#jazzythursday

[crowpricorn]

Hello! 💞 🧠 ✅ for the ask game <3

thank you!! 💗

questions

💞 Who's your comfort character?

I would say Jesper, because through him I see so many things of myself and writing fics through his eyes helps/helped me a lot (& he is also my favorite crow) BUT if we have to base it on just comfort. wylan! there's something steady and profound and calming about his character (together with the fierceness, the courage, the sparks) that make me feel safe [speaking in terms of comfort character *to write*]

🧠 Pick a character, and I'll tell you my favorite headcanon for them.

very random but Kaz has a sweet tooth! that's my hc of the day. we know already that as a child he would be super excited about good food / hot chocolate (he and jordie usually bought and shared one, until the day they got two, one each!) so I think he has a sweet tooth that he has been suppressing but maybe will resurface in an idealistic future peaceful life with Inej. I also see him cooking a lot (I have this cottagecore-ish image of Kaz, apron on, baking pancakes in the morning, watching inej train in their backyard, that is just so precious to me! he reclaims his farm life! he is happy!)

✅ What's something that appears in your fics over and over and over again, even if you don't mean to?

apparently, the latest trend according to my gf is stuff like "all the more" and "hope against hope", and (love) bites (that literally flood my latest fic)

[astrhae]

Hello! I’m late to finding out that you wrote the Anastasia/ tangled au that’s been LIVING in my head for WEEKS, and I just want to say it’s one of the most beautifully written things I’ve ever read and just… I adore everything about the phrasing and the imagery and the way all the references fit together and literally everything about it and that I’m so happy to hear you’re writing chapter three <3

akskdskdsk hi hello!! i'm so glad you're enjoying the fic so much 💙 --- i've been listening to the broadway anastasia soundtrack again and feeling so many things about wylan and the lyrics: halfway between where I've been, and where I'm going // In between wondering why, and finally knowing

it sums up so much about wylan and there's so much to unpack there, and i have almost all the dialogue written for the third chapter, but here's a little snippet for you :)

Wylan tilted his head. “You believe in Saints?” “I don’t believe in Ghezen,” Jesper shrugged. He wasn’t sure he believed in blessings either, but it felt like running in circles: everywhere he tried to run, the memory of the Prince was there, haunting, taunting. “That wasn’t what I asked,” Wylan said, stubborn. The lessons had paid off – Wylan did sound like a Prince. But Jesper had never been good at listening to Princes. Shaking his head, he picked up his hat again and put it on, letting one side drag down more than the other, more than was fair. “Lesson thirteen, princeling,” he replied, “we don’t always get what we ask for.”

[dearmrsawyer]

when you get this ask you have to answer with 5 of ur fav songs and then send this ask to 10 of ur favourite followers :)

oh hello!!! right let me think, okay here's 5 of my most listened to aka favs:

through the dark - one direction

below my feet - mumford & sons

fairytale - sara bareilles

the optimist - bennie james (a local artist from my uni days who disappeared off the map but i still have the songs he released at the time)

soldier, poet, king - the oh hellos

[funnyao3]

“He’s the one that wanted it blown up,” Jesper says. 

“Maybe don’t mention that in front of him,” Nina hastens. “Wylan’s the one who blew it up.”

“Hey, Kaz paid me to blow it up.”

“Does that look like a rational Kaz to you?” Jesper asks, gesturing. 

Wylan looks over at where Kaz is standing in a puddle of water, glaring at it like he can intimidate it into evaporating on the spot. 

“Um…”

--Everyday, Just a Little or a Little Bit by Jazzythursday

[magicandpizza]

I was tagged by @jazzythursday and @oneofthewednesdays to post seven lines from one of my current WIPs. Here’s a snippet from my sequel to “We Keep This Dream Together” which I swear I’m gonna actually finish one day 🥲

With a quick wink and a wave of his hand, Dima disappears into the crowd once again

Wylan turns to face Jesper. “He seems nice.”

“Yeah, we used to be close. Until I moved to Ketterdam, that is.”

Wylan mulls over this new information for a moment. “You two had a thing, didn’t you?”

“Why?” Jesper grins. “Are you jealous?”

Soft tagging anyone who wants to join in!

[nerdlingmerchling]

Wip Wednesday

I've been tagged by the lovely @hotpinkmurex last week. Better late than never, so here's a bit from the wesper-kid-fic I'm working on.

-------------------

“Wow!” Jesper exclaimed, ruffling the little boy's hair. “You've already finished eating everything on your plate!” 

Perched on his highchair by Jesper's side, the toddler nodded with pride as he chewed on his last cube of honeydew melon. 

“Do you want more fruits?” Wylan offered. 

“Yes.” 

“Which kind?” 

“The -awbeyies.” 

Marya was the one sitting closest to the bowl of freshly cut strawberries. She reached for it and used her spoon to drop four pieces on her grandson's plate. “There you go, little gem.” 

“What do we say to Nanna?” Wylan reminded him.

“Thank you, Nanna.”  

Before Wylan could congratulate his child on a politeness lesson well learned, the sound of the doorbell echoed through the entrance hall, all the way to the sunroom. 

Jesper sprung up on his feet, and he stopped the butler before the stern-faced man could even take a step toward the mansion’s main door. “It’s fine, Luther. I’ll get it.” Jesper was always restless during meals and would take the first opportunity to go stretch his legs.  Wylan had stopped trying to combat that habit several years ago. He just assumed table manners didn't apply to his husband. 

“Dada!?”  the toddler exclaimed, a tinge of distress in his voice, contorting in his chair with a whine, as he tried to see where his father had gone. 

“Dada's gone to answer the door, treasure. He'll be back soon,” Wylan reassured his son and then pointed at the pieces of fruit in front of him. “Why don't you eat your strawberries in the meantime, huh?” 

The little boy looked down at the food, wary now, as if his father’s sudden absence had turned the berries into something vaguely ominous. 

___________

I'm tagging @sleepyzenpanda, @i-can-read-to-him, @linane-art, @jazzythursday, @sissytobitch10seconds, @stormkpr (no obligation of any kind)

Also tagging @shit-people-probably-didnt-say. I dunno if you write fics, but you're the main reason why I decided to write a wesper kid-fic in the first place ;)

[jazzythursday]

He wakes up to Wylan tapping silent melodies against the ridges of his ribs, over the apex of his heart.

“Are you composing on me again?” Jesper asks groggily, in lieu of good morning. He cracks one eye open, squinting against the shock of early light. Wylan just hums distractedly in vague affirmation. It has a sweet, melodic tone to it that Jesper would bet a not insignificant amount of kruge on being in the key of whatever song Wylan is still playing on his torso.

[sparrowmoth]

heads up, seven up

I was tagged by @oneofthewednesdays to post seven lines from one of my current WIPs. Due to the style of this fic, I'm gonna disregard the exact number of lines djakjgkd. But anyway, here's a sneak peek at the upcoming second chapter of Ballad of a Mercher's Son (my Western Grishaverse AU ft. an enemies-to-lovers Wesper meet-ugly):

“Oh, stop your whining, Fahey, or I’ll have a gag on you next.” Jesper only smirked at that, which Wylan noticed just by chance— and not because he had been staring at his captor’s sculpted lips. He had no interest in the man, or any real kind thought about him, even asked about his beauty— Deadly things were pretty, too.

Gently tagging some darlings of mine: @waterloou @sixofcrowdaydreams @kindness-ricochets @finitevoid @jazzythursday @nerdlingmerchling @sunfl8wer @reonnex 💕

[reonnex]

Heads up seven up

I was tagged by @sparrowmoth and @jazzythursday to post seven sentences of one of my wips! I have many wips but my two im actively trying to get done are the gift exchange, and my wesper little mermaid au, so I had to go with the au. Funny enough these ten sentences are the only part I have of it done lol

Seven years. Seven whole years of lies. How cruel of a son could Jesper be? The only thing keeping his lie up was his father begging him not to vist was his fear of the ocean taking him just like it did his mother. Colm had to shove all his worries for Jesper to attend Ketterdam, praying that he would make it to the shore safely. Jesper hated that it helped kept the lie going. It was his excuse to not vist. His excuse to lie for years about how he graduated university, got himself a desk job, was making a living for himself. And his father believed every single word. Of course, everything has to come crashing down at some point, and that day came with Colms's worrisum letter detailing that he was sick, and bills were pilling up. Jesper had to go back.

Tagging with no pressure to do anything💕💕 @hotpinkmurex @sixofcrowdaydreams @cxyotl @oneofthewednesdays

[aziraphales-library]

Do you have any canon recs that take place between the bus and the body swap? Like at crowleys apartment?

You mean the very well known and popular #the night at crowley's flat trope? Yes, we even have a tag! Here are some more...

Last Night on Earth by effywho (T)

"There was a swell of water in the bath as Crowley lowered himself in the opposite end of the tub. Their eyes met as their legs brushed. Crowley reddened. “You know,” he said, “sometimes I feel like we’ve been playing a game of chicken for 6000 years, and you’re winning.”

Crowley and Aziraphale face their uncertain future, and their changing relationship. Also midnight snacks.

Crossfire by NuriaSchnee (M)

In which a shower can solve 6000 years of secrets and misunderstandings.

Or:

Aziraphale finally breaks down at Crowley's flat and Crowley takes care of him.

a drink sounds lovely by oops_witchcraft (M)

No, It's past time. He told himself. With resolve, he reached out again, and grabbed the demon’s hand. Crowley’s calm exterior fell and he looked up in confusion, his body rigid.

“Aziraphale, what-”

“I love you, Crowley.”

Okay, so not exactly subtle, but it was a start.

-----

That deleted "night at Crowley's flat” scene, but they watch The Sound of Music.

The Devil in Your Eyes by Luinlothana (T)

After the world did not end, Aziraphale and Crowley return to Crowley's flat to figure out what to do next. It's harder than it seems but each of them tries their best to protect the other. If only they could make sense of the last prophecy...

Beware the Listening Darkness by Most_Loved_Tragedy (T)

Aziraphale and Crowley have survived Armageddon and now need to find a way to survive their upcoming trials. While focusing on that danger and the joy of confessing and physically showing their love for one another, they miss another danger entirely.

The Whole World And You by Jazzythursday (G)

It's far closer than they usually sit. No longer a row between them, a couch away, on opposite sides of a bench. They’re pressed side by side now, as if it’s the most natural thing in the world. And maybe it could be, maybe it always has. Like this, he can feel all the peaks and valleys of the demon’s lithe frame flush against his softer one. Even on the uncomfortable seats, he can’t help but think they fit together remarkably well.

He looks down and Crowley’s hand is still curled around his wrist. In a moment of bravery, he moves his own up and laces their fingers, pressing their palms together. Those, he’s happy to find, fit together remarkably well too.

Or: 6000 years and a night in a Mayfair flat, after the world doesn’t end.

- Mod D

[sixofcrowdaydreams]

Make Me Write!

Tagged by @sparrowmoth 💕

dog!Jesper fic (Good Boy)

Weper edging smut fic

Crows Firefly AU

Tagging (no pressure unless you want it): @hotpinkmurex, @jazzythursday, @aphroditestummyrolls, @nerdlingmerchling

[crowpricorn]

🦃 🕊🐦 for the birds asks! <3

thank you!! 💗 (Qs)

again, I can't do quotes for the sake of my life and it's just disgustingly long paragraphs

🦃 a big, meaty quote (JUST A BIG OL PARAGRAPH YOU WANNA SHARE)

just a silly paragraph from angel&demon au :)

He doesn't know what it is that catches his attention first — the ruddy golden curls crowned with a pair of big, crimson red horns, or perhaps the sharp blue eyes that send a glare his way — so clear that they should belong to the skies, not to the depths of Hell. There's feathers of the same deep red of his horns, kept folded to his back. His clothes are all black and tight to his body, and he wears — Oh God, he wears a leather black harness that hugs his chest perfectly. Jesper might be drooling a bit. He looks the demon up and down, eyes pausing on his bare feet and on his gorgeous hands — both pairs end in claws that shouldn't be as hot as they are.

🕊️ a sweet quote (something sweet, fluffy! maybe it's cute or funny banter! or sappy wedding vows!)

cute banter! from how to train your dragon au😼

"When you said you don't like eels," Wylan laughs, amused. "I didn't think you meant you're scared of them."

"I'm not scared," Jesper snaps. "They are just disgusting."

Wylan keeps laughing, securing the net as he goes. "Local lanky boy scared to death by a poor eel," he chants, earning a pebble thrown to his shoulder and then a flow of laughter from Jesper. Something warm spreads through Wylan's chest, and he has to crouch down before he loses his balance.

"Are you alright?" Jesper asks, face suddenly worried and right hand already reaching to hold Wylan up.

"Must be the heat, I see splotches of black and white dots in front of me," Wylan mumbles, and he hopes that Jesper buys the lie. He hopes he doesn't inquire further until Wylan has to shut him up with his mouth. On Jesper's mouth.

🐦 a romantic quote (can be sweet or sad or sexy, or just your favorite interaction between them!)

blind wylan au thingie!!

Wylan kisses like a love song, soft like a breeze, warm like rocks kissed by the sun. It's sweeter than they kissed in Jesper's dreams, and it's also incredibly Wylan: messy and giggly, passionate, even, as soon as they fall into a rhythm and let go of all restraints, shaking against each other like twin flames meeting in a burning embrace. It's beautiful. Wylan is beautiful — he is beautiful in the dark, he is beautiful in his memories and he was beautiful earlier under the sun. And he is real. He is real as Jesper kisses him into the night, as Wylan lets his body arch against Jesper's, as they lay there and all he knows is Wylan's breath and scent and warmth.

[waterloou]

Make me Write!

Tagged by: @ksbbb

🧚🏾‍♂️fairy wesper

🎨painting wesper

🌊wave walker wesper

🍰bakery wesper

💬chat fic wesper

🔪broken parts thiam

🐭mouse Wylan and crow kaz shenanigans

🐇Aditi and Jesper

🧜‍♂️siren wesper au

🪽Wings au wesper

Tagging: @sparrowmoth @humangrumpycat @n0eyed-taissa @theoceanismyinkwell @chasing-chimeras @jazzythursday @magicandpizza @seidenbros @arobear and anyone else who wants to do this!

[dearmrsawyer]

no year in review because it was all horrible really so instead i'm gonna take this chance to share a pile of incredible soc fics because they gave me somewhere else to be

these are all amazing stories and they made me feel a variety of things, and i've been compelled to return to all of them more than once. there are honestly more but this was getting very long. all fic authors thank you so much for putting such beautiful things out into the world ✨

To Everything There Is A Season by @basicbard, @ace-kaz-brekker

When times on the farm get tough, Jesper decides to make use of the old temple in the woods. Almost coincidentally, he meets a strange boy in the same woods shortly after. Are his prayers truly being answered? And why does the stranger seem to know so much?

Incredibly incredibly lovely little mythical fic that i am so enchanted by, this is a type of story that i'm always looking for and when someone who shares your interest happens to create it that is a gift from god, frankly

out of the forest (into a home) by stillthestars

Wylan is adrift in the city; Jesper and the rest of the Crows take him in. Daemon AU.

I have read this fic so many times, every couple of months at least, and the comments are turned off so i can never tell the author how much I love what they've created and i literally lie awake at night haunted by this (i do mean literally).

A Shot in the Dark by alex_kade

The Crows are on a treasure hunt, but when Wylan gets seriously injured the mission becomes one of saving their friend. OR yet another fic where Wylan is the bravest of brave little toasters.

The first in my love affair with fics where Wylan gets shot lol. "bravest of brave little toasters" lives in my head rent free always.

A Measure of the Sum of Parts by @kindness-ricochets

Wylan is trying to improve Kerch and Jesper is trying to be happy with his life. After an accident he heads for the Little Palace to learn how to control his abilities, and Wylan uncovers yet another dark family secret. Reunions in Ravka, political machinations, and the beauty of a strange little family.

The other fic i am biologically compelled to reread every couple of months. So so many fics by this author touch me, but this one is seriously everything to me.

Musée des Beaux Arts by @oneofthewednesdays

Six portraits of life and death in Ketterdam featuring the interwoven stories of Wylan Van Eck and Kaz Brekker.

One of the best fics i've ever read in any fandom, an utterly perfect character analysis fic about the Wylan/Kaz parallels

the handmaid by MaudeAlise

It’s a relatively straightforward job: Jesper will pretend to be the handmaid to the withdrawn and sheltered Van Eck heir, and convince him to elope with another mercher. That’s all Jesper has to do on his end, and then the Crows will walk away with 45 million kruge. It’s a simple task. Or it would be, if not for the fact that there seems to be more to Wylan Van Eck than meets the eye, and Jesper can’t help but be intrigued—and maybe a bit charmed, too.

Me reading this fic channeling whatever energy those instagram romantasy readers possess, like ok i get the feeling you guys are trying to express i really get it now. what on earth could be better than Jesper employed to be Wylan's handmaid. maybe nothing? SO compelling

under a merciless white light by @feelinglikecleopatra

Jesper decides to grow out his hair.

one of the most moving fics i've ever read ever, idek how to express it

Love is War (And War is Hell) by @silverbirching

Jesper and Wylan face their biggest challenge as a couple to date: dealing with a houseguest. (and that houseguest has done war crimes)

WIP. Nothing could've prepared me for how completely smitten I would be with the concept of Jesper and Wylan taking care of a wounded Ivan. Like i'm head over heels for this fic, its hilarious and sweet and emotional, it is just way too delightful, i can't handle it

Flight of the Butterfly / Symbiosis by @jazzythursday

travel time between Shu Han and Ravka. Jesper wanders onto the deck of the Hummingbird at night, restless and looking for… something, and finds Wylan instead. Conversations about sensitive topics ensue, and even Crows need sleep.

my fav missing scene fic inspired by SAB!!!! I was DESPERATE for more time on that ship and this fic gave me everything i wanted. the characterisation in this fic is flawless

If you hold me without hurting me, you'll be the first who ever did by gglow

Jesper and Wylan's first times at the Van Eck mansion, because we all need closure.

i can't get enough of fics set immediately after CK exploring how Wylan and Jesper settle into the mansion, this might be my favourite one i've read, its just so tender

somewhere full of bright colours and beautiful sounds by @jackwolfes

A Marya Hendriks Van Eck character study, aka Marya adjusts to life back in Ketterdam.

So many fics by this author, but i think about this fic all of the time. Its the fic i've always wanted and its everything i could've hoped for.

We're Gonna Need a Bigger Pentagram by @emmy-everafter

Nina Zenik is a vet med student who's almost done with her clinical rotations… but she's also secretly a very powerful witch. When someone brings a cursed, injured werewolf into the animal hospital, Nina decides to try to save his life, despite the bitter hatred that exists between wolves and witches. She enlists the help of her housemates, Jesper (who's also a witch), Inej (who's fae), and Kaz (who may or may not be a vampire). But breaking this curse requires more than Nina bargained for, and time is running out. Can the Crows save the werewolf before it's too late? More importantly, can they do it under the nose of their all-too-human housemate, Wylan? And--perhaps the most important question of all--will Nina finally get some decent waffles?

PURE joy, just made me so happy??? extremely delightful, fun, also super touching. Just so so so rich. One of my fav AUs, making all the crows a different creature and then putting them in a house together, A+.

To Live in Color by @sixofcrowdaydreams

As a child Wylan Van Eck was told by his father that domestic labor is all he will ever accomplish since he cannot read. He’s grown up cleaning his own family’s home. It’s not easy work, but it’s gotten easier over the years. If only he wasn’t so lonely. But now that his father has remarried and a has a new heir on the way, Wylan has the suspicion that he won’t be kept around much longer, even to clean. So for once in Wylan’s life, he decides to live for himself. Just this once. He’ll attend the King’s Masquerade Ball whether his father wants him there or not. However, his plan the night of the masquerade goes sideways when he meets a handsome sharpshooter and the criminal crew he runs with carrying out a heist at the palace. Wesper Cinderella AU

one of those perfect storm fics where not only is the writing wonderful, the characterisation on point, but the story itself is just SO engrossing. this was heartbreaking and uplifting

The In-Between by @sparrowmoth

Born into a world where a highly stigmatized and exploited series of genetic mutations can completely strip you of your humanity, Wylan has known since childhood that something was different about him. The same something different that is said to have killed his mother. Now, abandoned by his father, and his world shrunk to a cage, he must decide if to accept his fate or risk everything to change it.

WIP. The.... worldbuilding..... magnifique. this fic has me exclaiming GOD at least once a chapter lol. I haven't read many hybrid fics in my time but i fear i am now spoiled and no one can live up to this

Crows of the Saintly Days by Allthebestpeopleare

A very chaotic Inej, Nina and Jesper go to Ketterdam University. Things start to get interesting when Nina catches the eye of a cute jock in psych class, a very shy and sweet Wylan stumbles into their friend group, and a past associate of Inej's makes more and more appearances.

Prob the longest fic i've ever read, but genuinely would not sacrifice a single word. Weaves textfic and prose, and altho imo textfic can be kinda vapid/ooc what starts out as v light fun spirals into a wonderfully well developed story that really deeply moved me, and i loved the style!

Blood in the Water by hopeisbloody

Kaz Brekker runs the Barrel, his Wraith, and his Sharpshooter at either side for eternity. Jesper Fahey, ten years into his immortality, still a fledgling at heart, feels lost, alone, empty. Kaz and Inej have each other, and they have had each other for centuries. Even in their inner circle, he’s excluded from the millennia of memories they share. Their rule is disrupted. Bodies appear, drowned, drained of blood. Wylan is back, but what for?

This is one of the coolest Wylan characterisations i've ever read, such an incredibly engrossing story, I literally could not stop reading

We Keep This Dream Together by @magicandpizza

An entirely self-indulgent, vaguely chaotic, mostly sweet Six of Crows coffee shop/university AU, based (largely) on my experiences of the UK university system. Mostly focused on Wesper, but with sides of Helnik and Kanej too.

The most comfort fic ever, its not technically a Christmas fic (altho it does appear in a chapter) but feels like a Christmas fic to me because it makes me feel a sense of warmth and comfort that time of year embodies

a path to normal by seimaisin

Home is a difficult concept for Wylan and his mother. Jesper makes it easier.

so delicate and lovely, another fic set in the direct aftermath of CK focused on Marya returning home, which i can never get enough of <3333

In a Full Life, All Hearts Break a Little by alcove_words

Two years after the end of Crooked Kingdom, Jesper finally visits Novyi Zem and the father and life he left behind. But he isn't alone; Wylan comes, as well, determined to be supportive. Neither of them expects it to be an easy trip, but Novyi Zem holds more for both of them than they are prepared for.

Selling my soul for all fics set in Novyi Zem, but this one...... so SO beautiful. So conversation-based but full of story, so BIG hearted, such unbelievably beautiful writing.

Of Bronze and Blaze by amagicbeyond

This is a Wesper-centric reimagining of Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom, through the lens of the Shadow and Bones TV canon.

WIP. Oh my god????? Oh... my god. I don't even have words for this one, its just unbelievable

[funnyao3]

Jesper burns dinner. 

Burns would be the most favourable description, really. It’s a complete mess. They can’t get the stove to turn off, and Jesper spends twenty minutes trying to do it with his Grisha powers. It isn’t working, and the poor chicken is flaming inside the dungeon of the oven the whole time. Even when they shut the power off, they can’t get it open. The door is stuck, swollen from the heat. Jesper has to evaporate the screws to get it off its hinges. When he finally pries the door off, the food is completely black. It’s also still on fire. 

Wylan laughs.

“Don’t laugh!“ Jesper yells, obviously trying not to laugh himself. He’s fanning the corpse of the flaming, carcinogenic bird with an oven mitt. “This was a very serious, very touching romantic gesture!”

“It looks like a fire hazard,” Wylan says, still giggling.

“Then it’s an emergency! You sick, sick madman!” 

Wylan laughs harder, Jesper is using two oven mitts now. 

“You little pyromaniac! Are explosives not enough anymore? Incendiarism is no joking matter!”

“You're the reason it’s on fire!”

“That’s not the point!”

--Everyday, Just a Little or a Little Bit by Jazzythursday

[aphroditestummyrolls]

WIP Wednesday SATURDAY

Tagged by the lovely @jazzythursday here’s some catstarion ❤️

Halsin’s golden eyes scanned over the little cat’s face, but there was a slight furrow in his brow. A big hand tentatively reached out to touch. No sound accompanied it— not a snap of teeth or warning hiss. Just utter silence, and the overwrought trembling of the creature against his chest.

“May I?” Their resident druid held out his hands in askance. The idea of letting someone else take the cat had Gale’s throat going dry and tight, surprisingly so. Halsin, of course, saw the hesitation immediately. “You’ve been a good friend to him, Gale. He’s safe now. May I?”

“Of- of course, yes. Apologies. I must be missing my own cat.” The nervous laugh was unbidden, as was the bloom of heat in his cheeks. “Is he alright?”

“Just a bit frightened, still. This must have come as quite a shock.”

His arms felt weak without the weight he’d been carrying.

“Came as a shock to all of us, that’s for sure.” Wyll chuckled, shaking his head incredulously. “When we couldn’t find him after the fight, I began to fear a much worse fate befell him.”

“I’m not certain Astarion wouldn’t have preferred one of those fates to this.”

“Chk. To be rendered to so soft and small a form? He is helpless.” Lae’zel failed in sounding anything other than fascinated. Maybe even endeared. “It is temporary, this spell?”

“Cats are far from helpless, regardless of their size. You’d be surprised, I believe, by the immense power and hunting prowess in those soft little bodies. As for this beast,” Gale gave a chagrined little smile, raising his still-bleeding hand to the firelight, “I think you’ll find our rogue is still more than capable of carnage.”

“I’d hesitate to refer to Astarion in any form as helpless. But still! Love to know how soft he is… I just don’t want him to try to take a bite out of me. Poor guy might burn himself.”

Halsin hadn’t taken his eyes off his patient. He muttered quietly,

“Be careful, Halsin— he may make a break for it at any time.”

“I don’t think he will.”

Tagging @kezzzx, @non-un-topo, @nicolos, @polarcell, and @the73rdpostscript. And if you aren’t writing anything, feel free to share upcoming sketches or other art you’re working on! ❤️❤️❤️ no pressure, of course.