#this is why fanfiction is king

[onehundredflamingos]

3 / king / 210 words

@jegulus-microfic

“Do you have a four?” James asked Harry, who shook his head vehemently.

“Go fish!” he cried, his little voice obscenely loud for such a small child — for such a small game, right before bed.

“Do you have a…,” Harry asked Regulus, pausing to count all the little hearts on his card even though it was sitting face up on the rug in front of him. “A seven?”

“Sorry, pal,” Regulus said, “I don’t. Your turn to go fish.”

“Shucks!” Harry cried, trying to snap his fingers.

James laughed and took his turn. They played like that for a while, until everyone’s cards ran low with pairs lined up in front of them. Regulus was winning by a landslide, and James only had one pair of fours, but Harry was having a good time.

Regulus wouldn’t have expected it growing up, but he loved family game nights now, getting to play stupid card games and board games with the people he loved more than anything in the world.

“Do you have a king?” Harry asked suddenly, grinning widely.

Regulus looked over at James before reaching out and placing a hand atop one of his. “I do have a king,” Regulus replied, affection lacing his tone.

He wasn’t talking about his cards anymore.

[fayeangel25]

Out of our world

IT IS FINALLY DONE PEOPLE!

Now all that's left to do is (continue to) write (the first) chapters. HEEHEH

I'll update soon enough, I'm writing the story at AO3 but the first chapter still ain't finished cuz of school so.. yeah.

[justaz]

need post magic reveal/ban repeal where magic is free and everyone grows in their knowledge of just what magic is and how it works etc, etc. merlin (isn't one for bragging about his powers) doesn't really mention much about his magic so people just assume he has enough to get by with like chores but not enough to catch the ire of uther EXCEPT for gauis, lancelot, and arthur bc gaius and lancelot have known about him for years and know what he's capable of and arthur sat merlin down and demanded all the stories so arthur knows he'd be a formidable opponent but he doesn't really get it yk? so he's like "yeah merlin has magic and he's capable of defending himself and camelot so he's probably on the more powerful end of the spectrum like every other sorcerer who is powerful"

and then i need merlin to be Different. like noticeably different. like idk a sorcerer is like trying out to be court sorcerer (bc merlin doesn't want another job dammit arthur give it morgana or someone-) and they perform this elaborate spell that captivates merlin and he starts asking all these questions and the sorcerer is like "yeah it's super difficult, it took me months to get it right and it takes years for some others-" and they cut themselves off bc merlin was just like "i wanna try" and does it perfectly first try. the sorcerer is seething.

camelot is hit with a heatwave and everyone is suffering and arthur is just like "morgana can you make it rain or something? it's too hot to breathe." and morgana is just like "no you idiot i can't just bend nature to my will. it doesn't like that." and merlin finally arrives with waterskins full of nice, cold, refreshing drink that the knights are frothing at the mouth to get. arthur complains again and morgana huffs and merlin is like "has he been like that this whole time?" and morgana nods with a groan and merlin laughs before going "i can try something" and leaves before anyone can say anything and arthur looks at morgana and is like "i thought you said nature doesn't like to be controlled?" and she's like "it doesn't" and then they all chase after merlin but he's chilling in the courtyard with his eyes closed, not even chanting, and then the sky starts to darken as black clouds roll in, the temperature plummets and then...snow begins to fall. in july. they all end up having a snowball fight.

a power hungry sorcerer comes along and is like "emrys....he's perfect....just what i need...teehee" and casts some spell over merlin and begins to siphon his magic and his power and merlin feels waves of his magic flood through the connection and into the sorcerer and like he's a mix of panic and concern bc yeah this mf is taking his magic but they're taking his magic. merlin tries to bargain or talk them down while the knights and arthur try to attack but the sorcerer keeps pushing them back and ignores merlin and is like "i want power, i want your power" blah blah blah monologue time and they swing another wave of magic out at the knights and knock many out while killing some and merlin is just like "ok no that's all folks thanks" and starts to push his own magic through the connection. the sorcerer has this wild gleam in their eyes and they feel more and more power fill them and it's like a high until it gets too much and they frantically try to sever the connection and their telling merlin to stop but merlin is just like "i thought you wanted my power? i'm giving it to you" and continues to flood the sorcerer with his magic until gold begins to trace their skin and they idk explode or smth and then all the magic flies back into merlin and he flexes his hands. unnamed knights 3, 6, 22, 53, and 55 still died so it's a tragedy.

a bunch of sorcerers are entertaining at a feast (kind of like the trickler) and they cast illusions all around the room that look real enough (unless you look too closely or touch it bc they are somewhat see through and your hand would pass right through them) and it's a fun and joyous night. later that week, the knights bring it up during their break while training and merlin is like "sure, what illusion should i cast?" and after some back and forth, he settles on the illusion of a dragon. it's around the size and age of aithusa bc that's all he has to go off of and it's gold since he took inspiration from the pendragon crest all around the area. it jumps around and flaps it's wings to get some air and it's all fine and dandy until elyan goes to poke his hand through it's ribs but meets physical scales and he jumps up into percival's arms. merlin looks closer and is like "oh. its real. whoops." and leon is like "whoops?? you make a real life dragon and all you have to say is whoops?" and merlin shrugs and is like "it was an accident" and leon about keels over from a heart attack "an accident? how do you accidentally-" the dragon is considered a gift from magic to camelot and helps further heal the wounds of uther's purge.

idk just like merlin being casually the most powerful sorcerer to walk the earth and unnerving people just by how little he seems to care about his shows of power but they're all like "well he's just doing all these small things that don't harm anyone and he doesn't even seem to realize just how powerful he is so what can ya do?" and they leave it be and make peace with merlin being Like That. and then camelot/arthur is attacked or smth idk and then everyone gets to see exactly how powerful and dangerous merlin is

[allmyhomieshatelawns]

Hiiiiii everyone I’ve become obsessed w Trolls, and by extension, several of the AUs here. In particular, @djmurphy ‘s Hypno Pop AU has had me in its clutches. I couldn’t stop myself so I wrote a lil somethin’ in between working on my Feral!Branch AU.

Bit of a warning, it’s def unreliable narrator, and yes, it’s supposed to be kinda creepy. I hope y’all like, please do not copy or post to another site. Lmk what y’all think!

"Hee, hee, hee, hee, heh, heh, eheh…" It wouldn't stop, no matter what I tried, nothing would make it stop. My face hurt, my entire body hurt if I was being honest. It was getting harder to do that. My voice wasn't my own, instead spewing false, toxic positivity that made me want to scream. It was hard to be honest even inside my own head when the compulsions wouldn't leave me alone either.

Keep Smiling. The compulsions hurt, but it hurt worse to try and resist. Like my nerves were being burnt. The compulsions made it easier to go about my day-to-day. I always knew what I was supposed to be doing, and how to be a good troll like everybody else. It was comforting to have a safety net.

Keep Singing. This one was harder to obey, but somehow even more painful to try and ignore. Whether I obeyed or not, it felt like liquid fire in my veins. I watched it happen over and over and over again. Every time I opened my mouth to sing, I saw her push me out of the way instead. It was painful fighting to go grey. My vocal cords always felt shredded, and they had lost a lot of their angelic body, sounding raspy, damaged.

Go To King Peppy. My numb feet carried me to the King's pod that he shared with his youngest daughter. I wasn't supposed to talk about Viva either, which was wrong. Poppy should know about her older sister, even if she never got to meet her. I knew a little about my parents, even if they had been taken before my egg hatched. At least I knew my parents existed. I wonder what my brothers are up to…

Part of me yearned to have them home still, that same part I was scared was getting dependent on the string. I would feel my feet quickening as the power of the string would begin to fade, heading to King Peppy's door, knowing I wouldn't skip. It was horrifying to think part of myself actually liked being like this. I still remembered resisting, or trying to, hating every moment of this prison. I remembered trying to scream, trying to get anyone to help me and I couldn't make myself do anything. Oh after the first close calls King Peppy had made sure to put in the compulsions to 'never alarm anyone'. Now people didn't panic when they saw me, and it was all thanks to King Peppy!

I reached King Peppy's office, knocking politely and entering the room as he bid me. King Peppy helped me when no one else could. He was the only one able to help me get rid of my greyness, the only one willing to do what it took to make me normal. I owed him everything. My smile was blindingly painful.

"Ah, Branch, perfect timing as always." King Peppy smiled broadly, opening his arms for a hug.

I leapt into his arms, the contact feeling like licking flames.

King Peppy held me for a moment, before setting me back down. He reached into his hair, pulling out a nearly-empty lyre, with one glittering pink string on it.

My heartbeat quickened seeing it, eyes tunneling to focus on the horribly beautiful string. It glowed with its own light, drawing me in and re-thickening the haze over everything I saw. I felt my shoulders begin to relax as the haze crept further, like a wild animal with its eyes hooded.

A few plucks of the string, and I felt my mind wash away in a comfortable haze. All of the anxiety and negativity bleeding away to the innermost recesses of myself. It was such a relief to not have to deal with all of those pesky emotions! Now I could just be happy and sing and dance and have fun like everyone else!

I smiled, my face comfortably numb from the fresh effects of the string. "Thank you, King Peppy! I feel much better now!" I chirped, hardly able to see him at all through the haze.

"I'm so glad to hear that, Branch! Now, I've still got some work to finish up, why don't you run along and find someone to play with until you're called for dinner?" King Peppy chuckled as he suggested it, placing the sacred string back in its spot, safely in his hair.

The village was still bustling even at this hour, people skipping about and holding hands and singing and dancing. It was amazing.

My whole body felt like it was floating, like I was only connected to it by a tiny string. I waved and smiled at everyone who greeted me, even if I couldn't tell who had spoken to me. It unnerved me not being able to see more than a couple of troll-lengths away at best. No shadows to see a hand reaching down for–

"Hey, Branch! There you are! I was just looking for you!" Princess Poppy's cheerful voice broke in before a compulsion could correct my thought.

My head whipped around to her voice, my smile still painful, but a little more genuine. Princess Poppy was a sweet girl, even if she was annoying. She was perfect and would make an excellent queen one day.

"Princess! What can I do for you today?" I asked, kneeling down in front of her. She wasn't that much shorter than me, but I would take any excuse to get off of them. I had to stay fresh for more dancing, after all!

She beamed at me, somehow making it look effortless and completely sincere.

"One of the performers for my party tonight had to backout last minute. Would you be able to fill in? I don't need a full set or anything, just a couple of songs." Her voice was pleading, eyes big and pouty. She should know by now I can't say no to her.

"Of course, what's the theme for the party?" My grinning kept up, my lips not allowed to turn down in her presence.

"Thank you so much Branch you have no idea how much this means to me!" Poppy rushed out in one breath, leaping at me and hugging me tightly. I responded automatically, not having to think about hugging back. That was the nice thing about being a puppet in your own body at least.

[saquesha13]

Steve throughout the entire chapter five of Ride the Lightning

[doodleholic]

Too Far and Snakey

[kirby-manga-translated]

Kirby Manga Double Bill + A Fanfiction?!

Solid Snake voice: Kept you waiting, huh?

Finishing off the requests in my queue (at least for the time being), I present to you two chapters! One from Manmaru Nikki and one from Mopupu. And yes, you read that title correctly, there's a special surprise after them as well! Well not a surprise I guess since it's in the title but very special! Anyways, let's just get to the manga, eh?

Kirby: Manmaru Nikki (AKA Daily Round Diary) - Volume 4, Bonus Chapter 2 English Translation

Starting off with a quick little retelling of Cinderella with Kirby characters in all the roles! Though this one is short, I still feel like I got some good translation work in there. A lovely morsel of Kirby manga that can be read in full at the following links:

Imgur

MangaDex

Google Drive

Next up, it's

Kirby: Moretsu Pupupu Hour - Volume 7, Chapter 8 English Translation

A full-sized chapter here about Kirby leaving and the manga getting a new main character that definitely isn't just Kirby wearing a costume! King Dedede is left to figure out what's going on and how to convince the others that it's obviously just Kirby wearing a costume. Read the full thing at the following links:

Imgur

MangaDex

Google Drive

Now what was that about a fanfiction?

It's true, dear readers: I have dabbled in fanficcery! It's kind of like translating a manga chapter except instead of translating Japanese into readable English I have to translate my internal thought process into readable English.

It's a nice and simple story about Kirby wanting to eat a cake but not being allowed to eat said cake and all the emotion and heartbreak that occurs as a result, featuring King Dedede, Daroach, Adeleine, and Magolor. It's the very first fanfic I've ever written, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. It might not Wham Bam Rock your socks off but it could, uh... Fatty Whale your... scales off? Look just read the thing at this link if you want

Whew! Looks like you've got some reading to catch up on. It hopefully won't take me this long to update again since I'm not planning on writing another fanfic anytime soon (but maybe someday...). Hope you enjoy the chapters and please let me know what you think of my fanfic!

[adm-starblitzsteel-4305]

🌟Cosmic Incarnation🌟

Something that sparks the dream into reality when you realized that you are incarnated from a majestic Godzilla-Mothra hybrid Titan (a moth specifically with Godzilla's features and tones), who is also happens to be a Princess and Future Queen of the Monsters.

Link Here of the short story:

[youling-the-ghost]

The fun police guy from that one guessing game is called Clint now. Sorry, I don't make the rules.

[dragon-creates]

I started this short bowuigi little mermaid au thing a few days ago as a little something to help me feel better cause my depression was basically being like ‘hey, wanna feel ten times worse than usual?’ It was to be a short little thing to self-indulge with, YET IT SOMEHOW IS OVER 5K WORDS, FUCKING HOW?!?!?!?!? Anyways, enjoy. (Edit, to the person who pointed out that Junior said Luigi's name before Bowser finds out, you're a real one and I just fixed it thanks xx).

In the surface land, Bowser is trying to get Princess Peach to marry him because he sees her as the ‘perfect bride’ for him to be happy but she’s not having it.

“Isn’t she lovely Kamek, her golden hair, the way she glides when she moves. Plus, she would be a perfect mother for Junior!”

“Sire, she threw a shoe at your head the last time you proposed to her.”

“…and?”

“Seriously Papa?”

Yeah, Kamek and Junior are starting to get sick of it.

Meanwhile, in the ocean, Mario and Luigi’s parents rule the seven seas. While Mario is more adventurous and outgoing, Luigi is more content to stay under the sea (you’re allowed to hate me for that terrible pun).

See, unlike Ariel, Luigi is deathly afraid of the surface land as he’s heard about all about the terrifying Bowser and what he’s willing to do to get what he wants to he wants to stay as far as possible from there.

“There’s nothing to be scared of Luigi, I’d be able to keep you safe if we were ever near the surface.”

“N-no way! W-what if B-Bowser’s there a-an-d-d gets mad a-at us f-or t-t-t-trespassing! I-I’ll be fine here with Ma and Pa.”

(Luigi also has long hair cause I’m a sucker for long-haired Luigi.)

Que King Boo, a ghostly underwater sea monster who wants to take over both the land and sea but isn’t powerful enough to do so. He knows that Luigi means a lot to his family, so he decides to pull a devious trick to distract them from their duties so he can take over the throne.

“Well, well, well, despite how much of a cowardly shrimp he is, this little prince could be of use to me.”

He uses Polterpup (a ghost sea-lion pup that is able to turn into a dog if he goes to the surface land) to distract Luigi, making him think that a dog had fallen into the sea and needs help. Luigi follows the sound of the distressed barking, hoping to help the innocent animal when suddenly, he’s captured by Boo’s minions and with the limited power that he has, he uses it to turn Luigi into a human to make him unable to return home. That way, while Luigi’s family will be looking for their son, he can try and take over the underwater kingdom and use that power to take over the surface land. Just to make sure that Luigi doesn’t tell anyone, King Boo steals Luigi’s voice and sends him to the edge of the Darklands.

“Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha! Try going home and telling your mommy and daddy about this one princey! Oh wait, you can’t!”

However, since King Boo’s powers are still weak there is a way that the spell can be reserved so he purposely neglects to tell Luigi that the spell can be broken with true love’s kiss.

Luigi is distraught and terrified, already afraid of the surface land and is now forced to live there with no way of being able to ask for help.

Feeling guilty, Polterpup decides to help Luigi get used to his human legs and brings him a rag from a ship to help make into some makeshift clothes.

Meanwhile, Bowser and Junior are minding their own business at the shore of the Darklands when suddenly, Junior sees an unfamiliar human struggling to stand on his own two feet.

“Look Dad! There’s a human, like Peach!”

He gets a bit over excited and runs from his dad to go see Luigi.

Luigi, still frightened and wary of surface creatures (and the fact that this is Bowser’s son! So, if the king sees him with Junior, he could burn him to a crisp!) he gets spooked easily by the child and fumbles his way onto a rock. Polterpup stands in front of Luigi to create some distance with the overzealous child. Eventually, Bowser makes his way over to see what all the fuss is about.

“Junior, what have I told you about running off?!”

“But look Papa, it’s another human! I’ve never seen another human before apart from Peach!”

Bowser suddenly notices Luigi, who ducks behind Polterpup, trying to hide as much of himself as he can.

Bowser is taken aback, like Junior, Peach is the only human he’s seen so he’s never had the chance to formally get to know another one. He sees that the human is a bit skittish, so he tries to be as unintimidating as possible.

“Uh, hey there, sorry about Junior, he has the tendency to get overexcited sometimes.”

“Hey!”

Luigi is still unsure; he’s only ever heard tales about how the king of the koopas was able to be rid of his enemies just with one swipe of his claw. So, seeing him up close makes him want to piss himself.

Bowser can see that the human is still nervous, though he’s a little bit offended, he can’t really blame the human for being scared.

“Did you, uh, get in a shipwreck? Cause I can see that the only thing you’re dressed in is a sail.”

Luigi finally peaks his head out and nods a little bit, wondering why the koopa hasn’t done anything to him yet. Junior is suddenly asking him a lot of questions.

“Woah, you got in a shipwreck?! That’s so cool! Was there tons of thunder and lightning?! Did your ship light on fire?! Your dog is so cool! Is he a ghost?!”

Startled again, Luigi nearly falls off the rock until Bowser catches him. Luigi suddenly starts trembling both from fear and the cold. The king notices this and tries to ask him if he’s alright to try and loosen the tension, but the human is silent.

“What’s wrong? Can’t talk or something?”

He says that sarcastically and laughs a little to try and make the human do so as well, but he takes one look in the human’s eyes and realises that he actually can’t.

“Oh, I see.”

Luigi is hugging himself at this point, wanting to run and hide but he was getting colder and colder by the minute. Bowser then decides to take the human back to the castle to get him warmed up and a little bit less scared.

“Don’t worry, Kamek and Kammy will know how to help you. You’ll be feeling better soon.”

That gets Luigi to look up at the king with curiosity as Bowser carries him back to the castle with Junior and Polterpup by his side. The great ferocious king was holding him ever so gently and promising to help him, he doesn’t know how to feel at this point.

As soon as Kamek and Kammy see Luigi shivering and drenched, they are instantly ‘grandparents mode activated. They take Luigi from Bowser and lead the human into bathroom, (Bowser totally didn’t want to carry him there) Kamek makes him tea and gives Luigi a few biscuits while Kammy is drawing a warm bubble bath for him.

“Here you are now, its not much but it will help fill and warm you up a little bit.”

Luigi has never tasted land food before; he finds it to be quite nice. He even enjoys the bath, letting the water heat him up and blowing on the bubbles. Kammy finds the site adorable.

“The poor thing, washing up from a shipwreck must’ve been so terrifying for you, especially if you heard about the reputation of the Darklands. Don’t worry, we just want to help you feel better and feel comfortable here.”

Kamek comes into the room holding a few dresses and suits, asking the human which one he’d like to wear for dinner. Although Luigi didn’t need to wear clothes as a mermaid, he does know that land creatures wear them all the time. He instantly chooses one of the dresses (because gender norms don’t exist, and Luigi is allowed to wear whatever the fuck he wants!)

Later, Kammy is helping Luigi get changed while Kamek, Junior and Bowser are in the dining room talking about Peach again.

“All I’m saying sire is that it might be due time to stop pursuing the princess. She had already disagreed to your other proposals, and I don’t see her agreeing any time soon.”

“I can’t just give up on her Kamek, Peach makes me feel things that I’ve never felt for anyone. I will marry her, one day.”

As if right on time, Kammy and Luigi are there, the former ushering in the shy man.

“Don’t be so nervous darling, you look lovely!”

Luigi then steps into the room, wearing a beautiful green dress (a green version of Ariel’s pink dress) with Polterpup by his side to keep him company.

Bowser is starstruck, he’s never seen a human look this beautiful before.

“Y-you look amazing.”

Luigi blushes, still nervous but the compliment gives him butterflies.

“Come sit next to me human!”

Junior takes his hand and leads him next to his seat, which happens to also be next to Bowser’s at the head of the table. To try and take his mind off the fact that he’s sitting next to Bowser, Luigi starts focusing on the plates and cutlery, he’s never really seen that many human artefacts before so it’s all so intriguing to him (expect when Mario brings back some from his adventures, but he doesn’t really know what they are either.)

Bowser becomes amused at Luigi’s curiosity for the simple objects he had, his appreciation for things that seem to be mundane gives him a swell of pride.

“I guess my silverware is kinda nice, isn’t it?”

Luigi immediately puts the fork don’t and hides under his hair, afraid that he might have disrespected the king, but Bowser is quick to reassure him that he doesn’t mind.

“It’s just that no one else I know is fascinated by these types of things, so its nice to see someone that it.”

Luigi peers out from his hair, a small smile forming from the king’s praise. Kamek picks up on the tension and decides to do some *matchmaking*.

 “Since our guest will be staying for a while, perhaps we should help him feel more comfortable with a tour of the kingdom…Bowser?”

“Papa, are you listening?”

Bowser breaks out of his trance, not even realising he was staring at the human. He couldn’t help it; he’s not seen that many and this one was just so fascinating.

“Ah, yes, a tour sounds great! If you would like one?”

Luigi thinks for a bit and nods. If he was wrong about the king, then maybe he was wrong about the kingdom and surface land and should give it a chance.

Kamek nods at that, pleased with his work. Kammy shoots him a thumbs up for his work.

Later, while Luigi is getting ready for bed, he watches Bowser with Junior as they play in the courtyard. Bowser notices him watching and waves at him. Embarrassed that he was caught, Luigi shyly waves back and backs away from the balcony. He’s wearing a cotton nightgown that Kammy had given him, as well as a glass of water from Kamek in case he gets thirsty during the night. This is also his first time laying in a bed, he’s never felt anything so soft in his life! He falls asleep as soon as he puts his head on the pillow, feeling a bit more hopeful after today.

Back in the ocean, Mario and his family are frantically searching for his brother, terrified that something bad happened to him. He decides to go to the surface land, specifically from the Mushroom Kingdom, and ask their princess for help and if he’s washed up there. It also helps that he’s heard so much about her kindness and beauty and…wake up Mario, focus on the mission at hand.

Back on the surface lands, Bowser takes Luigi on a tour of his kingdom, Polterpup by his feet through the all thing. At first, Luigi is still a bit unsure about the koopas, but soon he becomes a bit more curious. He goes up to some of the food stand giving away free sample and decides to try a little bit of fruit, it’s a bit tangy but still pretty good. He even sees a puppet show for the first time, not knowing how the little puppets are moving, he pulls one of a koopa’s hand, fascinated with how it works. A few koopa children then come up to him and ask to do his hair, having never seen another human before with his like his. He agrees and let the children tie up his hair in a French braid along with a few faux white flowers to go with the new dress he’s wearing. Bowser is watching from afar, his jaw dropping when Luigi’s hairstyle is revealed, his heart skipping a beat when Luigi does a twirl.

“Wow, you…you look beautiful greenie.”

Luigi blushes at the compliment.

The two suddenly hear music and see a few performers starting to play on their instruments as koopas, goombas and shy guys join in. Bowser takes Luigi’s hand and asks him to dance, the man nods his head, feeling a bit more at ease with the king now.

Soon the two join the crowd, laughing and having the time of their lives as they dance away to the music, Polterpup occasionally runs through some of the koopas legs.

When it ends, Bowser guides Luigi to a hidden river, the only place with water in the Darklands (apart from the shore). They share a little boat ride together as they share some of the food they bought at the market, while Polterpup takes a nap. Bowser then remembers that despite the time they shared together, he still doesn’t even know Luigi’s name.

“I feel terrible not knowing your name, and we don’t have anything that you can write with…Oh I know, how about I go down the alphabet and you pick out the letters of your name?”

Luigi nods and though it takes a while, the king manages to spell out his name.

“Luigi huh? A beautiful name for a beautiful human.”

Its Luigi’s turn for his heart to skip a beat. All his life he’d heard about the koopa kingdom and their dreaded king, now it turns out that he’s actually a gentleman who’s been showing him nothing but respect. Ever since this man washed up at his kingdom, Bowser has been feeling things that he’s never felt for anyone. Flustered, vulnerable and a need to protect and love. He’s never even felt this for Peach. The two start to lean in when their boat suddenly tips over, the two falling out. Bowser is quick to pick up Luigi, who begins to wring out his dress while Polterpup begins to shake his non-existent coat. As Bowser carries Luigi back as Polterpup floats beside them, the two fail to see two boos that were the ones who knocked over their boat.

Back in his lair, King Boo is seething!

“That blasted little shrimp! At this rate, these two will end up snogging all over the place and my plans will be ruined!”

He decides to go to his last resort, a mind control crown that he had hoped to use on one of the rulers to conquer the sea and surface, however this crown also held many of his other spells (including Luigi’s) and he wasn’t strong enough to use it more than once to use a spell as powerful as mind control. It was always extremely fragile, though he would still have some power, if it broke then all of his previous spells from over the years would be released, so he held it off for as long as he could, and it seems that now he has no other choice.

Meanwhile, Mario has finally arrived at the Mushroom Kingdom, hoping to find help with the princess. She’s just as beautiful in the rumours he’s heard about her. The princess is shocked to find an adorable red merman in a river near her palace, but she can’t deny his plea for help when he looked just so sweet.

“My brother, he’s gone missing! Is there any chance he’s been around here lately?”

“I’m sorry, you’re the only mer-person we’ve seen here. But don’t worry, we’ll keep a look out and help you find him!”

“Really?! Thank you, princess!”

“Y-you’re welcome.”

Back at the Darklands, Bowser is thinking about his new feelings for Luigi, not knowing if he should act on them since he didn’t want to betray his love for Peach. Kamek, fed up at this point, goes up to give Bowser his thoughts on the matter.

“If I may say sire, some people spend most of their time chasing after treasure on a map that leads them in circles, that they neglect that the diamond in the rough is right in front of them. Just a thought from a silly old koopa.”

As Kamek leaves, Bowser ponders over his surrogate father’s words. For years he’s yearned for Peach so the point that he became blinded by what he thought he wanted and put her on a pedestal. Now, there’s someone that doesn’t see him as a monster and might love him back. He makes his decision and starts to go to Luigi to tell him how he feels when he suddenly feels a weight on his head, and everything goes dark.

The next morning, Luigi wakes up feeling more refreshed and happier than he has since he first turned human. He’s been thinking all night about the maybe-kiss that he and Bowser were about to share and had been contemplating his feelings on the matter. He soon found himself realising that he would mind kissing Bowser, in fact, he would really like to kiss him and spend every day with him, Junior, Kammy and Kamek. Besides, there was nothing stopping him from travelling to see his brother and family, maybe it could all work out? He fell asleep last night with a smile on his face and butterflies in his stomach.

He’s about to run down the stairs to meet Bowser when he hides behind a pillar when he sees the king speaking with Kamek, wearing a strange crown.  

“Y-your highness, are you sure this is the best idea?”

“Peach castle is currently unprotected; it would be a good opportunity to strike and take her as my bride.”

“I see that, but after the last few days and our past with the Mushroom Kingdom, shouldn’t we think this through a little bit and-”

“-It has always been my intention to make Peach mine, no matter what and I won’t let anyone get in my way. Especially some scrawny human who washed up at my sure. Once the invasion is complete, the wedding will start immediately.”

“…very well sire.”

Luigi, heartbroken and betrayed, flees to his room, not knowing that King Boo was there the whole having used his ghostly-ness to remain invisible while controlling Bowser with the crown.

As Bowser takes off with his army and airship, Luigi stays behind at the port to cry as Polterpup tries to comfort him, having to face the truth that he was right in the first place, Bowser was just a heartless monster.

Junior is on the airship per his father’s orders to be at the wedding. He searches for his dad, wondering why he had the sudden change of heart about Luigi and his invasion. He creaks open the door to his father’s room when he sees King Boo in Bowser’s mirror, cackling to himself at the fact that his plans are nearly complete.

Realising his dad is being mind controlled by the strange ghost thing, he makes his way down to the clown cars and sneaks away in his own small one to get to Luigi as quickly as possible.

The Mushroom Kingdom is taken aback when Bowser suddenly arrives, not fully prepared for battle since he would usually leave some type of indication that he was coming, but here, he was just blasting through with every intention of not leaving until he gets what he wants. Mario wants to help but Peach tells him to stay hidden. Unable to just do nothing, Mario rushed as fast as he can to get back home to get his father.

As soon as Peach sees Bowser, there’s something different about his atmosphere, something way more menacing and demanding. As usual, he wants Peach to marry him, but this time he doesn’t ask.

“One way or another, you will marry me Peach and we’ll watch your kingdom turn to ash.”

“You’re not even going to bargain.”

“It’s not like you can do anything about it.”

A pit forms in Peach’s stomach, something’s wrong, very wrong.

Junior makes it back to, running to the sobbing man as fast as he can.

“Luigi! Luigi! There’s some weird ghost thing that was in my dad’s mirror! I think that’s why he’s attacking the Mushroom Kingdom so soon! What do we do?!”

Luigi’s eyes widen in horror. King Boo! He had to be behind all this. Without any second thoughts, Luigi climbs in Junior’s clown car, along with Polterpup, and the two head to the Mushroom Kingdom as fast as they can.

While Bowser/Boo is adamant about the wedding, the koopas there are a little less comfortable about it due to how strange and intimidating the king was acting. As the service starts, Peach pulls out an ice flower from her bouquet and attacks Bowser, she lands a few hits, but Bowser uses his fire to melt the ice. Peach keeps trying to fight though, at least to distract him while she thinks of a plan. The koopas also help, agreeing that their King was not himself and didn’t want anyone in the Mushroom Kingdom getting severely injured.

Luigi finally arrives with Junior, jumps out of the vehicle and lands on Bowser’s shoulders while he’s fighting Peach. Seeing a crown that wasn’t on Bowser’s head before, Luigi grabs it and smashes it to the ground, falling off Bowser’s shoulder from the impact of the throw.

Suddenly, Bowser sees himself at the Mushroom Kingdom, not knowing how he got there since the last place he remembered being was back home. Princess Peach and the koopas stop, sensing that Bowser’s atmosphere was back to normal as he looks towards Luigi.

“Luigi, are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m fine…wait…I can talk!”

“You can finally speak again!”

“My voice its back!”

“I don’t understand, what’s happening?”

“It’s King Boo, he-aahhh!”

Before he can get another word out, there’s a sharp pain in his legs. He fells his bones bending and breaking in the most painful way and King Boo suddenly appears, turning him back into a merman before he can get another word out. Luigi looks to Bowser, afraid of what he’ll think of the man once he realises what he really is. But Bowser is too wrapped up in shock of what its happening and worry for the man that he loves.

King Boo grabs Luigi and drags him back into the ocean, the latter screaming for Bowser as the koopa tries to grab him as Luigi is forced back into the water, Polterpup chasing after his new owner. The king turns to Princess Peach.

“Princess, I know this may be confusing, but I really need your help, please, I love him!”

“Don’t worry, I think I might know his brother and what’s going on.”

Back in the ocean, Luigi is struggling against King Boo, trying to escape his grasp but somehow, the ghost’s grip is tighter than he though. Polterpup tries to fight his old master but a few Boos that had been hiding easily grab him.

“Oh, don’t worry little shrimp, it ain’t you that I’m after.”

“KING BOO THAT IS ENOUGH!”

The pair stop when they see Luigi’s father, the King of the ocean along with Mario stop them in their path.

“Well, well, well. If it isn’t the red prince and the ruler of the seven seas.”

“Let my brother go!”

“No can do princey, precious little Lulu is all mine until you give me what I want.”

Luigi’s father growls at that.

“My son does not belong to you!”

He goes to use his magical trident, but a few boos grab Luigi and use some type of electricity on him, making the youngest prince scream out in pain.

“You see, the thing is your majesty, one wrong move and your precious little boy won’t be, how do I put this? Part of your world anymore.” (I am so sorry for that awful pun.)

The sea king was at a loss, he knew he would be putting everyone at risk by handing the trident and the throne to this made ghost but…he couldn’t lose his youngest son, from the corner of his eye, he could see Mario agree. He hands the trident over to King Boo, begging him not to hurt his son. With a mad gleam in his eye, he grabs the trident and lets Luigi go. To the green merman’s horror, the poltergeist points the artifact to his father and brother, watching in devastation as he turns them into dust.

With a strangled scream, he goes to attack King Boo, though surprised at Luigi’s reaction, manages to throw him to the ground. He’s about to use the trident on him when he suddenly feels something hit him. He looks up to see Bowser under the water, who had thrown a spear at him and raises the trident to him. In a moment of panic, Luigi grabs King Boo, making him point the trident at his boos instead and disintegrates them. Not wanting to witness King Boo’s anger, Luigi swims up to Bowser and guides him above the water, not witnessing the Boo’s fury with his new powers below him.

The koopa and merman reach the surface of the water, Bowser trying to reach out to Luigi.

“Bowser you have to go, now! Before King Boo gets you!”

“No, I’m not leaving you behind again!”

They feel a rumbling all around them. Suddenly, King Boo rises from the sea as a giant with the two on his head, cackling like a mad man. Bowser and Luigi jump back into the water, trying to escape until King Boo starts to form a whirlpool, separating them. Luigi falls into the whirlpool, landing at the bottom as Polterpup rushes over to him as King Boo taunts him.

Bowser is still paddling in the water, trying to get to Luigi when a ship comes up beside it. Inside was Princess Peach, some toads, koopas and Kamek. They throw a rope down to Bowser and help him up. Kamek looks to the king.

“I used my magic to help steer that boat but I’m barely holding on! I need you to guide the bowsprit and drive it into that mad boo!”

“But’s a ghost, he’s already dead!”

“I’ve managed to enchant so that I can trap him in this!”

Kamek holds up a pale purple gem, sparkling with some type of magic that the magikoopa used. Princess Peach then speaks up.

“I’m managing the sails while the toads and koopas are defending us! Bowser, are you able to guide the ship!”

“You can count on me Princess, take this as the beginning of a massive apology to you!”

Peach nods and everyone gets to work. King Boo is shooting at Luigi in the whirlpool, the merman trying to dodge as much as he can but knows that he is not strong enough to do anything. Enraged by what the Boo is doing to his love, Bowser drives the bowsprit into King Boo. The poltergeist screams with both pain and fear, knowing that if he can feel that then somehow, he has been defeated.

The seas calm down as the boo disappears into the gem. Bowser tries to look for Luigi, but the whirlpool is gone, and the merman is nowhere in sight. Kamek keeps him from jumping out as the princess guides the ship back to shore.

In the ocean, Luigi grabs the trident and rushes back over to where his father and brother were with Polterpup following him and sees the two have been returned to normal. Overjoyed, he hugs them both, all three of them crying now that Luigi is safe and home.

“I missed you so much Lu. I’m so sorry I wasn’t here when you went missing.”

“It’s okay Mario, I’m safe now, It’s okay.”

He gives the trident back to his father and the three mermen return home.

A few days later, Luigi is hiding behind a rock, Polterpup beside him as he watches Bowser from the shore of the Darklands, pining to see the merman again. Mario and his father watch from afar.

“You know, a while ago, Luigi would have fainted at the thought of going to the Darklands. Now, seeing how he looks at that koopa king, he’s gotten more braver than I ever imagined.”

“Peach told me that he jumped on Bowser’s shoulder’s just to get the crown off him.”

“Oh yes, how are you and that princess getting along?”

“Ah-I-wha-Dad!”

“I’m just teasing. Though, he hasn’t been truly himself since he came home.”

“I guess he left a part of himself since leaving the Darklands. After all, when you love someone, you give a piece of yourself to them, and in return, they grant you something even more freeing.”

“Then I guess there’s only one problem left.”

“And what’s that Dad?”

“…How much I’m going to miss him.” Mario raises an eyebrow in confusion for a moment before his father points his trident at Luigi.

Luigi feels a tingling sensation on his fins, looking down to see that there are no fins at all, his legs had returned! He turns to his father and brother, his smile beaming as the two nod to him.

Bowser is staring off into the distance, thinking about Luigi when he sees brown hair peeking out of the water. His heart stops when he sees Luigi emerging from the water in a sparkling green dress and his hair flowing in the wind. Bowser runs to him, picking him up and spinning him around in his arms and holds him as the two finally share a kiss.

A year later, the two are finally married on a giant ship, Luigi wearing a poofy wedding dress while Bowser is dressed in his finest suit. Luigi’s family and kingdom are watching from the ocean while toads and koopa finally come together as one. Princess Peach hugs Luigi, glad to have another human companion and blows a kiss to Mario in the ocean, who blushes at the gesture and waves back. Junior is also glad Luigi is back and is going to be his stepdad. He and Polterpup have also become close friends, the two playing together when they can. Kamek and Kammy are finally happy that Bowser has found love after all this time.

Mario asks his father to use to powers to lift him with the water to see his brother one more time. Luigi smiles softly and gives his brother a hug.

“Don’t cry big bro, I’ll see you after the honeymoon, you’re acting as if I’ll never see you again.”

“I’m sorry, its just, I’m so happy for you.”

“I love you, Mario.”

“I love you too Lu.”

He gives Bowser a menacing glare along the lines of ‘hurt my bro and I’ll end you’ before Peach comes over and kisses him on the cheek, making the red merman faint into the ocean. Luigi laughs at his brother’s antics as he waves goodbye to all the other mer-folk as the ship sails away to its next destination.

Bowser and Luigi give one another a soft look and share one more kiss.

The end.

You're allowed to yell at me for the shitty puns.

(Edit: also I love that you guys enjoyed it and you’re free to write something for this as it was only meant to be a drabble after having a bad day. As long as you credit and tag me, y’all can use this idea and write your own Bowuigi little mermaid fic ☺️)

[gravitywonagain]

Hot Tub Burn Out

(a Fresh Powder in the Pine Trees story)

.

The pavement is cold on Wei Ying’s bare feet as he steps out of the locker room toward the hot tubs. There’s days-old snow along the side of the path. Dirt and pine needles mar the white and it’s melted and iced so many times that it looks crunchy. The rough, white towel the resort provides is draped over his shoulders, but is too thin to provide much warmth against the cold conducting its way up his body from his toes. 

He walks quickly, cursing himself for not bringing flip flops with him, but something stops him. There’s someone swimming in the Olympic lap pool. In winter. At night. He shifts his direction, accepting the toe-numbing cold for a little bit longer in order to satisfy his curiosity. 

When he approaches the pool, Wei Ying finds that he isn’t even surprised. It’s Lan Zhan. He’s doing laps, actual laps -- the butterfly, if Wei Ying remembers his strokes right -- at 8pm on a weeknight in an outdoor pool surrounded by snow. Because of course he is. 

Lan Zhan switches to freestyle, swimming away from Wei Ying, as Wei Ying steps up to the side. He must notice his audience at some point because, after the kickflip, he slows, coming to a stop fifteen feet from where Wei Ying is standing. 

He treads water, looking like some kind of aquatic god, bathed in pale moonlight, water droplets like gems, adorning his skin next to his necklace. He reaches up to clear chlorine from his eyes and pushes his hair out of his face and Wei Ying forgets how to breathe. 

Wei Ying swears he’s seeing in slow motion, and he’s not even stoned yet. It’s not fair! He wants to touch him so badly. Fuck. Why can’t he touch him, again?

He hears laughter from around the corner and remembers why he’s here. He allows the sheer ridiculousness of the situation to distract him from Lan Zhan’s arms (and chest and shoulders and neck and...).

“Lan Zhan,” Wei Ying starts calmly, “Why are you swimming in a non-heated pool? In the middle of winter?” He does not end calmly. 

“It is heated,” says Lan Zhan, entirely apathetic, maybe a little sarcastic. 

“Oh? How heated?”

“65 degrees Fahrenheit.”

Wei Ying takes a breath, watches it condense. Well, at least he can still pronounce Fahrenheit. “What the fuck, Lan Zhan?”

“It is. Calming.”

“‘It is calming,’” Wei Ying mocks, “It’s freezing!”

“It is not.”

He’s talking about the water temperature, because he’s witty like that. But Wei Ying isn’t about to let a technicality lose him an argument. He narrows his eyes to avoid rolling them. 

“It is. It’s 21 degrees outside. Get your ass in the fucking hot tub, Wim Hof.”

Lan Zhan swims toward the side of the pool where his resort towel is laying (on! the! snow!) and Wei Ying thinks he can hear him mutter to himself, “There’s actually some very compelling medical research into Wim Hof’s methods.”

If Wei Ying wasn’t so distracted by the sight of Lan Zhan lifting himself out of the water, he might take it as a personal achievement that Lan Zhan is just doing what Wei Ying told him to do. Not to mention that he was actually muttering, out loud, to himself and Wei Ying. 

But Wei Ying is very distracted. Lan Zhan is very close to naked, dripping wet, and glistening in the fucking moonlight. Whoever decided not to light the pool tonight made an excellent decision. Top marks for that person. Wei Ying should buy that person a beer. 

Wei Ying can’t stop staring. He’s forgotten that he’s not supposed to. Not here, with the instructors just around the corner, and the whole of Cloud Recesses around them. None of that seems to register with Wei Ying right now. He just watches as Lan Zhan towels himself off, somehow not shivering in the frigid air, muscles flexing and relaxing with the easy motions. Wei Ying half expects to see ice crystals forming in his perfectly sculpted eyebrows. 

And Lan Zhan… Lan Zhan is letting him look. 

It’s so much more than seeing him shirtless in the backcountry. It’s… it’s everything. Arms and shoulders and abs and sexlines and thighs and calves. His shorts are not baggy, either, and his ass looks amaz-- 

It’s too much. 

There are people here. Wei Ying is not allowed to jump Lan Zhan in the Cloud Recesses Village Swim and Fitness Center. 

Wei Ying turns away from-- the everything of him, and starts back down the path to the hot tubs, hoping that Lan Zhan will follow and not use his embarrassment as an excuse to bail. 

He could. Easily. It’s not even unlikely, really. Wei Ying’s efforts to force Lan Zhan to spend more time with the instructors have been going well, but he still has yet to seek them out on his own. Tonight serves as an obvious example. 

“Fucking instructors are like twenty yards away,” Wei Ying mutters to himself, a distraction more than anything, “and here you are doing laps in a pool.”

It’s February. Wei Ying still has time to work on it.

In all fairness, it turns out that the only actual instructors there are him and Mianmian. But she’s Wei Ying’s boss, technically, too! And they’re sharing a joint in a hot tub. This is a ski resort. Who cares about management hierarchies? Lan Zhan, apparently. 

-

When Lan Zhan does actually join them in the hot tub, Mianmian is already in fine form. She’s holding the joint Wei Ying just passed her and is partway into a new tangent, this time about... the Lion King? Wei Ying is pretty sure he’d heard something about Simba.

“Okay but, here’s the thing,” she says, “here’s the thing.”

She pauses to take a hit and pass it on to Wen Qing. When Wen Qing takes it, Mianmian, clearly already well into her happy place, stops and stares at where their fingers are touching. It’s endearing as fuck. 

Nie Huaisang is, perhaps, less endeared and prompts her, “Go on.” 

Mianmian looks up at him, confused, as she releases the smoke in her lungs. She’s completely lost the thread.

“So the Lion King,” says Wei Ying, trying not to laugh.

Lan Zhan steps down onto the cement bench next to him and Wei Ying suddenly has so much sympathy for Mianmian’s struggle. 

“The Lion King,” Wen Qing confirms when Mianmian looks to her. 

“They always want to fucking watch the Lion King,” says Mianmian, working her way back, spacey and slow.

Wei Ying laughs, “They do!”

“It’s never Space Jam,” she says softly, almost disbelieving her own words, “Why is it never Space Jam?”

“Terrible taste, those six year olds,” says Wen Ning, who is usually much too shy to make jokes around people. Wei Ying is so proud. 

Lan Zhan’s fingers brush Wei Ying’s shoulder as he settles and Wei Ying is either not high enough or too high for this. Lan Zhan’s face is carefully blank. 

“So, the Lion King,” Nie Huisang prompts, again, drawing Wei Ying’s attention back to Mianmian. 

“Right,” she says, serious now that she seems to remember her original rant, “the Lion King. The beginning of the movie, right? We see happy little lion family doing happy lion family things like pouncing lessons and riding zebras.”

“Sure.”

“And then. And then.” Mianmian pauses, palms out like she’s about to drop some brand new information in a dramatic reveal, “Mufasa fucking dies.” 

Nobody speaks for a minute, not sure if that was the reveal or not.

“Yes,” says Wen Qing, “we’ve seen it.”

Mianmian doesn’t seem to register that her words didn’t land like she thought they should. She just continues.

“But that’s the thing!” she cries, “He dies. All of these kids watch the father die. On screen. And they watch Simba, and they are Simba, and Mufasa is dead! And each and every one of them has a tiny moment where they are awakened to the idea of their own parents’ mortality.”

This time, when the silence settles over the bubbling of the hot tub jets, it’s tinged with that reality shifting stunned feeling that only happens when you’re stoned. Wen Ning takes a hit and passes the joint to Nie Huaisang who doesn’t even look at him when he takes it. He inhales only to realize that the cherry is out and that’s what finally breaks everyone’s quiet reverie. 

“Holy shit, Mianmian,” says Wei Ying, because he can’t come up with anything better or more coherent.

“This is what I’m saying!”

“Okay, but, serious question: Why don’t they ever want to watch Space Jam?”

-

The night is cold and Wei Ying feels good. He hops up to sit on the edge of the hot tub every now and then both to cool off and to give Lan Zhan a taste of his own medicine. Lan Zhan had said that he likes looking at him, so now he can look. While they’re surrounded by people. While they’re at Cloud Recesses. Look but not touch.

He takes another hit, reaching to take the joint from Nie Huaisang over Lan Zhan’s head. If he stretches a little on purpose, nobody here will call him on it. Or, they might, but he doesn’t give a shit. He likes these people and they like him. 

The smoke settles into his blood with that loose, heavy feeling that makes everything move just a little slower. His lungs burn, a satisfying sting, and he exhales, directing the cloud up and away from the hot tub with an easy jaw flex. He watches it catch the breeze and dissipate under the moon. 

He passes it to Mianmian but she stops him from leaning back. She inhales and hands it back to him before drawing Wen Qing to her. She tilts her head and Wen Qing opens her mouth, a smile in her eyes, and matches their lips. 

Wei Ying reaches across the tub to hand the joint to Wen Ning who looks like he very much wants a distraction from his sister’s… flirting? Sure. Wei Ying laughs and sits back. He will absolutely give Wen Qing shit about “not dating” Mianmian later. 

He very determinedly does not think about shotgunning with Lan Zhan. But telling himself to not think about Lan Zhan works about as well now as it does when he’s sober, which is to say it doesn’t. At all. Now it’s all he can think about. Angling Lan Zhan’s head with his hand, sealing their lips together, sharing smoke and breath, watching Lan Zhan’s eyes glaze with the high, finding out if he smiles while stoned. 

Wei Ying braces his hands on the cement and leans back. The moon has chased away a lot of the stars, but they’re still on a mountain outside of town. It’s more stars than he saw in the city anyway. It’s a beautiful distraction, and a good one. He has no idea what’s going on until he hears Nie Huaisang give voice to exactly the thing he’s trying to distract himself from. 

“You wanna hit, Lan Zhan?” he says, incredibly chill, like he’s not obliterating Wei Ying’s carefully built mental containment wall. The mortar is still drying for fuck’s sake, give it a minute. 

“No thank you,” says Lan Zhan. And then, “My recent experience of waking up in Jin Zixuan’s guest room with no memory of how I got there is enough for the month.”

Wei Ying is so impressed that he just… said that? Lan Zhan actually just offered up an experience that might be embarrassing for him to a group of people that he works with. That didn’t know that. That didn’t need to know that. But also didn’t need to not know that. Holy shit. Wei Ying is so proud. Is Lan Zhan contact high? 

“Oh shit!” says Mianmian, apparently no longer attached to Wen Qing’s lips, “You know Jin Zixuan?”

Lan Zhan nods and leans forward to converse with Mianmian without Wei Ying. What the fuck? This is amazing! How is nobody else freaking out about this? No. It’s good that nobody is drawing any amount of attention to it, but holy fuck!

Nie Huaisang, probably taking advantage of Lan Zhan’s focus being somewhere else, sits up on the edge of the hot tub and leans over to Wei Ying. He’s not whispering, but he’s not exactly projecting so Wei Ying leans in, too.

“Is that why you guys left early?” he asks. 

“Yeah.”

Nie Huaisang nods in something like understanding and disappointment. “Lans all have a notoriously low alcohol tolerance,” he says with a shrug, then adds, “Da-ge says Huan-ge’s a runner.”

Wei Ying tries not to laugh at that image. He really does. But Nie Mingjue chasing after a drunk Lan Huan as he runs away -- probably taunting as he goes, if he’s a secret bitch like his brother -- is just too much. His stifled laughter dissolves into full giggles and he lays back on the cold cement to let them bubble out of him. 

Nie Huaisang disappears back into the water and Wei Ying loses track of time. He watches the stars move. Listens to his heart beat. Counts pine needles. 

At some point Lan Zhan sits up on the edge next to him and leans back on his hands. He looks happy, like he’s actually enjoying this. Being around other people his age and just hanging out and talking. He’s almost smiling. 

Wei Ying swings his feet, dragging his ankles through the hot water, feeling where it catches against his leg hair. He looks over and up at Lan Zhan. From this perspective, Wei Ying sees his brilliant profile, lit from below by the hot tub lights and outlined by the starry sky. He’s so beautiful. It should be illegal to be that beautiful in real life and not, like, a photoshopped celebrity or something. 

Wei Ying watches a drop of -- water? sweat? -- drip from Lan Zhan’s temple down his cheek. It follows his jawline and Wei Ying is just stoned enough to let his eyes focus on it as it moves over perfectly smooth skin. 

If the snow was softer, he might get out of the hot tub and go lay in it. He can feel himself getting out of control. Can feel his arousal lighting up his fucking fingertips. Feel it staticky in his hair. It’s frenetic. 

He’s sure he’s being too obvious, but everyone here is a friend and also similarly stoned and none of them will give a fuck except, maybe, to laugh at him for it later. He can take that. He wishes Lan Zhan would look at him. Wants to do something to draw his attention. Something shameless. Something like biting his ears or maybe straddling his lap. 

Maybe he should go jump in the “heated” pool. Apparently it’s “calming.” 

Lan Zhan looks back at him. Down at him. At him. 

And Wei Ying’s heart stops in his chest. His lungs freeze, his muscles tense. He feels like he’s about to have a panic attack. 

Time stops, except that it doesn’t. Wei Ying can hear conversations continuing beyond his focus, he can feel the earth still rotating beneath him. But also those things don’t exist. The only real thing is the way he and Lan Zhan are looking at each other right now: hungry and trapped. 

The moment stretches on like salt water taffy, pulling taut -- heart-pounding -- until gravity and weed-smoke warp it, make it droop downward, sticky and soft and salty-sweet. 

Wei Ying wants to taste Lan Zhan’s skin. He wants to sit up and lick into his mouth, bite his nipple, leave marks all over his chest. He wants. He wants. And Lan Zhan’s eyes look overflowing with the same desires, the same urgency. A gooey kind of feedback loop that only seems to keep building between them the longer they stare at each other -- the marshmallow squished and kneaded between fingers until it created its own sugary tension. 

It’s Nie Huaisang’s voice that finally breaks through. His voice and his hand as he reaches around Lan Zhan and taps Wei Ying’s knee. 

“Hey, remember when we rented that cabin in South Lake for Spring Break junior year?”

It sounds like the continuation of a conversation that Wei Ying hasn’t even been tuning out so much as he forgot other people existed. But he sits up and joins in anyway. 

“Fuck,” he says, with feeling, “I could kill for a deep powder cabin weekend. Weekday. Whatever.”

Nie Huaisang grins. It’s maybe a little sharp. “Don’t the Lans have a family cabin?” he asks Lan Zhan, and it’s very easy to see where this is going. 

“Huaisang,” says Wei Ying, meaning it to sound like a warning. He’s not sure it does. 

Lan Zhan looks over at Nie Huaisang and then back to Wei Ying, “We do.”

Nie Huaisang’s grin widens, the cutting edges of his teeth peeking over his bottom lip, as he begins to arrange a getaway at the Lan Cabin for the six of them sitting there. 

Trust Nie Huaisang to always have an ulterior motive. 

-

The sauna is empty when the three of them file in. Wen Ning immediately takes the spot in the corner and Nie Huaisang and Wei Ying lay out on the benches. 

The arid heat settles in Wei Ying’s lungs and opens him up. He feels it mix with the smoke in his blood, relaxing him further and he spreads himself out -- arms wide, legs flat -- on the red cedar slats. 

It’s a moment before anyone speaks. Each of them taking time to let the heat soak into their skin. But it’s Nie Huaisang who breaks the silence. 

“Dude.”

“I know,” says Wei Ying, because he does. 

“Dude,” says Nie Huaisang again, because it bears repeating. 

“I knowwww.”

Wen Ning, catching on, says, “So are you and Mr. Lan like…”

“Nooooo.”

“That’s why he’s,” Nie Huaisang gestures vaguely to all of him, “like this, Wen Ning.”

“Rude.”

“Oh,” says Wen Ning. “Why not?”

Wei Ying sits up and shakes his head. “We can’t,” he says. 

“Why?”

“Reasons?” Wei Ying drops his forehead into his hands. “I know there are reasons. Lan Zhan doesn’t want to. That’s a reason.”

That has Nie Huaisang sitting up, too. “What the fuck do you mean he doesn’t want to? I was in that hot tub.”

Wen Ning nods at both of them and Wei Ying sighs. It’s not like they’re wrong. 

He says, a bit petulantly, “No. He wants to. But he has reasons. So he doesn’t want to.”

“So are you, like, waiting?” asks Wen Ning. 

“Yes. And I hate it. But, fuck, Huaisang. Look at him. He’s perfect.”

Nie Huaisang rocks his head back and forth, considering, “For you, sure.”

“Yes for me. Me. Mine. He’s -- fuck!” 

Wei Ying sprawls out on the bench again, tired and frustrated. He knows he can be better about this. About the waiting. It’s just been A Night and all he wants is to tuck his head into Lan Zhan’s neck and be held. 

Well, that’s not all he wants. But it would be enough. It would be so good and so easy and Wei Ying knows that Lan Zhan has reasons and they’re probably even good reasons but he’s finding it so hard to care tonight. 

He climbs up onto the high bench and stares up at the ceiling long after Nie Huaisang and Wen Ning have left. He lays down and lets his leg dangle off the side. The towel around his waist is rough against his skin and he focuses on that feeling. Lets his mind wander a little. Lets his high settle out his mood. 

It’s easy to imagine a different ending to the night. A different night entirely. A night where Wei Ying teaches Lan Zhan about shotgunning. Where Lan Zhan is casual with his touches, like he was when he was drunk. 

But that’s not fair. None of it is fair, but Lan Zhan’s reasons are his own and Wei Ying needs to respect them. Maybe he’ll be better about it tomorrow. Tonight is already lost. 

He finally rolls off the high, red cedar slats, legs surprisingly steady for how much his mind is still spinning. He rewraps his towel tighter around his hips and moves toward the door, only for it to open into him and knock him entirely off balance. Before he can hit the floor, strong arms curl around his waist and haul him upright against a broad chest. 

Lan Zhan’s breath is cold against Wei Ying’s overhot skin. He wonders if Lan Zhan jumped back into the swimming pool. To calm down. Or something. 

Wei Ying steps back, valiantly pulling himself away from Lan Zhan’s arms. Those arms. He fixes his eyes to Lan Zhan’s face, like he’s not the most beautiful man Wei Ying has ever seen, and forces a laugh. 

“We’re just one convenient towel slip away from the start of a bad porno.”

Almost immediately, Lan Zhan’s fingers find the roll holding Wei Ying’s towel on his hips. Wei Ying isn’t sure if they’re there to secure or remove. They don’t seem to have decided either. 

He can feel Lan Zhan’s knuckles brushing against his hip bone and nothing else exists. It’s just the places where they’re touching. He’s not even sure the rest of his body is real. How can it be real if Lan Zhan isn’t touching it?

“You think it would be bad?” Lan Zhan’s voice is steady and calm, that gorgeous baritone that Wei Ying wants to hear broken and moaning. 

“What?” asks Wei Ying. He has completely lost the thread. He has no idea what Lan Zhan is asking him. 

“Our porn,” says Lan Zhan simply, voice low, like he knows what he’s doing. 

“Our…” Wei Ying scoffs to keep from screaming, “Lan Zhan, we’re in a sauna. The lenses would all steam up. It would be terrible.”

“Hm.” Lan Zhan nods, “Production quality would be difficult to maintain.”

“Plus, this plot? Not the best, I gotta say.” Wei Ying tries to keep the frustration from his voice. He’s not sure how successful he is, but Lan Zhan doesn’t choose to acknowledge it. 

“You don’t like delayed gratification?” he asks, keeping the tone heated and flirtatious. 

“I like shorter time scales.”

Lan Zhan hums dismissively then says, “Stamina not up to the task?”

Wei Ying laughs at that. He laughs because he can’t do anything else, like shove Lan Zhan back into the door and stick his tongue down Lan Zhan’s throat. 

“You’re so mean,” he says, and, “Why is that hot?”

“Hm.” Smug. He’s so smug. 

He’s hot and mean and smug and Wei Ying is dying a little bit. He’s too good. He’s too much. He’s… he’s fucking ascetic is what he is. Too serene and disciplined. Wei Ying wants to push him to see what happens when that discipline is tested. Wants to feel it on his skin, under his tongue. He’s sure that Lan Zhan is just as attentive to his partners as he is to his own rigorous strictures. He probably does yoga. 

Fuck!

Wei Ying meets the heat Lan Zhan’s eyes and he can’t fucking stand it. 

“So are you going to rip my towel off and bend me over the benches or are you sticking with ‘delayed gratification?’”

Lan Zhan’s fingers tense, knuckles digging into Wei Ying’s hip as they grip the towel. The tension in the cotton, a circle that tightens like a zip tie, pulls Wei Ying even closer to Lan Zhan. The steam is cool on his skin as the sauna boils the water off Lan Zhan’s body.  

He can feel the decision as it’s made. It solidifies in Lan Zhan’s eyes and Wei Ying wants to scream his frustration like the juniors do. He’s not six, so he doesn’t. He sighs as Lan Zhan releases him. It’s not mean or even angry, just resigned. This whole thing is stupid. But it’s important to Lan Zhan, so Wei Ying will respect it, even if he hates it. 

Wei Ying clears his throat and nods to Lan Zhan, head down, avoiding his eyes, as he moves past him, through the door and into the locker room. 

He bypasses his locker and heads straight to the shower stalls. He drops his towel and steps into the shower and turns it as cold as he can stand it. It doesn’t really help. He can feel the ghost of Lan Zhan’s hands on his hips, Lan Zhan’s breath on his shoulder. He drops his forehead against the tile and wills himself not to get hard in a locker room shower while his friends and coworkers are still getting dressed around him. It works… enough. 

.

Wei Ying as he smacks his head against the shower walls: “Maybe Hell is just a sauna.” [x]

[marmie-noir]

A Good Girl

AKA Dwight being a perceptive ass.

For once I was the one behind the bar. My arms were crossed and I gave the man before me a rather unimpressed look, taking in the New York Italian man that seemed to be a regular more often than not these days. He sipped his drink, bourbon that I myself had poured, looking back at me with a raised brow. 

It wasn’t quiet. While it was early it wasn’t dead, the bar had a few people in it, and the kitchen was loud behind the door, but I didn’t speak as I stared down the mobster. Dwight took another sip before setting the drink down, clearing his throat. “Have I done something to offend you?” “Why would you think that?” I asked, shifting my weight and my lips thinning to a line. 

“Cause you are looking at me like you wanna decorate your walls with my insides.” He said bluntly, dark eyes meeting mine. I didn’t blink, didn’t speak for a few moments before taking a step towards the bar and leaning on it, leaning in towards him. “You are bad news. Men like you are always bad news. I don’t like you around this place, around Mitch.” 

He hummed, looking down at his drink a moment before glancing back up at me. “So that is what this is about. You and Mitch, hm?” I narrowed my eyes, fighting off the blush that threatened to spread up my neck to my cheeks. “I certainly did not say that.” I snapped back, knowing right after it left me that was sign enough. I was showing my hand to this man, all but confessing that I cared about Mitch. That this was personal. Fuck. 

“Didn’t know you two were together.” He said, not with malice but with a genuine carelessness, as if it didn’t really impact him. Not that it would. He nudged his glass forward, empty, and I huffed but grabbed the bottle to pour him some more. “We aren’t together, not that it’s your business. He’s just a good guy, and men like you use good guys.” I explained, putting the bourbon bottle back into it’s spot, annoyed that I was now in this situation. I wasn’t about to pour my heart out to this mobster, to let him know that Mitch was my safe place, that this bar and his house and pops had become home in a way that four walls and a roof never could be. I felt safe. Secure. I wasn’t going to let that slip through my fingers. 

“Sweetheart, I can promise you. I have no intentions of hurting or using that man any more than he is me. We have a mutual interest, a common understanding. We are going to make some money together and that will be that.” His deep voice and heavy accent had a tune of honesty but I didn’t trust it. I distrusted men like that, men who saw all situations as options to get richer, to do things regardless of law. 

“I don’t give a damn what you say,” I said quietly, nails tapping on the bar top as I leaned in. “I can’t stop him from making decisions, but I’m warning you Dwight. Don’t you dare hurt that man.” 

“Darlin’, table 5’s food is in the window.” That familiar voice made me straighten, looking over to see Mitch standing there looking amused, his blue eyes jumping between me and Dwight with a small tilt of his head. Curious. I blushed and ducked my head, walking past Mitch towards the kitchen to grab the food for my tables, leaving Mitch at the bar. The two men watched me duck behind the wall and Mitch looked at Dwight with a raised brow. “Do I even want to know what you two were whispering about?” He asked, grabbing himself a glass for a splash of bourbon himself, topping off Dwight’s at the same time. 

“Got yourself a good girl there, Mitch.” Dwight responded with a little smile, lifting his glass in a small cheers. “Don’t you let that slip through your fingers. Trust me, it will be the greatest mistake of your life.” Mitch gave him a raised brow before glancing over to where I was passing out chicken strip platters and burger baskets, smiling at the customers while checking for if they needed anything else. Without another word he tossed back the rest of his drink, looking at Dwight with a half smile. 

Read more Sunny and Mitch here

[justaz]

looking at this map i couldn’t help but notice that the perilous lands are dividing the south from the north of albion. assuming all of elmet is to say perilous and untraversable, could the northern kingdoms be more pro-magic than the southern ones?? like i guess technically they could get there by water, but i’d see that from the coast kingdoms, not camelot. idk i’m just imagining sometime after the fisher king dies and he isn’t tied to the land anymore which allows it to heal somewhat and arthur and them are finally able to travel north and its just magic galore.

[zoyalaisobachka]

Every other day I think about how quick Nikolai was ready to sacrifice himself in his duology and while I'm sure it also was for the good cause, I think that boy is also tired tired.

We see a few glimpses of the darker parts of him in his books, but I feel like he's more depressed and hopeless sometimes than the books truly point at.

He wears this masquerade of Ravka's hope, but sometimes he can't convince himself to be hopeful.

ETA1: to ME, he has ADHD. and that already increases the risk of depression due to brain chemistry.

He lives in a country that has never seen peace, this impacts everyone.

The way he was treated as a child for things he couldn't really control much since it is part of how his brain works, being criticised all the time surely doesn't make someone happy.

He learns to be highly masking, to such a degree, that it seems that he has no personality of his own, that he lacks self identity to a certain level. And he learns that he can only be loved if he is not himself, but rather who other people want him to be.

Then he wants a safer future for his country, but only being the second son of the king, he can't do much (he finds a solution for that by creating Sturmhond though).

The loss of people he loves leaves it's mark for sure too, and then the demon. The never ending river of new problems, always putting a stop to the little successes they have.

Tbc

[4esthetic-dissonance]

I'm working on a fic and was like 'how in the hell do you make LINGUANG JUN the least bit redeemable?'. I mean, /Linguang jun/ who tossed a developmentally four year old Mobei Jun to a pack of humans? The kid could have died. And then I saw a translation of the extras. It describes lgj as mbj's 'young uncle', says that he 'wasn't that much older than him (mbj)'. And I just- its a hell of a lot different, a Scar type tossing his nephew to the proverbial wolves than it is for a maybe dumb, maybe petty, maybe developmentally five or six year old to shove their annoying technically-nephew-who-in-age-and-context-is-more-like-a-brother-than-lgj's-actual-brother into a situation that the text implies was more frightening than actually /dangerous/. And that- well I can work with that.

[author-morgan]

i see your requests are open!! can you do something sweet with Harald? (and Halfdan if you’re comfortable with polyamory!)

Of courseeeee. Here is some Harald fluff (with a pinch of bittersweetness and angst). I was going to have this be polyamorous (bc those two come as a pair more often than naught in my fics lbr lol), but once I got started it just turned into something more Harald-centric. Hope you don't mind! (I went a little overboard for him again) Harald Finehair x fem!Reader

HALFDAN THE BLACK is the first to enter Tamdrup’s great hall upon returning from a successful raiding season. The doors swing open wide, and those gathered for the tribunal part, making way for the victorious. Rising from the seat of power, you go to him with open arms, smiling. “I see you brought my husband back,” you muse, watching Harald enter the hall at last, surrounded by a score of rowdy warriors and overjoyed denizens—rightfully so, they have returned with riches and have lost fewer than a dozen warriors during the raids.

“I fear what you would do if I didn’t,” Halfdan laughs, tossing down a heavy coin purse on the table before taking you into his arms.

“It is always good to see you again,” you smile, kissing your marriage-brother’s cheek. He is inclined to agree. After long days at sea and many weeks away, it is good to be greeted by a fair and familiar face such as yours. Halfdan clasps your shoulder as he steps around you, pouring himself a cup of mead—leaving you to his brother. “Harald,” you greet, and the hall falls silent as he approaches you.

His breath catches as he beholds you, standing before him regal as ever with a gifted silver circlet resting upon your brow. His wife. His queen. His heart. It is as though the rest of the world falls away when he stops before you, rough hands cradling your face with the gentlest of touches. “By all the gods” —he strokes his thumbs over your cheeks— “you’re even more beautiful than I remember.”

Harald’s kiss is slow and soft—save for the familiar scratch of his beard against your cheek and jaw—and speaks of the months of longing to return to your loving arms. You kiss him like you’ve done a thousand times before, falling into the rhythm as though you never parted. Your fingers comb through his beard as you part, foreheads resting together, but then your smile widens as you wrap your arms around him, holding him tight. “I’ve missed you,” you breathe. But now he’ll be yours again until the next raiding season comes.

THE WHEEL OF time does not slow, and the harvest season fades into winter and then to the first buds of spring. Nigh all the Vestfold gathered in Tamdrup tonight for the feast to celebrate sowing the first seeds of the new crop and seasoning the turned soil with sacred blood. But that is not the only reason the jarls and fighting men have come all this way. In the coming weeks, Harald, Halfdan, and anyone else willing to sail will make their way to Frankia to raid Paris with Ragnar Lothbrok. Festivities last long into the night, but Harald comes to you soon after you take leave.

He draws lines over the length of your spine as you lay with him, head pillowed on his chest, listening to the slow rhythmic beat of his heat, bare legs entwined, but then you twist in his arms and lean up to kiss him—featherlight and sweet as the mead still on his breath—fingertips following the blue-black scrollwork of his tattoos. Then he tilts his head back, letting you trace the curving lines on his neck and down to the ones on his chest—only your touch could ever make him tremble.

“Paris?” You repeat, following one of the silver scars on his ribs with your fingertips. He’s spoken of the city to the south and of Ragnar Lothbrok before, but with the night’s feast, it became official. Come the spring, he would prepare his ships and set sail to join the farmer-turned-king on his second venture to Frankia.

“Yes,” Harald says, his voice a low rasp. He sees it in your eyes, a flicker of hope that maybe this time you will sail with him and his brother—that you will be able to visit the distant lands so many speak of—but now is not the time for you to venture into the unknown. Your life is not something he can risk so easily and carelessly. Harald curls his hand around yours, then kisses the center of your palm and holds your hand close to his chest. “I need you here, my heart,” he tells you, but you already know that.

“I’ll plan a feast and a sacrifice before you and Halfdan depart,” you tell him—it is what any good queen and wife would do to see her husband and people return safe and with victory. And then he takes your lips and your breath, holding you close. You sigh into his mouth, letting his tongue brush yours, fingers slipping back into his unbound hair. His kiss is reverent, and you cannot help but miss the cracked softness of his lips against yours when he parts, but it is only so he can hold you in his arms.

TEN DAYS AFTER Harald Finehair first sets sail to Kattegat, his brother and the remainder of the fleet are ready to follow. The last of the barrels and crates are being rolled and loaded into the longships when you arrive on the docks to bid everyone farewell and good fortune on their journeys. Six hundred men and shieldmaidens from the Vestfold have gathered over the last two moons, all to leave on this day to join Ragnar Lothbrok in his endeavors—but Tamdrup will feel empty without their presence. Though, there is already a newfound hollowness in the wake of Harald’s departure.

You find Halfdan amongst the chaos, checking the yellow-red shields secured on the side of one of the ships. “Halfdan,” you call, and he turns on heel to face you with a half-bow—nigh teasing in nature, but you are, after all, his queen. Before he can stand upright, you reach out and rest your hands on his cheeks, and he bends a little farther, accepting the kiss you bestow upon his brow. “Be safe,” you tell him, hands moving to clasp his. “Look after your brother.”

Halfdan squeezes your hands. “You know I will,” he assures you. That is something you’ll never have to worry about—the bonds of blood and brotherhood run deep. You nod, and he steps back down into the longship. At your hest, they will set sail for glory and, if the gods deem it so, Valhalla.

One of your attendants hastens to the dock, stepping forward to present the gift commissioned from the blacksmith and jeweler—it's meant to be a surprise in celebration of another year of marriage, but alas, such care and detail took longer than expected. It’s a necklace of bronze and silver with a pendant shaped into the likeness of Mjölnir clasped in the mouths of two silver dragonheads on a chain of alternating links. “It was not finished before Harald left,” you explain, placing the necklace in Halfdan’s palm. “Give it to him, please.” Halfdan nods. “And all my love.”

RESOUNDING HORNS ANNOUNCE the return of Harald Finehair’s fleet in the dark hours of the evening. You rise from bed and make haste to the docks—handmaids following close behind with slippers and a cloak, but decorum is the least of your concerns. So few have returned, you think, counting the dwindling number of ships gathered compared to how many set off. The first wave departs one of the docked ships, and there is no air of triumph in those who press past you—eager to return to home and hearth and for solid ground beneath their feet. “Harald!” You call as he steps from the longship and onto the dock.

But he does not embrace you as he normally would after such a long voyage, and the spark in his stormy blue eyes is faded. It is only when you see who the men are carrying off the ship on a crude stretcher do you understand the cause of your husband’s sullen mood. “Halfdan,” you breathe, looking between him and Harald. You step to your marriage-brother and lift the pelt of fur covering his torso, grimacing—the wound at his shoulder is a festered, blackish mess, and the sweat on his brow in the first chill of winter speaks of the fever that’s set in during the return voyage.

You turn to one of your handmaids. “Call on Mjöll,” you instruct, “quickly.” The years have seen you clean and bind both Harald and Halfdan’s wounds, but this is far beyond your skill, and an herbalist will be needed to call Halfdan back from the cusp of the next life. The girl nods and sets off to the healer’s hut. Looking back at the stretcher-bearers, you point up the way to the great hall. “Take him to the great hall.” In such a state, Halfdan will need several pairs of watchful eyes.

Dark shadows cast from torchlight and iron braziers shroud Harald’s expression—he does not understand how it is you can stand with so much equanimity when faced with such loss. Harald steps to you, and his shoulders fall, then wordless, he slumps into your arms, resting his forehead on your shoulder—another weight you must bear—hands twisting into the fabric of your pale linen shift. You smooth your hand over his back, following the length of his braid-bound hair. “I thank the gods you have returned to me, my love,” you breathe, unwilling to let him part just yet.

Mjöll works to prepare a cataplasm of moss and herbs into the hours of the night, and you kneel at the prepared pallet of fur and pillows, placing a cool, damp rag upon Halfdan’s brow. There is little else you can do for your marriage brother besides trust the herbalist’s remedies, pray to the gods, and hope they are merciful. Mjöll nods for you to leave and tend to your husband. She and her apprentice will care for Halfdan.

He is pacing the length of the foot of the bed when you enter your shared chambers—hands flexing into fists at his side. You step into Harald’s path, hands going to the ties and buckles of his leathern armor. “If the High One truly sought Halfdan’s company,” you tell him, setting aside his vambraces before turning back, “he would already be feasting in the Halls of the Slain.”

To Harald, it is poor consolation but consolation all the same. And deep down, he knows you are right. Shrugging off his worn and stained tunic, he goes to the washbasin and splashes water on his face and chest, scrubbing away a mix of sweat and salt spray, and blood too. Harald returns to sit at your side on the bed—he stares ahead at the flickering flames of tallow candles. “What happened?” You finally dare ask.

“The magic of Ragnar Lothbrok failed,” he tells you. The lingering taste of defeat is bitter on his tongue—the gods had forsaken them on that river, had forsaken Ragnar. As it happened to be, he was just like any other man. “We were humiliated and pushed out of Frankia with nothing to show for it.” He does not remember the last time he returned to Tamdrup, to you, with nothing to show for his travels. It will take time for the Vestfold to recover from such a defeat.

You touch his cheek, fingers combing through his unkempt beard, drawing his gaze to you. “You live, as does your brother.” The rancor in his expression falters, his jaw unclenching, and he leans into you—his nose just barely bumping against yours. Yes, he and Halfdan escaped with their lives. That is more than can be said for many who embarked on the journey to Paris. Ragnar Lothbrok may have lost the favor of the gods, but they still smiled upon Harald and his brother. “That is enough for me,” you say, softly. He kisses you then, and you meld against him with a sigh and a slight smile that he can feel on your lips.

HE SITS ON his throne—slouched to the side and staring into the abyss, twisting his shark-tooth crown in his hands. Your king has returned, yet still, it is only you shouldering the weight of the kingdom. You stop at the dais and extend your hand toward him. “Walk with me.” It is not a request. Harald rises and follows.

The path through the forest is well-worn, both into the Earth and memory. It carves a winding route through the forest and up bare rock to a promontory overlooking Tamdrup and the mouth of the fjord—a place you frequent to look for sails on the horizon when the men are away, a place where Harald promised he would marry you one day what now feels like a lifetime ago.

But the morning fog has yet to lift from the land, just as the fog of bitterness in the aftermath of what happened in Paris has yet to lift from your husband and king. There has been no feast to honor the memory of those lost since his return several days ago and no promise or mention of what comes next for the Vestfold. It is as though he is lost in despair, mourning his brother already despite the day-by-day recovery—just yesterday, Halfdan’s fever broke.

You sit atop one of the boulders there on the promontory. There’s space enough for him to join you, but, for a moment, he lingers and stares. In the morning the light and mist, you seem like one of the winged women—ethereal. A sight that makes his heart twist and ache given the dark thoughts and mood which have taken hold of him since returning to Tamdrup.

Harald sits next to you and hangs his head, letting his hand rest on your thigh—a gentle weight and warmth. “I fear I have not been a good husband,” he confesses. It is never an easy thing for a prideful man to admit weakness and accept his faults, less so for a king. But the failed siege, his brother’s injury, and the long months spent away from you, from home, have been a heavy weight on his heart.

It does not feel right, leaving you time and time again, each longer than the last, to rule over his lands and care for his people—duties which are his. But you rule so fairly, and his people love you for it. “I have left you too often,” he breathes, a new softness and the tremble of guilt in his voice. “And I have left you to carry a burden meant to be shouldered by two backs” —his hand runs across your shoulders, down your spine— “not one.”

You never expected being wife to a king—being a queen—would be easy. Least of all, the wife of an ambitious man with dreams of uniting Norway under a single crown. Harald Finehair is vikingr. To deny him that would be to deny his true self, and even on the loneliest and coldest of nights, you could and would never ask him to be anything other than who he is—the man you love.

“I knew what was expected of me” —you card your fingers through his beard, the first tinges of silver beginning to appear, and he can find nothing but underserved doting affection in your soft gaze— “of you, when we married.” Harald covers your hand with his own, the rough pads of his fingers pressing into your palm as his hand curls around yours, a sigh on his lips. “And I happily said yes, remember?” 

He remembers the day you married well—the crown of spring wildflowers you wore, the blood-tinged kiss after exchanging rings, the bridal race with Halfdan and your cousins tripping over one another to get to the mead hall first. It is still the happiest day of his life—tied with every other day the gods let him wake up beside you.  

Shifting, you lean your forehead against his and gently slip your hand free from his. “You will always have my love and support, wherever you may be.” Harald closes his eyes and curls his hand around the back of your neck, thumb stroking the soft skin beneath your ear. And you press your hand against the center of his chest—feeling the outline of the Mjölnir necklace under your palm. “And I will be here or at your side,” you tell him, a soft whisper dancing over his lips, “wherever you need me to be.” And now he’s certain—you are too good to him.

[Harald-Halfdan taglist: @ahotmesswithprivilege / @alicedopey / @certifiedlittleshit / @charming-merlin / @elluvians / @erzsebetrosztoczy / @gearhead66 / @gossamarnie / @hc-geralt-23 / @hereforreadandwrite / @moonlightsspirit / @morganamayne / @mrsragnarlodbrok / @n0sferatus / @naaladareia / @queenyalo / @rigshak / @savagemickey03 / @xinyourdreamsx / @yalos-writing ] if your name is italicized, tumblr would not let me tag you. if you’d like to be added to my Murder Bro taglist, or any other taglist, just let me know with this Google Form! if I missed you, I am sorry! but make sure to mention it in the replies or fill out the linked Google Form!