#pearl and scott are just. inextricably linked

[storytellerofuntoldlegends]

Augh. Scott and Pearl really ARE soulmates. Both of them are willing to give up everything, even their own lives, if it means their friends have a better chance of winning.

[turniparts]

So... Life series winners as Omori characters anyone? Individual ref sheets and more info under the cut :D

Okay SO, for starters I will just say that I am biased towards Scott Smajor and that is why I made him the main character. However, I do believe that in the end he does kind of make the most sense for Sunny considering that everyone else fits better as the other characters imo. Also I used tints of blue instead of black and white bc drawing Scott in black and white just simply feels incorrect.

Anyway, Scar and Pearl are just 100% Hero and Aubrey respectively. A lot of Hero's character revolves around his charming personality, which he uses in headspace to get people to do him favors. I feel like this matches up with Scar's "too charismatic for his own good" schtick that usually happens in the life series.

Aubrey reacts to a negative experience where she was abandoned by IMMEDIATELY lashing out at everyone and becoming a social outcast, hanging out with delinquents. I don't think it's rocket science to see that Pearl, who reacted to negative experiences where she was abandoned by going crazy and lashing out at everyone, matches her character really well.

Going from there, Scott as Sunny makes sense because of his abandonment of Pearl in double life mirroring Sunny's retreat from Aubrey and his friends in how the latter reacted.

Then Grian as Mari because 1) Desert Duo(not necessarily romantic, just in how they are inextricably linked), and 2) He was the first winner and with Watcher stuff I feel like his character is best suited to Mari's role in headspace.

That left Cleo and Martyn as Kel and Basil. These two were the ones I debated the longest, because I feel like they both suit both roles. I went with Cleo as Kel because she's the one who stuck with Scott throughout every life series, like how Kel never gave up on knocking on Sunny's door.

Martyn and Scott were of course the mean gills, and Martyn won through attacking Scott despite all they'd been through together. Basil experienced the trauma with Sunny but still ended up attacking him in his fear. Plus with listener lore I feel like Martyn being the only other person to know the truth makes sense.

Also, whether you look at it in the celestial bodies interpretation(Grian Sun, Scott Stars, Pearl Moon, Martyn Mars, Scar Earth, Cleo Pluto) or tarot cards interpretation(Grian Sun, Scott Stars, Pearl Moon, Martyn Tower, Scar World, Cleo Fool), the omori characters also match up to those.

Sorry that was a lot of explanation for why I linked the specific characters I did. Onto the flowers! Scott as a poppy actually makes a lot of sense even w/out flower husbands, as it's a flower that symbolizes sleep, due to its use in sleeping gas, as well as death, which both match up with how Sunny acted in game.

Pearl is a Datura becuase of its ties to the moon(Moonflowers) as well as its other name(Devil's Trumpet) referencing her Double life character. It is also a very spiritual flower for many cultures, which ties into Aubrey and how she attends church.

Cleo being a succulent feels self explanatory, much like Kel's cactus in game they are easy to take care of and grow under many conditions.

Scar is lavender because of its associations with calming and devotion. Hero acts as the group's peace-keeper, and Scar with this role would do the same. It also has some medicinal properties like soothing headaches and having anti-inflammatory effects, which I feel fits well.

Martyn is a water lily because the season he won was the mean gills season, which I wanted to tie in. Their meaning being rebirth(which also matches the poppy) fits the way that Sunny can only face the truth after Basil nearly kills him. They also symbolize enlightenment, which again aligns with how Basil/Martyn is the only character to know the truth other than Sunny himself.

Grian is the red zinnia because firstly, I wanted him to have a red flower, and secondly its symbolism matches pretty well. Familial love, of course, represents how Mari(Grian in this case) was not only Sunny's big sister, but also acted as a sisterly figure to the other kids. While they are tough flowers, they also symbolize remembrance, pointing towards the death of Mari/Grian. I probably could've kept everyone except Scott and Martyn's flowers the same, but I actually had a lot of fun looking into flower meanings and stuff(sorry if it's not al 100% accurate).

I was honestly surprised with how many parallels I was actually able to find here. This really started as a silly thing I played with in my head because I enjoy both of these medias, but the more I thought about it, the more I went "huh, that actually does make sense", so now here we are.

@easily-distracted-by-fandom , I hope you enjoy the ramble. I also hope that I find more people who know what the heck I'm talking about lmao

Edited in an attempt to make this easier to read instead of big blocks of text lmao

[ice-cap-k]

Star Fall

Cross-posted on AO3 here: Star Fall

__________________________________________________

Have you ever loved someone so, so much that you actually hated them?

Pearl did. She loved Scott with a raging resentment.

Scott did. He hated Pearl with a cold fondness.

And as the fire scorched the earth around the two of them, Pearl found herself sizing Scott up. 

She was bloodied. She was bruised. She had killed again and again. 

He was pristine. There was no blood on his hands by choice and by convenience, but that meant little to her. He was a dead shot with a bow and more skilled than any of the people whose blood now coated her axe head. 

The few wolves she had left at her side growled bloodthirsty encouragement. Not Tilly, though. Tilly was gone. Part of Pearl’s soul wanted to leap forward to attack with them as Scott stood frozen in shock and awe at what she had done. Cleo was already dead on the side of the hill. What was one more slaughtered friend?

‘Fallen star’ Cleo had once called her by mistake. Technically that was Scott. He was the star child. He was the flash of brilliance.

Pearl was the moon. A beacon in the dark. Powerful enough to raise tides and shape the land as she saw fit. But she had still fallen. Just like Scott. They had taken each other’s hands and strode into a perilous world where bloodlust set in like a disease. It was them against the world. And then Cleo came knocking and it became three against infinity. They were supposed to gaslight, gatekeep, and girlboss their way to the end.

Cleo was gone now. So was Martyn, but he had no intention of standing by Pearl’s side after he realized he and Cleo were inextricably linked. Scott had abandoned her. The mirrored beat of his heart alongside hers was still there, though, even if he didn’t want it to be anymore.

They were never compatible soulmates anyway.

But the other half of her, the one who remembered what had been before things had gone so wrong… that part was still reluctant. 

Both of them stared each other down from either side of the hill. Neither was ready to make a first move. The space between them felt as vast as the distance between the moon and the stars.  

________________________________________________________

Pearl, Scott, and Cleo sat on the mossy roof of the Scottage. They were sprawled out, taking a moment to relax now that the boogeyman had finished their kill for the day. It was time to take advantage of the quiet lull before someone ended up losing another life and went red. 

They were content to lounge comfortably along the awning and while away their time as they sat and talked. Pearl, in her boredom, had found a Sharpie and reached for the nearest thing she could draw on. In this case, that was Scott’s arm.

“Are you thinking about home?”

“Maybe,” Pearl said with a smirk. “Now hold still, Scott. I’m almost done.”

“Just to be clear, you’re not doing me next.”

“Aw, Cleo.” Scott’s arm shifted in Pearl’s grasp, so she tightened her grip a little. Not enough to hurt him. Just enough to keep him still. She re-adjusted the silver marker in her grip and used it to point at Cleo teasingly. “You’re no fun. It’s not so bad. Think of it like a temporary tattoo.”

“Sure does tickle a lot for a tattoo,” Scott huffed. His fingers flexed against Pearl’s wrist, trying to relieve some of the pressure of her grip. She held on tight, dismissing his discomfort with a click of her tongue. 

Cleo snorted. “Thanks. But I’ll still pass.”

Pearl stuck out her tongue at the other girl.

The stars that danced in Scott’s eyes glittered when he smiled. “That’s alright, Pearl. You and I can match. I’ll do you next.”

“Why thank you, Scott. I would love that.” She went back to the drawing on the inside of Scott’s forearm. The silver ink showed up surprisingly well against his pale skin. She filled in the dark side of the moon she had sketched, leaving interwoven layers of lines to make up the illusion of shadows and highlights. A smattering of hand-drawn stars speckled the inside of his elbow. She hadn’t smudged anything yet. 

It was a pretty accurate representation if you didn’t count the stars. She knew a few constellations by heart, but not how they would fall in line within the moon’s orbit. Especially not from an Earthside view. Instead, she had focused on the way the light lit up the edges of craters and darkened the depths of dome-like valleys. 

“Aaaaaaand… Done!” She finally let go of his hand and smiled as he pulled it back to look over the details. For being a bored doodle on her friend's arm, it may have just been some of her finest work. “What do you think?”

He ran his fingers along the inside of his arm. The constellations in his eyes whirled and shifted as they scanned the detailed drawing of the moon. He was wary of smudging the ink; careful not to let the tips of his fingers brush against the last few lines she had drawn. There was starlight in his smile, the motes of bright brilliant light dancing around his head in shades of red, yellow, and green.  “It’s so pretty! I’ve just decided I’m never washing this off. I never want it to go away.” 

Pearl’s heart swelled with pride. 

“Now it’s my turn to do you.” Scott held out a hand for the marker. Pearl dropped it into his palm and started rolling up the sleeve of her midnight blue hoodie. She offered the inside of her arm eagerly. 

“Okay. You got to draw your home on me. So that means that I get to do the same to you.”The silver-tipped marker hung over her skin for a moment as Scott contemplated how to start. He nodded to himself, coming to some sort of decision before pressing the felt tip against her skin.

Scott was right. It did tickle.

Where her moon was made up of round dots and soft lines interwoven to give the illusion of color differences, Scott’s stars were made of hard edges and sharp lines. The arms of the stairs were thin like needles. The dotted paths connecting them were precise and evenly spaced as the constellation began to wrap around the sides of her arm.

Pearl recognized the blown-up image of Corona Borealis, the “northern crown.” The broken lines gave the cluster of stars its shape, while a few other surrounding stars were drawn suspended in the open patches of skin towards the top and bottom of her forearm. 

At some point, the half-drawn scene seemed to catch Cleo’s attention. She rolled over to get a better look at Pearl’s arm. Bits of moss still clung to her bright red hair as she shook it out. “That’s really good,” she said, sounding impressed. “Do all fallen stars know how to draw right off the get-go, or are you two just special like that?”

“Ah-ah-ah! I’m not a star child, remember,” Pearl corrected her. She would have waggled a finger to punctuate her point, but she didn’t want to move her arm and mess up Scott’s work. 

“Fine. Do all celestial beings automatically come with massive amounts of talent or do you have to work at it like the rest of us?” Cleo’s words came out clipped. She was short on patience, but well-meaning and almost teasing as she motioned between Scott and Pearl. 

“Wouldn’t surprise me,” Scott answered, as he added a few radiating lines out from the far edge of the constellation. “You both know that I’m perfect in every way.” That got a few laughs out of both of the girls. 

Pearl shrugged the shoulder of the arm Scott wasn’t working on. “Nah. Me and Scott worked at this. I still practice sometimes. It’s not like I just popped into existence knowing how to build like I do.” She leaned back, looking off toward the cobblestone towers rising over the trees to the south. “Grian, though, he’s built different. If he told me that he’s always known how to make things look nice, I’d believe him.” 

The smirk on Cleo’s face widened. “And now you’re using those skills to build a death chamber.”

“Yup!”

“Brilliant.”

There was no guarantee Pearl would ever experience the boogeyman curse, but she wanted to be prepared. She wasn’t like Scott who tiptoed around the idea of death. Cleo and her were more alike in that regard. She was ready to welcome the thrill of the kill. “Thank you for helping me, by the way.”

“Of course. We’re a team. We’ve got each other’s backs…” There was a harsh glint in the back of Cleo’s eyes. A subtle growl to her words as she drew them out. Pearl could tell that BigB’s betrayal at the Fairy Fort was still fresh on her mind.

Pearl didn’t want her worrying about that again. She and Scott wouldn’t do that. Scott was far too honorable, and Pearl had been open with her plans for the trap she had been building underground. “We are,” she stated plainly, hoping the immediate response would help soothe Cleo’s nerves. “And I wouldn’t want to work with anyone other than you two.”

“All done!”

Scott finally released Pearl’s arm. The drawing shimmered in the late evening. It reminded her of her own eyes, the silver ink light and radiant like the disc of a full moon. The interconnected lines of the constellation were like a map leading to someplace neither Scott nor she could ever return to. It looked like he was feeling a little homesick as well. 

But this was their new home now. Their new normal. They were embracing it. 

“I love it. Thank you, Scott. Are you sure you don’t want one to match, Cleo?”

Cleo’s lip curled. Her eyebrows furrowed as she looked back and forth between both Scott and Pearl’s arms. Finally, she relented with a sigh.

“They are rather pretty, aren’t they?”

That was all the permission Scott and Pearl needed. Scott immediately uncapped the marker once more, while Pearl pulled another out of her pocket. This one a more bronzey copper. 

“What do you think, Scott?”

“I think we stick with a theme.”

“Do we do the Earth for Cleo?”

“I think we do the Earth for Cleo.”

Cleo rolled her eyes, but she held out her arms dutifully. “Why would I expect any different from the two of you? It’s not like I’m the only one from here.”

_____________________________________________________________________

Alas, that world was never made to last. True to who he was, Scott shone bright. He outshone everyone, even. The star child who tried to avoid killing others at all costs ended up the last one standing. 

Pearl was happy for him. Her and Cleo had cheered for him from beyond the edge of existence, where Grian’s watcher magic kept the lost souls at bay. And when Scott joined them, they embraced him with open arms and congratulations. 

Their alliance of three had stood strong until the end, and then it was time to say “So long. Until next time.”

But ‘next time’ involved meeting up in another world, for they could not return to the last.

This new world they were visiting was run by different laws. In the last world, lives could be traded like currency, but in doing so you ran the risk of running out. This was made even more risky with the presence of an insatiable desire for death that came and went called the ‘boogeyman curse.’ Pearl hadn’t minded that part so much.

By the law of this new world, though, you were bound to a soulmate.

Pearl wasn’t sure why the inside of her forearm felt all tingly when the tether was tied around her heart. Warmth spread from one side of her inner arm to the other in a wide, uneven C shape. It was pleasant but unexpected. Nobody else she had seen since coming here mentioned anything about a tingly feeling. 

When she pulled up her sleeve, she could see an uneven curve of dots interconnected by broken, glowing lines. It shone silver like the moon. Cold like ice.

Odd.

The others, they didn’t have anything like that. None of them mentioned the trace of needle-like sensations. 

They mentioned the overlapping emotions as two souls overlapped into one. They talked about how they could feel a second heartbeat. They complained at length how there would be an occasional twinge of pain in their ankles as if landing after a big fall, or scratches against their skin as if a mob had attacked them. 

Pearl had that as well, but it seemed like everyone else also had a strange quirk that had developed outside of the norm. For Joel, it looked like the iris in his left eye had lightened to a muddy red.  When she ran into BigB, it was the pair of fluffy ears growing out of the sides of his head. (It didn’t take much for her to figure out whom he had been conjoined to). Hers just happened to be lines glowing on her arm.

So Pearl decided not to think much of it. After all, there was so much to see in this great big world.

______________________________________________________________________

“Scott! Scott, wait!”

It felt like she was crash landing all over again as Scott turned his back on Pearl. If she closed her eyes, she could almost convince herself that the pain in her heart was one and the same as the pain when she fell. 

The crushing weight in her ribcage was doubled and staggered as the betrayal and frustration weighing down on Scott mixed with her own heartbreak and grief. Their hearts beat in unison, breaking further and further apart as they did.

All she had wanted was a bit of fun and adventure. So what if she got a little hurt along the way? She hadn’t gotten the two of them killed. 

“But you could have,” Scott hissed, reading her mind. He turned on her, fingers curling at his sides. “I was scrambling like crazy to get enough food to take care of the both of us, for you!”

“I was being careful!”

“You went into the NETHER!”

Pearl winced. She couldn’t exactly deny that.

“I can’t believe you. I don’t see you for one day, and you go and do something like that?! You do realize me and Cleo were looking all over the server for you, right?”

The tingling in her arm burned with his anger. She set her mouth in a thin line, not willing to show how much his words bothered her. But that wouldn’t work. They were bound. He could feel her unease as easily as she could feel his fear. His stardust was threaded throughout her moonstone-clad heart. 

Considering they could tell what the other was feeling, she didn’t have to say it out loud, but she replied out of courtesy. “I was looking too. But I couldn’t figure out my soulmate. And then I bumped into Martyn and I thought it wouldn’t hurt to have a little fun exploring.” 

The anger faded away. To Pearl’s surprise, the secondhand emotion turned to bitter disappointment.

“You couldn’t figure it out?” 

There was genuine hurt in his expression when she looked him in the eye. He held his arm out and rolled up his sleeve. The inside of the forearm was shining dimly, just like Pearl’s. Only the marking on his arm was different. It was a large circle made up of curved lines, shadows, and a smattering of stars.

“Oh…” So that wasn’t a large sideways C on her arm. It was the Corona Borealis. 

She had forgotten about the doodles they had drawn a couple of worlds ago.

As soon as that thought crossed her mind, Scott’s emotions soured. He could feel her guilt welling up and there was nothing she could do to hide it from him. “I can’t believe this. You actually forgot.”

“No, I didn’t.”

“Yes, you did! You didn’t even realize what that was, did you?” he snapped, pointing at her arm. “You weren’t looking for me. You were looking for anyone who fit the bill for a soulmate.”

“But I’m glad it’s you. We can be Gatekeep, Girlboss, and Gaslight together. Just like last time.” 

She reached out towards him, but Scott flinched away. He stumbled back into the trees, putting as much space as possible between the two of them. 

“No. No Gatekeep. No Girlboss, and no Gaslight. Not this time. Me and Cleo were there for each other while you were off risking our lives. As far as I’m concerned, she’s my soulmate.”

__________________________________________________________

It was awfully lonely up in Pearl’s tower.

There was Cleo and Scott, who were doing their best to avoid her. And then there was the rest of the server. 

Ren had called her a witch. BigB had agreed. She was pretty sure Bdubs and Impulse were afraid of her. Martyn still wasn’t talking to her. Joel and Etho were alright, at least until she stole Joel’s chest plate. Whatever tentative friendship they had before that had gone out the window.

At least she had Tilly. The wolf was resting its head in her lap, begging for scratches around the ears. She whined, shoving her head into Pearl’s stomach.

Scott would feel that. It wouldn’t hurt him, but he would be feeling the rough scrape of the wolf’s claws as Tilly tried to crawl into Pearl’s lap. Just like she could feel the stiffness in her shoulders from Scott’s long day of chopping trees and tunneling out the mines. 

Pearl absently rubbed at the space between her wolf’s ears as she stared at the mark inside her arm. The constellation glittered back at her with cold silver light. She could remember the way the marker tickled against her skin as Scott had drawn it. 

She should tickle Scott back.

Tilly whined as she gently pushed the wolf out from her lap. She followed at Pearl’s side as she looked out the window. 

There was a snow-covered mountain in plain view. That would work.

So she took the ladder two rungs at a time. When she reached the bottom, she spilled out the bucket of water in her inventory so Tilly could leap down after her. The wolf splashed paws first in the puddle she had made. From there, it was only a hop, skip, and a jump to get to the snowy side of the mountain. 

As soon as she found a pile of powdered snow, she submerged her arm all the way to the shoulder. Soon the tingle of the mark was overshadowed by the bite of the cold. Pearl pushed herself deeper into the snow drift until she was standing in it. Goosebumps appeared on her skin. It was starting to sting.

Hopefully, Scott felt that tickle.

Tilly, ever the loveable ball of fluff, leaped into the snow next to Pearl. Pearl reached out to scratch the wolf’s scruff and she rolled onto her back. Clumps of snow went flying as the wolf kicked them up, growling with glee. 

It gave Pearl something to keep her mind off the cold. Scott’s annoyance was already starting to kick in. Pearl could taste steak on her tongue. Her belly felt full, despite not eating. Scott was eating for the both of them. 

He wasn’t coming. She could practically hear his thoughts. No matter how much she tried to get his attention. He had Cleo. It was time Pearl accepted that.

So she focused on the here and now. On her and her wolf. She laughed, flinging her hands out to send a flurry of snow raining down on Tilly. 

__________________________________________________________________

Teaming up with Scott and Cleo had been a bad idea. It was a good idea in that if the four of them were ever going to work together, now was the time. The entire server was in chaos, and they were stronger together than they were apart. But it was a bad idea in that both Scott and Pearl couldn’t calm down around each other. There was too much suspicion. Scott was nervous that she would make trouble. That worry planted the thought in her head. It was tempting, but this was also the deep dark where they could easily lose one of their precious lives. And honestly, Pearl was nervous they would leave her alone again.

They were trying, but it wasn’t going the way either of them had hoped. 

It was a good thing wardens were blind. The light emanating from both of them kept half the cavern well-lit. Scott’s starlight outshone her own moonlight, and she let it. Not everything had to be a competition and she was trying to stay on her best behavior.

Scott spared Pearl a look out the corner of his eye as they tiptoed across patches of skulk. “You’re not going to pull out a bucket of powdered snow, are you?”

“No.” She pulled the hood tighter over her head as an excuse to avoid eye contact with him. “But I could if you want another tickle.”

“No thank you. I’d rather not.”

Cleo and Martyn were still laying out a  trail of wool on the other end of the cavern. It would be a while before they caught up

“You know what, Scott, it might have been hard to forgive you at the start of the season for just abandoning me like that, but you know what? We’re pretty good. You’re a pretty good partner.”

“Thank you. I mean, we tested it last time and it worked well. It was just… you hurt my feelings when you went away with Martyn and then we looked for you for ages and I couldn’t find you. And then I was sad…”

Pearl pushed aside a screen of skulk as they crept towards the warden tunnel.  “You know, I’m just gonna talk to that for a second. How about the reverse, right? You were off with Cleo from my perspective.”

Scott frowned. “We bumped into everyone else. We were actually looking for our soulmates.”

“I was looking-”

“Hello,” Martyn called out. He and Cleo appeared from over the deepslate brick wall. “Have you found what we were looking for?”

“Yeah,” Scott said. He and Pearl looked away from each other, taking a few steps further apart. The conversation was essentially over, and neither of them felt any better about the situation. 

Pearl could feel it in her bones. This temporary alliance wasn’t made to last. Scott and Cleo were in it for themselves. So was she. 

__________________________________________________________________

It was all over, one way or another.

There could only be one survivor. 

Pearl was having a hard time looking at Scott and the tears welling up in the corners of his eyes. The constellations in them were dim as he spotted Cleo’s body. Her hand went to the constellation on her own arm. The grief was overwhelming.

“I didn’t think it would end this way,” he muttered.

“To be honest, neither did I.”

She shifted the ax in her hand. They were linked. They could feel everything the other could. They both knew what had to happen. Scott’s thoughts drifted at the back of her mind. ‘She deserves it.’

He reached into his jacket pocket. “Pearl, you deserve this more.” She stumbled back as he pulled out a bundle of TNT.

“Excuse me! What do you mean?!?”

The starlight in his eyes flickered. The fuse lit. 

“Tilly death do us part, Pearl. Tilly death do us part.”

The fuse reached the top of the explosive casing.

“SCOTT-!”

There was a supernova of light and fire. A blast that rivaled that of a dying sun.

And then Scott’s starlight flickered out in the shadow of the moon.

[mcytrecursive]

Nomination Overview - Slow Burn

Sometimes you want to sit down and really enjoy your journey through a story. You want a slow burn. And boy, do we have some fics for you in that category. 10 nominations so far have the "slow burn" tag.

Title: greener grasses Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/31163336/chapters/79676620 Fandom: Dream SMP Author: Apocynaceae Relationships: Quackity/Schlatt, Quackity&Karl, Quackity/Eret Characters: Quackity, Schlatt, Karl Jacobs, BadBoyHalo, Awesamdude, Ponk, Tommyinnit Length of the work: 569,475 words (incomplete fic) Genre: AU, Crossover, Drama, Horror, Modern AU, Post-Apocalyptic AU, Slow Burn, Time Travel, College AU Type: Fic Summary: Twenty-two years after the Survival Multiplayer event, Quackity has dreams of attending a law program in a walled city out West. Desperate to pay for expenses during his next semester at ManbergU, he accepts a TA position with his former professor. It's Quackity's last chance to get out of Manberg. It's his worst mistake. Features ghosts, time travel, possession, alternate universes, nonconsensual drug use, academic misconduct like you would not believe, an apocalypse, and midterm drama. 

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Title: Last of Us + Tntduo Link: here Fandom: Dream SMP Author: ashthefrogprin Relationships: Quackity/Wilbur Characters: Quackity, Wilbur Length of the work: not applicable Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, AU, Horror, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Apocalyptic AU, Romance, Slow Burn Type: Art Summary: A series of images depicting quackbur in a The Last of Us AU, followed by a brief summary of a few scenes the artist was imagining. Wilbur has a shotgun; Quackity has an axe. They're both traveling across the country together trying to find a safe harbor with other survivors-- and, as it turns out, being in close quarters with someone during life-threatening situations means the two of you tend to bond. Odd thing, that.

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Title: (this is) hungry work Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/33034354/chapters/81996970 Fandom: Dream SMP Author: bluenote Relationships: Quackity/Schlatt, Connor&Schlatt, Karl/Sapnap Characters: Quackity, Schlatt, Niki, Connor, Karl, Sapnap, Tubbo, Tommy, Jambo (the cat) Length of the work: 36,965 words Genre: AU, Canon-Divergent, Character Study, Domestic/Slice-of-life, Fix-It, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, Slow Burn, Smut Type: Fic Summary: After surviving his heart attack and being forced to get sober, Schlatt gains some empathy. He also gains some weight. Those two things seem to be inextricably linked. __

Title: if - then - else Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/45779260/chapters/115204942 Fandom: 3rd Life SMP Author: anonymous Relationships: Etho & Tango, Bdubs & Tango, Bdubs & Etho & Tango, Jimmy Solidarity & Martyn Littlewood, Jimmy Solidarity & Tango, Martyn Littlewood & Scott Smajor, Martyn Littlewood & Tango, GeminiTay & Pearl, Jimmy Solidarity/Scott Major, Bdubs/Etho Characters: TangoTek, Bdubs, Etho, Martyn Littlewood, Jimmy Solidarity, Scott Smajor, GeminiTay, Mumbo Length of the work: 69,103 words (unfinished fic) Genre: Action/Adventure, AU, Romance, Slow Burn, Space AU, Sci-Fi AU Type: Fic Summary: Tango wakes up in a hospital with no memories and a moderately concerned pair of crewmates. Along with a few of the others in the same ward as him, he attempts to recover his memories, navigate a few significant obstacles, and figure out just how he got here. OR a space opera au that started as something very self indulgent and slowly developed a plot bigger than the walls of the hospital it began in. now with space chases and strange new planets!

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Title: the wedding before everything went wrong Link: here Fandom: Hermitcraft SMP Author: terracottakore Relationships: etho/cleo  Characters: cleo, etho  Length of the work: not applicable Genre: Angst, Drama, Family, Humour, Slow Burn Type: Art Summary: etho and cleo wedding  __

Title: Beta Testing Rating: E-rated Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27662032/chapters/67689973 Fandom: Hermitcraft SMP Author: Shadowfire_RavenPheonix Relationships: Grian/Iskall85, Grian/GoodtimesWithScar, Grian/BdoubleO, GoodtimesWIthScar/BdoubleO, Grian/Xisuma, Grian/Keralis Characters: Grian, Iskall85, GoodtimesWithScar, BdoubleO, Xisuma, Docm77, Tango, ImpulseSV, Etho, VintageBeef, Keralis Length of the work: 100,214 words (incomplete fic) Genre: Angst, AU, Character Study, Domestic/Slice-of-life, Drama, Friendship, Humour, Hurt/Comfort, Omegaverse, Slow Burn, Smut Type: Fic Summary: Grian was nervous when he was invited to join the HermitCraft server, because unbeknownst to anyone, the popular family friendly entertainment server is also an ACTIVE A/B/O server behind the scenes. After, having spent so much time with them and making so many amazing friends while on the UA (or Unavailable) list during season six, he's decided to make it more official and join the Active Available List for season seven. For Grian, however, the switch is going to be life changing. A journey of sexual self discovery and experimentation. Not Your Typical A/B/O

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Title: Knock The Ice From My Bones Rating: E-rated Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/35887708 Fandom: Hermitcraft SMP Author: foryou-theworld, thesoftestofbois Relationships: Technoblade/Phil Watson, Dream/Wilbur Soot, Technoblade/Phil Watson/Wilbur Soot/Dream  Characters: Technoblade, Philza, Wilbur Soot, Dream Length of the work: 214,000 words (incomplete fic) Genre: AU, Fantasy AU, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, Royalty AU, Slow Burn, Smut Type: Fic Summary: Hybrids Wilbur and Dream have spent years under King Schlatt's rule, serving as bedwarmers and confidants and spies at their king's demand. When Schlatt's latest grab for power fails, though, they're traded away as spoils of war to the victors, the hybrid kings of the Antarctic Empire. Kings Philza and Technoblade rule the south with a confidence that makes it easy to forget that hybrids are treated as lesser in other parts of the world. Wilbur and Dream's arrival is just another instance of people finding their freedom on the ice. Wilbur and Dream are determined to find information valuable enough to earn their freedom. Phil and Techno are focused on putting their kingdom back together, although they're a little distracted by their intriguing new arrivals.

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Title: One Long Season of Waiting Rating: E-rated Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/42741399/chapters/107375079 Fandom: Dream SMP Author: Anonymous Relationships: Quackity/Schlatt, Quackity/Wilbur, Quackity/Eret, Quackity/Techno, Quackity/Philza, Quackity/Foolish, Quackity/Wilbur/Eret/Techno/Foolish/Philza Characters: Quackity, Schlatt, Wilbur, Techno, Eret, Philza, Foolish Length of the work: 490,718 words Genre: AU, Domestic/Slice-of-life, Drama, Fantasy AU, Found Family, Hurt/Comfort, Omegaverse, Romance, Royalty AU, Slow Burn, Smut Type: Fic Summary: Polyamory was a relatively new development in the world of nobility, but when the emperor was looking to add another consort to his flock, it was Quackity’s job to ensure that Schlatt was the one chosen for the position. As the duke of one of the four major duchies of the Antarctic Empire, Schlatt was a political powerhouse for sure, and Quackity couldn’t be more proud of his protector. All they had to do was get through the consort trials and then Schlatt would be in, and Quackity could continue to support his partner from the shadows, where he could be safe and protected. Of course, there is a chance the plan devolved almost immediately upon execution, and Quackity found himself getting far more contact with the royal flock and the other consort candidates than he ever could have expected. THE SHORT OF IT: A Fantasy/Royalty AU that features unconventional A/B/O dynamics, political worldbuilding, a heavy emphasis on trauma recovery and found family dynamics, and soap-opera levels of non-communication. And also, there’s romance. See forenotes for more details.

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Title: Sword and Smoke Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/52674127/chapters/133363822 Fandom: 3rd Life SMP Author: apollothetransboy Relationships: Martyn Littlewood/Rendog, Martyn Littlewood & Jimmy (SolidarityGaming), Jimmy (SolidarityGaming)/Cleo (ZombieCleo)  Characters: Martyn Littlewood, Rendog, Jimmy (SolidarityGaming)  Length of the work: currently 50k (incomplete fic) Genre: Angst, AU, Canon-Divergent, Character Study, Hurt/Comfort, Hurt-no-comfort, Romance, Slow Burn Type: Fic Summary: Ren let out a sympathetic noise and reached out a hand, only to find that he was too far from Martyn to touch him. Limited Life, which was won by Impulse, has drawn to a close, and with the dawn of the next seasons approaching, Ren is at the forefront of Martyn's mind. Somehow, in his absence, Martyn has convinced himself that Ren couldn't possibly love him anymore. Maybe, even, that he had chosen to forget him and all the pain he brings. And when Ren does return for Way Life, and the consecutive three seasons, Martyn scrambles for the smallest of crumbs to prove his truth. With the odds stacked against them, though, Martyn finds himself always drawn back to him, whether by mechanics of the game or by what seems impossible chance. Time and time again he proves himself willing to go very far to believe his own lies, especially when the truth is something far more painful, though he will have to know it eventually—that he was, and will always be something that Ren would do anything, anything, to protect. or—four lives in which martyn and ren fall apart and fall back together

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Title: Amoransia Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/52729348 Fandom: Crossover Fandom Author: Phospheos Relationships: Gem/Pearl, Gem&Pearl, Grian/Scar, Joel/Lizzie, Mumbo/Grian, Mumbo/Grian/Scar Characters: Pearl, Gem, Tilly the Dog, Grian, Mumbo, Impulse, Scar, fWhip, Lizzie, Joel, Evil Xisuma, Cleo Length: 9,990 words (incomplete fic) Genre: Action/Adventure, AU, Hurt/Comfort, Modern AU, Slow Burn, Superhero/Superpower AU Type: Fic Summary: amoransia; n. the melodramatic thrill of unrequited love; the longing to pine for someone you can never have, wallowing in devotion to some impossible person who could give your life meaning by their very absence. Glimpse into the lives of two that hold an eternal bond through both company and absence, two that hold a safety to the other that it never needs to be said in the first place. There lies a love that time and time again will shine through as long as the universe allows them to hold it, as they get torn apart and reunited time and time again. It is messy and out-of-order, but that's them, and that means they're together. And wouldn't have it any other way.

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