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its-jaytothemee · 2 months

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Until I Met You - Chapter 29

Chapter 29: Those Left Behind

Pairings: Halsin x Tav

Word count: 4,755

Rating: Currently M, will be Explicit in later chapters.

Read on AO3

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Summary: Tav is still coming to terms with her brother's death while also trying to help Halsin get the information he so desperately needs about Thaniel. Part 29 of the slow burn fic. Tav and Halsin POVs.

Tags: Slow burn, mutual pining, hurt/comfort, emotional hurt/comfort, fluff, eventual love confessions, eventual smut, angst, implied past rape/non-con and abuse, graphic description of injuries, brief suicidal thoughts.

A/N: Sorry folks, we're not out of angst land yet. Thanks for hanging in there for a while longer between updates. I'm hoping to be able to do some more concentrated writing in the near future <3

Tav leaned against Halsin as they made the short hike back to camp. He kept one arm around her shoulders as they walked. Her mind and heart felt raw from the emotional whiplash of the day. Meeting Ketheric Thorm, freeing the cult’s prisoners, discovering a lead to banish the shadow curse, finding Tev, Halsin’s kiss. It was almost too much.

I care about you, Tav.

Once again, the simplest affirmations from him drew the sadness from her with ease. Unfortunately for her, the bottomless well that was her grief refilled itself quickly.

Still, it was nice to know that she hadn’t made a total fool of herself this morning.

“Hey, soldier,” Karlach called out to her softly as they came into view of the camp. Her eyes darted between her and Halsin. “Feeling better?”

“A bit, yeah.” Tav rubbed her eyes, still stinging from her tears. Halsin pulled her tighter against him, causing a broad smile to stretch across Karlach’s face.

“That’s good to hear. Come on, have a seat.” Karlach patted the spot next to her near the fire.

“Thanks, but we’re still going to Last Light. We’ll just rest there for the night.” Tav gave her a weak smile.

“Are you sure? Do you need us to come with you?” Wyll’s face was twisted with concern.

“I think we’ve taken care of the threat during our first excursion, but should anyone want to join you are of course welcome to do so,” Halsin assured him.

Karlach elbowed Wyll in the ribs before responding. “I’m sure they can handle it now that we took care of that last group of shadows.”

“Meet us there first thing in the morning?” Tav asked.

Everyone nodded their agreement along with a few more murmured condolences, except for Karlach, who responded with a wink. Tav just rolled her eyes in response, unable to help the small smile that tugged at her lips.

As they walked out of camp, Halsin reached down to lace their fingers together. The comforting feeling of his hand in hers helped steady her steps. Lunari padded along beside her, bumping into her legs every now and then.

“Do you want to talk about it?” he asked quietly.

“I…I don’t know. I’m not sure what to talk about.” Tav sniffled. “I think part of me always knew he was gone. I just couldn't accept it without knowing.”

“Closure is a very powerful tool for moving past our grief, but it has a habit of opening up old wounds that didn’t heal properly the first time around. At least now you know his fate, horrible as it was. You can heal now, Tav. You can move on knowing that he’s now at peace.”

“You make it sound so simple.” Her tears returned and she leaned against his arm.

“It is anything but simple, my friend. Do not take my words as a dismissal of your pain. Everyone heals in their own time. It may take weeks, it may take years, but eventually the pain will dull, and the wound will mend once more.”

“Thank you, o wise and all-knowing Archdruid,” Tav mumbled, feeling a stab of guilt over her sarcasm. To her relief, Halsin just chuckled.

“Former Archdruid, but I suppose old habits die hard. If there’s anything I can do to help you, Tav, please let me know.”

She glanced down at their hands.

“This is good enough for now.”

He hummed in appreciation as she squeezed his hand.

They took the rest of their walk in silence. Tav buried her face in Halsin’s arm once they reached the small area where they had fought the shadows earlier. He kept a firm grip on her until they had passed. Before she knew it, they were crossing the bridge into the courtyard of Last Light once more. The courtyard was still bustling with its patrons, many of whom were now reunited with loved ones who had been captured.

She hated that such a happy sight made her feel so resentful.

“Are you ready?” She turned to ask Halsin.

“Lead the way.”

***

Halsin let Tav guide him back into Last Light Inn. Given the darkness choking the land, it was hard to tell the time of day, but he guessed it was getting late in the evening. Harpers, Flaming Fists, and refugees alike were still wandering about the grounds.

He did notice that there were a few more familiar faces around.

“The tieflings…” he saw Alfira had been joined by Lakrissa across the room, “you found them?”

“Some of them,” she replied in a low voice, “we still couldn’t find Arabella’s parents, or Zevlor, or Mol.”

“They weren’t being held at Moonrise?”

“Apparently not.”

Before he could respond, two tieflings came barreling up to Tav the moment she crossed the threshold of the inn.

“It’s you! You’re back!” The tiefling that spoke first was Bex, her husband, Danis, was one of the refugees that had been captured. “You left before we had a chance to thank you!”

Her hand shot out to grab Tav’s, pumping it up and down enthusiastically. Halsin squeezed the other hand tighter as he felt her tense at his side.

“Oh, of course…it was nothing.” Tav cleared her throat and forced a small smile onto her face.

“It was everything.” Danis came up to shake Tav’s hand as soon as Bex dropped it. “I thought I would be rotting away in that tower, without getting to see my love’s face one last time. To be reunited when I had all but given up…”

Halsin watched as Tav’s lips quivered at his words and felt her fingers dig into his hand.

“Happy to help,” she barely breathed the words out.

“Here, we don’t have much, but I made these for you.” Bex reached into a small bag and handed her a cloth package.

“Thank you, that’s very kind.” Tav took the offering with a trembling hand before stashing it away in her pack.

Halsin tried to lead her into the next room, but yet another group of grateful refugees swarmed them.

“Oh, thank the gods! I thought for sure you had left for the night!” Two more tieflings pushed Bex and Danis out of the way to get to Tav. He recognized them now, they were siblings. Their brother, Rolan, was meant to go to Baldur’s Gate to be an apprentice to a wizard there.

“Cal and Lia have told me that you were responsible for their return.” Rolan approached them with an embarrassed look on his face.

“Most people would just say thank you, Rolan,” Cal said as he nudged Rolan’s arm.

“I had help,” Tav added, her lips still quivering as she tried to force them into a smile.

“And modest, too?” Lia laughed as she looped an arm around one of Rolan’s.

“I suppose I was…harsh on you before. You have my sincere thanks for returning these two assholes to me,” Rolan smiled.

“Yes, thank you for helping my idiot siblings,” Cal teased back.

“My pleasure,” Tav’s quiet voice was almost lost in the commotion of Last Light, “think nothing of it.”

Halsin could just barely see the tears forming in her eyes and hear the subtle uneasiness in her breathing.

“I’m terribly sorry, my friends,” he interjected before the tieflings could speak up again, “I’m afraid Tav has had a very tiring day and is in desperate need of some rest.”

“Of course! I was exhausted from just watching you fight, I can’t imagine how you feel. We’ll talk to you again soon I’m sure.” Danis gave another grateful smile before pulling Bex away as well.

“Right, we’ll leave you to it. Thanks again!” Lia called over her shoulder as she walked outside with her brothers.

Tav stood frozen in place as she watched them walk away, arm in arm.

“Tav?” he called out quietly.

She didn’t respond, a few tears simply rolled down her cheeks. He felt guilty all of a sudden, for dragging her back here to see happy reunions all around her. Everyone around Last Light had been given a new surge of happiness, of hope.

And she had just lost hers just a few hours before.

He wanted to say something, anything to comfort her, but his mouth may as well have been filled with cotton. Luckily for him, Jaheira had wandered over to greet them.

“I didn’t expect to see you back tonight, little ranger.”

Her voice snapped Tav out of whatever spiral had taken hold.

“High Harper,” Tav sniffled and stood up a bit straighter before continuing, “I’m sorry, I didn’t see you there.”

“No need for such formalities, my friend. Jaheira suits me just fine.” She flashed a crooked smile at them.

“Of course, I uh,” Tav took a shaky breath, “I had to bring Halsin back to speak to the Flaming Fist. He could have information about how to dispel the shadows.”

“Truly? That is quite a fortunate coincidence.” Jaheira started to say something else, but her face fell as she took notice of Tav’s reddened eyes and tear-stained cheeks.

Her eyes shifted to Halsin, who gave a small shake of his head.

“But that is a conversation that can be held for later, you look exhausted, Tav.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small key.

“What’s this?” Tav asked, confusion apparent on her face.

“It is a key my very perceptive friend.” She pressed it into Tav’s palm. “Upstairs, second door on the left. There’s a room with the materials for a bath. I think you could use one, if you don’t mind me saying.”

“A…a bath?” A bit of brightness returned to her eyes at the offer. “Thank you.”

“I’d be happy to show Halsin to the Flaming Fist.” Halsin saw her eyes dart down to their hands, still entwined in a comfortable grip. “Unless you two are…” she trailed off as she tried to find the words.

Tav panicked and dropped his hand, her endearing blush creeping across her face.

“Thank you, Jaheira, I appreciate it.” She gave him a sheepish look as she sulked off toward the stairs. Lunari flopped down beside Halsin, resting her head on her paws.

“Tav?” he called out before he could stop himself. She turned around slowly and cocked her head to the side.

“I’ll…I’ll be right down here when you’re done.”

She nodded with a small smile before disappearing up the stairs.

“Tell me, Halsin, what happened?” Jaheira turned to him as soon as Tav was out of view.

“We found her brother, Tev’aron.”

“You…you found him? How is that poss–” The realization dawned on her just as she started to speak.

“I see.” She hung her head for a moment. “What was his fate?”

“He was part of a group of shadow cursed Harpers that ambushed us.”

“It was a dim hope that she would find him alive. It doesn’t make me any less sorry to hear that.” Her eyes moved back to the stairs. “How is she?”

“Devastated, from what I can tell.” Halsin recalled her heartbreaking screams as she held her brother’s dead body. The thought alone was enough to bring tears back to his eyes.

“I must warn you, this Flaming Fist is likely a dim hope as well. And yet, she made the dangerous trek through shadow to bring you here.” The corners of her mouth twitched. “A Harper at heart.”

Halsin smiled alongside her. “She doesn’t seem to think so.”

“Regardless, I worry that she will continue to chase these dim hopes. Pouring her own light into them to keep them sheltered and lit until she is naught but a shadow herself.”

“I won’t let that happen,” Halsin promised her.

“See that you don’t.” Jaheira had a way of turning simple words into an order.

“I worry more about what will happen when she no longer has the curse or Ketheric Thorm to concentrate on. Even their fight against the Absolute will serve as some form of distraction. But after that…” He trailed off, not wanting to think about that himself either.

But Jaheira apparently did.

“And what about you, Halsin? What will you do once you no longer have Ketheric Thorm or the shadows to keep your mind distracted?”

Halsin’s breath caught. It was a question he hadn’t dared to ask himself in so long.

“I suppose I’ll have to find a new distraction.” As hard as he fought it, he couldn’t keep his eyes from following Tav. Jaheira stifled a laugh as she followed his gaze.

“The Fist you’re looking for is in that room right over there.” She tilted her head toward a room to his right. “I trust you’re capable of making it inside on your own, unless you still need a hand to hold?”

He narrowed his eyes at her before walking through the doorway, Lunari trailing behind him. His heartbeat pounded in his ears, drowning out the quiet song coming from a man across the room.

Halsin took a seat on the bed next to the slumbering Fist, taking a deep breath to refocus himself.

The first sound he heard was humming, the second was a name. A name that brought tears to his eyes and a new swell of hope in his chest.

Thaniel.

***

Despite the last two days weighing on her shoulders, Tav allowed herself a fleeting moment of respite. It had been weeks since she could take a proper bath. Since their abduction, they had been resigned to quick, freezing rinses in creeks and rivers, hardly enough to wash away the grime and filth they had been wading through. Letting out a heavy sigh as she sank into the warm water, she took her time scrubbing the dirt and dried blood from her skin and hair.

Satisfied with her freshly cleaned skin, she drew her knees up close to her chest. Once again, her grief came back to weigh her down, threatening to drown her in the bath.

A memory came creeping into the front of her mind, one of her last memories of Tev.

Tav’ahria stormed out of the tavern where Tev had asked her to meet him.

“Come on, Ria, I don’t want us to part ways on a fight,” Tev’aron yelled after her.

“What do you want me to say, Tev? You told me we’d stick together, and now you’re leaving me behind.” She was having a hard time keeping the deep hurt out of her voice.

“It’s not like I have much of a choice, the High Harper is taking her squad to Reithwin, and that includes me.” He had to jog to catch up to her as she stomped away.

“You could ask to transfer, you could stay here in Amn.” A pang of guilt stabbed her in the gut for asking that of him. He had worked hard over the past three years to be in the company of Jaheira, the legendary hero of Baldur’s Gate.

“Is that what you’re asking me to do?” His tone softened a bit as he caught up with her. “Ria, please, just…”

Tev reached out and grabbed her wrist. She refused to meet his eyes.

“Come on, talk to me. Ever since you broke things off with Sylia you’ve been extra moody, you know that?”

She reached up to touch the fresh scars lining her nose and cheek. A parting gift from her scorned former lover. Tav’ahria took note on ending a relationship in a gentler fashion in the future. Especially if the partner in question favored a wild shape that gave them extra sharp talons to attack her with.

“This has nothing to do with her, and you know it,” she snapped back.

“Are you sure? Because honestly, Tav’ahria, when you were getting laid consistently you were much more–”

She cut his teasing off with a quick knee to the groin, causing him to drop the hand he had been holding.

“You were saying?” She smiled at him sweetly and batted her eyelashes.

“I…was saying…” he wheezed between words as he remained hunched over, “that there’s…something else…bothering…you.”

He wasn’t wrong.

The fact of the matter was, the Harpers had always been Tev’s dream, not hers. She had enjoyed the last few years, if anything because she was far away from their family. Many of her new peers had even gone from casual acquaintances to friends.

But now, he was leaving her to chase those dreams. As much as she hated herself for it, she resented him for leaving her behind.

“You’re leaving, Tev. Whether it’s fully under your control or not, that’s what’s happening.” Tav’ahria looked away from him again, trying to hide the misty haze clouding her eyes.

“I’m just going on assignment, Ria. It’s not like I’m being banished to another plane of existence,” he said, still catching his breath.

“You might as well be,” she whispered back.

“I know this will be the furthest we’ve been apart in some time, but neither one of us will be alone.”

“I know, I just…I really thought I’d never see you again that first night you ran away. And now…” she sniffled, “now I have that same feeling.”

“And yet, I came back. I’m not going anywhere, my sweet sister.” He pulled her into a hug.

“You only call me that when you want something,” she muttered into his shoulder.

“Yes, I want to go to Moonrise Towers with my squad,” he pulled away so he could look down at her, “but if you ask it of me, if you really need me to do so, I’ll stay here with you.”

Yes, I want you to stay here with me. I can’t stand the thought of being left alone in this world.

Without you here, I’m afraid I’ll go back.

The words in her mind brought years of guilt crashing down on her. For so long, Tev had held back to protect her, to help her. Now they were free, free to make their own choices, free to forge their own paths. Yet he still held himself back for her.

She had a chance to repay him now, for everything he had done for her.

“No, Tev. I don’t ask you to do that.” She leaned back into him.

“Thank you, Ria.”

Tav’ahria took a few deep breaths before letting him go.

“Besides, it’s just another squabble between a few Sharrans and Selûnites. Once territory is marked again and they’re sent on their merry ways, we’ll be heading back. That region has been occupied by followers of Selûne for longer than either of us have been alive, I doubt this will be a lengthy affair,” he assured her.

She could only manage a nod in response.

“I’ll write to you. Don’t worry,” he leaned over to kiss the top of her head, “a tenday from now we’ll be back together.”

“You’d better find someone else to tame that mop of hair on your head while you’re gone.” She reached up to tuck a runaway curl back among the others.

“No promises.” He swatted her hand away with feigned annoyance while she tried to rearrange more of his hair. As he turned to head back into the tavern, she fought the tears welling up in her eyes watching him leave.

“I love you, Tev,” she called after him as he ran away.

“I love you, Ria.” He gave her one more big, dimpled smile before disappearing into the tavern.

When she finally brought herself to open her eyes again, she was back in Last Light.

You didn’t come back this time, Tev.

She stayed curled up in the bath until the water had cooled, her fingers and toes had pruned, and the salty lines of tears on her face had dried.

No use wallowing in a cold bath.

She forced her legs to stand again, the noble blood in her veins fighting every move as she dressed herself in the dirty clothes she’d been wearing for weeks.

Still, the hot bath did wonders for her sore muscles, even if it did make her incredibly tired.

Tav gathered up her belongings and dragged her feet back down the stairs. By the time she had emerged, the commotion in the inn had died down. Only a few Harpers remained awake, drinking and laughing at the bar. She didn’t see Jaheira anywhere, so she just tucked the key she was given back into her pocket.

Trying to avoid any further conversations, she kept her eyes fixed on the floor as she walked into the room where Art Cullagh remained gripped by a magical slumber.

Halsin sat on the edge of the bed adjacent to the Fist’s. His eyes were closed as he held a hand out in front of him, lost in concentration. Lunari perked up from her spot at his feet.

“So, did you learn anything?” she asked softly, her quiet voice still startled Halsin out of his meditation.

“Tav!” His face lit up when he saw her, she just wished it made her feel better. “Come, join me.” He patted the spot next to him on the bed.

She sulked over and placed her bag and armor at the foot of the bed before taking a seat, making sure to give her wolf companion a few scratches behind her ears on the way.

“I’ve learned precious little, I’m afraid. But there’s at least no doubt that he’s met Thaniel. There’s no other way he would know that name.” Halsin began to eagerly explain his meditations from the last hour, but she was having a hard time keeping her eyes open.

“…Tav?” He gave her a gentle nudge.

She shot up, realizing she had fallen over on his shoulder.

“Sorry, love. I guess I’m just a bit more tired than I thought.”

“It’s quite alright.” He placed an arm around her and rested his head on hers. “Rest, Tav. We can talk more in the morning.”

A small bout of panic ripped through her. She didn’t really want to rest; she was terrified of what she might see in her dreams.

Her heart rate sped up, causing her chest to tighten with anxiety and grief, Halsin seemed to sense something was wrong.

“What is it?”

“I…” Tears stung her eyes. She couldn’t bear the possibility of seeing Tev’s dead body in her arms again. Not wanting to have another breakdown here in Last Light, she squeezed her eyes shut once more. It didn’t stop her lips from trembling and her breath from hitching audibly.

“Tav…” Halsin’s soothing voice had quieted, and she felt his hands encase hers.

“I can’t rest, Halsin,” she whispered, “every time I close my eyes, I just see him.”

When she opened her eyes again, he was kneeling on the floor in front of her.

“What can I do, Tav?” he asked, his eyes searching hers for an answer.

She couldn’t form any words. Grief maintained its clawed grip on her mind. So instead, she just began to sob.

Halsin immediately pulled her into his arms.

“It’s alright, Tav, it’s alright,” he said the words over and over in her ear as he held her head against him.

“I miss him.”

“I know.”

“It’s my fault, Halsin…” she gasped into his shoulder.

“What?” He pushed her back a little so he could look at her. “Why do you say that?”

“Because…” she choked out.

She told Halsin about the last time she had seen Tev. How he had offered to stay with her, but she let him go with Jaheira and her squad.

“Oh, Tav…” he trailed off before hugging her tight again.

“I could…asked…to stay…might…be here…” She could barely get the words out between her sobs.

“Listen to me,” his voice had shifted to a more forceful tone, but he still held her with such a gentle touch, “you cannot blame yourself for his death. You cannot take that weight onto your shoulders, my friend. Believe me when I say it will crush you.”

“But…”

Halsin cut her off by taking her face in both of his hands.

“Tav, you got called to Moonrise anyway. Even if he had stayed with you, there is no guarantee that he would have survived. You saw the raw chaos that took over the battlefield that day.”

“You don’t understand! Tev was all that I had. The hope that I could find him again was all that I had, as foolish as that hope was…” she paused for another bout of sobs. “Now what do I have? No family, no home…”

As soon as she said the words, she regretted them. The pain in Halsin’s expression adding to the ever growing pile of her guilt.

“I do understand. I lost my closest friends, my mentor who was like a father to me, I lost Thaniel. The grove has been the only home I’ve known for over two hundred years and now I…” He shook his head lightly before looking back up at her.

“And you do have a family, Tav. You have an entire camp full of new friends who would do anything for you, who would follow you anywhere.”

She wrapped her arms tight around her torso. The muscles in her chest and shoulders had grown sore from her cries.

“And you have me,” he said with tears in his eyes.

Tav reached up to hold one of the hands cradling her face.

“We have both carried a great deal of sorrow and guilt over the last century. I cannot tell you how grateful I am to have found someone who shares that burden with me. You’ve done so much for me already, let me ease some of the weight from your shoulders. Let me help you, Tav.”

She let out a shaky breath and rested her forehead against his.

“Now, please rest. I’ll watch over Art Cullagh. I’ll wake you if anything changes.”

She nodded and turned to lay down on the small bed.

“Will you stay here with me?” she asked, keeping a tight grip on his hand.

“Of course,” he responded as she closed her eyes. “Wherever you need me.”

Just before she drifted off, she felt him place a light kiss on the back of her hand.

***

Halsin held Tav’s hand in his until he was confident that she had drifted off into a trance. His heart truly ached for her. Not only was she leading the fight against a cult of mind flayers, a cult being led by the man responsible for her hardship, but she was also wading through one hundred years’ worth of grief to do it.

He leaned over to press a gentle kiss into her hair. The strands were still damp from her bath earlier and he smelled pine mixed with another sweet scent that he couldn’t quite identify.

Watching her face slowly relax into a peaceful look brought a wave of relief washing over him. He wanted nothing more than to lay down beside her, to hold her close throughout the night and chase any nightmares away. He wanted to bury his face in her freshly washed hair, concentrating on the new smell to distract him from his own grief and guilt.

Once again, his life allowed no room for such desires.

“May your dreams be kind,” he whispered in Elvish before sitting back up. He gently placed her hand that he had been holding back at her side before turning his attention to the Flaming Fist.

Halsin sat and studied Art Cullagh in his slumber. Nothing about the song he kept repeating gave him any specific ideas of where to find Thaniel.

Climb, climb, climbing up a tree.

That could be anywhere. Thaniel loved to climb trees, it was one of his favorite ways to spend an afternoon.

We are living, they are dead.

Again, that could have been anywhere, but it did give Halsin another confirmation that Thaniel was at least alive somewhere.

The more he concentrated on the man, the more it became obvious that he had been imprisoned in the Shadowfell. Yet try as he might, Halsin couldn’t determine his connection to Thaniel. The man’s mind was fractured and fading away. If they were not delicate and precise in their manner of doing so, waking him could likely result in his death. He shuddered at the realization. If they didn’t find a way to wake Art Cullagh from his stupor, their one chance at banishing the shadows could be lost to him forever.

#bg3 #bg3 fanfiction #baldur's gate 3 #baldur's gate iii #bg3 halsin #halsin x tav #halsin fanfic #halsin silverbough #oakflower

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sitp-recs · 2 years

Note

Sitp recs my beloved first of all thank you for all you for this fandom ur reclists never cease to amaze and the amount of care you put into each one is so precious we can tell u rlly love the fandom and it's creators so ty you truly are an invaluable part to this fandom <3 SECONDLY I just finished All our secrets laid bare and Fire meet gasoline two incredible(understatement)fics that I couldn't put down and I'm wondering if you have any more good post war falling in love fics, something I can sink my teeth into with the emotional rollercoaster maybe... thanks!! :)

Thank you so much anon, your message made my day! I’m so excited you enjoyed those fics, love All Our Secrets Laid Bare and Fire Meets Gasoline are epic. I’ve listed below other long reads you might enjoy - they’re all post-war and plotty - some are A+ case fics, others I chose for the emotional rollercoaster. Happy readings!

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Draco left England after the trials and has travelled the world meeting wizards and Muggles from different cultures and with vastly different relationships to magic, each other, and the natural world.

A Case of You by @epitomereally (E, 97k)

Draco was doing just fine working as an Unspeakable in Paris, hanging out with his living and ghostly pals, inventing new spells, and definitely not thinking about Potter. Then, Lucius just had to break out of prison and turn his world upside down.

Who we are in the shadows by @quicksilvermaid (E, 99k)

What happens when you’re forced to become the very thing you despise? Ex-Auror Harry Potter, tossed out of the Ministry for something he had no control over, has been looking for a way back to his former life.

Chasing Dragons by @the-sinking-ship (E, 99k)

Draco can think of only one way to outclass his pleat-front-khaki-wearing politician ex, and that’s by making headlines with an obvious upgrade. And who better to upstage the cheating bastard than the Saviour of the World, Harry Potter himself?

All Missing Things (Can Be Found) by daisymondays (E, 100k)

After a drunken hook up ends badly, Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy have no intention of ever speaking again -- but when they're assigned to solve a case of young child disappearances, they have to put their past behind them.

In the Bleak Midwinter by @the-fools-errand (E, 105k) - Peaky Blinders AU

After serving in the border wars for the ever-expanding dominion of Lord Voldemort, Draco and his cousins have returned to Hogsmeade to resurrect the old Black Family name in crime.

The Paradox of Active Surrender by @korlaena (E, 108k)

When Draco shows up as a suspect in a murder case after eight years of no contact, Harry has to balance his professional life and his past friendship with Draco.

Nor All That Glisters by @sweet-s0rr0w (E, 110k)

Lonely and frustrated on house arrest, with no prospects for the future, Draco begins brewing Felix Felicis in an attempt to improve his lot. Just in the short term, of course. He isn’t a total idiot.

A Sword Laid Aside by @korlaena (E, 128k)

When Draco’s cover is blown during a deep undercover operation and the Ministry is compromised, Ron takes Draco to the only safe place he can think of—Potter.

Tales From the Special Branch by Femme (E, WIP)

When Gawain Robards asks him to form Special Branch seven-four-alpha, Harry Potter knows they'll have to work outside the confines of the law--even though they are the law.

#asks #anon #Drarry reclist #emotional rollercoaster #long fics

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clatterbane · 1 month

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Mr. C got back last night from his first epic solo roadtrip so far: going back to the UK in Nondescript Volvo. Partly because he needed to drag his giant fencing bag along with at least one big suitcase.

That route did involve a shorter ferry trip across to Denmark, and then a drive from there to get to another longer ferry route between the Netherlands and Harwich. And then back by the same route. He also ended up driving up to Glasgow via Birmingham while he was there.

Other than needing to get across some water, the actual time on the road getting to the UK sounded roughly on par with driving to New Orleans from where I grew up in Virginia. Which I wouldn't have really hesitated to do in a more reliable vehicle than I usually owned. But, this is Europe and he is still a fairly new driver.

The occasion?

Plus Worldcon in Glasgow after it.

That is my DWCon goody bag, complete with badge and all. (Which was staying in the envelope, with my wallet name printed on it and all.)

I didn't really want to talk about it before the whole thing was over, and still don't feel like getting into it much now. But, I was looking forward to going to that con, and pretty disappointed when things did not work out that way. (Partly, but not solely, thanks to the fact that Captain Executive Function here is currently without a valid passport. Again. 😒)

That would have been my first in 20 years. Seriously, 2004 was the first and last that I made it to--a few months after moving to the UK and in with him. There were also several people I hadn't seen in years, while I was busy with that (preventable) health decline in Greater London, who I was looking forward to talking to again. But yeah, there is presumably always next year!

(That's also the fandom we ended up meeting through, way back when. Alt.fan. pratchett that was, and the IRC server someone set up for afpers. I think Mr. C is still on there occasionally, with some of the other now middle-aged tech folks.)

Worldcon never was in my plans, but glad he took the opportunity and apparently enjoyed it. That was also where he was hauling his swords along to. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

#personal #rambling #tumblr old

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windywallflower · 4 months

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So this is all that was left on our table at the end of TCAF this year and the two of us are both still pretty emotional about it. I know we post a lot of promo and yelling about our next big thing so I wanted to take a little second to say thank you!

It's been a bit of a dream of ours to sell out the whole table (mostly all our books) at a con and between Calgary Expo nearly selling us clean & TCAF's clean sweep here, we're both feeling really emotional about it and really touched that people like our work this much.

Neither of us has a huge following (that folks can see via numbers on social media) but I know I (Winter) have been doing conventions and festivals for 11 years now & Tas has been running SanCirc for nearly 10 years. The two of us combined have been pushing Windy & Wallflower for almost 5???? Insane. I feel like the two of us have only grown more and more from our start with A Tempo & Paint The Town Red. (or Sancirc..... and Badmouth if you wanna get REAL old here).

It means a LOT that folks have taken the time to just read our work. I get emotional and weepy every time someone comes up to tell me they've not only read their favourite Prism Knights story once but MULTIPLE times & thank me for even making this silly indulgent thing. aaaaaa I can't even put into words how it makes me feel.

We've been getting a lot of input from folks about PTTR & Augustine in the comments on their websites, and just getting asks from folks here on tumblr, excited for our newest step into our nautical Moby Dykes.

We're a mess, basically. Feeling really overwhelmed with love & appreciation, so thank you thank you for supporting our work, we try to keep things as accessible as we can by offering a lot of our work for free or as cheap as we can so that folks can experience the work that's made us who we are now <3

IDK where or how to end this. We're going to be at MCAF this last weekend in May (24-26) come say hi if you're around. Maybe Augustine will win the award its nominated for (waaaahh!!!)

Thank you all again, so so much ;v; <3

#WEEPS #you're all the best thank you for putting up with our KS spam #we're saving up for a more permanent place to live so we're really going hard on promo lately in case you were wondering KJGHF #described

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leatherbelt1295 · 1 year

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Your Daily Smile #2617

@ehan281

This should have been posted yesterday, but I didn't really get a chance to. I spent the previous 2.5 days with EHAN irl, and man they were just so wonderful... I'm so grateful we got to hang out again and do more than we did last time. Went during this time for a multitude of reasons since things lined up perfectly, but most importantly it was like a birthday present to him (5/29) and myself (6/3). We haven't seen each other since October 2017, so naturally I really missed him so much. ;w; That's way too long!!

We got to eat yummy food each day, got to meet his adorable doggy Sparky, met his folks, go through a mirror maze, played a laser busting game?, watch him do little runs of SpongeBob Battle for Bikini Bottom, watch the new Spidey on opening night with his brother, and went to a convention together and even cosplayed which was super fun! I went as Peppino Spaghetti from Pizza Tower (so if by chance you were there on Friday and saw Peppino, it might've been me!) and he was an excellent Cameron from Ferris Bueller Day Off. It was cool how often we were recognized, heheh. Really nice to see people's faces light up like that. Of course, we saw a lot of great cosplays too! Here's a few I saw myself that I got pics of, really nice stuff!

We got to play my favorite beat-em-up The Simpsons by Konami, and I'm glad EHAN and his brother really enjoyed it too! Really cool stuff all around, found plenty of gifts for my folks at home but also a couple things for me. Oh and Petra stuff and even comm'd a Petra for EHAN. :]

I haven't been to a con in 7 years, so being back at such a fun one was something I absolutely needed and appreciate immensely. Good times all around! I'm happy he and his brother enjoyed themselves too.

Here's my loot, though only the Jolteon and black shirt are for me.

We headed to Red Robin later on, and that was nice too! At least for me and his brother. :)

I went with the intention of recreating a certain Bocchi the Rock comic to EHAN. :))

And it worked. :)))

And the waitress didn't believe him when he said it was my birthday too. :))))

Ended the night with some 3 player Mario Party 2 on Pirate Land. We lost to the CPU DK because of usually MP shenanigans lol. Still fun!

And followed that up with me and EHAN rewatching Space Patrol Luluco as we do every June 5th, but a little early this time so it could be irl. A wonderful time as it is every year, but made more special being together and having fun irl! I'll be taking about that more on tomorrow's YDS though. :)

Wrapped up the visit with another good breakfast and visiting a lovely park, I really enjoyed that too.

Again, overall, I totally needed this trip and I'm eternally grateful for being able to do so. I really miss him though. ;w;

And I suppose I should mention a bit how my birthday was yesterday aside about half the day being with EHAN. I received gift art from friends through the day, including right at midnight and even today... Y'all really didn't have to... ;; But thank you so much... And to those who I know may read this and wanted to draw me something or whatever the case may be, but couldn't for any reason, just know it's more than okay and the fact that you even thought of me in the first place means a lot to me already. Wishing me hbd means a lot too... 🥺 So thank you guys too!

Even had a big surprise on the flight back home before departure. Someone close to me with connections actually informed the crew on board that it was my birthday, and if they could deliver a message to me for them, which they absolutely did... Even gave me free snacks and water, and invited me to sit in the pilot's seat which was !!!!!?? It was so cool what the heck... I'm grateful for that... 😭

Nice time spent at home with family, always nice to see them. It ain't a birthday without being with em, I'd say. Nice lil gifts too, they shouldn't have... ;; I do wanna show this Hank Hill in particular, gave me a good laugh and I love it, heheh. The Bocchi doodle too!

But yeah, I just wanted to dedicate this YDS to thanking @ehan281 and his brother for a wonderful time and express my gratitude of a happy birthday too. Hoping the next time we meet won't be so long! ^^

#EHAN #toskihero #your daily smile

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solidandsound · 9 months

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Annual~ video~ game~ retrospective~~~

My goal for this year was to beat every game in my backlog from the year 2004, having already cleared out everything prior to that. I did succeed at this goal as it was set... but since then I have also added a bunch more games to my backlog, thanks to my partner and I buying up a bunch of stuff before the Wii U virtual console store closed. As a result, I'm setting the same goal again: to beat everything in my backlog from 2004 or earlier. As a subgoal, I'll try and get a head start on 2005 as well, as that year is packed for me!

In terms of numbers, I only beat 26 games this year. That's a fair bit fewer than last year's 33. I blame some of the meaty titles I tackled this year, as well as the stuff I played a lot of but can't say I'm done with. If I want to boost that number, I may decide to play more tiny indie games next year.

I went on a bit of a Fire Emblem kick this year. After doing my second playthrough of Three Houses, I still wanted more, so I tried Shadow Dragon for the first time. I'd always dismissed the game for its art style and knowing that it has a more bare bones story than other games in the series. Both of those things are true, but it ended up being such a blast to play regardless, and so interesting to see where the famous Fire Emblem permadeath mechanic began. I then went on to (re)play Fire Emblem (GBA) and Sacred Stones, and thought a lot about the pros and cons of FE's approach to permadeath and how it's changed as the series progressed, and ended up taking some notes on how I would approach it in a game of my own. And I closed off the year with a replay of Fire Emblem Echoes to top it all off!

I also went on a bit of a Zelda kick to prepare for Tears of the Kingdom. Unlike a lot of folks my age, I only got into Zelda as an adult, and there was still a lot of the series I hadn't gotten to yet. To remedy that, this year I played Minish Cap, Twilight Princess, Phantom Hourglass, and Skyward Sword. MC was charming. I loved Twilight Princess! It had such strong imagery, intense vibes, and Midna is possibly the best character in the series. Phantom Hourglass was kind of awful and I ended up dropping the game; they took the basic Wind Waker art style and then decided they didn't need to do any actual work on making the game look good. Skyward Sword was a mixed bag and ultimately feels pretty low-to-mid for the series; it's competent enough but excels at very little. And then, of course, there's Tears of the Kingdom, which I mostly loved. It's an impressively dense game with a world that feels very lived in, and it makes some smart balancing changes coming from Breath of the Wild. I wasn't too fond of the ending, though.

I went on a bit of an Etrian Odyssey kick, too. After Untold 2, I was really craving more, so I made the jump into the more traditional side of EO with EOIV. I had so much fun building my party and coming up with their personalities and backstories.

Here are some more highlights from the year:

Hades. Supergiant doesn't miss!

As a side adventure to my FE obsession, I played Dark Deity, an indie FE-like. It was quite fun early on, but became more tedious later, as well as much buggier. I eventually dropped it, but I'll be curious to see how the sequel turns out.

Voice of Cards: the Isle Dragon Roars. This game has a card-based aesthetic where you flip over cards to reveal the world map. It was great to play on the Switch touch screen, and I'll be sure to check out the other VoC games in the future.

Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together. I've been chipping away at this game on and off since last year. There's a lot of great stuff in here, and I can see why it's considered an early SRPG classic, but it also feels clunky and underdeveloped in places. Still, it's a Matsuno game, so it has an excellent sense of place and politics.

Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age. My second Matsuno game of the year! Starts off strong, but eventually the story pacing slows and you run out of new abilities to learn, so I did kind of rush the ending after a while.

Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright. A much meatier game than I expected from a crossover title, this is probably one of my favourite Layton games. I do think the villain got off easy, though.

Resident Evil 2 Remake. This was my pick for Spooky Month, and it was a good one!

Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions. My third Matsuno game of the year, and the best game I played this year. I've attempted it multiple times before but always got stuck somewhere or other. I suppose I'm finally old enough to wrap my head around its mechanics, and I'm so glad. I was truly blown away and could not stop thinking about FFT for a week after beating it. That ending!!

I also continued my quests through the Yakuza series (Kiwami 2) and Higurashi (chapters 4 and 5), replayed the excellent Dissidia Duodecim Final Fantasy for the first time since I was a teen, and put hundreds of hours into Splatoon 3 and dozens into Theatrhythm Final Bar Line. The latter is part of why I moved FFXII and FFT up my list, so I could have greater appreciation for their soundtracks while playing TFBL.

I'm likely to go on a bit of an SMT kick again next year with SMT V, Soul Hackers 2, and/or Persona 5 Strikers. I've also been wanting to replay Fire Emblem Awakening with new context, as well as do my third run of Three Houses. Other than that, I have a lot of Wii U virtual console titles to get to now. That'll include my first forays into some classic Nintendo series like Metroid and Pikmin, so it should be a good time!

#personal #got some games for xmas but have instead started stuff from last xmas lmao #gifted games do go on the priority list because it feels bad not to touch something someone gave me #but even then there are over 40 games on that sublist #also i haven't done gifts with my parents yet so i don't know all my options #but even with the stuff i do know i'm very excited about games #games... good!!!

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debbyghost13 · 2 years

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The Adventure of the Finder and the Whisperer.

By @demonicdragonfire and me

Chapter 4: A Discovery of Memory

“Ow! That hurts!” Nebula was being healed and having bandages wrapped around her leg. “Don't worry, you're going to be just fine.” Nathaniel said. Nebula was just moving around a lot, stubborn to stay still, “It hurt though!!”’ “It's supposed to hurt, it's not supposed to be unharmful.” Nathaniel said. Nathaniel finished the bandages. “...?” Nebula looked at their leg, “Done?” “Yep.” Nathaniel said as he tied the last bandage. “...So who was that other…person that was chasing us?” Nebula asked. “You mean Scarlett?” Nathaniel asked. “No, no. The other person.” Nebula said, “The guy with the commander hat and blue hair?” “Magnus…” Nathaniel said.

“Magnus? Oh. Who is he? You seem to know who he is.” Nebula asked, they seemed to be full of questions as usual. “I don't know who he is!” Nathaniel says, genuinely honest about it. “Aw. I wanted to learn more…” Nebula said. "I'm sorry but I don't know what to tell you." Nathaniel said. “Zert- Hello passengers. Where are we going today?” The announcements went on. “I… Don't even know at this point. I don't know where we're even going anymore!” Nathaniel said. “Where's…the next stop?” Nebula asked. “ZERT- Robo-con. Would you like to go there?” The announcements went on again. “A robo-con?” Nathaniel asked very interested. “Would you like more info ZERT- Nathaniel [the explorer]?” The announcement said. “With pleasure.” Nathaniel said. “Robo-con. The place of robotics and engineering. One of the best machines is created here.” The announcement was explaining. “Robotics and engineering you say?” Nathaniel asked. “ZERT- Yes.” The announcement agreed. “Now this is something I'll be interested in.” Nathaniel smiled.”Would you like to go there?” The announcement asked.

“Yes… because I have a plan…” Nathaniel said. He looked for Nebula but they were gone. “Nebby?” Nathaniel said. He began looking for them. “Nebby, where are you?” Nathaniel looked frantic. He looked in a few train cars, and couldn’t find her. Finally he went to a train cart with some toys and books, kinda like a cart for kids, and saw Nebula in there playing with some toy trains. “Nebby! You were here the whole time?” Nathaniel asked. “? Hi Nathaniel!” Nebula looked at him and smiled. “Huh… wait… who's driving!?” Nathaniel asked frantically. “The train.” Nebula went back to playing with the trains they had. “Uh…” Nathaniel said. Nebula had an opened book next them but they didn’t pay much attention. “What are you reading anyways?” Nathaniel asked. “...? Oh this? I was just looking at the pictures.” Nebula dropped the toy trains and lifted the book. The title of the chapter was “The Great Republic of Spellbinders”. “...Do you know who these people are?” Nebula asked. “...” Nathaniel was silent for a moment until he broke the silence. "Those are my folks…" He said while he broke down a little. “...Oh.” Nebula said, a bit confused but went over to comfort him.

“... Thanks.” Nathaniel said softly. “Could you help me read this?” Nebula asked, lifting up the book. “What is it?” Nathaniel asked. “This chapter. I like looking at the pictures but I’m having a hard time reading this.” Nebula goes over to their same spot and sits down. “Hmm, this says that it was dated on September 3rd 2000… that's the year I was born!” Nathaniel said. "Nebby, where did you get this?" He asked. “...I don’t know…?” Nebula said, “ I just found it on the train! Maybe someone put it here because they bought it. Just because the date says it was in that year, I think it doesn’t mean that you can’t still buy it.” “But Who would leave this on here and know who my folks are?” Nathaniel said silently.

“...I don’t know… OOO! The title says “The Great War of Magic!” I wonder what this is about. And it says it was before you were born!” Nebula flipped the page, “...Hm.” Nathaniel noticed that Nebula was trying to read it. “To the person who is in this photo, you must follow the steps into finding your loved ones. And if you do, you will be rewarded with a wish…” Nathaniel read through the book. "So this is like a treasure map? And it knows where my folks are?" Nathaniel said. “…The Great War of Magic… Long ago 6 magicians helped the world from chaos but that all ended when a dark sorceress was trying to rule the world. The 6 fought all they could and when the hope was almost at the end, the magicians used all the magic they could to end the sorceress and her magic. The war ended….” Nebula was reading the words of the page and flipped it.

A photo dropped out with a map. The photo had a younger looking boy like Nathaniel and 6 other people who were blurred out. “Huh? What's this?” Nathaniel said while picking up the photo. “Is that you?” Nebula looked at the young boy in the photo. “It is me…” Nathaniel said. Then something snapped in his mind and started to flip over the book. “W-What are you doing?” Nebula was confused. "I REMEMBER NOW!" Nathaniel shouted. “What do you remember?” Nebula asked until Nathaniel grabbed the map and spread it. He pointed to a plot of area called “Robo-con”.

“I REMEMBER MAGNUS!” Nathaniel shouted again. “…I’m sorry you lost me.” Nebula was sitting down with the toy trains watching him. “Magnus, my long lost friend!” Nathaniel looked at Nebula. “…So you can answer my question!” Nebula exclaimed. “Yes! I know him!” Nathaniel answered. “Yes yes yes! Now we can know more of the bad guys now! And why the heck they're after us.” Nebula put her hands in the air. “Huh?” Nathaniel looked over and saw Scarlett and Magnus chasing them. "IT'S THEM! STOP THE TRAIN!" Nathaniel exclaimed.

Nathaniel and Nebula raced to the front of the train. “How did they get on the train?! We are still in the spacey thing!” Nebula asked, panicking, “We are still driving in the void thing! How are they on the train!?” “They must've followed us! We have to stop so I can explain to them clearly!” Nathaniel said. “CAN'T WE JUST THROW THEM OF THE TRAIN!?” Nebula Shouted. "ABSOLUTELY NOT! We have to talk to them!" Nathaniel said. Nebula stopped and kicked over a box nearby. It was filled with toys. “…Why are there so many toys on this train? …I LOVE IT!” Nebula looked at Nathaniel. “Oh alright…” Nathaniel sighed.

Nathaniel grabbed her and ran to the front of the train. “…my tidiness is kicking in.” Scarlett says. “Not now!” Magnus was gently kicking the toys out of the way. In the front of the train, Nathaniel was trying to make the train stop. “Come on! Which one are you!?” He said as he pressed everything. “If the train doesn’t want to work, it doesn’t want to work!” Nebula was watching the window for Magnus and Scarlett. “Any luck?” Nathaniel asked. The train whistled like it didn’t like Nathaniel and wanted him off the front. “Oh how rude. Nathaniel is trying to stop the train from bad guys.” Nebula patted the walls of the train. “I think I see them!” Nathaniel said. Magnus and Scarlett seemed close but then they just disappeared. “...Where did they go?” Nebula looked out the window. Then the train shook violently and Nathaniel and Nebula looked. Magnus and Scarlett, who was in her “Mother of Mantalites” form, destroyed the constellation tracks that the train was making. “Oh I am hopelessly sorry for the delay! But we have a meeting to get to. Catch you dweebs later!” Magnus laughed and a portal opened up behind them. They went in and it closed. “ATTENTION! The constellation tracks have been damaged. This will cause a delay for….about 15 minutes. Maybe more.” THe train announcements said. “Aw what!?” Nathaniel said. “Nathaniel [the explorer] don’t be- ZERT- harsh. Train is trying to fix up.” The announcements said. “...Sure Magnus can act all crazy at times but he was never villainess…” Nathaniel said. “…Tell me more about Magnus! I wanna know too!” Nebula shouted. “Well back in the day Magnus would go around and start causing trouble so he could get what he wanted. But when we got older he once stole someone's purse and ran away. And I never saw him again, until today.” Nathaniel said. “…that sounds…like it’s missing a few pieces.” Nebula says. “What do you mean by that?” Nathaniel asked. “I mean that it sounds like it’s not whole! Like a puzzle piece!” Nebula said, “And I don’t know…but maybe he is doing this because of another reason!”

“...hmm.” Nathaniel thought for a second until something popped up. "GASP!" “…did you gasp for a good thing or bad.” Nebula asked. “The reason he's doing this is because he wanted attention he once told me!” Nathaniel said. “…Well that sounds reasonable. But I’m still confused… *yawn*” Nebula yawned. She was tired. “You're tired now!?” Nathaniel shouted. “!!! Sorry sir! I was just dozing off! The train…it makes me tired at times.” Nebula snapped out of her tiredness but she was still sleepy. “Hmm…” Nathaniel sighed. “…Can I go to sleep now? I mean there is a delay.” Nebula looked at him. “I guess…” Nathaniel said. “Can you…promise me something?” Nebula asked. “What is it?” Nathaniel asked.

“Promise me you’ll wake me up. I’m scared that I am going to sleep forever.” Nebula said. “Alright.” Nathaniel said. Nebula went to the bunk room and went to her bed and closed her eyes. Moments later she fell asleep. “Huh… hopefully I'll patch things up with Magnus soon.” Nathaniel said as he went to sleep.

“...ZERT- Arriving at Robo-Con in 2 minutes.” The announcements said, “Nebula [owner of train]. Nathaniel [the explorer]. Wake up.” “...Mhm…” Nebula was in deep sleep. “...GZERT- …NATHANIEL [the explorer] WAKE THE CHILD!” The announcements yelled. Nathaniel crashed onto the floor and out of his bed. "Oh right!" Nathaniel rushed over to nebula and shook her.

Nebula, the deep sleeper she is, didn’t wake up. Nathaniel just took her off the bed and grabbed her telescope. “WAKE UP!!!” Nathaniel shouted. “!!!!” Nebula woke up and got scared. “Oh good you're awake! We're almost at robo-con!” Nathaniel exclaimed. “…did you…have to yell in my ears?” Nebula was still tired. “Yep.” Nathaniel said.

“…” Nebula went silent. The train poofed and went into a toy train again. Nathaniel looked ahead at the robotic area. A sign was near and it seemed to be a screen. It says, “Welcome to Robo-Con!” "We're here!" Nathaniel shouted.

#the adventure of the finder and the whisperer #collab #stories #b

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briankeene · 2 years

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Another End of the Road

My last two signings of the year occurred this past weekend — one at a Barnes & Noble in Pikesville, MD and another at a bar in Mechanicsburg, PA.

I almost never book signings or appearances for the time period between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve if I can help it, because that is one of my most productive times of the year, writing-wise. That’s when Los Angeles and New York City and Portland go quiet, and the publishing, comic book and movie industries go dark (or at least on minimal systems life support), and as a result, there are less emails and phone calls and other things to handle. My peers get quieter, too, which means even less emails and phone calls and text messages and people popping by during writing hours.

Thanks to everyone who showed up at a signing o an appearance this year. I genuinely appreciate it, and I hope the experience was worth it for you. If we took a picture or a selfie together, here’s a thread on my message board where I’d love you to share it.

My Patreon subscribers know that I’ve been secretly working on a half-intended follow-up to END OF THE ROAD this past year. As a result, I’ve got a Moleskine notebook with some random notes and observations I made while I was out there. Most of those notes will remain hidden for now, because they deal with the subject matter of the book, which will remain shrouded in secrecy for now. But here are some other observations I can share:

Excerpted from Project: The Last Mile notebook…

*Without a doubt, the peers I signed with the most times this past year were my pals Richard Chizmar and Ronald Malfi, both of whom have been doing this as long as I have, and both of whom subscribe to the same path to success that I do — write book, go on road and sign nd sell book, repeat process all over again. In comparing notes, all three of us saw a marked increase in sales this year as a result of those efforts, versus the pandemic years when we had to stay home.

*The era of signing at multiple conventions is at a wane. The reader-centric cons — Boskone, Scares That Care AuthorCon, StokerCon, KillerCon, Camp Necon, and Merrimack Valley Halloween Book Festival — are still lucrative due to high attendance numbers and turnout, but the smaller regional conventions, and the big multimedia conventions just aren’t worth it anymore. For the smaller cons, it’s a numbers game. Unless you’ve been invited as a guest and the organizers are paying your way, by the time you’ve paid for your travel, hotel room, table and food, you’ll have a hard time breaking even, particularly as inflation pushes the costs for all of those things higher and higher. And the bigger multimedia cons that have actors and other celebrities as well as authors? The actors’ prices have increased significantly, and by the time an attendee purchases a few autographed pictures and a selfie, they must then divide what little money they have left between a meal, a Funko Pop, a t-shirt, and perhaps one of your books. For authors — the way forward is conventions focused solely on readers (as listed above) and bookstores and libraries.

*Barnes & Noble is/are back, baby. Most of them have horror sections again, and most of the managers have much more leeway in what they can order for their store. “But Brian, my local B&N manager said they can’t order my book because it’s not returnable.” Well, that’s only a problem if they have unsold copies, Sparky. Work with the manager. Order a realistic number of copies to sell. Bust your ass promoting the signing. Don’t sit there like a lump when customers walk by your table — engage with them. And work out a deal with the manager to help them liquidate any remaining overstock. Leave two or three signed copies for the shelves, and purchase the rest so that their regional manager doesn’t yell at them for ordering non-returnable books. Then, speak at a library the next weekend, and gift the library with a copy and sell the rest to the folks who show up to hear you talk.

*The popularity of horror fiction runs in cycles. This is provable, demonstrable science (and I’ll refer you to END OF THE ROAD for more on that). Currently, the popularity of horror fiction is at a level not seen since the height of Leisure’s popularity. Indeed, I would argue it is higher. I suspect we’ll hit the peak next year. When will the descent begin? I don’t know. It will come, eventually. It always does. That’s inevitable. But we may ride this wave for a good long while yet. So much of it will depend on the economy and global events. Right now, there’s a glut of books if you tabulate everything from both the mainstream and indie presses and self-published works. But booksellers see a matching demand. This is evidenced not only from people I’ve talked to at the chain stores and online retailers like Amazon, but on anecdotal evidence such as the continuing popularity of alternative sellers like Godless and direct sales via publishers.

Excerpt ends…

So… those are some of the things I’ve jotted down in my Moleskine.

Instead of a honeymoon, Mary and I are opting to do a cross-country Honeymoon Tour next year. At first, we were going to go to Easter Island for our honeymoon, but then some assholes set the island on fire and damaged a bunch of the statues. (A news story that didn’t get much play in the media because it didn’t involve Donald Trump or Kanye West). Then we were going to go to Alaska. But Mary has a new novel dropping next February — ALIEN: ENEMY OF MY ENEMY — and she wants to give it a big push. And me? I live on the road. So instead of gong to Alaska we’re going to go to all of the continental United States, or at least as many as we can possibly manage. We’ll have the details for you early next year.

And until then, I’m looking forward to hunkering down against the cold, and getting some work done in the brief time when the din becomes a murmur.

Thanks again for your support this past year. See you next year.

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kdndigital · 1 month

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I was so busy and tired the last couple days of Gen Con that I didn't take many pics and didn't write much down. I played in about 8-9 hour of DnD each day and walked a ton, so no surprise that I wore myself out.

But I want to note some highlights so I don't forget about them:

--I played 6 games of dnd 5e, and all except one of them was super fun.

--Dungeons and Doggies was particularly adorable and hilarious. I was even almost moved to tears. Since there were some kids at the table, I let everyone else choose characters first until only 2 were left: a golden retriever wizard or a cattle dog ranger. There was only ever one option for me...

--I also loved playing Dungeons and Desserts with my friend, Chris. It's based on the book Legends and Lattes, which I have just started reading. During the game, I realized my character with a folk hero background would vehemently disagree with the rest of the party's decisions. My artificer would have to go a bit rogue in his attempts to do good. Not my usual style to split off and be secretive, but the GM and the rest of the players helped me roll with it. We ate cookies, successfully established a coffee shop, and turned a mob-like thieves guild into an HOA.

--I saw some cool cosplays, but not as many as previous years. Either there were less cosplayers, or I was so holed up in dnd games that I missed them. I particularly enjoyed the giant balloon gnomes, an excellent Lup with hand-sewn rib cage, Tim the Enchanter, and these two Final Fantasy XIV characters who were super nice people...

--I had a very good time just talking with people. One convinced me that next time I go to Gen Con I should go to one of the burlesque shows because apparently they are phenomenal. Another helped me pick out the perfect color dragon eye earrings and sold me her Urban Dragon book. Some shared their love of NADDPOD and we reminisced about the Band of Boobs and shared thoughts on the latest campaign. Some folks gave good game and podcast recommendations, and other folks shared cosplay tricks and details. A sweet bartender shared her story of sobriety and paid for my NA beer. And most others were just superbly cool.

--In fact, I better give a shout out to Mimic Dice. On Thursday night I was on my own at a busy Thai restaurant, waiting for my food order. I had sat at a high top with another girl waiting for her order, but she had left after her food arrived. I was planning to move out of the way as soon as a group needed my table or I would stay if some other lone person wanted to share. A group of tired folks with matching Tshirts came in, so I told them they should take my table. They insisted that I stay while a couple of them went to wait in line to order food. So I chatted with a woman named Andrea and she was very cool and nice. My food arrived and she insisted that I should stay and eat with them. So I did. I felt a little bad since their food didn't even arrive until I was finished, though I did share some spring rolls. They were fabulous company, with stories of fun and frustrations playing DnD. Of course I made sure to stop by their booth the next day, and I picked up some fabulous dice for me and kiddo. Thanks, Mimic Dice crew!

--Before we left, I hit the dealer's room one more time. I walked away with more tea and stickers, picked up a TS bracelet for kiddo, and bought 5 beautiful art prints for her and myself. I could say I bought too much, but we did skip 5 years of the con, so I had catching up to do, right?

Who knows what will happen next year, but I hope to go again soon :) Thanks, fabulous people at Gen Con!

(Don't ask how many selfies it took to get most of the words to show on the shirt without making myself looking awful and awkward. It was on the long car ride home after 4 days of the con...so this is the best ya get.)

#gencon 2024 #dnd

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rsfannan6 · 3 months

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Day Two: On to Swaffham

As I mentioned before, the Peddars Way meanders its way through mostly rural areas dotted by small, if any, villages with few accommodations. So we are transported to start and end locations by taxi to facilitate our completion of the route. This necessitates our staying multiple nights at the same hotel, which has its pros and cons. The taxi situation is not ideal, but it does give us the opportunity to meet and get to know some of the folks at each destination as well as relieve us the task of packing up each and every day.

That said, we packed up our bags and boarded the taxi/van for the journey to where we left off yesterday. Once again, Dave was our driver, and he dumped us off and continued on to Swaffham, a small Norfolk village of 10,000 souls which would be our base for the next three nights.

Today’s journey of 10 miles was quite a bit more pedestrian friendly with mostly wide lanes and paths along more hog farms, wheat fields, and lovely forested areas.

All along the paths, we have noticed pieces of flint. It seems that 60-95 million years ago, this area was underwater. The skeletons of countless marine organisms would eventually form brittle sheets in the sedimentary rock known as chalk, which eventually would rise to the surface and give us flint. The lack of building stone in this area has resulted in the extensive use of flint in these Norfolk villages. As you can see in the accompanying photos, the sides of many houses are done in flint, which provides a hardy and attractive surface.

A good part of the first several miles today took us past a military firing range. This has been in operation since the early days of World War II. Apart from several warning signs about trespassing and a few jets flying over, there was nothing to interrupt our quiet walk through the countryside.

The weather was pretty darn perfect, high 60’s and just a bit of a breeze.

Along the way, we passed the Songline Stones, a line of stone sculptures by Tom Perkins that act as permanent waymarkers on The Peddars Way. Poems of a sort have been carved into these stones reminding us of those that have traveled this same path over the last several thousand years.

For example:

The footprint of our ancestors

Familiar as our own faces

Remote as fossils

Written on clay

And washed away

Over & over

Over and over

As the years have passed, the inscriptions have become harder to decipher, but thanks to Linda Wysong and her skill at reading stone writing, we were able to get a bead on most of the text. (The above poem was captured in its entirety by a friend named Google)

Our destination for the day was Great Cressingham from where we would be transported to Swaffham. A bit weary and parched, we stopped for a bit in Little Cressigham, a couple of miles away, but regretfully, the only pub in this small village was permanently closed. But, it was not too long before we arrived at our pick up location, The Olde Windmill Inn. What a lovely sight it was to see this oasis as we rounded the last corner of our trek. And, as if by design, we had about an hour to kill before being picked up by super friendly Craig for our journey to our new digs. A cold pint of ale and some crisps (potato chips to you Yanks), accompanied by some lively conversation on the outdoor patio made for a perfect end to the walking portion of the day.

Taxis in this area of the world serve a double function. Besides taking regular folk from place to place, they are very involved in the transportation of young students to and from their schools resulting from the absence of school buses to serve there rural areas. Craig, our driver, had just finished his school routes in the afternoon before he arrived in the van to take our group to The George Hotel in Swaffham.

After checking into our rooms, we met in the bar for what turned out to be quite a lively discussion about the next day’s plan. Being former teachers (for the most part), to facilitate a bit of order, we used the “pass the feather” approach (feathers being in short supply, we instituted the “pass the coaster) with the person holding the coaster having the floor and all others listening attentively. As you can imagine, chaos quickly arrived and soon we were laughing hysterically. I really haven’t laughed so hard in a long time. Our journey today was supposed to be ten miles but ended up being closer to 12. The trek tomorrow was set to be 11.5, so after much bantering about, we decided to adjust the mileage to about 7.5 as we were pretty exhausted.

From the bar, we decided to have dinner at The George, and we were treated to a delightful repast before turning in after a long day.

More to come…….

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kariachi · 1 year

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Some quick reboot fic, because I want it. Ben and Kevin are, once again, in competition.

The stakes couldn't possibly be higher.

Thirteen years old and Kevin was, if anything, even more of a menace. Also, he’d somehow gotten even taller than Ben than he was before, which shouldn’t have been legal.

Wearing matching smirks, the pair stared each other down over the Rustbucket’s table. On the Tennyson side, one of Ben’s switch joy-cons, the blue one specifically. On the Levin side, it’s red twin. Between them, the switch in question, hooked up to Gwen’s laptop. Gwen, sat on the counter on the other side of the RV, well out of range of any direct conflict.

Would it have been easier to simply play on their 3dses? Or use Kevin’s laptop and switch, since they couldn’t each just use their own? Most likely. But Ben didn’t trust he hadn’t modded his stuff to hell and back (the latter two didn’t need an hdmi connection anymore, what more proof did you need) and therefor would have a severely unfair advantage. Kevin, for his part, had claimed offense that Ben thought he would cheat, that he didn’t need to cheat to win, but refused to let anybody check and see if his shit was unfairly modded. So, Ben’s switch and Gwen’s laptop it was.

“This is it, folks,” Gwen said as the sound of the game finishing loading in drew the boys’ attention, grinning widely as she slipped in ‘announcer’ mode, “the last Sumo Slammers competition you’ll ever need. Here today, in Sumo Slammer 2: Shogun’s Vengeance: Remastered, we’ll who is the greatest slammer of sumos.”

“In this corner- having not consumed another piece of media in his life-”

“Hey!”

“Benjamin Kirby Tennyson, using Kentarō! And in this corner- I’m still eighty-percent sure only playing the game to mess with Ben-”

“I do have other hobbies.”

“Prove it.”

“-Kevin Ethan Levin, playing Fumie! This fight will be a random stage, all power-ups legal, fight to the death!”

“She gets a little into this crap, doesn’t she?”

“Just a little.”

“On the count of three, the fight begins! One! Two! Three!”

And they were off, in the Great Mountain Temple (“Ha! Homefield advantage!” “Gonna be twice the dishonor when you lose!”). They had to have been mashing buttons before the stage even loaded, for how quickly their characters launched at each other.

“And it’s a strong first move from Ben, Kentarō takes those body slams much better, but he’s losing mass fast! May want to land a hit quick before she outweighs him!”

“Go on, make me more maneuverable, see if I care.”

“Yeah, because Kentarō has ever been about maneuverability.”

“This going to be a powers heavy fight, folks! Kentarō’s Standing Mountain blocking Fumie in, can he land a hit before- No! No Kevin’s gotten off Rolling Wave, can that push him back long enough for- Yes! Just long enough to run Standing Mountain out!”

“I hate you.”

“And I haven’t even won yet.”

“That’s two blows and major weight loss on Kentarō and Fumie’s only taken the one good hit so far- He’s picking up speed though! Can he make up for the loss in defenses and stability though?”

“Never.”

“Then what about this!”

“Holy-moly, our first power-up and Ben’s there first! Standing Mountain number two and there’s no way out for Fumie- He lands a hit! She’s got the weight to take it, but he’s not dropping pounds anymore!”

“Fuck!”

“Not going to wash me away now!”

“Language, Levin! And Ben may want to save his celebrating, Fumie’s still in better shape!”

“I’ve got this, cuz!”

“Oh! And directly into Charging Peak! I don’t think Fumie is far enough from the edge- But a masterful use of Rolling Wave from Kevin washes her right back into place to throw herself into Kentarō again! He did not like that!”

“Aw, is Dweebyson’s sumo too small for a little body slam now?”

“Hate.”

“Another Charging Peak brings them closer in damage but he’s not out of range of Rolling Wave three! Kentarō is looking bad, on the run, hoping for another powerup before Fumie gets to him-”

“It's tense enough, thanks!”

“-and there’s the finisher! Alas, even in the high mountains the sea turns out to be a harsh mistress!” Heaving a sigh, Gwen fell back at the same time the boys did, watching Fumie bow respectfully at the opponent-eating seafoam as it faded from the stage. Ben glared bloody death across the table, Kevin’s smirk now full of teeth as he put his hands behind his head and leaned back like he was king of the world.

“What’d I tell ya? And in your own homeland, the shame of it.” In a few quick button presses, Ben reset things back to the character select screen, eyes never leaving Kevin's face.

“New characters, best two out of three.”

#fanfic #do i know jack shit about fighting games? no #did i make up some mechanics i thought would make sense for a sumo wrestler fighting game? yes #yes this is mostly dialogue let me be

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signalwatch · 2 years

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Doc Watch: Call Me Miss Cleo (2022)

except, literally everyone knew she was a fraud and the network a scam?

Watched: 12/28/2022

Format: HBOmax

Viewing: First

Director: Celia Aniskovich, Jennifer Brea

I dunno.

This doc is weirdly under-developed and under-researched for something that's getting a fairly well-promoted release on HBOmax. If I was Perry White to this team's Lois Lane, I'd say "you have a lot of facts. You haven't proven anything and there's no story. Get back out there." The doc feels like it's something handed in at a deadline, not something actually something complete, and the final bit that tries to give Miss Cleo absolution feels like the last great con a successful con-artist pulled from beyond the grave.

Maybe the spirits DO talk to us!

But you'll get more facts without any of the tediously dramatic build up out of the anemic Miss Cleo Wikipedia article. Somehow the doc misses that she had a child?

Look, I was not a youth when Miss Cleo first appeared - I was a 20-something guy winding up college. She was part of the weirdness that was 1990's television, right there alongside all the other charlatans and hucksters from Jerry Springer to those twin little people guys who made you watch a 45 minute informercial. It was a wild, trashy time of insta-celebs like Susan Powter and the Government Money Riddler-guy. And you had to be a certain age or a certain kind of poor or a certain kind of insomniac (or, in my case, all three) to know the full cast of TV's Legion of Doom.

Miss Cleo was an obvious fraud and crank who was also the face of one of many psychic networks. It would be post-9/11 that I would figure out how many people totally and completely believe in any fraud or crank who speaks with conviction thanks to the weirdly lucrative 9/11 Conspiracy movement. But I did figure *someone* was calling Miss Cleo, and those people were kidding or hopelessly guileless.

What's weird about this doc is that it's about Miss Cleo but somehow the filmmakers can't seem to do more than Google some facts but don't include even the basics of Wikipedia. There's nothing particularly revelatory about the contents, and it leaves all but a narrow window of Miss Cleo's life a Miss Cleo shaped blank spot.

Do they uncover who she really was and how she spent her life aside from a stint in Seattle? Nope! There's some speculation, but they don't bother to find out where she was born, where she lived, who knew her, etc... She appears in Seattle as a grown adult pre-Cleo using a different name, does some theater, maybe steals some money? And then vanishes again until those people spot her a while later using one of her characters developed in Seattle as Miss Cleo.

The doc is... bad? Lazy? I don't even know. For chrissake, if you can't find the info yourself, hire a private investigator. Someone has her SSN and can trace it back. But they literally choose not to do the basics - instead speculating and cobbling together a few scant details, saying "she probably had trauma that was never healed" and then use that as the supporting argument for why Miss Cleo was an a-ok person. But there's no evidence of trauma - no smoking gun. Not even any anecdotal evidence presented. Just the filmmakers cutting in pieces of people speculating.

The very weird collection of interviews includes the ragtag collection of folks Cleo hung out with after the collapse of the Psychic Network (a patchwork of Floridians who have varying degrees of skepticism about her still assumed psychic abilities), theater colleagues from Seattle who cannot believe this shit 25 years later, Raven Symone for some reason?, and Debra Wilson for other reasons. Folks who worked as psychics are also interviewed.

If you also thought psychic hotlines existed to separate fools from their money, you weren't alone. If you want to feel better, one of those fools may be Miss Cleo as it's not clear she actually profited very well from the scam she was the face-man for for years.

You do get a picture of how she went from paying the bills as a psychic for the network to becoming the face of the network, and there's plenty there about how the scam worked, and a reminder that we're all secretly very alone in this cold and unforgiving universe and sometimes it's so bad, we call obviously fake magic-wielders so someone will tell us it'll be okay (spoiler: it won't! But you'll get used to it or get on twitter.).

Maybe the most interesting part isn't Miss Cleo herself, but the mechanics of a call-in Psychic Network, that works not at all unlike a phone-sex-line (we were all about landline-based stuff in the 1990's), who worked there, what the job was, etc...

Ideas are thrown at us with minimal follow up. Miss Cleo was Jamaican and handed off to not-her-parents as an infant. Only - no. Never happened. She was a student at USC. No, she was not. She had multiple personalities (only mentioned by one person). She was maybe actually psychic and believed it. Or not.

This person did not live 100 or even 50 years ago. She just died like 6 years ago. She has a footprint. Someone knew her as a kid - but good luck seeing that here.

Once the network collapsed due to basically being a gigantic scam that was easily sue-able, Miss Cleo retreats. And where this could be interesting, and kind of is - the doc really leans into the "maybe she was really Miss Cleo all along, inside, and not someone with a completely different name using a fake accent every day of her life for years". One of her Seattle theatre-company colleagues basically says it outright "you White people buy any old bullshit", and it sure seems to be true. And yet, the filmmakers go right along with it and work to torture reality into shape so they can have an uplifting ending about "yeah, she helped to scam people out of a billion dollars, but she was nice to people after that collapsed so... Everyone remember her fondly." Wait. What? Why?

I'm not saying you can't make that movie or it's not a story that could be told. What I am saying is that this doc doesn't seem to be able to grasp what it has in its hands and do anything with it. It can't seem to grapple with the idea that possibly Cleo or whatever her name was was the same kind of toxic narcissist we see in politicians and CEO's everyday and you can't find her footprint because she wasn't good enough at what she was doing or rich enough to stay in one place for very long. It feels like they wrote an outline and then just went and made that doc. It's very strange. Unless you're the type of person who believes in psychics and magic, and then... then I can see how all of this feels magical and mysterious.

https://ift.tt/3S25AyU

from The Signal Watch https://ift.tt/V5uPr2e

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