#only one series technically remains a wip!!

[starryevermore]

the house of snow is officially finished <333

[suzukiblu]

So, uh, due to some pretty serious financial issues I'm currently having from estate-related issues, please take this interest check for Ko-fi thank-you sentences!

( for anyone who doesn't remember/know, Ko-fi thank-you sentences are when I write sentences in thanks for Ko-fi donations, minimum of one sentence per dollar--or two sentences, in the case of double-up rounds. donator gets sentences from their story of choice off my WIP list; only restriction is no NSFW picks for minors and please don't, you know, pick completed stories that aren't part of an unfinished series and would therefore technically require me to start a new WIP. )

Relatedly, I'm still working on the obligatory sugar baby AU (currently at 4k/15k), and also a couple of remaining Ko-fi thank-yous from last round--specifically a hundred sentences of "Jason goes home" and a hundred sentences that are dealer's choice. Those two I'm going to finish both of before doing another round, whether I do said round now or in the future, though the obligatory sugar baby AU is gonna take a little bit longer still.

[kiwiana-writes]

Fic Writing Review 2023

Tagged by my fellow stats nerd @stereopticons - thanks pal!

Rules: Feel free to show whatever stats you have. Only want to show Ao3 stats? Rock on. Want to include some quantitative info instead of stats? Please do this. Want to change how yours is presented? Absolutely do that. Would rather eat glass than do this? Please don’t eat glass but don’t feel like you have to do this either.

Words and Fics (fics written in 2023 only)

143,107 words published to ao3. At least 3,900 more guaranteed by the advent fic so... I think I should make a concentrated effort to break 150k, right? 👀

No good way of tracking unpublished words in WIPs written this year. My goal for 2024 is to set up my spreadsheet to track words written as well as published so watch this space.

3 published fandoms: Red White & Royal Blue (book), Schitt's Creek, The Last Of Us (TV show). Technically 1 unpublished fandom in Red White & Royal Blue (film) 😅

Most recent drop: Apart from the daily advent fic drops lilnked above, a PWP interlude in the hockey boyfriend Henry 'verse

Longest (published) fic: By a country fuckin' mile, With so much of my heart (that none is left to protest), aka the Much Ado actor AU, at 65,586 words.

Longest (published) oneshot: Kinda think that I might be his type (Alex and Bea fake date) at 12,864 words

Top Fics by Kudos (fics written in 2023 only)

With so much of my heart (that none is left to protest) [RWRB, Alex/Henry, rated E, 65,586 words]

Kinda think that I might be his type [RWRB, Alex & Bea + Alex/Henry, rated E, 12,864 words]

We were supposed to find this [RWRB, Alex/Henry, rated M, 3,384 words]

Puck It [RWRB, Alex/Henry, rated E, 9,739 words]

Feel your hands in my hair and you whisper my name [RWRB, Alex/Henry, rated E, 2,508 words]

Miscellaneous Data From My Unhinged Spreadsheet about 2023 fics

To no one's surprise, highest percentage of private bookmarks goes to Bukkake Breaky Heart.

Out of 24 fics published in 2023, 14 were explicit, 2 were mature, 7 were teen and up, and 1 was general audiences

3 fics didn't have a title sourced from anywhere. 3 were sourced from literature/poetry, 3 were puns, and the remaining 15 were song lyrics, with 3 each from Taylor Swift and Matt Nathanson.

My highest kudos/hits ratio was on Empty your heart of its mortal dream, aka the Fae Prince Henry fic.

My fandom fic events in 2023

Nilch nada zip in terms of, like, fests. I wanted to do Threesgiving but the words wouldn't come, so a sort-of-threesome-sort-of-foursome will probably appear on some random day in fucking February or something lmao. However while they weren't fandom-specific events, I did do:

Kinktober 2023

Advent 2023

Upcoming Events and Projects for 2024

I have a lot -- a lot a lot a LOT -- of WIPs that will be completed in 2024, so please don't think of this as an exhaustive list, but they are the ones I'm most excited for:

A Practical Arrangement - @clottedcreamfudge has Devised A Punishment if I don't get chapter two out for y'all by Christmas because my usual methods of pushing past my brain bullshit weren't working, so technically this is a 2023 project 🤣 @ships-to-sail and @celeritas2997 have the carrot and CCF has the stick.

Anastasia AU!!! I LOVE this fic and I think it's in the 'meaty one-shot' range buuuuuut we'll see. It might get a little out of control.

Angstapalooza RWRB edition - this is gonna be another long fic, 10-11 chapters, 50k words ish, and I cannot WAIT to make y'all cry sink my teeth into it. My Schitt's Creeks babes know what happens when I deem something 'angstapalooza' lmao.

Hockey Boyfriend Henry part 3, aka the whole reason I started writing the fucking series in the first place lmao

Leverage AU, which I haven't shared anything of yet because it's a post-angstapalooza longfic but I am VERY HYPE FOR.

Rafael Is Surrounded By Disaster Queers, aka the Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead-style Rafael POV... 5+1? Vignettes? set in the Much Ado actor AU verse. Which at this point is just a gift for @inexplicablymine and @cricketnationrise and I wouldn't have it any other way.

STFAU 👀

*infomercial voice* And much, much more!

BUT, 2024 is also for taking original writing seriously. Maybe flash/microfiction on patreon, definitely diving into an original novel. I've thrown in the towel with my contracting agency in the new year and everything. Ack.

Tagging anyone I've tagged above and also @anincompletelist @cha-melodius @hgejfmw-hgejhsf @indestructibleheart @myheartalivewrites and anyone who wants to play because I love data.

[zombeesknees]

currently in the life of the angie bee:

my sense of time is strangely broken, because it's almost 6pm but my brain is all, "gosh, it's not even noon yet!" and i have no fuckin idea why.

i've been deodorizing and washing and cleaning the house all day because i feel like there's a particularly sour smell throughout it, but now i'm wondering if it's me, and i don't know why i'm suddenly smelling so sour??? like, it's not a sweat smell, it's a sour, musty smell, and i'm still using the same shampoo and body washes i always do, and it's not as if my diet's changed significantly, so wth is going on??? IS IT A SIGN THAT I'M DYING OF SOME WEIRD DISEASE??? i know folks with diabetes sometimes smell strangely sweet, but i've never heard of something that makes you smell sour. OR IS IT ALL IN MY HEAD AND PSYCHOSOMATIC??? i'm not just gonna go up to someone and be like, "do you think i smell weird?"

quint remains one of the Characters of All-Time (and a Happy Jaws Day to all who celebrate it).

(yeah, i don't celebrate the 4th, what a bullshit holiday, we have nothing to be proud of as a country, especially these days.)

dropped $288 this morning on two and a half weeks-worth of groceries for one person. and that was buying basic, off-brand shit. how the fuck did we get to this.

slight silver lining: i have today, tomorrow, and the full weekend off, and i get to spend time with joel tomorrow AND see shara and nichole on sunday.

i set my reading goal for the year at 50 books (something i didn't come close to achieving last year, thanks to a reading block that set in in march and didn't let up for the rest of the year). and in the last two weeks i hit 54 books (almost all of them new-to-me, which is ALSO amazing). my unmedicated ADHD bullshit may still be preventing me from watching new shows and movies, but at least it's eased off on the reading front.

a new dude joined our book club this week and he's CUTE and likes fantasy and is a high school social studies/history teacher, and we discussed character archetypes for like ten minutes. maybe next club meeting i'll actually give him my number and ask him out.

wimsey has spent a full week in the flower donut collar thanks to scratching his chin raw and bloody. vet recced treating him with revolution in case it's because of mites, washing the wound with a special antibiotic flush, and keeping him in the collar until everything's fully healed/his fur grows back in. makes for a hella grompy flower:

god, leverage really is just the best show. doesn't matter how many times i watch it; i'm forever delighted and impressed with just how well written/constructed/everything it is. that's my emotional support family of thieves, your honor.

i'm getting SO CLOSE to filling out the final gaps in the current sections of my hazeldine WIP, and i really do think i'm gonna have to split it into two volumes instead of making it all vol. 6 as i had originally planned. but IF i do that, that means vol. 6 is gonna HAVE to end on a significant cliffhanger, which i typically try to avoid. (yes, technically all of the previous vols have ended on cliffhangers, since this is a continuing story spread over several volumes. but they haven't been LITERAL cliffhangers, with someone on the verge of death or something.) i don't like when books in a series i'm reading do that, so i try not to inflict that on my own readers. but perhaps i can mitigate it slightly by making sure both vols 6 AND 7 are fully polished/ready for printing, and release them like a month apart or something, so there isn't a huge wait in between...

FINALLY finished the replacement cross-stitch sampler of lighthouses for a gal from work (the first one got lost in the mail beginning of last month). now i can continue working on the Yee Dudes series for my bud jordan <3

but also i'm gonna try to design a pattern for myself re: a dracula joke that keeps popping into my head: descending the castle, lizard-fashion. i'm probably the only person who is THIS delighted/amused by that joke, but i'll enjoy stitching something for myself for a change, lol.

[dndeceit]

Fander Fic Rec Friday (#17)

(Monster Kids and Creature Adoptions)

You're alright by FreePoetryNightmare Zombie AU (Royality, Dukexiety) Rating: G When Roman's family was taken from him by the apocalypse, he made the hard choice to hold on to the one piece of it that remained. Even if Janus would never be the same after he was infected, Roman still loves his son. (He doesn't expect the persistence of that love to be rewarded by reclaiming even more of what he's lost.) Notes: Another bittersweet zombie apocalypse where what is usually the worst outcome still offers a glimmer of hope.

What's a Monster to a kid? What's a kid to a dad? by 8beez Fantasy AU (Gen) Rating: G Virgil is a mostly-retired hunter living on his own until one day he is approached by a young boy named Janus demanding to be trained to hunt monsters. Notes: Janus is a sad, determined little thing and Virgil is doing his best. Seeing these two come together as a family will always be one of my favorite things ever.

The Shadows of the Past, Present and Future series by Kaysigns Supernatural AU (Gen) Rating: G That the bogeyman exists is a fact known to the world at large, a creature that preys on children and can only ever temporarily be slain. Years after his predecessor was defeated, Virgil is the latest incarnation of this monster, but as he watches the children that he's meant to destroy, all he can feel is envy for the love they know with their families. Especially one family in particular... (Thomas, meanwhile, has adopted three children already and wasn't planning on a fourth, but what is he to do when his other sons have already decided they've got a new brother?) Notes: Apart from the wonderful family feels, the worldbuilding behind this one is really intriguing.

The King's Sons series by LonelyThursday Fantasy AU (Intrulogical) Rating: T When King Logan allowed the refugees from a recent disaster to shelter in his castle, he wasn't expecting the plight of two young survivors to change his life. (Remus is somehow less surprised.) Notes: The first fic is technically a WIP, but it flows well enough into the second which works well as a conclusion.

The A famILY of all shapes (and sizes) series by Random_Sanders_Sides_Gt Fantasy AU (Gen) Rating: G Three human friends meet a young giant named Roman who is hiding alone in the woods (only the first of the stray creature kids they would eventually take under their wing). Notes: Found family and family reunions.

A Witch and a Baby by MonkeytheFander Fantasy AU (Gen) Rating: G Logan is a solitary witch until his former mentor drops by, leaving him with a scaled baby boy to raise. Adapting to the unexpected task of being a parent, he makes several new friends along the way. Notes: In which Janus is a squishy bean, and also a plot device to acquire Logan a social life.

WIPs

All Kittens Are Black In The Dark by Jungle321jungle Supernatural AU (Loceit) Rating: G Logan and Janus have been waiting a long time to adopt a baby. Now that Virgil is a part of their family, they aren't about to let a few unexpected challenges ruin it for them. Notes: In which Logan and Janus roll with the punches, and baby Virgil is, occasionally, a cat.

[winterhartarts]

YOU HAVE A TORUNN TOO? :D

I DO LMAO I’ll share about mine if you want!!! And please feel free to share about yours!!! 😍

Sharing a current ongoing WIP of her (she’s posing with three of my other Inquisitors) & also a snapshot of her from a finished piece I did for the DA Createathon this year 🥰 And her original (more or less) design from Inquisition I definitely tweaked over the years of having her as an Inquisitor OC 💖

Also have a write-up about her I also shared with that server, which I’ll quote here!!! (Note that I originally wrote this info about her pre-Veilguard!)

Torunn Adaar (she/her) is technically a Tal-Vashoth by birth, and she’s keenly aware of what her parents went through during their time in Par Vollen while living under the Qun. One of her biological mothers was a Saarebas, had her mouth sewn shut, and she was controlled similar to how we see Ketojan/Saarebas in DA2, except she only managed to escape when her partner, an until right then devoted member of the Antaam (at least, she seemed to be on the surface to most people, anyway) managed to kill the wielder and free her from her bonds (insert Pirates of the Caribbean quote here).

Torunn’s got two moms, the Saarebas and the former Antaam. Saarebas is a trans woman, and the two decided to conceive Torunn (so she’s not adopted) post-escape from the Qun. This is also why the magic flows more easily into her via the bloodline connection to her Saarebas mother, but Antaam is also why she’s really decent as a mage merc while fighting in battles.

I haven’t figured out a name for either Torunn’s Saarebas or Antaam, but I plan to, because part of her (Torunn’s) story is learning that they chose a name to give her with the intention of breaking the Qun norm of not naming anyone officially, and also the unofficial add-on about that that we learned in Inquisition regarding taking up a nickname (instead of a series of numbers) as a “name.” But, it’s ALSO to do with the idea that she (Torunn) is freely able to decide to change her name at any point, because it’s HERS and that’s her right as an individual (rights and freedoms both her parents did not have before leaving the Qun). Her parents aren’t anti-collectivist either for the record, but they also like being able to be autonomous individuals as well if able. Freedom and self-expression is a major theme in their relationship and desire to break free from the Qun, as well as in wanting strike out in a new life together outside of Par Vollen & their assigned roles in the Qun. Outside of it, they feel they can all be happier and do whatever they want without being beholden to strict laws governing their “place in the world.” This, however, does leave Torunn with some intrigue regarding the culture she is connected to, and she has conflicting feelings regarding her own identity as a qunari born outside the Qun with parents who left the Qun (and not on the best of terms).

Also, Torunn eventually specializes her magic into necromancy, as she finds spirits and the dead a lot easier to learn things most of the living world would rather she never even hear about. That, and she has a very sweet and strong connection with the spirit who inhabits her skull she carries (info on whom & which I’m still figuring out).

Torunn is an asexual lesbian, as well, and eventually falls in love with and marries Josephine Montilyet, with whom she has the sweetest relationship 🥹 They support one another while allowing each other the space in which to grow and understand the world better, and never let work fully separate them. After Trespasser, Torunn moves with Josie when she moves back to Antiva, and lives with her as she manages her family’s estate (and does underground Inquisition business here and there, as in my over-arching world state, the Inquisition officially disbands but remains an underground secret organization, of which Josie and Torunn do still have some hand in aiding). Josie’s family adore her, which was a relief to Torunn, as after hearing what high society elsewhere (Orlais and Ferelden, specifically) referred to her as during her time as joint Inquisitor with the others, she was definitely concerned her beloved’s family would be just as racist and unwelcoming. It’s been a wonderful surprise, and a nice life they both lead together.

[citrus-cactus]

Citrus' Art Summary 2023!

The year is almost over, so here's my art summary for 2023! I got this template from here. This is my third year in a row being able to populate every month with a finished(/digital) piece (and really, I did a LOT more than what's shown here!), so that feels like something to celebrate!

Technically some of these choices don’t match up with their post dates; I counted some months as “when I was primarily working on them” and some as “when I actually published them,” but the sentiment remains. Like I said, it was a busy year! :)

Some more rambling + links to all featured artwork beneath the cut:

I remember last year I was quite worried about/was actually teetering on the edge of artistic burnout. There were definitely some months during this year that I felt a bit overwhelmed (particularly during the summer, when I was working on a 5-illustration series in a style that was DEFINITELY outside my norm, PLUS a bunch of other stuff), but I also appreciated the stylistic variety, and doing a lot of sketchbook drawings/marginalia that were(/are) just for me, so they never had to be "finished” or even "good." Even though almost everything pictured here is Digimon(/anime) art, I did experiment with a more "realistic" style for the Dracula Daily series (Aug/Sept), as well as trying to relearn the "Disney" style I started drawing in waaaaaaay back in high school, only now with a LOT more understanding of facial structure and anatomy. Largely, this style shake-up has been incredibly freeing (these are still sketchbook-only studies at this point, but I'm planning on some digital illustrations in the Disney style in 2024). I'm sure they still look pretty anime-influenced, and I'm not sure I'll ever truly be able to escape that, but honestly I don't mind; the anime aesthetic IS a part of my preference/style!

Let's see, the prevailing fandoms for what's shown here are Digimon Survive and Adventure 02. I really want to draw more Survive art next year!! Really happy with the collabo between @vidramon and myself (July), and honestly most (if not all) of these pieces. I worked hard, I branched out, I took on some really ambitious projects, and finished a ton of things (looking at you, March! That Knight drawing was a WIP for an entire year, but I finished it instead of abandoning it, which is what usually happens when things sit around that long!). Ultimately, I believe I told (and helped tell!) some great stories through my creative projects and art this year, which is my true goal forever and always.

Honestly I'm happiest with April's drawing. That one was a ton of fun to do, but I would have to work really hard to replicate that coloring style because I don't remember my brushes/settings, ahaha. Sadly this is how it usually goes with coloring for me; I make it up as I go almost every single time, which is why series are so difficult for me. I am nothing if not inconsistent -_-;

I would be remiss to mention that a huge part of my productivity this year was due to setting and tracking monthly goals for myself. I gotta thank everyone on the @campdigimonth server for their help in keeping me organized and motivated throughout the year! I plan on continuing my creative check-in posts in 2024.

Next year, I want to a) make more Survive art (particularly with Survive Week coming up), b) draw some more flippin' gargoyles (CRIIIINGE, but no, cringe is dead, I'mma do what I want!), and c) keep working on my personal project! And I am, once again, thinking about bookbinding. That's a "maybe" for next year as well!

Descriptions and links to the full artwork pictured for each month:

January: Survive Week, Day 5

February: Survive Gang Aromantic Week

March: Knight Unryuuji and Friend

April: “Rose-Tinted” fic illustration

May: Happy Birthday Vi!

June: Happy Birthday Haru Shinkai!

July: Happy 1st Anniversary Survive! (aka BEST SOCK FRIENDS)

August: Dracula, September 13

September: Dracula, September 20

October: Adv 02 Countdown Event, Day 7

November: “Boo!” on the Cob

December: Digimon Secret Santa 2023

[postalninja]

well, OBVIOUSLY i need to know more about "oops 3", the best title ever

And that, ironically, is the only one on the list that isn't technically a wip, because it's essentially done except for needing a real title? lol The reason it remains in wip folder jail for the moment is because it is part of my Knight and the Princess series and happens after the events of The Head That Wears The Crown... which is, itself, still unfinished. So oops-3, whatever I end up calling it, will only be posted after that fic is done. The working title is a reference to the fact that H'aanit, Olberic, and Primrose get drunk and have an accidental threesome. Hence - oops! it's a threesome! :D I look forward to posting it, especially since it's a bit of silly sexy fun after the heavy events of the main series, and I'm quite fond of it. And hey, if anyone has any ideas for a real title, please let me know! XD

[procrastinatorproject]

Bed Rest (Seven) for the WIP ask game, please. Also, if you want to talk about the other Bed Rest fics, too.

Seven's installment literally consist of only this handful of sentences so far:

“I understand that your xB physiology renders you much more resilient than humans, and I’m willing to give you a lot of leeway, but I draw the line at exposure to hard vacuum. You’re coming to sickbay with me right now.” Seven arched her eyebrow and drew a rasping breath. “Deactivate —” “No,” Emil said calmly. “You’re on medical lockout from all computer systems and will remain so until I give you a clean bill of health. Now, will you come downstairs voluntarily? Or will I have to ask Ms Musiker to drag you?”

I do like it quite a bit :D But haven't managed to do all the writing that needs to go around it yet.

As for the other Bed Rest fics... When I started writing them, it was just Soji, then I had an idea for Raffi, then Ian, Rios... and eventually, it settled in my brain as "one day, this series will have a story of Emil telling people to lie the fuck down already for every major and a whole lot of minor characters from Star Trek: La Sirena" 😅

We'll see how far I get. The one I wrote for Picard doesn't actually fit the description as well as I'd like it to, and I should probably just post it as a short slice of life standalone (it's basically done and I find it pretty funny, if I say so myself).

And the Agnes WIP that is still technically labelled "bed rest" also veered into a different direction (much more emotional angst and post-Borg-trauma, less the sickfic vibe I'm going for with the rest of the series). So I might turn that into a standalone at some point, though it would involve having to acknowledge season 2 happenings, even in a strongly altered form...

BUT! A while ago, @regionalpancake pointed out that probably a bunch of OC stories in my "never to be pulished" folder would only need very minor rewrites to work for Agnes (and for readers who haven't spent the last four years in my brain and thus don't know the reams and reams of intricate worldbuilding that underly the Private Stories). And I think that assessment is very accurate for the fic currently titled "Check up", which also has some holo bits in it that I just... adore so much! And want to share with the world! Like...

Emil nodded. “Your fever has gone up in the last few hours.” Her eyes went wide. “I thought the meds would help with that?” The EMH tilted his head and his expression turned slightly admonishing. “They are helping. They’re supporting your body’s immune system in fighting off the virus. Which inevitably involves a certain level of fever.” He lowered his scanner and frowned. “Honestly, you’re nearly as bad as the captain with his impatience. Healing takes time. The human body isn’t a machine where you can replace a broken part and everything just runs smoothly again straight away.” “Well now.” Over at the table, Ian leaned back in his chair and tucked his hands under his arms. “A repair is rarely done with a simple replacement. There’s always adjustments that need to happen afterwards and usually a lot of recalibration to —” “Yes, thank you Ian,” Emil said curtly without turning around, “I was speaking metaphorically.” “I’m just saying that if you want the repair done properly, you can’t just shove a new part in place and call it a day. There are a lot of protocols and follow-ups that need to happen.” “Actually, that makes the metaphor better, don’t you think?” Enoch mused. “Even with a machine, repairs take time and don’t lead to instantaneous improvement.” Ian leaned towards the ENH. “Yes, but he said the human body wasn’t like a machine, so he got the metaphor exactly backwards.” Emil rolled his eyes as the two holograms at the table started to argue over whether an accidentally good metaphor was still good if it was deployed incorrectly. Behind them, Emmet was leisurely swapping cards from his hand for better ones from the discard pile.

So that one is probably gonna be Agnes's installment (eventually).

Beyond that, who knows? There are still a few crew members (organic, cybernetic, and holographic) that need to have a moment with their snarky ship's physician! And one of these days, I will finally get over myself and edit the two paragraphs that have thus far kept me from posting Rios's part of the series 😅

I really enjoy the bed rest stories, though. I will never get enough of Emil being an exasperated, snarky, but ultimately really kind and competent doctor! And since there aren't as many stories of that out there in the wild as I'd like, I guess I'll just have to keep writing them myself XD

---

(I'm still very happy to answer questions or post snippets of the many things in my WIP folder :D Here's the original list of titles if you want to see what's available!

[girl-mercury]

20 asks for writers

tagged by @noblealice

how many works do you have on Ao3? 50

what's your total Ao3 word count? 203,210

what fandoms do you write for? A bunch-- Once Upon a Time, Our Flag Means Death, The Adventure Zone, MCU, Tomorrowland, and Newsflesh all have more than one fic.

what are your top five fics by kudos? -close enough to touch -in silent screams, in wildest dreams -hand me your hand -open up the door, let the light in -comforts of the household gods

do you respond to comments? I try to respond to each of them.

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Probably Double Vision, an OUAT fic about Belle's possible cursed Storybrook life

What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? It's hard to pick, I try to end on happiness or at least hope, but we rise as we fall might be the happiest

Do you get hate on fics? If I ever have, it's been blocked from my memory.

Do you write smut? Yep! It's a pretty recent thing, though, because it hasn't really been what I was interested in in the past, and just a few ship dynamics in recent years have lent themselves to some very specific smut.

Do you write crossovers? Sure.

Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not that I'm aware of!

Have you ever had a fic translated? Yes! Recently someone translated in silent screams, in wildest dreams into Chinese, and I just got a request to translate Comforts of the Household Gods into Russian.

Have you ever co-written a fic before? Yes, although I don't think any of them are online at this point.

What’s your all time favourite ship? You would ask me to choose my favorite child??????

What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? I started a fic like 18 years ago about Jack Bristow and Irina Derevko from Alias years after the show ends (nobody dies, everybody lives, the two of them remain married and constantly bitching at each other) uncovering a plot at their retirement community and absolutely annihilating some mercenaries.

What are your writing strengths? I think I'm pretty good at character voices.

What are your writing weaknesses? Plot. I can do it, but my god does it take a long time to figure out logistics.

Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? Only that I haven't figured out a way to do it that I don't hate. Italics help, I think, even though I know the arguments against them; for languages not in a Roman alphabet, I don't like the anglicization and the correct alphabet looks wrong, I don't know what the answer is there.

First fandom you wrote for? Technically Narnia or Men in Black: The Animated Series, if we're counting fic when I didn't know fic existed; Lord of the Rings I think was the first posted online in fandom.

Favourite fic you’ve written? Oh gosh. I don't think I can pick.

Tagging @lindsayribar and @shinyopals, but only if you want/haven't done it already!

[kg-clark-inthedark]

🍓🥤❄️ and 🪲 but only if you want to

🍓⇢ how did you get into writing fanfiction?

So (as is many young girls’ right of passage it seems) around 10 y/o I became obsessed with the Warrior Cats series. I had all these wonderful cat OCs running around in my head but no outlet for them because the friend I usually role played with hadn’t read the series. However, I shared a room with my older brother back then and he wrote a TON of fiction as a young teen. He read his stories out loud to me on nights when we couldn’t sleep. He was 13 so it was mostly just indulgent, self-insert one-shots. Not fanfic technically, but definitely the same vibes (and little me was riveted lmao). I was inspired by his writing to try putting the stories I had in my head about my warrior cat OCs on paper. And voila, a little fanfic writer was born! (Now I’m also reminded of years later when I stumbled upon my little sister’s self-insert one direction fanfic and I was soooo fucking proud, like ahh the family business continues 🥹)

🥤⇢ recommend an author or fanfic you love

Nobody’s surprised by this but it’s gonna have to be @uncontrol-freak’s Abyssal. First fic that inspired me enough to make fanart about it. Just has a very particular atmosphere, and it’s a unique corvosider au that I’m enjoying as of late. (And sometimes they let me preview upcoming chapters and ohhhh jeez it gets so so good I am barking 👹)

❄️⇢ what's your dream theme/plot for a fic, and who would write it best?

Oh, hmmm. This one is kind of stumping ngl. I feel like I enjoy writers specifically for the themes and plots they come up with, so to assign one to someone else would be difficult. Not sure I have an answer for this one, I’m sorry. In general though I like character-centric plots, where a lot of the story’s motion takes place in shifts in dynamic or changes for the characters themselves.

🪲⇢ add 50 words to your current wip and share the paragraph here

Alastor speaks dispassionately, as if he were still merely discussing the weather. The defensive panic underneath is almost imperceptible, but it shows through the set of his jaw and his animal-like tension, as though he could spring at me at a moment's notice. He lays his fingers out flat when he notices me watching them dig anxiously into his thigh, but between the pale, splayed appendages his trousers remain wrinkled where they were pulled into his grip.

(It’s 77 words my bad, but once I hit 50 I had to finish the paragraph as intended. Corvo and Alastor are having a talk 😶)

[phoenixtakaramono]

Writer Tag

Thanks for the tag, @deliciouskeys! (You can read their version here!)

I tag: @fuckingpajamas, @bebop-and-oysters, @plasticfangtastic, @officially-tilly, and/or anyone who's a writer that I've forgotten to tag here and wants to participate! <3 And, ofc, no pressure, especially if you've already done this before or don't want to!

How many works do you have on AO3?

12 apparently if you count series as part of "works." Excluding series however, I only consider 6 of them as my "main fics" (actual long fic works I'm proud of and will still be working on).

What's your total AO3 word count?

...642,283 words as of 3/2/24. *eyes it* Considering all my works are either slowburns and/or long fics, and there are a couple butchlander threadfics I haven’t gotten around into turning into AO3 long fics yet, that word count is only going to get even longer.

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

As of 2024

The Untold Tale (3.8K kudos, SVSSS) Green and Gold (1.3K kudos, Harry Potter & InuYasha) Finders Keepers (574 kudos, TFTBL & Borderlands) A Prince and His Baron (548 kudos, Helluva Boss & Hazbin Hotel) Truce (521 kudos, The Boys (TV))

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes! (*´∇｀*) However I do have a peculiar method when it comes to picking and choosing which comments I prioritize replying to first. It depends on various circumstances my whim and if I recognize the comment from one of my regulars. It’s also heavily impacted by the timing of when I see it. As a multifandom and multiwork writer, I become hyper-focused immersing myself in the one fandom of whichever WIP I’m currently working on, intentionally put blinders on to keep myself focused. For example, if I’m currently in the process of writing TUT, I will mostly only respond to comments related to it; if I’m working on TNotG, I mostly only respond to unread TNotG comments—or, since I have multiple works in that fandom, I will respond to unread comments for another WIP as long as it’s the same fandom. Idk how to describe it 🤷🏻‍♀️ but this process of quarantining myself in a fandom one at a time works for me.

At the very least before the new chapter is updated for a work, I’m pretty good at getting to and responding to every comment remaining which I haven’t been able to get to yet—whether it’s answering questions or thanking my readers for taking the time to read the fic. ♥️

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

Finders Keepers. Out of all my works, it's the only one with a bittersweet ending. It's the only one of my WIPs literally tagged Major Character Death. Our Male Lead gets to finally be the hero he'd always wanted to be (literally saving the world from a AI robot takeover)—and have his heroism acknowledged by everyone in the planetary system. He'd mended bridges with his daughter. And he was able to get the love of his life back, robot or no robot. It's a story about Handsome Jack's character development and, at the end of the journey, a hero's ultimate sacrifice would've completed his arc as the main character. The blow is softened a tad because he gets to perish holding hands with the corpse of the young, brilliant scientist whom the android's personality is based off of. The android he'd fallen in love with and had staged this whole dramatic end-of-the-world rescue mission for would've been desperately kissed (their last kiss) before being shoved into a space shuttle, and be given his last order by his beloved master to raise his daughter in her father's absence. It's a very human painful story I'd wanted to tell, haha. I'd wanted to try telling a poignant Shakespearean tragedy, but make it space opera.

What’s the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

Technically they’re all Happy Endings so I consider the main six all tied in that aspect. I’m a big weepy baby when it comes to fictional romances and the main characters’ conflicts with other characters, so I feel I ought to reward them at the end for all the pain and suffering we’ve put them through, haha. I enjoy satisfying Happy Endings with a hint of an open-ended future where the reader can imagine the possibilities themselves and their journey in that universe even after the story is concluded.

Do you write crossovers?

Yes. It's the one fic I wrote back in 2014 that made me decide a couple years later to create an AO3 account for it, because I originally had the intention to make the fanfiction(dot)net version S/F/W and for AO3 to be the N/S/F/W version. ...The pairing might seem strange, but trust me, that Sesshomaru/Harry Potter fic of mine? Every writer has their breakout fic; Green and Gold was mine. I'm always so surprised whenever couple of my readers and even my writer friends, all from other fandoms, tell me they knew me from having read G&G.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Two separate times. One person on fanfiction(dot)net took a friendly fight in G&G a lil too seriously and, outraged that I did not make the story's romantic leads fight to the death instead of the friendly duel in the story, they wrote at the end of their review: "I just think you suck at writing action.” Whereby, after seeing that comment, outta spite, I definitely made sure to include action scenes in almost all my works from then on. :) If you're that anon, so sorry that you'll have to read this writer's poor action sequences.

Another anon had a strange hate b*ner for Hermione as a character and wanted Ron to divorce her in my story, and then went on to pretend to be three different anons circle-jerking each other about how they agreed with the OP after I'd politely informed him "no, a divorce for these secondary characters isn't something I plan on writing in this story." And then they had the gall to tell me, "well, if you think that way, I think marriage's just not for you," lmaooooo. I have a thick skin so I wouldn't necessarily call these instances "hate" though. "Reader entitlement"/ "backseat writing" is more apt. I don’t like being told what to do—especially when it’s a free fic that I’m writing on my free time; it’s not like you’re paying me to write it. Us writers know our own fics like the back of our hand so if we tell you something ain’t happening, why continue to argue with and try to influence the writer? You might as well write your own fics while at it. These two instances though were memorable for how hilarious they were and I always joke about them as humorous can-you-believe-an-actual-human-being-wrote-this anecdotes to my friends.

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I am beholden to whatever the story demands of me. But generally speaking, unless it’s a creative choice to use euphemisms to adhere to censorship guidelines I am looking at you, Twitter, for sh@dowb@nning me for my Sugar Daddy AU threadfic (I have made my peace with the fact I am forever Search Suggestion B@nned there) or I feel it’d be more genre appropriate to use flowery language to suggest something spicy’s happening before fading to black, I am 99.99% of the time quite explicit when it comes to the graphic details. At the very least, my claim to fame is a male client I know irl has read two of my smut threadfics (the butchlander Fix-It AU threadfic and the Sugar Daddy AU threadfic) and told me it’s made him question his sexuality, ahhh.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

...Art, yes (I always see my art reuploaded on Pinterest, annoyingly enough...and there's one time I saw my art reposted on someone else's Loona RP-centric Twitter account as their status update...mind you, if I see my art reuploaded, it's an instant block from me). Fic...no? I sure hope not. I would be incredibly ticked off if I find out someone has. I will say, though, awhile back, I'd noticed someone had posted G&G to a Czech (?) or Slavic-language site—but they'd linked back and credited me as the author so I didn't make a fuss. I tried searching for it again recently on Google Search (I remember the site page was a lilac color), but it doesn't pop up now. :/ I think either they removed it or the site went down.

Now with AI being a genuine threat to creatives, instead of locking my fics, my workaround was coding my more popular AO3 works following a workskin tutorial as a preventative countermeasure to prevent users from selecting the text; this way it's one additional step they'd have to take to feed my fics into their AI machines so hopefully it acts as a deterrent. It's the reason why you can't highlight, copy & paste the text in TUT, Truce, TNotG, G&G, P&B, and FK (I know this also makes it harder for some of you who want to highlight specific passages to me down in the Comments section, many apologies to my lovely readers 🙏).

Have you ever had a fic translated?

If someone actually does take on the herculean feat of translating any one of my long fics from English into a foreign language, godspeed, soldier. I know it's a lot. I also know, based on past feedback, that my writing style would be exceptionally difficult to translate.

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Technically, yes. But to be honest, Evocation was more of a BnHA RP between me and my writing friend that we'd edited and turned into fic format for anyone who wanted to read a religious human/ demon ShigaDabi fic. And he very much excels at writing horror. I wasn't into the BnHA fandom but my friend was, so I'd read up to a certain arc of the manga to understand the appeal and be able to RP Dabi for him. And that's how Evocation exists. There's a lot more exciting content we did not publish yet, but considering this was a co-written fic between us and we'd both moved onto different interests by now, I'm not comfortable continuing it without him so I do not foresee this fic will be updated.

What's your all-time favorite ship?

Almost all my AO3 fics are about my favorite ships, hahaha. As of 2024, I'd say it's probably Butchlander, Tomarry, Bingyuan, Bingqiu, Stolitz, and Chaggie. Of these, Tomarry (mind you, it has to be TMRHP aka Tom Marvolo Riddle Jr/ Harry Potter and not LVHP) is probably the one ship that's persisted the longest of these I'd listed (your girl liked it ever since high school and while I haven't read any in the recent years, I still like it for nostalgia purposes).

What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

I put these under the status of "Temporary Hiatus" because my intention is to always come back and see if people are still interested to see me continue. It's these two: Green and Gold (Sesshomaru/HP, timetravel fantasy romance), and Finders Keepers (Rhack, sci-fi android/human romance). G&G is put here because this was originally written between my high school (secondary school) and my university years, so this is like baby Phoenix writing. FK is here only because I think the fandom is dead so if I were to continue it, I don't think there's an audience, ahhh. Of these two stories, I think G&G has a higher chance of being continued because we're already 16 chapters in and I do not think the HP fandom is gonna die anytime soon. And it is one of my more popular fics. It's possible I might continue FK because this was my first experimental foray into the sci-fi genre, so it's more of a writing exercise for me to experiment and practice with the genre.

What are your writing strengths?

Worldbuilding. Vibrant descriptions and characterizations. I've heard my stories are descriptive enough that readers can see an "inner cinema" inside their head as they're reading it, and I think that's super neat. :) A secret writing strength I joke about having is writing spicy scenes. But because all my main works on AO3 are slowburns, almost no one knows about it yet, haha (the only exclusion is if you've read my Twitter threadfics or A Prince and His Baron).

What are your writing weaknesses?

Redundancy and editing down. My g*d, I'm really bad at paring down; you're looking at a writer who'd written 103+ pages once for a PWP chapter. And that was after I'd reduced the original earlier draft down to the bare necessities. And, mind you, I write in Arial, font size 9 on Google Docs before I upload to AO3. As for redundancy, sometimes I need it as a creative choice to emphasize something important for the readers but, most of the time, it takes me several passes through the drafts before I realize where I've repeated myself—and will thusly delete any unnecessary redundant sentences or scenes I manage to catch.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

Nowadays I will still do it if it's a short one or two words, but I would only use it to highlight a character's linguistic quirk. But for longer sentences, it depends on the necessity of it in a story (for example, if I need to showcase a duck-out-of-water situation or it's a private conversation in a foreign language spoken between characters for secrecy reasons). Chances are though that I won't write entire dialogues in a foreign language if I do not have someone in my immediate circle to help me translate the sentences and/or I cannot use a specific phrase in a language that I know has been 100% verified online by the online community to be grammatically correct, because it's one of the first things that can immediately take a reader out of the immersion if they eff up the phrase or grammar.

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

...I'm too lazy to try to log into my old fanfiction(dot)net account to check, but I believe my first fandom I'd written for was either Yu-Gi-Oh or Black Cat.

What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

Mmm...probably Chaggie (Charlie/Vaggie). I haven't written a sapphic wlw couple in my own works yet (since the main couple are mlm), but I am a bibliophile irl who very much also enjoys reading the sapphic baihe genre with my danmeis. So it'd be a shame if I didn't expand my horizons. But six works is a lot on my plate, as well as my unfinished Twitter long threadfics. As an experiment though, I had written a brief 25-tweet Chaggie threadfic when S1 aired—and found I very much enjoy writing about these two characters. So I'd be very interested to eventually write Chaggie in P&B, when they finally show up as supporting characters to Stolas and Blitzo.

What's your favorite fic you've written?

The Untold Tale. That's gotta be it, hands-down, because it's a rare opportunity for me, as the writer, to write something about my own culture. It's meta humor/ satire buried beneath an authentic story about romance, and it's a love letter to SVSSS as well as small cultural Easter Eggs to the Chinese culture and TV C-drama clichés and even a couple C-novel tropes I want to introduce to my readers for funsies. I just have a lot of fun writing TUT because I get to be sneakily meta whilst being flowery with the prose. If people want to ask me what my best writing is in my writing portfolio, I'd direct them over to TUT.

Green and Gold, for being the foundational rockbed which made me fall in love with writing. Because without G&G, its younger siblings (my other WIPs listed above) you see today would not have existed on AO3. It's a crackship that's treated seriously in the fic itself with a lot of heart and my youthful writing vigor, haha—and I think that's why it's still read by people today despite its crazy premise.

Truce, however, is my personal favorite among my most recent works. It might be a 4-chaptered PWP + epilogue oneshot but, my god, it's become a whole-ass novel. I think it's very reflective of my true writing style though, without the atmospheric and stylistic C-novelesque writing style that TUT is trying to emulate, especially because Truce takes place in a modern setting and I'm not trying to be intentionally fancy with it writing purple prose.

[eleanorfenyxwrites]

2023 AO3 Stats Breakdown

I did this last year and I thought it was interesting for me to see if nothing else, so I'm doing it again this year! I didn't get my main goal done (which was finishing all my outstanding WIPs....or any of my wips....) but let's see what I did do!

Total Wordcount (approximate*): 62,285 words across 7 fics in 1 fandom

Most popular (by hits): Soldier, Poet, King (5,435) [Although if we'd like to go based on fics that were actually finished in 2023, the winner would be Why Not Me?, which I finished posting on January 29th and currently has 3,885 hits)

Most popular (by kudos): Why Not Me? (486)

Least Popular (by hits): The Romance of Anonymity (615)

Least Popular (by kudos): The Romance of Anonymity (100)

Highest Wordcount: Soldier, Poet, King (101,359) (up 22,669 words from last year, which would still put it above anything else in the list)

Lowest Wordcount: Outta Time (4,737)

*This year my approximate wordcount is EXTREMELY off. Partially because I know how much of SPK I wrote this year but not how much of Why Not Me? technically fell in 2023 so that one's more than it should be. Also, though, because I have two fics that I've been working on that I have posted absolutely nothing of, one of which is collaborative. These two projects together are another 200k easily, and while I don't know exactly how much I've contributed numerically to the collaborative fic, I've probably done roughly half, probably a bit less. That's still another ~150k that y'all haven't seen yet, and that's partly why my numbers feel so much lower than what they've been in the past.

Fic Breakdown

I only wrote for the MDZS/CQL fandom this year, and with the exception of Why Not Me? everything that I've written for has been 3zun (and that actually includes my secret projects as well). I haven't had nearly as much time to write this year as I would've liked due to real life shit, so when I do have the opportunity to write I'm much more likely to write about 3zun than anyone else as they remain my favorite ship. If we don't include Soldier, Poet, King and Why Not Me? in this year's lists, as I started them both in 2022, then in 2023 I wrote a total of 5 fics.

These 5 fics account for 35,422 words out of my total (dubious) wordcount as calculated by AO3.

1/5 was a total standalone oneshot: Cut From The Same, which was inspired by art/posts from littlesmartart and guqinandflute here on tumblr, was written for Polyship Week 2023, days 4 & 8 "Soulmates/Free Day" (I wanted to do it for day 4 but ran out of time, so I posted it on day 8 instead).

2/5 are parts of a new series: Outta Time and Roses Are Falling are the first two installments in the Orville Peck Cinematic Universe series, sparked by conversations between myself and littlesmartart about my tentative ongoing Brokeback Mountain AU, Orville Peck's music, and the appeal of cowboy culture in general.

2/5 are additions to ongoing series from 2022: The Romance of Anonymity is an installment in my 90's Strip Mall AU series, Tales From Jianghu Shopping Center, and was written to fulfill Polyship Week 2023 prompts for days 1 and 3, "Roadtrip" and "Bed Sharing", respectively. You're Safe Here is an extra for my 1970's Wangxian AU, The Sculptor, and the series is now called Lavender and Free Love. I wrote it for Polyship Week 2023 day 2, "Missing Scene" (which I didn't realize at the time meant a missing scene from somewhere in canon not from one of my own fics, but oops oh well).

With all that said - what did I actually write?

I almost exclusively posted one-shots this year, with the exception being The Romance of Anonymity, which is two brief chapters written for two separate prompts. Like I said, it's been a busy year in a lot of very good ways, but they weren't very conducive to hammering out chaptered/massive fics very quickly. That being said, Secret Project 1 is currently at 12.5 chapters with 103,939 words written, and by the time I'm done it'll probably wind up somewhere around 15 chapters/~130k at my current trajectory. Secret Project 2, the collaborative one, is currently at (I believe) 14 chapters, with ~111k words written, pre-final editing and logistics. It'll also include at least 4 extras which are currently being written. I also currently have two more active WIPs for the OPCU: a prequel NieLan-centered fic centered on Mingjue acquiring the ranch, and a post-main-timeline SangCheng fic the summer after the original fic(s) (that will also become its own series/universe like the 3zun works).

So big things coming in 2024!! I've been writing a lot behind the scenes, even with things like my first public exhibition back in May, working 40+ hours a week while also visting family back home over the summer, and now (as of September) working through the final year of my undergrad degree while simultaneously continuing to make professional connections so I'll (hopefully) have jobs to fall back on once I graduate in June.

What did I enjoy writing the most this year?

The Orville Peck Cinematic Universe, hands down. I absolutely love this universe and the art that littlesmartart makes as the other half of it, I'm slightly feral for my 3zun modern-day cowboys in love. The same as with Tales From Jianghu Shopping Center last year, I love love love having a fun, relaxing, low-stakes universe to play around in and write fluffy things that make me happy to help me offset some of the stresses of life, and I really love flexing my AU muscles to make sure everyone still (hopefully 😅) feels very natural and right in a setting so far removed from canon.

I didn't accomplish my goal of finishing any of my longstanding WIPs this year, but I'm okay with that! I still don't consider any of them to be abandoned and I do genuinely want to see them all finished one day, but for now I've given myself permission to let them sit there languishing while I make things that give me that good brain juice while my life is going through a lot of transition stages that leave me very little energy to enjoy my hobbies.

Looking ahead, this year I'll be graduating from art college; attempting to find a 'real' job that will satisfy immigration laws so I can continue to stay where I am and begin working on becoming a naturalized citizen; making and selling my ceramics on the side to begin building a solid studio practice in my local community; exhibiting my more artistic work in exhibitions both local and foreign as well as submitting it for awards to begin building up a CV; and trying to start saving money in the hopes that I can buy my house in a few years' time. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I'm busy as all hell and that's not going to change anytime soon, but hopefully I'll have some good writing time in 2024 and continue to be active in this fandom/community that I love so much!

Y'all are really the best and thanks for another great year 🥰

[marezelle]

6, 9, 27, 30

6. Favorite title you used

It's a tough call so I'm picking two: first, I have to shout out the custard pie appreciation consortium, because if that lyric from "The Village Green Preservation Society" hadn't stuck in my head, that fic would not have happened. I was trying to figure out what would happen during Hal's visit to Ragnor Bella, just listening to music in my car when suddenly I thought, oh. Bake sale.

The other title I especially love is let him know its flood also. Sometimes when I pull lines from poems it really is just the one line that I love, but in this case, Kahlil Gibran's "On Friendship" is just so fitting for Jemis and Mr. Dart. (It has occurred to me that I could write more little fics about their friendship, pull more titles from the same source, and create a series of it. We'll see.)

9. Favorite pairing you wrote for this year?

Jemis and Mr. Dart have my whole heart. (They're also most of the romance I wrote this year.) It's funny, because in canon I am fully happy with their relationship remaining purely nonromantic, but in fic... yeah, all bets are off. Romantic, queerplatonic, general friendship - their relationship is my favorite no matter what form it takes, and probably always will be.

27. What do you listen to while writing?

This is going to sound wild, but it's usually nothing. Here and there I might be able to stick a handful of songs in a playlist and put it on repeat, but a lot of the time I find music distracting. I have lots of writing playlists! It's just that I usually listen to them in the car when I'm thinking about fic, and less when I'm doing the writing of fic. There are exceptions, but yeah, generally nothing.

30. Biggest surprise while writing this year?

Besides my shock that apparently I'm capable of writing this much fic??? It would have to be that I got over the hurdle of publishing e-rated fic. Which is funny now, because it's not even like I had an issue with the idea of it, and now that I've done it, I am just like... okay. This is not even remotely a Thing to me. All it really came down to was the fact that I write for a small fandom, and there were things I wanted to read that had not yet been written, and I had ideas. Therefore... here we are. Technically the only e-rated fic I've published so far is hello, my old heart, but I have a few more wips in the pipeline that include sex. And many more that don't! I am, at the end of the day, just an aro-ace guy whose goal as a writer is exploring the relationships of these characters I've imprinted on in as many ways as possible. Upping the rating a bit just gives me a few more options when it comes to doing that.

[aquadestinyswriting]

WIP Series- The Wizard's Tale

Genres- High Fantasy, drama,

Themes-  Power and corruption, vulnerability, fate and free will, relationships (both romantic and platonic), mental health, politics, betrayal of trust, grief, guilt, growth

Synopsis-  Selene Frigidwake is the Grand Magus of the city of Toreguarde, the jewel in the crown of the Drakemarie Empire. Considered one of the greatest wizards of her age, she has left the adventuring life far behind to play politics with a greedy and corrupt city council instead. Not exactly the life she had been hoping to lead after defeating the demonic armies ten years ago, but she's managed. Unfortunately, the failure of the Seal beneath the wizard's tower starts a chain of events that threaten everything she holds dear. Unable to act due to the Edict put in place by Toreguarde's City Council, she can only watch from the sidelines and hope that her guidance will be enough to allow those who now follow in her footsteps to succeed.

Main Characters

Selene Frigidwake: Grand Magus of Toregaurde and the one whose story we'll be following.

Thazaar Clayrmantle: Selene's Second and the one who takes over the duties of Grand Magus when Selene is out of the city or unable to perform her duties for any reason. A half elf with tanned skin and bright red hair, Thazaar is a kindly man, who takes care of the more mundane, day-to-day running of the wizard's tower

Thaddeus Darkmantle: Head of Academics and a dour and somewhat cynical man. As his title suggests, he takes care of the members of the wizard's tower who are responsible for teaching those who are interested in becoming apprentice wizards. He is also technically in charge of the Arcane Library, but rarely does anything in there because he is more than aware of Selene's background as a certified Arcane Librarian (and the fact that she'd rather take care of the place herself).

Dwena Diamonddust: Dwena is in charge of the tower's magical defences and security. Her Planeshifter abilities ensure that she can appear from seemingly nowhere whenever and wherever required. She also helped to design the interior of the tower, ensuring that, by using portals, everything that was required could easily fit into the available space. Dwena has also taken it upon herself to act as Selene's Personal Assistant, keeping an eye on the Grand Magus and making sure that she isn't taking on too much all at once (as she is prone to do at times).

Reginald Schreiber: Toreguarde's Chancellor from its inception until his untimely death. He is responsible for looking out for the financial interests of the city's nobles and trade guilds and does so with vim and vigour. Unfortunately, as with any career politician, Lord Schreiber is prone to being rather.... single-minded in his aspirations. Sincerely disliked by both Selene and General Strucker, he is not known for following the spirit of Toreguarde's laws unless it suits him, especially when it comes to the Edict banning the remaining Heroes of Toreguarde from acting in the city's defence without prior authorisation by both the full City Council and Lord Drakemar's vassal.

Edwin Goodwin: Originally the Abouna (or High Priest) of the Temple of Galana within Fangthane, he came to Toreguarde to minister the temple there instead when the dwarves of Fangthane declared an official Grudge against Toreguarde due to events outwith his control.

Minor Characters

Elowyn O'Toreguarde: Selene's 'niece', unofficially adopted as part of the Grand Magus' found family during the Demon Wars ten years prior. A Watchperson turned Paladin who has been sent off by 'Destiny' to save the world, following in the footsteps of both her mentor and Selene herself, despite the latter wishing it were otherwise. (Note: I know this is Dru's character, but I do have her permission to use Elowyn in my writing as it's a bit hard not to. Pre-established relationships between characters and all.)

Egrim Shiverstaff: The original Abouna of Toreguarde's Temple of Galana. An old adventuring partner of Selene's and one of the Heroes of Toreguarde who has a statue in the central plaza. He is a kind and gentle dwarf, who is more than happy to offer up a cup of something and a willing ear when Selene needs to let off some much-needed steam.

Tag list (dm for +/-): @druidx, @strosmkai-rum , @homesteadchronicles , @writeblrsupport

Stories

The Failing of the Seal (Multiple Chapters) Ao3

A Circle None Can Break (Multiple Chapters) Ao3

The Guardian's Dilemma Ao3

A Stand on Holy Ground

A Letter to You Ao3

For Love's Sake Ao3

Take My Hand Ao3

To Heal a Broken Soul (Multiple Chapters) Ao3

When Forever Comes (songfic)

The Wise Man is a Fool Ao3

Once More Unto the Breach Ao3

Comedi Vivit Ao3

Seeking Insight Ao3

Apologeticum Debet Ao3

The Librarian's Lament Ao3

Where the Flowers Grow Ao3

Mundi Finis Ao3

[artdecosupernova-writing]

OC Kiss Week Day 5: Yearning

WIP: Darkspace Portent series Pairing: Thrive x Warren Timeline: probably in an AU situation during Eternal. lmao "probably," "maybe," girl I don't know who wrote this. it's set during the rococo era around the time of the blitz. y'know, when seersucker bellbottoms were really in. CW: mature content, I wanted to be really raw and real about this one cuz I felt it Rating: M Words: 1,187

***

The silhou, surprisingly, had gotten dancing down to a science. Warren witnessed it with his own eyes, participated as he taught eager students of the art, and experienced it first-hand at the showcase he'd put together to reveal to the entire Node everything he'd already found out himself about their talents.

He stood at the back of a packed house, watching a beautiful routine performed by a real couple full to bursting with passion for both the dance and each other. The sweeping music and fluid movements seemed to climb the balconies and seep into the bones of the entire audience, seizing Warren's chest in particular and sending him into another world altogether.

On stage, she caressed her partner, held him close, glided with him, conveyed with her body and soul that she was only a half on her own. He carried her, swayed with her, protected and boasted her, making it very clear that he was the strongest he'd ever be because of her.

Warren glanced around at the audience a few times to note misty eyes and rapt attention. He caught sight of—for the second time that night—Thrive tucked in the shadows of the dark room, a far corner where only someone looking for him would see him. He'd been focused on the show the whole time he'd been there with such concentration, mystifying seriousness for a lovely exhibition.

Almost as if he'd heard the thought, Thrive's eyes found Warren over the top of dozens of heads. Warren broke eye contact to watch his dancers for a moment before he realized that somewhere in the back of his head, he'd wished he could dance like that with Thrive.

When he looked back, Thrive's gaze was still locked on him. Warmth bloomed within his chest and it was all he could do not to crawl over every single person between them to reach him.

"I must say," Thrive told him after the show and they reunited in Warren's temporary dressing room, long after Thrive congratulated the dancers, "I'm consistently blown away by your ability to do something like this."

Warren was exhausted though he had been a part of just one routine, a higher-energy choreography with the younger students he'd been teaching, performed toward the end of the show. He rubbed a towel through his hair and over his face despite not sweating all that much. "It's pretty second nature at this point."

He smelled Thrive, stronger the closer he got. They'd been separated for almost three months by then, and the ache for him reached critical in a tenth of a second as soon as his olfactory recall kicked in. He lowered the towel from his face.

"It never ceases to fascinate," Thrive said. "The dance between the couple was especially provocative."

"Really?" Warren tossed the towel onto the vanity beside him. He started to unbutton his green flannel with the intent to cool down but noticed with interest how Thrive's attention sank to the black tank top he'd worn underneath as part of his stage costume. "...Provocative how?"

"Evocative," Thrive clarified.

Warren dropped himself onto the chaise of the modular couch. "They worked hard on it. I'm proud of them."

The manner in which Thrive stared at him sent a bolt of electricity straight into his groin by way of his heart.

"You seem to be doing well," Thrive said at length.

Warren stretched out, leaning back rather pointedly on his elbows. "I mean...as well as I can be doing when we're technically broken up, huh?"

Thrive stepped around the coffee table to the couch. His movements as he unclasped the tall gold ring of his cape collar and removed it from around his throat remained poised and graceful, though there was a veil of obscenity to the gesture that was unique to him. He folded the fabric and set it on the table's glass surface.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Warren demanded, directly contradicting himself within the next second as he fully allowed Thrive to kneel on the couch, shifting his thighs beneath Warren's and grasping his wrists, pinning them above his head and him to the cushion.

Warren rushed upward, meeting Thrive in a fevered kiss, parting his lips without hesitation to grant Thrive access and further opening his mind for him. Thrive met his tongue with enthusiasm and his brain with familiarity and urgency, rendering him breathless and shivering.

Thrive released Warren's wrists and laid his full weight onto him, settling between his legs to run his fingers through Warren's hair, to grip the side of his face, to curl around his throat, to trail down the center of his chest, to smooth over his ribs. Warren thought he'd pass out from the myriad of sensations coursing through his body, and he surrendered himself to Thrive's taste and his scent and his heaviness.

He let out a gasp as Thrive ground into him and lavished the side of his throat with gentle suckling. His eyelids fluttered shut and a swirl of stars and sunbeams began to crackle into his consciousness, melting him into his strengthening mental connection to Thrive.

"God," Warren breathed, hands trembling as he gathered a fistful of Thrive's hair, "I want you so bad..."

Immediately he heard the sound of the lock mechanism on the dressing room door kicking on, and he worked faster than he'd ever done in his entire life to rid himself of his clothes, gripping the couch cushion beneath them once Thrive took complete control of him with hand and mouth. Thrive summoned arcing electricity within him three times consecutively, and then...slow, peaceful descent.

When Warren's pulse resumed its normal rhythm, a snap of cold hit him hard enough to induce a violent shudder. He draped an arm over his eyes. "This doesn't change anything, so you know."

"I expect nothing more from you than whatever you're willing to give me," Thrive murmured into Warren's thigh, ghosting his lips and the tip of his nose across the sensitive skin. "Though I'd like to talk through our predicament at a time that better suits you."

That was more than Warren thought he would say. He peered down at him, surprised. "Really?"

"Th'saiya," Thrive said, sprouting chills. "...I yearn for you to return to me with every fiber of my being, and I will stop at nothing to make sure we're in a place where I'm able to get what I desire."

"Holy fuck." Warren let the back of his head hit the cushion again and he released a deep exhale around the flames still ignited in his belly. "Yeah, okay. If you're still on the Node tomorrow, we'll talk."

They spent the next several minutes in silence, Thrive resting his cheek against Warren's thigh and dancing the tips of his fingers over the flesh of Warren's hip and stomach. Warren nearly fell asleep, but the sudden recollection of having things to do roused him.

He pulled himself together, his clothes on, and embraced Thrive at the door for a solid minute before they parted ways one more time before the following day.