shadowgast-week-2

[shadowgast-week-2]

~~ And when I can see//the points of Cassiopeia//I curse the skies, where I can't be ~~

https://archiveofourown.org/works/66192190/chapters/170613961

My fic for Shadowgast Week 2025!!! I've been loving turning all of the prompts into an ongoing story featuring cozy stargazing, astromical data, and an isolated island that is slowly becoming full of love 🧡💜

[shadowgast-week-2]

Shadowgast week prompt: Thread/telescope Words: 1637 Rating: Mature Additional Tags: Blood and Injury, Kidnapping, Torture, Psychological Torture, Revenge, Vampires, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Okay I know the tags are heavy but I feel like the ending is an open door to a new cool adventure trust me guys Summary: Bren has few choices and all end in a grave.

[shadowgast-week-2]

Hello friends, it's been a week since the conclusion of Shadowgast Week 2025 and I wanted to share some stats and some announcements!

Firstly, stats! We had a total of 49 entries to SG Week 2025 (that I saw in the tag or @'ed me! If you posted something and I never reblogged it, please let me know and I'll get it on that), including a whopping 30 fics uploaded to the collection on AO3! If you posted a fic and didn't submit it to the collection, please consider doing so! I'll do my best to keep an eye on submissions to approve any that trickle in.

Another massive thank you to everyone who participated in the event! As I said at the launch of the blog, this event meant a lot to me when I joined the fandom and getting to run it myself now has been lovely. And once again, no worries if you have projects you didn't finish in time, I'm still watching the tag for late entries 💜🧡

Speaking of events that have sentimental value, onto our announcements! As I also mentioned at launch, @essek-week was another important event when I got here and I've hoped to revive it as well. And, well, I am! If you're interested in a more Essek-centric event, please consider giving @essek-week-2 a follow. More information about that event will be coming soon on that blog.

Also, no promises, but if folks are interested, I could be persuaded to run a Caleb-centric version too. Widogast Week, anyone?

That's all I've got for now 💜🧡 thank you for reading and we'll (hopefully) see you again next June for Shadowgast Week 2026

[shadowgast-week-2]

The lecture hall was in surprisingly good shape, considering the rest of the building was in utter ruin. A quick peer through the door and detect magic revealed no creatures or traps. Essek glanced back over his shoulder, spying Caleb some 30 feet away, picking through some fallen rubble, and stepped through the open doorway into the hall.

Not only was the room in good shape, it was almost eerily untouched -- the toppled professor's desk on the dais the only true indication of something awry. Once-polished, wooden chairs with adjoining desks were arranged in tiers around the dais, built into the floor and, if his arcane sight did not deceive him, magically reinforced against being removed or altered in any way. He wondered idly what sort of rowdy behavior Aeor's elite arcane students got up to that warranted such reinforcement as he glided silently toward the professor's desk. The windows of the surrounding walls were similarly reinforced, framed by columns that guided the eye up and overhead where they held aloft a dome inlaid with golden arcane sigils in a calligraphic script that appeared merely decorative in nature. It was easy to imagine such a room flying, majestic, among the clouds, filled with light and learning.

Regrettable, then, that his own search for learning in this hall was looking to be fruitless: there were no papers strewn on the surrounding floor around the desk, and it appeared the room was unoccupied at the time of destruction. Spying no traps, he pulled perfunctorily on one of the desk drawers, and -- shrreeeeeekk -- the ancient slides, long rusted from disuse, grated against each other. He froze, listening for any disturbed monsters in the shadow. There were no creeping abominations to be heard, but something else caught his ear.

He glided slowly to the center of the dais and spoke quietly with a quick practiced twist of his hand. He barely registered the dancing lights that floated up from his fingertips as he listened to the way his voice reverberated through the room, filling the space. He gave an experimental hum, first one note, then another, and relished in how they danced among the dust motes. He took a deep breath and, unsure if he still remembered how, began to sing softly.

Across the fields, the windswept fields, Across the fields, oh Light, oh Light, the windswept fields, my lover came to me.

Across the mountains, the western mountains, Across the mountains, oh Light, oh Light, the western mountains, he went away.

The northern wind, the howling wind, The northern wind, oh Light, oh Light, the howling wind, is all that dries my tears.

It was fine, he thought. The ornamentations weren't as smooth or detailed as he once managed, but still, he listened with satisfaction to the last notes lingering in the air.

The sound of quiet applause caused him to start, and he twisted around to find Caleb standing in the doorway. Essek could feel heat rising in his face at being caught singing so roughly, but he gave a mock bow to go with the mock applause before gliding over.

"That was lovely," Caleb murmured as Essek glided near, and Essek stopped short, realizing the look on Caleb's face was not one of amusement but of intermingled affection and delight. Was he serious? Caleb continued. "Was it a hymn of some sort?"

"A hymn?"

"I thought I heard--ah," He stopped short, suddenly serious, and cleared his throat. "Light?" He ventured in Undercommon, and Essek felt warmer still, though no longer from embarrassment. He floated closer to Caleb, compelled by a sort of gravitational pull he was only recently becoming familiar with.

"Widowgast, you did not tell me you were studying Undercommon."

"Ah, well," Caleb's eyes found a spot on Essek's shoulder as a small smile tugged his lips. "Studying is generous term. I've just pieced together a few things." He reached out a hand and interlaced his fingers with Essek's, tugging him into the doorway with him, which Essek allowed with pleasure. The smile on his face had a warm mischievousness that crinkled the corners of his eyes as he added, "Though I certainly wouldn't say no to some private lessons."

"Private lessons?" Essek reached up his other hand and hooked a finger under Caleb's scarf, pulling them closer still, until their foreheads rested against each other. "That will cost you a favor, I think." And Caleb obliged, tilting his chin up and closing the distance between them, and their lips met with a rush of warm affection and pleasure. "Mm, I'll consider it," he murmured as they parted at last.

"Wunderbar. And how much would another private concert cost me?"

Essek laughed -- it was a silly thought after all -- him give a concert. But, Caleb was not laughing. His brows were furrowing together as he tried to determine what he had said that was so funny. Oh. "Apologies," Essek said, straightening up. "I-I cannot say I have ever been asked to sing before. It took me by surprise." Caleb's brows furrowed further.

"No one noticed you have a beautiful voice?" Again, he seemed utterly sincere. Essek had heard human ears were not as discerning as elven ones. Perhaps, it was true.

"I took singing lessons as a child -- all noble-born children do. Music is an important part of temple services -- a hymn was a good bet on your part. I enjoyed it well enough, but my teacher concluded my voice was only good for --" He paused, unsure if the phrase was the same in Common, but forged ahead. "--kitchen songs and said I would be better off playing an instrument."

"He sounds like an Arschloch."

"Indeed."

Caleb raised their clasped hands and pressed a sweet kiss to Essek's knuckles. When he lowered them, there was mischief glittering in his eyes again. "You know, I never had music lessons, and kitchen songs sound fun. Perhaps you can teach me that as well." Essek grinned back at him.

"The price for that will be very steep."

"I was hoping you would say so."

*****

*shows up to Shadowgast Week 2025 fifteen minutes late with black moss cupcakes*

This was supposed to be for Light / Culture, but better late than never! It was inspired by this video that crossed my dash recently and a conversation with a friend about their childhood music teacher. The folk song Essek sings is inspired by this one.

[shadowgast-week-2]

For Shadowgast week day one, gravity/garden!

Additional Tags: Wildemount Wildlings Camp for Adventuring Kids (Critical Role), Domestic Fluff, Married Life, Making Out, Kissing, Fluff, Cute, Roleplay, Surprises, Gardens & Gardening, Sweet/Hot, Partnership, Life Partners, shadowgast-week-2’s Shadowgast Week 2025 (Critical Role)

Summary:

A sweet stolen moment, a kiss under the raining petals, two figures finding each other behind kaleidoscopic glass.

[shadowgast-week-2]

Day 6 the door is close to you part one

@shadowgast-week-2

so I have the first half of this done which I'll be posting right now and the second chapter of day 6 is coming out tomorrow cuz it's so late and I did this so late so much editing I have to do so sorry if this is half done

Additional Tags: Trauma, Trauma Cycle, Trans Essek Thelyss, Trans Mpreg | Trans Male Pregnancy, Baby Showers, Fluff, Baby Names, Good Friend Yasha Nydoorin, Caleb Widogast Needs a Hug, Good Parent Deirta Thelyss, Angst, Ribbons, Fletcher's family sucks!!!, Shadowgast-week-2's Shadowgast Week 2025 (Critical Role), Baby Shower, Meeting the grandparents, Wedding Fluff, Reception fluff, Essek Thelyss' father is a great dad, cutting off toxic family

Tomorrow part 2 will come out

[shadowgast-week-2]

Shadowgast week day 7 - Eyes

One of the wizards is a little distracted.

[shadowgast-week-2]

Free Day

Final day! I took the free prompt for this one, because I already had an idea I wanted to write that I didn't really feel met any of the others.

I've had a blast filling the the prompts and sharing them with everyone, and seeing all the other takes being shared either in fic form or art form. Cheers to the wizards, and to everyone who's been participating!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/66387703

On a wall inside the tower there is a scoreboard. It reads:

Successful Eiselcross Teleportations

Caleb: 27

Essek: 27

Three years of travel, and it’s still a dead tie.

Time for a bit of a friendly competition.

[shadowgast-week-2]

Day 7 - Eyes 🧡💜👀

[shadowgast-week-2]

how do we atone for the secrets we've been shown- shadowgast week day 7: eyes

Rating: G

Summary:

"Two years ago, if someone had told the Shadowhand that one day he would be walking the streets of Rexxentrum perfectly at ease, he would have thought it was a roundabout way of saying the Dynasty would eventually win the war. Yet now there was no war, and Essek, wearing another man’s face, was buying flowers. He felt oddly at ease on these foreign streets and even more at ease doing his own errands. The old him would have felt neither."

During a shopping trip in Rexxentrum, Essek is suddenly faced with the fact that he cannot outrun his past. With Caleb at his side, for once, Essek does not run. Instead, he returns to his towers in Rosohna to retrieve his notes and relive his past. There, Essek is forced to come to terms with how far he has come and how much further he has to go.

My last submission for @shadowgast-week-2

https://archiveofourown.org/works/66348454

[shadowgast-week-2]

And it is at last Day 7, the final day of Shadowgast Week 2025! Today’s prompt is Eyes, but it’s otherwise a free day to create whatever you’d like for the wizards!! Thank you to everyone who has participated, it’s been wonderful seeing all your art and fics, which I can wait to read over the next few days/weeks. If you weren’t able to finish things on time, no worries! Late entries are always welcome and I’ll check on the tag periodically for new creations 💜🧡

[shadowgast-week-2]

Day 5 yule and new light celebrations

@shadowgast-week-2

Additional Tags: Caleb's parents didnt die just presumed dead, Yule, Celebrations, Christmas Presents, Meeting the Parents, Fluff and Angst, Caleb Widogast is Called Bren Aldric Ermendrud, On occasion and only by his husband and family, shadowgast-week-2's Shadowgast Week 2025 (Critical Role), Essek Thelyss Deserves Nice Things, Trans Mpreg | Trans Male Pregnancy, Wedding Fluff, Reception not the wedding, Yule Cat, Yule Goat - Freeform, part one of two

Summary: Caleb shares his family’s winter traditions from his memories. Some angst and comfort as they watch the northern lights when essek shares his culture’s traditions.

day five and six are part one and two to the final stretch the six stories.

*also yes all these small stories are connected with the exception of day 7. Also day four happens between day 2 and 3*

[shadowgast-week-2]

Door - Dawn

And day 6, here we go! Another combo for this one: mostly Dawn, partly Door.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/66345502

After months of subterranean exploration, Caleb and Essek emerge from the depths of Aeor out onto the fields of Eiselcross. Unbeknownst to Essek, Caleb has carefully timed their reappearance to coincide perfectly with the breaking of a new dawn.

[shadowgast-week-2]

Shadowgast Week 2025

Day 3 - Hands

Essek is very used to hiding, to obfuscating, to enduring silently and gritting his teeth. But in close proximity, both physical and emotional, there is nowhere to hide

https://archiveofourown.org/works/66245035

[shadowgast-week-2]

Shadowgast Week 2025!

Day 4 - Thread

Life on the road, on the run, can be hard. And for a man who was once used to high society, to his needs being taken care of, the wear-and-tear of everyday object can come as a surprise. But what’s more surprising is the small, yellow flower that appeared embroidered on his shirts seemingly out of nowhere.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/66285277

[shadowgast-week-2]

Shadowgast Week 2025!

Day 5 - Culture

The blazing Marquesan sun shines a light on different cultural practices

https://archiveofourown.org/works/66300772

[shadowgast-week-2]

Shadowgast Week 2025!

Day 6 - Dawn

The Dwendalian Empire is known for its restrictions on worship, outlawing fods deemed regressive or disruptive. Enforcement, of course, is much harder in smaller, more rural communities. Not enough resources, all spread too thin. A farmer, after all, will pray to the Wildmother, whether the king likes it or now.

And in a land touched by fey magic, the people sing to the Archeart

***

Blumenthal celebrates Elvendawn, and its lost child returns to celebrate with it.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/66341698