#this is a completely self-indulgent fic

[mochirimochi]

Chapters: 1/? Fandom: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Julian Bashir/Original Female Character(s), Elim Garak/Original Female Character(s), Julian Bashir/Original Character(s), Elim Garak/Original Character(s) Characters: Julian Bashir, Elim Garak, Original Female Character(s) Additional Tags: Time Travel, Eventual Romance, Romance, Interspecies Romance, Alien/Human Relationships Summary:

When a space time anomaly brings aboard an accidental stowaway from the 21st century the crew scrambles to find a way to send her back where she came from, but can they? And a better question: do they want to?

[abbyshands]

♡ warnings; use of a strap-on (r!receiving), strap-on is referred to as cock by abby and in general, abby calls reader “baby” and “mama,” praise

PALESTINE LINKS | before engaging !!! | click before you fic ♡ | | join my tag list!

♡ imagine dom!abby, x softball!reader. you’d played a game earlier on, having just gotten back from it an hour or so beforehand. you are your team had won, barely, winning by a close score of 8-6. abby had come to it, the first game she had ever come to, as you’d always been too scared to allow her to come watch. however, no matter how nervous you’d been, abby had seen you play an excellent game at your infield spot, and seen how good of a player you really were, wondering why the hell you had been holding out on her before. it didn’t really matter: all that did, was you were now getting rewarded for it. “that’s it, baby. pretty cunt’s so tight around me, hm? yeah? you like my cock, huh?” abby coos as she moves into your pussy at a slow pace, easing her way into it. you’re sore from your game and borderline exhausted, so all that slips past your lips is a rushed, little “yes.” abby smiles down at you from where she is above you, pressing a sweet kiss to your lips. “aw, is my good girl all fucked out for me already? s’okay, mama. i’ll do all the work for my pretty girl, mhm,” abby says, and, fuck, do you like it. abby’s easy on you as she pushes her cock deeper, gradually moving her hips faster with each second that passes by. naturally, your hands find abby’s back, digging marks into it as she begins to pound into you. “my baby played so good for me, didn’t she?” abby asks you. you nod as pleasure washes over you, your eyes shutting closed. “mmm, yeah, i did, abby. i did,” you whine in response. abby’s smile widens, almost cockily so, as she pulls her cock almost fully out of you, before slamming back inside as if she never left. “yeah, you did, mama. such a good, fuck, good fucking girl. and i’m gonna reward this pretty pussy for it.”

divider creds !

𖥔 ࣪ ᥫ᭡ꗃ⋆࣪. tags: @sugarevans @spacewlf @hangeishere @elsdoll @flowersforvi @yondaimekazzy @carolb111 @marsworlddd @amourrs @smvtreader124 @viisgrave @elliesbff

[lestappentrain]

I've Been Watching You For Ages, And I Spend My Time Tryin' Not To Feel It

The 2024 F1 season is over and Charles is ready to take a break from all of it, but before he can do that he gets one brief break before the FIA Gala.

His chosen place to be at? Wherever Max is at the moment.

Or;

5 Times Charles thinks about how his relationship with Max has changed from other people POV and one time he knows it will never change for them.

Read on Aao3

[toppamplemousse]

just screeching tires and true love

bonus part of there you'll stand (next to me)

14 December 2023 Twitter.com

ASmonaco4ever: so I was watching the today’s game at slammers and i swear charles leclerc and max verstappen (the f1 drivers) were there watching it together and they kept arguing about the game but like. idk it was a VERY flirty vibe. also charles hugged me when we won so life can only go down from here. his eyes are SO green. Reply multi21seb: PLEASE TELL ME YOU TOOK PICTURES PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE

or; the social media chat fic that follows the events from there you'll stand (next to me) on ao3

[emloafs]

a binary boyfriends au where the house fight on December 19th never happened, demetri and eli never make up in high school, and the universe keeps pushing them back together (Boston college au)

aka I wanna gage if anyone would read this fic..... (UPDATE: it's written!)

Demetri is having a shitty morning, so he can’t catch a break. 

Maybe he was moving too fast. Maybe he was in a rush to get back to his apartment and finally attempt the other nine pages of the ten-page essay he should’ve already finished. Maybe the whole thing could be blamed on his long limbs or his natural clumsiness, but Demetri is fully convinced that this guy ran into him. Not the other way around. 

And there goes his second coffee of the day–all over his sneakers, the cafe floor, and the guy who shoulder-checked him at full force. 

“Shit!”

“C’mon, man!” the guy barks at the same time. 

The guy has the hood of his green sweatshirt pulled up over his head, likely doing very little against the weather outside. He’s got wired earbuds in–like all pretentious douchebags do–and Demetri bitterly thinks he must have his music too loud to be aware of his surroundings, hence the collision. His worn utility jacket may have saved the hoodie from the spill but it looks completely ruined now.

Arguably, Demetri is much better off, notably not covered in hot coffee. But, this is his second spilled coffee in a single morning, and the universe is out to get him, so this guy isn't going to hear the end of it.

“You ran into me!” Demetri protests, fuming. 

The guy flicks both his arms a few times, trying to wring out any dripping coffee from his coat sleeves.

Demetri’s never been good at biting his tongue and right now he’s too pissed to hold back. “Maybe if you were actually paying attention to the world around you, and not just plowing in here without a care for other customers or your surroundings, you wouldn’t have ran me over! You know, that’s my second spilled coffee today. I have half a mind to demand you get me a new one-”

The guy finally looks up seemingly to find who is responsible for dumping a medium-sized hot latte all over him. His face is half covered by his hoodie and Demetri can only see an intense side-eye of annoyance as a response to his lecture on the important or personal space. Then, he straightens quickly and narrows his eyes, leaning slightly in to the limited space occupied by a puddle of cooling steamed milk and espresso between them.

“And truly it’s blatantly a matter of safety–”

They lock eye contact and the guy’s eyes widen comically and his eyebrows shoot up so high they disappear above the overhang of his hood.

His voice cracks a little as he interrupts Demetri’s rambling.

“Dem?”

Demetri’s words die halfway through his sentence. Does he know this guy?

The stranger shakes his head roughly and clears his throat. “Sorry, it's just- I…” He looks Demetri up and down and narrows his eyes again. “Is your name Demetri?”

And that's… odd. Demetri inspects the guy’s face as best he can under the sweatshirt hood. He seems sort of familiar, but Demetri can't place it. 

Demetri shifts from one foot to the other, suddenly unsure of how to hold his weight under this guy’s intense gaze. “Um. Yes?”

“Oh my- holy shit!” The guy lets out a laugh of disbelief and pulls out his earbuds, letting them hang out of the top of his hoodie. “This is crazy.” 

He roughly shoves his hood off of his head, and Demetri’s heart drops into the bottom of his stomach. 

He rakes his hand through a thick mop of shaggy light brown hair. Hiding under the hood was a pair of startling blue eyes that Demetri really should’ve recognized. As the not-so-stranger pats the hoodie down behind his neck, Demetri has a clear picture of his entire face. And just before Demetri can come up with a plausible theory on doplegängers, his eyes land on the faint scar rippling from the guy’s upper lip to his nose.

There's just no goddamn way.

So, since Demetri really can’t catch a break this morning, his childhood best friend, Eli Moskowitz, is standing in front of him, covered in his second latte of the morning. 

And Demetri wants to say fuck off or what are you doing here or get out of my city or honestly just walk away, but he’s rendered completely frozen. Demetri feels a little like a cartoon character when their jaw completely unhinges and hits the floor with a comical clang. He’s left buffering like a YouTube video being played with a shitty wifi connection.

He hasn’t seen Eli since high school. Hasn’t talked to him in even longer. It’s probably been four years since they last spoke. Not that Demetri is counting. What the hell is he doing in Boston? What the hell is he doing this close to MIT? Just… what the hell?

Eli’s excited expression falters when Demetri doesn’t respond. He scratches the back of his neck sheepishly. 

“It’s uh- It’s Eli. Moskowitz?”

Demetri notes first that he introduces himself as Eli, not that ridiculous nickname he coined in school.

He says it as if Demetri doesn’t know. He says it as if Demetri wouldn’t recognize him faster than the back of his own hand even all these years later. His hair is long, too long. It’s curling over his ears and nearly touching his shoulders, and Demetri is pissed because it still looks good. He looks older, he looks better, and all Demetri can see is the tiny Eli he met in first grade who was missing both his front teeth. 

Demetri doesn’t know what to make of any of it. This feels like some cosmic joke. 

“Uh, no, yeah. Yeah. What- What are you doing here?” Demetri finally manages. His voice sounds a little strangled, but the question comes out bluntly and a bit harsh. 

“Uh,” Eli starts, glancing around, and letting out a confused laugh. He raises an eyebrow and shoves his hands in his pockets, gesturing with his coat around the cafe. “Getting coffee? What are you doing here?” he teases.

Demetri really doesn’t have time for this. He rolls his eyes. “Not here. What are you doing in Boston?” he demands. 

Eli’s playful expression falls. He furrows his eyebrows. “I live here.”

And that’s- that can’t be right. Demetri lives here. Demetri just started his second semester of his junior year at MIT a month ago. He certainly would’ve noticed if Eli Moskowitz lived in Boston. Right?

“You live… in Boston?”

“Yeah,” Eli shrugs, looking much too nonchalant for Demetri’s liking. “I go to BU.” He cocks his head slightly to the side and earnestly says, “I thought you knew that.” 

Demetri did not know that. That’s the thing about no contact. Demetri’s had Eli blocked in all forms of communication since their junior of high school. It’s sort of hard to keep tabs on someone when they’re pretty strictly out-of-sight, out-of-mind. 

[jakesguitarsolo]

i can’t stop thinking about your impure jake thought, “Be angry all you want. Even better. How about you ride me like you hate me, then I’ll fuck you like I love you? How does that sound?”

like OH. MY GOD. 🥵🥵

thank you for sharing😩 need this turned into a fic ASAP

I can’t stop thinking about it either. I’m definitely no writer, just have a few filthy thoughts about Jake every single day of my life 🫠 BUT I’d imagine the scenario to go something like —

Warnings: minors DNI! 18+ only, SMUT, angst, fluff, arguing, negative self body talk, alcohol use, name calling, penetrative sex, unprotected sex, air/breath play, riding, probably some more but I’m new to this so forgive me.

You gave Jake the silent treatment all the way home, wanting him to figure out on his own why you were so upset. You usually loved when fans saw Jake out and wanted to say hi or get a picture. This time was different. She was very blatantly flirting with him. Right in front of you. And he was fucking flirting back? You almost couldn’t believe it, but you knew his signs well. Not to mention, in your mind, she was everything you weren’t. Tall. Blonde. Blue eyed. Skinny. The hug Jake gave her lingered for a moment too long. He stared deep into her eyes while she was going on and on about how amazing of a guitarist he was. You saw his eyes flicker from hers down to her lips and back up again. By this time, your blood was fucking boiling.

Jake finally pulled up the car up to your shared home, and you immediately exited the car practically sprinting to the door so he wouldn’t see the unshed tears in your eyes. Slamming the door before he could make it inside, you took off up the stairs to the bedroom. But he was quick behind you. You had already stripped yourself of your tight dress and threw on one of Jake’s big tshirts. Noticing that something was clearly wrong now, Jake entered the room and asked you “Sweetheart, what happened? I don’t understand why you’re so mad. I thought we were having a good night out together.” Maybe it was the few drinks in your system, but you couldn’t hold back as you screamed “Are you fucking kidding me Jake?! Don’t act like you weren’t just flirting with that gorgeous fan like the attention whore you are!” You were so angry that you were shaking. Jake chuckled. “Oh you think that’s funny? What the fuck is wrong with you?”

Jake slowly made his way across the room and right up to you. Your breath hitched as he pressed his warm body into yours. He bent down, cupping your jaw with his rough, calloused hands and whispered into your ear “Be angry all you want. Even better. How about you ride me like you hate me, then I’ll fuck you like I love you? How does that sound?” Fuck. Your knees went weak. Jake always knew just what to say to make you cave and give in to him. Your body constantly longed for him. Craved him. The wetness between your thighs was immediate and undeniable. You could feel his already hard cock straining against his pants. You went to look up at him wanting to kiss him, but he backed away. Not looking away from you, he unbuttoned the rest of the buttons on his shirt and pulled it off his shoulders letting it fall to the floor. Your mouth was salivating. God, he was so fucking beautiful. You never could resist him. Jake kicked off his shoes and unzipped his pants, but didn’t take them off. Just let them hang low on his hips as he got on the bed and sat up against the headboard. “Come over here and take what you want.”

You were still so damn mad at him. Part of you knew that he did it on purpose. He loved when you took control. He loved to let you take your anger out on him and then show you how much he wanted you and only you. Your pure carnal instinct took over as you went over to him on the bed, grabbed him by the throat, got on top of him, and crashed your lips hard into his. Jake smirked into the kiss, squeezing your hips and pulling you down on his lap. Urging you to grind down on him. He opened his mouth up to yours as you pushed your tongue against his. Retreating from his lips briefly, you grabbed the hem on your shirt and pulled it over your head. Jake’s hands and mouth went right to your chest as he flicked his tongue on your nipple making it hard instantly. You were already getting to work on his pants, pushing them further down trying to free his thick cock from his boxers. Jake groaned as you grabbed his cock in one hand, sat up higher on your knees, and lined him up with your soaking wet pussy. Lowering yourself slowly onto him, you threw your head back in ecstasy attempting to hold back a moan. As crystal clear as it was that you were enjoying every second of this, you were still pissed at him and wanted him to know it. “Use me however you want, sweetheart. Hate fuck me. Make yourself feel good.” Picking up the pace, your hand went back to his throat squeezing harder. Restricting his breath more and more. You could feel Jake’s body harden and tense beneath you as you rode him mercilessly, moving up and down on cock. You released your grip on his neck and moved your hand to the back of his head, up into his soft, long hair and pulled hard, angling his head back into the headboard. Jake whimpered and moaned at your harsh touch. His nails were digging into the meat of your hips when you switched up your movements and started grinding back and forth on him. Grinding your clit deliciously against his pelvis with his cock buried deep inside you. Fuck, you were close and he knew it. “Keep going, sweetheart. I can feel you squeezing me. You wanna cum on my cock? Take it. It’s all yours.” Those words were all it took. Like clockwork, you were unraveling on top of him. Cumming harder than you ever had before. Your entire body was tingling.

You felt Jake peppering light kisses all over your neck and chest as you slowly came down from your high. With glossy eyes, you looked down at him and said “Wow… Jake that was amazing. Shit.” You were still livid with him, but couldn’t help but praise him after that incredible orgasm. He grabbed you by the back of your waist, pulling you close to his body, and flipped you over so you were now underneath him. “Oh you didn’t think we were done now, did ya sweetheart? No, no, no… I know you had fun hate fucking me but it’s my turn to show you how much I want you. Show you how much I love you.” With that, he slowly started pumping in and out of you. He was still rock hard and deep inside you as he hadn’t pulled out of you from before. You moaned and closed your eyes when he started moving his hips. Jake cupped your jaw bringing his forehead flushed to yours. “Nuh-uh. Keep those eyes on me, sweetheart. I want to look into those pretty eyes when I make you cum on my cock again.” His thumb went to your bottom lip, tugging it down so your mouth was slightly parted, as he brought his lips to yours in a heated, passionate kiss. Jake continued his deep, long strokes and swallowed your soft whimpers and moans in the process. “Does that feel good, sweetheart? You were made for me. Feel how perfectly I fill you up?” You couldn’t help it as your legs wrapped around his hips, pulling him closer, deeper into you, “Yes, Jake. Fuck. Please, more.” Your eyes welled up with tears when he quickly pulled out of you. “What the- What the hell, Jake?”

“Turn over. On your hands and knees. Now.” You obliged his demand right away. Waiting, begging for him to put his cock back inside and start fucking you again. Jake got behind you and started teasing your pussy, rubbing the head of his cock against your clit as you involuntarily arched your back more and pushed your hips back. You could tell he was smirking when he said, “Patience, sweetheart. I’ll give you what you want. I want to take my time and show you how much I fucking love you.” Finally, he lined his cock up with your dripping entrance and groaned as he pushed himself inch by inch into you once again. You lowered yourself onto your forearms, sticking your ass up even more and moaned into the sheets. Jake picked up his speed, setting a relentless pace. Fucking into you deep and hard now. “Fuck, sweetheart. You look so fucking beautiful taking my cock so damn well. Do you want to see?” Before you could get a word out, he grabbed you by the neck and pulled you up so your back was pressed to his front. He pointed at the full length mirror in your bedroom, angled perfectly towards the bed for moments like these. He loved watching the look on your face as he touched and pleasured every inch of you body, and tonight was no exception. “Look at yourself. Look at how your body reacts to mine. How it needs mine. How much I need you.” You couldn’t hold back your moans at this point. Just the way he spoke to you was enough to make you cum again. He always made you feel wanted. Always made you feel appreciated. In this moment, you couldn’t even remember why you had been jealous. Jake was yours. You were his. That had been evident since you met. He could feel you getting close again so he reached around to your front and starting rubbing tight circles on your clit. He kept his eyes on your face from behind you through the mirror, almost mimicking your facial expressions. Jake got off on making you feel good. That’s all he ever wanted. It didn’t take much longer. “I love you, sweetheart. You know that, right? I love you so fucking much.” The heat started to spread throughout your body. Your body went numb for a brief second before the orgasm ripped through you, sending tidal waves of pleasure to every limb. Jake felt your walls flutter and spasm around his cock as he came with you. Filling you up with his cum and fucking it deep into your pussy. Your head fell back on his shoulder. You both attempted to calm your heavy breathing and panting as you came down together from quite possibly the best orgasm you both had ever had. Yup, you were wrong. THAT was the hardest you had ever came. Jake grabbed your chin, bringing his mouth to yours once again as he whispered “Tell me you love me too, sweetheart.” You looked into his caramel brown eyes and without hesitation said, “You know I love you, Jake. I love you so much it hurts.” He smiled, slowly pulled out of you and you both immediately missed the feeling of being as physically close as possible. He lightly kissed your lips and told you not to move. Jake cleaned you up and ushered you into the bed naked so he could hold you close as you both slowly drifted off to sleep. “I guess I should get mad at you more often.”

[scintillatingshortgirl19]

tfw you start writing a wilson lives au and the more progress you make the more it dawns on you that, despite watching 8 seasons of a medical drama, it turns out that apparently not one ounce of medical knowledge has stuck with you

[rookintheforgottenrealms]

Was tagged by the lovely @dell-amor-te for a Sunday Snippet (although I'm a few days early, or many days late) hehe.

Enjoy this lil snippet of Part IV of the Rook In Fade Jail Fic! Which I'm still painstakingly working on! It's coming folks!

Tagging @thewardenisonthecase @juneiper-art @lightan117 and @hawkeish and any other writing mutuals who'd like to participate (as usual no pressure hehe <3)

[yourlocaldilemma]

Golden Thoughts {part 4} (ln4)

Lando Norris x fem!sprinter!reader

word count: 2.1k

part 4/? part one, part two, part three, part four, part five

warnings: not edited

a/n: comment and reblog :) feedback is much appreciated! ______________________________________________

The cold corners, minimal furniture and stark white paint of Lando’s flat are the exact opposite of the bubbly boy that stands in front of you.

“Sooooo?” He drags out the word while bouncing on the balls of his feet. You’re standing in the kitchen, the ocean infront of you, cooking space behind you and his large flat spanning further to the right. 

“It’s completely lovely, it’s just not as you as I thought it would be.”

“Were you expecting a university frat boys place?” He tosses a smirk in your direction.

His response pulls a smile to your face. “I was expecting some art on the walls, maybe some of your merch lying around.”

“There’s merch in a closet somewhere,” he chuckles, “a lot of it.”

His voices softens into a curious tone. “As for the art, it’s complicated, but sometimes it feels easier to-, it’s almost-, I feel like-,”

“Like if you personalize it then it feels like home, and when it feels like home it be becomes that much more impossible to be away so much.” You finish his thought for him.

“Exactly.” A shared look of understanding flashes from your face to his. The sport may be different but you share a similar lifestyle.

Tapping your nails on the quartz counter to end the weighted silence, you seat yourself on one of the barstools placed beneath the kitchen island. 

“I cooked last time.” You explain after he makes no effort to move. 

Hesitantly he begins to pull utensils from shelves, looking severely out of place even in his own kitchen. There’s very little food in the large fridge, and less than 30 seconds into watching him try to slice a cucumber you decide to take over. His cuts are uneven, messy, and his fingers seem at high risk. 

“You don’t cook much do you.” 

“You’re judging! No judging!” He whines and laughs, rubbing his hands over his face. 

You join him behind the counter as you regain the same easy dance of cooking and conversation as in Australia. You learn that he always has chicken and salad before race day, he’s always wanted a kitten and you pick up on his habit of wringing his hands when he’s nervous or excited. By the time you finish cooking, you know more about him than you ever thought possible.

~~

Lando takes a running leap onto the couch like an overexcited puppy.   

“Where’s your bathroom?”

“Down that hallway to the right.” He points with a nod. Humming a thanks, you walk down the hallway he directed. The bathroom, not unlike the rest of the house, is almost completely white with only small silver features. The counter is scattered with what you assume to be an assortment of Lando’s colognes. 

You wander back into the living room to find Landos eyebrows scrunched and a twinkling light of amusement in his eyes as he looks down, features accentuated by the glow of a screen . The edges of your lips turn up in a slow smile at his childlike expression before you recognize the phone case as yours. Your heart skips a beat in advance of dropping into your suddenly cold stomach. 

Only after he raises his head to look at you do you realize you’ve been standing at the hallway entrance for long seconds. 

“Care to explain?” He twerks an eyebrow upwards and nods at your phone. Your rapidly beating heart doesn’t slow as you amble your way over to sit next to him on the couch, overly nervous for no exact reason.

When he flips the phone around to let you analyze the screen, The Notification Centre is overflowing with alerts. The first three pop ups that catch your eye are all courtesy of the F1 app. News Headlines and reports from qualifying sided with little pictures span the screen. 

“I don’t see what you find so entertaining. I never read those articles anyway.”

“Sometimes I do,” Lando ventures with a roll of his shoulders, “to know what people are mad at me for. That’s not what I was talking about though.”

You meet his ocean blue orbs as his deep pink lips stretch into a grin. what would it feel like to have them on your-

“You have my Instagram notifications on.” He stated proudly.

You lash out to snatch your phone from his grip, swiping to clear everything from your Lock Screen. 

Pointing your nose upwards dramatically, you reply with a sarcastic flourish. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Lando just hums a sunshiney tune under his breath and stares at you with a bright smile, like you just solved global hunger. 

“I’m going to find a movie now and you’re going to braid my hair.” You salute him behind his back as he moves to let you begin to braid. 

“How does the little mermaid sound?”

“Amazing.” You giggle at his choice. 

Not 20 minutes into the movie, you feel Landos now braid-adorned head drop onto your shoulder. You expect to see him grinning cheekily up at you but when you look down his eyes are closed, and he’s taking little soft breaths. 99.9 percent of you wants to shake him until he wakes up but with his race tomorrow you decided you can let him get some sleep. 

You focus on the movie, but feeling your phone vibrating in your pocket breaks your concentration. You see four messages from Charles and cross your fingers he doesn’t somehow know you’re at Landos as you unlock your phone. 

You know Lando is awake again when you feel tingling breaths on your neck as he peeks over you shoulder to look at your phone. Even though the texts are all written in French, it isn’t hard to translate the angry meaning of the emojis and multiple uses of Landos name. You can see him frown in the reflection of your phone and his mouth twitches as if he can’t decide what to say.

“He’s going to hate me forever.” You complain.

“He will never hate you. He just needs to get the fact that you’re not only his anymore through his thick head.” Lando wiggles further back into the couch. “He will, on the other hand, hate me forever, which might cause some problems for my PR team.”

A breathy laugh escapes your mouth as you tip your head back to meet the couch cushion. 

“I don’t think I was his in the first place.” You scold Lando with a sarcastic undertone that he doesn’t seem to catch seeing how quickly he sits up to look at you.

“I didn’t mean it like that of course you weren’t his, you’re nobody’s I just mean,” his rambling pauses thoughtfully, “I think he kept you a secret for more reasons then he told you.”

You roll your eyes. “What are you talking about Lando?”

“I mean look at you. You’re absolutely gorgeous,body and soul. And you’re brilliant, and hilarious and independent, and I think you care a lot more than you let on. Charles knew that anyone who met you would never want to leave you alone, meaning he would lose more of you. So he kept you to himself.” 

Looking down at his lap, Landos flushed a deep rose colour that blooms from his neck to the tips of his ears. You can feel your face prickling with heat alike his. Those were not words that were exchanged by “just friends”. Your breaths sync as the room goes completely silent around you. 

“Thank you, Lando. That was beautiful. No one has said anything like that about me in a very, very long time,” you whisper, as his forehead swims closer and closer to yours in the thick air that filled the room as he spoke. 

“It’s true.”

“Lando.” You meant it as a warning but it comes out as more of a gentle whimper as you look up through your lashes to see his eyes, sapphire swirled with pastel teal and flecks of powder blue all in one. 

You watch his Addams apple bobs as he swallows and pulls away. 

“Sorry.”

“Don’t be.” 

You both return to watching the movie but the colors blur together and a grainy glaze slides over your eyes. The feeling of Lando being so close to you has a hazy veil over you. You’re still close enough you can feel his soft hoodie brushing against your arm.

“I should probably go soon. I have a really early flight tomorrow.”

“You could sleep here.”

He suggests it so easily, like you’d slept over at his place time and time again. 

“Lando, I barely know you and you barley know me.”

“I’d like to though.”

A hopeful smile makes your eyes crinkle as you look at him and Lando, who returns it, extends his legs to lie down on the couch. When he catches your pursed lips and the skepticism that roles off you in waves, he sighs. 

“One hour. It’s not that late and I’ll drive you back after.”

“Lando, I'm not good with things like this. I’ve always been someone who’s better alone. I didn’t have many friends growing up and track never helped with that much. And over time, I realized it’s better that way!”

“Because you won’t get hurt?”

“If you love someone or something, you’re giving them the ability to hurt you. I love sprinting with my entire soul, so that already one thing,” you shrug, “it’s just easier.”

“I get that. I truly do. But what I’ve learned is that if you don’t take the risk you could miss out on loving something that could make you happy.”

He catches your eyes and you can’t tear your gaze away from the jewels of his eyes. 

“Just an hour?” His dimples show as he gives you an endearing smile. 

~~~ 

You can feel bright sunlight on your eyelids and a warm entity encircling your body in a way that feels comfy and safe. The light only seems to grow until you inwardly moan and flip around in a fruitless attempt to escape the suns beams. Disoriented and tired, you split your eyes open the tiniest bit to allow the world to fade into view. 

The sun directly in your face once again, you shift again. A low groan rings from behind you and your memory returns in one fast SnapBack to reality. 

“Shit!”

the comforting warm blanket Lando groans again as you try to sit up. His hand is wrapped low and tight around your waist which must of happened sometime during the night. 

The night you weren’t supposed to spend at his house in the first place.

You hiss at him. “Lando! I have a flight this morning!”

He makes a noise of protest but releases his grip on you. 

You scramble around, swearing in multiple languages while trying to find your phone. Lando watches you, still not half awake, from the couch. When you find your phone face down on the floor, you turn it on to nine missed notifications from Charles and a clock reading 5:30 am. 

Heaving a sigh of partial relief you sit up straight and immediately notice the kinks in your back. You were going to pay for yesterday in more ways than one. 

“I still have two hours before I have to leave for the airport.” You state to no one in particular, your brain working a thousand miles a minute. 

“So things aren’t as bad as they seem. I’m still fucked mind you, just not as deeply. All my stuff is at my hotel still. Oh my-“ you pull at your hair as blood rushes to your head when you stand up. 

Lando pats the spot you were lying in only moments earlier. 

“Shit is going to get fucked either way Y/N. come back to bed.”

“Lando!”

“Just for 3 minutes? I’ll drive you to the airport after?” 

“Lando!!”

~~~~ 

After running around like a chicken with its head cut off, you make it to the airport seven minutes earlier then you wanted to. As you pull the luggage out of the boot of Landos car, you can see him fiddling with his hands again, pulling his rings on and off. 

Peeking his head over the dark tinted windows, he meets your eyes. 

“Thank you for having me for dinner. Even if you did trick me into spending the night at your place.” 

“Best sleep I’ve had in a while.” He smirks.

“Goodbye.” 

“Not goodbye.” 

You raise an arched eyebrow at him.

“I’ll see you soon.”

“You seem sure of that Mr. Norris.”

“I am.” He turns on his car and begins to inch away

You call after the slowly moving car. “Oh and Lando? Good luck tomorrow!” 

The morning sun glints off the top of his dark McLaren, the brake lights blinking red as he slows to peek his messy morning curls out the window. 

“I got my braid!”

[ascendingtostardust]

Help You Remember

(Sam Kiszka x f!reader)

wc: 1.2k

Warnings: mentions of food/eating, mentions of poor memory - let me know if I missed anything!

When it came down to it, Sam was a creature of habit. Of course he liked to be spontaneous and off-the-cuff on occasion, but he found himself in falling into a familiar rhythm day-to-day when he had some time off from working. That meant that you also stepped into those routines that comprised your daily life together.

You don’t know when exactly it happened, but at some point over the last few months you and Sam had become regulars at a little bakery down the street from your home. Every Monday and Friday mornings before the morning rush, the employees at Snookums came to expect the two of you just as they finished putting the last tray of morning muffins in the case. It had become customary for you and Sam to always choose something different than you had picked out the previous visit “to keep life exciting,” Sam had said.

Their flavors of muffins, danishes, rolls, and loaves rotated weekly, which only highlighted your indecisiveness and poor memory as you stood peering through the glass case to figure out what treat you were going to choose for the day. Ever the patient partner, Sam would wait as long as you needed to come to a decision with nothing more than a simple “you did say you were in the mood for lemon last night and look! Lemon muffins today!”

After your first few trips to the bakery, you couldn’t help but be apologetic about how long it took you to decide what you wanted when Sam made a choice less than 30 seconds after glancing at his options. He wasn’t like previous partners or friends who got frustrated with your struggle to make decisions for yourself or your memory issues on occasion. He waited by your side, thumb brushing over the top of your hand as he asked the employees how their morning was going.

Today was no different than previous trips to Snookums, however you knew that the two of you would have to hurry home to meet one of Sam’s friends who was dropping off seedlings for his garden. The smell of warm baked goods filled your lungs and brought a sense of calm to your busy mind as you stepped into the bakery and immediately took in your muffin options.

Chocolate chip hazelnut, blueberry crumb, banana nut, and triple chocolate.

Greeting the two employees with a smile and a quick hello, you mulled over your decision and felt Sam come to stand slightly behind you, wrapping an arm around your lower back as he hummed softly.

“What can I grab for you, Sam?” one of the regular Friday morning workers, Jenna, asked, knowing that Sam always made his mind up rather quickly.

“Hmmmm….” After another look at the glass case, Sam’s gaze turned to you. “You know what, Jenna, I’m going to let my girl pick hers out first today.”

It was hard not to crack a smile in response to the goofy grin he gave you, silently encouraging you. You had to make a decision, and fast.

“I’ll have a hazelnut chocolate chip, please.” Smiling at Jenna and thanking her as she put your muffin in a light pink box, you turn to Sam.

“I’ve never tried that one before but it sounds good, right?” You say quietly, leaning into his side.

“Sounds delicious, actually!” He responds, giving you a quick peck on the forehead before ordering a banana nut muffin for himself.

“Ooo banana nut, one of my favorites!” You say to him as the two of you follow Jenna down the counter to the register. Sam responded with a sweet smile and squeeze of your hand before letting go to grab his wallet from his back pocket.

On the walk home, it didn’t take long for you to reach into the small box containing your treats and pull a small piece of your muffin from the side of the rounded top. The excitement of trying something new quickly faded the more you chewed and realized that the flavor wasn’t exactly what you expected. With a hum, you close the box and continue walking, though you can feel Sam studying your face without being too obvious.

“Was it good, lovey?” He said finally, reaching to take the box from your hand and cradle it in one of his own arms.

“Um,” you started, trying not to sound too disappointed, “it was okay! Everything they make is good, so…” You let your voice trail off and the sight of your shared home came into view.

Walking up the few steps to the front door, you began mentally going through what ingredients you had to possibly make your own muffins to make up for the one that wasn’t quite your taste.

Once inside, you began looking through your cabinets for the typical baking essentials, feeling Sam lean up against the counter next to you a moment later.

“Can I tell you a secret?” He said, quickly looking around jokingly to make sure no one else would hear his confession, though it was just the two of you in your home.

Onto his antics, you giggle and decide to play along, turning your head to face your ear towards him and leaning in close. He bent slightly and leaned in so close that you could feel his lips ghost over the shell of your ear.

“You tried the hazelnut chocolate chip muffin a few weeks ago and didn’t like it,” he whispered. You turn your head to look at him, eyes wide with the realization that you had, in fact, tried that flavor at the end of last month. It was all coming back to you.

“I finished it for you and found it quite delicious, so when you picked that one again I knew we needed a backup!” He grabbed the pink box from its resting place on the counter and opened it, taking the untouched banana nut muffin out and placing it on a small plate he had set out. Sliding it towards you, he reached his hand out to squeeze your shoulder lightly.

“Now…what are we thinking drink-wise? Coffee? Milk? Tea?” He moved around you to open the fridge, peering at any other potential options.

“I love you.” You said, turning to face him as he stands in front of the open fridge, already grinning when he meets your gaze.

“Oh yeah? Well I love you more, lovey.” He lets the refrigerator door swing shut quietly as he reaches out to pull you close to his chest, moving his palm in circular motions between your shoulder blades.

“As much as I would love to hold you all day, we do need to decide on what to drink with our breakfast so we can take this party outside and enjoy the sun a little before the day really starts!”

You let your head fall back, “umm okay, let me think for a minute…”

“Take all the time you need.”

[mae-lou-ron]

I think my favorite thing about giving yourself over to the writing process, is how you have no control over where the brainrot takes you sometimes.

Like, today started out fine writing a filthy fun little 'x reader' one shot with Jango Fett, and now all of a sudden I'm researching Mandalorian clans and armor styles, and the reader is now a Mandalorian OC and that one shot has become an outline for a chaptered longfic?

[analogwriting]

It Comes in Waves

Chapter 10: Spilling Waves

Trafalgar Law x gn!reader word count: 2.8k first|next

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You followed Chopper to the deck. You barely stepped a foot out the door before you heard Luffy screaming your name followed by the immediate feeling of his limbs wrapping around your body as he hugged you tightly. You yelped as his body slammed with yours.

“Hey, Luffy,” you choked out. 

“LUFFY BE CAREFUL THEY ARE STILL RECOVERING!!!” Chopper was going to blow a gasket at this rate. You looked at the reindeer. “It's okay, Chopper. I'll be fine.”

You patted Luffy's back. 

“I thought I lost you,” he mumbled, his face buried in your neck. That statement hurt your heart. “Can't get rid of me that easily.” You tried to lighten the mood but he was quiet for a moment more. Even with his carefree attitude, you knew that his brother’s death affected him. You thought about all the times the three of you happened to run into each other. They were always fun.

He slowly let you go and air slowly came back to your lungs. “I didn't mean to scare you. Sorry,” you mumbled, ruffling his hair once you were able to fully move again. 

Once he let go, you gave him a proper hug. You pulled away, looking at him with pride. Much like an older sibling would. “Look at you! I think you grew a few inches!” You laughed. Your eyes landed on his scar and that day filled your mind but you tried to not let it dampen your mood. 

Though, it was in the shape of an ‘x’. Probably because his life was a treasure.

“I did, actually! I'm also a lot stronger now! I can use haki!” You grinned at him lazily, putting your hands on your hips. “Well, shit. Looks like the title of King of the Pirates is already yours,” you mused, once more ruffling his hair.

Luffy quickly pulled you to the table to start eating. He was talking your ear off, getting you caught up. You greeted everyone, catching up and making small talk with everyone. They all filled you in on what they had been up to.

 As time went on, everyone dispersed into their own conversations. You noticed two people you had never seen before. “Who…?” You looked at Luffy who followed your gaze back to the two newcomers.

“They're a couple of people we ran into on Punk Hazard.”

“My name is Kinemon and this is my son, Momonosuke.” You immediately noted the way they spoke. “Sir Luffy has been kind enough to let us accompany you all to your next destination.”

You nodded. “Uh, I'm Y/n.” The man, Kinemon, nodded back. “I have heard a great deal about you. Sir Luffy seems to hold you in high regards. As does Sir Law.” Luffy you were expecting, but Law? He talked about you when you weren’t around? You had a hard time believing it. He probably just chimed in. Though, you thought about his behavior earlier. Now that you thought about it, where was he?

The samurai spoke up again. “So, how did you meet Sir Luffy?” He looked at you with a curious look. You weren’t sure how to make him out quite yet. He seemed innocent enough, but you were still weary towards strangers.

“Uh, well. Luffy and his crew kind of just…picked me up? Saved me.” You shrugged. “I had just escaped from the Marines. Very narrowly. I was floating on a piece of driftwood and Luffy, quite literally, grabbed me and pulled me onto his ship.” It was terrifying at the time. To suddenly be flying through the air when just moments before you were close to death. You had taken quite the beating at the time. Lost a lot of blood.

Luffy spoke up. “Oh yeah! I remember!” He cackled. “The face you made was so funny, y/n.”

“I would hope so considering you pummeled them right into me,” Zoro commented. He made a face.

You nodded, laughing softly. “Yeah…almost gave both of us a concussion. And that was before Chopper joined the crew so we would've just been nursing ourselves back to health.” Despite what had happened, you looked back on the memory fondly. You looked at Zoro. “And you yelled at me like it was my fault,” you said, narrowing your eyes.

“Let it go, that was forever ago.” He rolled his eyes. Or his eye. How did he get that scar? “I was literally bleeding out and you were scolding me like I did it on purpose. I’m never letting you live it down.” You snorted, shaking your head. “Never apologized either.” You sighed. “But Sanji made lunch as an apology after Nami helped patch me up. So, I guess it worked out.”

Luffy looked at you for a moment. “Remember what you told me that day?”

You paused, feeling your own face soften as you remembered that day fondly. “You were bouncing around and apologizing. The way you were acting, I had said that you reminded me of a friend of mine. That you two had even kind of looked alike.” You looked down for a moment. 

“You said I reminded you of Ace.” He didn’t introduce himself right away, so you didn’t know he was the Luffy that Ace had spoken so fondly of. It wasn’t until you had told him that that he had burst into a wide excited smile and started talking animatedly about him.

You nodded. “You did. You still do.” The energy around the table grew somber at the mention of the captain’s brother. He held a special place in the hearts of many that were on board currently. “Same unruly hair. Same crazy attitude. Not to mention your appetite.” That gained some laughs. 

“I'm sure it wasn't easy cooking with both of them on board, eh, Sanji?” The cook groaned at the thought of it. “So much food.” The two of them seemed to have endless stomachs. Luffy was enough, but Luffy and Ace? If you hadn’t seen it yourself, you never would’ve believed it.

“You know, you remind me of him too, y/n.” You blinked, looking at Luffy. You didn’t think you looked anything like him. “What do you mean?”

“You look after me and take care of me when you see me. Like Ace did. Almost like an older sibling!” 

You blinked, feeling heat rush up to your cheeks. “Well, you're like a little brother to me, so it works out.” You smiled, ruffling his hair again.

After that, conversations continued once more and everyone turned to their own thing. As people finished eating, they spread out on the deck, doing their own things. Towards the end of the night, you were on a bench, Luffy's head in your lap as he snoozed. You had a feeling he must have been missing his brother a lot tonight and that's why he was attached to you. It was clear now how much Luffy cared for you - like another sibling. You faintly remembered Ace mentioning they had another brother but he had passed away a long time ago.

Luffy had lost two brothers and yet he still found reasons to smile. You didn’t know how he did it. You admired him for that. You were only recently finding your own smile again. All thanks to two brothers and co. 

“He really was worried, you know.” You looked up, seeing Robin. She was in passing to grab some cola for Franky when she noticed Luffy sleeping. “When Usopp and Law showed up with you, I thought he was going to lose it. Shut down like he did when…you know.” There was sadness in her eyes, but a fond smile on her face. You could see how much she cared about her captain. Luffy was lucky to have so many people that cared about him.

You frowned slightly as you thought. “He just has a big heart. He cares so much for everyone.” You don’t know why you kept trying to convince yourself you weren’t special in any kind of way.

“But not everyone reminds him of his big brother,” she mused, walking off again. It did make sense. You came in and out of his life, fretting over him whenever you saw him. Much like Ace had. You couldn't help it. When you found out he was Ace’s brother, you felt like you had to protect him. He was your best friend’s brother! Pretty much your own! 

You thought about various times you had run into Luffy. It was a whirlwind every time. A breath of fresh air. He was filled with so much warmth and love for those around him. It warmed your own heart and reminded you of the home you were forced to leave a long time ago. At the same time, it only strengthened your resolve in your mission. You wanted to make the world a safer place. You knew you couldn’t completely end slavery and take down the Celestial Dragons, but you did what you could.

“What are you thinking about?” You looked up, seeing Law. You shrugged, looking back down at Luffy. “Nothing in particular.”

“I don't believe you.” He looked at you, studying your face. “If I had to guess, I'd say that you're thinking about what Luffy said earlier.” 

You were quiet, staring at Luffy's sleeping face. He was right. You were still dwelling on it. Then something dawned on you. “Hold on. You weren’t even at dinner? How did you know?” You looked at him.

“Dinner was on deck. I just wasn’t at the table.” He shrugged. “I heard everything though.” You narrowed your eyes at him for a moment. Then you realized something.

“Wait. Why are you here?”

He stared at you. “Oh? Am I not allowed to be here? Are you upset that I’m here?” He smirked. You glared. “You and I both know that’s not what I meant,” you said. He held his hands up in surrender. “Alright, no need to get so hostile,” he mused. “No need to be so…feisty.” You stared at him for a moment before you burst into laughter and he chuckled along with you. “I completely forgot about him, oh my ocean.” 

Your laughter caused Luffy to stir and you quickly quieted down. “Oh, sorry,” you whispered to the sleeping man in your lap. He readjusted himself before snoring once more. You chuckled, looking at Law. “Gotta keep an eye on me now, huh,” you teased. Law smirked, nodding. “Oh yeah. Make sure I keep you in check or whatever he was going on about.” You both chuckled quietly to yourselves. Even though it was only a year ago - it felt much longer.

“So, tell me. Why are you here? Where’s everyone else?” You looked at him after making sure Luffy was still comfortably asleep. Law was quiet for a moment. “Luffy agreed to help me take down Doflamingo in Dressrosa.” You thought for a moment. That name sounded familiar. “The warlord?” He nodded. “Yeah. He…” For a moment, Law looked like he was about to tell you about something from his past before deciding against it. 

You opened your mouth to ask when Luffy began to stir.

“Y/n?” he asked, groggily. 

“Yes, Luff? I'm right here,” you crooked softly as you ran your hand through his hair. He adjusted himself before settling back down. “I just wanted to make sure you hadn't left yet,” he mumbled. “Don't leave without saying goodbye…” He drifted back off. 

“Do you make it a habit to leave without saying goodbye?” Law asked, referring to Luffy's words. You groaned. Not this again. You thought that was long forgotten at this point. You shook your head. “I don't. I think he was just saying it.”

“Ah, so just me then.”

You glared at Law. “Can we not do this right now? That was also forever ago.”

Before either of you could say anything else, the sound of Brook’s violin filled the air. You felt the exhaustion of the night's events catch up to you and before you knew it, you were also asleep. 

--

The next morning, you groaned. You noticed you were in bed. You sat up, holding your head. It was pounding. Water. You needed some water. You stood up, shuffling towards where the kitchen was. It must still have been early as only Sanji and Nami were in the kitchen. They were discussing something when you walked in. 

“Good morning, y/n!” They both chimed, a smirk on both of their faces. They even shared a look before glancing back at you. “What?” You looked at them. They were gossiping about something. “What did you two hear?” They only grinned in response. Oh, you didn’t like that.

“Sleep well?” Nami asked, there was a hint of something in her voice but you were too tired to figure it out. 

“Would you like some water?” Sanji held out a cup to you and you nodded. When you reached for the cup, that's when you realized you were wearing something that you didn't have on the night before. Your movements paused midair as you processed this. Nami and Sanji exchanged looks again, grinning at each other. “There it is.”

You were wearing the jacket that Law had been wearing the night before. How did you make it all the way to the kitchen without noticing? You were suddenly glad no one else was awake to see this. How did this happen?

“Listen-” You started, but the thief stopped you by holding up a photo. You took it, studying it. Your face immediately turned as red as the apples that Sanji was currently cooking with.

Luffy, Law, and you sitting on the bench, all fast asleep. Luffy’s head in your lap, your head on Law’s shoulder, and his head on yours. You couldn’t take your eyes off the picture. Mostly because you couldn’t meet Nami’s eyes right now.

“You guys look like a little family!” Nami teased, her shit eating grin growing larger somehow. “Nami, please,” you groaned, covering your face in embarrassment. “Everyone saw, you know.” Her teasing was going to kill you. You peeked at her through your fingers. “No they didn’t.” She looked at Sanji, who nodded. “Yeah. Just about everyone saw. Except Luffy, for obvious reasons.”

“We were tired! As if you guys haven't fallen asleep on each other before.”

Sanji and Nami shared, yet again, another look. Fuck. “Suuuure,” they both said, turning back to their own tasks. Nami went to take the photo back and you held it from her. “Oh, absolutely not. I’m destroying this.” She narrowed her eyes. “I don’t think so!” She hopped over the table to chase you and you yelped, turning on your heel and running out of the kitchen.

Only to run face first into someone's chest, sending the both of you tumbling down to the ground. You groaned, slowly lifting yourself up and coming face to face with Law. You froze, blinking as you processed. Law stared right back at you - he seemed to also be processing.

“Get a room!” Nami playfully called before going back into the kitchen with a triumphant look on her face, pulling you both out of your trance. You scrambled to get off of him, straightening yourself up and dusting yourself up. “Sorry,” you mumbled. You realized you still had the picture in your hand. You quickly shoved it into your necklace.

Law cleared his throat. “You really shouldn’t run out of a doorway. You never know if someone is on the other side.” You narrowed your eyes at him. “Really? A lecture this early in the morning?” Did he know how to interact without scolding? “You’re the one who bulldozed right into me,” he said. 

Then he looked at you. “Are you alright, y/n? You’re really red.” He reached out to put his hand on your forehead to feel for a fever and you dodged his hand. Mostly on instinct. “I am just fine, thank you. Nami just teasing me.” You waved it off. He looked at you. “Are you sure?” You nodded. 

You went to scurry off before anything else was said, wanting to forget what had just happened. “Wait, y/n-” Law reached out to grab you to stop you in your tracks, but grabbed the collar of the jacket, pulling it against your neck. You, already being somewhat flustered, felt the light pressure against your neck. In your surprise and with your guard being down due to illness, at least that’s what you’ll tell yourself, you let out a moan.

As soon as it sounded off, you clasped your hands over your mouth. Your face was a radiant red and Law even froze in his movements. You could see his own face turning red as he stared at you.  That was mortifyingly embarrassing. You could pass away right there. Then you absolutely booked it. You had to get as far as you could from him.

[corneliaavenue-ao3]

Do yall ever fantasize about hinny stories you will never write as you fall asleep or are you normal?

[dustdeepsea]

extended author's notes | castling

castling (Lucanis/Rook/Spite, DA: Veilguard, explicit): AO3 link

I wrote one of these notes for another fic (Nine Lives), and I really enjoy looking back at a completed project and talking about it. Here's the DVD commentary + my process notes for anyone who's interested below the cut!

An evolving story

castling was written after a 6-month writer's block. I talk a little about it here, but basically, it started out as a drabble that I kept adding on scenes to, and it changed along the way.

The original planned theme of the story was mimetic desire. Basically—do we value a thing for what is, or because others desire it greatly as well? In an OT3 this leads to interesting dynamics that I wanted to explore.

As I wrote and played more of the game, I found my second theme: acceptance of the shadow self. This eventually became the main theme I focused on, so I'll reproduce my fevered tags here:

what if the parts that you've been taught are ugly or wrong your whole life manifested as a literal demon

but that demon also gave you the strength to do what was required to survive

what if your trauma taught you survival mechanisms to keep you alive?

what if someone understood they were as much a part of you as everything they loved about you

what if they loved them just as much as the rest of you

what does forgiveness and letting go look like?

2. Remixing canon

I didn't want to do a straight retelling of the canon Rook/Lucanis romance (lots of authors have done a fantastic job of it! I don't know what I would add!)

The challenge I set myself was to branch off from the "Minrathous is saved" decision point. In this world state, Lucanis and Rook have been flirting gently up to "Coffee With The Crows", before things get messy. I wrote a few guiding statements and motivations:

Lucanis is hardened and becomes avoidant of Rook.

Rook must win back his trust through words and deeds ("Bloodbath").

Spite is fascinated by Rook, maybe even to a worrying degree. (To him, she is Determination personified.)

Spite has autonomy and wants to separate from Lucanis.

Rook reciprocates Spite's attentions. More importantly, she acknowledges his autonomy.

Lucanis cannot tell where is his desire for revenge and his attraction to Rook arises from—or he knows but is afraid to confront it.

Spite will never knowingly hurt Rook.

From there, it was easier to figure out the scenes I wanted to write, and everyone's behaviours. For example:

Spite becomes the obvious "wingman", manoeuvring situations to bring him (and Lucanis) closer to Rook.

Rook becomes the more active partner who initiates romantic gestures. There is no "almost kiss" scene in the pantry. Instead, Rook initiates a hand-kiss.

Spite uses "we" in the waking world but "I" in the Fade to refer to himself (special cookies for you if you spotted this :)

"Inner Demons" never happens in this world state. Instead, Spite and Lucanis learn to work together because of Rook.

3. In character

Ada "Rook" Aldwir

Rook's personality is pretty well defined in the game so I tried to stay true to it. ("Heroic nonsense saved your grandson and is rescuing you now.") She is outgoing, intuitive, and direct but ultimately well-meaning. Rook is a Veil Jumper—and no one goes into the haunted magic forest willingly if they love the modern city and systems they live in. (She hints at this in chapter 4, and I would love to explore it in future.) This affinity for the strange and liminal makes her sympathetic to Spite. Rook is more of a cipher in the earlier chapters, but I think she came to life in the sparring scene. The way she fights barehanded was inspired by wushu and the Monk class from DnD, focused on her element of lightning. (In Veilguard, she is a Spellblade.)

Spite

Spite is sarcastic, demanding and mercurial. I took a few liberties with this character, including picking he/him pronouns to add to the blurring of boundaries with Lucanis. Spite speaks much more eloquently in-game in the Fade (in Inner Demons), and I preferred that style. He begins castling by taking over Lucanis, but once he finds equilibrium (through them both agreeing on their feelings for Rook), they start sharing the pilot seat. I knew that I wanted Spite and Rook to have a connection, apart from Lucanis, so the Fade was the natural place to set their "bottle episode". As I wrote about Spite and Lucanis' imprisonment, I realised that for a spirit who was content in the Fade, being ripped away and trapped in a limited form would be horrific. I didn't need to write elaborate, graphic torture after that—the implications for them were terrible enough. (Most of chapter 5 was me sobbing over this.)

Lucanis (I know he's everyone's blorbo, and I'll try not to step on any toes here!)

Lucanis is cautious, charming and kind. I chose to write him not as demisexual, but tied up in knots about sex and violence because of the nature of his work. I didn't want him to be an afterthought to the Rook/Spite relationship. He kept running away so much at the beginning, I was genuinely worried we would have no story, so I deliberately wrote chapter 4 from his POV. After that, Lucanis was surprisingly the easiest character for me to inhabit while writing. He's also such a naturally sweet character that his almost silly overprotectiveness of Rook just happened. I really enjoy the way they both play off each other, because Ada is such a Creature in so many ways, and he's simply moonstruck. It's one of my favourite dynamics that appears in my other stories as well.

4. Recurring motifs I enjoyed discovering

Not all of these were planned, but in no particular order: the knife to the neck, electricity, spirits/angels and demons, small repeated gestures (a lover's vocabulary), awareness of the breath, restraint/self-denial as torture, hand holding, the body as both a site of violence and pleasure.

5. In closing

If you made it all the way down here, thank you for listening to me ramble! I hope you enjoyed reading castling as much I did writing it: I learnt a lot, and I exorcised a lot of hang ups about my work in the process. I definitely have thoughts about how to improve the story (crucially, the Lucanis/Spite relationship is missing here), but I'll take that energy into the next piece.

I realise most of this is about the "framework" of the story; if you'd like to know my thoughts around any particular scenes please feel free to send me an ask anytime <3

[gilly-moon]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Rise of the Guardians (2012), Guardians of Childhood - William Joyce Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Jack Frost/Pitch Black Characters: Jack Frost (Guardians of Childhood), Pitch Black (Guardians of Childhood) Additional Tags: Howl’s Moving Castle AU, Sort Of, Smut, monster fucking, using jack’s fears as kinks (of course), Rough Sex, Curses!AU, BlackIce Series: Part 2 of Curses AU Summary:

"Tell me," Pitch growled as he parted from the kiss. The points of his teeth were still bared, a tinge of blood left on them. "What are you afraid of?"

He carried Jack over to the nest of blankets and pillows that served as his bed, leaning over to lay Jack out across its center without forcing them to separate.

Where the hell do I even start? Jack thought, exasperated. He just wanted Pitch to touch him properly, but from the way he was bracing himself over Jack, watching him with those glowing golden eyes…

"Teeth," Jack gasped out, jerking his hips up to seek any sort of friction. "You…your teeth could tear through my throat."

[peacockrulz]

If you are still taking art requests, could you possibly do one of V x Thad? Its a ship I really like that isnt really that popular.

So what if you're a ghost of yourself?

You can haunt me.

[Requests are closed!]