#please any ao3 veteran guide me

[worth-this-and-more]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Legendborn - Tracy Deonn Rating: Not Rated Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Selwyn Kane/Bree Matthews, Selwyn Kane & Bree Matthews Characters: Selwyn Kane, Bree Matthews Additional Tags: Fluff, Romantic Fluff, Flirting Summary: a small drabble where bree can't fall asleep so selwyn takes it upon himself to relieve some of that stress. they're not fucking. they're fighting. Disclaimer: i am relatively new to the writers side of ao3, please pardon any mistakes it’s either creative liberties or im just dumb.

[triforce-of-mischief]

Blindfold Aftermath (Part 1)

Fandoms: Linked Universe, That Broken Promise

Length: Moderate (1155 words)

Summary: Legend and Chief are taken back to camp, but each will need to recover before any further steps are taken.

AO3

Chapter 1 2 3

Please show your support with a reblog!

Working with his own counterpart was odd, and Warriors knew that there were differences between them that they didn’t yet know. None of that mattered right now, though, not when they had paired together with the same goal: to find Legend and Chief. None of the Links had seen the veteran or medic in hours, and Warriors’ anxiety spiked when Prince gave a sharp whistle for attention. Prince was already jogging down a slope that led into a harsh ravine, and as Warriors followed he spotted a blessedly familiar pair of figures huddled together.

Legend was slumped against a rock, head lolled back and eyes half open as he watched the two older men approach. Chief was curled up on the teen’s lap, and an attempt to sit up was stopped by Legend’s hand on his shoulder.

Warriors’ heart leapt into his throat when he saw that Legend’s arm was expertly bandaged. Please, Golden Three, let that be the extent of it.

If Legend had needed stitches, and Warriors hadn’t been there-

Legend mumbled something, and Warriors’ focus snapped right back to the injured teen. “What was that, Lege?” he asked, kneeling in front of him with Prince at his side.

“You’re here,” Legend hummed around an absent smile. “You weren’t there… but now you’re here.”

You weren’t there. Oh, goddesses.

“Sure am, bud. We need to get you back to camp, it’s not safe out here. Chief- are both of you safe to be moved?” Warriors asked, glancing away from Legend to meet the medic’s eyes, who looked away just as quickly even as he nodded.

Chief was silent, but his gaze was clearly more alert than Legend’s. Warriors struggled to hold the vet’s attention, noticing how Legend didn’t seem to be entirely aware of his surroundings.

Legend was acting almost as if he was drunk- or no, as if he was drugged.

No amount of pleading to the higher powers was going to change what Warriors knew had already happened. No wonder Chief seemed exhausted, too; stitches were hard on both of them. “C’mon then,” Warriors said, offering his hand, but Legend cried out as soon as Chief reached to grab it. The medic flinched, caught between the two.

“You gotta let Chief up, Lege, you can’t go anywhere like this,” Warriors said gently. He held steady as Chief tried to pull himself up, even as Legend’s grip tightened.

“He has to stay!” Legend wailed, still clinging to Chief with what meager strength he had. “You can’t let him be alone, Wars, please!”

Chief sighed and whispered, “Just take him away, please.”

Warriors nodded to Prince, who helped pry Chief out of Legend’s arms. The vet put up a fuss, screeching as Chief was removed from his hold, but he was helpless as Warriors guided him into his own hug.

“Prince is with him, see?” Warriors said to Legend, repeating himself until the teen calmed down enough to listen. “You’re coming with me and Chief is going with Prince, okay? He’s not going to be alone, I promise.”

Legend continued to mumble frantically to himself, but at least he had stopped fighting. The vet went instantly boneless in Warriors’ arms, and it was a struggle to get them both standing upright.

“You can walk?” Warriors asked Chief, clearly referring to both of them.

Chief nodded and said quietly, “Should be fine.”

Warriors nodded to that, then to Prince as a signal to start walking. It was slow going, with the smaller heroes practically having to be carried by the soldiers. Legend refused to let Chief out of his sight, craning his neck whenever Warriors or Prince obscured the medic from his view.

They crossed paths with another search party before long, Far sending Smith back to report before they were even in earshot. Far immediately went to check on Chief, asking a few quiet questions before glancing at Warriors and Legend. Warriors didn’t miss the younger man’s grimace as he spent a moment observing them.

“Here, can I take him?” Far offered as he stepped closer and opened his arms. “You’re the most fit to defend us, you should have your hands free.”

“Please,” Warriors said and transferred the dazed teen. He let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. How long had that hug lasted…

Legend gained another fraction of awareness, showing distressed confusion when he found himself in new arms. Far handled him easily, holding him close but angled so that he could see that Prince was still with Chief.

“I think he-” Warriors started to explain, but was cut off by Far.

“Later. Let’s talk about happier things, yeah?” Far said, the cadence of his voice soothing as he began to distract Legend with random little stories. The trek to camp was easier after that, both Legend and Chief visibly relieved by Far’s presence.

A few pointed looks and promises of later explanations got them to an empty tent with next to no interference from the other heroes. Warriors half expected Red to be instantly on top of them, but somebody said that he had last been seen with Minish. Good… Warriors loved the kid, but he wanted to get his bearings before Red was involved. There would be plenty of opportunities for hugs after Legend recovered and Warriors hopefully knew what had happened.

Legend was nearly unconscious at this point, limp and small as Far fully carried him to the tent. Chief nudged Prince, who guided him in the opposite direction once Legend had been safely set down. The vet’s protests were incoherent and quickly trailed off as he finally succumbed to sleep.

“Shouldn’t they see each other when he wakes up?” Far asked, frowning as he watched Chief retreat without so much as a parting glance. “So Chief can check on the wound, if nothing else.”

“For some reason, Chief doesn’t seem to want to be near him,” Warriors said, sitting beside Legend. “One of them should be able to explain later. And I know to check stitches.”

“Wait- stitches? But isn’t he-”

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” Warriors sighed. “Whatever happened… it was bad for both of them.” He took Legend’s hand and squeezed it, ignoring Far’s stare and the silent question with it. This was fine. Holding the teen’s hand didn’t make his skin crawl like a prolonged hug tended to.

“If that’s the case, then it’ll be a while before we know more,” Far said. “For now, we should focus on taking care of them.”

Far readjusted Legend more comfortably on his lap, cradling him close while one hand wandered to stroke the veteran’s hair. Warriors flinched, even though he knew that Legend couldn’t feel it.

“He doesn’t like that,” Warriors said, and Far nodded agreeably before moving to rub Legend’s back instead.

“Whatever happened back there, they’re safe now,” Far said softly. “They’ll be just fine.”

Warriors hoped that he was right.

[gpow13]

A Guide to My Tumblr

Hiya! Gpow here, welcome to the blog! Here I have a guide to my tags, and under the cut I have a Masterlist of all my posted fics.

Tumblr Post Tags

#Gpow's Reblogs = Posts I've reblogged

#Gpow's Asks = Replies to the asks in my inbox (#ask games -> for ask games)

#Gpow's Snippets = Snippets of my writing

#Gpow’s WIPs = General posts about my WIPs

#Gpow’s Fics = General posts about my posted fics

#Gpow's Fic Updates = Updates for my fics

#Gpow the Giftee = Reblogs of gifts people have given me (check out the original gifters!)

Fic Masterlist under the cut!

Fic Masterlist (AO3)

1) Blushing Legend (Complete, Multi-Chapter [3], 6.3k words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

The chain ended up in Wild's Hyrule after a rough switch, so they decided to take a break in his house in Hateno Village. It was otherwise a normal evening with the others. That is, until Red decided to ask an important question.

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: Legend/Ravio, Hyrule&Legend, Twilight&Legend

General Tags: Legend-centric, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Crack, Eventual Romance

Chapters: One, Two, Three, Entire Work

2) Warriors’ White Scarf (Complete, One-Shot, 2.4k words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

Warriors wakes up one day and finds out that his royal blue scarf is now a snowy white scarf! How does Warriors take this discovery? Chaos ensues. An April Fools prompt with loads of crack but ends with plenty of fluff!

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: Warriors&Legend

General Tags: Warriors-centric, Crack, Fluff, Warriors goes FERAL

Chapters: Oneshot

3) Into the Unknown (Complete, One-Shot, 1.5k words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

Hyrule sings Into the Unknown from Frozen 2 before meeting the rest of the LU boys!

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: None

General Tags: Hyrule-centric, Pre-LU, Songfic, Inspired by Animatic

Chapters: Oneshot

4) Pepe Shadow (Complete, One-Shot, 1k words, No Warnings)

Fandoms: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe), It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Summary:

“That right there is the mail,” he began, slowly getting more desperate with each word. “Now let’s talk about the mail. Can we talk about the mail please, Twi? I’ve been dying to talk about the mail with you all day, okay?”

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Main Relationships: None

General Tags: Mac!Twilight, Charlie!Four, Crack, Drama, Comedy

Chapters: Oneshot

5) Let it Go (Complete, One-Shot, 3.4k words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

The LU chain end up in Legend's Hyrule just in time for the annual Cross-Dressing Festival. Legend shows them how the true veterans cross-dress.

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: Legend&The Chain, Legend/Ravio

General Tags: Legend-centric, Crack, Crack Treated Seriously, Fluff, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Crossdressing

Chapters: Oneshot

6) Let Me Talk to the Manager (Complete, Multi-Chapter [2], 3.4k words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

A Karen!Legend and a Manager!Hyrule drabble, now with a full version!

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: Hyrule&Legend

General Tags: AU - Flower Shop, Karen!Legend, Manager!Hyrule, BAMF Hyrule, Crack, Language of Flowers, Magic

Chapters: Drabble, Full Version

7) Never Piss Off the Medic (who just so happens to be a very skilled mage) (Complete, One-Shot, 1.1k words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

After getting ambushed in the middle of the night, no one got any proper sleep until they reached an inn at sunrise. Hours later, Legend and Warriors begin to argue about a stolen hibiscus plant. Hyrule is not amused.

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: Legend&Warriors

General Tags: Birthday Gift for Skies_Sparrow (@ HeroesOfTheApocalypse), Crack, Inspired by Art, Angry Hyrule

Chapters: Oneshot

8) Who Did This to You? (Complete, One-Shot, 6.3k words, Graphic Depictions of Violence)

Fandoms: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures

Summary (Short Version):

Shadow finds out about something Vio has been hiding. He decides to get revenge.

Rating: Mature

Main Relationships: Vio/Shadow

General Tags: Extreme - Please Read the Warnings on the Fic, Whump, Angst, Violence, Established Relationship, Fluff, Blood & Injury, Minor CD, Morally Ambiguous Characters, & More

Chapters: Oneshot

9) Linked Universe Reacts to Nintendo E3 2021 (Complete, Drabble, 959 words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

The chain arrives in Wild's Hyrule just in time for E3! What chaos will ensue?

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: LU Gang & LU Gang

General Tags: LU Discord Prompt Week 108, Nintendo E3 2021, Crack, Comedy, Fluff

Chapters: Drabble

10) Going Where the Wind Takes You (Complete, One-Shot, 2.5k words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

When the chain arrives in Lurelin Village, Wind and Wild are eager to go out into the ocean farther than Wild has ever gone. What special experiences will they share together?

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: Wind&Wild

General Tags: Wind-centric, Birthday Gift for my cowriter -> Champ, Fluff, Crack, No Angst, Lurelin Village, Sailing, Ocean, Fishing

Chapters: Oneshot

11) Duality (Complete, One-Shot, 3.5k words, Graphic Depictions of Violence)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

Legend gets woken up by Hyrule one evening telling him he wants to show him something. Legend is touched by the action, but it seems that he has forgotten how dangerous wandering around at night can be...

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Main Relationships: Legend&Hyrule

General Tags: Hyrule-centric, POV Legend, BAMF Hyrule, Blood and Injury, Light Angst, Fluff, Humor, Canon-Typical Violence

Chapters: Oneshot

12) Just Dance, Hyrule! (Complete, Multi-Chapter [5], 29.5k words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

One day, Hyrule disappeared. While this is a normal occurrence for him, he was typically accompanied by Wild. Hyrule disappeared, and no one knows where he went. Little did any of them know that Hyrule was simply learning how to dance in preparation for a little…event.

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: Hyrule&Legend, Hyrule/Aurora

General Tags: Hyrule-centric, Fluff, Crack, Comedy, Hurt/Comfort, Platonic Cuddling, Ballroom Dancing, Dancing in General, Eventual Romance, BAMF Hyrule

Chapters: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Entire Work

13) Pink Four Drabbles (Complete, Multi-Chapter [10], 1k words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

Pink Four True 100-Word Drabbles by Champ and I for Pink Four Takeover on the Linked Universe Discord. All written for the 17th anniversary of Minish Cap. Happy birthday Four!

Rating: General Audiences Main Relationships: Four&The Chain, Four&Shadow General Tags: Four-centric, Fluff, Crack, No Angst, Pink Four, Birthdays Drabbles: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Entire Work

14) Lycoris Radiata (Complete, One-Shot, 16.1k words, Graphic Depictions of Violence)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary (Short Version):

Warriors never liked the color red. To him, it only reminded him of the war, where several of the Hyrulean army turned traitor and he was forced to kill those he once called his friends. Since that day, he had always hated traitors.

But when Warriors and Four get captured by the Yiga Clan, their secrets are spilled. How does this forever change their relationship?

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Main Relationships: Warriors&Four

General Tags: Extreme - Please Read the Warnings on the Fic, Gift Fic for Celadonbi, Inspired by Art, Warriors-centric, Four-centric, Angst, Violence, Hurt/Comfort, Humor, Crack, Flowers, PTSD, Blood, Injury, Choking, Morally Ambiguous Characters, Eventual Fluff, & More

Chapters: Oneshot

15) A Change of Heart (Complete, One-Shot, 2.6k words, Graphic Depictions of Violence + Major Character Death)

Fandoms: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Warriors

Summary:

Link thought he could take on Cia alone. He thought that, being the Hero of Hyrule, he could take on anyone and anything in his way.

But he was wrong. And in his one moment of weakness, Cia managed to taint his heart for good.

———————

Navi got thrown into an unfamiliar place without Link. Will she be able to find him in time?

Rating: Mature

Main Relationships: Navi&Proxi

General Tags: Extreme - Please Read the Warnings on the Fic, Gift Fic for chelsbey, Inspired by Art, Warriors-centric, Evil!Warriors, Angst, Hurt No Comfort, Major Character Injury, Character Death, Blood, Violence, & More

Chapters: Oneshot

16) The Great Christmas Tree Competition (Complete, One-Shot, 4.5k words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

The chain find themselves in Time's Hyrule one day, and Malon asks for a Christmas tree. At first it's just a simple retrieval mission, but then it escalates into a competition Warriors and the others want to win in.

Even if it does get a little too serious for a friendly competition.

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: Four&Warriors, Chain&Chain, Time/Malon

General Tags: Warriors-centric, Crack, Comedy, Humor, Fluff, No Angst, Christmas Trees, Gift fic for sophiespyro

Chapters: Oneshot

17) A Blacksmith, a Sailor, and a Captain Walk into a (Milk) Bar (Complete, One-Shot, 1.7k words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

When the chain ends up in Warriors' Hyrule Castletown, rumors about an active threat to the crown leads them to gather more information to protect the princess.

———————

Warriors, Four, and Wind walk into a milk bar. The rest is not what you might expect.

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: Four&Warriors&Wind, Artemis&Warriors

General Tags: Warriors-centric, Wind is Lactose Intolerant, Crack, Crack Treated Seriously, Humor, Comedy, No Angst

Chapters: Oneshot

18) Truth or Dare (Princess Edition) (Ongoing, Multi-Chapter, 828 words, No Warnings)

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms (Linked Universe)

Summary:

Everyone—the chain and the Zeldas—plays Truth or Dare! What secrets will be told? Who’s the bravest of the bunch? How will this story unfold?

Rating: General Audiences

Main Relationships: Four/Shadow (Linked Universe), Tetra (Legend of Zelda)/Wind (Linked Universe)

General Tags: Gift Fic for waterspoutskies, Crack, Humor, Fluff, No Angst

Chapters: One, Two, Three, Four, Five

Post Last Updated - July 12, 2024

[polyamoryinfandoms]

Monthly Fic Roundup!

Hey gang! I’m posting the fics that were recommended on our last surveymonkey poll; thanks for everyone who recommended fics. Please note I did not get to read every fic on here and depended on your responses and the AO3 tags to mark for any triggers or story notes, so please read with caution if you’re worried about any content warnings!

If you want to recommend more fics, I’ll be posting another roundup poll later in the day today! 

Under the cut are 32 fics from: 

Agents of Shield (1) 

Bill & Ted (1) 

Castlevania (1) 

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (1) 

DCU (2) 

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (4) 

Game of Thrones (1) 

Harry Potter (1) 

Leverage (1) 

Mission Impossible (1 -- series) 

Sanders Sides (1-- series)

Sense8 (1)

Sherlock (1-- series) 

Star Wars (1) 

Stranger Things (8) 

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1) 

The Untamed/CQL/MDZS (2)

Teen Wolf (2) 

White Collar (1) 

Agents of Shield: 

is it chill that you’re in my head? by lazyfish 

Pairing: Lance Hunter/Bobbi Morse/Alphonso Mackenzie

TW/TAGS: PTSD, Referenced Torture

Summary: It doesn't take long for Mack to realize he's in love with Bobbi and Hunter and has been for a while. Other realizations take slightly longer.

Bill and Ted (movie):

Our Home, Our Family, Our Love by CaptainWeasley

Pairing: Bill/Ted/Elizabeth/Joanna

TW/TAGS: slurs, implied/referenced child abuse, internalized homophobia, self harm

Summary: A series of firsts in Ted's life, as he slowly comes to terms with his sexuality and learns how to handle being in love with both his wife and his best friend. When Billie and Thea come out as trans, each in her own way, he does everything he can to help them be who they are.

Castlevania: 

Deliverance by cricketsong1985

Pairing: Trevor Belmont/Sypha Belnades/Alucard

TW/Tags: Blood kink, explicit sexual content,  gore, trauma, angst

Summary: Adrian is beginning to think that Wallachia will be a smoking pile of ash long before he, Trevor, and Sypha can stop Dracula’s war on humanity. They’ve been chasing the castle for months, but each time they get close, it vanishes. Traveling with such genuine and trustworthy allies has been unexpectedly pleasant; Adrian doesn’t mind that Trevor and Sypha are involved with each other, but he is taken entirely by surprise when they open their relationship to him one evening. Hopelessly in over his head, his heart keeps urging him forward, even when he’s forced to confront the darkest aspects of his nature. Adrian must learn to swallow his pride and let himself be vulnerable if he wants a chance at happiness. Unfortunately, there isn’t much time for looking within when the world is drenched in blood and magic, and the path to victory may destroy him completely.

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina: 

We will be judged by the courage of our hearts by MagicClem

Pairing: Harvey Kinkle/Sabrina Spellman/Nicholas Scratch

TW/TAGS: mention of an abusive parent 

Summary: It's been a month since the 13 almost destroyed Greendale. Now a full Witch, Sabrina tries to move on, with the help of one Nicholas Scratch.But one night, Harvey arrives at the Spellman's house and everything becomes complicated.

DCU: 

not for the faint of heart by pasdecoeur

Pairing: Hal Jordan/Bruce Wayne/Clark Kent

TW/TAGS: Explicit Sexual Content 

Summary: Clark opens a door that was meant to stay closed. Things spiral. or, What Not To Do When You’ve Fallen in Love with Batman: A Guide by Hal Jordan & Clark Kent.

All Good Things Come in Threes (Legends of Tomorrow) by IncendiaGlacies

Pairing: Gideon/Rip Hunter/Miranda Coburn

Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting

Summary: “Two is a couple, three is a crowd,” Gideon stated. In which Gideon navigates her polyamorous relationship with Rip and Miranda. Domestic slice of life goodness.

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off:

Pairing for all of these are Pairing: Cameron/Ferris/Sloane and are written by @fbdo1986

it’s enough to be whiplash

TW: death mention (no character death), drowning

A/N: To put it plainly, I took a few tricks from John Hughes’s earlier scripts of the film, which were more surreal and up-front with discussing death and end of the world scenarios. It was inspired by a concept that I couldn’t seem to shake after I thought of it: what if the pool scene was just a bit more high stakes?

all the things I never told you 

Summary: It’s Sloane, Ferris, and Cameron’s first afternoon alone at the Bueller residence in months. The busy twenty-four year olds who’ve struggled to find time together as their lives unfold in front of them try to think of what to do for the day when Cameron decides to let them in on what he’s been keeping from them.

bye bye love 

TW: Death mention (none of the main characters)

Summary: A hopefully angsty number that details Sloane’s, Cameron’s, and Ferris’s journey through heartbreak and loss after their Sophomore year in college. The title is named after a song by The Cars by the same name!

firestarter

Prompt #5: Where it doesn’t hurt with the OT3

Game of Thrones: 

Constellatory by blueandbulae

Pairing: Theon Greyjoy/Sansa Stark/Margaery Tyrell/Robb Stark (polycule, NO incest) 

TW: Some canon typical violence

Summary: It’s strange and messy and maybe nobody else will ever understand them but it works. It’s theirs, and theirs alone, and nobody can take that from them.Or: Robb and Theon storm King's Landing, rescue the princesses, and save the kingdom. Then comes the hard part.

Harry Potter: 

Unconventional by silver_fish

Pairing: Harry Potter/Ron Weasley/Hermione Granger

Summary: A few years, now, have passed since Hedwig’s death, and Hermione thinks it’s time Harry got a new pet. What sort of pet, though, neither she nor Ron know. Not until Harry himself offers her the perfect solution, that is.

Leverage: 

for better or worse (we change together) by idkimoutofideas

Pairing: Alec Hardison/Parker/Eliot Spencer

TW/TAGS: Canon typical violence

Summary: The moment Parker saw the stranger standing by the elevator, a dozen alarm bells went off in her head. She froze, and Hardison nearly walked into her as he entered behind her. It took her a moment to realize that while half of the alarm bells were telling her to get the fuck out of there, the other half were telling her to look closer. Or, Eliot Spencer is a recent war veteran who just moved to Portland in an attempt to lead a calmer lifestyle. He ends up with some weird neighbors, but it's Portland, everyone's a little weird.

Mission Impossible: 

Polyamorous Spies (series of 2 fics) by MagicClem

Pairing: Benji Dunn/Ethan Hunt/Ilsa Faust

TW/TAGS: Blood & injuries (2nd fic) 

Sander’s Sides: 

Love and Other Fairytales by SoDoRoses (Fairychess)

Pairing: LAMP/CALM (Logan, Roman, Virgil, Patton)

TW: violence, major character death, no NSFW in the main fic but there is a side series with NSFW, animal death, description of rot, nonconsentual control of another person, 'like death' state of being

Sense8: 

Crazy Life by MagicClem

Pairing: Kala Dandekar/Wolfgang Bogdanow/Rajan Rasal

Summary: Rajan would admit that this past few years had been crazy and life seems determined to make it crazier and crazier.Or: This is "Amor Vincit Omnia" from Rajan's perspective.

Sherlock: 

Lorem Ipsum by Saathi1013 (series) 

Pairing:  Sherlock Holmes/John Watson/Sarah Sawyer

TW: Abduction

Star Wars:

so just pull the trigger by Darnaguen

Pairing: Han Solo/Qi'ra/Lando Calrissian

TW/TAGS: Alcohol use 

Summary: “Oh, don’t pout Haan.” Lando lounges back, licking his newly berry-tinted lips with a lazy grin. “You know all you have to do is ask.”(Qi’ra’s eyes are glinting and her smile is dagger-sharp. Han knows the look: it’s one she wears whenever she has a winning hand.The dice on the table are mediocre at best. He shakes his head and drinks deep.)

Stranger Things: 

All pairings are Steve Harrington/Jonathan Byers/Nancy Wheeler

The Hawkins Three by nonymos

TW: Some canon typical homophobia and slurs

Summary: It's two weeks after the Snow Ball, Nancy's officially with Jonathan, and Steve is trying to move forward. If only he wasn't on a path that keeps circling back to the both of them.

lovers in a dangerous time by diogxnes

TW/TAGS: Briefly: panic attacks/PTSD, parental neglect

Summary: “So,” says Robin, sitting back in her chair, “what’s the deal there, anyway? With the whole you-Nancy-Jonathan thing.”The question makes his mouth run dry. Why would she ask that? Can she tell, possibly, how much he’s been thinking about Nancy these past few days? How starstruck he was when Nancy showed up at his house? Does she know about the mysterious warmth in his stomach when he thinks about Jonathan? “What do you mean, the whole me-Nancy-Jonathan thing?” “Come on, Steve. She’s your ex and he famously beat you up two years ago and now they’re dating each other and all three of you somehow ended up a part of this weird little monster-fighting club together. There’s gotta be a story there.”“I don’t know, Robs,” says Steve, rolling his eyes, relieved beyond measure that that’s all she meant. “You pretty much just covered all of it. There’s not much more to tell.”

Have Happened by cortexikid

TW/TAGS: Homophobia

Summary: "I overheard you. You were talking in your sleep.”Steve's heart fluttered nervously.“It was a little funny at first,” Nancy admitted, her tone a mix of teasing and apologetic, “you were moaning my name and I thought it’d be kinda funny if Mike accidentally overheard you having a sex dream about his sister—”Steve couldn’t control the guffaw that escaped him. “But then you said Jonathan’s name. Right after mine. All in the same breath.”

it’s a risk, it’s a gamble by nondz (pinkjook)

TW/TAGS: NSFW

Summary: “I think we should pretend to date,” Robin says. "What?" Steve answers.

still turning out by scoutshonor

TW/TAGS: Homophobic language

Summary: Steve knows senior year's supposed to be tough, but seriously?Not only does his dad want him to take over his business, but he lands himself into a fight with his best friend leaving him friendless and booted out of his inner-circle, gets stuck watching a bunch of kids after school because of a missing credit, has to repeat eleventh grade history, and, oh yeah. He has the minor issue of having no idea what he actually wants to do with his life.But it's not all that bad: not the kids he has to watch, and certainly not Nancy Wheeler and Jonathan Byers, two friends from his history class. Friends. Just friends. Yeah, he and you both know that's bullshit.Steve's got a lot of figuring out to do.(or: HSAU Stoncy with Steve as a senior, doing his best)

(Following Stoncy fics are by @pterawaters​) 

Now and For Always 

TW/TAGS: Explicit, Sex where one party is drunk and the other isn't

Summary: Between graduating from college, starting new careers, and planning a wedding, the summer of 1990 is a busy time for Nancy, Steve, and Jonathan. When a war starts in the middle east, Jonathan gets called away just three weeks before the wedding. He’s determined to make it back in time, no matter what it takes.

It's not like people live like this

TW/TAGS: Car Accidents, Period-Typical Homophobia, NSFW

Summary: Concerned that Steve's less-than-stellar grades might have been making them look bad, his parents hired him a tutor, Jonathan Byers, they were sure he wouldn't find as distracting as his last one. Sure, Jonathan had good grades in school, but he really wished he didn't have to take the extra work to help his mother put food on the table. After all, everyone knew Steve Harrington was a jerk. Right? It turned out, not so much. After an impromptu study-session-turned-party and a game of spin the bottle, Steve and Jonathan both found themselves dating Nancy Wheeler. And that wasn't even the strangest thing that happened to any of them that week.

Mr. Sandman (series) 

TW/TAGS: Canon-typical violence, Explicit scenes

The Man from U.N.C.L.E.: 

Simmer On Low by canardroublard

Pairing: Illya/Napoleon/Gaby

TW/TAGS: semi-implied consensual voyeurism, whump

Summary: Scenes from five kitchens.

The Untamed/CQL/MDZS: 

inclusions by keiyashi 

Pairing: Sòng Lán | Sòng Zǐchēn/Xiǎo Xīngchén/Xuē Yáng | Xuē Chéngměi

TW/TAGS: NSFW

Summary: “I guess I feel left out. And I’m asking you to show me how not to?”“Show you?” Xue Yang laughs, easing the tension the only way he knows how. “Daozhang, if you aren’t careful, I might think you’re implying something quite forward.”Xingchen blinks at him. “Xue Yang, I feel like you’re trying to embarrass me, but that is what I was implying.”

melting the glacier by keiyashi 

Pairing: Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén/Mèng Yáo | Jīn Guāngyáo/Niè Míngjué

Summary: Wanting to be with Nie Mingjue is something Lan Xichen accepted about himself long ago. He wants only happiness for his friend, no matter what form it takes. Even if that form is quite lovely and possesses an enchanting mouth.

Teen Wolf: 

Feels Better Biting Down by callunavulgari, hiza-chan (callunavulgari)

Pairing: Stiles Stilinski/Derek Hale/Lydia Martin

TW/TAGS: Blood

That I See You by FiccinDylan

Pairing: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski/Jordan Parris

TW/TAGS: NSFW, abo, m-preg (non graphic), werewolves, triads are normal

Summary: Deputy Jordan Parrish and Chef Derek Hale are in the prime of their lives and ready to take the next step in their relationship by courting an omega. Everything seems to be progressing smoothly until the new omega (aka Stiles Stilinski, the sheriff’s son) surfaces some unresolved tension from Jordan’s past. Jordan originally had the benefit of amnesia to block out his harried background, but now with his amnesia behind him, will he be able to resolve his past before he ruins his future?

White Collar: 

Always Starts the Same, with a Boy and a Girl by lightgetsin

Pairing: Neal Caffrey/Peter Burke/Elizabeth Burke

Tags: AU 

Summary: Summer, 1998. Neal Caffrey robs the gallery where Elizabeth O'Dell is working late, and comes away with a lot more than art. Agent Burke has no idea what's about to hit him.

[goobergamer]

Welcome to the Real World, Chpt. 3/?

Summary: ‘The real world’ is Marine Corps slang referring to civilian life after discharge.

Or, Washington, new and struggling veteran, moves into a duplex where he has a strange and surly neighbor with a penchant for the color red. (Sargington modern war vets AU)

Pairing: Sarge/Washington (Red vs. Blue)

Warnings: No common triggers this chapter, please ask for specific tags!

First chapter on Tumblr here: (x). Also crossposted to AO3.

Dark walls the smell the smell they’re there can’t find a way back hurts blood dirt the smell can’t find them can’t find a way just them there so long forever never going to get out it’s just going to be us in the dark just going to be us forever just going to be YOU—

Wash wakes halfway sitting, noise ripping through a throat already raw, blanket damp with sweat from where it’s wrapped around his waist. As soon as he can pull in a deep enough breath that he’s sure his legs won’t just fold under him, he stumbles out to the bathroom, turning the water on cool and standing under the spray, trying to imagine the water washing the memories away, the cold freezing them out of his head.

Most nights it’s something, but it’s not always that bad.

When he can finally see black after closing his eyes, Wash steps out of the shower and pulls on some clothes, leaving his hair damp. He shambles down to the first floor, about to put on coffee when a few loud thumps ring out from the front door. If he hadn’t been trained to control his reactions, he might have jumped right out of his skin.

He stares at the door for a couple seconds before grabbing a kitchen knife, placing it on the dining table within his reach but out of view of whoever is on the other side. His rational brain tells him that he won’t need to stab anyone who comes to his new house here, particularly anyone who comes and knocks before entering. The rest of his brain really doesn’t give a shit. He leaves (to his credit, only the one) security chain in place before opening the door.

Sarge stands there with two steaming red mugs in hand. When Wash reopens the door sans chain, Sarge silently hands him one before walking to his usual seat.

Wash looks down at the mug, filled with light-colored coffee. If the gravel in his throat is any indication, Sarge probably heard him through the walls during the night. Wash feels both very awkward at the thought, and very touched at the quiet gesture in response. He takes a sip; Sarge added cream and sugar where Wash usually drinks his black, but the sweetness is a welcome change.

When he joins Sarge on the porch, Wash says, “thanks for the coffee,” unsure if he should add anything else, but Sarge seems all too ready to wave him off, much to his relief. “No need.”

They soak in the sun in comfortable silence today, and by the time he reaches the dregs in his mug, Wash has lost the tang in his lungs that the dream left behind.

---

He must have my schedule figured out, Wash muses, when knocks again sound at his door as he steps out of the shower a little over a week later. He throws on a T-shirt and jeans before padding down the stairs as the knocking grows more insistent.

He pulls open the door to see Sarge with something in his hands once again...though this time it’s a shampoo bottle and red towel. “Um, good morning?”

“Morning, Washington,” Sarge grumbles, clearly not thinking it’s a very good one. “Power’s out in my half. I can fix it, but not before a shower. I see yours is on, proving my suspicions that mine has gone out with the sole purpose of spiting me.”

Wash runs a hand through his damp hair and wonders if it’s worth asking why he needs a shower first, where he had gotten training as an electrician (if he has any at all), why Sarge just came over assuming Wash’s worked before seeing him, why Wash’s being on proved the...spite theory? Before promptly deciding against all of it. Though they’ve started conversing more when they meet in the mornings, Sarge frequently makes it a challenging battle of words and often illogical wits over the smallest topics. Too little coffee in Wash’s bloodstream for that just yet, and it isn’t like anyone else needs the shower now. He unlocks the chain before stepping aside, waving Sarge in.

Sarge glances around as Wash guides him through the kitchen and into the living room, taking it in. Not that there’s much to see. The furniture he’s built drowns in the open space, and there aren’t enough boxes waiting to be opened to fill what’s left. Wash isn’t bothered by the bareness, but it is easier to notice with a second person’s perspective there. To his credit, Sarge doesn’t comment.

“Bathroom’s upstairs on the right,” Wash says, gesturing toward the stairs. He figures Sarge can find his own way there and back; he isn’t sure if Sarge is the type to poke through the other rooms, but it isn’t like there’s much for him to find there either.

After Sarge heads up to the bathroom, Wash walks back to the kitchen to put on two servings of coffee, figuring that he can return the favor of the other week and give Sarge his morning fix. As it drains into the pot, he wonders if he should just leave a second mug out and head to the porch with his cup. Waiting would be courteous, right? ...I don’t know that there are specific courtesies for this. He finally just lets it be, sitting at the table while he waits. Sarge has been slowly flipping Wash’s routine on its head; may as well go all the way.

“You know, Washington, I’ll give you points for creativity! Most people with loose cabinet doors tape them shut.” It takes Wash a moment of blank staring as Sarge enters the room, towel hung around his shoulders, before he realizes what Sarge is talking about; the medicine cabinet over the sink left wide, a strip of duct tape securing it to the wall.

Wash thinks about the last time he willingly looked in a mirror, at the military clinic before he shipped back home for care. You and me, he had remembered. A constant recurrence, but that time something was different, something wrong. His image, distorting, still him but not really him, both of them but that wasn’t possible because it was just him now because he was alone and—

He shakes his head a little to dispel that memory before it can become another black pit, swallowing his attention away for hours on end. “I...don’t like mirrors.”

Sarge just stares at him a moment before huffing, turning to pull back the seat across from Wash. “Don’t you worry your pretty little head, ya look fine.”

Wash...doesn’t really have an answer for that. It’s...flattering? As much as at misses his point by a mile. “I...Thanks. Sarge.”

“‘Course!” He pours table sugar into his coffee, and slowly, their usual conversation picks up, full of blustering and bluffs (“I picked up electrical work doing robotics!” “Somehow I doubt that.”) and a fair bit of humor. By the time Sarge sees himself out, Wash really is starting to consider it a good day.

[ma-sulevin]

This chapter is extra long because Avery and James were being extra feral.

Pairing: James Vega/Avery Ryder Rating: E Warnings: No warnings, just smut. Check out the tags on AO3. Word Count: 6862, chapter three of four.

Read it on AO3 instead, or catch up on their story from the beginning.

—

Avery can hear the ocean when she wakes up, the salty breeze coming in through the open windows. She and James are still tangled together, but on the opposite side of the bed, one of his hands resting motionless and loose in his sleep on her breast, his cock hard against her ass.

She smiles into her pillow and gives a sleepy little stretch, flexing her feet and rolling her shoulders and pressing her hips back to see what James will do.

He grunts, fingers twitching against her skin, and his hips seem to cant forward of their own volition. His breath catches in his throat as she grinds against him again, but then he releases it with a soft little snore and she knows he’s still absolutely sound asleep.

Which is fine, he deserves it, but now she’s awake and feeling his body against hers is just sort of stoking her general horniness. If they’re only going to be together for a few days, she wants to make the most of them… right?

She drags herself to the bathroom first, because she’s too pregnant not to, and by the time she makes it back, James is starfished in the middle of the bed, lips parted as he snores a little louder than before. It’s cute, but she’s not in the mood for cuteness anymore.

She yanks the blankets back and crawls up between his legs; he’s not hard anymore, but he will be in just a minute. She nuzzles against his hip, keeping one eye on him, then she just goes for it, holding his soft cock steady in one hand so she can lap at the tip with her tongue.

It gets the reaction she wanted. He starts to harden the second her tongue touches him, his snores catching in a way that makes her laugh against him, and she keeps licking until he’s hard enough to take the head into her mouth to suck on it in earnest.

She forgets to look at him, too busy tasting him and listening to his breathing stutter to remember to keep her eyes open, so she doesn’t notice him waking up until his hands gather up her hair to hold it at the back of her head.

“Fuck, birdie, again?”

She looks up at him and laughs around his cock in her mouth, which makes his grip on her hair tighten. Instead of pushing her down, he pulls her off. 

She licks her lips. “I’m just gonna keep going until you get tired of me.”

He laughs and releases her hair, sitting up a bit to cup her jaw instead. He guides her along up his body until he can steal a kiss, which he does before he says, “I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of you.”

She kisses him again to shut him up, because if he says more sweet things like that she’ll start crying or spilling all the insecurities and big feelings she’s been drowning in for weeks, and lowers her hips until she can grind against his cock.

He groans and collapses back onto the mattress, landing with a soft whump. She keeps up her slow grind for another minute, now just teasing herself, and then she reaches down to hold him steady so she can sink down onto him.

It’s slow and exquisite, a hint of soreness from yesterday making her drag it out in slower thrusts before she can rest her entire weight on him. He hits her deep like this, fills her just right, and she wiggles her hips back and forth to get her body fully relaxed for him.

He groans like she’s hurting him, his stomach muscles flexing under her, and she watches the movement and the barely-there flow of green light that follows it, and then she leans forward to brace her hands on his pecs so she has the leverage to start moving.

She keeps it slow at first, easing herself into it so her muscles won’t cramp, and James lets her set the pace even as she can feel him holding himself back from meeting her thrusts with faster, harder ones of his own. His one concession to his desire to fuck her harder is in planting his heels on the bed and putting his hands on her thighs, but he doesn’t try to control the pace. 

She moves faster anyway.

It feels amazing, and she loves it, loves having his big hands on her as he moves inside her, loves hearing his earnest groans coming from deep in his chest.

She’s missed this while they’ve been apart.

She meant what she said. She’s going to fuck him until he gets sick and tired of her.

“Christ, you feel good,” she says, voice strained, and he groans in response, fingers tightening on her skin. She wants them to bruise. “How much do you think it’d cost to get one of these 3D printed to take back to London with me?”

James bursts into surprised laughter, but it dissolves quickly into a moan when she lifts herself up on her knees and then pushes back down with more force than she has been. He slaps her ass with one hand, then slaps her again with both before squeezing her cheeks and holding her down on him.

“Fuck.” 

“You can take home a toy but it can’t fuck you like I can.” He sits up, unbalances her, and spanks her one more time as he finally starts to fuck her back, like he’s trying to prove his point.

All she can do is wrap her arms around his neck and hold on tight as she starts to spiral up to what’s promising to be a toe curling orgasm.

“You miss my dick that much, you’ll just have to visit it more often.”

He drags them to the edge of the bed so he can brace his feet on the floor and fuck her harder without putting her on her back, and she wails mindlessly into his ear.

This is more than she thought she’d get when she started sucking him, but she’ll be damned before she admits that out loud.

She can’t say anything in any case, not any words, her mind going blank with pleasure as James holds her still and fucks her good and proper, just like yesterday, and she clenches tight around him with each thrust.

“Baby, baby, please.” She’s begging, almost, close to coming, more desperate for it now than when she first woke up to feel him hard, and she scratches mindlessly at his back when he chuckles low in her ear. “Please, please…”

“C’mon then, birdie.” James slides one big hand up her back to tangle in her hair, his thumb pressing unerringly against her amp port, and she flies apart in his arms, head tipped back to scream at the ceiling as the pleasure overwhelms her.

James swears in her ear as he comes too, drawn in by the feeling of her coming around him, filling her as he holds her hips steady against his and buries his face against her throat.

She can’t move. She can barely breathe. “I think you broke me.”

He huffs against her throat, then kisses a line up across her jaw to her lips. “You started it.”

She just grunts and collapses against his front, draping herself over his chest, and he lets himself fall back against the mattress. She grumbles a little as the move puts pressure on her stomach, then slides off him so she can curl up against his side instead. 

He makes a wounded noise as he slips out of her, loud enough that it covers up the little whimper she can’t stop herself from making either.

“Mkay, back to sleep.”

He laughs, a low chuckle that makes her smile against his skin. “Sure you don’t want me to make breakfast?”

She opens one eye and peers up at him, weighing the heaviness of her limbs against the hunger she knows is just around the corner. “Well, now that you mention it…”

He sits up slowly, rolling his shoulders out and then popping his neck. She just waits as he leans down and brushes her hair away from her face so he can kiss her cheek, then he’s up and on his feet and disappearing into the bathroom.

How did she get so fucking lucky?

It’s almost enough to make her feel guilty, the way he’s taking care of her like this, going out of his way to make sure she has everything she even thinks about wanting. It’s too much — she’s being selfish, isn’t she? Shouldn’t she be doing something for him, too?

She’s sitting up by the time he finishes up in the bathroom, walking back out completely naked and utterly unconcerned by it. He sees her looking and winks at her, preening, absolutely glowing after their morning together.

He swings by the bed to give her a firmer, minty kiss, and then heads to the kitchen without stopping to put on pants. There are red lines across the top of his back, thin but bright from her fingernails, and she shakes her head because there’s a tin of medigel in the bathroom and he hadn’t bothered to put any on.

Maybe that’s what he’s getting out of this. She’s getting breakfast and he’s getting to fuck as much as he wants for a whole week.

She should… talk to him about it.

She gets up with the intention to do just that, swings by the bathroom and then pauses to pull his discarded shirt on over her head, and finds him starting the coffee maker in the kitchen.

He turns around and lifts his eyebrows when he sees her standing there with her hands on her hips. “No nap?”

“Um, I wanted to ask—”

Twin chimes from their omnitools interrupt her. 

She checks hers first, eyebrows drawn together at what kind of emergency would chime them both, and she’s greeted by a message from Sam. It’s sent to them both, a link to some online article, and when she opens it…

“‘Alliance Heartthrob James Vega — Off the Market?’ What the fuck?” She looks up at him, then back down at the article as she keeps reading. “ ‘Reaper War Veteran and recently-promoted Major James Vega has been living in Rio for months, but this is the first time he’s been spotted with anyone hanging off his arm. Who is this mystery girl? Here’s what we know.’ James, this is fucking insane. Look, there are pictures!”

And there are, obviously shot from hidden cameras somewhere, of them standing outside the airport together, and then another of them making out on the beach. That one is a little harder to see since it was dark, the image a little grainy, a little harder to identify her.

She’s not sure if it’s better or worse that she doesn’t look obviously pregnant in either picture. The beach picture isn’t high quality enough to tell, plus she was sitting in his lap with their bodies pressed together — at the airport, she just looks a little chubby.

She frowns.

James is already apologizing. “I’m so sorry, birdie, I didn’t know, I can call and get some security or we can move your flight—”

She cuts him off.

He’s focusing on the wrong thing.

“I am also a Reaper War Veteran! I have medals!” He stops talking mid-sentence and stares at her, mouth a little agape. “Not one person there recognizes me? I was on the news.”

He’s silent for a moment as the coffee maker gurgles. “Uhh—”

“This is bullshit. And that first picture is not flattering.” She frowns at it again, squinting. Should she be wearing tighter clothes at this point? Like to show off her belly? Would that make her look more pregnant and less like she just stopped working out?

She looks down at herself and pulls James’ shirt tighter across her front, watching the way it stretches over her stomach. It feels like it should be obvious she’s pregnant, but…

“Here.”

James waves a mug of coffee under her nose to distract her and it works. She takes the mug from him and settles on one of the kitchen stools to drink it instead of following the weird turn her thoughts have taken. 

It’s too hot but he’s made it just exactly right, so she breathes in the steam and lets the liquid burn her tongue because she can’t wait even one more second to enjoy it.

Apparently the silence gives James the space he needs to figure out what to say to her, which he does after making a cup of coffee for himself and leaning against the other side of the counter with his hip.

“So, to be clear,” he says, speaking slowly and looking over her shoulder at the large windows facing the beach, “you’re not upset at the invasion of our privacy. You’re upset that they didn’t recognize you?”

She blows on her coffee to buy herself a second to speak, embarrassment creeping in at his question. “Uhh. Maybe.” She sneaks a glance up at him and is rewarded by the sight of him hiding a grin behind his mug.

”So you don’t want to go home early?”

She puts her mug down and looks at him more directly. He’s still kinda smiling, but it’s almost more of a grimace now, and he’s still not looking at her. He’s just standing with his shoulders stiff and his hip leaning too casually against the counter, eyes on the window like he can see the ocean if he stares hard enough.

“Just because some reporters don’t have anything better to talk about? No.”

He looks at her and his smile relaxes into something that looks more genuine. She grins right back at him.

“I lived through all the Alec Ryder bullshit, I can live through some paparazzi in Brazil on the week I set aside to fuck my boyfriend in this gorgeous house he rented for us. Yeah?” She cups her mug with both hands and rests it against her chin as she waits for his reaction, and she’s pleased when he huffs out a laugh into his own coffee. “Do you want me to go home early?”

He opens his mouth, pauses long enough to take a deep breath, and then says, “Fuck no.”

She blinks at him, slowly, wonders what he started to say, and then decides to let it go too. “Okay, then, that’s settled. I’ll stay here until we get me that toy I want to take home.”

He rolls his eyes, but he still laughs and flashes her a smirk with a hint of white teeth. “Yeah, yeah. Eggs?”

“Please.”

—

James spends literally the whole day reeling at Avery’s reaction to their pictures being on the extranet. She shakes off her anger after breakfast, showers and emerges into the living room in her bikini and hat and a pair of ridiculous mirrored sunglasses, all smiles, ready to go soak up the sun like nothing had happened.

He doesn’t want to push her, doesn’t want to bring it back up and make her angry again, trip over whatever that was that made her so briefly furious at not being identified in the pictures, he just… goes along with her, swims with her, teases her, pulls her in for kisses and,  yeah, sure, he lets his hands wander more than he should since he knows they could be being watched, but he wants her to relax. 

He doesn’t want anything else to ruin this vacation, anything to stress her out or remind her that, technically, they’re not safe in their little safe house. Someone knows where they are, and if it’s the company that owns the rental he’s going to be livid, and Sam’s going to be mad, and Sam will probably get Liara involved in the whole thing and then it’s really going to get out of control.

So, no, he doesn’t want Avery to pick up on the fact that he’s constantly scanning for drones like he’ll be able to do anything about it if he sees one, and he doesn’t want her to pick up on the fact that he’s now tense as hell despite saying he wants her to relax for the rest of the time.

It seems to be working for the most part. Every now and then she gives him a funny sideways look like she knows what he’s doing, but she doesn’t bring it up, doesn’t push it either, and they spend hours by the water, skin slowly turning red despite the layers and layers of sunblock she keeps forcing on him.

He, at least, will probably be tanned by the morning. He doesn’t know how she’ll deal with it.

She takes a mid-afternoon nap, body still confused from the time change and exhausted from the travel and the baby and the fucking, and he takes the time to contact Sam to see if they can figure out how to keep the press away from them for the rest of the week.

This was supposed to be a family vacation, not a vacation where they have to spend the entire time hiding in the house to keep their pictures offline. 

Her suggestion is basically the same as the only thing he’s been able to think of so far — stay home, take advantage of the amenities in and around the house, enjoy each other.

Avery doesn’t want to stay in the house. He doesn’t want to stay in the house.

She says just to be careful, have fun, send Avery back to her in one piece, and try to keep his eyes open.

He thanks her but doesn’t say he doesn’t want to send Avery back to her in any number of pieces, just says goodbye and goes into the bedroom to find Avery asleep on her side curled around his pillow, snoring, a little puddle of drool forming under her open mouth, and he sits next to her and settles in to look at apartment listings on his omnitool until she wakes up.

He finds some that look nice, not too far from N-school and not too far from the Alliance base, and he saves them to share later, after he gets the cojones to just be honest with her, and then he curls around her back and rests his hand on her stomach and tries to make himself relax.

It must work, because he opens his eyes to see Avery slipping free of his grasp, rolling her shoulders and putting one hand on the small of her back as she makes a little noise of discontent. He tries to reach for her to pull her back into the bed, but she doesn’t notice, just slips away and moves to the bathroom.

The shower water comes on after just a minute, and he considers following her in there, but then he hears the lock on the door click damningly, keeping him exactly where he already is.

He drifts back to sleep.

He’s not sure how much time has passed by the time the mattress dips next to him and delicate fingers dance up his spine. He grumbles and shies away from the touch, then relaxes as they smooth through his hair.

“Hey, big guy.” There’s laughter in Avery’s voice, and when he looks up at her he sees her smiling, the lightest of sunburns across her nose and cheekbones. “Are you taking me to dinner, or do I have to go out by myself?”

He grumbles again, a little louder, and she giggles in response. “Yeah, yeah, just gimme a minute.” He rolls onto his back and stretches out his muscles, relishing in the slight burn, and then when he opens his eyes again he can see her watching him with sharp eyes and a wicked smile. “Hmm?”

She arches one dark eyebrow. “We don’t have all night, Vega.”

“No?” He sits up to reach for her, to pull her into his space (and maybe under him), to see what she’s got on under her black dress, and she slaps his hands away without her smile dropping. “Aww, birdie.”

“You promised me dinner and dancing, and I intend to cash in on that.” When he reaches for her again, she lets him pull her into his lap with a little eye roll (but, he can’t help but notice, because he’s looking for it, not even pretending to stop him) and loops her arms around his neck. “Hey. It’s New Year’s Eve. I’m not so old that I don’t want to celebrate.”

His hands creep up her soft thighs, inching under her skirt and heading for her ass. She smiles indulgently at him, brushing her fingers over the soft hairs at the nape of his neck. He knows he’s not going to get any farther right now, not when she’s dead-set on leaving the house, but… it doesn’t hurt to tease a little, right?

There’s another problem too.

“Is it New Year’s Eve?”

She lifts both eyebrows at him. “Uh. Yeah. Isn’t that part of why you suggested this week?”

He shakes his head. “It’s just between levels.”

Her expression flattens a bit, and a pang of guilt hits him square in the chest. “You just forgot?”

“Uhh… maybe.” Shit. “But, hey, let’s go out. I already picked out the places, and you’re going to love them. I just… uh, forgot what day it is.”

She chews on the inside of her lip as she considers him, like she’s trying to decide if she’s going to be mad at him or not. He tries to look innocent, doesn’t want the rest of their vacation ruined because he forgot the date (and, really, why is she mad about it in the first place?) but he must pass inspection because her expression relaxes a bit and she leans forward to kiss him, just a little, not the way he wants to be kissed when she’s in his lap and his hands are almost on her ass.

“You sure?”

He absolutely can’t read her expression. This is like when she wasn’t mad about the news article for the same reason he was mad at the news article — he’s not 100% sure what’s going on in her brain, and he wants her to tell him.

“Absolutely,” he says, because he is sure, but he doesn’t let her go. “You okay?”

She blinks at him, then she smiles. “Yeah, yeah I am. It’s just dumb.”

“What’s dumb?”

She rolls her eyes and won’t quite look at him, but she answers his question anyway. “I just thought you wanted to bring the new year in with me.”

“Well, I do.” He waits until she looks at him to add, “It’s just a happy accident.”

That makes her giggle, and the rest of the little ball of anxiety in his chest relaxes a bit. “I guess we’re good at those.”

His laugh is more like a grunt. “You bet. Now let me up so I can make myself pretty for you.”

“You pulled me over.” She climbs out of his lap anyway, swatting him back when he takes advantage of their positions to swat her ass. “And, anyway, you’re already pretty.”

“Hah. I knew you liked me!”

She rolls her eyes at him again, more dramatically this time, and accepts his victory kiss with a nip of her teeth on his bottom lip that makes a little thrill run through him, so he kisses her again, and then again, and then he’s trying to crowd over her on the bed so she’ll lean back and let him rest between her legs because that’s where he belongs, but she pushes him away with both her hands on his chest and one foot up at his hip bone. 

“Quit stalling and go.” She’s laughing, her face pink even under the sunburn, and he takes that as the win it is and follows her directions.

She’s still on the bed when he’s dressed up in slacks and a dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and out of the way. She’s got something going on her omnitool that she closes out the second after he opens the bathroom door, and she gives him a lingering, appreciative once-over that makes him forget his curiosity at what she was doing.

“Going my way, solider?” She arches one eyebrow at him and gifts him with a particularly dirty looking grin, and he warms from head to toe under her gaze.

He offers her his hand, and he pulls her upright from the bed when she takes it. He looks her up and down too, but doesn’t let go of her, just takes in the way the dark material of her dress somehow hugs both her curves and partially obscures her baby bump, finds himself wishing that she’d give in and let them spend another night locked together in the house.

Dios, he went nearly six months without her, and now he can barely keep his hands to himself for more than an hour at a time… and even that’s a struggle.

“Yes, ma’am,” he says, instead of anything he’s thinking, and she doesn’t even seem to notice that he took too long to figure out what to say because she’s too busy running her fingers up his bare forearm and staring at his chest.

He flexes a little, and she blushes even as she rolls her eyes up at him.

“Okay, then. Show me the town.”

—

No one reacts when they arrive at the restaurant, but Avery’s not sure if it’s because they’re used to seeing James or because they just don’t care about what that particular gossip mag has to say about him.

They just get seated at a private little table without getting any second glances (except for people checking out James, which she doesn’t do anything more than take pride in, because… well, he’s fucking hot, and he’s on her arm) and they order food and they sit and talk over drinks (water for her, unfortunately) with a candle between them to set the mood, like they ever need the mood set.

She runs her bare foot up his leg before appetizers are even cleared away, and she laughs too loudly when he pretends to be scandalized.

What had he expected?

She’s been absolutely waiting to tease him like this for months. She’s not going to pass up the opportunity just because things got a little weird earlier.

They chat aimlessly, about nothing, conversation carefully steering clear of any mention of the gossip, or the surge of irritation she’d felt when she thought he didn’t want to celebrate the holiday, or the weird shadow that her impending return to London is starting to cast on her mood.

So, she teases him as they eat, running her foot up his leg under the tablecloth so many times that he reaches down to grab it once it hits his thigh, holding it in place where it can provide some friction to his cock, hard in his slacks and hidden from the waitress’ view under the table. It’s hard to tell in the dim light in their little corner of the restaurant, but she’s pretty sure he’s blushing, cheeks turning red as his eyes grow dark.

“You’re a monster,” he informs her, voice low, but the effect is dampened somewhat when she makes his voice crack on the last word by successfully pressing against the head of his cock. “A menace, even.”

She arches an eyebrow at him and licks some imaginary sauce off her thumb just to see the muscle in his jaw twitch as he clenches his jaw at her. “Is there a problem I can help you with, Major?”

His response is tempered by his grin and the shift of his hips towards her. “You’re my only problem, Lieutenant.”

“Oh, I can go, if you’d rather.” She starts to withdraw her foot, but his hand is still under the table so he grabs her ankle to keep her close. “No?”

He opens his mouth to respond, pauses to lick his lips, then says, “You keep teasing me like that, something’s gonna happen, birdie.”

The almost-threat sends a thrill through her, makes her wet even though she’s still a little sore from this morning and isn’t totally sure she can back up the way the mood is shifting.

She doubles-down anyway.

“Will I be punished, sir?”

He bares his teeth in a grin that he tries to smother when the waitress comes back to check on them, but he doesn’t release her leg as he asks for the check, and the flush doesn’t disappear from his skin. 

As soon as they’re alone again, he leans in closer so he can whisper across the table: “Do you want to go dancing or not?”

She grins right back at him, expression just as sharp as his. “If you don’t take me dancing after I put this stupid dress on, then we’re definitely not fucking.” A lie, and the twitch of his lips lets her know he knows too. “You just gotta behave and keep your hands to yourself for long enough to get to a club.”

He stares at her, lips parted as he sucks in a deep breath. “You started it.”

She wiggles her fingers at him. “Hands-free, like I said.”

It takes a second for him to start laughing, but it’s loud enough when he does that the closest tables glance over at them. He releases her leg and she tucks her foot back into her sandal, trying to look prim but probably failing.

“You’re lucky you’re cute,” he says, and she’s had nicer compliments, but she still winks at him and lets the warmth of his words settle deep in her chest. 

The back-and-forth in their relationship is familiar, comforting, soothes over the other weirdness in a way nothing else really can. It’s easier in person than it has been over messages and vid calls, and she’s not going to get upset thinking about going back home, not right now when it would ruin their date.

“I don’t want you to go, you know,” he says, and her heart skitters for a second before she remembers what she said when she still had her foot on him.

“I figured you needed a minute to cool down so we don’t give the restaurant a show on our way out.”

He rolls his eyes and the corners of his lips twist down for a second, and she doesn’t really know why but she doesn’t want him to keep making that face.

The waitress interrupts them with the check and a knowing grin, and James pays before Avery can even open her mouth to protest that she should pay for something this week.

It’s only a few seconds before he’s done and his smile is back, no trace of whatever that displeasure was on his face, just a teasing smile and dark eyes. “Let’s get out of here.”

They walk to the club, because it’s not too hot now that the sun’s completely set and it’s close enough to the restaurant that Avery’s not worried about her feet starting to hurt before she can dance. She doesn’t tease him again; there’s no subtle groping as they wait for a traffic light to change, no heated, stolen kisses as they wait. 

He just keeps her hand tight in his, and she tucks herself against his side when they’re not moving, anticipation at being able to dance and tease him until he drags her home to hopefully fuck her against the front door (possibly gently, depending) thrumming through her, and they keep an eye out for photographers.

They haven’t seen any yet, but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything.

Avery pays their cover charge and drags James to the dance floor without even letting him get a drink at the bar, the steady thumping of the bass thrumming through her body in a way that she’s missed.

He follows along with her, goes where she directs him, and then her back is against his chest and his hands are on her hips and her ass is grinding against his hips and she can tell he’s getting hard again, because she can feel it, because he’s groaning in her ear as one song blends into the next.

It’s everything she’s been looking forward to; it’s perfect and it’s delicious and she doesn’t know if she wants to keep dancing until the new year rolls in or if she wants him to haul her back to the house right now.

His wandering hands make that decision even harder for her as they constantly follow the lines of her curves, up her body and back down, ghosting over her breasts and dipping dangerously close to the junction of her thighs. She can’t handle the intensity of her reaction to him -- she never has been able to, not even the first time they met and she’d decided right then and there to take him back to her apartment.

It’s a challenge, almost, between them to see who’ll break first, a game of chicken where there won’t truly be a loser. Avery clings to that fact as she spins around and loops her arms around his neck, pulling him down to nip at his lower lip in a bid to make him break first.

He does, because he’s as unable to control himself as she is, and he yanks her from the dance floor and then from the club without even hesitating.

There’s a strong possibility she might die before they get back to the rental house, and James doesn’t make it any better by keeping his body plastered against hers like their sheer proximity will keep him from flying apart.

The taxi is a trial of self-control, one she’s failing, encouraged along by James’ lips and tongue against her throat and one of his big hands sliding up under her skirt where she hopes the driver can’t see. She lets him, parts her legs just enough for him to find that she’s skipped the panties like he likes and has gotten wet enough for it to settle on her thighs, and she hears his moan muffled against her skin before he slips two thick fingers into her.

It’s almost too much, and she’s on the edge so fast her head spins, and James chuckles into her ear as she stares at the back of the driver’s head.

“Think you can be quiet, birdie?”

She nods because she can’t think of any other answer that will get her what she wants, and he nips at her earlobe as he curls his fingers just exactly right. She shivers and clenches around him, her right hand finding its way to his thigh to dig into the fabric of his slacks.

“You know, you’ve been teasing me all night,” James says, voice sounding low and rough in her ear. “Do you think you deserve this?”

Her anger flashes bright even as her cunt clenches around him, giving her away. He chuckles again and slows the motion of his fingers inside her, that press and curl only enough to hold her pleasure steady, not to push her any higher.

“I should make you wait a few hours like you’ve been making me. Maybe until tomorrow morning.”

His fingers keep going, his thumb resting next to her clit but giving her absolutely no pressure at all. Her hips move restlessly, chasing what he’s resolutely denying her, and she turns her head to hiss directly in his ear before she can think about it.

“I’ll get myself off and make you fucking watch.”

He grunts, his hips twitching too, but he doesn’t move his fingers.

“That supposed to get me to do what you want? Sounds more like a reward than anything else.”

“Fuck you.”

James laughs, but he doesn’t have a chance to respond before the taxi pulls to a blessed stop. He pulls his fingers free of her and wipes them on her skirt before he reaches past her to open the door for her. She climbs out and doesn’t look back as she stalks up the path to the house, letting herself in and yanking her dress off over her head the second she’s fully indoors.

It’s worth it to hear James’ rumble of surprise, and when she turns to fully face him with her eyebrows lifted and a challenge on her face, he caves in to her, because he always does, lifting her up in his arms and carrying her the few more steps to put her on the kitchen counter because it’s closer than the bed or even the couch, and he’s desperate for it.

He kisses her as he fumbles with his belt, tongue dipping into her mouth just moments before he manages to free his cock. He doesn’t hesitate here either, just holds her hips steady and pushes into her as a needy moan escapes his lips.

He’s not gentle, and she doesn’t really want him to be, holding onto him with one hand fisted in his shirt at the back of his neck while the other slips between them to rub frantic little circles over her clit.

She doesn’t think he’s going to last long, not with the way he’s panting into her mouth and fucking into her as hard as he can manage, and she won’t be able to keep up with this for long either. Her muscles ache but she can’t stop chasing that high as it makes sweat stand out on her skin and her toes curl and her back arch…

She comes without warning, flying apart with her breath locked in her throat and her grip almost tight enough to tear the fabric gripped there. He groans with her, thrusts speeding up then slowing down, pulled in by her pleasure but not quite at the edge yet, and then her whole body goes slack except for the clench of her muscles around him.

The ache grows deeper, overstimulation and overuse warring for attention, and when she whines in a wordless expression of displeasure, he stills right away, shivering in her grip.

“Birdie?”

“Here.” She pushes him away and he slips free of her, a bereft noise slipping from his lips in a way she’s confident is accidental. He’s trembling all over, still in his shirt and shoes, his slacks down around his knees, and she slips off the counter on shaky thighs and pulls him in for a kiss.

He gives it to her, gladly, fingers clutching too tight at her skin as his cock, hard and wet with her pleasure, presses against her belly.

“C’mere.” She takes his hand and starts to pull him, pausing only long enough for him to kick off his shoes and slip free of his slacks as she tugs him around to the couch. He follows her wordlessly, sinks down when she pushes him, and then gathers her hair up in gentle fingers to hold it out of her face as she kneels down and pulls him deep into her mouth.

He tastes like her, is dripping with it, and she cleans him off before she starts sucking on him in earnest, one of her hands coming up to cup his balls while the other strokes him in time with her mouth.

He starts up a steady stream of words in Spanish, some she recognizes as praises or just expressions of pleasure, others she doesn’t, but she knows he’s close when he starts to guide her head instead of just holding her hair, and it sends another thrill through her even though she’s too exhausted to do more than finish him off right here in front of the open windows and the darkness of the night.

He warns her before he comes, a sharp tug on her hair that makes her moan followed by a heartfelt call of her name, and then he’s spilling across her tongue as he curls around her and holds her close. 

“Fuck, fuck, dios…” He trails off, shuddering, and she swallows and swallows again and when he finally releases her she has to swallow a third time, a result of all the teasing she’d done.

She grins at him and licks her lips, and isn’t surprised at all when he reaches down to haul her into his lap for a wet, messy kiss.

He breaks away and tucks her head against his chest, and she melts around him, holding him tight as he tries to catch his breath. He strokes a hand up and down her bare back, his body still shivering, and she nuzzles as close as she can.

They can’t see the fireworks from where they’re sitting, but they can hear the cracks and fizzles, and Avery giggles without moving.

“Happy New Year, baby.”

She can hear his smile as he says, “Happy New Year, birdie.”

[mrslittletall]

Title: Keeping it together (Chapter 16) Fandom: Dark Souls Characters: Dragon Slayer Ornstein, Hawkeye Gough Word Count: 1.926 AO3-Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16328084/chapters/41892992 Previous chapter: https://mrslittletall.tumblr.com/post/182556779114/title-keeping-it-together-chapter-15

Summary: Ornstein returns to Anor Londo.

(Author's note: Hm, now that Artorias is buried and everything why continue, you may ask? I still have some plans for Ornstein in this scenario, but I am pretty sure there aren't too many chapters left. I hope you stay with me on this ride to the very end. This story is very dear to me and I hope other can enjoy my headcanon and interpretation of this canon lore too.)

“Ciaran is not coming back.” Ornstein sat leaning against the wall, a hand propped against his chin, his golden lion helmet tossed on the ground next to him, his gaze staring right through the giant.

Gough didn't answer. Instead, the giant focused solely on his work.

“...You knew it, right?”

“Hmm, I was expecting it.”, Gough answered. “The way she acted, I had the feeling that could be the case.”

Ornstein sighed, shifting his weight a bit, sitting on the stone ground in his armour wasn't comfortable at all, how could Gough stay like this for so many years now? He inspected the giant, still wearing his armour after all these years, the helmet with the filled up eyeholes which had turned him blind eventually and his great bow still at his side... wait...

“Your greatbow, where is it?”, Ornstein asked.

“I gave it away. There isn't a need anymore for me to use it.”

“You mean, because the last dragon to threat Anor Londo has been slain?” Ornstein shifted his weight again, exhaling a deep sigh. “It feels like the end of an era.”

Gough stopped his carving and looked at Ornstein, slightly next to him, like always.

“In just a few days, the once so famous knights of Gwyn have practically been disbanded.”, Ornstein said, voice gloomy. “One retired, one dead, one has quit and...”, he took a deep breath, trying to hide a shiver that went through his body.

“...and I am on the verge of just abandoning it all and go on a journey. I feel there isn't the need for a dragon slayer anymore.”, Ornstein finished.

“You still aren't over him.” Gough stated. Ornstein simply nodded.

“But you have come to me first, because you are unsure.”

Another nod. Ornstein hated how easy it was for Gough to see right through him, even without eyesight, but he also was glad for it. He needed that voice of reason for helping him to not do something stupid.

“Anor Londo needs me.”, he said. “I still have my duties there, especially now, that Ciaran and Artorias won't come back. And...”, another deep breath, “I can't leave Gwyndolin alone.”

“Whatever would happen to us, I was always certain of one thing, Ornstein, that you would stay loyal to your very end.”, Gough said. “But remember, sometimes you have to thrust your sense of duty aside in order to find true happiness. Don't let it get you down, Ornstein. May the flames guide your way.”

“...I will come back to visit you all...”, Ornstein murmured, standing up, fixing his helmet on. “But for now, I have to return to Anor Londo. I have been away long enough. Farewell, Gough.”

Ornstein didn't turn around when he walked to the ladder leading down the tower, but he was sure that the giant had raised his big hand to wave at him. Like he always did.

Only when Ornstein's feet reached the ground at the bottom ladder, did he try to think about the words of the giant. Words that would come back to him, much much later, but for now, his feet would only carry him forward. Back to Anor Londo. Where he belonged. Now that he kept it together for so long, he would be able to make it a tiny bit longer. Even though this tiny bit could be as long as it needed to be.

The sun already started to set, glistening on his armour, when Ornstein could see the silhouette of the cathedral. He braced himself, even though there still was a bit of way to go. This wouldn't be easy at all... He wondered how much the silver knights already knew? Questioning anything didn't help though, the silver knights were overdue to getting their training and some clear orders, that should be all that counted. Ornstein travelled the remaining distance to the cathedral while the sun was setting completely and the stillness of the night laid itself over Anor Londo, the moon rising, a full moon like it always was. Ever since Gwyndolin had took up the mantle of ruling in lieu of Lord's Gwyn and Princess Gwynevere, the moon had always been full. Ornstein had the feeling that it was because of Gwyndolin's association with moonlight magic. Now, that the sun had set, a chilling breeze had set in. Ornstein could feel it, even through his armour. Had it always been that cold at the nights in Anor Londo? He didn't remember. It didn't matter anyway, he was at the front of the cathedral and the silver knights on duty there audibly gasped when they saw him approaching.

“Captain, you're back.”, the first of them said. Ornstein recognized the voice, Herman, a seasoned veteran. Of course not from the dragon war, no silver knight from the dragon war around anymore. They didn't live that long.

“Is it true? The news about Sir Artorias...?”, the second one added, a freshman named Jervis, but he quickly got hushed by his companion.

“We have agreed to not ask about this.”, he whispered, but loud enough for Ornstein to hear. Ah, so they didn't knew yet. Great, meant that he had to tell them next roll call.

Herman turned his attention back to Ornstein. “Excuse this, Captain.”, he said. “It is good to see you back though, there has been a lot brought to our attention lately. It has been brought to our attention that people have hidden undead and they are wrecking havoc when hollowing, demon's from Lost Izalith have been wandered into the burg, we need a new schedule for our duties and there seem to be some execution's scheduled which couldn't get conducted without your presence, cause, you know, our young lord normally doesn't attend to them and...”

“Stop, STOP!”, Ornstein interrupted the volley of words of the silver knight. “I have just returned and need some rest first. Can we talk about this the next day, please?”

“Of course, captain.”, Herman said and him and Jervis of them returned to their guard duties, whispering to each other. Ornstein passed them and sighed in relief once he was out of earshot. What he first and foremost needed now was a bath. He hadn't bathed several days now and felt very dirty. He first needed to get his belongings to his room though and on the way to it...

“Oh, Captain, you're back. Any news?”

“Do you have any new orders for us?”

“Didn't Lady Ciaran come with you?”

“Are the rumours true...? Is Sir Artorias...?”

Ornstein had to tell each and every single one of them to not bother him now,he would tell them everything the next day, until he got so annoyed by the questions that he just started to growl whenever a silver knight opened their mouth. After what felt like an eternity, he finally arrived at his room, opened the door, closed it behind him and crashed face down on his bed in physical and mental exhaustion.

After around five minutes of laying there, the weight of his armour became far too uncomfortable, so he rolled around and stood up, getting rid of his armour. He eyed his travel bag but decided to unpack it later, it was too late for the servants to do the laundry anyway. He opened a chest at the end of his bed and searched for a bathing robe, then got some soap and a washing cloth from his cupboard. Equipped with this, Ornstein made his way to the bathroom.

The Anor Londo bathroom was some kind of big thermal bath, probably kept warm by pyromancies, Ornstein never had fathomed how it worked, as long as it would fulfil its purpose. At certain days the bath was open for the public, but mostly it was meant for the knights and servants, separated into one for man and one for woman. At this time of day, he could expect it to be practically empty and he strode into the bathroom with a satisfied smile when he saw that it indeed was the case.

Ornstein sat down in the hot water, feeling how it embraced his sore muscles and pretty much broke down there and then, all flooding into him at once. All the stuff he had experience in Oolacile, that Artorias was dead and he would never see him again, that Ciaran hadn't come back with him, that he had been on the verge of abandoning his post for good. That he was now back, at Anor Londo, and everyone was expecting him to solve all the problems, him alone, without any help, as if he was their kind of hero or saviour.

But that was who he was. He was the man who had managed to single-handedly slain over 80 dragons, who had proven himself worthy to be the silver knight captain at a young age, who had been given enough trust of his lord to get assigned one of the four knights of Gwyn, who had been trained personally by the master, who would set things right. What else should they expect from him? Surely not him having a mental breakdown while taking a bath.

“Keep it together.”, he murmured to himself. “They count on you. That was why you returned to them. Because you are needed here.” Ornstein slowly grabbed for a washing cloth and began to clean his body, while reciting his mantra again and again, starting to not believe it himself anymore.

Ornstein spent a lot of time cleaning himself, felt like the filth of that beast he had seen in the abyss was still crawling on his skin, only stopping to scrub when it started to hurt. His thoughts wandered to Artorias. He often had come here to bath late at night, but often enough Artorias would have dragged him into the bath when it was fairly occupied and he could still hear the hearty laugh of his friend when he joked with the silver knights or when Ornstein scolded them for trying to peak into the woman's bath. Often enough Artorias had taken it upon him to try and wash Ornstein's long hair, until the lion knight had become mad at him because he would tangle it even more.

When he left the bath, Ornstein felt a certain moisture on his face. Unsure if it was just the water or tears, he wiped it away with his towel anyway and got dressed into the bathing robes, wadding his dirty clothes into a ball, making a beeline for his room, hoping that no other silver knight would distract him anymore.

Back in his room, Ornstein just tossed the dirty clothes on the floor, looking at his travel bag, deciding it was too late to unpack and he could do this the next day right after getting up. He had just laid down into the bed, when his stomach growled.

Oh right, lately he had barely been able to keep any food in him. Because of this he also had barely ate anything this day, wanting to keep the food in him and now it showed. It was far too late for the kitchen to be open now and Ornstein was a horrible cook, so he had to wait for breakfast.

At least that meant that his food would stay down this time. He nestled himself in his blanket, grabbed his comfort pillow and closed his eyes. Next chapter: https://mrslittletall.tumblr.com/post/182847826289/title-keeping-it-together-chapter-17

[jazzraft]

October Twists

Pairing Nyx/Noctis - (it’s ya best bois back with the fluffness) Rating General Audiences - (bring your kids, there’s snacks) Words 1717 - (your sleep schedule is valuable to me) Tags Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Established Relationship, Food Porn, Fluff, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Family Feels - (only good things for October) For Festive Food Fluffs, the October Edition (aka the Most Wonderful Time of the Year) done with @aithilin, who’s Autumn Holiday and all it’s sweet, warm delicious is a lovely accompaniment~ also on AO3 → please consider clicking through and leaving a comment to let me know if you’re properly salivating!

“So this is what I get to pay for peace and quiet, eh?” Cid groused. “Kids and chaos. Didn’t think things were going to get worse without the Empire around.”

“Don’t go lookin’ a gift-obo in the beak, Papa. Tourism’s good for business, and for free coffee. Here.”

Cindy wrapped a paper cup between her grandfather’s fingers in the hopes that it would distract him from complaining any more. But he was already muttering about “hipsters and their fancy, flavored coffees” before he’d taken one sip. Though, it did quiet him down a bit – and warmed him up (which was the real issue behind his grumping) – enough for her to properly attend the Prince and his companion.

“What can I get you boys?”

She smiled, still ever as bright as a summer’s day in the middle of autumn. Noctis pointed at her head, honey-gold curls tucked beneath Hammerhead’s newly minted pom-pom beanie to advertise the station during winter. “Can you get me one of those?”

He didn’t know Cindy’s smile could get any brighter than he’d already grown used to, and yet, he felt like he had to squint to see her through the mega-watt light of her laughter as she sprinted off to find him a hat. She wasn’t the only one that exceeded his expectations of base-value happiness, though.

Nyx grinned out at the crowded Leiden plateaus, the deep crease of his lips nearly reaching his ears. The lands beyond Insomnia had changed so much since peace had settled between the borders. Patchwork grasses spotted the once barren earth, saplings newly planted by the locals fencing the edges of the roads. The veteran trees shed burnt-orange leaves to crackle across the asphalt, papery laughter chasing the heels of the crowd spilling between the streets.

It still had a long way to go – houses to be built, farms to restock, empty fields still to sow – but since the Empire’s plague had retreated back to the West, Lucis had slowly started to thrive again. With their neighbors from Galahd alongside them to help.

Lucians of all accents had signed up to attend the little festival, marking the celebration of open borders between greater Lucis, Insomnia, and Galahd. With the absence of Niflheim’s obstructions – their checkpoints and bases and gates to every region – at long last, the kingdom felt like a unified nation once more.

“Don’t pinch me, Noct,” Nyx said, staring dreamily at the mixed crowd mulling between stands. “I don’t want to wake up from this.”

Noctis punched his arm instead. Hopefully, any resultant bruising would serve as a reminder of their reality well after they had to leave the event for home.

“Let’s get some food in you,” Noct said. “Maybe that’ll convince you you’re not dreaming.”

He donned the hat Cindy pilfered for him, tugging the woolen cap over the chilled red tops of his ears, and guided Nyx across the street to the festive set-up.

Food was the central component to the little fair: brightly colored trucks from the open roads of Cleigne coughed up oven smoke and steam from their back doors; open air grills from Duscae were planted on the sandy slopes beneath business-branded tents; the little painted stalls of Leide were covered in hot plates and electric pots to warm up free drinks. And there were the caravans ferried over from Galahd now that the ports had been reclaimed, prepared like a potluck table curling across one corner of the field.

Nyx gravitated towards the flavors of his homeland on instinct, pulled as much by the familiar scents as he was by the more familiar volunteers.

“The hell did you hide the extra soup cups?”

“Can you please not curse when I’m serving kids? Enjoy the food, ladies!”

Libertus traded steaming foam bowls of cheesy, pepper soup and big, soft pretzels for a handful of gil from a mother and daughter seemingly unbothered by the caustic accusations of the brunette in the back of the van. Crowe stumbled back to her station with an armful of utensils as the next row of customers drew up to the counter.

“What’ll it be, fellas?”

“A friends and family discount for starters.”

Crowe shoved her harried, hickory tresses of hair from her eyes, and beamed up at them in instant recognition. “Well, well, well, it’s about time you showed up! We’ve been waiting for the Prince’s show of support.”

“What? You mean my endorsement isn’t good enough for you?” Nyx laughed, affronted by the lack of appreciation for his attention.

Crowe jerked her chin at Noctis. “Not without the royal purse on your arm, it’s not.”

“I think she’s calling you a gold-digger, Nyx,” Noctis whispered, scandalized on his behalf.

“Well, she’s not wrong.” Nyx tugged Noct to his side, folding him under his arm. “Your smile’s worth a million gil, babe. And I’m invested.”

Crowe and Libertus harmonized gagging sounds, Libertus demanding they place an order quickly so they didn’t make the rest of the line sick. Nyx got them the prettiest autumn snack Noctis had never seen before, then retreated from his friends’ merciless teasing to mill about the rest of the little fair and its autumn delights.

“What are these?” Noctis asked, withdrawing one of the little twists in wonder.

“Try it first.”

Noctis was instantly suspicious – that was usually what Nyx (and Ignis, and Regis) said when they wanted to trick him into eating a vegetable. But he was too intrigued by the orange and yellow knots, seasoned in a thick coating of what smelled like thyme and sage and garlic butter – he’d been in enough kitchens in his life to tell the differences.

He was generous with the first bite, the seductive perfume of autumn herbs deterring any thoughts of vegetable espionage. He was delighted to find that the decorative concoction was sweet. He gestured wildly with one hand for Nyx to explain this delectable treasure to him immediately, by order of the King! Nyx had no trouble interpreting the manic hand gesture.

“Apple strips and sweet potato fries rolled into a twist.”

It was sweet and it was savory, crispy on the outside and soft when bitten into, fragrant against the roof of his mouth and warming the cold tips of his fingers with garlicky, buttery goodness.

“Do you know how to make this?” Noctis asked around another mouthful. “Because you need to make me this. Every day. From this day forward.”

“And risk exile from the Ostiums for stealing their secret family recipe? Hmm, maybe you’re worth the sacrifice…”

Noctis let him debate his value against the Ostiums’ favor while he savored the sweet autumn twists, as well as the rest of the sights the little fair had to offer.

Wiz attended with a little fenced in petting zoo of chocobo chicks, shared with a pair of domesticated garulets being raised by a new farm opened just outside where the woods bordered the racetrack. Prompto was volunteering, waving as they passed while he helped a kid onto one of the adult chocobos for a ride around the field.

There were games for the kids to play – sack racing and strength testing and face painting – all overseen by Iris Amicitia, her brother working security with a contingency of hunters from Meldacio, unseen on the outskirts of the festivities. Sometimes he spotted Ignis like a well-dressed specter passing along the backs of the food stands, checking stock, helping prepare more food for items they were running low on, passing along refreshments to the sweating chefs over the grills.

Noctis found cider to wash down the twists, and Nyx found them a quiet spot on the knoll overlooking Hammerhead to admire all that their hard-fought peace had accomplished. The sky was bright gray and overcast, the smell of earth and rain clasped around the heady aromas of baked apples and searing sausages and sweet confections.

“Can you feel this?” Nyx asked, eyes cast far across the thriving fields.

Noctis squeezed Nyx’s hand, the warmth of his Glaive’s palm thrumming between the woolen threads of his glove. And he felt as much as he saw the dream-like transformation that unfolded before their eyes. Nyx was aflame with excitement, his hearth-fire pulse leaping under Noct’s hand, anxious and joyous over the plaid-and-booted strangers flocking around them.

“Yeah. Definitely.”

Noctis felt the incandescent infection of the country air in his chest, buoying his lungs like the children’s balloons dotting the countryside in reds and yellows and greens. He felt the sharp tang of wood-smoke rasping in the back of his throat, an inviting change from the acrid clouds of war-fire which had so recently blown out to sea with the coming of the autumn winds.

He felt Nyx’s pride in the humming of his hot skin, his relief and his gratitude; his absolution from the Empire’s shadow which had punished their defiance for so long. He felt like all of that fighting, those sacrifices, those tireless, harrowing negotiations that always felt like they were going nowhere, had at last been worth something after all.

“Worth the wait?” Noctis asked.

“It really was.”

“Yeah. I think so, too.”

They sat for a while, hand in hand and trading hot cider between them. And while Nyx was distracted with the sounds and smells and sights of peace below, Noctis spotted the matching faces of his surprise guests, strolling out of the parking lot to Hammerhead. Noctis waved to them, nudging Nyx’s arm with his elbow.

“This’ll make it even more worth it.”

Nyx squinted down the plateau at the waving arms signaling back to Noct. He was up and gone in a shower of warp-sparks in an instant, leaving Noctis to snort and cough up the metallic smell of his father’s magic in his wake.

“No need to thank me or anything,” he muttered to himself, climbing to his feet and dusting grass off his butt.

He waited a beat to smile at the cluster of hugging Ulrics down the hill, mother and sister and brother reunited on Lucian soil. For the first time, Noctis would get to show them the hospitality of his own home in return for the all his secreted visits to theirs. Looking out at all that Lucis stood to offer, he really did think that it was worth it.

[tinyoctopuswrites]

It There May Bloom

Title: It There May Bloom

Rating: Teen & Up

Characters: Gabriel Reyes/ Reaper

Summary: To Gabriel Reyes, Jack Morrison will always be a hero. Companion to In Memoriam. 

Tags: Post-Fall of Overwatch, Canonical Character Death, Angst 

This late in the day, the Arlington National Cemetery quieted beneath the mottled grey sky. Visitors hurried back to the entrance where the land of the living waited, but rather than follow them, the man in black wove between the headstones, one more ghost among the dead.

He stopped a distance away from his destination, hidden beneath the shadow of a leafless tree. Narrowed eyes considered the small crowd gathered around the grave—students and their teacher on a tour, it seemed.

The guide pointed down to the slab of white marble as she spoke. "Here, you can see the grave of Jack Morrison, the Strike Commander of Overwatch. A veteran of the United States armed forces, he—alongside Gabriel Reyes—saved the world during the Omnic Crisis."

"My dad says he was a war criminal," one of the children said. "I'm glad he died."

The man's fist tightened around the flowers. Beneath the tree, the shadows grew darker and longer.

"I shook his hand after a speech once! He signed my notebook!"

"Shut up, Susan! No one cares. My uncle worked for Overwatch, and he said that Reyes deserved the position more. He was the real hero, so Morrison can—"

"Well then," the tour guide interrupted, "why don't we head over to the eternal flame before we head back to the bus?" The woman walked away and the children followed—all except three.

One ripped down the flag hanging above the grave, the orange and silver insignia bright against the blue field. Another kicked over the flower arrangements, porcelain shattering against unforgiving stone. When the third child brought out a permanent marker, something in him snapped.

The dead man closed the distance between them, trails of black smoke whispering off his skin. With the cowl of his hood casting his face in shadow, he loomed behind the children: an apparition formed out of the grey mist. Sensing his presence, the children looked up, suddenly face-to-face with a ghost made flesh.

"Go. Away," he said, soft and serious.

They ran.

Once alone, the dead man knelt down, the stiff grass yielding to mud. "Kids these days," he sighed out, more to himself than the man in front of him, patient and unflinching despite the chill in the air. "You ever wonder if we saved the world too well?" He snorted and then shook his head. "Nah, don't say anything. I already know your answer: you never once questioned it." His lips turned downward in a wry smile.

"It's why you're such a good man. Oh sure, you have your days when you start to sound as cynical and jaded as me, but then you bounce right back. It's usually a little thing, too, something small and otherwise insignificant, like that time I found you at your desk, reading a hand-drawn thank you letter from a child who can barely spell your name. You are—" The words caught in his throat. "You were such a good man. The best I've ever met. The world doesn't—didn't—deserve you."

With trembling fingers, he gathered the rain-marked slips of paper into a neat pile. Out of curiosity, he opened one of the cards, lips quirking into a wry smile when he read the illegible text. He should have known better. Whatever the words had once said, time and the elements had washed them away. Shaking his head, he righted one of the vases and set the heavy ceramic down on top of the pile to keep the cards in place.

"I don't know what to do now that you're gone."

He stared down at the trampled flower petals, straining to hear heavy footsteps, the rustle of a bright blue leather duster, a familiar laugh.

He waited and waited and waited—just in case.

...but nothing happened.

"Can we start over?" The dead man inhaled a long, slow breath, exhaled, and then smiled, the corners of his eyes creasing. When he spoke again, his voice was warm and gentle. "Hey handsome. Long time no see. If you missed me half as much as I missed you…" He laughed, fond and warm. Then, his words—so often spoken, they were practically a script unto themselves—sank in. His smile vanished.

"Right." He cleared his throat. "I'll have you know, I had everything all planned out. Thought I'd surprise you with flowers just like old times—a dozen red roses. Sappy, sure, but can you blame me?" The dead man picked up the bouquet, the crumpled paper smeared with mud, and held it out. He grimaced at the sight. "I know, I know. They're not the best—sorry about that. Only two of the roses opened up, but I'll make it up to you on our next date, even if I have to go through the entire flower shop myself." He set the flowers beside the flat grave marker.

"What have I been up to since my last visit? Hmmm." He rubbed a hand across his chin, fingers rasping over his beard. "Not much. I slept a lot, ate when I could remember. It's been a slow week. I blame the weather." He pointed up at the overcast sky. "What else. Let's see…"

He snapped his fingers. "Oh! I finally watched that speech you gave in Prague. You know, the one where you talked about standing resolute in the face of adversity, how you believe in the mission statement of Overwatch, how you've tirelessly worked to make the world a better place for well over a decade. It was a great speech, definitely one of your best. Wish I’d been able to take my head out of my ass long enough to hear it in person, but I think I was still pissed about Blackwatch's suspension back then."

He shook his head.

"God, I was so angry at you then. Still am, if I'm being honest, but I can't yell anymore. I did enough of that for one lifetime." His breath puffed out into the cold air, thick with the late autumn damp. "I always feel worse after I calm down, you know? Sick with regret. I never mean any of it. All of it—it's just bullshit. I'm sorry—again—for what I said." His breathing hitched.

"You know I didn't mean it, right? If I'd known that was the last thing I'd ever tell you, I would never have opened my fucking mouth in the first place. You know that. You know me. I want to take it all back. I do. If I hadn't been so stupid, if there was a way to do it, I'd do it in a heartbeat. I just—" Thunder rumbled in the distance, drowning out his next words.

He inhaled a ragged breath.

Then another.

Then another.

When he spoke again, his voice sounded strained. "You know, Jack," he began, "I can't figure out what pisses me off more: that your next-door-neighbor isn't much company or that I'm here again, trying to make up for his empty plot." The name carved into the second tombstone mocked him.

"Not even sure what to call myself anymore. It just doesn't feel right to wear a dead man's name, you know? Bad luck and all that. Gabriel Reyes died in the explosion at the Swiss Headquarters, though no one admitted his casket was empty when they buried him beside his best friend." He snorted. "Gabriel Reyes, a war hero, a brave man who saved the world against insurmountable odds.I'm pretty sure I stole that line from a plaque somewhere." He shook his head.

"We've had so many close calls before." He laughed, soft and low. "Must've pissed off the Grim Reaper so much, he didn't want to give you back to me this time. I completely understand—I never wanted to share you either." He flicked at one of the bent flower stems littering the ground.

"You know, since I'm still alive, I keep hoping you are, too. Somehow. I know it’s not good to keep my hopes up, but can you blame me? The world needs heroes, Jack, and I'm not one of them. I only did it because of you, y'know. Because you saw the good in me. Because you made me want to be a better man. Because you loved me, you trusted me, and you believed in me, even when I gave you every damned reason otherwise. I don't know how to do it all without you by my side."

A droplet of water splattered onto his nose, and the man in black pulled his hood farther down over his head. "I better go before it starts to rain. I'll be back soon, okay?" He pressed a kiss to the cold marble, turned on his heel, and then disappeared into the mist.

Yet as that other, wandering there In those deserted walks, may find A flower beat with rain and wind, Which once she foster'd up with care; So seems it in my deep regret, O my forsaken heart, with thee And this poor flower of poesy Which little cared for fades not yet. But since it pleased a vanish'd eye, I go to plant it on his tomb, That if it can it there may bloom, Or, dying, there at least may die.

-In Memoriam by Alfred, Lord Tennyson

[ Read on Ao3 ]