until 2022 and only started posting this past June!

Are there different themes or genres that you enjoy reading than what you write?

Hmm, that's a good question. I typically stick with what I like - romance, fantasy, silly - but it's fun to throw nonfiction in there every once in a while. Not sure how well I'd do at writing non-fiction without embellishing or getting narrative (even though I like reading those kinds of books as well). But yeah, usually I like to stick with what I know and enjoy most! It's also the best way to learn and improve; by reading a ton within the genre you love to write.

Is there a writer you want to emulate or get compared to often?

I don't......think so? I've always been told by English teachers and professors that I have a very strong voice in my writing, which I always interpreted as being unique. As corny as it sounds, I'm not trying to sound like anyone but myself. At the end of the day, I'm writing for my own enjoyment and am happy you guys found me along the way!

Can you tell me a bit about your writing space?

I don't have a dedicated writing space, but I often find myself writing either on my couch or in bed. Weirdly (or not that weirdly, considering most of us have day jobs) I write the best at night and I have to be alone so that I'm not distracted. Usually I'll find a song and play that on repeat while I'm writing (For Cheeks All Flushed, it was Resolve (Dark) from Fire Emblem Fates, and for Awfully Fond of You it was Climactic Return from Danganronpa 2). The music typically has nothing to do with the vibe of what I'm writing, I just need some sort of constant noise that won't distract me, hence why it's usually video game music with no words.

What's your most effective way to muster up a muse?

That's tough. The first idea I published on tumblr was the result of me making myself laugh when I was trying to fall asleep (If EYE were being propositioned by Astarion, my ass would probably be like "wait, what? Me? ME?! Why?"), but the others I've posted have come from just seeing where my brain takes me as I'm writing, known as the "flying by the seat of your pants" method. I have a pretty good sense of these characters by now so I think I know what they'd be up to at this point. Outside of fanfiction, it's really tough - I'll start with a small idea and then keep sitting on it until it's something I think I can write down. I'm definitely more of a planner when it comes to stuff outside of fics 😅 I guess my short answer is: No idea. It just happens. Someone please help me.

are there any recurring themes in your writing? do they surprise you?

OHHH this is gonna say a lot about me, but something I've noticed in my original scripts and even my first fic is that most of the time, my main character is deeply lonely (I'M FINE GUYS, I'm surrounded by friends and loved ones but I have Some Trauma there). It doesn't really surprise me, considering I know WHY I've felt those things, but it's still like.......yikes. Lol. Also humor. Gotta laugh it off, right? RIGHT?

what is your reason for writing?

To be honest, it's a good outlet for me. I went to school for screenwriting and my goal has always been to make people laugh and bring them joy - It's always been that way. I think if I weren't able to get my thoughts and feelings out on paper every once in a while, I might explode. It's also just fun and I like doing it! Piggybacking off of what Khy said in their post, BG3 has been a HUGE outlet for me creatively. The game is full and beautiful and complex, but there are still gaps that I want to fill in and roads I want to explore. What would happen if the player were given THIS option? How would this character react to THIS situation? It's been a blast and I've never felt this way in a fandom before. It's awesome!

Is there any specific comment or type of comment you find particularly motivating?

ANY comment makes my day. The fact that you took the time to read and put thoughts together to let me know how you felt about it is HUGE! It's such a good confidence boost (I second guess myself A LOT) and it always lifts my mood no matter where I am. I always love when people agree with my interpretation of Astarion's idiot tendencies 😂

how do you want to be thought about by your readers?

Hopefully as someone approachable. I'm a big dumb dummy and I love to chat/fan girl. If I can be someone to brighten their day with something silly that I wrote, that's all I need :)

what do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?

Definitely my banter. I've always been a fan of quick snappy quips and have experience in sketch writing/performing improv, so it comes very easily for me when I need it to. I make myself laugh with it, so it's always really nice to hear that others like it too.

how do you feel about your own writing?

I really started writing as a way of entertaining myself, so the fact that it's able to entertain others is GREAT, but I am very self conscious about it at the same time. I know my interpretation of Astarion is goofier than most, I know I rely heavily on dialogue rather than scene descriptions and inner monologues, and I get very in my head about those things. My stuff has found its proper audience and I'm very grateful for that, but there's always the nagging thought of "this could be better," or "they wouldn't say this," etc etc. That's something I'll likely always struggle with. BUT! I always have fun when I'm writing and hopefully that comes through. I've become less of a perfectionist after posting my first fic, that's for sure.

when you write, are you influenced by what others might enjoy reading, or do you write purely for yourself, or a mix of both?

Aside from requests, where I'm trying very hard to make sure I get whatever it is right for the person who requested it, I'm usually writing for myself. I'm definitely writing what I think will be enjoyable, but it's usually what I personally would like to read. That's what I've been taught! Write what you know and write what you want to read! I'm so unbelievably grateful that you guys find it entertaining as well. My fave thing to do is slip inside jokes in for myself/my beta (calling Astarion "ass," turning to someone and saying "did you know those people?" after talking to a group of people you know very well, etc etc).

No pressure tagging: @maladaptive-menace, and @arzen9 (I know you're not a fic writer, but still!) - I think everyone else I know has been tagged 😅

[prince-rowan-of-the-forest]

We'll Save You (3/4)

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Janus has a bad day and finds himself in the library. Things can only go up from there..

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| <- Previous Chapter | Next Chapter -> |

TWs: No explicit tws for this chapter I dont think - but as per the fic there are vague references to past trauma.

Word Count: 2349

Notes: Hey look, it's me updating a fic I haven't updated in six and a half months!!!

I got inspiration to finish writing this third chapter after an ask game on tumblr - sooooo that's cool!

I don't know what I'll write for the final chapter, I do hope to do something, but it might be another six months, unfortunately.

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Janus was having a horrible day.

He knew it the moment he woke up that today just wasn't going to be good, as days sometimes were. He'd woken up feeling phantom bruises on his arms and legs. His breakfast had tasted like dirt when Anxiety brought it - he'd seemed to notice Janus' mood and left quickly with a small reassuring smile. He’d taken extra care to brush his hair over the left of his face today, seeing the scales made him feel sick. 

He'd eaten quickly and changed into a comfortable set of clothes from the wardrobe that Prince had been steadily filling. He couldn't help how he felt a little guilty putting on such soft, lovely clothes. Such things were meant for people who had earned them. Janus was sure he'd done no such thing. 

He'd snuck from his room, attempting to stay out of sight from anyone who he might cross paths with - any servants and especially Prince or Anxiety. He really didn't feel like talking right now.

Somehow, he'd managed to find his way back to the library he'd found a short while before. He hadn't quite found the time to visit it since. When he found it, though, he quickly worked out that no-one seemed to be inside. It was quiet, as libraries should be. 

For a moment, Janus considered that he had no idea how he was supposed to find a book that he wanted to read in this library. It was so huge with so many shelves, so many isles and nooks and crannies - which was perfect with him wanting to hide, but did make things a little difficult. 

Somehow, though, when Janus thought about what he wanted to read, his instincts seemed to start pulling him in a certain direction - toward a certain shelf.

Eventually he found the place the library seemed to be leading him to - a shelf of books about… mortals. Reading the covers led him to believe they were fictional - mortal written stories about… romance. 

He picked out one that seemed to be more interesting and then - once he had the book firmly in hand - the library seemed to begin pulling him in another direction, this time leading him to a small nook that sat off of the main library, featuring a plush red rug over hardwood floor and a wonderfully soft looking sofa across from a roaring fireplace. 

The curtains over the windows on one side of the room were drawn, only letting slivers of sunlight through where they hadn't quite been closed properly. Janus smiled, it was cozy, the room was comfortably warm and when he tentatively took a seat on the sofa he found it just as wonderful as it looked.

He didn't know how long he had sat there reading, but it must have been a long time, because he had nearly finished the book when he noticed that any time had passed at all. The nook the library had led him to was the perfect place to hide from the fear and guilt that still plagued him about everything. The perfect place to get lost and forget how everything felt so wrong. How every moment he wondered when the second shoe would drop, how he feared the moment they'd force him to attempt some impossible task just to punish him for failing..

Janus tried to clamp down on those thoughts, attempting to focus his brain back onto the words he was seeing on the page before him. The main character was part way through screaming at her previous partner for 'cheating' on her at the beginning of the book, and Janus was interested to see whether she would be punished for such a thing.

But then most of this book didn't make sense. It was mortal written, the labels on the shelves had said so, and supposedly reflected reality, but Janus found it mentioned many things he didn't know or hadn't heard of before. The female characters were working jobs and standing up to their partners without being hurt or worse. The world described in this book was nothing like the one he had known. 

Thinking about just how much time he must have missed only served to make his bad mood worse. So he kept reading. Regardless of the confusion he faced, he hoped the story ended well. Maybe he'd try the fantasy section next - at least there was no expectation for him to understand the world there.

"Why hello Deceit!" Said a cheerful voice that had Janus' eyes snapping up from his book - he was only a chapter away from finishing. Prince stood in the doorway, leaning casually against the opening with a thick book tucked under his arm. He was wearing a less extravagant outfit today than usual, a simple loose shirt with a plain corset and trousers. He wasn't even wearing shoes. Somehow despite his overall casual look, Prince still looked somewhow… tense.

Janus really didn't feel like talking much today, not with anyone, and Prince's peppiness only served to make him feel worse about his own bad mood, so he simply waved.

"Ah, bad day?" Prince asked, Janus nodded, "May I sit?" 

He just shrugged and went back to reading, unable to help the way his eyes wondered to Prince just about every time he paused. He had sat down on the opposite end of the couch, wings draped over the armrest and feet tucked up in front of him, only just not getting in Janus' space. 

"What are you reading?" Prince asked eventually, wings rustling. Janus showed him the book cover and he nodded in what must be approval, *Marian Keyes? Good choice." 

Minutes later, Janus realised that he was pretty sure Roman hadn't turned a page the entire time he'd been sat here. He sighed, finishing the last few pages before setting down the book on a side table and going to stand up. He almost missed the way Prince's expression turned near distraught when he left the sofa, though when he looked back over he was back to frowning at the same page. 

Did Prince want him to stay? What was going on? 

Carefully, he settled back down with a glance at Prince, who didn't look up but visually relaxed just a little all the same. 

"Are… you olright?" Janus asked eventually, unable to get the off feeling out of his head. Prince looked up in surprise, before sighing.

"You really are an observant one, aren't you?" Prince said softly.

Janus frowned, unsure of what Prince really meant. Was that bad? 

"I suppose I'm not having the best day," Prince continued, "But I wouldn't want to concern you with my problems when you still have so many of your own to deal with." 

"I appreciate that," Janus said eventually, before taking a deep breath, "But I did ask, what's wrong?" 

"I-" Roman started, before letting out a breath of air from his nose, his feathers drooping, "I will be okay, today just seems to not be on my side."

Janus nods slowly, "I think I'm having the same problem, can I… .help?"

"How would you help?" Prince asked, raising an eyebrow. Janus frowned.

"A hug?" Janus suggested anyway, glad he'd gotten the word for what Anxiety had done with him from the book he'd read, "Anxiety said you like them when you're upset."

"They did?* Prince asked, before smiling, "Of course they did."

Prince shifted, placing down his book and sitting up properly before opening his arms - Inviting Janus for a hug. 

He hesitated for a moment, before shifting down the sofa and wrapped his arms around Prince, careful not to touch his wings - he wasn't sure quite how private they were, before attempting to relax against him 

Prince sighed, squeezing him gently and leaning forward to rest his chin atop Janus' hair as he ran a hand through the curling strands. Janus couldn't help but relax too, relishing in the more gentle touches. This wasn't something he was used to, and the way Prince's hand felt in his hair was new and gentle and felt simply wonderful. 

"I may also be hiding," Prince admitted quietly, voice muffled by Janus' hair.

"From what?" Janus asked, just as quiet, he worried that if he spoke any louder it would ruin the peace.

"Vee," Prince admitted with a small chuckle, "I ate the last slice of his cake." 

Janus couldn't help the way he tensed, though Prince seemed to notice, gently running his fingers down his back, somehow drawing the tension from his shoulders. 

"Don't worry, sweetheart," Prince said, "It's nothing serious, a little playful squabbling at best."

"He won't hurt you, right?" Janus asked, frowning into Prince's shoulder. He liked Prince - and Anxiety too, though it was taking a little more to warm up to them. He didn't want either of them to hurt each other, especially not over something like a cake. 

Prince shook his head, "Most certainly not, it's all in good fun, they know I'm not having a good day, so it's all light-hearted."

"Okay," Janus said, eventually settling down in Prince's arms again. This felt like it was lasting longer than the 'hug' in his book had, and the one Anxiety gave him too, and those hadn't involved quite so much contact, but Janus was comfortable here. He found he didn't want to move, and Prince seemed quite content to hold onto him and play with his hair too, so Janus felt it maybe wasn't so bad.

—

“Ah, so this is where you’ve been hiding?”

The peace in the library room was broken by another voice. Janus found now that he was startled into wakefulness that he’d been dozing off cuddled up to Prince’s chest. He looked up to see Anxiety standing in the doorway, arms crossed, though their expression softened a little when their eyes fell on Janus. Prince looked a little worried, but he was still smiling.

“Hello sweetie, what’re you doing in here?” Anxiety asked, tilting their head a little.

“Um..” Janus said awkwardly - suddenly wondering if they’d be upset that Janus had been actively cuddling their partner. 

Coming to his rescue, Prince answered for him, “I found Deceit reading in here, he noticed I was upset and offered a hug - I suppose I got a little carried away...”

Anxiety laughed, a small sound that they covered their mouth with a hand to hide, “Cute,” They said, “Are you okay with being cuddled like a pillow, sweetie?”

“Yes,” Janus said too quickly for his own liking - but it was still true, “It’s - it’s kind of… nice?”

“Awwe,” Prince cooed, sitting up a little and pulling Janus back into his chest. 

Chuckling, Anxiety looked at them both for a moment, “You two look adorable, mind if I join you?”

“Of course, my darling,” Prince said, reaching out for him, “As long as the little cutie is okay with it?”

It took Janus an embarrassingly long time to realise that Roman was referring to him with that cute nickname, but with cheeks flushed red, Janus nodded. He wouldn’t mind Anxiety joining them. Nodding, Anxiety walked over, perching on the edge of the sofa next to them until Prince used one of his wings to pull them closer. 

Eventually, after a little bit of shifting around in order to get comfortable, Janus found himself sandwiched between the two faeries, Prince was comfortably warm while Anxiety balanced out that warmth with their gentle coolness. Prince’s wings were wrapped neatly around them and Anxiety was gently carding their fingers through the primary feathers whilst they rested their head on Janus’ shoulder. Janus couldn’t help but notice the way Prince shivered with every stroke of Anxiety’s slender fingers - those feathers looked so soft, though.

“Would you like to try?” Anxiety asked, looking passively at Janus as he paused in running his hands through the feathers. Blushing, Janus ducked his head before looking up at Prince for permission. The faerie in question was looking serenely at them both - as if totally at peace. 

“Of course, little one, go ahead,” Prince said softly, running his fingers through Janus’ hair once more, “Vee will show you where not to touch.”

And so began a lengthy explanation of the parts of Prince’s wings and which parts were more sensitive or intimate to touch. Janus felt he was right to avoid touching them earlier. It seemed the fluffy feathers nearest where his wings joined his back were sensitive, as well as some other spots where there were apparently glands. Anxiety assured him that the tops of the wings and primary feathers were the safest spots to touch if he ever wanted to. 

The explanation ended with Anxiety holding Janus’ hand against theirs to guide his fingers through the soft feathers - they were just as soft as they looked. Prince let out a soft, happy sigh. 

“He’s sweet, isn’t he?” Anxiety asked him a little while later after Prince’s soft breaths had evened out and he’d fallen asleep holding Janus against him with his nose buried in his hair. 

“Yes,” Janus agreed, before covering his mouth as he let a yawn slip out. 

“Why don’t you fall asleep too?” Anxiety said gently, “I think you both need it, and I think he’d appreciate you being there.”

Janus yawned again, settling in with a happy sigh - he really did felt like he could fall asleep right here, and maybe Anxiety is right, he probably did need the rest. 

“Will you stay here too?” He said, not sure why moments afterwards. Normally he wanted to be around Anxiety especially as little as possible when he wasn’t feeling his best. Anxiety seemed just as surprised as he did.

“Of course,” They said regardless, “Of course I’ll stay - we’ll both be here when you wake up.”

Leaning forward, Anxiety pressed a gentle kiss to Janus’ forehead, making him feel a little like he was burning - like sitting by a fire after you’d just come in from a freezing winter. 

Easily, Janus allowed himself to drift off to sleep, somehow feeling safe sandwiched between these two faeries. 

----

Tags: @full-of-roman-angst-trash @your-local-random-dino @cutebisexualmess @glacierruler @roseianxiety @bella-bugatti-frogetti-baguetti @scalesfeathersnfur (if anyone wants to be added, let me know!)

[skele-bunny]

Hello! It's is me again in to cause chaos but the fluffy kind this time, let's let my boy phantom have a break of my horrific angsty ideas. I was curious so do you have any Cumulus hc or ficlest you would like to share? She doesn't have many that i can find and it's a tragedy 😔

(Also since i thought it would be fun would you mind if identify myself with a lil 🎃?)

Hi pumpkin!! You can totally be my pumpkin anon that's adorable wnkekd

Unfortunately, I have 0 Cumulus fics 🥺 I don't actively search her out, or write her that much as I gotta be real, I'm a ghoul person. It genuinely is a tragedy and my heart goes out for the Ghoulette lovers (I love those ladies but I'm better at writing males snejdk)

But!! I most absolutely do have some hc's I'd love to share about her!

Obviously, Cumulus is an air ghoulette. While she may be short in stature, she's still super intimidating and can be at ass. I like to think air ghouls have the ability to literally travel with the wind, mostly with running. That little lady will be across the abbey and then back to her den within SECONDS. Got some pretty claws she likes painting and always staying sharp

She's a big hugger! Will happily open her arms for anyone that wants/needs a hug, and she's honestly so soft. Air ghouls have feathers usually on their chest/neck/ankles/stomach/abdomen, which makes them silky to the touch. It's also good at helping maintaining temperature for hotter/colder weather!

Keeps getting nicknamed "birdy" by Cirrus as she has a habit of sitting in higher altitudes (trees, rooftops) and just singing. She enjoys not only the view, but the similarity of the pit when she'd be in the clouds doing the exact same.

Cumulus' hair is a pain in everyone's ass. Sheds like it's not bodies business. Giant white strands on the couch, in laundry, stuck to the towels, LAWD.... Her brush always stays full 💀

Her and Mountain can be seen in the kitchen together with her reading off from a cookbook, Mountain actually doing the work. He'll have her go through his many collections to pick out a new recipe for him to try and make for dinner. Lus' always picks the wildest things just to tease him, but she is genuinely curious about the food. Mountain rewards her for her help by making her be the taste tester jekdkd

Her, Cirrus, Sunshine, and Aurora love hanging out together the most. Constant little spa days or self care time, gosh those ladies gossip so much. She loves staying up to date with Sister of Sin issues, just filing her nails and listening to how "Janet slept with Abraham when she knew Alice and Abraham were on a break and Alice was thinking about getting back together again." Does the stereotypical "no she did not!"

Mist and Cumulus are really, really good friends! They don't hang out as much as they'd like to, but when they do they just talk for hours. Ranging from the pit, shows and ones of past, what's going on their own lives, and their mates. They never seem to run out of topics and even though Mist isn't a big cuddler, let's Cumulus snuggle right up to him and will comb through her hair with his nails

She knows how to play the harp! Down in the pits they have harp-like instruments and that was their main source of melody. There's one in the chapel she likes to sit down and play when it's empty

Her and Cirrus are inseparable, they're so in love dude 🥺 air ghoul culture, trading your feathers with one another and weaving it into your hair/clothes is a significant of bonding and romance. Big.... Big romanticals.....

Cumulus is a switch, and when that lady tops? You ain't surviving /j. Loves working her partners up on the ever increasing strap sizes she has, makes them work for it too.

[musicerrorfics]

For your writer ask meme

10 - 12 - 31 (Maybe you could add some fanfiction too?) - 36

This is going to be a long one

10. Pick an author (or writing friend) to co-write a both with

Honestly, anyone would be cool. Worked with artist in the past for fics but not another writer. I don't know how that would work but I'm more than willing to try.

12. Which story of yours do you like best? why?

I have two, one that is from my fluffier side and the other is from my smutty side.

The first is "Talk Out Your Problems" (https://archiveofourown.org/works/27713879/chapters/67829306), it was one that I took my time with, my own retelling of Teen Wolf, that I'm really proud of but wasn't reserved very well.

The other is "A Hairy Situation" (https://archiveofourown.org/works/44849500). It's one I'm very proud of that showcases my storytelling and smutty side together very well, at least in my opinion.

Those are the two that I love from my own stories.

31. Top five favorite fanfiction in your genre?

Like before I'm going to have two lists since I jump genres. There are so many that I love to reread. These are just two very short lists about what I read, there are many more that I love.

I'll start with the ones that I love to reread that get me off. In no particular order:

"Happy Trails" by ColetheWolf

"Macro" by darktwistedmusings

"Trying to Earn It" by littlesdeath

"Room 27" by Udunie

"Snap" by Ever_Pining (this one is a part of a collection called Prompts & Scribbles if you'd like to read any of these)

The other list is:

The series "Derek's Person" by ash_mcj (it's a WIP but there is a lot to read if you're up for it)

"At Least the Road to Hell is paved, I'm not good with Stairways" by lady emebalia (emebalia) (it has BDSM themes in it so if you don't like that or are uncomfortable with it I'd skip this one)

"To Build a Home" by intothesilentland (this is a Supernatural fic by the way)

"Home" by TheTypewriterGirl (personally I think this is a staple for not only Sterek fanfiction but for Teen Wolf, it's so good)

"DILF" by twentysomething (this is the first Teen Wolf fic I ever read and the reason I have an account on AO3 is so I could reread it)

36. Post a snippet

This is from a story I'm working on with a dark Derek and Stiles pairing. It's already done but I want to tweak it a bit.

###

Stiles didn't know what he was doing as he fell onto his bed only wearing a pair of light pink briefs. He was taking a few calming breaths, trying to calm his franticly beating heart. For months he'd been talking to someone online, exchanging stories and fantasies, jerking off to the ideas, but that was all it was, talking. But a week ago, Stiles got a message that his playmate, Derek, was going to be in town and wanted to meet. But Stiles was a kind, generous, and caring boy, being the son of the sheriff it was practically beaten into his head, and he had a boyfriend, Scott, that he loved very much. He could never do anything that crazy, right?

For the months that he'd been talking to Derek, Stiles was about to do something he'd been too afraid to do, he was able to talk about the true darkness inside of himself. It was a deep pit in his soul that no matter how hard he tried to ignore, it always came back with a vengeance. The many fantasies that Stiles had thought about for years was given a voice and encouragements from someone just as fucked up as him. And Derek also filled a part of that fantasy by being a large intimidating man. They'd talk about Derek kidnapping Stiles, making him into a sex slave, but before doing that, Derek would torture and kill anyone that would get in his way. Stiles jerked off to his partner talking about strangling someone Stiles loved while the man was helpless to do anything but watch. The two would cum at the possibilities and at the end of the day, it was safe, their imagination wasn't hurting anyone for real and the darkness in them was kept at bay. Recently, the talks got darker, Derek describing exactly how he'd kill someone and how that person would look after everything was said and done. But parts of fantasy has a way to become a reality. So after so long talking with Derek, he had proposed a meet up and Stiles foolishly agreed.

Groaning quietly, Stiles rolled onto his stomach and thought about calling Derek up and canceling. He'd been thinking about it for days, sometimes he'd ever delete all his chats with Derek and block him, never to talk to him again.

Just as he finally made the decision to cancel, his phone started to ring. He nervously grabbed it from his bedside table, a picture of him and his boyfriend adding to his guilt, as he thought that Derek had caught wind of him wanting to cancel seconds before. But actually, it was so much worse.

"Hey babe," Scott said, his usual sweet voice used to be a comfort to Stiles but at the moment it just made him sick, "what's up?"

"Hey," his mouth felt dry.

"I was just wondering if you wanted me to pick up something on the way home."

As they were talking, Stiles's phone showed notifications popped up. His stomach twisted and his dick throbbed in his underwear. "No, that's ok, I'll cook. We have lots of things here, stuff I can cook... for dinner." His brain was a mess.

"Alright, I need to get back to work, see to you later."

"I love you," Stiles said, a normal reflex when talking to his boyfriend.

"Love you too," Scott replied, hanging up after that.

Stiles let out a heavy sigh and rolled onto his back again, staring at the ceiling. He rubbed his eyes with his knuckles, the guilt crept through his body for a moment. But the guilt only lasted for a moment, the increasing lust and excitement strained his underwear making him pick up his phone again and see what those notifications were.

They were messages making his dick twitch.

I just got to my hotel. The first message from Derek read. Are you ready for me? I still haven't made up my mind about how I'm going to do it. Maybe we can decide together.

Stiles rubbed his tented underwear. I'm so ready. He typed back. Glancing at the time, 2:39, he typed again. My bf won't be home till 5:30 so we have time to mess around.

A moment later, his phone buzzed. Lots of time to prepare. I'm on my way.

[bunnyboysrus]

This is the start of the blog

I'm trying to start a writing blog centered around monsters and yanderes, I couldn't tell you why this became my niche recently but it's hit hard. I don't write online much so don't flame me if this turns out to be trash, or just really awkwardly formatted.

Man call me really cringe but I watched a video about how to make time for reading books in the golden age of media and that combined with the start of the new year has really made me feel like I need to at least start reading and writing more. I've had writing aspirations for years I'm just so undecided on how to go about it. I have only ever lurked on Tumblr, making really cool looking posts is so beyond me but it is pretty nice to write on.

I have some ideas, for reader insert shit, with OCs, I don't plan on writing fandom stuff (MAYBE Obey me, maybe), but if anyone had any specific character ideas they were like, really crossing their fingers, hoping they'd come across it, let me know and I'll consider it, I'm having a hard time settling on something to write. I'll probably drop some character profiles soon and then follow up with short fics about them.

I guess I'll ask, what do you think is the cooler character to start with, the secret genius golden retriever boy on roller skates, the dream demon, or the mad scientist serial killer?

[redrosesshadowwolf]

I used to love writing. I mean I still do, and I get sparks of creativity all the time.

I never seem to get past a few chapters for a fic so I rarely post my writing.

But that's not what this is about.

You see, there is this thing people used to do. I have no idea where I remember this happening. But when I was younger I read several works people had done together. Whether it be POV shifted with alternating chapters, or they worked together for the whole thing.

I've always loved that type of work. I've always wanted to do such things.

But finding someone to write with you? Someone who has the same brain worms?

It can be hard.

Despite having been perusing tumblr for a long time, I didn't make an account till a few years ago. And I've enjoyed how people jump back and forth adding to prompts in the notes, it's a smaller version of what I enjoy so much.

I've done that, I've verbally jumped back and forth making short stories with friends as well. But finding time and motivation between people to bring about one central idea hadn't worked our for me too well.

So I guess why I'm saying this all is so I can see if anyone else has this issue, if anyone knows a platform that works best for such things.

I'd try and find people to write with. But that takes a little more than just spotting a person and agreeing to write with them.

I have also seen group things like this done for short prompts from large discord servers I'm Fandoms and such. But I think one of the most unique times I've seen this done was for some old zombie apocalypse story I had read on Wattpad when I was like 11.

Because yeah, I'm part of the time before making sure there were proper childlocks on every site and device.

Honestly kinda feel bad for the kids who are stuck with such things. I would have hated it.

But I understand they're important for kids who don't know any better.

Also, some people really need to just teach kids to click away or turn off things if it makes them uncomfortable. Because some people grow up instead just going through with watching or reading stuff that fucks them up in the head. Or they complain to adults and the adults turn it off or get rid of it for them and the kid gets like no problem solving ability for such thing.

I don't know many kids, but somehow I've still seem both issues prominently displayed in real life and on media platforms.

Anyways ignoring my beef with people, and other such things. I really do love back and forth about writing and with writing.

I think when I was in like elementary or middle school one of my teachers had a few assignments where I had to do such things. And that really opened this can of worms of me loving the idea.

Because I've never done sports or been a part of a large team, but I have had to team up in academic environments and doing creative writing with people who also enjoyed writing was just an incredible experience. Even if it was more likely you'd get stuck with someone who didn't like writing and they'd make the experience so very annoying and horrible, those few good times outweighs the bad for me through this type of writing.

It's once again, probably why I love tumblr so much. Because we do this in small doses throughout fandoms and general writing prompts. Some people ask that people don't add on or elaborate on their writing. But so many more seem rather happy if someone takes their beginning and adds a middle, even if they plan on writing their own middle and end.

It's honestly a fantastic thing.

[dalishthunder]

Um uh *screams*

Ti's me again, smile anon. Took long bc lord has this week been relentless but you're still keeping us well fed w all the rama content and i am coming to scream about it as promised (so to anyone else reading this ask There Will Be Spoilers)

First of all I love the quotes you're leaving at the start of chapters, they really set the tone! The fic overall is v introspective and I'm deeply enjoying the discussions on morality. Both ramattra and reader gave it a lot of thought, and I like that he's getting a chance to discuss his ideals w somebody who'd listen and actually mull it over. Somebody's already mentioned this, but you include his voice lines seamlessly and get his speech patterns on point!

And holy shit that last line. "At what point did throwing a molotov cocktail become self defense?" That's the perfect way to end the chapter with how it's been going. And I love that there isn't an answer right now. Those children (and other innocent people) were put in danger as a direct result of the attack, even if unintentionally. But also reader and the child they were saving got put in danger by a stray bullet (again, not intentional) from overwatch who are supposed to be saving them. So what's the answer here? "I'm still not sure. But I do know there are some lines that I won’t cross, Ramattra." Gah I love the characterization of this reader so much. They play off each other well and I can't wait to see what conclusion they'd reach (both of them). Went over both snippets and I will whoop and cheer once the next chapter is release

Also I noticed how he asked how they view him again 👀 and yes he's using it as a shooting off point to get his idea across but methinks he deeply cares about the answer. And it hurts that his 'friend' status is on shaky grounds rn but they still care for each other and that's what matters

Overall, I adore how you characterize him. On the surface he appears cold and distant, because he's had no choice but to be, but then when given the chance he's so thoughtful and he cares. He cares deeply about the people in his circle and about his cause, about other omnics that he's resigned himself to suffering forever if it means getting there.

I am aro-spec and rarely find myself catching feelings but you have me officially down on my knees I just wanna hold him and kiss him and give him a damn break for once, he deserves all the TLC in the world </3

Ahem hope i didn't embarrass myself too much ily thanks for the 👌💯💥 good content

Smile anon I need you to know that I've read this like 50 times and it fills me with such joy each time!

I think Ramattra just... has a lot of grief that he can't really process because he's never been given the proper space to which just exacerbates his anger. And while these things are absolutely something he is not just valid, but *justified* in experiencing, they are leading him to make questionable decisions that seem to conflict with his own moral code, so like... more of that to come

And yes! I love writing something that's serious, and not in a horror way, for once. It's a nice change of pace to discuss morality and just how subjective it can be, and much like my first fic from my years long hiatus, I think it's going to become much more of a long-form fic than something short and sweet because both of these characters have so much to say

Also! He very much uses "Tell me, what do you see when you look at me?" as a way to challenge any assumptions reader may have made about him, but it's also 100% a way to gauge how they feel about him because he really does care.

And I'm having so much fun writing this, and I'm so glad people are enjoying it so much!!!!

These aren't embarrasing I love your asks so much 🥺🥺🥺🥺

[triflesandparsnips]

Speaking of the orange-flower water pomatum for lips and its associated potential uses...

5/9/22 ETA: And this is all in reference to:

I researched contemporaneous recipes from Stede Bonnet’s likely home library!

I've posted this fic to the AO3!

I have subsequently had a Bad Idea about selling this pomatum!

Plot bunny, free to a good home (more here):

In an out of the way corner of the Republic of Pirates is an establishment that has no sign and has never advertised. It is, nonetheless, reliably known as Blackbeard's Bar and Grill and Other Delicacies and Delights and Fishing Equipment-- or "The Gift Shop" for short.

It's managed by a pair of old codgers who like to daydream, drink over-sugared tea, and tell outrageous lies about their youth. They've named the place for a legend who went missing after his head was cut off in '18, though they'd be the first to say that maybe "stopped showing up in bars after a very public decapitation, gosh, I wonder why" was not perhaps the most complicated of mysteries. They won't say why they've named it for him, though-- they don't even seem to be related to the man. So far as anyone can tell, their names are Jeff.

The food is decent, the prices reasonable, and anyone maimed on premises gets a free splash of the highest proof booze they have in stock over whatever's still bleeding. But nice as all that is, it's not for any of those reasons that The Gift Shop is the most sought-after eatery in the nautical world-- nor why the Jeffs can largely afford to ignore things like consistent menus or reliable hours.

No, the real reason everyone knows to come to this particular little corner of the pirate netherworld is because of, well... The Gift Shop's gift shop.

The gift shop of The Gift Shop is filled mostly with fishing equipment, as the place's proper name would suggest. But right by the till, set up in friendly little pyramids as if begging to be added on top of other supplies as last-minute impulse purchase, are dozens of palm-sized tins with printed paper pasted to their lids, each of them reading "A Delightfull Pomatum FOR Diuerse Ufes, by a Gentle-man's SPECIAL INSTRUCTION."

As the majority of people who came into the shop were functionally illiterate, it was the accompanying illustration -- of a hand holding a full-sailed ship in its palm -- that really helped give the pomatum it's more commonly held and extremely apt title:

"The Seaman's Friend"

Because as it turned out, and regardless of what that one Jeff tended to huff about, while this little tin of scented salve worked well enough on chapped lips, its real "delightful diverse use" was as the best bit of slick in the seven seas.

Better smelling than goose grease and a hell of a lot more effective than spit, the Seaman's Friend would take care of a man in private or in company, in sickness or in health, whether hauling or heaving or switching as the wind dictated (as Jeff liked to say while nudging Jeff and anyone else standing within reach of his elbows). It lasted for months, smelled like a wet dream's idea of heaven, and was always priced a penny cheaper than the market cost of the snake kebab.

Apothecaries had tried to buy its recipe from the Jeffs; thieves had tried to steal whole boxes of them to resell at an exorbitant cost. Those apothecaries had gone home either empty-handed or with a recipe that was sure to cause unsightly boils; the thieves merely disappeared, to the wide-eyed surprise of the old men who were questioned after the fact. (Thieves? Weird. SO weird. Can we interest you in a kebab?)

And through it all, year after year, the Jeffs sat behind their till, or wandered amongst their dining customers, or just climbed to the roof and sat watching the ocean while The Gift Shop continued buzzing along without them. A delightful and diverse use of their time together, in fact, by some special instruction all their own.

[thedamageofherdays]

This week's [23-08-2021 - 29-08-2021] reading log is here! I read a lot again this week and I feel like it's a lovely variety of fics. Most fics are Stucky like usual, but there's at least one other ship. I am constantly amazed by the talent people have in this fandom! There was one fic I read on Tumblr that I can't seem to find unfortunately, but when I do I'll make sure to reblog and rec it 💕

Favourites are marked with a 🌻

When life gives you lemons by moonthejedi394 @moonythejedi394 [Stucky, 40k words, Mature] (12/15 chapters available)

Or 13 Terrible Things to Do With Lemons Other Than Making Lemonade

Steve Rogers is a home health nurse. He works for an agency, which assigned him to the aging Winifred Barnes, the one and only Silent Era Hollywood darling. As her needs increased, she requested the agency assign Steve to her full-time. She could pay for it, so she got it. Steve then moved in with her, becoming her caregiver; he cooked, he cleaned, he managed her medications, he made sure she was comfortable.

Winifred's children treated him less than ideally. He was the help, after all. And then Steve had the audacity to go and turn out to be eldest son James Barnes's soulmate. No one saw that coming.

The Masseur and the Assassin by buckybarnesdeservestobehappy @buckybarnesdeservestobehappy [Stucky, 17k words, Explicit]

Bucky Barnes needed a vacation from his job. What he found was a happy ending.

The Words Breathe by buckbarnesdeservestobehappy [Stucky, 1k words, Mature]

All Steve has to do is keep his promise. When he doesn’t, Bucky gets mouthy.

Soft by this_wayward_life @wayward-lives [Stucky, 2k words, Explicit]

The last time he'd seen Bucky he'd looked unhealthy, with pallid skin and greasy, lanky hair. Now, Bucky shone; his hair was thick and silky, his skin a deep bronze from spending so much time outside. He was softer, too; the hard muscle that used to cover him was now replaced by soft fat, his body still strong, but in a more mundane way. His thighs were thicker, his ass plumper, and when he'd pulled Steve into the river Steve had noticed the pudge on his stomach.

Seeing Bucky so happy, well-fed and shining, was a bit of a kick in the face. For all the years they'd known each other, he'd never seen Bucky so... care-free. Now that Bucky was putting on weight, his middle soft and his body malleable, it sent a bolt of arousal through Steve every time he noticed the curves of Bucky's body.

Or: Bucky put on a bit of weight in Wakanda, and Steve is Not Coping.

🌻 Revive Another Side of Me by dontcallmebree @iamthe-wo-manwhocan [Stucky, 1k words, Mature]

Steve’s never lived in a world without Bucky, and he’s not living now. It takes them a while, much too long, to get that awaited rest, a little slice of peace after the dust has settled.Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes are inseparable, history remembers. But they’re not men of the past quite yet.

🌻 imagine being loved by me by spacebuck @spacebuck [Stucky, 20k words, Explicit]

Just after 1am - a few hours after he posted today’s photo - he hears the tell-tale sound of a twitter message. Bucky grabs his phone, not checking who it’s from as he opens it because it’s probably one of his mutuals yelling at him as per usual. When he actually looks at his phone, though, it’s not Natasha

The ‘verified’ check stares back at him for a long moment before he can even bring himself to process the name on his screen. Steve Rogers is messaging him. Or, he reasons, a very good fake. The handle looks right though, not that Bucky knows. Not that Bucky has Captain’s America’s tweets set up as notifications, or that Bucky’s own display name is set to captain america’s bitch. Not at all.

Hey, the first message says. It’s Steve.

🌻 JB’s Complete Lube Services by dixons_mama @dixons-mama [Stucky, 3k words, Explicit]

People just didn’t approach Captain America and proposition him. Although, sometimes Steve wished they would; even the pinnacle of virtue and justice needed to get dicked down from time to time.

Or, the one where Steve has the hots for a mechanic and decides to be proactive in getting that dick.

If it had to be someone by rainbow_nerds [Stucky, 1k words, Mature]

Bucky had known since he was a child that he didn’t have a choice in who he married, but he’d thought he had more time before the day arrived.

Miscalculations by christywantspizza @christywantspizza [Ransom Drysdale/Reader, 6k words, Explicit]

Ransom tries to get you to sleep with him by less than honorable means. You give him what he wants, just not how he wants it.

How to Seduce a Writer by obsessivereader [Stucky, 2k words, Teen]

What's a determined master strategist going to do when the oblivious writer he's trying to woo keeps missing all the clues?

He doesn’t think it’s because he hadn’t signaled his own interest to Bucky. He’s pretty much done everything short of hitting Bucky over the head with semaphore flags by this point. There’s no way Bucky could’ve missed them. Unless… There’d been that one link he’d stumbled upon when he’d googled ‘how to talk to a writer’. It’d been written by a writer, who’d been candid about how oblivious writers could be, and how someone could go about seducing one. An idea starts to form. It’s ridiculous, but at this point, he’s willing to go with ridiculous, since subtle wasn’t getting him anywhere.

🌻 Pod Bless America by Deisderium @deisderium [Stucky, 6k words, Teen]

Bucky can't believe his favorite podficcer recorded his newest fanfic AU of the show Commandos. He's even more surprised when the customer who busts him listening to fic while he's working in the office supply store turns out to be that podficcer.

* The guy—maybe bi_shield?—took his phone, looked down at the screen, and smiled. "Yeah, that one's mine," he said with no evidence of embarrassment. "It was a good one." He handed the phone back to Bucky.

"I wrote it," Bucky croaked.

take a bite by wearing_tearing [Stucky, 7k words, Mature]

"I’d never let anyone freeze to death.” Steve gives a big sigh and flutters his lashes. “All that blood gone to waste.”

Bucky’s lips turn down and his nose scrunches up a little. “I want to be grossed out, but…”

“But you get it.” Steve gives him a pointed look. “Vampires aren’t the only ones who can appreciate how juicy blood is.”

*

Or: Vampire Steve saves newly-turned werewolf Bucky from a snowstorm.

Leaving the Shield Behind by BuckyAboveEverything [Stucky, 6k words, Teen]

“So, on one hand, we have Steve Rogers - hunk, genius, animal lover. Buys you waffles and overpriced coffee. 100% wholesome all-American boy.”

“And, on the other hand, we have Capsicle – twink, smart-ass, fanboy. Reads your stories and sends you fanart. Possibly a pervert or a serial killer.”

Bucky groaned.

“I am 100% certain I am 0% sure of what to do."

Bucky Barnes, full-time copywriter and free-time fanfic writer, struggles to choose between two equally-attractive suitors, only to find that he doesn’t have to after all.

* Based on a true story *

Cap's Book Corner by Neche [Stucky, 2k words, Teen]

Recluse Author Bucky Barns stumbles into fanboy Steve Rogers bookstore one day...

Cat Nap by galwednesday @galwednesday [Stucky, 8k words, Teen]

Objectively, losing the Bucharest safehouse and its contents was the least of Bucky’s problems. The balding agent he’d seen directing the raid was apparently affiliated with SHIELD, which was a shadowy government agency that made representatives from other shadowy government agencies suddenly remember urgent appointments when Bucky tried to bribe, threaten, and otherwise shake them down for information on what the hell SHIELD might want with a former brainwashed assassin. Dodging SHIELD should be his number one priority.

Subjectively, he wanted his fucking cat back.

at any given moment by honeypuffed [Stucky, 1k words, Teen]

Steve and Bucky find out that everyone thinks they're sleeping together.

Brought to Brightness by eyres [Stucky, 10k words, Teen]

Army veteran Bucky Barnes has fallen in love with Steve, a guy he met online a few months after he returned from Afghanistan. Only problem is, he doesn't know Steve's last name or even what he looks like.

When his sister helps him send his story into MTV's Catfish, he's hoping they can help him meet Steve or, at least, let him move on with his life if Steve isn't real. Little does he know, Steve and Captain America have more in common than just a first name.

🌻 Nokken Wood by leveragehunters @leveragehunters [Stucky, 10k words, Teen]

When Sam's friend needs a house-sitter for his place in the country, Steve jumps at the chance. Six months rent-free to do nothing but draw and paint and wander the countryside, looking for inspiration? It was like a dream. But when he gets lost in a storm and nearly falls into a pond he starts to rethink the whole like a dream aspect of life in the country. And when a red-eyed, sharp-clawed, silver-fanged creature rises out of the darkness, Steve is one hundred percent certain the dream's morphed into a nightmare.

...until it gives him a cup of tea.

(Inspired partly by this prompt a supernatural creature is supposed to scare you but instead it gives you a cup of tea and a blanket because you're having a bad day and you keep coming back and partly by this painting.)

Professional Pride by galwednesday [Stucky, 700 words, Teen]

Bucky is having a very good day, until he turns around and finds himself face-to-face with Captain America.

“Oh shit,” he blurts before he can stop himself, and Captain America blinks at him. “Hey, hi, I didn’t expect to see you here.” Here, at New York’s Pride parade, surrounded by thousands of happy screaming people wearing rainbows and sometimes not much else. What is he doing here? Is he on guard duty or something? Was he just on a mission and happened to be passing by on his way back?

He’s in uniform but with the cowl loose around his neck, so when he rubs the back of his head it fluffs up his matted hair. “I, uh. I saw one of your–temporary tattoos?” Captain fucking America says, like it’s a question.

The A-bridged Guide to Trolling by galwednesday [Stucky, 1k words, Teen]

“I don’t have any money.”

Oh no, now the girl looked upset. Her eyes were huge and her lip was wobbling. Bucky tried to think fast despite the oh shit oh shit oh shit looping through his head.

“That’s okay,” Bucky said gently. “I don’t need money. We can figure out another kind of toll.”

The girl frowned at him. “Like what?”

Bucky scratched his head, trying to think of something a kid was certain to have on hand. “Do you know any jokes?”

(Fantasy AU in which Steve is a hedge witch with a green thumb, Bucky is a bridge troll who's new in town, and knock-knock jokes are a viable form of currency.)

It's a bittersweet ending (if you know what I mean) by relenafanel [Stucky, 1k words, Teen]

“I’ll see you around, Steve,” Bucky answers with a smirk, moving away from the counter with a wink.

Steve watches him go. Bucky’s wearing a pair of skinny jeans coated in something to give the appearance of leather. It’s impossible to not watch him go.

stuck on you by wearing_tearing [Stucky, 5k words, Teen]

“Bucky? You don’t look so hot.”

Bucky makes a tiny little sound in the back of his throat, only to start coughing. Of course he doesn’t look hot. He’s sick and he’s dying and Steve obviously isn’t attracted to him.

Decision-Making in Relationships (Paid Research Opportunity!) by castiowl [Stucky, 8k words, Teen]

Clint looked thoughtfully at the flyer. “I guess your actual roommate wouldn’t be down with it?”

Bucky frowned. “Have you met Steve Rogers?”

no way out but through by hollimichele [Stucky, 9k words, Teen]

Steve never sees it coming.

you got blood on your hands (and i know it's mine) by nighimpossible [Stucky, 3k words, Teen]

Bucky refuses to see Steve after his deprogramming.

Like What You See by daisymondays [Stucky, 8k words, Teen]

For all the time Bucky’s spent fantasizing about meeting Captain America, he’d never imagined it would be while posing nude in front of a drawing class.

🌻 A Real Boy by itsnotbleak [Stucky, 5k words, Teen]

It took the Winter Soldier three weeks to remember that human beings needed to sleep and eat.

It took Steve far too long to realise the Winter Soldier was sleeping in his bed.

Amapola by chaya [Stucky, 830 words, Teen]

Total fluff. Bucky's recovering nicely. Steve's oblivious. Sometimes it's best to set aside subtlety for action.

Knocking Boots With Sugar by buckybarnesdeservestobehappy [Stucky, 4k words, Explicit]

In between summers at college, Steve Rogers wants a new adventure beyond his lonely life in Brooklyn. He ends up in West Texas working on a dude ranch where Bucky Barnes is a long-time employee. When Bucky offers to buy Steve a drink, they end up drunk on tequila and making out in public. For the rest of the summer, they're inseparable. As the summer draws to a close, Steve realizes he doesn't want to leave.

Rogers and Associate by roe87 @jro616 [Stucky, 7k words, Teen]

When they first meet, Bucky is a hooker and Steve is a cop. She's been arrested, but Steve lets her off.

Years pass and they maintain a casual friendship, seeing each other out on the streets most nights.

Though he later makes detective, Steve loses faith in the system and quits his job.

He wants to set up as a private investigator, and he asks Bucky if she'd be his assistant.

Just in time by rainbow_nerds [Stucky, 1k words, Mature]

Bucky knew the apartment he was renting was old fashioned, but walking in the front door and finding himself transported back to 1938 was not on the list of things he had prepared himself for.

🌻 You Like What's in My Head by dontcallmebree [Stucky, 15k words, Explicit] (with art by @kocuria)

Bucky can’t decide if Steve’s a tough nut to crack or incredibly easy. The timbre of his voice, a low and almost amused, “Sure, kid,” when Bucky asks for a drink feels like something gripping him on the back of his neck.

He thinks this might be one of those moments in life he’ll pinpoint in the future and either curse at for dooming himself, or remember fondly with pride.

He’s right. Bucky Barnes blunders through falling in love with Commander Rogers and tries to find a deeper meaning behind the expensive gifts and thorough fucking.

Can I Sit Here? by BuckyFrickenBarnes [Stucky, 962 words, General]

Bucky has unusual methods for getting rid of his writer's block.

Or, Bucky needs that table.

Workplace Romance by BuckyFricken Barnes [Stucky, 1k words, General]

Bucky is under the impression that his boss hates him.

Or,

Steve needs to get better at dealing with his feelings.

🌻 1-800-MAYTAG by Miss Plum @misspluckyplum [Stucky, 1k words, Explicit]

Bucky just wants to get some housework done. It gets out of hand fast. Silly little fluff and smut romp with snarky stucky boys.

Eyes of the Forest by Lordelannette [Stucky, 7k words, Explicit] (2/8 chapters available)

When Omega Bucky Barnes comes to Eagle Lake, it was in search of wolves, a creature that had not been seen in the area for decades.

What he finds instead is Steve Rogers, a handsome, though quiet Alpha who seems to be everywhere in the forest.

[eevee-nova]

Oumota, but i feel like you already answered something like that for it so Kaimaki too

Lol I could rant about oumota all day but cuz I know I have I'mma keep it short!

Ship It: (obvs)

1. What made you ship it?

Chapter 5. Full stop. I loved Kaito's character from the beginning and Kokichi grew on me but seeing their team up was 😍. I didn't originally ship it in a romantic context until I looked at the fan content and saw just how well the pairing works in a platonic as well as romantic lens. Plus I love a good narrative foil/enemies to lovers dynamic and they have the best I've seen.

2. What are your fave things about the ship?

Narrative foils, the fact that they understood each other better than anyone else despite hating each other, chaotic energy, smart boi/"dumb" boi, height difference, P U R P L E. But mostly the potential the ship has for so many different relationship dynamics. They work in any AU or situation. They came together during their hardest times so it's possible that under different circumstances they'd work as well. Domestically or casually, healthy or unhealthy, whatever you want to explore with the pairing, you can, and it'll stay in character for them. They're two great characters that become amazing when played off each other. Even in a platonic context.

3. Is there an unpopular opinion you have for your ship?

Idk what's popular and unpopular so imma just give a couple headcanons?? Lol.

• Kokichi is a very "show my love thru actions" type of person so he doesn't always say "I love you" or other mushy stuff (except in a teasing way) so he'll get gifts or show kind gestures esp if he accidentally (or purposely) pisses Kaito off, he'll do sweet things to make it up to him.

• Everything is a competition with them. Theyd do dumb shit like "who can give the other more kisses in a day" or "who can get the other a better gift". They're pretty even with who wins, but Kokichi is a much more insufferable winner.

• Kaito would propose first, he'd make it super romantic and perfect and just how Kokichi would want it. But then a week later, Kokichi also proposes in an even grander gesture because he "needs to make sure Kaito wants to marry him just as much as he does."

Kaimaki tho... It kind of teeters on the edge for me. I love both Kaito and Maki as characters, and their friendship is sweet and romantically it's cute, like seeing art and reading fics I always find it adorable but canonically... It feels more one sided than anything. So I'm gonna say

Don't Ship It:

1. Why don't you ship it?

Maki very obviously had feelings for Kaito, she literally says so. However, I relate to Maki in the sense that I've felt unwanted and unloved and struggled to love myself. And I've had people who come along and make me feel special, almost like a replacement for that self love I needed. I think Kaito is that someone to Maki. He cared for her, and saw the good in her when others seemed not to, and as sweet and romantic as that can be, it also has potential to lead to a misunderstanding and over idealization. So from I guess a personal stand point it's one of those "oh yikes this doesn't seem ideal" situations.

2. What would have made you ship it?

Probably if Kaito showed a bit more of reciprocation, but he doesn't. Also if maybe there was a moment of Maki realizing that Kaito kind of has a lot of issues too.

3. Despite not shipping it, do you have anything positive to say about it?

I think it still has potential. It's possible for them to grow and love each other in an equal way, but it requires a lot of effort on Kaito's part to bring down his walls for his friends. I think that Maki would need to also establish herself and understand who she is and what she truly wants because it's hard to tell if her feelings for him come from a genuine romantic love or if she simply loves the idea of Kaito. I just think it would end up very one sided without those things. Which, don't get me wrong, would still make for an interesting dynamic when it comes to exploring that part of their relationship.

This was tons of fun, thanks for asking!

Send me a ship and I'll tell you if I ship it or not! 😊💜

[snapdragon-mina]

Enchanted Pt. 1

Kuroo Tetsurou x GN!Reader

A/N: UHHHHH, here's my late entry for ✨the newest✨ POCuties Sever Collab Based on the movie version of Ella Enchanted

Warnings: No beta we die like men, a couple swear words here and there, mentions of death, attempted murder, and this is a Crack fic treated seriously. Part 2 will be out within a few hours of this.

Word Count: 2.8k

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3]

----------------❌----------------

It all starts with a baby. A beautiful baby named (y/n) was born into a comfortable family. This baby cried a lot, wanting to be held by their mother constantly. She took good care of her baby alongside kiyoko, a household fairy. Everything worked out beautifully until a particular fairy godmother appeared. As desperately as the mother and kiyoko tried, they could not hide the baby from Satori (the only fairy godfather who gave god awful gifts).

As much as Satori tried to quiet the baby's crying, it would not stop. This gave him the perfect idea for a gift. He gave the child the "gift" of obedience. (y/n) would not be able to disobey a command given to them no matter what. Kiyoko absolutely hated the gift that Satori gifted the baby and begged him to take it back but he refused.

Despite the gift they were given, (y/n) grew up to be strong willed and determined. Once they discovered a girl being bullied for something as stupid as a name, they quickly took to standing up for her. The girl introduced herself as Yachi and they became best friends very quickly.

When (y/n) discovered the gift, they asked for Kiyoko to take it away, only to be told that she couldn't. But despite this, (y/n) always fought against the gift whenever they could.

When (y/n) was still a child, their mother grew very ill. As she laid in her bed, she told (y/n) to never reveal their gift to anyone. She didn't want her child to be taken advantage of. Before she passed away, she gave them her necklace to remember her by.

----💫----

Getting dressed, (y/n) put on their mother's necklace only to be interrupted by none other than Kiyoko. "(Y/n), your father wants to speak to you." She said before taking her leave.

(y/n) walked to their father's study only to receive shocking news.

"What?! You're married??"

"Look, she has money. It was either marry her or sell the house. She has two sons, so there's no doubt she's a wonderful mother-figure." He let out a sigh before continuing. "I'm sure you'll all be the best of friends, just... give them all a chance."

The next morning, three people arrived in a carriage. They were *not* pleased at the sight of the house.

(y/n)'s father greeted the three with a warm smile and two kisses to the woman's cheeks. "Welcome, my dear. These must be your sons?"

She nodded with a fake smile. "Yes, this is my dear Tooru, and my... other son, Tobio." The brunette just stared while the black haired one did an exaggerated bow. Just as this occurred, (y/n) walks out of the house to meet the three new people who were supposedly living with them now.

"You must be (y/n)." The woman said, giving them a once over. (y/n) bowed and greeted them with a polite "pleased to meet you."

After a short, awkward pause, the woman returned her attention to the father. "You have a wonderful home, but I recall you saying that you had a castle." she hissed out.

He shook his head. "No no, you must be mistaken, I said "A man's home is his castle"."

While their father and the lady talked, (y/n) introduced themselves with a smile only to be almost completely ignored.

Inside the house, the two brothers began setting up. Tooru putting up posters of a prince while Tobio explained.

"Tooru's president of Prince Tetsu's fan club." They grinned at each other only for their faces to fall into a scowl when (y/n) spoke.

"You must be aware that Tetsurou and his uncle are responsible for the segregation of the kingdom, right?"

With a judging look, Tooru spoke. "so? He's hot."

After looking around a bit the two were getting increasingly displeased with their surroundings. A small room, damn near nonexistent closet space, etc. "This won't work." The brunette spoke in a clearly disgusted tone. "We'll use yours. Show it to us."

Unable to disobey the command, (y/n) led them towards their room. Tooru narrowed his eyes and seemed to file that bit of information for later. Upon reaching the room, He was immediately disgusted. "It looks awful. There isn't any room here either. We're throwing out some of your clothes."

"what?! No. Get out of my closet." They went to attempt to force him away only for him to immediately demand that you get away from him.

As they backed up, He noticed the necklace and demanded that it be given to him. Unfortunately, (y/n) was forced to hand over the necklace.

Not a moment later, (y/n)'s father announced his business trip. They needed money and his work was the only thing keeping them afloat.

----💫----

During a heated debate in class is when Tooru figured it out. They'd been debating on whether king Kei had been a fair ruler or not. (y/n) was vehemently arguing in favor that he was not. He'd enslaved every other race and forced them to work in little stereotyped boxes. He'd made laborers and entertainers out of anyone non human. (y/n) *hated* it.

Tooru, on the other hand, thought that he was a wonderful ruler. He gave us free enterprises, humans don't have to work hard at things that *they* should be doing. They disagreed and when (y/n) insulted the prince. Tooru demanded that they apologize and admit they're wrong and when (y/n) did, it all clicked. (Y/n) couldn't obey a single command they were given.

----⭐----

"Do I really have to go to this mall opening?" Tetsurou asked his uncle as they sat inaide of an extremely expensive looking carriage.

"As heir to the throne, it's your responsibility. You're a public figure. You have to be seen." Kei told him simply.

"Yeah but you're the one in charge."

"Not for long. Your coronation is next week and you need to be out there with your people, Tetsu."

Seated next to Kei was Tadashi, who was something like Kei's closest companion. You would rarely ever see Kei without Tadashi.

Kei advised Tetsurou that keeping a good public image builds trust within a kingdom before telling him of the things that where apparently going on within the kingdom.

Of giants and ogres wanting to rebel against them and take them down but none of this sounded right to him.

"The giants have always been peaceful." Tetsurou said, confused as to why he was being told otherwise.

"The ogres were once peaceful as well. Until they killed your father in cold blood." His voice held a certain edge to it. "Before your father's gruesome death, I promised him that if anything happened to him, I would take care of you and the kingdom." Pushing up his glasses, a glare formed on the glass, shielding his eyes from view. "I have kept my promise, haven't I?"

Tetsurou remained silent for the rest of the ride, turning to face the window instead of his uncle.

----💫----

(Y/n) sat in the crowd next to Yachi, surrounded by hundreds of adoring fans of the prince as king Kei made an announcement.

"Thank you. It's wonderful to be in your... charming town of... Frell. Prince Tetsurou and I-" He was immediately cut off by the sounds of hundreds of people screaming at the mere mention of the prince's name. Kei decided to get the announcement done and over with. "And now it's with great pleasure that I introduce Prince Tetsurou."

Screams broke out again as the prince stepped into view. He waved as he walked out.

This was their cue.

Immediately, (y/n) and Yachi stood up on a fountain holding banners that read Say No To Ogrecide! and Stop Giant Land Grab!. The began chanting these words at the prince, catching his attention.

Tooru did not like this. He immediately ran over to the two protesting. "You're embarrassing us!" he hissed. "Go Home. Now."

Immediately, (y/n) began apologizing to Yachi as they left her there.

----⭐----

"Prince Tetsu, are you a fast runner?" A girl in the front asked him. He shook his head with a smile.

"Not really, why?" He immediately regretted those words. Because as soon as they left his mouth, the crowd charged at him; forcing him to flee.

He ran as quickly as he could until he ran into someone walking down a pathway. Quickly, he pulled them down and behind a stone wall.

"Prince Tetsurou."

"Please, call me Tetsu..." He trailed off, looking at the person he had just pulled down. "Sorry about that." He attempted to help them up, only to immediately be shot down.

"I don't need your chivalry and I definitely don't intend on bowing to you, either." They dusted themselves off and began walking away.

"Bow or not, that's your choice. Can't really do much about that other than have you beheaded, but that's a bit too much" he joked.

"Charming. Why don't you do what your people usually do? Steal my land and destroy my livelihood. Now if you'll excuse me." They continued walking away only to be forcefully stopped by him commanding them to wait and come back.

Groaning, (y/n) turned around and walked back to him, standing directly in front of him.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"(Y/n) of Frell."

"(Y/n)... You're one of the first people I've met that hasn't immediately melted at the sight of me." He sounded astonished.

"It might've done you some good." They rolled their eyes and went to turn around and leave again.

Tetsurou paused and looked offended. "Wait, I've never stolen anyone's land nor their livelihood. I want peace in the kingdom as much as anyone."

(y/n) turned around with a scowl on their face. "So you have a new plan once you take the crown?"

"Well... Sorta... I can't reveal it though."

They scoffed in his face. "Yeah, thought so. Y'know you're all the same. You care more about your fancy club and next jousting tournament."

"I- well I've never been comfortable with having a fanclub. In fact... Your obvious hatred of me is kinda refreshing." He grinned.

"Obvious? I was trying so hard to hide it." They rolled their eyes and continued on their walk home. As they were walking they suddenly remembered leaving their bag. Any attempt to go retrieve it was immediately stopped by a simple "wait right there."

They were stuck in place as Tetsu rushed back to get it. Unfortunately, a carriage was rushing towards them. They called out his name but was only saved as they were inches away from getting hit.

"Are you insane?! Why didn't you move?" Tetsurou asked.

"Yeah... I would've... were it not for your apparent fascination with knocking me to the ground." They sat up. "This is the second time today."

"Yeah well I'll try to be more considerate next time you're about to get ran over."

"What makes you think we'll see each other again?" They raised an eyebrow.

"Won't we?" he asked.

"Nope."

Before much else could be said, Tooru stood in the middle of the path, seething. "Get over here."

Immediately, (y/n) got up and walked over.

"Shouldn't you be at home cleaning the fireplace?" Tooru let out a forced laugh before whispering to them. "Stop flirting. I'm going to be at his coronation."

"Yeah in the center of the table with an apple in your mouth." They muttered in response.

"Go back to the mall with Tobio."

(y/n) stormed off with Tobio in tow as Tooru stayed back to try to flirt with his royal highness.

----💫----

At the mall, (y/n) met back up with Yachi. "Where were you?" the girl asked. (y/n) explained their meeting with the prince and went on to say that Tobio and Tooru were there.

"Why do you always do what Tooru tells you to?" She asked.

"No I don't."

"Yes you do."

"No I don't."

"Tell the truth."

"Guess I do..."

A moment later the two were spotted by Tobio and Tooru. "(Y/n). take that for me." Tooru asked, pointing towards something on a stand. The moment they took it, something lit up in Tobio's eyes. It quickly devolved into demanding them to steal various items against their will until they got caught taking a pair of glass slippers.

It resulted in (y/n) getting chased throughout the mall by a guard.

----💫----

The moment their new step mother learned that (y/n) had been arrested for theft, she flew into exaggerated hysterics. "A felon in my own home!" she cried.

Kiyoko immediately came to their defense. "They were probably put up to it. The (y/n) I know, would never do this." She glared at the brothers. However, as Tooru looked out the window, He got an idea.

"Kiyoko's right, we were there. They were forced to and it isn't poor (y/n)'s fault at all." He sighed to his mother, leaving (y/n) and kiyoko confused.

"So, Who put you up to it?" The woman demanded as she looked away.

A devious smirk graced Tooru's face. "Tell her it was Yachi." He whispered.

"Y-" They quickly covered their mouth but that wasn't enough. "Yachi."

Kiyoko closed her eyes and let out a sigh. The woman immediately forbade (y/n) from ever speaking to them again.

It was then that Yachi approached the door with the intent to ask (y/n) about what had happened at the mall. (y/n) was forced to answer the door and tell their best and only friend that they never want to see her again.

Later that day, (y/n) cried to Kiyoko about how awful the experience was until they came to the conclusion that they absolutely had to find the fairy that cursed them and Kiyoko offered something that would help them.

She held a book in her hands and present it to to them.

"I'm not... The most talented fairy... But this book is my boyfriend, Ryuu..."

The book was a light pink and gold with a magic mirror in the center. It showed a face in it and the moment he was revealed, he greeted (y/n).

"I've never seen anyone like it."

"Well, It was an accident. I wanted to practice a spell that would trim his hair since it had grown out, but it... didn't go well. So now he's in a book." Kiyoko explained.

Kiyoko allowed (y/n) to take Ryuu along with them on their journey.

----💫----

They walked through a forest, holding Ryuu in their hands when they heard screams. An elf was stuck to a spinning wheel as a couple of people threw darts at him. The elf told them to kick their asses and they did just that.

He began commentating as they fought off the guys and eventually, they won the fight with the men retreating.

Immediately (y/n) helped the elf down and checked on them quickly. Fortunately, the elf was completely uninjured.

"I'm Shoyo!"

"I'm (y/n). Nice to meet you. Now if you're okay, it was nice to meet you but I have to leave."

That didn't sit well with Shoyo. He immediately began arguing and trying to convince them to eat with him until he succeeded. Convinced that (y/n) wouldn't make it through the woods alone.

Eventually they made it to a bar in an Shoyo's home town with only a minor distraction.

Inside of the bar, they both sat down to eat and so (y/n) decided to ask a question. "Why don't you like music?"

"Right because all Elves are supposed to love singing and dancing. I wanna be an athlete, not an singer or dancer."

(Y/n) nodded sympathetically. "Yeah I understand that. I'd forgotten all about the laws that restrict elves from being anything other than singers and other occupations like that."

----💫----

After convincing Shoyo to come with them, (y/n) walked alongside him calmly until they were caught up with a couple of ogres. (y/n) tried to convince the ogres that that they were on their side only for that to backfire horribly and end up with them being steadily lowered into a pot with Shoyo tied to a tree.

Extremely conveniently, Prince Tetsurou found them and fought off the ogres, freeing (y/n) and Shoyo. He backed one of them against a tree with a sword pointed at the ogre's neck. "Are you one of the monsters that killed my father?"

The ogre looked confused. "What? No no, you've got it all wrong. King Koutarou was a good man! We lived in peace during his reign, why would we ever want to kill him?"

Tetsurou pulled the sword away from the ogre but didn't seem to believe his words. "Leave. Find breakfast somewhere else."

The ogres agreed and quickly left the area. Tetsurou turned towards (y/n). "What are you doing here w with an elf for protection? Do you get off to near death experiences or something?"

"No. I had things under control." They lied.

"Yeah, sure you did. I see the score stands Chivalry: 2, Gratitude: 0." He said, back facing them.

They apologized and thanked him for the help before cleaning dressing a wound he'd gotten from protecting them.

"So... Where are you heading?"

"A giant's wedding. I have to meet my godfather."

"That's on the way back to me home, I'll come with."

"No thanks."

"Too bad."

[mysticpetals]

Farewell, sunshine

𝙋𝙖𝙞𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜: Jake × f!mc (Syianne)

𝙂𝙚𝙣𝙧𝙚: angst, a sprinkle of fluff

𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩: 4.9k (oof)

𝙎𝙪𝙢𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙮: All Jake ever wanted was to find his sister and protect the person who had helped him more than anyone. Only, he slowly began to realise that bringing Syianne into this had caused more harm than good.

𝙒𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨: mentions of blood, physical attack, violence, hospitals, medical coma, panic attack.

𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙩𝙨: Anonymous asked: 5. “Wake up! Please wake up.” MC and Jake finally get to meet for the first time, but everything is heavily dipped in angst. 😂 Also I adore your writing and keep up the good work!

Anonymous asked: Can you give us the most angsty jealous filled over protective short with Jake x MC i want all the ANGST to be seeping out of my screen

@mnrangera asked: Here's a nice angsty scenario for you: MC is in Duskwood continuing their investigation but is caught out in town after dark. They are on the phone with Jake when they are attacked by the Man Without a Face like Jessie was.

𝙉𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙨: I know this has been LOOOOONG overdue and I apologise for the wait. Thank you to all my followers for being patient, especially those who sent the requests in. I hope the long wait is worth it and you enjoy it. Also, please read the warnings before proceeding, I don't want any of you to be triggered by something I wrote. There may be inaccuracies in how I progressed medical conditions and general working of the hospitals so I apologise for that. Please do not repost or translate this fic anywhere else!! I'm literally begging you, please don't ruin my hard work like this. I would love if I could get some sort of feedback, whether it be reblogs or comments or just anon asks. I've tried to improve my writing and I hope it shows a little in this. This is my Christmas and New Year present all wrapped in one! I hope you all have a great 2021 <3

It was a cold, winter evening with the sky painted in a plethora of warm colors and Jake felt like finally things were going his way.

He, along with Syianne, had been working tirelessly for the past few weeks to find out what happened to Hannah. They had faced a lot of challenges along the way, with cryptic diary entries and threats directed towards them and their loved ones, but still, they'd prevailed and spent every ounce of free time, getting more information about Hannah's perpetrator.

They finally had the facts about what happened the day she was kidnapped and only the identity of the criminal was hidden. Syianne had suggested that she should go to Duskwood to try and find the last puzzle piece, to which Jake had been a little apprehensive. She argued that the rest of the group had already been through enough, with getting stalked and receiving threats and insisted that she should be the one to carry out her search in secret.

She never once asked for him to come along because she knew how dangerous it would be for him and she didn't want him to get caught. Jake was instantly warmed by the thought that someone cared so much about him, to think of his well being first.

So that night, as she called him to update him on her findings and plan after she went to Duskwood, he found himself speaking his thoughts impulsively.

"What if I came too?"

There was silence on the other end and Jake thought he might have overstepped or made it weird but she answered before he could stammer an apology.

"I'd like that. But only if you're comfortable and safe."

She told him to ruminate on it for a while and bid him goodnight. Jake thought about whether it was a logical thing to do. If Syianne planned to go undercover, he couldn't very well let her go into the lion's den alone. So he made up his mind and texted Syianne to let her know.

Jake [10:46 pm]

I'll come to Duskwood too.

Is it okay if we don't meet straight away?

I...I don't think I'm ready yet.

Syianne [10:47 pm]

I was lowkey hoping you'd say that ahaha

And of course! Take as much time as you need :)

That night, he slept with a smile on his face, excitement churning in his stomach.

⊱⋅ ──────────── ⋅⊰

Syianne was looking forward to her trip to Duskwood.

She knew it was a potentially dangerous situation and she was only going there to investigate but knowing that Jake might be there too, sent a spark of thrill through her body. They had been speaking non-stop for the past few weeks and she really liked talking to him. His answers to questions about him or his life were adorably confusing and Syianne realized that she really wanted to get to know him, be his friend or possibly something more, if their flirty banter was anything to go by.

Her bag contained all the essentials she could need, along with a sketchbook and pencils to use in case of boredom. She couldn't leave Matrix with any of her friends as they were either busy or allergic to cats so her only option was to take her along.

She had never booked a flight so fast. Knowing she would have to take a car from the airport to the rest of the way to Duskwood did nothing to damper her excitement. She couldn't wait to meet everyone once they found Hannah, some more so than the others.

The trip was nothing eventful, just a lot of travelling and it made Syianne a little tired but the idea of meeting her friends and finally putting a stop to all this madness, made her keep going. She wouldn't admit it if you asked her but she was looking forward to possibly seeing Jake as well. She knew he might not be comfortable enough to meet her yet and she completely respected that, but the thought still lingered.

She checked in to the only hotel Duskwood had, not meeting the receptionist's - Lilly's - eyes and was eternally grateful that she had only leaked her number and not her photo in that video. It would have been much more difficult to move about Duskwood, if that were the case.

The room they had was pretty basic, but not too bad for a few nights. Matrix prowled around the room, getting herself comfortable in the new environment while Syianne slowly unpacked the few clothes and necessities she brought.

In the corner of her mind, there was the thought that Jake might be staying at this hotel too and that sent a shiver of excitement down her spine. But she was a woman of her word and would wait until Jake was ready and would not try to look for him.

She had a mission here and she wanted to be damn sure that that's what she would be focusing on and save Hannah.

⊱⋅ ──────────── ⋅⊰

Jake was supposed to be in Duskwood about two nights ago.

He had encountered some issues with removing his tracks from the internet, as well as trying to find a safe way to drive to Duskwood without exposing himself. Working as a hacker did have some benefits and finally he managed to find a guy who made him three fake number plates that he would interchange every once in a while, so his whereabouts couldn't be traced.

He had let Syianne know of the unexpected delay but to his surprise, she was enjoying herself in Duskwood. She had told him that Jessy gave her a virtual tour of the town once and she was excited to explore all those places in person. She talked to him at night, describing the beauty of the small town and Jake felt himself growing wistful, wondering what they could do together if he had been there. But then again, hadn't he said that he wouldn't show himself right now? He was cautious - just as he had been all his life - but something about Syianne just made him want to let his guard down, to just be selfish for once.

He had no time to think further on it because finally, all the preparations and precautionary measures were done and he could drive to Duskwood. He couldn't leave Glitch at home because he had attachment issues and couldn't go without Jake for a long period of time. So he ushered him into his carrier and told him he could claw all the wood he wanted when they reached their destination and Glitch meowed in agreement. He had always been a smart cat, after all.

Changing the number plates every hour was exhausting, especially when he didn't do much manual work but he endured it, if it meant he was one step closer to finding his sister.

When he finally reached Duskwood, he was in awe of how normal it looked, how silent; how someone who didn't know that a girl had been kidnapped would think of this place as the perfect getaway. But he knew better, didn't he? This town held dark secrets, secrets that people weren't willing to acknowledge and he was going to expose them for what they were, no matter what it took.

Signing into the Duskwood hotel was as awkward as he imagined it to be, his half sister having no idea who he was and looking at his dark, baggy clothes suspiciously. He wasn't blaming her, he would have probably done the same if a strange man came out of nowhere to stay in Duskwood of all places. Lilly gave him a tight smile as he picked up his bag and key and made way to his room.

Syianne had texted him earlier that day that she would be checking out the lake in the evening, where Jessy was attacked. Jake was against it from the start but he should have known how stubborn she could be and eventually, he had to agree but only on the condition that she stays on video call with him the whole time. Syianne was evidently bewildered by his request, judging by the way she kept writing and erasing her reply but after a while, she managed to ask if he would be comfortable with that. Jake's heart warmed at her considerate words, never really having anyone who would care about his emotions, he was always surprised when Syianne said something like that. He replied that he would just turn off his camera or point it at the lamp or something but he had to be sure about her safety.

And that's why, he was sitting with his phone in front of him in the evening, camera turned off as he watched her fondly, pointing out the strange birds she saw.

"Ah, I wish you were here! The lake is so pretty this time and the light from sunset is reflecting off the water and it makes an amazing view," she said, voice breathy with the exertion of walking for a while and a tone of awe towards the scene in front of her.

"That's sufficient sightseeing, don't you think?" Her voice suddenly took a serious note and Jake straightened up in his chair. He was afraid but couldn't say anything. He had already agreed to let her go with a condition and he feared if he asked her to not investigate, she would probably end the call and keep looking for clues by herself. At least on the phone, he could look at her surroundings and made sure no one sneaked up on her.

"If you say so," he said half-heartedly, glancing at the surroundings behind her as she narrowed her eyes at his dismissive tone.

The next twenty minutes were spent with Syianne looking around the lake and Jake looking over her shoulder virtually. She had scouted the edge and went a little deeper into the forest, looking for a car, a boat, a mask - anything, really - but the search had proved to be futile so far. Everything was as peaceful as ever, no signs of any disturbance and it made Jake a little antsy. Nothing was ever this perfect.

"Well, since we can't find anything here, I think you should come back. It's getting late," Jake said, looking at the already darkened sky. It was an ominous red color and Jake was getting more and more worried as people left the lakeside.

Syianne frowned but didn't argue and that made him sigh in relief.

"Yeah, you're right. No use trying to find something that isn't there," she said and started walking again.

"Wait, you walked here? Didn't you bring your car?" Jake asked and she shook her head.

"Nope, I wanted to enjoy Duskwood and being in a car wouldn't have helped," she smiled at the camera and Jake let out an almost inaudible sigh. Why couldn't she care about her safety a little more? She was going to give him grey hair before he reached his thirties, that was for sure.

As he began to reply to her, he caught movement from the left side of the screen and instantly grabbed his phone, expanding the background.

There was a silhouette of a hand.

"Syianne, run!" He shouted, as the figure's arm came into view and she looked back in surprise before starting to sprint, the camera shaking from her movements.

Jake scrambled to get his car keys, not bothering with what he was wearing and ran towards the hotel parking, getting into his car and connecting the GPS to his phone, all the while listening to Syianne's panting breaths as she ran away from the man without a face.

Getting her location was no problem for him and he just hoped he would arrive there on time.

"Jake, I'm scared. I'm hiding behind a big building and I think he went on ahead," she whispered, voice shaky and trembling and Jake's hands gripped the steering wheel tightly as he glanced over at his phone to watch her looking around herself in a panic.

Five more minutes and he would reach her location. Jake had never been more thankful that Duskwood was a small town and the hotel wasn't so far away from the lake.

"I'm coming, Syianne. Just a little while more and we'll go back together."

"Okay, I think I'm safe for now," she said. There was a sound of slow careful footsteps as Syianne came out from behind the building.

The abrupt sound of a gasp almost made him lose control of the steering wheel and he increased his speed as he heard what sounded like a scuffle. Syianne had probably dropped her phone because it only showed the dark sky and sounds of her struggling against her attacker.

"No! Let–"

Jake let out a harsh breath, jaw tightening as he heard Syianne's scream. He drove straight for a bit and turned the next corner and saw the man trying once again to restrain her. His eyes saw red and he honked and honked like it was nobody's business, speeding towards them.

The man without a face seemed to have realised that someone was coming to help as he pushed Syianne roughly into the wall and ran away towards the forest. As much as Jake wanted to go after him, Syianne was his first priority and he quickly got out of the car, dashing towards her crumpled form, lying on the ground.

He fumbled with his phone, calling the local police and asking for an ambulance, his body shaking all the while, as he knelt down next to Syianne.

He felt tears welling in her eyes as he looked at her battered form and realised that she was bleeding.

"Syianne?" He spoke in a scared voice.

"Syianne!" He said more forcefully, repeatedly patting her face in hope she'll look at him but her eyes were still glassy and unfocused as if she couldn't comprehend anything.

"I'm...so sorry. I…" her voice trailed off as she struggled to breathe and Jake cried, seeing her in so much pain, when he couldn't do anything except wait for the ambulance to arrive.

After a moment, Syianne's eyes fluttered closed and Jake's panic rose to new heights.

"No, no, no! Wake up! Please wake up!" He shouted and begged but she didn't respond to his calls.

His hand was soaked in her blood from where he was applying pressure on the wound at her side. The blood hadn't stopped flowing and Jake was worried that she was losing too much, too soon.

"What do I do? What do I do?" He muttered to himself, adrenaline coursing through his veins, with only one thought in his head – to save her.

He heard sirens in the distance and was relieved to know that help was coming. He pushed up the fallen hood of his jacket up on his head and looked at Syianne for any signs of consciousness. Her breaths were shallow and eyes still closed.

Soon enough, paramedics rushed to the scene and immediately started tending to Syianne's wounds. Jake felt as if he was just a spectator, not being able to do anything but watch. Someone came up to him and started asking him questions, about how he found her, who he was to her and if he knew anything about the attack. He answered all the questions as carefully as he could, giving a fake name, because he still wasn't sure if the police department was in league with the kidnapper or not.

As soon as he was done with the questioning, a paramedic approached him, letting him know that they were taking Syianne to the hospital and he would have to come there for a bit of paperwork. Jake hesitated and said he'd drive there in his own car and the paramedic nodded in response and left.

He got in his car and put his head in his hands, shaking at the unfortunate turn of events. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. Syianne was just going to check out the lake and then surprise her friends the next day by telling them she'd be here for a few days and enjoy Duskwood together.

Jake was even thinking of meeting her in person and telling her that she had changed his life for the better. But his cowardice, his meticulous nature to not let anyone know who he was or where he was might have cost Syianne her life tonight. Even thinking about it had tears pooling in his eyes and he took a deep breath to bite back the sobs that were threatening to break once again.

He felt guilty, so so guilty and couldn't bring himself to start the car. He was pretty sure that if – no when – Syianne woke up, she would want nothing to do with the man who put her life in danger. With that thought rooted in his mind, he opened his phone and with trembling hands, sent Jessy a text about Syianne's accident. He received a reply almost immediately.

Jessy [8:46 pm]

What?

How did she come here?

You know what? If she's not okay, I'm going to hunt you down and make you pay.

Jake had no trouble believing she was telling the truth. All he wanted to do was help and now everything was falling apart. Taking a deep but shaky breath, he started the car but instead of going to the hospital, he turned towards the hotel.

⊱⋅ ──────────── ⋅⊰

Jessy had no trouble believing that the hacker was telling the truth. His texts were frantic and he practically begged her to go to the hospital to see Syianne. She had no idea how she got here, but hearing that she got attacked, just like she was, was enough to make her worry and drive to the hospital, after letting Cleo know. She figured that the rest of them deserved to know too.

She rushed to the front desk, breathless and worried, and one of the nurses told Jessy that the doctors were with Syianne and she'd have to wait until they were done to know how she was.

After some time of relentless pacing, Cleo arrived and Jessy filled her in on everything that the hacker told her, which wasn't much, but it gave them a good idea of what had happened. Cleo said that she hadn't told anyone else yet and that they should do so as soon as the doctors had an update on Syianne's condition.

About an hour later, a nurse came upto Jessy and Cleo, asking if they knew Syianne and upon their confirmation, led them to the room she was kept in. They weren't allowed to enter yet as the doctors were still in the room, but Jessy gasped when she saw Syianne's scratched up face, with bandages covering her head.

"Oh my gosh." Cleo breathed and Jessy felt a rush of sorrow as she averted her eyes.

The doctors after completing their examination, told them that Syianne was stabbed in the side but luckily it didn't puncture anything important and they closed up the wound to allow it to heal. What was more concerning, was the fact that she was hit on the back of her head.

"She most likely suffered from a concussion, in which case, it is of the utmost importance that the patient doesn't fall asleep," the doctor said and Jessy and Cleo looked at each other uneasily.

"But Syianne fell asleep…" Jessy began and the doctor gave her an apologetic smile.

"That's right. She was unconscious when she was brought here. The superficial wounds are taken care of, we just don't know when she'll wake up."

Both of them were too stunned to say anything and a call for the doctor from one of the nurses broke them out of their stupor.

"So, she's in a coma?" Cleo asked.

The doctor hesitated before answering.

"Essentially, yes. But we can't know for sure without further observation. If the injury isn't severe she'll wake up soon, we just have to monitor her constantly and look for any changes." He then walked off when his pager went off, most likely to see another patient.

"Don't worry, Jessy. She'll wake up soon," Cleo said, placing a hand on her shoulder, as they looked into Syianne's room, seeing her sleeping peacefully, as if nothing was wrong and she was just taking a nap.

⊱⋅ ──────────── ⋅⊰

As soon as she got home from the hospital, Jessy sent out a row of furious texts to the hacker, clouded by her anger and hopelessness. In her head, it was all his fault that Syianne was twittering between life and death. He was the one who asked her to come to Duskwood without letting any of them know, which caused her to be in such a terrible condition.

Everything was crumbling.

They were a tight knit group, always there for each other but when did it turn into a nightmare, Jessy didn't know. Emotion overtook her and she suddenly collapsed against the wall, keeping a hand on her mouth to muffle her sobs, and cried.

She cried for Hannah, who she had no idea whether she was alive or not. She cried for Syianne, who had become such a great friend to her. Most importantly, she cried for her relationship with everyone, that was slowly but surely, withering away.

⊱⋅ ──────────── ⋅⊰

Jake had been pacing in his hotel room ever since getting back, waiting on a word from Jessy. Glitch watched him with big eyes, as he stubbed his on the bedside and cursed. Sighing in defeat, Jake realised that it won't do any good to worry himself to death, but that didn't mean that his mind didn't drift off to the earlier scene.

Syianne lying on the ground. Blood pooled around her.

He shook his head in frustration, trying to get that image out of his head but to no success. Glitch, sensing that something was wrong, strolled towards him, rubbing and purring against his legs. Jake softened at seeing his efforts to calm him and he picked Glitch up, moving to lay down on the bed. He petted him, smiling at the way the cat burrowed himself further against Jake, curling his tail around his wrist.

After a few peaceful moments of cuddling, Jake's phone lit up with a text, which had him scrambling to grab it from the bedside. Glitch meowed in protest but Jake was too wound up to notice.

Jessy [10:25 pm]

She's in a coma

They don't know when she'll wake up

Jake felt all breath leave him as he read Jessy's text. He didn't know what to think, what to do, what he could do. Jessy didn't give him a chance to respond.

Jessy [10:26 pm]

Don't contact any of us ever again

I don't want to find Hannah this way…which leads to everyone else getting hurt

Please leave Syianne out of this

Saying her mind, Jessy went offline again. Jake took a shaky breath, trying to ground himself. Syianne might never make up.

No, he told himself.

He couldn't think like that. He knew she'd wake up, it might take a little time but she will. Because if she didn't, Jake wouldn't be able to live with himself.

He got another text from Lilly, saying she was sorry that it happened but he couldn't bring himself to write back. His mind was empty, body numb to everything around him and he was cursing himself for being so careless.

If he hadn't been so selfish, if only he didn't put all of this on her, if he had just reached on time, if, if, if.

That's all he thought of, as tears continuously trailed down his cheeks, an arm covering his eyes, the only thing on his mind being Syianne, just as it had been ever since he started talking to her.

⊱⋅ ──────────── ⋅⊰

The next day, Jake found himself holding a large flower bouquet and walking to Duskwood hospital's reception. He was trembling, scared out of his mind but he just had to see Syianne. So, he had braved his anxiety and was now standing in front of the receptionist, who looked at the abnormally large bouquet in his hands and raised an eyebrow. He cleared his throat.

"I'm here to see Syianne King, she was admitted here yesterday."

The receptionist's gaze sharpened as she looked him over and he partially hid behind the flowers.

"Only family members are allowed to visit," she spoke slowly and Jake bit his lip in frustration.

"I'm her fiance," he said and before the surprised receptionist could say anything, he continued, "I drove here as soon as I got the call but they wouldn't tell me what happened. Only that Syianne had been in an accident and I needed to get here as soon as I could and I—" he cut himself off, shuffling nervously and wiping away the tears that had managed to escape from his eyes.

The receptionist softened, seeing his genuine sorrow and care for his fiance and warmed her voice.

"Of course, I'm sorry for what happened. She's in room 309, third floor. The elevator is down the hall," she pointed and Jake thanked her profusely before walking ahead.

Him being Syianne's fiance might have been fake but everything he had felt was the truth and he felt overwhelmed now that he was here. Should he see her? Did he even deserve to see her after he put her in danger? Thoughts like this plagued his mind all the way to Syianne's room and they only stopped when he saw '309' written in bold letters on a grey coloured door.

His breath stuttered in his chest. He was second guessing his presence in the hospital, thinking whether he shouldn't have come. He stood in front of the door for about ten minutes, contemplating but when the nurses started giving him suspicious looks, he swallowed thickly and with shaky hands, opened the door.

Nothing could have prepared him for the utter despair and helplessness he felt, as he saw Syianne's motionless form on the bed, breathing as if she was just sleeping and would wake up any minute. But he knew that wasn't the truth.

She was here and it was his fault.

For the longest time, he just sat on a chair beside her bed and just looked at her. His eyes traced every injury, every bruise that was visible and he felt sick, blaming himself for letting it happen. She was still sleeping and suddenly, it just got too much.

There was too much light, too much beeping, the walls were too white, the flowers in his hands digging into his skin and he got up hastily, dropping the bouquet and backed into the furthest corner of the room.

His breath was coming in short bursts, it hurt to breath, to think, to stay upright—!

His legs gave from under him and he slid down, back against the wall, shaking hands coming up to wipe the wetness on his face.

He didn't even realise he had been crying.

His vision was a blur of dark shapes and in a distinct corner of his head that was still sane, he thought of what Syianne would have done had she been awake. He was sure she would kneel down in front of him and take his hands, running her thumbs against the back of his hands to calm him.

'Breathe slowly, Jake. Deep breaths with me, come on,' he heard her in his head and tried to slow down, breathing harshly at first but after a few minutes, his vision cleared and his breathing stabled to an acceptable rate.

His whole body shook with the sheer suddenness of the panic attack and he slowly tried to get up, holding onto the wall as a support as his gaze, once again, landed on the bed and it's occupant.

All at once, his head cleared and he knew what to do.

Snatching a sheet of paper from the notepad lying near her chart, Jake penned his thoughts, all his anguish, and his apologies on it. Not once did his hand shake as he wrote the note and not once did his mind waver from the decision he had made. At last, when he had said everything he wanted to, he put the pen down and glanced at Syianne's peaceful face.

His throat closed up but he swallowed once to make sure he didn't cry. No, Jake had no time for tears. It was his fault that this happened in the first place, so it was his responsibility that he would make it right.

He didn't know when she would wake but whenever it might be, Jake had everything he wanted to say, already written for her.

He bent down towards her and placed the softest of kisses against her forehead, knowing that it would be the only time he would ever get to do it.

She did not open her eyes and Jake stepped back with a miniscule tilt of his lips.

Yes, he would make everything right.

[nyctolovian]

Relationship: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens)

Additional Tags: Pirate AU, Kidnapping, First Meetings, Waiter Crowley (Good Omens), Pirate Azirphale, Dark Aziraphale (Good Omens), Alcohol

Summary: A weird Pirate!Aziraphale and Civilian!Crowley fic. Written for @whitesuitcrowleyzine

In Crowley's defense, he was already planning to quit his job. He'd had quite enough with dealing with snobby rich people showing off their incredible wealth with luxury yacht dinner parties that he had to serve at. He might as well go out with a bang while wildly flashing middle fingers. The plan just wasn't fully formed yet (what he had at the moment meant that there would be two fires, which was one fire too few) when the pirates hijacked the yacht, waving around guns and knives.

It was mayhem as the pirates took down anyone who fought back and herded everyone else below deck with yelled threats and guns ablazing. Several people broke down in tears and huddled together. As all this transpired, Crowley went largely unnoticed and, not wanting to change that anytime soon, he dared not make any superfluous movement. So he followed the walls of the yacht and tried to make his escape, still carrying the serving tray like a proper professional. The commotion was beginning to dwindle, and Crowley had to be quick.

Just as he neared the staircase, ready to bolt, the weight on his tray shifted as someone lifted a glass from it. Crowley straightened and froze, caught red-handed. The person walked to stand side by side with him and took an elegant sip from the glass and sighed. "This red wine is simply lovely." By now, the commotion had died down to whimpers and sniffles as the pirates stood around on the deck, weapons brandished. Their eyes were pointed in his direction, or more precisely, at the man beside him, who swirled his glass gently and took another sip. Voice light in the way dangerous people kept it to let people know they were enjoying themselves, he asked, "Do you happen to have more of this on this yacht?"

Crowley cleared his throat and answered as calmly as his quickened pulse would let him, "I, I believe so."

"Excellent!" Placing a hand on the small of Crowley's back, he took a step forward, pushing him along. "Now," the pirate said cheerily, lightly pulling his jacket to primly fix it. "I have several announcements. You've been boarded by Eden so consider yourselves under new management."

Crowley didn't know it could but somehow the atmosphere grew thicker with tension. The complexion of the crew especially bleached. Crowley had heard of them—the Eden. He had heard tales from seafarers and such while they were at port. Many, many tales. Frankly, Crowley hadn't been paying attention to any of them, but he reckoned any ship with half as many tales as this one couldn't possibly be good news.

Interlocking his fingers over his belly, the pirate captain went on, "If I see a single silly move, it's off with your head immediately, you understand? I hereby demand you to hand over, well, everything that is valuable. Captain's orders."

Some people immediately began to strip themselves of their jewels and watches while others stayed frozen, like deers caught in headlights. Some of the service crew were huddled together in a corner, and the pirates approached them. Crowley never liked the bunch much, but he kind of wished he was standing there with them. Perhaps huddle together like little ducklings, all wearing the same white-top-black-bottom coat, feeling the safety in numbers, in blending in with one another. Instead, he was stuck standing right beside the pirate captain, still diligently and stupidly carrying the ridiculous serving tray.

Speak of the devil. “Ah, yes,” he said. “And some of that alcohol as well.” He turned to face Crowley with a smile. Upon laying eyes on the waiter's face, however, his eyebrows rose with interest. “How odd. Why are you wearing sunglasses at night?”

He swallowed. “Eye condition. Coloboma.”

The pirate stepped closer and Crowley instinctively leaned away. “Is that so? I believe I've read about that term before," he said. Slowly and deliberately, he pinched the pair of shades and slid it off.

Pale blue eyes connected with Crowley's and his breath hitched. He was tempted to break eye contact, his already jackrabbiting heart practically galloping at this point. Without the dark lenses, it was even more obvious how unusually fair the pirate captain was. His hair was a fluffy white cloud and even the suit he wore was off-white. The wrinkles on his face deepened delightfully as he broke into a smile of fascination. He was… for the lack of a better word, beautiful.

“Slits for pupils,” the pirate said. “And the colour, my, it's practically golden, isn't it? Almost like a snake's.”

"Or so I've heard as well," Crowley bit out.

"They're absolutely gorgeous."

"Wha…?" Blinking, he broke eye contact and gazed sideward.

"Has no one ever told you?" the pirate said, bending to meet Crowley's gaze again.

Gulping, Crowley shook his head. His cheeks felt strangely warm.

There was a sparkle in the pirate captain's eyes as he gently folded the sunglasses and slipped it into the pocket of Crowley's white suit jacket. With a smile, he patted the securely placed pair of shades. Then, he grabbed the serving tray that Crowley was still carrying and carelessly tossed it backwards. The earth-shattering clatter and the shattering of wine glasses made many of the yacht passengers scream in terror. By some miracle, Crowley merely flinched and quickly returned to his ramrod straight position, hands tightly clenched by his sides.

With a satisfied nod, the pirate captain released his jaw. Then, at last, he pulled out of Crowley's personal space, but only to command, "I wish to be shown where the alcohol is kept."

Stiffly, Crowley nodded and the pirate captain waved a couple other goons to follow along. As Crowley shuffled through the kitchen, he'd be lying if he said that the idea of grabbing a knife from the counter to stab someone and bolting didn't cross his mind at all. But he quickly kicked it to the ground. Numbers were not in his favour, and these were pirates for god's sake; they'd probably slit his throat open faster than he could pick up a blade. So instead, he opened the cooler and cold air rushed out to greet them, sending shivers through Crowley. One of the goons let out a low whistle at the sight.

"This is quite the trove. Do the bourgeoisie plan to drink themselves to death?" the captain remarked.

"Much as I hope they do, they drink less than half of what they stock up. It's to show off for the most part," Crowley muttered.

With a hum, the pirate captain sauntered in and lifted a bottle to inspect it. His jaw dropped dramatically at the label. "We are taking all of this, for sure. Now, chop chop!" He clapped his free hand against his wrist.

The pirate goons pushed past Crowley and grabbed two crates each before hauling them out. Crowley, the lanky dude that he was, could only manage one anyway and, thankfully, that was all that was left. He could feel the captain's stare at the back of his head and tried to convince his brain to ignore it. He followed the goons up to the deck and his eyes widened.

She was quite the beauty, even Crowley who was no expert at ships could tell that. A short distance away, the Eden loomed over the yacht, its flag raised high and proud upon the mast. A real pirate ship.

The footsteps of the pirate captain caught up with Crowley and he ducked his head and. Then, he quickened his pace as best as he could with trembling limbs and sweaty palms

Astern of the luxury yacht, speedboats were tied, and there were several people already dropping their plunder off. As Crowley’s crate was taken from him to be transported, he noticed hostages being shoved onto the speedboat and some were kids.

His stomach lurched at the sight.

Shit. Fuck. Shit. He needed to get out of this. Somehow.

His heart's rapid palpitation reached his throat. He took his sunglasses out of his jacket pocket and slid it back on to still his nerves. As casually as possible, he tried to turn and slink away. He’d say he was doing a pretty good job at it since he nearly slipped round the corner.

“Where are you going, Mr Waiter?”

Crowley froze. Taking in a deep breath, he spun around with a schooled expression.

The pirate captain was looking at him with an almost cherub-like smile. He ambled over before removing Crowley's sunglasses and studied Crowley's eyes once more. "They really are gorgeous," he whispered, placing his fingers over Crowley's jaw and tilting his head this way and that, as though to watch it catch the light. "Like jewels. Precious."

Crowley shivered.

"You're a smart boy. I'm sure you know by now my feelings towards objects of high value."

"You're not going to… gouge 'em out or something, right?"

"I quite like the head they're attached to as well actually."

"So you're…" Crowley swallowed around the lump high in his throat. "You're beheading me?"

The pirate sighed loudly and rolled his eyes before pursing his lips with displeasure. "How do you feel about joining my crew?"

Crowley's eyes widened so much, he was surprised they didn't pop right out of their sockets like marbles. "I… uh… what's the job description?"

It was the pirate's turn to be surprised. His eyebrows raised and his lips parted. "I haven't actually thought about it. Perhaps the odd job here and there while you learn the ropes," he replied. "Unless you have any suggestions."

Crowley blinked. The pirate captain looked at him expectantly. "Uh. 't hurts without it," he said, which wasn't a lie anyway. "Glasses."

"My apologies," the pirate said. To Crowley's relief, he returned the pair of shades back to the bridge of his nose. "It is a downright pity."

"Not many feel that way. I've been called the devil more times than I can count. Even had salt thrown at me once."

"Oh, I can imagine." The pirate laughed, a surprisingly genuine one.

"Don't your lot disapprove of," he scrunched his nose as he searched for the words, "demonic things."

"Ah. Yes, pirates are terribly superstitious. It's the sea, I believe." He gazed outwards.

Crowley followed his gaze to look at the dark waves, rocking the yacht, a constant reminder of water's presence and prowess.

The pirate continued, "She's a fickle beast that rears her head every now and again. She can be very difficult to appease, and the creatures that lurk within her even more so. It'd be amusing, I think, to see what tales other ships might spin about you."

"So I'll be the freak show?"

"A lovely addition to the freak show, my dear," the pirate corrected. "We're quite the menagerie. We have a witch, the antichrist and his merry band—"

"The antichrist?" Crowley repeated in disbelief.

"We're still working that out," the captain replied. "And of course there is myself. Well," he fixed his cap and pulled his jacket, "a bit unusual, aren't I?"

Glancing him up and down, Crowley nodded. If he had seen this man walking down the streets today, the first word that would probably pop up in his mind might be "time traveler" (yes, he knew that those were two words but let's not worry over the technicalities). He wore a lovely light suit that looked like it belonged in the early 20th century at least. Perhaps he'd even think "angel", what with the man bearing the face of a cherub. He looked fluffy, white and roundish. Sort of like a polar bear. He looked nothing like a pirate, which was probably what made him feel so intimidating. Upon further thought though, polar bears could be quite the menace, couldn't they?

Clearing his throat, Crowley held out a hand. "Well, I have been planning on resigning from my current job," he said. "Could do with a career change."

"I'm Aziraphale Fell. And how may I address you?"

"That's a mouthful. Crowley. Anthony J Crowley."

The pirate frowned. "What does the J stand for?"

He shrugged. "Uhhhh… Just a J, really. So we have a deal?" He raised his eyebrows in a silent inquiry.

"A deal with the devil," Aziraphale said, glancing skyward as they shook on it. "I wonder what my mother would say about that." When he glanced back down, he frowned. "Oh, your poor sleeves."

Crowley looked down as well. The once pristine white sleeves were streaked with black.

"Was it the crate? It really is a pity, you look quite dashing in white," Aziraphale said, running a finger along the inside of the sleeve.

Crowley shivered.

Of course, there was no way Aziraphale did not notice it, hand tightly grasped around his. "Though I do suppose you'd look dashing in anything." He smiled and added, "Or nothing at all."