#Apartment 3-3: A Modern Monster Romance

[justmusings]

pov: you find out your new neighbour is a giant minotaur and also THE nicest guy

(Mo from Apartment 3-3 by @leftski-if )

[physalian]

What No one Tells You about Writing Fantasy, #2!

I did this list about 7 annoyances about fantasy, but I write in this genre for a reason! Fantasy knows no bounds, it can encompass all other genres within it. You can write a fantastical murder mystery, fantasy horror, fantasy romance, political drama, slice-of-life, comedy, whatever you’d like!

Whether it’s urban or high fantasy, supernatural or scientific, here’s seven great benefits of writing in this genre:

1. No modern means of communication

Unless you’re writing a world with phones or phone-adjacent devices. Phones and instant communication seriously inhibits the plausibility of dramatic irony and tension when you have to keep coming up with reasons to keep your characters from calling or texting each other everything they know. It’s exhausting, I tell you, and such a relief when phones aren’t a factor.

With that said, without phones, you have complete freedom to design your own magical channels of supernatural FaceTime, as weird and zany as you want. But without instant connections? Your character who knew too much can’t pass on the intel before they die. Your hero team can’t call for backup in their darkest hour. Otherwise easily preventable tragedies and deadly miscommunications are now very real.

2. The Monster Allegory

Fantasy and sci-fi tend to overlap more than they’re set apart, and in that overlap sits the monster allegory. Everything from werewolves to vampires to witches, reapers, demons, angels, goblins, trolls, wraiths, fairies, mermaids, ghosts, to Eldritch horrors and your classic Hollywood cast of mummies, creatures from the black lagoon, and Frankenstein.

Most of the time, the monsters aren’t just monsters, they represent a monstrous aspect of society the author wants to challenge and caricaturize in a fun and entertaining way. Or, the monsters are the good guys and the humans are the real terrors. Or, you’ve got two kinds of monsters to allegory two human sides. Sometimes they represent metaphorical demons, like vampires often representing addiction and werewolves repressed identities.

What all of this boils down to is the hyperbolic nature of science fantasy that allows you to go over-the-top with your metaphor and allegory in a way that a book grounded in reality just can’t.

3. Magic Systems!

Do you love world building? Do you love filling pages upon pages with your cool and unique set of superpowers you want your characters to have? Do you dream about your fight scenes and dramatic slow-mo shots?

Then Fantasy is for you!

There are zero limits to how you want to define your magic system. You can go classic with the familiar archetypes of elemental magic, wizards, sorcerers, and witches. Or you can step off the beaten path and design a whole new funky system of power sets. Best part? Your readers will have an awesome time imagining themselves with those powers, and debating endlessly about how it works.

4. Real-World Politics, who?

Amazon’s Rings of Power was twice-doomed when they only got the rights to adapt the appendices of The Silmarillion and when they decided to inject current political problems into a timeless story written purposefully to be divorced from those politics. You *can* write about human politics, but in fantasy, you don’t have to. You *can* interpret Lord of the Rings to be an allegory about the World Wars, but no matter how hard you argue, it wasn’t written with that intent.

Which means: Even if your story is set in the reality-adjacent fantasy version of 1543, you are free from the following: Racism, homophobia, sexism, religious bigotry, mental health bigotry, gender norms, anti-feminism, toxic masculinity, and more. “But that’s how it was-”

Nope. This is fantasy. You built this world, you decided to keep in the discrimination. Or… You can fill your fantasy world with a rainbow of gays, POCs in power, women in power, men unafraid to be compassionate and caring, a religion that doesn’t foster hate and division, the list goes on. You. Are. Free.

5. Nothing is too “unrealistic”

Both that you will always have people whining about how X would never happen so write the book you want to read, but also because fantasy is fake. Fairies aren’t real. Mermaids aren’t real. There are no rules for how they must be written and that’s how we have so much variety with so much room for interpretation by so many creators. Twilight made how much money writing about vampires that sparkle like diamonds in sunlight and crack like marble?

This is fantasy, it’s supposed to be unrealistic. Yes, your plot should make sense, but don’t be afraid to get weird. Write at least some of your story dependant on those fantasy elements. Write a story that can’t just be told in the real world minus the spectacle. Don’t be afraid to be sincerely fantastical and weird. People love weird. People love loving weird.

6. You are in complete control

But you do still need to research, unfortunately. Unless this is urban fantasy that depends at least a little on the human world, yours is completely your own to govern like a god tweezing weeds from their garden. You get to design your own geography and weather patterns and seasons. Your own countries and kingdoms and politicians. Your epic pre-canon fantasy war and the stakes that it was fought over. Your species, races, and ethnicities.

It’s a shame that a movie like Avatar (2009) set out to be this wholly unique take on aliens with music completely divorced from earthly bonds, new languages and a visually and culturally distinct alien species… and ended up a largely generic blue Pocahontas in space. It forgot that it was fantasy and didn’t go weird enough. They have horses, monkeys, wolves, rhinos, and deer just re-skinned with some extra limbs and colors. It’s pretty but it’s so, so shallow.

It could have become a cult classic like many a positively *weird* 80s off-beat fantasies, and now it just… exists. It makes a whole lot of money but its impact on the cultural zeitgeist is negligible. I’m the only person I know that can name every major character in the movie, and I’m no Avatar obsessor. They had complete creative control, and this is what they did with it. Don’t be Avatar. Take your creative freedom and run.

7. Even if it has been done before, do it again

You can say this about any genre, particularly romance, but fantasy and sci-fi, by the gatekeep-y nature of their fans, can be a lot less forgiving when it comes to claims of “unoriginality”. No one hates Star Wars more than Star Wars fans. Fans of these genres can get… concerningly attached to their favorite stories (mostly because the people who like them had only their fictional heroes to protect them from very real bullies).

But Game of Thrones exists because the author likes Lord of the Rings and went “yes, but what if it was an R-rated parade of misery?” Dungeons and Dragons exists because people wanted to roleplay in an LotR-esque world. Legolas and Gimli single-handedly defined what a badass elf and dwarf looks like in high fantasy. And people still gobble up media ripping shamelessly, or even good-naturedly, from this one story.

So on my other list, I argued that the sum of your parts is still original, even if the components aren’t. On this list, I implore you this: It’s not stealing or appropriating to write another Legolas if you love Legolas. Everyone loves Legolas. How many generic buff action heroes do we have and love? How many Hallmark romances tread the same predictable path? Who gives a damn if it’s unoriginal? Just make it entertaining and have something fresh to say in the end (or don’t, that’s fine too), and people will read it.

And when people say “Oh, you mean like Legolas”, take it as a compliment, not an insult. Yes, exactly like Legolas. Here’s my new elf because I adore this other book, now watch him go on a new adventure that I wrote for him.

[victorsandvanquishers]

The Red House (and all who live in its walls) - Chapter 15

Fandom: DC Comics

Ships: Bart Allen/Kon El

Ratings: M+

Warnings: Alternate Universe - Modern: No Powers; Southern Gothic Horror; Monster/Human romance uwu, Mentions of drug and alcohol abuse; More villains from Superboy 1994

Story Synopsis: When former child star and Metropolis sweetheart Kon 'Superboy' El loses the last vestiges of his career to rampant partying and a budding alcohol addiction, he's forced to move into an old house in the Georgian woods because he can't afford his apartment or his bills anymore. Never the quitter, Kon embraces the crumbling antebellum house and all of its possibilities.

[Bart Allen/Kon El, No Powers AU, gothic horror romance]

Chapter Summary: When doubt creeps in, who's to blame? The Red House, and all those who live in its walls, investigate.

~~~

Looks like Konboy's life just got a little more exciting! Find out more next time on Dragon Ball Haunted House, and don't forget to leave a review! (*￣3￣)╭

[dominimoonbeam]

Bite to Bruise - Epilogue + Extra Scene

This work is mine and I do not give consent for my works to be used, copied, published, or posted without my permission. I am sharing chapters as I work on this story but it is copyrighted material that I plan to rework and publish when completed.

story tags: modern-fantasy mashup, werewolves, witches, monsters, romance, learning to trust, hurt/comfort, blood, violence, explicit sex, explicit language

The earlier parts can be found under the tag or over on patreon. <3

A huge thank you to everyone who read this and commented or reblogged or just sent good vibes. I'll be editing and adding a bit more to this one and then self publishing it soon. Thank you!

BITE TO BRUISE - CHAPTER EPILOGUE + EXTRA SCENE.

EPILOGUE

There were a lot of questions about what happened in his territory that day.

The other fenrir wanted to know if the shades had attacked, if it was a call to war.

The shades had their own questions but locked them behind their teeth.

Ever brought Wren back to the house and the pack watched Grendel and Hymn carry Baron’s body from the woods, the curse still wrapped around him.

Blackwell’s shades ripped the old god apart and dug her out of its guts. The pack allowed them to leave, carrying their undead back to their vehicles in a trail of blood that was everything but fenrir.

Later that night, they discovered the hole where Soren had been buried. Ever suspected Primrose had recovered his missing shade, just as he had set out to do from the start.

From what he heard months later, Baron’s court managed to get the curse off of him and the shade recovered—only he forgot the name Baron and went back to being Kish. The bounty on the witch was canceled.

Eventually winter gave way completely and the last of the snow and ice melted, taking the bloodspill with it into the earth. After they had cleared the fallen trees and the grass grew in the valley, it looked like none of it had ever happened. No human would guess at it, even if every fenrir could smell that hint of shade and monster in the soil for years to follow.

It smelled like violence and victory, and when he stepped through the back door of his home to see his witch sitting in that field, picking at long grass and watching the trees with a smile, he knew she smelled it too.

EXTRA SCENE

Before Ruby realized it, the streets had changed. Ceres had gone quiet and nearly abandoned within just a block. She kept walking, expecting to run into another stretch of brightly lit shop fronts and restaurants overflowing with guests.

A few more steps and she felt the skin on the back of her neck prickle, her hands twisting in the sleeves of her hoodie.

“Are you lost?”

Ruby turned toward the voice. Yellow eyes stared back at her. The man was fenrir big. She exhaled a little relief, smiling. “I didn’t think I was…”

“Where’s your mate?” another voice came from the side.

Her heartbeat sped up, pounding against her throat. There was something pointedly unfriendly about this interaction. Had she done something? “What?” the word came out thin and unsteady. What was their problem? Did they know Liang? He’d said Ceres belonged to his cousin and they were safe here.

She took a step back and the one to her right, still deep in shadow between buildings, growled.

The sound made her jump and jerk away from it, stumbling off the sidewalk and into the street. A wolf stepped out of those shadows, darkness rolling off of its massive body like it was made of it. Lips curled back to bare long teeth as it continued to snarl at her.

“Well?” the other asked, as if he hadn’t noticed. “Where is he?”

“Who?” Ruby played dumb. It felt easy when she had no idea what was happening.

The wolf at her side snapped and Ruby screamed, legs tangling and dropping her on her ass right there in the street.

“Why would a rogue send their mate in here alone?” the other wondered aloud, stepping closer. Somehow, he was more menacing than the one on all four.

But then he froze, his expression dropping and his head turning to the side like he’d heard something she couldn’t.

The fenrir on all four had stopped growling too, ears flicking before it backed away.

“Knock it off,” a third commanded, walking onto the scene and right past the one asking questions. He was just as tall but leaner, and yet the other man backed up, dropping his head. The third flashed Ruby a smile that actually looked genuine and offered her his hand. “Hi. I’m Sunny.”

Ruby took the hand and was hoisted to her feet. “Ruby,” she muttered, confused.

He smiled the way she’d become used to fenrir smiling when she gave her name, but he released her hand a took a step back, giving her just enough space to have the illusion of being out of his reach. “Are you lost?”

She exhaled hard. “Why does everyone keep asking that?”

The fenrir on four legs snorted and turned to walk back into the shadows.

Sunny stepped to the side, gesturing for her to join him back the way she’d come.

Ruby frowned but started walking. This was at least better than possibly getting mauled… “Did I do something wrong?” she asked when she could see the brighter lights of the familiar streets ahead.

Sunny had maintained a distance from her, a step ahead and to her side. “No. You just smell like a wolf that doesn’t belong to our pack. So, they got a little… defensive.”

“I thought Ceres belonged to Royal?”

Growls rumbled from the streets behind her but when she looked, she couldn’t spot any of the wolves in those shadows. The man beside her just smiled. “Half of it does. The half you were on. You couldn’t have known, and it wouldn’t have mattered if—”

“If I didn’t smell like a wolf.”

He nodded. “Speaking of…”

The growls in the dark got louder when she spotted Liang marching out of those bright streets and straight toward them. If he knew where the border was, he didn’t show any signs of caring.

Ruby felt a mix of relief and worry. She almost reached for him, but she was scared she’d led him into a conflict. “I managed to get lost,” she announced, hoping to break some of that tension she could see in the line of his shoulders and the curl of his lip flashing long pointed teeth. His eyes stayed fixed on her, moving over her from head to toe like he was looking for injury.

“I left you alone for twenty minutes,” he pointed out, his usual easy humor there but with a tension underneath she’d never heard. She really must have stepped in it this time… He pulled her gently behind him, away from Sunny.

Ruby blinked, surprised. Sunny was far from menacing, and she had seen Liang fight worse. But Liang took a step back, nudging her farther away. “She didn’t know,” he explained.

Sunny wasn’t smiling anymore, she realized. His eyes were on Liang now. “But you did.”

Liang took another step back, keeping her behind him, and she realized he might not be backing up at all if it weren’t for a need to get her away from the situation. “I wasn’t part of the pack that lived here before yours and I don’t belong to Royal.”

“But you are his blood.”

“And you are Ever’s blood but that doesn’t mean you belong to his pack anymore, does it?”

A series of snarls and growls echoed through the dark streets behind Sunny, and Ruby wondered how many there were out there.

Sunny kept his eyes on Liang, like he was trying to read something that wasn’t said or seeing something no one else could. “Welcome back to Dog Lands, Liang. Stick around long enough this time and you might even get rid of that Blood Country stink.”

Liang tensed. She felt it in his back where her hand was curled in his t-shirt against his spine.

Sunny smiled, more friendly than threatening. Why was everyone so scared of him? “What? You thought you would know about me, and I wouldn’t know about you? Tell your cousin hello from us.”

Liang nodded tightly and took a few more steps back before turning, his arm slung around her shoulders and walking them toward that invisible territory line in the city.

“And Ruby,” Sunny called. She looked back to see him sliding his hands into his pockets. “I’m sorry if they scared you. You’re welcome over whenever you want.” His smile became a grin, brilliant and true. “Even if you want to bring your mate with you.”

Liang didn’t stop walking or even look back, but she managed to watch just long enough to see half a dozen shadows move around Sunny.

When they were back on the busier streets, still walking deeper into the lights and crowds, Ruby looked up at Liang beside her. “Why do they keep calling you my mate?”

Liang snorted, his own smile back. “That’s your first question?”

“It seems like a good one…”

“Because you smell like me.”

“So?” she argued. She smelled like him? She tried to discreetly tuck her chin and sniff at her hoodie. It’s not like it could be a bad smell. Liang smelled amazing.

He tugged her tighter into his side and dropped his head to bury a kiss against her hair. “Because you smell a lot like me, Red. Even a tracker would be hard-pressed to tell us apart at this point.”

[storieschats]

Fourth Wing Book 1 Update 1

Where I am: Page 131 of 516 (Note: Portuguese version so a bit useless for most of you guys)

Basically in the history, she and ... Xander I think have just fought after she won all her previous fights by poisoning her opponents. Next chapter they are going to do the Gauntlet whatever that is.

What I think so far: It’s ok! I think I am linking it, at least we're not going to have the case where one person gives fives stars and another one xd. The history is fast-paced and I don't find it boring, so the reading flows well.

Positive Points:

The romance for the moment is pleasing me, I'm one of those enemies to lovers, bad boys kinda girl so I like Xander and I find the relationship in general funny and what I am most interested in the story.

Violet is not a bad character apart from a few cringe moments I don’t really mind being in her head and so I don’t think the history suffers in being told in her perspective.

I like Shanon(??) her best friend in the school. She is great!

Magical schools, magical schools! Although I don't think it's one of the best conceived ever, the feeling of following a school year, having magical classes and magical challenges to overcome is an arrow to my heart and I'm not going to pretend it isn't!!!

Oh my god the characters are twenty?! Finally a romance book with normal soldier ages xd.

Negative points:

The writing irritated me a bit at first, I find it a bit melodramatic and if I have to read the word “fragile” one more time, which I suspect I will because each chapter so far has used it about twice, I'm going to write in your book as you suggested but ONLY to cross out the word fragile. Oh and the writing is also a bit meta sometimes like the author knows she's writing a romance and throws in lines like “I don't like annoying boys oh but he's so cute”. Eye roll ok there are things that have to be shown and not told.

The magic system, the kingdom, the traitors and all that don't seem very well conceived. Maybe I'm wrong and it'll be better developed later on, but for now the fantasy is rather flimsy, it feels more like modern people in a war college than people in a magical fantasy world. I hope something is done with the story of the traitors' children who are forced to go to that school, which is basically the only interesting thing I've read about the history of this kingdom. For now this romantasy has more to give to rom than tasy.

The ages xd i love the fact that they're 20 because it's more realistic but if most books sometimes make the mistake of making 15 year olds sound like they're 25 this one does the opposite and these 20 year olds sound like they're 14.

Stars if I had to give them now: 3 stars

What I think will happen:  Mira (her sister) will die cause drama, Dain will have to do something horrible or we'll find out he's actually a monster or something, because romantic triangles can never have 2 to root for. Which is a shame because I like him for the time being, but I'm sure that'll change soon. She's going to bond with the super unique and important black dragon they learn about in class because duh this isn't the first story of my life xd.

Confession: Upss I when I got to chapter like 3 or something I went to see if I could find the index to see how many chapters there were and since there was nothing at the beginning I went to see the end because sometimes they put it there and honestly without intending to I read the last sentence of the book and I know that Brannon, her brother, is alive and there is a rebellion xd sorry I only read the sentence like “welcome to the rebellion violet said Brannon”.

Last thing: Also he called her Violence instead of Violet, her name. Cringe not sexy not gonna lie.

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 3/5

Book Blurb:

Former model and current recluse Jules Lowe would prefer to spend the rest of her life locked inside her apartment doing nothing more than fixating on her empty fish tank and chatting away on a local aquarium forum. But when her online crush sends her an inadvertently suspicious picture, Jules' curiosity gets the best of her. Who or what is Mack Vasser?

Even Jules’ fear of the outside world can’t stop her from exploring further. And while venturing out to track down Mack is scary enough, discovering he's part-fish, part-man is a shock of a lifetime. Even more shocking is Jules' confusing attraction to him which has her leaving her apartment again and again.

Unfortunately for Jules, she isn't the only person who's aware that creatures like Mack exist. And now that she's gotten herself involved, she's risking not only her feelings, but both their safety, in a world where nobody seems to know who the real monsters are.

Review:

A former model with agoraphobia is now a constant shut in who's only real connection is with the guy on the local aquarium forum... who might be more fish than man. Jules Lowe is a former model now full time recluse. She spends her days locked inside her apartment working as a copy editor and chatting with her online crush on her favorite local aquarium forum. Yet when they begin trading photos... he is definitely more fish than man... and it keeps drawing Jules in. Jules is demisexual and discovering that she is very very attracted to Mack Vasser, her online best friend... who just happens to be part fish part man. Mack can't fathom why Jules keeps coming back and is so insistent on being with him. Jules also begins to notice changes in herself... such as a scale growing.. and on top of all of this someone on the forum is trying to hunt down humans who are part fish and Mack is the very top of their list, then there's Jules's creepy neighbor who is obsessed with her... can Jules and Mack really have a relationship when one of them is part fish and the other is turning into something...? This was definitely a unique merman romance, very The Shape of Water-esque but in modern day! I definitely was hoping for a bit more in the romance department but overall it was a fun read.

[alectoperdita]

A Striking Match

Rated: M Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters Pairing: Jounouchi Katsuya/Kaiba Seto Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Aged-Up Character(s), Fake/Pretend Relationship, Background Relationships, Enemies to Lovers, Matchmaking, Crossdressing, Mixed-Race Character, Bigotry & Prejudice, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Class Differences, Tokyo (City), 5+1 Things, Romance, Getting Together, Awkward Dates, Sexual Tension, Eventual Smut, Mild Sexual Content

The five times Katsuya crossdressed on a date with Kaiba Seto and the one time he didn't.

Kaiba rolled his eyes and moved further into the apartment. "Don't take too long. We don't want to miss our reservation." As he ducked back into the bathroom to finish, he called out, "You ever gonna tell me where we're going?" "What's the point? How many French restaurants are you familiar with?" "Hey, I know a few—L'Osier." Kaiba laughed. "You butchered that pronunciation." Undeterred, he threw out another name he hopefully mangled to a lesser degree. "Beige then." This time, he received no snarky reply. After another beat of silence, he crowed, "I got it, didn't I? We're going to Beige!" "Stop wasting time and hurry up."

Read Chapter 4/7: Date #3

[psalacanthea]

Blog Nutritional Info

General Content Warning: 21+, marijuana, alcohol, sex (I never post sexually explicit writing without a cut to hide it), blood but not real gore, bones and monsters and bats. Spiders maybe rarely but my friend hates them so I avoid it.

My writing is adult writing, for adults. Content warnings are provided in the fics.

I do:

Accept writing prompts, fic requests, random OC or writing questions in my ask box.

Allow DMs from people who I do not follow, as long as u aren't a dick.

I do not:

Write x Reader or in second person. Please do not send me those prompts, I understand that it's very popular but it's not for me.

Currently Writing:

Baldur's Gate 3- Tav x Astarion, Dark Urge x Gortash (and Dark Urge x Abdirak)

Dragon Age- DA:A- Cousland Warden x Nathaniel Howe, Hawke x Varric

In-Progress Fics:

Dissonance and Debauchery: The Drama of an Ill-Fated Bard

Follows the plot of the game Baldur's Gate 3. Tav (Zynatheri Rivati) x Astarion. Zyn is a surface-raised genderfluid Drow bard who habitually hides her own identity with magic. Her past is just as murky as her face, and she clings to her lies with a desperate grip. Much like her friendships, her lovers are all in passing and without an ounce of sentiment. Surely a self-centered, amoral vampire is using her just as much as she's using him, which means Astarion is safe. Right?

Status: On Hiatus

Vampires, Romance, and Other Dead Things

Modern AU of Baldur's Gate 3, vaguely follows Astarion's personal quest. Tav (Zyn) x Astarion. Astarion ends up attacked in the alley outside of Zyn's apartment and she drunkenly rescues him, battered, bloody, and bitten. Neither of them realize that staying the night in her apartment means he's condemning himself to an unlife sleeping on her couch. Zyn isn't thrilled about that, and neither is the vampire that turned Astarion.

Cazador wants his spawn back.

Status: On Hiatus

Belladonna- The Dark Urge

A series of one-shots detailing the past and game story of my Dark Urge. An impulse-riddled, violent murderer hell-bent on appearing untouchable and calm, she dwells within silent halls and is served by a cult of voiceless, cannibalistic maidens tended like flowers in a garden. Belladonna fights the power of her Father not to rebel, but to be capable of fulfilling his Will. For being the flesh of Bhaal is not only a privilege, but a struggle, the constant urge to kill, rend, destroy, and breed nearly antithetical to any real progress.

Orin, her sister, seems not to understand the price, and gleefully indulges all her urges. Enver Gortash, her would-be partner in more than one sense, is no better with his constant tests and suggestions towards rebellion. And then there is the Elder Brain, who whispers in her ear that glory in the end may be hers, so that all the world may see her as a pure, inviolate goddess in her own right.

But she knows that in the end, all things must end in death. Orin, Enver, even the Elder Brain will all die. For she is the Flesh of Bhaal, and although she fights against her Father's gifts, in the end it is all for Him.

Then she gets amnesia. Oops.

Status: Updates Randomly when she forcibly takes over my brain. Chronological status not guaranteed. I might write more Abdirak next.

Dragon Age

Reforged in Dragon's Fire

Follows the story line of Dragon Age Awakening. After the death of the Archdemon, Phoebe Cousland has been transmuted from the bright, brilliant girl that Nathaniel Howe remembers into something bitter, cold, and hard. Although she's saved his life and made him a Warden, she cannot seem to stop herself from trying to place the crimes of his family upon his shoulders.

Since a young age, everyone knew she was meant to marry Nathaniel's brother Thomas. But the betrayal of war showed his true face, and all of her rage, confusion, and anger has finally found a target in his brother. Nathaniel, for his part, struggles with the revelation of his father's deeds, and the lies his family made him complicit in.

The ghosts of the past must be laid to rest before there is any hope of a future.

Status: On Hiatus Until December

A Sky of Shattered Stars

After five years of running from demons, aided by spirits and rebel gods, Hawke is finally free of the Fade. She's home, back with Varric, but when you're too afraid to sleep and your body has forgotten what reality feels like, recovery is hard. While Hawke fights with her own body and her fear that she'll never truly recover, Varric is dealing with demons of his own.

His unresolved grief haunts them, trapping her in the empty halls of the Viscount's mansion.

But there's a conspiracy in the streets of Kirkwall, whispers of the Viscount's misdeeds. They say he lies, that he uses the dead Champion's name to cover his own grasping for power-- laughable, Hawke knows, but infuriating. How dare they use her to hurt Varric?

[septemberrie]

Trope Game

Thank you for the tag @junkshop-disco! I really liked reading your thoughts on your tastes and found out they are honestly a bit different than mine! Love that our fandom isn't just one thing.

Rules: How much do these tropes affect your decision to click on a fic?

-10 -> very dissuaded

0 -> don’t care either way

10 -> very enticed

nope -> if it’s a hard no and you’d never click on a fic with that tag or or you even have the tag blocked or you’d insta click out of the fic if it wasn’t tagged.

Bonus points for explaining the rating and whether it’s conditional

Age Gap: 2/10

Age gaps used to be one of my kinks, but then I got older and well… tastes change!

Codependency: 0/10

I think my answer for a lot of these is going to be, “‘yes’ for my angsty ships, ‘no’ for my healthy ships.” So… yeano?

Enemies to lovers: 10/10

Gimme dat shit. I love starting with interpersonal conflict and growing from there.

Enemies With Benefits: 3/10

I actually will eat up dubcon if it’s in a dark setting that calls for it, i.e. fantasy. I’ll avoid it in contemporary/modern settings bc the real world has enough of that.

Fake Dating/Relationship: 0/10

I’m not opposed to it, upon reflection my issue with it is that “I can't relate to this trope IRL" but I could say that about most of the tropes on this list so I can’t really explain my hesitance lol.

Found Family: 10/10

Who doesn’t love found family??? What in the tradwife

Friends To Lovers: 0/10

Only if there's lots of pining.

Friends With Benefits: 0/10

See: “fake dating” above.

Hurt/Comfort: 100/10

See JD’s comments, and if I may add my own: whump is my shortcut to emotions. I love forcibly removing society’s layers of hesitation and complexity and expectations, and stripping characters to their basest needs and seeing how they react. I feast.

Love Triangle: 0/10

Probably done better on ao3 than mass media but I’m still pretty meh.

Mistaken/Hidden Identity: 0/10

Is this like the Patrick Crawley/Gordon episode of Downton Abbey? Or like… a secret spy falls in love with the mark? No for the former, maybe for the latter; I can't think of any fics like this that have showed up in my browsing.

Monster Fu… Relationship: -5/10

I did read the Burned One x Rosalind fic and ummmm it's not for me. I am however not immune to paranormal romances (still unironically Team Jacob).

Obsession, Possessiveness, etc: -2/10

I mean… for my angsty, unhealthy ships, yes. But I've got to be in the mood for it obv.

Opposites (like grumpy×sunshine, etc): 0/10

…yes? I guess? In that I like reading about two people that aren’t carbon copies of each other. How do they navigate normal difficulties, etc. etc.

Poly: 0/10

Smut, 100%. Relationships? I’m wracking my brain trying to think of an example where I care about all three characters lol. Iron Widow, that worked!

Pregnancy: -10/10

It's a "nope" if the whole point of the fic is pregnancy. If it's part of a larger story/plot then maybe.

Second Chance: 10/10

Holy shit yes, I love the angst. Especially when it’s something out of their control that forced them apart. I don't think I've written this yet but I should add it to my list.

Sex To Feelings: 3/10

Yes, but after reflecting I think I’m more interested in the opposite: Feelings without sex because ~angst reasons~ prevent/preclude the sex. Until it all comes out in a fiery explosion of lust! I digress.

Slowburn: 9/10

The hand touch from Pride & Prejudice (2005) dir. Joe Wright is my middle name. I’m willing to negotiate on how slow is “slow” as long as it makes sense within the story.

Soulmates: 0/10

Only when it creates more angst! I still live in the world @shadowofnight proposed, where Saul and Andreas are “soulmates” with the matching mark or whatever but Saul chooses to be with Farah anyway.

Tagging: @astrid-v @whenshesayshush @theperfectrose @veritaserum07 no pressure ofc!

[acertainmoshke]

WIP Intro: Future Not Found (Cold Iron #4)

Ok obviously that’s a joke title, I don’t have a real one yet. I would use it but it doesn’t have the same intensity as the others. But maybe I will anyway. We'll see.

So. The year is 2028 and Shaka is 112 (34), Kris is 112 (47), Aaron is 45 (20), and Cassie is 112 (10). She loves living in the modern world, wearing cartoon t-shirts and bouncing on the bed and eating lots of smoothies and fries. She sometimes makes friends with local kids, but they eventually get older and then the family moves again. They have a real apartment now, though Shaka had to glamour the landlord since none of them have legal identities. Well, Shaka does but no one would believe them.

Their life is quiet except moving every 3-4 years. They were in the last place for longer than usual because of the pandemic, but they just moved again and Cassie and Aaron are busy making new friends. There's a new attitude towards changelings, a sort of idea that they are fantasy novels come to life. They're romanticized and fetishized, but it sure beats being treated like a monster everywhere you go. Well, there is still some of that too, some hypocrisy surrounding the idea that unearthly beings are fun to imagine but unpredictable and gross in real life.

Also, they don't fight anymore. Like Althea, they are officially retired. Which makes it particularly ironic one winter day when without warning Althea knocks on their door and explains there's a desperate situation in which they need to fight. They suspect a danger like they've never seen before from the Fae, far more organized and targeted. It's a threat the VG knows they aren't equipped to handle on their own. They're calling in all the little rogue groups that they usually chastise for trying to fight in an unofficial capacity. And Althea thought Shaka might be necessary, too. Any changeling willing to help is.

So the family is off on one more road trip to save the world, full of shenanigans and thinking the threat is something entirely different from the truth. There are unexpected allies and, for the first time in Shaka's life, a flicker of romance. It can't be a good idea, though, and they're far too old to find kissing as the world burns romantic. But part of them isn't ready to succeed, save everything, and go their separate ways.

[ship-ambrosia]

Thanks for the tag, @selkiewife!

I’m going to post lines from the WIPs that I’ve been working on most recently, but if anyone is interested in the fics I’ve already published, you can find links to them on this post.

10 most recent first lines in order from first to last:

1. She was queen, and yet she could not have him.

- Strings of Pearls (Theon/Sansa March YOTP; fresh starts, mutual pining, acceptance) Should hopefully be finished and published this week.

2. Yara Greyjoy did not cry.

- Untitled (Theon/Sansa, Theon becomes the Champion of the Drowned God)

3. A lion in the snow was an odd sight indeed.

- Untitled (Jaime goes to Winterfell as a different man)

4. Theon, or maybe Davos - perhaps even Daenerys or one of her allies, Missandei or Tyrion seemed likely, hoping to draw a wedge between him and his sister - had told Sansa about what he’d done on the beach of Dragonstone.

- Untitled (Jon POV of Theon/Sansa after the Long Night, Theon lives AU)

5. His dreams are full of fire and blood, snow and death all around him.

- What is Dead May Never Die (Time Traveler Theon, Theon/Sansa, monster of a fic im working on for some reason)

6. No one in their right mind passing by would suspect the petite, fair-haired maiden currently gliding through the halls of the Twins of treason.

- A Council of Roses (Roslin Frey saves Robb Stark, and changes the course of the war)

7. Sansa sighed, leaning back to examine her work, lines of text on her computer that when she really thought about, were just words and had no business coming together in such a way to feel sexy.

- Untitled (Modern AU Theon/Sansa where Sansa writes bodice ripper romance novels)

8. Margaery knocked on Sansa Stark’s apartment door at promptly 10 o’clock on Saturday morning as she did almost every week, carrying a carton of ice cream in one hand and a bottle of rosé in the other.

- Untitled (Modern AU Theon/Sansa, Margaery catches Theon at Sansa’s place and thinks they’re sleeping together)

9. By the Old Gods in Winterfell and the Seven in the south, and probably by the Drowned God that the islands he once called home believed in too, Theon Greyjoy was royally fucked.

- Untitled (April YOTP, (seemingly) unrequited love, “no, I’m not dating your brother”; Modern AU Theon/Sansa)

10. The first gift had been a small bouquet of daffodils.

- Untitled (May YOTP Theon/Sansa, flower language, pet/child acquisition, sunshine)

~*~

Please feel free to tell me which of these ideas are your favorite! Most of them are untitled because that’s usually the last thing I do lol

Tagging my Theonsa bestie, @grey-joys!

[leftski-if]

I. Love. Apartment 3-3. All of your IFs are incredible but our sweet neighbor boys are my favs. Do you think you’d ever do a sequel, or another shorter IF like Apartment 3-3? No pressure at all, I love your other IFs and can’t wait to see where those stories go!

Aw, thank you so much! Very happy to hear you enjoyed Apartment 3-3 ^^

I don't think I'd ever do a direct sequel to Apartment 3-3 but I do absolutely want to do more short stories down the road, and I'd love for some of them to be set in the same universe at least. I actually have the beginnings of another Modern Monster Romance IF titled Tusks and Teacups laid out in my wip folder already, although I don't know yet if it will ever progress far enough to see the light of day. Here's hoping, though!

[theweredrifter]

#𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔴𝔢𝔯𝔢𝔡𝔯𝔦𝔣𝔱𝔢𝔯     ⸻     an  independent  and  fandomless OC blog hosting a story-driven, layered character. Medium activity. Penned by an old crow, Rudy Grimm

From a normal man to a beast on the full moon, Gabriel became a monster. Wanted for the arrest of murdering his lover, he fled the country again, and now wanders the world. It's not just the law he's running from, but the Australian Centre for Disease Control. Having already been poked and prodded by scientists before the crime, Gabriel fears becoming a live experiment for the government. Chased by the law, private investigators, and a grieving family seeking answers. It changes you. Turning to a life of crime to line his pockets with more money, Gabriel has become a drifter, going from town to town, city to city, forever running. Will he ever find closure? Be apart of his story, and discover what becomes of the were drifter!

Fantasy OC | Single muse, multi verses | Triggering themes present and tagged | Mun is 31 | Literate writer with 13 years of experience | visually impaired and mobile friendly versions of information offered below, don’t forget to utilize reader mode!

THE  BLOG :  Medium activity with high spurts, verses are modern day supernatural which is the main, split into 3 separate timelines for development purposes, princess bride, mafia, Zombie apocalypse and a villain. Muse is gay. Only straight for @malka-lisitsa . M x M for romantic and smut. Open to platonic, friend and family plots. Please read my rules below the cut before interacting.

Please refrain from liking the post!

Tag directory | Verses | Prompts | Romance character sheet | About

Please have tumblr etiquette in regards to asks or I will unfollow. If you answer an ask and it continues beyond that initial post, please make a separate post, if you reblog the ask itself, it cannot be cut and clogs my feed. I will still engage you. I am NOT mutuals exclusive. If you have a tag for that, I can simply block the tag, and remain following.

I don't roleplay on discord.

I will not engage with anime, video game, cartoon fcs, or muses with no fcs. In hand with this. I will NOT write doubles of Drew Van Acker or Nina Dobrev. These faces are lovingly taken by @oceanicxeyes & @malka-lisitsa.

I will not engage with smut blogs. The only exception to that is @wickcdmindz. and @writtensins. Story > smut However, if you give me development or slow burn, your chances will sky-rocket.

No forcing a narrative. Natural chemistry is required. Muse is in his 30s, the youngest he'll be romantic with is 28.

Don't bring your drama here. If I see you engaging in negative OOC callouts/witch hunts etc, I will block you.

Gif usage is not mandatory. Icons and gifs are 150 x 150. Additionally, icons for verse 2 are done by the wonderful @mermakes! Gifs are pulled from public gif packs and pinterest.

God modding | Meta gaming: You are the only person in control of your character. This means that you cannot control another character, assume the outcome of an engagement before I've had a chance to react, or have your character know something that is only known out of character. The only instance this is allowed is if it was agreed between us. If you are concerned that you might be, just ask.

I strongly prefer one thread per partner because I overwhelm easy. I make exceptions, you just need to ask me.

Threads will be auto dropped at the 2 month mark if I’ve heard no word.

My character is multi-ship unless stated otherwise.

Inclusive: I will write with any nationality, or race. If our stories can mesh, have at thee!

Mun is a ND (neurodivergent) which in simple terms means I have ADHD. I am disability friendly, and autistic spectrum friendly! Let's be silly together!

I can handle and communicate uncomfortable conversations, and would like those who engage with me to be capable of the same. I’m an adult, and cannot do hints or assumptions. If you need to drop the thread, or you are seeking clarification, please ask me. I swear I'm sweet!

Dashboard reply speed: I am in the social worker field, so I’m very drained and I’d prefer quality over quantity but I’m always available via IM.

I do occasionally reblog non-reply posts. I will also reblog homosexual gif sets from time to time. This can be blocked, as can all tags on my blog by visiting the tag directory above so you aren't forced to see anything you don't want too. Audiences have the right to curate their dash. ALL NSFW content should be with 21+ muns; a strong preference to those closer to 30 and over.

Most importantly, I will no longer be making an attempt to reach out if people follow this blog. The amount of energy I have spent reaching out to every single one of my followers in the past has reaped very little reward. I reward those who have idea we can start with, no matter how bare bones it is. Don't prefer to plot? Jump in my prompts tag and send a prompt! I appreciate people making any effort, Gabriel is a deep character and I want to share my passion with other passionate writers.

[victorsandvanquishers]

The Red House (and all who live in its walls) - Chapter 13

Fandom: DC Comics

Ships: Bart Allen/Kon El

Ratings: M+

Warnings: Alternate Universe - Modern: No Powers; Southern Gothic Horror; Monster/Human romance uwu, Monsterfucking; Racism, Bodyshaming & Fatphobia; That Good Ol' Shame From Doing Dumb Shit at an Impressionable Age

Story Synopsis: When former child star and Metropolis sweetheart Kon 'Superboy' El loses the last vestiges of his career to rampant partying and a budding alcohol addiction, he's forced to move into an old house in the Georgian woods because he can't afford his apartment or his bills anymore. Never the quitter, Kon embraces the crumbling antebellum house and all of its possibilities.

[Bart Allen/Kon El, No Powers AU, gothic horror romance]

Chapter Summary: New friends, a new job, and a cold, dead boyfriend - what could possibly go wrong?

~~~

And so he returns to showbiz! How will our illustrious hero juggle work, the media, AND his cold, dead boyfriend? I promised you plot, and plot you will get, along with the finer things in life like reading about Kon getting railed by demon!Bart. We all need a little monsterfucking horror in our lives. What happens next? Find out next time on The Red House (and the flesh-eating ghost-vampire-hybrid that lives inside its walls)!

Thank you for reading, and don't forget to leave a review!!! （〃｀ 3′〃）

[dominimoonbeam]

Bite to Bruise - 30

This work is mine and I do not give consent for my works to be used, copied, published, or posted without my permission. I am sharing chapters as I work on this story but it is copyrighted material that I plan to rework and publish when completed.

story tags: modern-fantasy mashup, werewolves, witches, monsters, romance, learning to trust, hurt/comfort, blood, violence, explicit sex, explicit language

The earlier parts can be found under the tag or over on patreon. <3

BITE TO BRUISE - CHAPTER 30

Bellamy had told herself she’d never go back to Ceres, not after spilling her blood in her apartment that night she saved Oscar from the iron curse.

She hadn’t stepped across the portal she’d held for Ever and his pack the night they took Kai’s territory in the city and told herself that that counted as steering clear—that she wasn’t compromising her own safety for them.

She was a liar, of course.

She’d been compromising her safety when she took Piper’s form and let herself get kidnapped by shades.

She’d been compromising her safety when she returned to that pack, trusting that they wouldn’t rip her to pieces and still trusting that none of them would put two and two together and sell her back to Baron.

And now, here she was, on the Ceres side of her new doorway to ground the anchor on this side.

She was back in the city she’d told herself she’d told herself she’d never step foot in again. And she had a list of reasons why it was suddenly okay.

Surely anyone on her trail would think she’d left town. No one would think she would be stupid enough to go back. And even if they did come looking for her in Ceres, she would be gone in a few hours.

The doorway flickered between this one, leading from the warehouse office into a coat closet, to Sunny’s childhood bedroom in Ever’s house.

Ever had followed her over, adding to that sense of safety she wasn’t sure she should be relying so heavily on. She knew he would protect her as long as he could, but she had Baron out there looking for her and he had Florian Blackwell pushing at his territory lines.

Sense told her to run, for herself and for him.

Ever might be able to take on Blackwell and win, but Blackwell and Baron?

And what about her? She’d spent her whole life honing her skills to escape, not fight.

She scratched a black nail against the doorframe, leaving no mark that could be seen.

-

Sunny leaned against another door, watching her work over his brother’s shoulder.

He couldn’t tell what she was doing, but whatever it was, it seemed to be stabilizing that connection between the two places, the flickering image in the doorway steadily holding longer and longer as his room in the valley rather than the dark closet.

He wrinkled his nose, fighting the urge to sneeze at the thick, irritating scent of magic. How did Ever put up with it?

He rolled his shoulders and stepped away.

The streets outside were snow laden and bright. Leigh and Oakley were jogging trails on the streets, keeping guard as their witch worked. The goal was not to let anyone else realize she was there or had ever been there. They’d portaled directly into the warehouse, just like last time.

There was a hum of fear and alarm in the streets as the residents realized the wolves were back. It had been a quiet storm with no pack in this stretch of the city for long weeks.

Sunny walked on two legs up the street. He had already noticed damage that hadn’t been done during their take of the territory. Downed street signs, broken windows, and graffiti.

It had been a sort of punishment to leave the territory unguarded for the start of winter, but he was surprised how much those acts of vandalism bothered him. It was his territory and he had left it to decay. The mess was his now.

Already he knew he wouldn’t be leaving when the witch was done with her door.

He couldn’t leave this part of Ceres unprotected anymore.

A howl sounded blocks away, toward the heart of the city and the streets where his territory butted up against Royal’s.

Sunny shifted to close the distance and then shifted back when he reached Leigh, boots kicking snow and hands in his pockets when he stepped off the sidewalk to meet the other alpha at that invisible border.

“I wasn’t sure you’d come back,” Royal said, something curious in his voice. He hadn’t realized they were coming this time, just like he hadn’t realized last time.

Sunny smiled easily. “Why wouldn’t I?”

Royal was a big man, somehow befitting of his name. Sunny wasn’t sure if he fit his name or if it would even be flattering if he did. “It’s a lot of territory,” Royal said, more concern than threat in his voice.

Leigh growled lowly but Sunny didn’t bat an eye. He looked around, as if considering the size of this new piece of Hayes territory. “The valley is bigger,” he countered, even though that was only true in size, not number of residents.

“So, you’ll be the one holding these streets?” Royal clarified, somehow managing not to say “kid” even though they both heard it like an echo of all their past conversations.

Sunny grinned. “Looks like it. I guess that makes us neighbors.”

The other alpha nodded slowly, looking Sunny over as casually as possible. When it became obvious they were not going to present Royal with Ever, he nodded again and looked around at the stretch of Hayes streets he could see from his side of that felt but not seen line. “I’m not your enemy,” the other man said clearly. “If you need help, or you want to talk about this, I’m here.”

Sunny wondered for the first real time in his life if he trusted Royal. He’d never really had to think about who he did and did not trust before. He had trusted Ever and that was all he’d needed. Was that how Leigh and Oakley would feel about him? Would they any other wolf he took to his territory just trust him and let that be enough?

The weight of that was new but not unwelcome. He thought he could bear it.

Royal huffed and took a step back before turning, shifting into a fenrir and stalking down his streets with ease, no fear at showing Sunny his back.

Sunny liked that because he didn’t want Royal to fear him. He hoped to trust him.

-

Bellamy got the anchor finished in a matter of hours. It wasn’t what she’d call a rushed job. It had been done right, she had just done it as quickly as she could to get back out of Ceres.

It ended up not mattering because when she returned to the house ahead of Ever, rubbing the headache through her temple and stomping down the hall toward the kitchen, she felt something off changed in the valley.

It was infinitesimal, but like a tiny thorn caught in the fibers of a clothes, scraping at her skin.

She forgot her search for a drink of water and walked instead to the back door, pushing it open. The snow had stopped falling and Ever had shoveled the walkways. There were deep tracks in the valley from fenrir bodies.

She took another step out, collecting snow on her boots and staring at the woods. It was the direction of her meadow and her home. Another step and she saw the figure stepping out of the trees to mirror her from afar.

The sun was low and the sky smeared in vivid purples and pinks.

Oscar met her gaze even at that distance and Bellamy felt a cold that had nothing to do with the snow.

He was a finder of lost things, just like her. Only that wasn’t true. Oscar really was a seeker, where she had been a seeker and a liar, hiding in plain sight.

Bellamy took another step toward him, her breath shaking out of her.

He knew where she was.

He knew.

And if he knew…

Another figure stepped out of the woods and at first she was confused, because why would one of the pack so casually walk past this stranger?

Bellamy shook her head as the fenrir was joined by a second, both loping through the snow toward her. She didn’t recognize them because she had never seen them before.

A howl ripped through the valley from the other side, from one of the houses as they realized there were rogues on their territory.